Over the years as we connected with incredible from folks from almost every imaginable industry we realized that every nook and cranny of our economy is full of small business owners, artists and creatives who live and breathe what they do – and their stories are nothing short of heroic. It’s the immigrant parents who overcame the odds and kept their small business alive for decades allowing their next generation to thrive and the artisans who pour their passion into every piece and refuse to let even the most common items remain mundane that make our communities come alive. The stories below will inspire you and we hope you’ll take the time to read and connect with these incredible folks.

Valerie Garcia

I love school. Is that weird to say?

I love the process of learning– listening to a lecture, taking notes, reading, sometimes procrastinating, the nerves before taking a test, and the overwhelming relief of turning in an assignment. I have yet to discover a feeling like it. In high school, I considered becoming a teacher, just so I could be part of a school environment for a little longer. Read More>>

Amanda Johnson

Growing my business was pretty slow-going at the start. I relied, and still do, on word of mouth from family members and friends. Big events and milestone moments in my loved ones’ lives has allowed for the opportunity to put myself out there and grow my portfolio. There have been several times where I have offered my services to family/friends for a much lower fee/for free because I know the type of photos would be great to have in my portfolio. Read More>>

Unknown The Plague

I feel as though the entirety of my art is misinterpreted. But that’s kind of the point. I am layers of the human experience. There is no one under this mask. I have always felt like no one. You are also beneath this mask. My words are your words. I want people to understand that they don’t understand. Life has many contradictions. I am simply a form of the thing that takes all forms. I’m a piece of each of you left unfinished. I don’t think there will ever be a time where my art and message is fully understood. But I like to hope that there are people who choose to try. Read More>>

iNSANE

Long story short, I’m a two time brain cancer survivor. The surgeries left me with partial nerve damage on my right side. The part of my brain they removed controls my mobility and motor skills. I technically shouldn’t be able to properly produce music, because that part of my brain that creates creativity is gone. Read More>>

Rasheeda Jones

One of the most defining moments in my professional career was realizing that I had entered the field of social work carrying the very same wounds I was trying to help others heal from. I went to school for social work, driven by a desire to make a difference but it wasn’t until I was deep in the work that I began to fully understand just how much I had been impacted by the very systems I was working within. Read More>>

Jaina Pallasigui

I teach people how to leverage their business expenses and real estate portfolios to earn tons of points and miles to travel hack. As someone who has a full-time W2 working in a hospital (I manage the tobacco cessation department to help thousands of people quit smoking annually) and real estate businesses, I understand how crucial it is to take vacations to avoid burnout and be rewarded for milestones. Read More>>

Selena Erwin

Short answer, YES! Long answer: I wish I would have taken it seriously sooner. I started creating content back in 2019-2020 when I was about to start my first round of IVF with my first daughter Italy and also around that time me and my husband had a couple’s channel on YouTube. I was working in corporate, unable to climb the ladder no matter how many times I tried and I ultimately was just not happy with my living situation, it was at the point where we were financially struggling and also just not settling with where we were in life. Read More>> 

Meg Casebolt

My SEO business is based almost entirely on referrals. In fact, I didn’t even intend to start an SEO business, but the referral opportunities were so obvious that it guided my whole business model!

At first, I was a website designer. I joined a small group mastermind specifically for other designers, so we could talk about proposals, client acquisition, marketing, systemization, etc. And during a hot seat call, I asked, “How do you all balance the technical skills of website design with the SEO strategy?” Read More>>

Ian Koratsky

Many, many moons ago, I tried my hand at writing Sci-Fi Novels and selling them at Anime Conventions. It did not go as expected, but I made many great Artist friends along the way, and wound up the Artist Coordinator for Tampa Bay Coffee & Art Festival. Read More>>

Rachel Back

Unlocked Designs began with the idea that spaces, no matter their scale, can hold meaning, tell stories, and shape experience. I started Unlocked Designs during graduate school by crafting handmade wooden puzzle boxes, each with its own hidden locking mechanism. I loved not just the design process, but the way people engaged with the objects and experienced that moment of discovery. Read More>>

Abigail Kochunas

By trade I’m an artist (performing and visual), and it has been my life’s work to use art and the creative process to help humanity. To lift others up and empower them. I think because I grew up in a spiritually and religiously diverse home (we practiced Pagan, Buddhist and Christian traditions), I found the artistic process to be much more of a spiritual practice, divine expression and sacred ritual. Read More>>

Greg Patrick

When I first started my own business, I decided to draw on past experience I had in the painting industry and branch out on my own. Launching a business and getting the first clients can be challenging, but I did what I do best- connecting with others. I started talking with contractors I knew and meeting new ones. I introduced myself to the team that had recently started a renovation project on the condo buildings where I was living. Read More>>

Kristen Larkin

There are so many things but you can’t go back and redo. I came from a long career in finance and my motto is “I went from 6 figures to 6 dollars but am much happier”
With lessons learned I continue to enhance how I run my business.
Spend less on “darling little ideas” and focus on the top selling items. Read More>>

Suzy Barbosa

I grew up in a family that placed deep value on education and community. From a young age, I was taught that both were essential and deserved to be taken seriously. So, I showed up, fully. I was a responsible kid, a good student, and deeply involved in all aspects of school life, from sports and student government to the library book club. Read More>>

Lee Valentine

Yes. Everything I do and have been doing has never been seen before. I hear it all the time.. “You’re different!”. The thing is, I stay focused on the goal no matter what. I don’t let “bad business” shift me. I stay humble, I stay true to myself and I keep pushing no matter what. I can see why many give up being in the entertainment industry but I don’t let no one or nothing discourage me. Read More>>

Kat Feist

The one thing that has made my business more successful than my competitors is focusing on event accessibility. The 2 largest factors in this is 1. free entry, and 2. family friendly.
A lot of companies make the majority of their cash influx from charging admission which I truly detest. It stops people from even considering coming. When people hear that our events are free, they get excited and bring friends and their whole family. That also means my vendors will make a greater profit and happy vendors are my bread and butter. Read More>>

Kyle Coleman

Keeping costs under control as you grow, hm.

A topic near and dear to my wallet and my heart. This is a challenge for anyone growing or starting a business. Particularly, photographers. All of our equipment is expensive. And it takes a lot of equipment to be able to provide a product a client would want to buy. It’s not just the camera or the lens it’s the computer to edit and then an editing program subscription. Read More>>

Kishmere Carter

The best two bosses I ever had , came to me back in high school. I was an intern for a clothing alteration shop in Ithaca NY. My mentor name was Claudia Jenkins. She taught me the fine art of tailoring and making custom clothing. Also she was one of the funniest ladies I ever know. She just passed away recently and I am thinking of doing a fashion show in her honor. Read More>>

Brian Ellithorpe

I work in different industries, vastly different to be honest, but the common denominator is that the short form videos are in high demand and pushed by all major social media platforms. In the waterfowl industry, the amount of videographers is not as high as other industries, but the need for reaching potential customers is in demand which creates the opportunity for creatives to get a lot of work. Read More>>