Hardwork? Luck? Good habits? What would you say is behind your success? We’ve shared some thoughtful responses below.

Omer BarSadeh | Founder & CEO

I’d say that the most important factor behind anyone’s success and mine included, is to keep going. Many times we find ourselves struggling: When you start a business you have an idea or a plan of how it’ll go. Like sewing a seed, you look for the perfect soil and environment. You put the sees in the ground, Your water it and make sure it gets sun. You give it love, a great attention and care. But even though you have a plan, and you think you know how it’ll all work out, things might be slower than expected. And then, many times the closest people in your life will try to ‘protect’ you, suggesting you’ll do something else, go for the ‘safe’ work that will give you security. And you’re confused. And a little scared. Money is about to run out, and you need to support yourself and your family… You start having second thoughts… My secret is – keep going. If you believe in what you do, You’ll make it. Read more>>

Abby Gallagher | Wedding Planner

The most important factor behind my success, and I know this will sound cheesy, is being true to myself. My personality has been one of the main selling points of my brand. I love logistics and creative designs, but more importantly, people hire me because I am fun and easy to get along with. Wedding planners are in a unique position as vendors since we are consistently working with our clients, sometimes upwards of 16 months in advanced. We become very close with each of our clients, and I love making sure we enjoy every meeting, whether in person, on the phone, or a zoom call- it’s OK as a professional to have a laugh, crack a joke, or have a deeper discussion that isn’t just about the DJ or flowers. Even when it comes to referrals I receive from other vendors, one of the greatest compliments I receive is usually directly from my vendors- that our team is a joy to work with. Read more>>

Jessica Fleurissaint | Entrepreneur

Being passionate is the fuel that inspires and gives me a great hunger to execute through difficult situations and allows my creative side to come out. From the late nights and the early mornings, reaching my goals and dreams caused by and destination has been the driving force to bringing my creative side out!    My passion for helping others look and feel beautiful , this feeling is what pushes me to be successful and move towards being the best in my craft. From Hair installation, hair care services, mink Eyelashes etc.., We strive to be #1 in the beauty industry As leaders and innovators. The desire to consistently bring forth excellent beauty products and tailor-made services to fit my client’s needs is why Jessie’s Beauty Lab succeeds. Read more>>

Kate Campbell, PhD, LMFT | Founder

As an entrepreneur and founder of multiple businesses (Bayview Therapy and The Private Practice Startup), the most important factor behind my success is my ability to stay true to my vision. Having a clear vision allows me to stay connected to “why” I do what I do. It keeps me aligned with my greater purpose and passion with a deep desire to help people live lives that they love. I can remember being in grad school in 2004 at Nova Southeastern University and meeting with my dad, Andy Mitchell – who is an amazing visionary and real estate developer for Auberge Beach in Fort Lauderdale. We talked for hours as we explored my future vision of having a counseling and psychology group practice in Fort Lauderdale with a team of clinicians who are passionate about their work, specialize in different areas, and committed to making a greater difference in our community. Read more>>

Courtney Senior | Artist

There are a lot of qualities required in starting and running your own business: intelligence, creativity, ambition, but for me I think a big part of success boils down to perseverance. From day one, I knew I wanted to make this a successful business and every day I strive to improve my artistic technique while simultaneously evolve the marketing side of my business. And while so much of the process presents exciting opportunities, it also presents enormous barriers that can really only be overcome by perseverance and persistence. From the early stages of not even knowing how to pack and ship a painting or set up an e-commerce website, to the ebbs and flows of inspiration and even sales, I could have easily let any of these issues break my stride. Read more>>

Jaime Odabashian | CEO

Our success is based on a very long standing attachment to classical traditions and values. While we engage in projects with a very open and inquisitive mind and are not afraid of bold or daring projects, we always approach them with the same foundations of maintaining integral values with our weavers, our creators, and our clients. This is in the tradition of Armenian commercial heritage and legacy across history. Read more>>

Vanessa James | Founder, Multimedia Creative & Culture Contributor

Resilience. At the heart of my brand, Vanessa James Media, LLC is a steady grace knowing that during the darkest moments or the heaviest days, light is always around the corner because of the passion behind my purpose. Success for me has transcended throughout my career in media and what started as a yearning for more professional growth, upward corporate momentum and money, has transformed into a more purposefully driven life as an entrepreneur. After a fifteen year tenure in radio, launching my own media and voiceover company in 2010 was a pivotal turning point in my career. Success now comes in the form of service, where I proudly lend my voice to radio stations and brands around the country while creating impact with my own brand VJMedia- that champions and celebrates fellow creators and entrepreneurs through local initiatives. Read more>>

Antonio Gallo | Restaurateur & Owner

One of the key success factors of our business Sardinia Ristorante has been due to consistency. Consistency in the preparation of our dishes, on the use of fresh ingredients. Also our consistency in service to our customers. We have been blessed to have staff working at Sardinia for almost as long as we have been open. Read more>>

Sophie Frabotta | Transformation Specialist & Spiritual Mentor

Be the work. This is the main principle I carry with me at The Awaken Co. We are a holistic lifestyle brand that offers transformation through several different aspects: Coaching, Circles, Certifications, + Crystals. We help you to transform your limitations, get clarity on your situation, release blocks and old energetic patterns, and access your true self and highest potential! And if we were not living this ourselves, how would we be able to guide others on this path. We also certify Spiritual Life Coaches and our five month training is geared around them going through there own transformation and embracing their rejected fractals of self, bringing it into self-healing and then moving into manifestation. Read more>>

