Establishing your own firm or practice is an incredibly daunting task. From myriad of legal and regulatory hurdles to the financial and career related risks, professionals who choose to start their own firm have to overcome so much and so we wanted to reach out to those who’ve done it successfully for advice, insight and stories.

Jehan Crump-Gibson

Even though I was initially a solo practitioner, it was important to establish operating procedures. I was the one handling the administrative piece to start. I needed to have something consistent in place that could become a well-oiled machine, so that when I grew and could afford help, the foundation would be in place. This ranged from establishing client intake forms and questionnaires, fee agreements, to billing procedures and more. Drafting the documents and outlining the processes/ workflow were critical, Read more>>

Noelle Daoire

I think starting my own practice is both one of the scariest and most rewarding things I’ve ever done. Scary, in the sense that I knew next to nothing about starting and running a business, and had zero money to put into it – so I had to be very resourceful, and learned to do as much as I could on on my own. Read more>>

Rowan Neri

I started to panic 100 feet from the ground on a trad climb realizing I had not placed a piece of gear for protection in at least 75 feet and now was starting to feel very vulnerable, dangerous, or even stupid. This moment comes to me all the time now when I am feeling like I took on too much, which I often do. My belay partner called up to me letting me know the situation and pleading that I just keep my cool and not panic. Read more>>

Nancy Pol

Growing up, I always knew I wanted to be in service to others. Caring for them at one of the most life changing times in their lives. Hearing about pregnancy always intrigued me. I started my journey as a nurse. I worked for years in the hospital setting, I did in home care, however, it was the birth of our oldest son, who is now 16 that affirmed becoming a Midwife is who God had called me to be. Read more>>

Maryglenn Warnock

I learned some incredibly valuable lessons when launching Paws to Remember. 1. Trust your instincts. If something doesn’t feel right, don’t try to force it. 2. Patience is a virtue. 3. A sense of humor helps immensely. 4. Be careful where you place your trust. There are seemingly reputable organizations that prey upon and exploit people who have dreams of launching businesses. Read more>>

Vanessa Faulkner

I spent months looking for the right course to study in order to obtain my beautician qualifications. I knew no one working in the field at the time, so spent a lot of time scanning the internet and in all honesty getting scammed out of some money by fake beauty academies. Read more>>

Tasha Hunter

While being a therapist I’ve learned how to show up authentically, how to stay true to my own goals and alignment. I’ve found that by staying true to Self imposter syndrome, perfectionism, and pressures to compare myself to others have decreased. Read more>>

LEANN FIRESTONE

I like to call myself a serial-entrepreneur–ever since I realized what a business was, my brain has been finding ways to start them! I have experience in many fields at this point. My idea to start a non-profit–Neurodiverse Network–was one that has started in my mind, and just grew and grew, and now that it’s out of my brain and in the world, and it’s thriving! Read more>>

Aly Mattoon

I have taught at some wonderful local studios over the years but I’ve always felt like an entrepreneur and have gained more and more autonomy each year. I’m proud to be my own one woman business. At some point I may want to expand into having a team but for right now it’s very fullfilling being in complete control over everything Read more>>

Sherry Scott

I first started by business right before the pandemic in 2019. I had a vision that I wanted to work with the population that I have the most passion for. So, I thought of many different ideas and at the time all I could think of is providing service to older adults but not just older adults but adults that suffer from mental health diagnosis and also our veterans because there were not any programs out to help them. I wanted to provide them a place that they feel welcomed, loved and able to feel like they are contributing to society. Read more>>

Paula McMillan-Perez

If you would have asked me years ago if I would have been a business owner, I might have laughed. Honestly, it was not something that I gave serious thought to until I began to feel frustrated when I was working as a school social worker. The accessibility of services for not just my students and their families but for the educators who try to fill the gaps were not getting what they needed. I started Personalize Your Coaching, LLC in 2018 in an effort to support culturally responsive social-emotional learning in school communities that work with Black and Brown students in their communities. Read more>>