Students at Jones College Prep have begun their own entrepreneurial paths,causing many students to determine the importance of balancing their personal lives with their business.

To pursue her interest in the beauty-tech market, Dayeli Gomez ‘25, vice-president of the Jones Baile Latine team, decided to begin her own nail business and strives to seek balance between her school work, after school activities, and the demands of her own business.

“It’s all about perseverance and patience,” said Gomez.

Gomez began painting nails during the summer of 2021 as a way to relieve her boredom and save money. As her expertise grew, so did her clientele. 

“I started to get better and from there people would ask me to do their nails, then I was like let me make some money off of this,” said Gomez.

In order to manage her time, Gomez uses her privileges as a freelance worker as a way to take breaks; however, this doesn’t mean the job isn’t stressful. 

“One thing I do is make sure that all my school work is done and I have everything in order before I confirm a client. I usually only take clients on Fridays and weekends,” said Gomez.

One of “Nails by Dayeli” clients, Guadalupe Espinosa ‘25, confirms the difficulty of starting a business while maintaining a balance with school. 

“I think she is one of the few people who are able to start their business and keep it going on top of their school work and other extracurriculars,” said Espinosa. 

Espinosa is inspired by her nail tech and hopes to one day start a business of her own. 

“I would be interested in making flower bouquets. Seeing her [Dayeli] be able to do it inspires me to do so even more,” said Espinosa. 

Similarly to Gomez, Karrington Stuart ‘24, the co-captain of majorettes and co-president of black leaders and mentors, has her own music management business, “Karristu MGMT LLC,” as well as a candle business, “StillBurningKandles.”

Stuart was encouraged to start her own music agency after it was suggested by her best friend, whose music she used to manage. 

“I had an LLC that I rarely used and after he encouraged me to pursue music management I’ve never looked back,” said Stuart. 

Although Stuart faces the demands and stress that come with owning two businesses and partaking in extracurriculars, she finds pleasure in working on her own schedule. 

“Whether I am genuinely supported or not, whether my peers choose just to watch me or not, I love the freedom of having choices and not being limited by the thought that I can or can’t do this or that,” said Stuart. 

In order to manage her time, Stuart  makes her clients aware of her busy schedule. 

“I have had to tell my clients that my workload will be reduced due to school or just needing time to get everything together. Overall, what’s really worked for me is just having boundaries with everyone in my life,” said Stuart. 

Stuart is grateful for the stress that comes with owning a business and being in school, as she claims it’s her main motivation. 

“I’m stressed every week. I think that’s a good thing though because having something to be stressed about is a blessing,” said Stuart.