Coming up with an idea for a business or creative project can feel exhilarating. Inspiration for a new idea can come from so many places and we’ve asked some great folks from the community to share their stories of how they came up with their ideas. 

Brenda Spalding

I get the ideas for the stories in my books from newspaper articles, websites, or maybe an overheard conversation. Then I do a deep dive into researching the subject to see if there is a good story there. I like to give my readers something they might not know about, as well as an entertaining and exciting storyline. Read More>>

Tayler Meade

I started writing “A Note to the One Left Walking in the Grass” after I posted a blog that I honestly didn’t think much of at the time. I was just writing from a really personal place about friendship loss, rejection, feeling forgotten, and trying to heal. But after I posted it, so many people reached out saying they related to it. Read More>>

Raven Gates

Made By Yub may not have been the dream I envisioned as a child, but it has become my passion, something I eat, sleep, and breathe every single day. Entrepreneurship was never originally part of my plan. I actually wanted to become a lawyer, but after being diagnosed with chronic pain and fatigue, that dream began to feel out of reach. Read More>>

Craig Woodhull

Destroy Art started with the idea that I personally experienced as an artist myself, that artists in the underground art scene where not being represented well with opportunities to show their work. Read More>>

Andria Niles

After I decided to stay home from teaching due to my youngest daughter’s severe asthma, I started teaching myself how to sew and quilt. I got a sewing machine and quickly upgraded and then upgraded again to a machine that also did embroidery. I started embroidering for people in town as well as teaching people how to sew. Read More>>

Jacquelyn Rodriguez

It started at home. I was a mom on a mission to make my house safer for my kids, and I started with the cleaning products under my sink. That opened a Pandora’s box. Once I started looking, I couldn’t stop. Cleaning products led to lotions, then the products I was putting on my kids, then plastics, then waste. Read More>>

Sherell Yarbough

My journey into baking didn’t just begin overnight. It was something that had been quietly growing within me for years. At a very young age, I found myself drawn to the kitchen, curious and eager to learn. That curiosity turned into opportunity when I attended culinary arts and food classes in school, which gave me strong foundation and understanding at a very young age. Read More>>

Bertha Wainer

I just felt that we were losing the small time feel where everyone knows you and who you are and living in todays world I see that more and more I did not want the members to be just a number or a scan I wanted to know what they liked I wanted to be transparent as well I will not tell them what they want to hear and sometimes that is not good and in corporate america that seems to be the general practice- tell them what they want to hear and do not lose a member !! Read More>>

Morgan Dameron

Writing a screenplay is an arduous, relentless pursuit. It can be incredibly isolating. Burnout and inconsistent habits derail momentum. Lack of momentum means many aspiring writers abandon drafts. In fact, 99% of writers who begin a script, do not finish it. Just think of the incredible stories that aren’t being told – the talent being wasted. Read More>>

Jimmy Garcia

I came up with the idea of starting my own business because I’m a perfectionist, and I truly loved my job as a fence installer. I took pride in every project I worked on and always paid attention to the details. For me, fencing was never just about putting posts in the ground — it was about creating something strong, professional, and built to last. Read More>>

Nancy Vosko Wolfe

The idea of a home based clothing store is not the most novel idea, yet there was a huge niche for it. I started extremely slowly and worked my way up over many years to actually be able to maintain a store with full inventory and current seasons. It was one of those things that just fell into place. Read More>>

Alex Saxe

It didn’t start as a business idea—it started as a moment you can’t unsee. We were looking at dogs that had been failed in every possible way—neglect cases sitting in evidence, dogs on euthanasia lists simply because time ran out, litters born into uncertainty with nowhere to go. The system wasn’t just overwhelmed—it was reactive, under-resourced, and in many cases, forced to make impossible decisions. Read More>>

Hyacinth Morrison

My journey into HR was actually an accident. I started my career as a receptionist at a life insurance company and somehow became everything HR. But looking back, it wasn’t really an accident at all — I had always been a people person. Long before I ever stepped into a workplace, I understood people intuitively. I grew up watching both of my parents work hard. Read More>>

Kaylee Blubaugh

I came up with the idea for Blu Insight after seeing the same problem play out over and over again with small businesses. I would meet business owners who were incredibly talented, hardworking, and passionate about what they did. They had great products, loyal customers, and a real desire to grow. But when it came to marketing, they were overwhelmed. Read More>>

Markeon Edwards

Markeon Edwards came up by turning creativity into currency. What started as a passion for visuals, storytelling, and culture evolved into a production brand focused on helping businesses and entrepreneurs elevate their image online. Instead of waiting for opportunities, he built his own lane — combining luxury aesthetics, strategic content, and entrepreneurial vision to grow a media company designed for impact and scalability. Read More>>

