As almost any entrepreneur or creative will tell you, unexpected problems are to be expected. Below, you’ll hear some incredible stories that highlight and illustrate the kinds of issues and problems entrepreneurs and creatives are dealing with everyday. It’s not easy, but the silver lining is that dealing with unexpected problems is one of the best ways to develop antifragility.

 Cheryl & Caitlin Kohnke

As family business owners, we are BIG fans of them. We’ve come to find out, after thinking about expanding our employees, that one of the major positives of a family business is everyone has the same investment in and dedication to the success of the business. Folks coming into a job, strive for its success for financial gain or maybe because they do really believe in the mission, but for the members of a family business this “job” has so much more meaning and weight. But also because of this weight, comes some pitfalls. With the amount of time and energy we spend together investing in the bakery, business and our personal connection can become too intertwined. There are many stereotypes about butting heads with family members, or feeling a pressure to join an existing family business for children, and generally that there is a possibility of a business harming your relationship with loved ones when the two worlds combine. We both can agree that making this decision together, as two adults fully aware of what can happen to families that are in business together, really contributed to a healthy response to possible problems that have come up or will in the future. This business has posed an invaluable experience of being able to grow our relationship in new ways with having connected goals. There is never a guarantee to how much time you are allotted with your loved ones, and we are lucky enough to get to spend so much time (on the brink of crazy co-dependency actually) together, enjoying special, happy moments and working through challenging, scary moments. Read more>>

Hannah Maltry

The short version is: I wanted to be a ballerina when I was young and toiled my days away working toward that dream. Went to the doctor for what I thought was a pulled muscle before taking off for what was to be THE summer of auditions and instead was diagnosed with a career ending disability. Six years after that I suffered a TIA (mini stroke) that still affects my dominate hands steadiness. I spent the next decade trying to replace that passion settling on graphic design in college. The “art” degree with a nearly guaranteed job at the end. Many different career paths later, including a web developer job for which I was wildly under qualified but had just enough confidence to talk my way into and I was still unhappy at work. Then came a mental health criss after having my first child which got me painting again to cope. Three years later I quit my web developer job and officially became a full time artist. Today I’m working on the dainty little project that is painting every bird in North America. Read more>>

Raymone Williams

Backstory of the Issue: Before the pandemic, my restaurant, Tastee Spoon, had been thriving. However, the sudden onset of COVID-19 and the consequent restrictions brought an unforeseen halt to operations. Read more>>

Keithra Morley

My crafting business was thriving, with customers flocking to get their creative items. However, the unexpected arrival of the COVID-19 pandemic sent shockwaves through businesses worldwide, and mine was no exception. As news of lockdowns and restrictions spread, I faced the immediate challenge of temporarily closing the doors to my crafting business. The heart of my business, the communal crafting experience, suddenly seemed in jeopardy as social distancing measures took precedence. Read more>>

Daniela Garcia

Being an entrepreneur is both liberating and intensely scary because the one thing that I did not expect was that for my business to succeed my emotional and mental health need to be always in check. I believe that any line of business we are in, if you are an entrepreneur we hold the responsibility of everything that your business reflects. This does not mean that we have to be happy 24/7.. it just means that we have to manage our emotions, and our mental and physical health at all times, revise whatever needs to be addressed at all times, give way to difficult feelings and conversations, push ourselves out of the comfort zone and work diligently in the direction that we want to go. It takes a lot of ovaries, discipline, and motivation. If we are not doing the inner work to improve, the whole business will be impacted. I believe that when we create a business, everything that happens with it is a direct reflection of who we are. A Mirror in which we can see our shadows and our light. with my first business, I thought it was just a matter of the economy, the way of the world, the contacts I had and maybe luck I had a great idea.. now with this being my 3rd business I understand that it is a holistic experience to have a business. There is all of the outside world but the compass, the tower of control is us, our state and where we are with our own life that will be reflected in our operations. How to solve it? I have found that making time for my internal work is pivotal. I have a list of non-negotiable values that need to happen before I begin each day to set myself up for success. The way I eat to balance my blood sugar and support my clarity of thought to make amazing business and life decisions, time to move the body, meditate, and breathing breaks in between meetings. Sleep and syncing my schedule with my period cycle. The new way to succeed is to take a holistic approach to owning a business, so that it could be a win-win situation, good for the clients you work with and service, good for the environment, good for you and your family in every way. Read more>>

Samantha Kasubaski Rosado

When you attend art school, you do not always learn about the business side of being an artist. Marketing, networking, and financial planning are all important in building your career as an artist. It is helpful to join an artist organization, attend conferences, and complete residencies to build your understanding of what it means to be a full-time artist and to find opportunities to learn from other artist’s successes. Read more>>

Dawn Rodriguez

I initially founded Dance Another World in 2014 in Austin, Texas, as a creative and inclusive initiative aimed at using dance as a medium for language learning and cultural integration. Over the years, Austin has undergone considerable demographic shifts, significantly impacting the educational landscape and the communities served by organizations like Dance Another World. Read more>>

 Kayla Delcoure

I am a internet comedian focused on the lives of my cats. My online personality name is “Gizmo’s Best Life” because my orange cat, Gizmo, was the main focus of my comedy. This last October Gizmo developed a very dangerous disease called Feline Infectious Peritonitis, commonly referred to as “FIP”. The disease used to be 100% fatal but now thanks to a black market drug, cats like Gizmo get a fighting chance to overcome the disease. Read more>>