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.
Jane Ammeson
I had flown out to Palm Springs with a photographer and a public relations guy who had set up an interview for a magazine story I was writing with ex-President Gerald Ford at his residence there. The interview went very well, Ford was affable and friendly. Then, after just exiting his home, several Secret Service agents came hurrying out and told us to stop. Read more>>
Katelyn Annemarie Brush
Back in the fall of 2016, I was teaching private yoga to individuals with disabilities and freelancing as a marketer and…. feeling like something was missing. I told a health coach who worked at the wellness center I ran my private practice out of and marketed for and she said, “You need to hire my life coach, she will change your life!” Up until that point, I had no idea what coaching was. Read more>>
Empress Bey
I was offered a project to work with a celebrity in another state, I had meetings with the team to make sure everything was great. When I flew out of state and arrive I was greeted and taken care of with small essential things. As I got to my hotel, I was told that things were going to be different than originally planned. Read more>>
Elise Michelle Nelson
There I was having a virtual coffee chat with a puppet. I was ecstatic. I mean how many people show up to a networking event and find themselves face to face with a puppet? What an amazing way to make sure no one ever forgets you! Read more>>
Mat & Audrey Brady
Mat and I wouldn’t have started a cat food business if our cat hadn’t survived a coyote attack. Our cat was attacked by a pack of coyotes and our neighbors saved him and took him to the veterinarian. Our neighbors had a similar looking cat and thought he was their own (until they came home and saw their healthy cat awaiting them)! Read more>>
Angela Swinford
One of our products at Paper Towns is a custom locationnmap key ring. As you can imagine, I’ve gotten some really wonderful stories from customers over the years about the locations they choose- where their child was born, where their family came from, their destination wedding city, etc. but one story sticks out in my mind. Read more>>
Brooklyn Wiltscheck
I graduated from cosmetology school in November of 2020. After graduation, I worked as a commission stylist for a few months before opening up my own salon suite in June of 2021. I had only been open for less than a year and was voted the best hair salon in Mankato! Read more>>
Josh Kiracofe
So when I re-launched Grilling Geek Spices back in the summer of 2020, right in the height of the COVID Pandemic, I wasn’t sure how things were going to go. People were afraid to go out, no one was traveling, people were in fear. However, my wife told me that I should start selling my products at the local farmer’s market near my house. Read more>>
Brian Spann
Last year I had been trying to network on and off-line to find a way to perform a style of photography or virtual tour that would cause my website to stand out. One morning during a 5 AM morning prayer, I asked GOD for a connection in my efforts to create something great to place on my website; Read more>>