Erin Ahlen-Rooney, PhD

The Philosophy of Love, affectionately known as PhLo (flow), was forged across decades of serious inquiry driven by a single, urgent question: why is there so much human suffering, and what can actually be done about it? Read More>>

Catherine Mitchell Jaxon

Our lightbulb idea grew from a now all-too-familiar parenting pain point: our oldest daughter developed a severe nut allergy after we followed the old and now rescinded guidance to avoid nuts in infancy. Read More>>

David Amron

My vision for The Roxbury Institute came from many years of experience in medicine, along with what I was observing in the changing landscape of healthcare, particularly cosmetic medicine. Around 2005, I had been practicing in Beverly Hills for many years, focusing on dermatologic surgery, liposuction, and complex procedures. At that time, I was in partnership with Dr. Read More>>

Daniel Sarango

My business was born from a simple but powerful realization: horses change lives, and not enough people have access to that experience. I grew up around horses and built my career through discipline, competition, and learning from them every day. Read More>>

Carine Zossou

It all started with this deep desire to transform my life. At first, yes, I was focused on financial stability, but i also wanted to walk in purpose. Doing hair was the first step into everything I’m building now. Honestly, i did not even think of doing hair for others at first. I was just doing my own. Read More>>

Alaura Ervin

I grew up in the suburbs of Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, so it’s a place where everyone knows everyone and you have the scoop on everything going on in town. When I moved to the DC area, commonly referred to as the DMV, I was so lost and needed a way to find a grasp on this fast paced city. Read More>>

Jonathan Ambush

I was 13 when my neighbor let me borrow some of his detailing products to clean my mom’s car. He had a BMW 328i that he spent every weekend on — washing and polishing it, working products into every panel with a kind of patience that made the whole thing look more like a ritual than a chore. Read More>>

Michael Bedenbaugh

The idea grew out of decades of watching America slowly drift away from the principles that once held the republic together. My background wasn’t in politics alone — it was in historic preservation, community leadership, entrepreneurship, and service in the Navy. Read More>>

James Barr

Becoming a DJ was a collection of moments. It started as a trouble maker teen going to raves in Denver and wishing I could spin records like my friends. I had no idea how they could do that! Read More>>

Shawn Gossman

Growing up in the country, I was always into the outdoors as a kid. However, once I reach my late teenager and early adult years, I started partying, drinking, smoking, not being active, and gaining a lot of unneeded weight. Eventually, I was just left unhealthy, miserable with dental issues, alone, and depressed. Read More>>

Woody B

I was 16 years old and had bought my first guitar after a summer of saving up from my first job at a McDonald’s. Kurt Cobain had passed that year and I wanted to play guitar because of him. Read More>>

Teresa Seals-Taylor

I began my journey in the field of education when my son was enrolled in Head Start. Inspired by that experience, I enrolled in the early childhood education program at my local community college. Over the years, I became deeply committed to my studies and earned my teacher certification. Read More>>

Annie Fonte

The idea for the BraveBOLDBadass Community for women was born from something simple, yet deeply felt: a recognition that women over 50 are often navigating one of the most powerful—and sometimes uncertain—chapters of their lives, and too often, they’re doing it without the kind of meaningful support and connection they truly deserve. Read More>>

Jessica Torres

How did you come up with the idea for Apropos? The idea came from a very specific kind of frustration; the kind that builds slowly until one day you can’t ignore it anymore. I run a service business, and like most service businesses, QuickBooks is the backbone of how I operate. My entire catalog of services is in there; organized, priced, maintained. Read More>>

cindy lucio

I am an artist, I am a teacher, I am a chef. I love to travel. I have put all of these things together into my dream job, When I would tell people about our travels throughout Mexico, I would always hear ‘I want to go with you,’ and viola, the light bulb went off. Read More>>

Ayinde Hall

My business partner and I had initially come together to create a comic as a small passion project. We called ourselves Team God Punch after the name of the series we were working on, God Punch. Every year creators across the globe compete in a contest called The Shonen Jump Tezuka Award Competition. Read More>>

Gabriela White

My journey began in the beauty industry nearly 15 years ago. Before becoming a professional hairstylist, I attended cosmetology school while simultaneously working as a supervisor at a fast-food restaurant. I was determined to build a future for myself, so I balanced both work and school until I graduated and officially entered the beauty industry. Read More>>

Christy Wynne

I started in the wellness business in 2008 and had a passion for helping woman live a healthier lifestyle. My programs simplified healthy living and always focused on small changes. Over the years, one common thing that most of my clients struggled with was eating quick and healthy meals. Smoothies were always my go-to quick and healthy meal. Read More>>

