One of the challenges we’ve seen to true equality of opportunity is that schools and books often can’t (or choose not) offer access to one of the most equalizing resources – first hand stories of how successful entrepreneurs made their ideas a reality. If you grew up in a family or community that had many successful entrepreneurs you may have been lucky to hear many conversations and stories about starting and executing on an idea, but there are millions of people across the country who haven’t had the same advantage and so our hope here is to create a space where those stories can be told in a more public forum for the benefit of any and every aspiring entrepreneur.

Kailey O’farrell

My tattooing journey started the day I got my first tattoo. Even though I wouldn’t be the tattooer for another four years, I deeply believe my love for tattooing came from my experiences getting tattooed by so many amazing artists in New York City, a city which I am so grateful to live in. However, in those four years, it really never occurred to me to seriously consider learning to tattoo. The idea that I could be a tattooer felt like a dream, only meant to be reality for other people. I grew up doing creative things like dance and painting and drawing as hobbies. I didn’t feel like the kind of person that could pursue an art career, and I was always pretty accepting and at peace with that, at least on the surface. Read More>>

Stephanie Brick

The idea to write a children’s portal-fantasy adventure was only a brief moment in my journey to realize THE SECRET DOORS OF CANNONDALE. First, there were months of uncomfortable, unrelated build-up that led to me sitting on the couch, scanning my living room for inspiration, when I was struck by the ideas of writing a story and diving into a wholly different realm. Read More>>

Monic Hathaway

My journey into the world of posh picnics began quite unexpectedly. While scrolling through Pinterest last January, I stumbled upon a stunning image of a luxury picnic spread in Italy. It was then that a spark ignited within me, a desire to create unforgettable experiences for others. Read More>>

Monica Jackson

My career began in advertising, where I was introduced to the dynamic world of media and marketing. I was captivated by the power of commercial advertising and how it strongly had the impact to influence customer buying behaviors. This experience fascinated and ignited a deeper interest in understanding the power of branding and messaging. As social media grew, so did my love for marketing and storytelling. My family background also had an impact on passion. Coming from a family that adored hosting and planning events, I found myself drawn to event planning as a natural extension of my creativity. My parents, who retired early to become entrepreneurs, served as a profound source of inspiration. Their ability to turn passion into purpose planted the seed for my own entrepreneurial journey. Read More>>

Linda Sego

Once upon a time, over 40 years ago, I was a young mother in sunny California, eager to learn how to be the best parent I could be. With a heart full of love for my growing family, I enrolled in Early Childhood Education courses at my local community college. Little did I know, this was the first step on a journey that would change my life forever. Read More>>

Roy Jackson Jr

To start I got my logo from my son holding a basketball when he was 2 years old posing as if he was going to shoot the ball and I just knew that was perfect for my business “Dreamz Two Reality Basketball LLC”. Even when I was playing basketball in high school, college and professional I knew I always wanted to help kids reach their goals of playing professionally rather that was taking the overseas route or the NBA route. Read More>>

Autumn Green

The journey to publishing Elemental Convergence and starting my self-publishing career has been such a learning experience. My first book, The Keepers of Aris, was published traditionally through Ooligan Press, which gave me a solid understanding of how the publishing world works. But for Elemental Convergence, I wanted to try self-publishing. It’s something I’ve always wanted to do—not just to have creative control, but to really learn the process for myself. It felt like the right time to take that leap. Read More>>

James Clarke

I grew up in a very musical environment. As much as I hate to admit it, religion and church played a major part in building my musical vocabulary. It didn’t take very long to start taking more prominent roles in the church playing hymns on the organ, directing the choir, filling in the role of worship leader. These roles spilled into my personal life in the form of music theory classes throughout high school and college, starting numerous bands in different genres, and really doing what felt natural. Music became a second language and gained a fluidity that I wanted to share with others. Read More>>

Tia Tate

I have always been creative and I wanted a outlet. Kobe, it was the perfect time in the brainstorm and figure out which creative Avenue. I wanted to take when showing my work to the world. I started off selling paintings and although it was fun it wasn’t scratching that creative itch that I haveit wasn’t scratching that creative itch that I had.. a light bulb went off and I thought fashion! Fashion. Read More>>

Shannon Godek

It all started when I developed an obsession for creating the perfect chocolate chip cookie. I spent so much time on sugar and butter. How can it be this hard I thought… what am I missing….It’s just a chocolate chip cookie, right? WRONG. I trialed dozens and dozens of recipes. I swapped out ingredients for different brands and tweaked some recipes. I tried different methods of creaming. I even went down the road of salted and unsalted butter… don’t even get me started on that. I eventually went out on a whim after feeling defeated. I made all my tweaks and I had finally created the PERFECT chocolate chip cookie. Read More>>

