Life, Lessons, & Legacies

Through the work we do we are incredibly fortunate to find and learn about so many incredible local artists, creatives and entrepreneurs. Their stories, the lessons that they’ve learned and the legacies they are building inspire us beyond words. Below, we have highlighted a few of those amazing folks and we hope you’ll check out their stories and their responses to some of the fundamental questions the help form the foundation of our lives and careers.

Conner Cherland

I remember being a kid and seeing Tarzan for the first time and feeling jacked. I tried walking on my knuckles for a while – not with a closed fist – like how Tarzan actually does it in the film on his middle knuckles. Movies made me feel that way a lot as a kid, like I could do anything. Read more>>

Aaron Philip Clark

In some instances, taking the easier route would have meant remaining in the corporate world, where I could’ve made far more money earlier in life than working as an educator and writer. However, I know with certainty that I would’ve been miserable. I recall reading that one of my favorite authors, Walter Mosley, was working in the tech industry. Read more>>

Soraya Yousefi

Something I think I will regret longterm is not limiting my social media consumption sooner, and consuming more than I’m creating. Read more>>

Karen Belton

I would regret not trying to do everything I wanted. I want to do as much as possible with the life I’ve been given. I don’t want to go to heaven and have God ask me what I did with all the talents He gave me and not have a good answer. Read more>>

Dominique Becton

I used to believe that you had to be famous, popular, or deeply connected to succeed in this industry. A former best friend once told me that, and it really stuck with me — honestly, it crushed me for a while. Read more>>

Gene Cook

I used to believe ‘it’s just entertainment.’ The idea was that TV and film’s main goal is to entertain, and that was enough. But over time, I realized that even when we’re entertaining, there’s always messaging in our work. Read more>>

Monica Blanco

The cultural value I protect above all is love and connection with my family. Read more>>

Brian Herskowitz

I am not sure that this is a cultural value, but it sure should be – integrity. Hollywood is often characterized as a fake and phony industry. Part of that is true. Actors portray things that they are not… but that spills over onto the other areas. Sometimes that’s warranted, sometimes it isn’t. Read more>>

Krista Parada

Resistance I feel is extremely important to keep and protect, especially with the current state of the world. Being a Chincanx, resistance is and integral part of my culture. It’s imbedded in my DNA and I always encourage the younger generation to question everything, to speak up if they find something wrong. Read more>>

Eve Elliot

I am very thoroughly American; parts of my family have been here since at least the 1600s. The more I’ve gone abroad and explored other cultures, the more I understand what makes me American, and the more connected I feel to that identity. There’s so much I love about this country and its culture – obviously our musical heritage, to start. Read more>>

Rocio Diaz

Authenticity is very important to me. Not only can it be exhausting trying to be someone else or something you aren’t but it’s also a disservice to yourself and the world to dim your own unique light. Read more>>

Camila Pons del toro

A cultural value I protect at all costs is the sense of family and the importance of traditions. Growing up in Mexico, I was surrounded by a culture that celebrates rituals and shared experiences, and that shaped how I see the world. Read more>>

Jeremy Wang

While we do believe that, in business, ‘the customer is always right,’ I will not allow a homeowner to disparage a team member of ours. I will always have the back of our team, as I know everyone who works with us has the highest ethical standards. Read more>>

Spyder Dobrofsky

In the industry, each failure, as painful as they are, and as badly as — you wish a movie did better than it should’ve or that project that shouldn’t have fallen apart that did — you really do learn something in the process. You can’t be aware of what you learned. Read more>>

Bea Qian

This might not be a failing hard situation, because even though I suffered a lot emotionally, I was still lucky considering the situation I was in. I think growth is a constant effort as you stop having fictional hope and aspiration to things that you imagined to be your destination. Read more>>

Young Man Kang

In the early 2000s, I was a very active independent filmmaker in Los Angeles. Because of that reputation, production companies in my home country, South Korea, began calling me to direct big commercial films. I traveled back and forth between LA and Seoul several times for meetings and pre-production. But despite many promises, those projects kept falling apart because producers couldn’t secure full financing. Read more>>

Ismael Guerrero Bombut

I wouldn’t call it “failing hard,” because failure is such a subjective concept. However, there was definitely a particular time when things didn’t go the way I expected. During my three-year fellowship with the Los Angeles Philharmonic, I was taking several orchestral auditions — all for top-tier orchestras. That was part of the program’s mission: to prepare you for those jobs. Read more>>

Norris Duckett

I had to make the choice to stop holding back. Failing wasn’t the difficult the difference was made when I went into a relentless mode. Having. That kind of mentality your perspective shifts into proper focus on your purpose in my opinion. Read more>>

Sam Hajighasem

The most surprising thing I’ve learned is how many business owners underestimate how interesting they actually are. Most founders think people only care about their product or service but audiences connect far more deeply with them as humans. Once we start building content around their stories, lessons, and behind-the-scenes moments, engagement and trust skyrocket. Read more>>

Paul Rahn

I actually change my mind quite often—especially after testing new ideas or decisions in a safe, low-risk environment. I’ve learned that experimentation is essential to growth, both personally and professionally. Sometimes I’ll try a new approach, system, or process and realize it doesn’t deliver the results or alignment I expected. Rather than viewing that as a setback, I see it as valuable feedback. Read more>>

