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.

Patrick Carlson

I was a child of the 70’s. I watched Superfriends on Saturday morning and Tom and Jerry after school. I knew from an early age that I wanted to draw cartoons. But, it wasn’t the shows on tv that inspired me. It was the comic strip page in the local newspaper. Strips like Peanuts, Garfield, and Hagar the Horrible inspired me more than any other artwork. I loved the simplicity of the art and the humor. That was my goal from age 11. However, the biggest problem of that career path turned out to be the one thing that shaped the career that I have today. The internet. Read more>>

Seth Graye

A client I work for was about to renew a contract with a client that required an active Texas business license. Just to be safe, I logged into the Texas Secretary of State website to double-check everything was in order and saw we were listed as “forfeited existence.” Read more>>

Kellianne Jordan

I have been a professional photographer for 20 years, photographing weddings, families and branding photos. I absolutely loved growing my business into a thriving, full time, bill paying career. I even went on to coach other photographers in business and marketing. There are many problems I have faced, but the biggest one was the onset of 5 autoimmune diseases over 4 years. As I began to get sick and be more open in my community about it, I noticed that 8 out of 10 full time photographers in my circle had an autoimmune disease likely brought on by the stress of the job. Then I faced another problem: shooting. Read more>>

K.M. West

Before I died, I wanted to write a book. That’s how it started. Inspired by the proverbial bus that could hit me at any time, I began the early workings of my first novel when I was in my mid-twenties. With the support of two close friends, I hammered out the initial draft thinking, “Oh my God, this is amazing!” Read more>>

Samantha Mellerson

One of the most unexpected and painful challenges I faced happened in 2019. I had reached out to a supplier to potentially manufacture a new product, and while I was still in the creative phase, several of my “HeARTists” — that’s what I call my customers — reached out and told me they saw my exact design being sold as a jibbit on a pair of Croc-style shoes. Read more>>

Jackson Harris

One unexpected challenge I’ve faced in my professional life happened during the planning of a large-scale concert at a respected university. I had spent close to a year developing the event — from negotiating artist agreements to building sponsorships, coordinating the venue, and launching early promotional campaigns. Everything was on track and looked solid. Then, with almost no warning, the university underwent a leadership transition that changed everything. Read more>>