Andrea Briceno

The journey of creating my book Dasha: Finding your God-given talent began in 2015 during a trip to my home country, Venezuela. While I was there, I received a coffee mug with a caricature of my family on it. That thoughtful gift sparked an idea: what if I created a story with a character inspired by me? I began exploring possibilities and topics, knowing one thing for certain—I wanted to write a children’s book. Read More>>

Bruno Monteiro

I started my design career as a freelancer very early on. I was at a few agencies during the first few years. But with the volume of clients increasing over the years, either through referral, or because a good job has been done and the client returns, or through advertising. I decided it was time to open my own business in 2015. Read More>>

Jeff Grant

Our journey started when we realized we were chasing the “American Dream” but missing out on what mattered most—family time. With Jeff working 60+ hours a week and rising housing costs, we decided to trade our brick-and-mortar life for a home on wheels. Over two years, we downsized, found a great homeschooling program, and transitioned to remote work. We purchased an RV and a new truck, sold most of our stuff, and prepared for a life of adventure. It was a leap of faith, but the promise of freedom and memories made it worth it. Read More>>

Brandon Rainey

The idea for SÕLIDA came about on a “pity party” trip to Miami. I was going through some personal issues in my life at the time, so I scheduled a 45th birthday trip to Miami by myself to clear my mind and figure out how I was going to move forward. My buddy, Laurence Driver, decided to join me because his birthday was the same week. We wound up at the hotel bar where the bartender offered us some tequila. We were both aware of tequila’s bad reputation for giving you headaches and hangovers so we declined, but he insisted saying he had some premium tequilas that wouldn’t make us sick…and he was right! Read More>>

Jen Tankel

I first had the idea for Pegasus in March 2020. Setting the scene: The COVID pandemic had just started, and Sam, my husband (then-boyfriend) and I left Washington, DC and took refuge in an AirBnB in Farmville, Virginia. It was the perfect place to socially distance, and we were surrounded by horse farms. As a lifelong equestrian, I would’ve loved to have been able to ride – a socially distanced activity – but there was nowhere to find the owners of the farms to see if that was an option. They weren’t online and there was no way to connect with them. Read More>>

Magali Azria

It all began with a pastrami sandwich: my husband, who previously worked in the restaurant industry in France, was savoring Langer’s famous pastrami sandwich but could never finish it due to the bread. So, he started experimenting with different options—pita, baguette, and eventually a tortilla. That’s when the idea struck: he envisioned a restaurant serving tacos, but with no recipes from South America, and he wanted to call it “GourmeTacos” (with one “T”!). He developed a few concepts, which he served at an experimental dinner for our friends and family—and everyone loved it! Soon after, he secured a space to test the concept for a month, which turned into an additional six months because our customers couldn’t get enough. He found another location, extended the lease, and now we’re still expanding our menu, selling our own sauces, building our website, and continuing to grow! Read More>>

Catalina & Jonathan Cadiz

The journey to launching our business started, as many do, with a dream and a vision – but turning that vision into reality required significant planning, resources, and determination. The first major step was securing the investment to make it happen. We knew that if we wanted to create something truly impactful, we had to start with the right foundation. This meant purchasing the necessary machinery, sourcing reliable suppliers, and finding the perfect location to set up our operations. Read More>>

Lawdie Pahlavan

I had never started my own business, but after a layoff and writers strike in my normal career field I had to get creative. I had always loved the idea of working in the food industry, even hosting dinners for friends was a lot of fun as a side project. My father is in fine catering and owned restaurants when I was growing up so it felt like a natural space to explore while I continued looking for work in film. As much as I enjoyed cooking I didn’t want it to be my job, so I experimented with snack products and realized very quickly my favorite food of all has always been, candy. And like everything edible I was particular about what kind of candy I ate. Everywhere I traveled I tried the local candies, often bringing empty duffle bags just to fill up on gummies and chocolates where ever I visited. Read More>>

Kelsy Yates

Idea to execution isn’t necessarily linear nor expedient. It has taken us about 3 years to incarnate our initial vision. When we first started, we wanted to create a destination for the Denver community. It wasn’t about just selling marijuana. We were pushing against traditional notions and practices of most dispensaries. We wanted a shop that was inviting, was beautifully designed, and was an educational hub for the latest information around cannabis—whether medicinal or recreational. Read More>>