Elena Nicorici

It’s a good question. Around this time, 2 years ago, I was having a phone conversation with my Dad – just catching up and letting him know about the creative things I was doing at the time. Read more>>

Maja Trochimczyk

When reflecting on formative experiences of my childhood, I notice patterns of behavior that extend to the present. How to deal with negative emotions, fear or sorrow? Resilience is something that should be taught at school, instead of endless focus on victimhood and trauma. Read more>>

Anna Eastman

Hot take here, but dating apps! I am an incurable romantic and anyone who says that they aren’t the least bit romantic is lying. I think dating apps have eliminated the excitement, the challenge, and the deeply human experience of taking a shot in the dark with a total stranger. Read more>>

Monique Montgomery

Smart people’ often mistake being busy for being effective. They focus on the wrong metrics, overlook human insight, and forget that long-term impact matters more than immediate results. Read more>>

Sadaf Qadir

So many people in today’s world only engage in growing in isolation. They find it difficult or painful or too time consuming to interact with others so they end up choosing not to at all. And this is really damaging to society as a whole because we no longer have communities where people can feel supported. Read more>>

Peggy Sivert

I think many smart people are too focused on making money—using their intelligence primarily to accumulate wealth and power. The pursuit of success becomes a self-perpetuating cycle, where the goal shifts from improving the quality of life to simply producing more wealth. In the end, life itself becomes about making money, and that’s an empty pursuit. Read more>>

Michael Gurshtein

Intellectual ability does not correlate well with emotional ability, and I think this is most true in the smartest, wealthiest, and most powerful people. They believe that being smart means they know what’s best for the world, and act from this erroneous belief in all kinds of harmful directions. I am guilty of this belief too for much of my life. Read more>>

Farron Dozier

I think a lot of smart people are getting it wrong by thinking knowledge or success can fix what’s really broken inside. We keep chasing information, titles, and platforms; but what’s missing is belonging. Read more>>

Garrett Broussard

The top 3, in no particular order, would be Matt Dinniman, Stephen King, and myself. Learning from myself isn’t some arrogant, ‘I’m the best, be my own CEO’ type thing. I just believe that we all have a lot to tell ourselves and we gain so much by being willing to listen. Read more>>

Randy Colosky

Lately Ive been watching science lectures from the Royal Institution, I like seeing experts in there field speaking about research their directly involved in and passionate about.  Read more>>

Leah Avigdori

Life in general is my greatest teacher. My children constantly teach me patience, presence, and unconditional love, always mirroring back the parts of me that still need gentleness. My clients are my biggest fans and always give me so much love and trust and that teaches me to trust myself. Read more>>

Mallery Jenna Robinson

I deeply admire my mother, Terese Dione Robinson, for her unwavering integrity, compassion, and resilience. She led by example, not through authority or influence, but through the consistent ways she cared for others, upheld her values, and faced life’s challenges with grace. Her character—her kindness, honesty, and commitment to justice—taught me that true strength comes from empathy, humility, and courage. Read more>>

Cheng Guo

Socrates I think that even today, no one truly stands at the same height as him. Although he had no political or physical power, he deeply influenced countless people throughout history — even up to the present day. I only got to know about him in recent years, but I was amazed by his personality and his profound understanding of humanity. Read more>>

Christine Reed

I admire Maggie Barry she is a fashion designer, and a super humble person. She works like me with many high end celebrities and caters to the elite but does not brag about it. She has shown me the keeping her mouth shut. Most of the time is better than living in your ego. Read more>>

Anoop Surya

I think Keanu Reeves. I admire him for being genuinely kind and grounded—there’s nothing pompous about the way he carries himself. But what really inspires me is his ability to juggle so much—acting, filmmaking, music—all while navigating the profound hardships he’s faced in his life. He’s proof that you can stay humble and human while building an incredible career, even through unimaginable loss. Read more>>

Los Angeles Barea

I used to admire rock stars and actors—but not anymore. Today, my real heroes are the young people who are shaping the world, making it greener and safer for future generations. They have superhuman powers—not the kind you see in movies, but the kind that changes the world. They fight for a livable planet, for peace, and for justice. Read more>>

Christine Rasmussen

Two quotes that help me stay on track and regulate are: “Success is liking yourself, Liking what you do, And liking how you do it.” –Maya Angelou Measuring myself to these standards helps me to feel my own success, even when I can’t always show it in the narrow capitalistic definition of money or accolades. Read more>>

Myron McClure

well, believe it or not, I’m actually pretty camera shy when in front of the camera. I find that a lot of photographers give instructions like ‘ok now give me a sexy look. Now give me a mean look’ and that just doesn’t work for me. Am I great at taking photos, sure. But, even better am I at getting my client relaxed. Read more>>

Gail Siller

Absolutely, yes! So many times I scroll through my galleries and think, Wow, I wish I had family pictures like this. From start to finish, I make the whole experience laid-back and fun. There’s zero pressure for kids to behave perfectly, I’m there to capture whatever mood the moment brings, whether it’s laughter, snuggles, or even those perfectly imperfect messy faces. Read more>>

Chad Fjerstad

Yes, because over all else I value the baring of one’s innermost self through work, and the world currently needs higher doses of spotlighted human persona than ever before. Many individuals seem to be freezing up or losing themselves in fits of rage or confusion as a conscious or subconscious reaction to technology rapidly and inevitably changing everything we have ever known as a species. Read more>>