Marisol Esquivel

I always love making beautiful things Read More>>

Jen La Bella

I had always wanted to open up a store of some kind but never had a clear vision until a few things in my life had lined up perfectly. I was a new Mom during the pandemic, and with nothing else to do (and no where to go), I deep dived into children’s goods! Read More>>

Erin Erger

In the middle of studying for the bar exam, I found myself needing something creative to balance out the stress. I’ve always been drawn to jewelry and accessories, so I picked up earring making as a way to relax. It became more than just an outlet—it became something I genuinely enjoyed and looked forward to, even on the busiest days. Read More>>

Jazmine Alexa Photo and Film

To dive into how Jazmine Alexa Photo and Film began I have to talk about how I found the craft and why I fell in love with it. Truth be told I haven’t always been savvy with a camera, I actually only picked one up for the first time about 4 years ago. Read More>>

Lance Bauer

I didn’t start out trying to build a business—I was just trying to find something that felt right. Welding first came into my life as a high school class. At the time, it was simply a skill I wanted to learn. After graduation, I went straight into the workforce, doing what I thought I was supposed to do. But it never really clicked. Read More>>

Tanya Flemister

I came up with the idea for SWAY Headbands in a workout class. I was behind a woman who had what felt like 55 bobby pins in her hair, all trying to keep her layers under control while she powered through her workout. I had a couple of bobby pins in my own hair too, trying to keep my bangs out of my face. Read More>>

ANNA MANNERFELT FINGERS

The Idea of Starting Wired Mustang: Digital Marketing agencies in general have a bad reputation. Read More>>

Marilyn Kleiber Author – pen name J. M. Tibbott

I have been a strong reader all my life, and particularly enjoyed science fiction. Isaac Asimov was the writer I delighted in, and having met him at a function in New York, told myself if he could do it, why couldn’t I? I had already published a short story collection and decided now was the time to write a novel. Read More>>

Vince Obarski

The first time I had ever heard the word mead was while playing Dungeons and Dragons as a kid. I didn’t know what it was, but as it less expensive to “purchase” than wine and more expensive than beer and ale, so in my mind, must be pretty good. Read More>>

Jada Sullivan

Looking at where the F3 Focus Fight FINISH brand is today and how it all started is really interesting and wild to me. To be honest, I never imagined this would be happening. It’s amazing how things come together and how God aligns your life from just a simple thought or idea you had. Read More>>

Anthony Ley

I had always studied in a specific way. I read, I take notes in my own words and I draw ‘it’ as specifically as I can. As an Internationally Certified Arborist I was asked to teach a class on identifying defects in trees, where I realized that there was an astounding lack of awareness of how trees work. Read More>>

Gillian Vendittelli

I stumbled upon the idea for my business purely by accident. For as long as I can remember, I have always been a planner: from family gatherings and corporate events for my family’s businesses to planning weddings for my dolls. Initially, I dreamt of being a ballerina, but in 2016, a knee reconstruction forced me to change my plans for college. Read More>>

Pyar Anderson

Lumberpunk is my business. It is a tabletop roleplaying game–think Dungeons and Dragons–that stemmed out of a stalled novel pitch to agencies, combined with a newfound love of roleplaying. I was pitching a first draft of a novel to agents and not getting any traction. On top of that, I wasn’t making anything creative and it was eating me up inside. Read More>>

Elizabeth Coluby

I didn’t start my business because I had some neat little entrepreneurial master plan. I started because I got laid off in 2023 after more than 25 years in banking, and a question I thought I would answer later suddenly got shoved right in front of me: What now? The truth is, the idea had already been forming. Read More>>

Lana Mar

My story did not begin with a business plan. It began when I was a child. I found an old black and white book about face yoga and skincare rituals at home. I would mix yogurt and strawberries in the kitchen and experiment on my skin, completely fascinated by how it responded. At the same time, I was a professional athlete in track and field. Read More>>

Vanessa Certain

The story of my business didn’t start with me; it started in the 1960s with my mother’s refusal to let a dream stay on paper. In an era when women were rarely seen on a job site, she stepped into the dust and began building. Soon, my father joined her, and what began as a dream became a family mission. Read More>>

Bernard Vasconcelos

The story of how I started Liberty Language Academy in Orlando, Florida, is actually quite interesting. At the time, I was living in Brazil with my wife and two young children, managing our language school, Britannia, in Rio de Janeiro. We had grown it to nearly 3,000 students across 11 campuses, with a team of over 150 employees. Read More>>

Amber Asif

My business began very organically with family and community. My first clients were my mom and a co worker who both encouraged me to take my creativity seriously and turn it into a small business. Their belief in me gave me the confidence to start. Read More>>