Going from idea to execution isn’t easy. Part of the difficulty is that often there is no playbook to follow and while we can’t offer a playbook either, we wanted to create a space where aspiring entrepreneurs could read the stories of how some very smart, very thoughtful entrepreneurs form the community got started.

Andrea Malloni

It is critical to continually remind yourself that filmmaking is storytelling – it is testimony documented. An idea needs to be steeped in question and context before its ripe to commit to film. I had the good fortune of working with some talented Art Directors and Designers in a prior life who allowed me to witness their creative process and best practices. Tools like concept boards, mood and color theming, references and abstract relational material that helps you creatively flush out the concept and understand it at a deeper level are incredibly helpful. Read more>>

Arielle Tate

I started my entrepreneurial journey at 17 while still in high school during the COVID-19 pandemic. Faced with the choice of attending school in person or virtually, I felt drawn to go virtual, even though I was unsure of what I wanted. I decided to take on two jobs, one in fast food and one in retail, to save money and prepare for the uncertain future after graduation. Balancing work with school was mentally, emotionally, and physically draining, and I often experienced panic attacks due to the stressful work environment and rude interactions. Read more>>

Becky Connelly

The time period between quitting my day job, to focus on developing a nipple concealing bra, and taking the first step towards actually developing it, was close to 6 month It took some time for the reality of “I’m actually doing this” to sink-in and for the remaining months, I was frozen in overwhelm.  I had no idea where to begin. The sheer magnitude of creating a bra from thin air was intimidating, to say the least. Plus, I had zero experience in the fashion industry, let alone lingerie design.  Read more>>

Callie Saeher

Ubae began with Max, our first dog, who had a particularly sensitive stomach and skin. Watching him struggled with treats and food sensitivities was heart-wrenching. I began experimenting with purple sweet potatoes and coconut to improve his gut and skin health, and I was amazed by the dramatic improvements we saw. This experience inspired us to start Ubae. As we spoke with other pet parents, we became increasingly convinced that there was a real need for healthy treats specifically designed for pets with sensitive stomachs and skin. Read more>>

Daniel Bereza

When I first embarked on the journey to start my freelance WordPress web development business, it wasn’t a spur-of-the-moment decision—it was the result of years of curiosity, countless experiments, and a deepening passion for web design. It all began during the monotony of a typical 9-to-5 job. I had always been intrigued by technology and design, but as the days passed, I found myself increasingly drawn to the world of web development. In the quiet hours after work, I would sit at my computer, tinkering with HTML, CSS, and WordPress, like an artist sketching in the margins of a notebook.  Read more>>

Deston Munden

This is one of the most asked questions that I receive as a fantasy and science fiction author: How do I get started? And the answer is simpler to answer but hard to commit to. You have to get started without the expectations that you already set up for yourself. Just start the book. WRITE it. Don’t plan everything. You’re going to miss things anyway. Just write the book. The idea itself is the easiest part for me. Everyone has ideas. Read more>>

Elya Adre-kim

When I decided that I wanted to start this business, I ended up launching it quite quickly. One of my friends was planning a market called Eavening and I told him about my business idea and sent him photos of my work. I asked him if he still had space and if I could set up a booth at his market and amazingly he said yes! I am so grateful to that friend for helping me get my start and allowing me to show my work. Read more>>

Jessica Doll

Since high school, my dream has been to pursue a career as a professional dancer. After being exposed to little moments and bits of the industry I knew that this was the path I wanted to follow. I worked extremely hard as a young adult to strengthen my skillset in numerous styles, gain knowledge and acquire everything necessary in order to move to the states to go after the big league jobs. Originally from a small town in Canada- dance opportunities were limited. Read more>>

Jonell Brown

One of my best friends, Versus, connected me with a director that she had worked with in the past. This director, Drusilla Talley Williams, was looking for a writer to write a screenplay about the life and career of her late niece Samantha Rogers. After a few calls, Drusilla coordinated time for me to interview important people in Sam’s life, including her mother, grandmother, aunts, girlfriend, and artists that she’s worked with over the span of her career. The interviews consisted of questions that I prepared, which resulted in an emotion-filled recounting of moments and enlightenment on my behalf. Read more>>

Justin Navalle

I often have to remind myself how lucky I am to be able to do what I do for a living. I was fortunate to know at a very young age what I wanted to do with my life. Music. It was everything to me growing up. My parents showed me rock n roll, they let me go to punk rock shows, they got me guitar and piano lessons. The era of electronic music in the U.S. hit when I was in college at SDSU and learning to DJ at the time felt like a no brainer. I was so very curious in bringing people together and I knew I wanted to be involved in live music. Read more>>

Larry Sanford

Founded on June 6th, 2021 in Carbondale IL, Beats By Yo Boi Inc is a leading music production company and independent record label for independent artists. We pride ourselves on providing a range of services to support the growth and success of independent artists, including artist management and development, music production, and custom merchandising. Read more>>

Laura Prather

Publishing a magazine was never on my list of dreams at any time in my life. As a teen, I thought it would be awesome to have a job as a photo journalist for a publication like National Geographic. But, as I wasn’t the best photographer and a less-than-enthusiastic “C” student in English, I let the dream fade into nothing more than an unrealistic wish meant for someone else. Fast forward nearly forty years as I held the first printed copy of my magazine in my hand. A flashback to my dream as teenager was suddenly back in my memory and I realized that in my hands lay my heart’s desire; and I didn’t even know it until that moment. Read more>>

