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.
Shayna Rutman
Purses For A Purpose, Inc. is a registered 501(c)3 nonprofit organization aimed to remind the unhoused women in our communities of their value in society. I grew up wanting to help people, and once I turned 17 my father, Keith, introduced the idea of donating unwanted purses to domestic violence shelters rather than donation sites. From there, we explored the idea and started to advertise that we were collecting purses and travel sized toiletries to distribute to the unhoused women in the community (I grew up in San Diego, California). Read more>>
Robnitia Weekley
The Notary Nook was born out of a blend of necessity, passion, and a vision for a more connected and supportive notary community. My journey began when I noticed a gap in the notary services industry: while there were plenty of notaries, there wasn’t a central hub where notaries could come together to share experiences, seek advice, and support each other. It felt like there was a missing piece—a place where notaries could not only find practical solutions but also engage in meaningful conversations and build a network. Read more>>
Leia Murphy
I started Leia Rachelle Creative, LLC back in April of 2019. I was struggling with my health for years before starting it, and was unable to work due to this fact. It was only when I moved to AZ that I finally got diagnosed- and with those diagnosis’s, I was able to make lifestyle changes that made my life better. Unfortunately, one of those diagnosis’s was bifocal frontal lobe epilepsy. Due to this fact, I may never be able to drive again-and is difficult for me to hold down a normal 9-5 job. That was when Leia Rachelle Creative, LLC was born. I knew I had a lot to give to the world, and this business has made that possible. I am able to make my own hours, all the while bringing your ideas and concepts to life. Read more>>
Robnitia Weekley
The idea for Stamped For You LLC Notary came to me during a time when I was seeking to align my passion for helping others with a meaningful business endeavor. I’ve always been someone who values community, trust, and making a difference. I realized that the notary industry offered a unique opportunity to provide people with services that truly matter—whether it’s helping with essential legal documents, guiding someone through the complexities of their paperwork, or offering a mobile service for those who can’t make it to a traditional office setting. Read more>>
Anita Obasi
Honestly, I was sitting on my couch legitimately thinking about the nature of this existence, and simultaneously also desiring connection. The thought of looking through a number of disparate resources just to find a party that would have been cool to go to if I had seen it on time was a big barrier in my even wanting to venture outside and connect with people, especially those in my community. I realized that I was definitely not the only person who had this problem, so I started to compile whatever events I saw or was able to find into a newsletter that I still send out for free every Monday morning. I knew this would be a helpful resource to others because there was no consistent aggregator that was both free and delivered as an email without doing anything outside of providing an email address. Read more>>
Miami Steve
Well that is a loaded question but I will try to be as concise as possible. The name of my film production company is AGON Pictures. We are an Indianapolis based TV & Film production company focused on large scale production to help expand the film scene here in the Midwest to become a premier filming destination. Essentially, turning Indianapolis into the Hollywood of the Midwest. Read more>>
Julie Thurgood-burnett
The idea for Hereward Farms was a sudden epiphany that turned into a culmination of love for nature, community, and sustainability. Picture this: A beautiful 250-farm nestled in East Garafraxa, Ontario, surrounded by fields waiting to be transformed into something meaningful. I found myself thinking, “I wonder if lavender would grow here.” That’s when the seed of the idea for Hereward Farms started to sprout. Read more>>
D’author Nicole
After years of hiding behind my physical and emotional scars, I wrote a memoir to share my story in hopes of encouraging others who may believe they are not “good enough”, to live the life they were born into. In my book, I acknowledge the many years I hid from being myself because I failed to accept my imperfections. It took a long time for me to realize that life is not perfect and I am not perfect, with or without my scars. Read more>>
Robert Morris
When I was born my family had a beautiful cocker spaniel. Some of my earliest memories are snuggling with Rusty. When he died when i was 8 I cried more than finding out Santa wasn’t real (when I was 25 years old!). My family surprised me by bringing me to my cousins and allowing me to pick from the litter of Brutus, Bruno, Barry… I chose Barry and renamed him Spike, not understanding that Spike would be a big dog. I thought I was being funny. I was grateful when my family got me a basic training book and it was the first time i’d really felt mesmerized by an endeavor. I trained Spike and we were best friends until his end when I was 22 and he passed away. Read more>>
Kate Dipinto
The Idea Behind Glamour Management The idea for Glamour Management was born from a blend of personal transformation and professional evolution. After spending several years in the hospitality industry, particularly in fine dining, I hit a turning point when I made the life-changing decision to get sober. This pivotal moment not only altered my personal trajectory but also sparked a change in my career path, leading me into the world of beauty—a field I quickly fell in love with. Read more>>
