6 Houston Business Owners. 6 Different Answers.
Article follows the order pictured by row

 

When you hear the word “success”, what do you think of? To many, success is measured by financial stability and high job performance. It is often seen as a competition between employees and peers — who gets promoted, receives a raise, and works the longest hours.

Success can be a daunting word, but it doesn’t have to be. To these six Houston business owners, success means something different. It’s a reminder that your definition is valid, even if it looks differently than those around you.

Courtney Hill Fertitta

Interior Designer — Courtney Hill Interiors
“We all should love what we do for a living. For me, if I can check that one off — that I’m happy doing what I do — than that’s a huge mark of success.”

Courtney also added that success for her is, “being able to do this [work] and raise a family at the same time.”

Greg Hamill

Photographer — Greg Hamill Photography
“Success to me is having a customer-needs focus. I take pride in helping people because getting in front of a camera and lights and everything is intimidating to a lot of people. So, I take pride in being able to get you to relax and have an expression that is appropriate for a business portrait.”

Shavonnah Roberts Schreiber

Managing Director — SNR Creative
“No matter who it is: Tiger Woods, Oprah, The President — you name the person — they have 24 hours in a day. They don’t have any extra time, and every day they get up and they have to make the best of whatever resources they have. Making the best of what you have is fundamental [for success].”

Ryan Born

Youth Minister — First Presbyterian
“A lot of these kids come to the youth group with heavy baggage in their lives. It’s my job — my privilege really — to help them realize that they’re loved and that their lives have meaning far beyond what they could fathom for themselves.”

Kahlia Guillory

Owner and Founder — Nap Bar
“Oprah Winfrey often says that ‘success just means that you were prepared for an opportunity that came your way. There’s really no such thing as luck.’ And it’s really the ideology that I’ve adopted because that’s really what success is.”

Hannah Kirby

Business Development — Excel Title Group
“When I was younger, I thought that success was money-driven. But after reaching my monetary goals, I realized that with more money comes more obligations and problems. Now, if I can buy time, that is a success.”

 

Each of their personal experiences plays a role in what’s important to their definition of success. When you think about defining it in your own life, don’t forget to include the things that matter to you. Make sure it’s yours, and that it actually works for your life.
After hearing these six versions of success from these incredible business owners, we want to hear from you! How do you define success? Leave it in the comments below!

 

Written by: Intern Julie Phillips