Angela Rivera | CEO

The most important factor to my success is my Mindset. I learned a few years ago the power of mindset. I was lucky enough to be surrounded with very successful people who had a winning mentality. I started to learn the way they thought and operated. I started to understand the power I had with the right mindset. I realized that if I wanted something different, if I wanted to accomplish something great, I would then need to operate at a higher level. I needed to be mentally stronger, emotionally stronger. I had to be relentless and extremely self aware. The biggest switch in mindset that changed everything for me, was going from a Victim mindset to a Victor mindset. It’s so common and easy to believe everything in life is happening to you and anything bad that has happened to you justifies why you CAN’T do something or be successful. Read more>>

Jamie Ratowski | Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist

I can attribute my business success to a lot of things, both big and small. However, if I realllllly had to choose, I think building a strong professional support system has been my ultimate secret weapon. I’ve been lucky enough to build working relationships with intelligent colleagues during my time in the field who I have learned and grown from clinically, essentially helping me become the therapist I am today. But even more so, I’ve surrounded myself with smart business women who share similar passions as my own and have built successful, thriving private practices. I’ve always been able to learn by example, absorbing the useful and helpful information that can benefit me and tailoring this to make it my own. Read more>>

Twyla Gettert | Artist

The most important factors behind my success have come from following my artistic instincts and taking risks. The road leading to where I am today has been a continual lesson in risk, perseverance, drive, and finding new ways to express my creativity through my art. There have been many challenges. It has always been a goal to keep my artwork inspired and fresh. There is nothing safe about being an artist and making it your full-time profession. It is my curiosity that drives me to try new mediums, techniques, and to keep my art new and surprising. I also would say that I measure success in my art when a viewer starts to look at the world a little closer and with a different view through art. Read more>>

DJ Anomaly | South Florida DJ Services

We believe the most important factor behind our success is the quality of service we provide, Whether it be small event or large event we contact directly with our clients without a middle person, which sometime can bring complication in getting the smallest detail to us. Direct communication has given clients opportunity to be more engaging and identify the smallest detail that they may have not been able to convey to a middle person. We communicated with clients as frequently as they like and believe this build trust and the confidence that they need to know they have chosen the best company for the provide dj services along with lighting and photo booth. Direct communication has also brought us several additional business as prior clients speak about their experience with us. The biggest things outside of the quality is that they are able to communicate with us directly. Read more>>

Charlie Fallon, Nick Ward & Ryan Kaufman | Owners

The success of our brand/company TAXI GARAGE we would have to say comes from our PASSION. The TG team is lead by a partnership between Charlie Fallon, Nick Ward and Ryan Kaufman. Having a combined 35+ years in the automotive industry it comes natural that we can’t touch anything without modifying it with upgrades. From what started as a bi-weekly hobby riding the carts, getting asked “What are those? and “How can I get one” from every time we went out only made sense to launch this business. Read more>>

Eric & Roger | Vice President & President

The most important factor behind our brand has been to satisfy our customers as best we can with our finished products and make sure they can enjoy their outdoor living areas for years to come. Read more>>

Demetrios Christopoulos | Architect

Clearly any success we have achieved is from being attentive to the customer’s needs. When I was younger and more immature I had made it more about me. The older seasoned me knows now to make it about “them”. I try to tell my staff that the best service model we could pick is the waiter or waitress. Are we on time with filling the need, pouring the water into the glass, approaching them soon enough after they make their presence to take note of what they want? Everyone has been waited on, you know how it feels to be taken “care” of. Perhaps your tip might be in proportion to how much “care” you received. Funny how “care” is more important than the talent you are dispensing. Read more>>

Benjamin Rusnak | Commercial, Editorial and Fine Art Photographer

Imagination, creativity and adaptability help me navigate an ever-changing landscape. These skills are important for drawing clients to my work, as well as solving real world business problems. Read more>>

Kaela Genovese | Owner & Jewelry Designer

Personally, I feel I can contribute much of my success to living a very ritualistic life. I am a creature of habit. I thrive on having a harmonious daily routine that consist of being healthy and happy on a regular basis. Of course, life throws you curve balls (more than you’d like at times) but it’s important to realize YOU are responsible for YOUR happiness and YOU have the power to lift YOURSELF up! Be the change that you wish to see! Read more>>

Sean Russell | Founder & Director

The power of partnerships and collaboration has been key to the success of the Youth Ocean Conservation Summit program. In 2011, as a first-year college student, I created a plan to launch the first Youth Ocean Conservation Summit, with the support of partners and mentors from Mote Marine Laboratory and Aquarium. Their initial belief in this idea, and in the ability of young people to take meaningful action to protect our ocean planet, was crucial in turning this plan into a reality. Over the course of the past decade, the program has grown from that idea, into a network of youth-led events across the country – each supported by community partners and individuals who contribute their time, energy, funding and expertise, to help equip young people with the tools and resources to create an action plan to protect their local marine environment, and bring that plan to life. Read more>>