Jason Gray
Back in October 2015, I was fed up. I had been working as an educational specialist for the Upward Bound program at Malcolm X College in Chicago, helping high school students get into college. I loved the work, but I was tired of being overlooked for a promotion. They kept interviewing other people for the director’s position, even though I had the degrees, the experience, and I knew the students and parents like the back of my hand. I remember the exact moment I decided to quit. I was sitting in my car at a BP gas station, pumping gas, and it just hit me – I was done with being overlooked. I put in my two-week notice that same day. Read more>>
Kelly /rachel Carlstrom/ Lee
In the very beginning of our independent personal business journey, both of us spent countless hours working on our personal products, attending vendor events, and meeting some of the most beautiful local small business owners in the area. We were working out of our homes and relying on only social media, selling in-store at other local small businesses, attending events, and website orders for sales. After leaving the beloved boutique that closed, we joined forces and decided we wanted to have something local to Quincy. We shared dreams and ideas of having a permanent location to offer a “home” to local small businesses, where they can showcase their products and allow their consumers to find their products on a consistent basis. Read more>>
Aj Domingo
TheLAHobbyist was born out of my love for trading cards and the community that surrounds it. I’ve been a collector and enthusiast for years, fascinated by everything from basketball to One Piece cards. At the time, I noticed there were many people like me who shared this passion but didn’t have a platform or community where they could fully immerse themselves, buy, sell, trade, and connect with others who shared their interests. Read more>>
Emma Bierwas
I can’t pinpoint the exact moment I said, “I should start a dog-walking business.” I think it was a cumulation of tiny little moments and ventures over time that led me from this passion for working with animals to becoming a business owner. I’ve been an animal and pet lover my entire life- growing up with dogs, cats, bunnies, chickens, and the occasional fish, there was always an animal friend to spend time with. I can even remember as a child taking my grandparent’s dog, Scooter, outside into their yard and “training” him, so perhaps becoming a pet care professional has always been destiny- it would just take a pandemic and dislike for the corporate world to bring it out of me. Read more>>
Laura Somma
I have a long and successful background as event and wedding producer but there is a time in your life that what you are doing is simply not enough. The concept for “Women Empowering Women” in Dubai emerged from my passion for creating events that not only celebrate life’s special moments but also foster positive change. As an event and wedding creator, I’ve always been inspired by the power of bringing people together to make a difference. Read more>>
Vaani Sai
Every writer I know has struggled with writer’s block at some point in their career—I certainly have. When I’m in a creative rut, I do what many others do: turn to the Internet for answers. There is no shortage of blogs, videos, and even MasterClasses offering tips on how to overcome writer’s block. But as I sift through endless listicles and anecdotal advice, I often wonder, “Will this work for me?” As a student of neuroscience, I’ve always looked for claims supported by empirical evidence—evidence that is reliable and applicable to a broader audience. This curiosity led me to explore whether there was any neuroscientific literature on writer’s block. To my delight, there was! Read more>>
Wynter Taylor
So I’m certainly not the first person to combine astrology and psychology, but I am the only person I know who has combined them in the way I do! In 2016, after graduating college, I happened to follow a popular astrologer on Twitter who had been making predictions around the 2016 election. She seemed to be combining politics and activism with astrology, but using the Sidereal zodiac, all things I’d never seen someone do before. I already had some interest in astrology, but the way she used it really piqued my interest, as it was more practical, and aligned pretty closely with the beliefs I’d developed in school studying psychology and sociology. This astrologer would eventually become a close friend and mentor who taught me everything she knew, and really helped me refine my skills and pattern-recognition capabilities. Together, we combined politics, psychology, human behavior, relationship psychology and more with Sidereal astrology in our discussions. Read more>>
Genevieve Dahle
While homeschooling my daughter, I realized that the accommodations I was providing my daughter weren’t addressing the full picture of her needs. We knew that ADHD was a probable diagnosis and that we needed more information to help her thrive in school. As a former teacher, I had already done everything I knew to do for students with ADHD: breaking school into smaller chunks, incorporating movement, and allowing more breaks to process and transition. While those things helped, they didn’t her sleep or emotional regulation. Read more>>
Stephany Poe
