Thinking through whether to start a business – whether to take the risk, whether to go out on your own – isn’t easy. So we asked some entrepreneurs we admire to tell us about how they thought through the process of starting a business.

Mel Dorion | Financial Coach & Educator

My business initially started out as a hobby driven by passion. In 2017, I created my blog Modest Millionaires, to document our family’s journey to financial independence. Five years prior, at the age of 24, I discovered the FIRE (Financial Independence Retire Early) movement and learned that, in just 10 to 15 years, some people were able to build their investing portfolio to a point where they could use the income from it to cover their cost of living and no longer have to work. Read more>>

Kelly Neilson, MDA, RD, LD | Registered Dietitian & Private Practice Owner

I started my business because I saw a very specific problem that needed a good solution. When I was working at an eating disorder treatment center, I saw many patients be discharged and readmitted because they did not have access to an eating disorder dietitian near their home to continue care. A dietitian who has specialized in eating disorders is absolutely essential to full recovery and going to a dietitian without this specialty may cause a worsening condition, As a mom of 3 children, I also wanted to be able to have a job I could do from home and still be present for my children. Read more>>

River Regan | Designer and Owner of Alabaster Rentals

I think fear is the main thing that holds us back from going for our dreams. I think I personally had to hit a point where I was just so sick of working a typical 9-5 where I was just like, I might as well just TRY. Who cares if I don’t succeed? Why should other peoples opinions even matter? At least I know I TRIED. I never want to be someone who didn’t even try to achieve a dream or goal or look back 30 years from now and wonder what would have happened if.. So my advice to someone looking to start a business is don’t let fear hold you back from chasing your dreams. Read more>>

Alicia Amberg | Co-Owner

The idea of the company was based around our mission to share our love for handmade products as wall as the reliability of our ingredients. Read more>>

Richie West | Entrepreneur & Social Media Content Creator

I decided to start my business during a transitional period of my life. I wanted to start taking pride in what I was doing to support myself. It was time for me to create something that nobody could control or take from me. My initial plan was to create an Adult Toy business. I changed my mind after realizing I wasn’t passionate about Adult Toys and I knew I would feel shame if I were to go down that route. Candles are something that have always brought joy to my life and I wanted to create something that would appeal to a wider audience. I desperately wanted to be known for something other than my boyish looks. Read more>>

PJ Bidwell | Songwriter, Musician, Entrepreneur

Many musicians and songwriters shy away from the business side of things. They take the approach that their art should speak for itself. As a result, many talented people go unseen and unheard. I realized early on that if I was going to get traction, I would have to marry my creative side with my entrepreneurial side. Read more>>

Andrew Palma | Hip-Hop Dancer, Choreographer, Dance Studio Owner

I started my own business to ensure that my dance career would last a lifetime. As a hip-hop dancer and choreographer, I knew that I wanted to be involved in this industry for a long time. I had so many ideas that I wanted to pursue, but this was only possible if I created something of my own. A place to learn, train, and mentor other aspiring dancers who want to explore their rhythm and enhance their dance skills. In September of 2019, I opened Rhythmic Dance Complex. Read more>>

Ali Ayhan | Content Creator, Teacher

I wanted to do something I enjoy and at the same time, be useful for other people. So, I looked for ways to inform people about some topics I am interested in. I decided that starting and Instagram account is an easy and fun way to do it. That’s why I opened up an Instagram account. I didn’t have any big expectations when I started. I just wanted to share information about flags and symbolism. For this reaon, I didn’t care if I had many likes or comments or not. Later, it grew up pretty quickly. My aim was to find to tell other people about flags, symbols and their meanings. I knew I could find some people who are interested in these around the world. Read more>>

Raya DaModel | Business Owner, Model, Ambassador, & Entrepreneur

I created Go Getter Brand because since I was a little girl I always was a Go Getter. When I was in school I sold candy bars and chips. I had lemonade stands with my mother and siblings on different streets in the neighborhood I grew up in. At the age of 13 I started helping out at my uncle’s restaurant Coney Island in Gary, Indiana on 5th Ave. When I turned 14 it became my job until I turned 18. I also had summer city jobs from ages 14-16. I got an GED at the age of 16 and started college. I worked 2 sometimes 3 jobs and I was on my own since 16 as well, so I had no problem going out and getting it to support myself. Read more>>

Chase Sahlin | Fitness Blogger

I wanted to find something that was both helpful for others as well as something I was passionate about and would enjoy working on. Growing up an athlete, I was always playing sports, whether it was organized athletics or just messing around with my friends. I was pretty talented playing a variety of sports, but strength and athleticism was not something I was blessed with at the time. Being a late bloomer, strength and athleticism was something that held me back in my playing career. I recognized this weakness and wanted to make a change. Read more>>

Becca Ludlum | Co-Owner, L4 Wood and Metalworks

We have a few businesses, actually-Steve left Raytheon in 2018 to help with our food blog and social media management business. His MBA was something that really benefitted our company and a perk of working from home with a flexible schedule gave him some extra time for hobbies, including metalwork. In 2020, we found ourselves staying home a lot more and we created a “Covid projects” list for around the house, including making metal planters and wood shelves. People started asking if we could make and sell similar items, and L4 Wood and Metalworks was born. Read more>>

