Doing things your way is one of the best parts of being your own boss and when done right seems to be highly correlated with outsized success. So, we wanted to gather real-world examples to shed more light on how the best artists, entrepreneurs and leaders differentiate themselves from others in their respective industries.

Abbey Simpson

After working for a small, sustainability-minded slow fashion company for 5 years, I knew that even that model required participating in the rat race of constant new inventory, putting on sales every month, pushing product, and feeling like you never made a dent. I knew when I started Abbey Dyed I wanted to focus primarily on giving new life to already owned garments and teaching people how to plant dye. My hope is that I can contribute to people buying less and trying to extend the life of things they already own. Read more>>

Kenna Bouvet

Earth + Sky Massage and Acupuncture is a wellness practice located in Long Island City, New York. As the owner, my mission is to foster a nurturing environment where skilled therapists can thrive in their respective specialties—massage and acupuncture—while maintaining the freedom to express their unique styles and techniques. I am equally passionate about supporting each person who walks through our door, ensuring they receive personalized care tailored to their needs. This is achieved by cultivating a team that is diverse in their strengths and specialties, allowing us to offer a holistic and ever-changing approach to healing that blends quality bodywork with individuality within each treatment. Although we have set service options, we do not set the exact treatment within those services, but instead allow the therapists to build and follow their instincts. Our office team is incredibly knowledgable about pairing the right therapist with the right client. Having started out as an office manager myself, I know the importance of the office team understanding the individuality of each therapists’ work. This builds therapist-client relationships that last decades. There is great trust and support throughout the entire team and I am honored to work with such incredible practitioners and people. Read more>>

Joanna Ingram

Absolutely. In an industry that often prioritizes market gaps, client preferences, or fleeting trends over the well-being of the business owner, my approach takes a radically different stance: I focus on the joy and unique brilliance of the coach or consultant first. The standard approach to building offers and messaging often overlooks one crucial element—the energy of the business owner. Coaches and healers are encouraged to look at market data or what’s “in demand,” crafting offers to fit a perceived need while sidelining their own passions, talents, and values. This can lead to misalignment, burnout, and the draining experience of serving clients who aren’t a good fit. Read more>>

Stoney Love

For starters, every design we create comes from within. Our ideas come from the heart first that way if it doesn’t resonate with the masses, we’ll always love it. Everyone won’t always like your art, and sometimes they’ll love it later. We’ve had plenty of designs that didn’t do so well when released but became a huge success years down the line. It’s about creating timeless classics and our philosophy is to start from the heart. Our ‘Yup, Still Gay’ design was the first one created in which it derived from a question asked by our founders’ mother. Her reply was verbatim to the design and it was at that point that she decided to create apparel with the response. To this day, that remains our best seller! Read more>>

Damien Callahan

I think a lot of what I do tends to stray from industry standards. I don’t use factories for production or outsource design/pattern work. I do each step myself, from start to finish. I source the denim, design the hardware, make the patterns, assemble the garments, service the machines. Each piece is handmade, patterned, cut and sewn by one person. I also use a lot of vintage machines that could be considered obsolete by industry standards. Machines with distinct purpose that were made in the early to mid 1900’s and designed specifically for sewing heavy materials like denim. They are old and finicky, they take time to maintain and keep operational. Each machine has a single function. One to sew the inseams, one to attach the waistband, another to make the buttonholes. Each one gives the garments I make a bit more character than an average pair off the shelf. Read more>>

Angelina & Andrew Jackson

At Senoia Bridal, we believe the bridal shopping experience should be as unique and unforgettable as the bride herself. One way we diverge from the industry standard is by focusing not only on the dresses but on creating a truly personalized, memory-filled experience from start to finish. While many shops focus solely on sales, we’ve built our business around the idea that finding “the one” should be as magical and celebrated as the wedding day itself. Our boutique is designed to offer a private, intimate setting with exclusive upstairs bridal suites and a “something blue” tassel system that allows brides to shop stress-free with their loved ones, without a stylist hovering over their shoulder. This gives them the space to connect with the moment while still enjoying the full support of our team. From offering curated charcuterie and champagne packages to giving brides unlimited guests and photos, we prioritize an experience that feels special and tailored to them. Read more>>

Shirley Ronquillo

Ronquillo Consulting Group, LLC was founded on the premise residents are experts of their lived experiences. This is especially true in underserved communities of color where residents understand the barriers and solutions to the problems in their community. My company offers 3 services: facilitation, interpretation, and community consulting. We offer culturally competent facilitation of health, leadership and language justice topics by local community health workers. We offer culturally competent interpretation by local residents who are trained to interpret in community settings. We offer community consulting by community organizers who offer local knowledge support for organizations or educational institutions who want to understand underserved communities to bring resources to community rather than extract information without giving back to the community. Read more>>

Janelle Jared

One of the things Fiber + Strand prioritizes in terms of how we work with our employees is that we strive to create a beautiful environment for our artists just as much as we do our guests. We really pour into our artists to ensure they achieve longevity and success in their careers. We have a very detailed roadmap laid out for their technical training, which is pretty standard in our industry, but the secret sauce that most companies overlook is the mindset. Anyone can learn a technical skill with enough practice. Unlocking roadblocks that hinder us from massive success can be a little bit more tricky! At our company we spend just as much time creating healthy habits and training our staff in mindset work as we do teaching technical skills. We believe that in order to achieve success at the highest level, the two go hand in hand. Read more>>

Quinn Vogt

When it comes to dog outerwear, particularly lighted coats, there really isn’t an industry standard — which is exactly why I created one! During the long, dark winter months, dog owners face the challenge of walking their pets in low visibility. This can make walks feel unsafe, especially when it comes to being seen by drivers, other pedestrians, cyclists, etc. As the owner of a black dog, I know firsthand how difficult it is to spot a dog in the dark. My dog already wore a coat to keep her clean and warm, and a lighted collar so I had some chance of seeing her. But, the coat and her fur covered the collar which made it useless. So, I searched for a combination of the two – a dog coat with lights built in, but couldn’t find one anywhere! So, I set to work designing my own. In the process, I realized there was a clear need for this type of product. Read more>>

Anna Dobrovolskaia

As a photographer, my approach differs from the industry standard in several ways. Rather than focusing on posed, polished images, I prioritize capturing the unscripted beauty of everyday moments. My work leans into documentary and artistic photography, celebrating the cinematic and poetic nature of real life – simple acts like pouring tea or the fleeting expressions of love and connection within a family. Read more>>