The story of POEE Coaching and Consulting was birthed during my time working as a spiritual wellness coach for a nonprofit called LIV You. My role there was coaching women all over the world in removing barriers to wellness in their personal and professional lives. I coached women (ages 18+) in Africa, Brazil, Germany, Canada, the US and a few other countries. We would hold weekly live sessions via social media in providing coaching tips to women on how they can get passed challenges in their lives. LIV You stands for Love, Inspire, and Value You and there were 3 of us. We held weekly live conversations via social media on specific topics related to the areas of wellness we coached on; physical, mental, financial, & even spiritual and the amount of support we received was astronomical. We even had men who reached out to us thanking us for providing a way forward in their lives as well as the women in their lives. They were even inspired by our content. Many of the women that I coach and speak with had barriers in their professional lives which played a major role on their personal life as it do many people. Read more>>
Evitta Morrow
My late husband started our business in 1985, it began when he was 43 years old, and he had been diagnosed with prostate cancer. After many years of no improvement, he began to seek out alternative solutions. He met an herbalist who recommended different herbal supplements and after only 2 days he began to feel a major difference! It sparked his interest, so he began on a journey of learning as much as he could about herbs. People began to see the difference in him and wanted to know what he was doing differently. They would give him money to purchase the herbal products from the company he was using at the time. Read more>>
Haeleigh Royall
The idea for Cinematography for Actors sparked during a casual pandemic roller skating sesh. We happened upon a discussion about some of the challenges actors often face on set. We realized that if actors had greater technical knowledge, they could be so much more empowered to collaborate effectively with cinematographers and directors. This thought really struck a chord with us, and we dreamed up a platform that could offer specialized education focused on bridging that gap—giving actors the confidence to engage with the filmmaking process more holistically. Read more>>
Mazdak Movahedi
We are a premium Persian/Iranian beer company based in Arizona, founded in 2019. Our journey began when we noticed a gap in the global market for Persian beer, despite Persian brewers being among the pioneers of brewing, dating back to 3500 BC. After years of research, we rediscovered an ancient brewing method and formula, which we now combine with cutting-edge technology and modern brewing equipment in the United States. Currently, we offer a premium Pilsner in the market, and we’re excited to soon introduce a unique range of IPAs, infused with traditional Persian ingredients like basil, saffron, and turmeric, delivering a one-of-a-kind taste experience. Read more>>
Gisell Flores
Makeup was one of those things that I loved through out my whole life. However when it came to picking a career towards the end of my high school years, being a makeup artist was not one of the things I wanted to pursue. I went into John Jay college thinking that forensic psychology was the right path for me. However life kept pushing me towards the beauty market. I was truly unhappy with what I was studying in college and questioned everything. COVID happened and that’s when it really sinked in, that I need to follow what I love to be happy. Read more>>
Lee Roth
The Actionists is a marketing consultancy that brings a business growth mindset to brand building and marketing. The Actionists was built by former marketers Pio Schunker (ex Coke/Samsung/Ogilvy) and Lee Roth (ex Coke/PayPal/Wieden) who saw there was a lack of strategic muscle in agencies as agencies get more junior and in the consultancies who delivered analytics without the thinking that goes with it. The Actionists model brings together former CMO’s, CSO’s and Executive Creative Directors in a way that is codified, efficient and results oriented. Read more>>
Ladàna Young
Tell the story of how you came up with the idea for your film project. Paint the picture so others really understand the context, circumstances, the emotions, etc.The idea for “For Kids Like Me” (#FKLMdoc) was born out of a deeply personal and emotional journey. My daughter, Anyé Young, authored the book “Teen Guide to Living with Incarcerated Parents,” which provided a raw and honest look into the struggles faced by children with incarcerated parents. Her courage and resilience inspired me to take this a step further and create a film that would amplify these voices and stories. Read more>>
Elizabeth Dijohn
You could say it was a “soul awakening” of sorts that helped plant the seed of a dream that just wouldn’t quit. I spent over a decade in corporate marketing, and when our third child was born in January 2020, I paused to stay home for the first time since becoming a mom. Assuming I would go back into the corporate world at some point, I stayed busy and connected through freelance projects, and found myself just as busy as I was before leaving my salaried position. The all-too-familiar machine was turned back on and I was living on auto-pilot. In 2021 my husband and I were witness to a car accident that included a fatality. From that point forward life presented me with a series of events that gave light to a very different path which blossomed into a dream that was clear as day. Read more>>
Cristina “stina” Kusunoki Ishmael
