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.

Micah Rind

Someone once said to me that art is derived from life, therefore artists must go out and live. The work culture in The United States has a bad habit of viewing us as machines instead of people and is obsessed with finding a way to maximize every second of every day. What’s the best investment you ask? Living. The best investment you can make as an artist is to live. Travel the world, engage with other cultures and beliefs, pause the “grind mentality,” and I promise that you will return inspired tenfold. Read more>>

Micah Brown

Hiring multiple business coaches/mentors. I started my company in January 2023, after working as a lead planner for a company in Colorado. I moved to Raleigh, North Carolina in October of 2022, so I hit the ground running! I knew I wanted to start my own company once I moved and I promised myself that, if I am going to start a company now, I will not take out any credit or loans, so I used all my disposable income. It was hard at first…rent was late a couple months but, always paid. lol Didn’t get my nails, hair, or waxing done- had to do it all myself. It was a lot of sacrificing but, it was worth it. Read more>>

Marta Napoleone Mazzoni

The best investment I ever made as a business owner was in myself. It was a combination of healing practices, communication, leadership and coaching techniques that I put back into me. I always grew up with the idea of investing outside of myself, so when this concept crept in, it took on a whole new meaning and truly aiding me in forming and aligning my intentions and business as it is right now. Read more>>

Jenn Morse

Interestingly both the worst and best investments I have made to date were coaches. My best investment was early on taking an empowerment program to help Spiriutal entrepreneurs start their businesses, by Natalia Benson. This program really rocketed me into my business and also gave me the confidence and support network to do so. My mindset was becoming more groomed, I was starting to think like the person I wanted to become, and therefore becoming that person. I still stay connected to the women in that program until this day. Read more>>

Heloíne Moreno

My best investment was learning different languages. When I was 10 years old and I saw that an English school opened in my hometown in Brazil. My first reaction was to ask my mom to take me there because I wanted to learn English and come live in the US one day. After that I also took Spanish classes and kept studying on my own. My next goal is to learn French, which I’ve been on and off studying. Languages open doors for meeting new people, learning new culture and being able to understand others in a better way. Read more>>

Paulina

Taking risks is very important in this industry. The risk I’m most proud of was deciding to start releasing my music without waiting for it to be “perfect”. The moment I realized that, I felt so liberated. I decided to meet myself where I’m at and make the music that feels right to the Paulina of this time and space. And I encourage everyone to do the same. A lot of amazing opportunities have come my way since taking this risk. I had the opportunity to attend the Billboard Latin Music Week in Miami, and was subsequently named, by Billboard, an emerging artist on their radar. A lot of great things happen when you put yourself out there and choose to believe in yourself. It’s not easy, but it is so so worth it. Read more>>

Deinye Eporwei

My worst investment is the time and money I spent trying to build a startup before Bare Skin. It was supposed to be an app that helps people track their spending and provide actionable insights on optimizing their spending to reach their financial goals. It was a great idea (and still is in my opinion), however, I was the wrong person to try to execute it, simply because writing software full-time and being in the tech scene is not my passion. Read more>>