Lea Hilton

Becoming a book reviewer has been something like fate. I’ve always been a reader, but during my Masters program, I started to lose the things that meant the most to me. I was extremely busy and did not always take time for myself, but when I moved to Charlotte, NC after graduating, I planned to slow life down a little and get back into reading. I remember reading a lot in 2023 and posting snippets of how each book went on my personal Instagram story. Read more>>

Mackenzie Jaquish

The Sleepover show was a year in the making, and like a lot of my ideas it started with Taylor Swift. On May 5th of 2023 I was standing in the last row of a 75,000-seat stadium in Nashville at the Eras Tour. It was the start of the concert, and everyone was so excited for it to begin. I had never been to a Taylor Swift concert before, and honestly wasn’t a fan of concerts to begin with. Couldn’t I just listen to the album at home? Read more>>

Matthew Diana

The Inspiration: The idea came from recognizing a gap and feeling compelled to fill it. It wasn’t just about the product but about solving a real problem and making an impact. Early Steps: The next day, I shifted from thinking to doing. I committed to learning and taking action, knowing that progress comes from consistent effort. I sought out resources, built new skills, and connected with others who could help me grow. Read more>>

Michael Holcomb

My restaurant, Peduncle, in Stone Mountain Georgia was a concept that was forced into existence by a “break-up” with my former landlord. A hasty exit of my successful former location left me 10 days to move until the end of the month. fortune landed me in a spot that had previously housed a “vegan BBQ” food spot. The only feasible location to move came with a restricted kitchen due to a small grease trap. So my budding concept for a plant-based fast food restaurant had a foothold. Read more>>

Mingxin Cheng

To push an idea into execution, I would start with thorough research and study. As designers, I often come up with ambitious ideas that might involve knowledge I am not yet familiar with. So, bringing an idea to life is also a process of learning and, sometimes, compromising.When I come up with an idea for motion storytelling, it usually begins with just a concept or a rough storyline. The first thing I do is write down all the key ideas—almost like a brain dump. Then, I organize these thoughts to create a plan. Read more>>

Parker Emerson

My dad, Todd Emerson, started James Enterprise Inc. (JEI) in the late 1990’s, which quickly became the distributor for a popular brand of gravity-fed water filter systems. He started with a simple website to sell a handful of water filter systems, and shipped water filters out of our garage with the help of my mom and us three kids. As the years went on, we hired additional help, moved the operation to a separate building (so glad to have our garage back!), and built a robust e-commerce business selling many different brands and products, including water filters and glass water bottles. Read more>>

Ronshay Cole

S.H.E.E.D.S: Sharing Happy Experiences Everyone Deserves became a dream in 2016, as I began to plan my destination wedding. This sparked my passionate interest to become a wedding planner. The name SHEED’s originated from Rasheed my beloved baby brother. During his 27 years of life he suffered from kidney failure, leading to dialysis. Due to frequent hospitalizations, he was unable to experience the life we often take for granted. This business is in his honor💜 Read more>>

Sage Bara

I had been in the performing and visual arts arena my whole life and raised my children in this environment all the way through adulthood where they were teaching at our school. We just loved having a family business. We have a few family members in the wedding industry and my daughter with her fashion degree was working in this industry as well as a bridal consultant. We were at a place in our lives where we were looking at creating something new that we could continue working and creating together as a family. Read more>>

Steve Vitolo

The idea for Scriptation came to me while I was working as a script coordinator on a TV pilot. Every night, we were distributing a 50-page script to over 100 people after every revision, which just seemed like a massive waste of paper and super inefficient. I wasn’t the one making the script changes, but I was the one printing them out and overseeing the distribution, so I felt somewhat responsible. Read more>>

Tiffany Henderson

I originally gained my experience in social media marketing when I was pushed out of my comfort zone in my first hair salon business. I had patterned with someone the first 6 months to open the business, then problems arose. I chose to keep running it on my own, but knew I wanted to become a better business owner and seek knowledge. I started doing all the free business training I could find, and especially in social media marketing. Next, I started investing in my education. Read more>>

Troy Williams

Starting my photography business was not an easy feat. When I began my final semester of undergrad, back in 2021, I had to take into account what I would do once I graduated. Would I go back to school in pursuit of a masters degree? Or, would I jump straight into the work force? Many questions like these arose, and I was met with a lot of decisions. With impending choices constantly floating around in my head, I prepared to walk across the graduation stage. However, one day I got the idea to take my minor side hustle/passion, photography, and make it into an actual career for myself. Read more>>

Christian Higgins-Hernandez

During 2020 when we were going through a shutdown, my long time friend and guitar player of Driven Out (Ryan Alzina) had found himself with extra time on his hands. He used that time to put together a few recordings of different songs. We love creating so we dove right into it as a passion project. It was at a time where no one knew what was going to happen next. It put a lot into perspective. Have we really been living out our lives to the fullest and pursuing our passions? At a time where all things were unsure and we as a world lost a lot, what left did we have? Read more>>