Risk is a topic that comes up a lot in our conversations with entrepreneurs and creatives, but a related topic is investments. Investments come in many forms – investing your time, money, heart and soul, etc. So, with that broad definition of investment in mind, we asked rising stars in the community to tell us the stories of the best or worst investments they’ve made.

Justin Mayfield

My best and worst investment is my time. I hate wasting it. I know that sometimes we procrastinate, but we have to keep working towards our goals. I’ve invested numerous hours into the studio, craft, marketing, and experience. You only see the feedback from how hard you work and sometimes it can take a toll on you. All the partying and late nights definitely catch up with you quickly. Make sure you use your time wisely and money towards the correct services. Read more>>

Adley Haywood

As a business owner, it’s important to invest in tools and products that can help you grow and succeed. For me, the best investment I’ve made was building a studio in my home. As a photographer, I’m frequently asked if I can take portraits in a studio setting, so I did a bunch of research to figure out what products I would need. Thankfully, I had a lot of free space in my apartment living room, which I dedicated to the studio. Read more>>

Hannah JH. Bang

Investing involves risk taking. Under what circumstances will we decide to invest? When we challenge ourselves to pursue our dreams, we must revise and refine our priorities and continue moving forward. Moving forward means you might end up changing things around you. I will introduce myself with what I invested in my life. Read more>>

Ellie Molewyk

In high school I took two years of a class called Entrepreneurship and Global Business. At the end of my second year our class held a very exciting trade show. I gathered lots of information and got lots of encouragement to start a website. So that following June I opened a website and waited, and waited for the sales. I put quite a bit of money and time into this adventure, and guess how many sales I got? NONE! After the whole experience I realized, I should have gone about it differently. I should have started with an Etsy first, seen how the sales go and then decide whether I should invest in a website. It has been a hard pill to swallow, mostly because I hate failure. I also realized God has a plan, some doors will open and some never will. He knows what will make you truly happy, even if it’s going to hurt in the process of finding it. I will continue to create art and magnets for shows and my small Instagram following, because that makes me happy! Read more>>

Jennifer Holmstead

What I once thought was my worst investment has turned out to be my best investment. I purchased my first home in late 2006, at the height of the market, right before the real estate crash. Fast forward to 2010, my partner and I were going our separate ways and needed to sell the property. We realized that not only could we not recoup the down payment, we were actually under water. It was a scary and stressful time. We didn’t have many options except keep the house, pay to get out of it, or short sell. I ended up keeping the house and renting out rooms to help make the mortgage. I remember feeling like I was going to be under water forever. Read more>>

Brittany Williams

The best investment I made was purchasing my large format printer and press. When doing all over shirts on a small printer it takes a lot of work. You have to split the design based on the size of the shirt. Then print each sheet and cut and tape it together. Then if you have a small press (15×15) you need to have all the correct materials to make sure you press the shirt right. The large format printer is more efficient to use. It prints a whole shirt on one sheet of paper. The large format press allows me to press the shirt once. Thus making it possible to do more in less time. Read more>>

 J Kyle

single handedly the ABSOLUTE BEST investment I’ve ever made as a business owner was investing into my own mental health and stability. I don’t say that to sound relevant or to be socially cliche. I mean it with every cell in my body and here’s why. Read more>>

Gabby Jockers

My worst investment was an expensive money mindset course…that ended up basically being the same content as a book, plus a private Facebook group. I got sucked into the sales tactics and invested in the spur of the moment, which I later regretted. I learned a lot from this experience about aligning my business spending with business priorities & strategy, especially when it comes to major purchases. Read more>>

JoAnna McMurray

Purchasing a ring light, bluetooth remote, various tripods, and a phone mirror mount to help the quality of my content. You don’t need an expensive camera unless that’s something you want. But lighting matters a lot when it comes to making content. Investing in equipment helps so much with the quality. Read more>>