Getting to do what you love? Providing for your loved ones? What does success mean to you? Below you’ll find perspectives from some of the city’s best and brightest.

Danielle J | Creative photographer

I believe success is connected to who you are and where you come from. For me its more than a bank account number or what zip code is on my mail. Success for me looks like inspiring others to accomplish their dreams and goals. I know that I’m doing something right when others are inspired my life. Success for me is also not giving up, you might not be where you want to be but you’re not where you used to be, and that says success when you just keep going. Read more>>

Jasmine McLaughlin | Mental Health Therapist | Holistic Life and Business Coach | Content Creator

I define success as having the freedom to spend my time how I choose to and doing what matters most to me–spending time with my loved ones, traveling, and participating in activities that spark joy for me. Success also means making an impact on the lives of others while making an income that supports the lifestyle that I desire. Read more>>

Thomas Minor | Photographer & Student

From my perspective, current society defines success in terms of wealth, notoriety, and influence. While these metrics may be a goal for certain kinds of accomplishment, I think they can skew our personal ideas of success. The idea that only people like Jeff Bezos, Elon Musk, or Warren Buffet are the benchmark for success is misplaced. The situations and opportunities that people like this have had are one in a million, absolutely no discredit to their hard work and passion, and the evident truth is that not everyone is presented with these opportunities. Read more>>

Tom Roberts | Tom Grimes Cosplay

For me success is being satisfied with what you have accomplished or knowing that you’re heading in the right direction to achieve your own goals. It isn’t necessarily all about likes or followers. We all know algorithms on social media are unpredictable so, basing success on a number of likes is pointless, or comparing yourself to another user who has way more followers than yourself, anyone can get lucky with a reshare which can hugely impact those figures. Read more>>

Stone Stafford | Co-Owner – Icon Studios ATL

As we already know, success is different for everyone. Success for me, personally, is simply defined as having the ability and resources to do what I want to do, when and how I want to do it, while being able to help, bless or otherwise benefit others without need for concern for my own viability. Read more>>