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.

Joshua Garcia

Elite has been my biggest accomplishment so far. We’ve only been a band for a couple of years, but much has happened with unreliable members and all the fantastic opportunities we lost because of them, and even the band is getting scammed. I’ll talk about how I overcame all of this and how it affected and changed me not only as a recording artist but a person and all of the obstacles I faced along the way. Read more>>

Cheryl Fox

A little backstory on our business. My husband and I started Mama Fox’s Pantry in 2014. It consisted of me baking three different flavors of healthy granola. We had a website, were in a few neighborhood grocery stores and sold our product at the Melrose Place Farmer’s Market for close to 2 years. We decided to put the business on hold, as we were both working full time at our respective jobs. We were considering a move once I retired in 2019 and hoped to resuscitate the business at some point. In 2023, we decided it was time, especially since the small town we moved to has a seasonal farmer’s market from June to the end of October. We had observed there were no other granola products and felt the time was right. Read more>>

Sophia Bailey

I think one of the most consistent problems that all artists face at some point or another is finding work. So much of what you need to do in order to gain a network, portfolio, and make a living for yourself is through freelance and just putting yourself out there over and over again. The name of the game is rejection and its something you have to feel comfortable in to make any progress. I recently graduated from college and am eager to get to work in the things that I love to do. I spend months on months on months trying to find work in anyway I can think of; Sending cold emails, filling out applications on LinkedIn, Indeed, Handshake, finding random gigs on Facebook Groups or Instagram feeds, and dropping off resumes in person for days on end. It somehow remains not enough. There are so many artists and what feels like not enough jobs. Read more>>

Lance Parchment

The most unexpected problems that I face in my creative journey is honestly learning the correct way to do things so I can capitalize on my work rather than other people. I never thought anyone in higher place was looking at me enough to want to steal my work or ideas. I had a time where I released a song called stop calling which the name and beat of the song was stolen by madeintyo. There is a long story attached to that but to sum it up shortly I bought the beat lease from the producer he never sent the lease after 3 days passed I contacted him again nothing so I reversed the charge. So nice I reversed the charge the producer hit me up about so when do you want to purchase the beat. I had already posted the song and video the video started getting traction I even received an article from elevator magazine. Read more>>

Neviana Zhgaba

When we set out to open Aquila’s Nest Vineyards, we imagined a space where people could gather, connect, and experience the beauty of wine and storytelling. But as we approached our grand opening in October 2020, the world had changed in ways we never could have anticipated. The COVID-19 pandemic brought uncertainty, fear, and a wave of restrictions that threatened to derail everything we had planned. Read more>>

P.e. Craven

Following the path of Self-Published Author has been a bit of an impromptu journey. It was never something I prepared for. Prior to being in publishing, I was a dance educator. I’d spent the majority of my life preparing for a career in the performing arts. In 2020, I was forced to make a career change and began the process of becoming a public school teacher. Read more>>