There is so much to learn from investments that went really well as well as those that went really poorly and so we asked some of the wisest creatives and entrepreneurs in the community to tell us the stories of their best and worst investments.
Genevieve Ma’yet
Until recently, I have never taken any photography course or had instruction. Read more>>
Steph Clark
After borrowing a sound system from friends for the comedy shows I was producing, the best investment I made was purchasing my own. The more you have to offer a venue, the more likely they will work with you. Read more>>
Ariel Kagan
Honestly the best investment we have made as a group was our time, we are never wasting our time when we are putting it towards our comedy club. We just believed in ourselves as comedians and thought the only way to be better was to get on stage more, and that has lead to a small business with endless potential of what it could mean in our lives. Read more>>
landis pearce
In the studio world, the room is everything. I cannot stress how important the actual studio space is. From the vibe, to the actual acoustics, it matters so much. I always did self treatment. Never really knew or understood completely how much it mattered for the quality of the record. Having the best gear in the world just does not matter if your room sucks. Investing in my acoustic redesign of the studio was worth more than any piece of gear I’ve ever bought. Read more>>
Hazel Daigneault
When I was finishing high school, one of my faculty friends stopped me in the hall to tell me about an opportunity. She had been working with Blast N Scrap, a local arts nonprofit, and they were looking for a volunteer instructor for their summer program. I reached out and got involved, which led to me making some incredible connections. Read more>>
Katie Titi
The best investment I’ve made as a business owner was to hire a coach. The worst investment I’ve made as a business owner was also… hiring a coach. Hiring the right coach propels your life and business leaps and bounds. Hiring the wrong one can hold you back, delay your business growth, even negatively impact your self esteem and personal progress. Read more>>
Annie Caplan
The best investment I have ever made is in myself. Read more>>
Tanairy Robles
One of the best investments I have ever done would be dropping out of college and pursuing art full-time. That being said, I knew my passions were going to take me farther if I invested in myself and my equipment. I won’t sugarcoat the truth, it was rough the first few years, I first started out as a Personal Assistant for a few photographers and directors running around Hollywood attempting to learn the new environment when I have never left my local city. Read more>>
Phil Rice
The best investment I’ve ever made? Hands down, it’s been in myself. Let’s be real – I’ve tried my luck in various investments, from stocks to ventures, and let’s just say, I’ve seen my fair share of failures and losses. But here’s the twist: I’ve never lost a dime when I’ve bet on myself. In fact, I’ve consistently increased my returns. Read more>>
Bernadine Hillman
The best investment I made as a business owner is when I invested time to learn a skill set that opened doors of opportunity. When I became a Home Health Aide, then a Certified Nurse Assistant. I found my God given purpose, that is to provide services to the elderly. The worst investment is I didn’t start soon enough. Read more>>
Lauren Melzer
As a business owner, one of the best investments I made was in tools that would make my job easier and better organized. This decision was prompted by a series of challenges I faced when trying to manage my growing business efficiently. Read more>>
Gayane Yaffa
As a seasoned real estate agent, I’ll let you in on my secret to success: continuous education. Let me take you back to the early days of my career when I was navigating the real estate world without a mentor or guide. It was like wandering in the desert without a compass, and needless to say, my bank account wasn’t exactly overflowing. Read more>>
Valerie Desire
The best investment that I’ve made as a content creator is when I purchased my first ring light. Read more>>
Evan Littman
The always cliched and always true answer: invest in yourself. Read more>>
Sal Cosenza
The best investment an artist or designer can make is in something they can use often. This could be a new tube of paint, a new sketchbook, or even more expensive things like the Adobe Creative Suite. Practically speaking, you could get dozens of paintings out of just one tube of paint, hundreds of new ideas out of just one sketchbook, and an infinite number of renderings, logos, or portfolio designs out of Photoshop, Illustrator, and InDesign. Read more>>
Nic Danielson
One of the best investments I’ve made as a composer/musician, and small-business owner, was uprooting and moving to Los Angeles, which I did in 2022. Prior to that, I’d lived the last 21 years in Seattle, playing keys/drums in bands, writing custom music for ads (e.g. Coca-Cola, DC Comics), and the occasional short film. I’ll always be a Washington boy at heart, but I wanted to really see what would happen if I was to turn everything upside down and fully dive into one of the big musical nerve centers. Read more>>