The Characteristics & Habits That Matter

We asked some of the city’s rising stars about why they think they have been so successful and we’ve shared their responses below.

Kaylin Moss | Fashion & Hair Model

I attribute my success in modeling to my confidence. I accept all my imperfections, resulting in an unwavering inner strength. I have received many no’s throughout my career, and I expect to receive many more. I turn criticism into learning experiences instead of letting external judgements deter me. Read more>>

Johnathan Taylor | Composer, Sound Designer, and Actor

The most important factor behind myself and my brand is the energy that I bring into the room. I have always aimed to spread love, positivity, and good vibes no matter what the situation may be. Bringing that energy brings out the best in me, and it brings out the best in others. If I wasn’t connecting with every person that I get the chance to work with or even a stranger that I may never see again, I would feel that I didn’t do my best work. The entire point of art is to share stories and connect with others, so I carry that with me wherever I go. Read more>>

Darnell + LaDonna Suggs | Franchise Owners

Integrity and support are the most important factors behind the success of our business and our brand. Integrity requires that you do what say you’re going to do. You keep your word. In business that translates to delivering on your brand promises without compromise. At THE TEN SPOT we commit to providing impeccable service in a clinically-clean energetic environment…we promise an experience that leaves every guest feeling like a ten and utterly excited about their next visit! Achieving that goal with every guest is the foundation of our success. We recognize that things happen, and when they do we go the extra mile to make it right and still ensure you #feellikeaten! Read more>>

Shamela Clark | CEO/Licensed Nail Technician

Besides providing awesome customer service & quality products, Consistency! You have to remain consistent even on the days you make zero dollars. Read more>>

Kristopher Anderson | Artist & Creative Director

I think the most important factor behind the success of my brand is my resilience and inability to accept anything less for myself than greatness. The growth I’ve seen on both social platforms & my art I credit to my want to be great at these things. With social media I want to inspire, educate, or just make someone laugh so when I create from that perspective it kept me from caring about numbers, often as human beings we tend to base the success of something on a number but the number has little to do with the actual thing. There were times the content I created did not receive as much attention as it does now but that did not stop me because it was not my focus. Read more>>

Maira De Leon | Live Wedding Painter

I think the most important factor(s) about the success behind what I do is; 1. the unique way a moment-in-time gets captured 2. the art that I produce will be treasured for generations to come Read more>>

South Rome | Music Artist

I think what’s most important to my success is not being afraid to be myself even when it’s then opposite of what everyone else is doing. Staying true to me and doing what actually makes me happy. Read more>>

Michael Pierino | Actor | SongWriter | Manager | Philanthropist

When I sit and analyze what continues to nurture the energy that ignites my aura I always come to one conclusion. If you are true to you, if you allow your genuine light to shine, and you combine that with your overwhelming passion, drive and appreciation for what you do, what truly motivates you. Within that mixture of natural light, passion and respect you will find success. Chasing what others have already established as their truth, their reality, only keeps you in second place. What got them there was being uniquely themselves, so do you, put in all the work and you will find them approaching you for inspiration and giving you that mutual respect. Read more>>

Christina & Antoine Keels | Photographers

In the beginning, one important factor for us, always, was to make sure that we had fun while doing this. The stress of constantly traveling to events/photoshoots and trying to find a balance between being a parent and being a photographer with thousands of photos to edit, can definitely take its toll. For us, we always said when it’s no longer fun, we will stop. With that being said, regardless of the hardships, it’s STILL FUN. We’re married and we get to travel and experience all of this together. In addition, we love what we do and we love making others happy. Read more>>

Hannah Tucker | HTX/Traveling Makeup Artist

The most important factor behind my success & brand is my mother, she saw every inch of talent in me when it came down to Makeup even when I couldn’t see it. March, 2018 she passed away and I honestly couldn’t see myself moving forward in ANY aspect of my life, one day I just sat back & re-evaluated my entire situation and in that exact moment I heard my mother speak to me,“you’re going to be something big one day” and from that point forward I NEVER looked back. Read more>>

Jon Connors | Real Estate Agent/ Real estate Investor

One of the most important factors behind my success would be taking risks. Everyone thought I was crazy to quit my corporate job and start my real estate journey full time at the pandemic’s beginning. Ultimately, I had two choices- continue to be unhappy or risk everything to see what the world was like on the other side. I can honestly say my journey has been incredible! Not only am I learning along the way, but I am also building valuable skills and relationships that will contribute to me building my brand. Read more>>

