We were fortunate to catch up with some brilliant artists, creatives and entrepreneurs from throughout the Houston area and they share the wisdom with us below.

Christopher Dahl | Reiki Master Practitioner/Teacher

My wife, son, and I were all diagnosed with Lyme Disease in 2013. One of the treatments that we felt helped us the most was receiving Reiki. This inspired my wife Amanda and I to learn Reiki and become practitioners ourselves, both for our own treatment and to help others. Read more>>

Bee Bloeser | AUTHOR, STORYTELLER, EDUCATOR: Author of Vaccines & Bayonets: Fighting Smallpox in Africa amid Tribalism, Terror and the Cold War

I hadn’t decided to start a business. But I HAD decided to write a book. In fact, I had no choice but to write the book. The idea came after I read through the hundreds of pages of detailed documents my late husband had saved. Read more>> 

Sara ONeil | Author & Relationship Expert

For me, success is loving where I’m at. Not some future amazing life but today in the here and now. This doesn’t mean that every day will be a cakewalk and I won’t be leaping out of bed singing happy, full-voiced power ballads every morning–there is a balance. Read more>> 

Hula Ramos | Broadcast Specialist

Honestly, for me as I was getting into my career in media, I watched how people reacted to things I did or said on the radio or on tv. The big thing I noticed is people would say things like, “Thank you for being so honest about your life, whether good or bad. Read more>>

Jason Chipkin | Volunteer Animal Rescue Pilot

As a passionate aviator since 1998, I found my wings in more ways than one when I began volunteering for charitable flights in 2006. Over the years, I’ve witnessed firsthand the transformative power of flight, particularly when it comes to giving dogs a new leash on life. Read more>>

Kundan Baidwan | Artist & Bar Tender

I am inspired by the little things that often we are too busy to enjoy; the way the light bounces off a building, the moss that grows around a stone paver, the cherry blossom petals getting swept into the air by a gust of wind. Read more>>

Queer Punk Filipinx aka Izzy Rimando | Artist, Designer, Small Business Owner, Community Organizer, Aspiring Extreme Vocalist, Actual Demon

I find that most of my artwork and creative endeavors are inspired by one or more of the following themes. The first and most apparent is horror, primarily anything with blood and guts. Ironically I didn’t consume much horror media growing up until around high school. Read more>> 

Lily Tran | Wedding Planner & Coordinator

I wanted to take a moment to thank the Shoutout SoCal team forgiving me the opportunity to spotlight Slay Events! 🙂 The most important factor behind the success of Slay Events is my unwavering commitment to exceeding client expectations. Read more>>

Macey Keung | Founder of Antifragile Zine

When we founded Antifragile in June of 2020 as two teenagers with a simple Instagram post, we would have never predicted the impact it would have. Within just a month, we had a tight-knit following of over 1000 people, a dedicated team of over 25 people from all around the world, and over a couple hundred submissions for our first print issue published in September that same year. Read more>>

Taylor Renfroe | Model and Content Creator

Traveling. I believe that seeing the world is vitally important to a human being’s growth and development. Having new experiences and being in new environments I have never been in before bring me so much fulfillment. Read more>> 

Cash Scott | Owner & Tattoo Artist

I guess the most important lesson I’ve learned is how to be resilient. There are many challenges that come from working as an artist and owning a business in an industry that does not provide a necessity and has a lot of competition. Read more>> 

Arlene Bravo | Beauty content creator

I would say choosing to become a beauty creator has definitely allowed me to show my creative and artistic side through my makeup looks and has allowed me to truly express my self and has just allowed me to become very comfortable in my own skin. Read more>>