We asked some brilliant folks from the community to tell us about the most important lesson their business or career has taught them. We’ve shared some of those responses below.

Lori Erickson

I’m from Columbia, Missouri – a quirky college town in the heart of the Midwest. As the daughter of a first-grade public school teacher and a state wildlife conservationist, at an early age I learned the importance of fueling passion with action and caring about the greater good. Read more>>

Brian Herskowitz

I was born and raised in Houston, Texas. I knew early on that I wanted to be in entertainment. I started acting when I was nine or ten and was working as a “pro” by the time I was 11. The other formative event was studying judo. I began training with Sensei Karl Geis at the age of six. Read more>>

Sunir Patel

I was born in New York, raised in Ohio, went to school in Arizona, and ended up in California while working for Fender. I was fortunate to have parents that supported my interest in music as a teenager, and also installed a serious work ethic. My mom is an artist and my dad is an engineer, very business-minded. I got the best of both worlds from them. That directly impacted what I do today – there’s an artistic, fun side to owning a guitar store, but it is a real business that has to be run like one. Having the passion and drive for it has paid off. Read more>>

Mrs.Paola Fung | Private Chef and Owner of “Mrs. Paola” Catering

I was born in Lima, Perú but my background is 100 % Chinese. My grandparents on both sides moved from China to Peru. The fusion between Chinese and Peruvian food is something I have always been exposed to. I grew up cooking in my parents’ restaurants, which they first opened in Lima’s Central Market back in the 80s, when the “Chifa” (a Peruvian-Chinese restaurant, from the words “chi,” meaning eat, and “fan” meaning rice) was a relatively new concept. My mom worked on food distribution, while my dad ran the restaurants. He would have me step on beer crates to reach the counter, hand me a butcher knife (the kind I would never let my kids even come close to), and teach me how to cook. Read more>>

Tia Brisco | Organizational Mental Health Therapist

I was born and raised in the Antelope Valley, specifically in Palmdale and Lancaster. My family is quite well-known in the area for our involvement in business, music, and sports. I come from a strong, supportive background. My grandparents, especially my grandmother (we call her Momo), were the heart of our family. Momo taught me the value of hard work while also showing me how to be kind and generous. Every day, I strive to make her proud. She was the best role model I could have asked for. Read more>>

Brennyboombox

I grew up in a relatively small town in New Jersey called Colts Neck. Honestly, I had a good childhood and I grew up in a great town. I’m fortunate enough to have the same friends today that I did as a kid growing up there, so I’m extremely grateful for that. It’s interesting when I look back at my childhood because although I had a great time, it was also extremely confusing. Personally, in school I struggled a lot academically. All the tutors in the world couldn’t really help. That part was tough but it helped me attach myself to things that I was good at and interested in like music and songwriting. I wrote my first song in third grade and I’ve recently looked back at it in my old journal and it’s actually not half bad. As I continued to get older, most of my friends started moving in a more traditional route but I took the alternative route. I just always knew what I wanted and I also knew that I wasn’t going to feel fulfilled maneuvering any other way. It hasn’t always been perfect but I know it’s the correct path for me. Creating is my path. Read more>>

Christine Göös | Marketing Director, Podcast Host, and Creative

My father and uncle are renowned Italian clowns who come from a long line of circus artists (and were just awarded a lifetime achievement at The Monte Carlo circus festival earlier this year). My grandfather, Enrico Fumagalli, was a clown and an actor who appeared in Fellini’s films like Clowns and City of Women, and often partied with the famed director in Rome during the golden age of Italian cinema. Read more>>

Tyler Borich | Tattooer and Shop Owner

I was born and grew up in Cincinnati, Ohio. My father is a painter, he and my mom encouraged me and my sister to try any artistic outlets we were interested in. I learned to tattoo at Dana Brunson’s shop Designs By Dana, a busy walk-in shop that had been around for decades by then. I had a 2 year apprenticeship and I was fortunate that there was a real and in-depth curriculum in place to make sure I knew everything I would need to make solid tattoos that would last long term in the skin. Learning in a face paced sink-or-swim environment forced me to learn the basics of a good tattoo quickly and the standard was very high at the shop. My boss had been doing single needle tattoos for over 20 years by the time I started my apprenticeship so I was fortunate to have access to a wealth of knowledge about single needle and fine line tattooing. Doing so many tattoos in the first 4 years really gave me a great base of technical knowledge. We would sometimes do ten tattoos in a day so you could try all sorts of techniques and equipment and compare the results. The education I received in my apprenticeship was invaluable in opening my shop Best Wishes Tattoo in Eagle Rock. Read more>>

Carolyn Campbell | Photographic Artist – Writer – Art PR specialist

I was born in Washington, DC where, at age eight, I would take a bus past the White House to attend the Corcoran Gallery of Art’s children’s Saturday art classes. My parents worked for the Federal government and lavished art, music and dance lessons on their three daughters. Dad also played the clarinet and taught dance instruction. Mom was an award-winning writer, who also sculpted and did pen and ink drawings. I have a memory of not ever seeing any blank walls at our family home. We had floor to ceiling book cases bursting with volumes in all genres. The other spaces were covered with artworks by family and friends. My sisters and I grew up writing, making music, theatrical productions and art. Needless to say, this was fertile ground for my creative life ahead. Read more>>

Kyle Harrop | Owner, Jack Of All Trades at Horus Aged Ales

I am from the South Bay in Los Angeles County, El Segundo in particular. The area is much different today, but when I was growing up, it was a very small beach community where everybody knew each other. Most people worked in the aerospace industry or at the Chevron refinery. I actually worked for a major aerospace company based out of there for fourteen years, Baseball is also a major part of the town and was a large part of my childhood. I played for one of Coach Stevenson’s last teams before he passed away. I played baseball for as long as I could and after that focused on my career following graduate school. I have definitely always gravitated towards the beach. I think a lot of that has to do with where I am from, which is why I chose to move to North County San Diego in my early twenties. Real estate at the time was significantly more affordable too. Another main draw was the craft beer scene at the time. I was at the peak of my beer geekiness and the appeal of being next to so many world class breweries definitely impacted my move. I had homebrewed during college and picked it up again when I moved, being heavily influenced by my surroundings. Fast forward a half decade later and Horus was born in 2015. Read more>>

Kayee Kiu | Photographer

I was born in China and moved to Hong Kong when I was four. Growing up, I often felt like an outsider and never truly felt a sense of belonging in Hong Kong. My journey took a new turn when I moved to the Los Angeles to pursue my college studies. I lived in LA and NY for almost 9 years. Read more>>

Reza Akhavan | Music & Software publisher

I’m originally from New Jersey and now in north LA county. During the 20 years I’ve been here I’ve fallen into lots of roles. I worked in entertainment and digital media during college, and spent a few years running with a crew from Korea that threw parties in K Town and Hollywood. I was an in house DJ for one of the first and last record stores off Ventura Blvd. Even though what I do is trance or whatever, I was impacted by the attitude of LA hip hop culture. All this craziness gave me what I needed to turn Exist in Sound from an idea into a real thing. I like to see us as somewhere in between underground and encouraging do challenge ourselves to grow and make a bigger impact in turn to the dance music world. Read more>>