Nikki V. | Founder & Ceo of She’s Mixed, LLC

The most important factor behind the success of my brand would be its authenticity. I believe in staying true to the identity of the brand and relating it to the people. Success to me is when a customer is truly happy to wear their tee or sweatshirt with pride. Knowing that my brand is bridging the gap between self-awareness and cultural diversity is a success for me. Another important factor would be my positive attitude. I try to always see the good in every situation. Seeing things from an enthusiastic perspective, produces positive results. Read more>>

Lauren Cook | Boutique Owner

Authenticity goes a long way, and is an important factor in the success of my brand, Shop LuvLC. There are so many options when choosing online boutiques, they’re almost a dime a dozen. “Who are you able to trust with wardrobing an important event? Who always has honest reviews?”. These are the questions consumers have when shopping, especially shopping somewhere new. Being authentic and reliable while delivering on my brand’s promise of affordable stylish clothing builds rapport and trust that creates customer retention and loyalty. Over 40 percent of my customers are repeat shoppers. Read more>>

Kiara Crowder | Eyelash Technician & Educator

The past two years of my life, being a upcoming lash technician, taught me the importance of risk taking. I remember before I started my own business, so many of my friends and family doubted me. Although my mindset has always been that sometimes you have to do what you think is best for you, deep inside I also doubted myself. Without learning the important of risk taking, i probably wouldn’t have ever come to the decision that working a 9-5 on someone else’s time for the rest of my life maybe wasn’t for me. After a year of trying to balance out a full time job during the Covid-19 with barely any pto or vacation time needed for my five year old son and I.. the time finally came. It was such a risk taking opportunity to move on to the next chapter in my life! Read more>>

Doc ROBINSON SR. | Lead Vocalist if BlackPassionBand

Being consistent at leveling up each year, a lot of band have short term success and fade out after about a year and a half, this band / brand strives yearly to pursue bigger things than the last years goals and success. Read more>>

Nataia Trotter | Model & Lash Technician

The most important factor behind my brand is simply to never settle for less. I feel as if I stick to my mind my version of perfection is achievable. Read more>>

Shaniqua Hardeman | Creator

The most important factor behind my success is to never give up. Things may seem like it’s not happening or going where you want them to go but I would hate to get old knowing that I actually never tried hard enough. Success is a mindset, so continue to strive. Continue to fight after what you deserve. Anything worth having, you have to work hard & stay focus. Read more>>

Andrew Fennell | Creative Director

Consistency. Despite the creative climate, maintaining consistency is the most important factor behind the success of my brand. Sure, there’s ups and downs, and plenty of stale moments in between. I believe the point is to work each day with the mentality that art holds the most weight when it’s measured in the scope of the ages, not the various trends we find within one decade. Read more>>

Cristina Bolanos | Mom, Property Manager and Travel enthusiast

I know that I don’t do things on my own, I have a great team around me. So I’m certain that an important factor is choosing wisely who you work with, then getting to know your coworkers, and nurturing your team because they are your support system. Read more>>

Patrick Brackens | Personal Trainer and Fitness Coach

The most Important factor behind my success and anyone else is being consistent. With consistency, nothing is out of reach. All things are possible when you continue to show up and work. The problem most of us have is the courage to keep going. We face battles and become defeated and discouraged. This is only a test. Will you fail or pass? My brand has been successful simply because I kept moving forward regardless of what “set back” I felt I faced. Many people in my industry (fitness) tend to either stop or get comfortable once they reach a certain level of success. That could be a specific amount of followers or one viral video. Now the problem with this is everything on social media is a wave and as we all know, all waves fall eventually. So what’s next? Consistency. Consistency will separate you from everyone else. Stay hungry. Stay motivated. Slow motion is better than no motion. Most importantly, keep believing! Read more>>

Miss Tabitha C | Author, Speaker, & Business Owner

The most important factor behind my success is to know that I am meeting my overall goal; motivating other women. It doesn’t matter the amount of women I impact, I just need to know that I have made a difference in someone else’s life based off my plan/business Read more>>