Starting a business can be terrifying. Weighing the pros and cons, the risks, and other considerations can be so overwhelming that often promising entrepreneurs stop before they even start. We asked some phenomenal entrepreneurs about their thought process behind starting their own businesses. Our hope is that by making the thought-process less intimidating we can help more folks think through whether they should take an entrepreneurial leap.

Nikki Keller | Venue Management Specialist

I realized the lack of business and management skills in the venue that I was hired to be a sales manager at. When I was reviewing the models and sales approach all my business skills, hospitality training, the years I spent in sales and marketing, paired with my years of event logistics all collided into an idea that lead me to starting The Venue Assistant. I thought, this would be a way to help small business owners and non-profits really succeed in the venue rental business. Read more>>

Zoey Taylor | Tattoo Artist

I really started my first shop out of a need to have somewhere to work that would give me the freedom to just do my work. I wasn’t one of those people who looked forward to being an owner of a boss, I think I was like many artists, who don’t want to worry about the business side of things, but simply want to tattoo. When I did it, it was reluctantly and as a last resort because I couldn’t find a shop that would treat me respectfully, have my back, and allow me the freedom to work as much as I wanted. I very much learned along the way, often by mistake, in both business and tattooing. Read more>>

Bethann Greenberg Ulloa | Photographer

I honestly didn’t have one…it sort of developed over time. Long story short, I wanted to go to art school and my parents said they weren’t paying for that (it is a regret my mom still apologizes to me for) so instead I went to school to become a teacher. After the credential program I decided it wasn’t for me. But I didn’t know what I wanted to do. Trying to stay along the same vein of working with kids, Read more>>

Eric Marks | CEO of Transported Audio

I deeply enjoyed working directly with creative people, and wanted to build upon the foundation and trust I’d built with clients I was already working with. It was certainly risky to leave comfortable paychecks, but this drive to build deeper relationships and expand upon our collaborations is what motivated me! Read more>>

Lucius James IV | 3D Artist / Clothing Brand Owner

There are two primary motivations that drove me to start my own business. Firstly, I possess a natural inclination towards creativity, and I find it fulfilling to bring my ideas to fruition and witness others falling in love with the resulting products or concepts. Secondly, I have always aspired to assist my ten closest friends or peers in achieving success in life and enabling them to provide for their families. Read more>>

Kishara Buford | Artist, Designer, & CEO

When I was thinking of starting my own business, what I really wanted was the freedom that came with it. I love creating art and designing, but the thought of only creating what someone else wanted on someone else’s schedule did not feel like the art career path I wanted to walk down. Read more>>

J. Søren Viuf | Film/TV Director & Cinematographer

My dad came up in a lower middle-classed family, became the first to go to college, and became an entrepreneur who built a small construction empire, which supported our family practically, but also facilitated me and my siblings to pursue our dreams, such as they were. He instilled in us the virtues of hard work, independence, and self-reliance. That by working for someone else, generally, all of your value is extracted from you.Read more>>

Andrew Headrick | Founder & CEO, Kavira Health

Prior to starting Kavira, I spent a lot of time thinking about, and reflecting on, my ‘why.’ I knew that starting a business would be difficult, and that it would be important for me to know who I am as a person, particularly when business would be challenging. Below was my thought process: Read more>>

Michael Khamo | Graphic Designer

Throughout the years, from my time studying design in school to working for the profit and non-profit world, I noticed that “church graphics” as a whole were either of poor quality due to the lack of design emphasis, non-profit marketing dynamics, etc, or just completely non-existent. And I wanted to be a part of that shift to design excellence. I believe churches, like major secular companies and organizations, should also have the opportunity to portray what they’re about through quality graphic design elements and that’s where my passion truly began. Read more>>

Megan Gersch | Branding + Website Designer For Creative Visionaries

I have a background as a graphic + web designer in the music industry. Throughout my 16+ year career, I had always freelanced on the side. Eventually, it got to the point where I would head to my 9-to-5 job and then do freelance work until I went to bed. I recognized that there was clearly some demand for my work – since I was bringing in freelance clients without really any marketing at all. This is when I started to look into what it would take to do my freelance work on a full-time basis. Read more>>

James Adam Tucker | Demo Reel Creator for Actors

As an independent filmmaker video with more than a decade of experience, I had grown comfortable receiving requests from my actor friends to shoot sample scenes for them. As an actor myself, I knew how difficult it could be to showcase your talent without a professional demo reel to present to casting directors and agents. And so, I began shooting scenes for my actor friends. Read more>>

Renee Benn | Founder & Owner of Pick N Peel Stones

I spent over 20 years running the offices of half a dozen small business owners and never thought to myself “That could be me.”. Honestly, I never imagined this is where I would be when I was developing my Fidget stone. I was so focused on showing people how it worked and why it is needed that I was completely unprepared for success. When my product went viral and I saw there was a real need for a sensory fidget, all the muscle memory of how to get things done just took over. Read more>>

David Zhao | Founding Partner, Chubby Cattle International

I started my digital advertising business straight out of high school; creating ads for the early social media days for restaurants in New York. This freelancing gig led me to start NXT Factor and NU Media (digital marketing agencies) ultimately leading to the Chubby Cattle International Restaurant Group. Read more>>

Ryan Gleason | Luthier/Guitar Tech & Musician

When I was just starting out as a full-time professional player back in New York City in 2010 I would take my guitars and basses to a number of great luthiers and guitar techs when I needed a setup or repair done. As time went on I became more and more interested in understanding the inner workings of my own gear and why things were so much more enjoyable to play and sounded so much better after a proper setup or repair from one of these skilled techs. Read more>>

Clare Margaret Donovan | Actress, Writer, Co-Founder of Nature’s Negotiators (non-profit)

What was your thought process behind starting your own business? My little brother, Maxwell Acee Donovan, and I started our non-profit – Nature’s Negotiators – because we realized that it was the most effective way to use our platform for good. For us, part of the reason we turned to the entertainment industry in the first place was because we were so drawn to the platform one gains as a creative and how one can use that to make a difference in the world. Read more>>

Jamie Lanza | Visionary, Co Founder, & Yoga Teacher

I was the consumer. I lived in many big cities throughout the US and the one constant in my life was the studio life of yoga and fitness. Everyplace I traveled, every where I lived my time spent outside of the hustle of ad life, eating delicious things was obsessing over every studio I could get my hands on. Learning from different teachers, how they viewed the world, how they brought so much love and connection to other humans and just made me feel my best self. Read more>>

Diallo Duke | Actor, Content Creator, & Entertainer

It Didn’t Come Along As That As First I Was Just My Most Purest Form Doing What I Love Best The Growth That Came With It Is What Pushed Me To Keep Doing Great & Positive Things. Read more>>

Imunique Gibson | Creator

My thought process behind starting my own business was I’ve always wanted my own business since I was a kid, then I got older and had kids and wanted to leave them with something. I don’t want to struggle in life and I don’t want my kids to either. No one taught me about saving, generational wealth or anything but I wanted to break the cycle, I have a good life now but I want my kids to have a great life. Read more>>