The concept of Hello Lovely Living initially started with a heartfelt dream to intentionally create a life that I truly love and cherish. At that pivotal moment in time, I found myself navigating through a chapter in my life where I was faced with an important decision—whether to continue to pursue my established career or take a bold leap to start my own business. From the age of 15, I had been in the workforce, and upon graduating from college with a budding career in Marketing, I experienced a profound realization and awakening: I wanted to create and build something meaningful for myself. As a result, I made the courageous decision to launch Hello Lovely Living as a blog where I could share my creative pursuits and also offer my graphic and web design services to inspiring women who were eager to launch their own ventures as well. Read more>>
Brent Bludworth
I have been making and creating art my whole life. My mom was an art teacher and nurtured a life long love of art in me. I attended the University of Florida, graduating in 1993 with a BFA in Drawing. Eventually, I found a career teaching Art at Lake Worth High School. In 2016, my colleague, Jennifer Gironda, was creating a work of art a day and challenged me to do the same. Previously, my work was all over the place. More like a body of academic explorations and less an cohesive body of work. By accepting the daily challenge I was forced to organize my creative time and process to complete the daily task. Over the next 2 years I developed over 700 Surf art by Brent works of art and launched Surf Art by Brent as an LLC. Read more>>
Iimani McKnight
After years of navigating both corporate and freelance roles, I found myself feeling depleted. The excitement I once felt for my work was overshadowed by an overwhelming sense of exhaustion. As I looked around, I realized that I wasn’t alone in this experience. Many of my fellow creative professionals were grappling with similar feelings, both in and out of the workplace. It became clear to me that we, as creatives, have very unique mental health experiences that aren’t fully understood or acknowledged. Creating on demand and in high-pressure situations, as many roles require, has a specific effect that is under-discussed. It’s almost the complete opposite of what true creativity needs to thrive. In working closely with influencers and creators, I saw firsthand how they were constantly “on,” unable to truly unplug or take time off, because their jobs and livelihoods were tied to social media—a space that is ironically one of the leading causes of depression today. Read more>>
Jasmine Tran
In early March 2009, my world was upended when I was unexpectedly laid off from my role as an account and project manager at an organic skincare lab. The abrupt end to my job left me feeling disheartened and uncertain about the future. Unable to secure a new position due to the lack of a reference from my previous employer, I found myself at a crossroads. Little did I know, those very challenges were laying the groundwork for something transformative. Looking back, I now see that the difficulties and emotions I faced were crucial in shaping who I am today. It was during this tumultuous period that I envisioned the creation of Essance—a dream that evolved into a passionate pursuit over the next two years. The idea of Essance became more than just a concept; it became a personal mission, a way to channel my experience and create something that was wholly mine. Read more>>
Jennifer Hine
My business started extremely small in 2012 when I made myself a jewelry holder. It was simply a block of wood covered in scrapbook paper with some hooks attached. It was something I needed, and always being crafty led me to making my own. I had showed the product to some of my friends, and they told me I could probably sell it. I opened up an Etsy shop thinking I might sell a few, but actually ended up being fairly successful! Ever since then I had the goal to grow this into something bigger. I focused on functional art with key racks and jewelry holders. I did this for many years as I didn’t have the tools to do much more than that. I started with having Lowe’s cut down all my wood for me, to finally getting a miter saw where I could do that on my own. Read more>>
Dumitru Bumbu
The idea for the business came from a mix of passion and necessity. It wasn’t something that happened overnight, but rather developed over a couple of years, rooted in my love for cars and the understanding that people deeply value protecting their investments. Like many, I’ve always been fascinated by cars—their design, how simple modifications can transform them, and the pride that comes with personalizing something you own. Over time, though, I realized window tinting wasn’t just about appearance; it was about comfort, protection, and making a statement. Read more>>
Jordan Childs
My name is Jordan Childs. I am a content creator that makes basketball videos wearing crocs. What gave me the idea of playing basketball in my crocs was that I’ve always wanted to be different. Instead of me wearing regular basketball shoes, why not wear shoes that make me feel a bit more comfortable? Wearing crocs allows me to express myself on the court and move freely without a consequence. People often question why, and I answer back with a glaze of confidence. A series of moves proceeded by beautiful footwork, and still being able to keep my crocs on is unbelievable to others, but not I because I believe in my abilities. You can do anything you set your mind to, and that’s the message I’m yearning towards conveying to the audience! Read more>>