Over the years as we connected with incredible from folks from almost every imaginable industry we realized that every nook and cranny of our economy is full of small business owners, artists and creatives who live and breathe what they do – and their stories are nothing short of heroic. It’s the immigrant parents who overcame the odds and kept their small business alive for decades allowing their next generation to thrive and the artisans who pour their passion into every piece and refuse to let even the most common items remain mundane that make our communities come alive. The stories below will inspire you and we hope you’ll take the time to read and connect with these incredible folks.

Megan Cammer

Not all spiritual businesses have their customers best interest at heart. I want everyone who walks through our doors to have a safe, inviting experience that’s tailored to their individual practices and beliefs. Read more>>

Randy Page

My mother was an amazing cook, and I grew up on scratch cooking in North Carolina during the 70’s and early 80’s. At a very young age I wanted to emulate the great things that I watched her make, and I started playing around in the kitchen. Read more>>

Kirsten Filkill

My passion for photography started at a young age. I picked up my first camera, a disposable Kodak, and later one of the first Sony digital cameras, and spent hours taking photos of my animals, even setting up red carpet ‘fashion shows’ for them. Read more>>

Laura Nevins

The most important thing I keep in mind, is that you can’t rush a process. Learning herbs and energy work takes dedication, you can’t fast track it. Read more>>

Erin Clare

I am so much more than Can’t You See by the Marshall Tucker Band. I want the world to see what I am truly capable of. Often, I am met with empty promises and my words falling on deaf ears, but I feel a change in the air coming. All it takes is one person to open that door, and trust me, I am knocking my heart against it. Read more>>

Cherrisse “Reese” Colvin

One of the most important things about me — and about SHEEPBLACK Designs — is that I don’t live in just one world. By day, I’m a business professional: structured, strategic, and focused on execution. By night, I’m an artist and the founder of SHEEPBLACK Designs, where I bring imagination, storytelling, and originality to life through fashion. Read more>>

Allison Saleh

One of the joys of my job is getting to work with so many diverse and beautiful families. I was teaching a family with 10 children at one point. The children were both all biological and adopted. Absolutely incredible family. Of that family, there were twins who were coming to me to learn singing. Read more>>

Bailee Richman

After years of working as a health coach for larger corporations, I decided to open my own practice in February 2025. To jump-start my business, I offered three months of free coaching to four clients. After hours of thoughtful phone interviews, I finalized my first group of clients—one of whom was Sherry, the client I’ll be sharing about today. Read more>>

Marinell Montales

Let me preface this by saying: do as I say, not as I do. I haven’t taken a proper vacation in a while, since fall 2019, to be exact. And it’s been even longer since my partner and I took a trip together (not since summer 2016). But that’s not to say I’m in always-on mode all the time. I do take breaks. Read more>>

Mia Davis

One thing I’ve prioritized the most since starting my business at 15 years old is self care not the kind that means buying a bunch of products, but the kind that means actually giving myself the time and space I need to rest and love on myself. Since I was a little girl, I’ve enjoyed traveling with my family. Read more>>

Javonne Sanders

Honestly, if I could go back, I wish I would’ve started Toss It Up in my early twenties — but with the knowledge I have now. I’ve always had that entrepreneurial spirit, but back then I was too afraid to step out and be free. I was focused on keeping a steady job and playing it safe, so I didn’t take the leap. Read more>>

Lynn Case

I was about 4 years into being a Personal Trainer and while training clients out on the bluffs in Santa Monica, I saw my future self. I didn’t know this at this time. At that time I was simply concerned with giving my client a great workout. Read more>>

Craig Bergman

A few years ago, I was leading groups at a teen mental health and substance abuse facility in Southern California. One boy, around 16 or 17, stood out to me—not because of his participation, but because of his silence. Week after week, he sat quietly, looking serious, even angry. I assumed he might be one of those students I simply couldn’t reach. Read more>>

Salvatore Rosenblatt

The Road to My First Real Client (Literally) I started my first business at 13 and knew early on that entrepreneurship was what I’d be doing for life. But the first real dollar — the first one that didn’t come from a friend, family member, or favor — came when I was 18. And it happened almost by accident. Read more>>

Jermaine Hooks

If I were starting over, I’d focus less on grinding through transactions and more on building intentional relationships with serious investors and hotel owners from day one. I’d also position myself early as a global, luxury, hospitality specialist. Creating authority content and leveraging investor networks sooner. And I’d dive into 1031 exchanges, DSTs, and TIC strategies right away. Read more>>

Katie Attard

Being in the operations business, the biggest lesson I’ve learned about starting over is that speed and focus matter more than perfection. If I were to do it again, I would double down on two things: leveraging technology and prioritizing outbound sales. Read more>>

Christopher Yu

The transition from college to the workforce is a particularly daunting topic for many third- and fourth-year college students. Research shows that recent graduates are having an increasingly difficult time finding work. A 2025 report from Oxford Economics indicates that unemployed recent college grads account for 12% of the 85% rise in the national unemployment rate since mid-2023. Read more>>

Taylor O’Dore

My journey to Studio Rehab, where I consult and build a community for yoga and Pilates studio owners, began with a simple observation. Leaning against a wall, gazing into an empty studio after teaching two classes on a Saturday morning, I did the math. Thirteen spots, $39 drop-in rate…over $500 a class! That was the spark. Read more>>

Kristine “Kim” Phansaithong

I wouldn’t say it’s by choice I chose this to happen, but it definitely had me questioning a lot about who I was and how in the blink of an eye, our lives had changed. I had a massive stroke in 2012 when I was 31y/o. Read more>>

Jonathan, Segev, And Gilad Zadok

At Zadok Jewelers, family is everything for the success of our business. When our parents, Helene and Dror, immigrated to Houston and decided to open a jewelry store in 1976, all they had was a 1,200-square-foot space and approximately 10 items of inventory. Read more>>

Latish Reed

The core of my work centers on how to lead in a way that serves all people. One of the biggest trends I am seeing right now is the backlash against the idea of diversity, equity, and inclusion. What began as a continuation of civil rights work has been reduced to three letters, DEI, which have been politicized and, in many places, demonized. Read more>>

Brigitte Khal

There’s this myth in Corporate America that wellness is a perk, a yoga class at lunch, mindfulness app in your inbox, a band-aid over exhaustion. But nervous system regulation, emotional intelligence, the ability to breathe when the room feels like it’s on fire… that’s not a perk, that’s a lifeline. It’s the difference between humans who slowly unravel and humans who remember their brilliance. Read more>>

Mike Jablonski

Yea! For myself, this industry is tough to make a profit in. Like I’ve been doing photography for seven years now, and just after COVID, I actually started getting money from it, so about three years ago, around that time, I started doing video as well, so not even that long. Read more>>

Abbie Batson

Back in January of this year, I found out that my soulmate dog, Murphy had Lymphoma. He was only 6 and was just the best dog I’ve ever known. My boss, and entire team surprised me with the idea of having a ‘Wake’ for Murphy. They paid for everything, hired vendors, and we invited about 40 people to come and celebrate his life. Read more>>