One of the most under-the-radar benefits of entrepreneurship is its ability to build fortitude and make the entrepreneur a more formidable person. Challenges – particularly the crazy, unexpected ones that take on a life of their own – build character and confidence. And the unexpected surprises to the upside, the crazy good moments offer a high that’s hard to reproduce elsewhere. The charm and the challenge of entrepreneurship is dealing with the crazy things that happen and so we’ve asked some fantastic business owners and leaders to share some of their stories with us below.

Ronny Junkins

Over the 30 years in business, I have been in various locations within a strip shopping center. It is sometimes challenging to be locked in a lease subjected to the whims of the management company. Every year even after paying the rent the additional fees for the “common area maintenance” is reconciled usually resulting in additional rent money due, sometimes over a thousand dollars. Read More>>

Senquetta Foxworth

Early in my career at a JCPenney salon, I had my first major highlight client. I spent over an hour meticulously placing what I thought were the ‘perfect’ foils. When the timer went off, I realized I had major bleeding. Both the client and I ended up in tears. My manager, Ms. Love, pulled me aside for a life-changing lesson. Read More>>

robyne robinson

Two Crazy stories for the price of one, which also includes Taking a Risk: I was a reporter in Baltimore covering DC politics back in 1990. George Herbert Walker Bush was just elected, and my station sent me to cover the inaugural. Not a fan of covering either Bush or Inaugurals, I went rogue with my photographer, Earl. Read More>>

Lois Stavsky

My passion for graffiti and street art has taken me to dozens of cities across the globe. Yet the one that stands out most is São Paulo, Brazil’s most populous city. What captivated me there were not the beautifully crafted graffiti pieces and murals, but the pixação—a distinctive form of bold tagging characterized by stark, monochromatic, angular lettering. Read More>>