As almost any entrepreneur or creative will tell you, unexpected problems are to be expected. Below, you’ll hear some incredible stories that highlight and illustrate the kinds of issues and problems entrepreneurs and creatives are dealing with everyday. It’s not easy, but the silver lining is that dealing with unexpected problems is one of the best ways to develop antifragility.

Kathleen Marple Kalb

The first few years of my writing career were one challenge after another — and not the expected ones! Every writer who chooses the traditional path knows it’s going to be tough to get an agent and for that agent to find a publisher for their book. What I didn’t expect was a long-running family health crisis while I was querying…and later, a pandemic debut. Soon after my first agent took my first book proposal to submission, my husband was diagnosed with lymphoma. After several months of focusing on his treatment, I started querying again, with a new project. He was in remission when my second agent signed me…and by the time the book was picked up, it looked like everything was back on track. Read more>>

Ajijul Hasan Surzo

One of the most unexpected challenges I encountered was discovering how many filmmakers, from various countries and cultures, were making films without truly grasping the entire process. It was shocking at first. How could an industry operate with such incomplete knowledge? Read more>>

Ashtyn Johnson

Pretty lives matter.. I’ve always said this because people think that they can just take advantage of a situation that you are in. As a freelance model and stylist i work with a lot of different kinds of people in the industry. And if you dont know it can become a place where you are quickly taken advantage of. I have had many clients/ photographers cross the line when it comes to boundaries and or professionalism. I was told to be aware of this when i first started modeling and it’s progressively only gotten worse.. there is a line of content that i will not subject myself or my body to as an image or the work that is put out, especially being a freelance you definitely have to do your checking and proceed with caution. Read more>>

Brad Flower

Visualizing the business plan for DUTCH Creatives’ Collaborative was a creative endeavor. Rochester’s diverse music community was my muse. In creating this multi-faceted community project, I was harnessing my professional experience in real estate development and operations to provide safe and sustainable spaces for my friends and fellow creators to write, rehearse, and perform their work. The rehearsal spaces came easy; I knew how to renovate the former Sunday school rooms in our adopted church to be secure, clean, and reliable rehearsal spaces complete with the requisite vibes for unhindered music creation. Providing affordable co-living housing right next door to our main facility was also a no-brainer, and we’ve successfully hosted over 250 guests and traveling performers in our Airbnb. Read more>>