Having to overcome unexpected problems is a hallmark of entrepreneurship. Almost every business owner, artist, maker, and creative we know has had to deal with countless unexpected problems that arise in the journey and so we asked some brilliant folks from the community to share their stories of the unexpected problems they’ve faced along the way.

Matt Burton

Having been in business, as owner of an art gallery located on a resort barrier island off the coast of New Jersey for almost twenty-five years, a ceramic artist and an art instructor for over thirty years, there have certainly been a few major problems I never saw coming. Part of the problem for me, was a misunderstanding or underestimating how these events would have an effect on my business. Read more>>

Tiffany Lee Gaston

I’ve learned many valuable lessons over the years, but perhaps none as great as the value of owning your own customers. Having lost a large scale social platform to hackers some years ago, the value was that if I could no longer monetize that platform, it no longer had any value to me. After growing an account from nothing to over 30K organically, Read more>>

Jimmy Peña

The most unexpected issue I had to deal with was being diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis in 1988 at the age of 28 . At that point I was working as a bellman at a hotel in Corpus Christi , Texas . The doctor informed me that in ten years time , I would be in a wheelchair with limited mobility . Because of the aggressive nature of my condition , my rheumatologist recommended that I get aggressive treatment to counter my condition . Mostly , steroids and other toxic medications . Read more>>

Brian Lane

The reason I started my creative journey was out of a combination of wanting share my love for food and boredom. As of late, I don’t have too much time to be consumed by boredom. Luckily, this has had little impact on wanting to share my passion for food until recently. I’ve been even more busy with my primary job and starting a couple new businesses that this hobby of being a food influencer has been pushed to the sidelines. Read more>>

Beth Potozniak

I think throughout everyone’s professional careers you face some unexpected hardships or problems and its all about your attitude and how you handle the situation. Throughout my career as a manager and event professional I’ve experienced a number of problems from last minute surprises that come along with planning and programming events to decisions being made from your superiors and you having to be the “fixer.” Read more>>

Christine Cormier

After years in the industry I learned how larger makeup companies with “teams” of artists is actually just a fancy way of simply hiring independent contractions. Said independent contractors are (typically) paid at a percentage base of 50%-60% of what the company charges their clients. Being an independent contractor for this type of company means they (artists) have to provide all products & t=skill, as well as, track all expenses, set aside 30% for taxes, provide their own healthcare, etc. Read more>>

Derrick Brown

Here at Clever Sound Productions we are a fully automated online drop shipping service. And we rely on solid data in order to bring in constant and new customers. However to be efficient on well established selling platforms you must not have 1% charge back rate, in order to take full advantage of all the perks. Read more>>

Kaylene Kaiser

I had about a million ideas when I first launched The Wisery. I wanted to maximize my impact by offering multiple ways to work with people, which is great… in theory. In reality, however, not super practical for a one woman show. I quickly became overwhelmed and felt burned out only a few weeks in. I had to take a major step back almost immediately after launching my business to refocus and get clear. Read more>>

Monisha Jordan

The most unexpected problem I faced in my business was not getting that support from the people I expected the most support from, when I first decided to start my business . I had close friends tell me I shouldn’t put too much focus on trying to start my business at the time because it wasn’t a guarantee thing. I procrastinated for a long time because of that. Read more>>

Chris Raulf

Google’s June 30, 2021, core algorithm update hit our website like a ton of bricks! As a search engine optimization agency that helps its customers climb the rankings in Google and other search engines, we do as we say. Our SEO agency exclusively focuses on inbound lead generation strategies. In other words: New customers find us on Google through organic, non-paid searches. Read more>>