Alexander Nguyen | Photographer

Originally, I wanted to start my own business in order to make some money on the side when I was in high school. I had a love for photography and decided to use my passion in order to make some income. However, I needed to be able to purchase a new camera that would be able to perform on a professional level which would cost a decent amount of money. After some thinking though, I figured the camera would pay itself back if there was enough work. I had enough friends who were in need of senior photos to start, and from there I would hope that I would be referenced to other people who would be in need of portraits as well. Read more>>

Chelsea Hendryk & Sam Jones Chelsea Hendryk & Sam Jones | Landscape Designers

What was your thought process behind starting your own business? We saw the opportunity to provide a specialized planting design and maintenance service that aligned with our interests and education. We are both ambitious people, driven to continue learning and discovering, so we decided that we wanted to work for ourselves to connect more with plants and people. With Green Side, we’re able to be hands-on with plants during our regular plant care services and can contribute more to planting design decisions. Read more>>

Anne Becker | Caramel Cravings Founder and Manager

I started selling caramels as a seasonal fundraiser around Thanksgiving and Christmas in the fall of 2013. I was going on a trip to Australia and my parents wanted me to help pay for it. They believed I would appreciate the experience more if I was financially invested and they were right! I continued this trend of raising money to support my travels with 4-H and FFA throughout my junior high and high school years. During my senior year, I was in a business class called CEO which stands for Creating Entrepreneurial Opportunities. Read more>>

Aileen Judson | Stressologist 🙂 Massage Therapist and Educator, Yoga and Meditation Instructor

I wanted to start my own business so I could bring my dog to work!!! Although I’m kind of joking, it pretty much sums up my feelings about how and where I want to work and the environment I want to create for people. I strive to provide a relaxed and comfortable atmosphere where healing can take place, being professional and dedicated to the work in a casual setting. Obviously, dogs aren’t for everyone and I honor and respect that but most everyone loves and appreciates their presence. Read more>>

JaNette Lilly | Social Media Manager/Entrepreneur

When my husband passed away, I knew that I had to step up to provide for my 3 kids. I have an amazing support system, but I didn’t want to have to rely on anyone financially and I wanted to give my children the best life I possibly could. I started my business with $10 in my bank account. I watched my dad struggle with his small business, so I knew small businesses were going to be my target market. I wanted to be able to offer an affordable and effective way to market on social media. Read more>>

Sarah Kornblum | Website Design & Developer

I wanted to be able to do a job where I could work from home, work for myself, set my own hours, and be location-independent. Read more>>

Jada Brown | Content creator

Make sure my kids never need for nothing and make sure you don’t miss out on their life working a 9-5 Read more>>

Maverick Mathaeus | Collector, explorer and blogger.

I wanted to share the things me and my kids enjoy with others. Give tips and tricks we learn, share neat or unusual things that make places more interesting. Read more>>

Holly and Matt Finstrom | Owners, Bamboo Ranch Tucson

My husband hated his day job and we had a thriving hobby growing bamboo. Our property was small but otherwise ideal. There was local interest and we had the support of a national organization, the American Bamboo Society. We were lucky to get a lot of newspaper articles published about us in our (then) two Tucson newspapers and even got on local TV. We knew if we became a plant nursery we would need a water well, so we installed one. Read more>>

Felicia Luca | Content Creator and Event Styling Expert

After five years of working in corporate America, scheduling and running health and wellness events, and building a successful new consumer division for the organization, I was diagnosed with a brain tumor. As a result of my family’s intervention following my surgery, I decided to follow my passion. I set up my lifestyle blog to share what I’ve always been passionate about: creative designing, event decor, home decor, gardening, and travel. Read more>>

SARA MUNOZ | Founder SaraM Skin

My first thought was ,should I do this or not? With my experience in aesthetic industry,I knew I wanted to do more than to just sell Plastic Surgery procedures, and still guessed my goals. Read more>>

Nichole Gibbons | Photographer & Social Media Manager

I really wanted to do something that would allow me to work from home around my kid’s schedule. I also wanted a job that would allow me to do what I love on my own terms. Read more>>

Arlen Schumer | Comic book-style illustrator & pop culture historian

My goal was to bring comic art into the commercial art world with the same impact Roy Lichtenstein had brought it into the fine art world; here is where I felt I could do my part to uplift the medium in the eyes of the mainstream. No one has merged good graphic design and comic book-style illustration, in non-comic book arenas (like advertising and editorial) quite as I have—and I’m really the only true comic book art historian, treating the comic book art form with the same depth of analysis and breadth of criticism as more traditional art history. Read more>>

Leigh Haubach | Founder of KnowGreenValley.com

I moved to Green Valley, AZ from San Diego, CA in March 2020, right after my plans to travel indefinitely were upended by the pandemic. Green Valley is a 55+ community south of Tucson. My mom has lived here for over 15 years, so I was familiar with the location and recreation facilities included when you buy a home here. Since I had just become “old enough” to purchase a home in the deed-restricted Green Valley Recreation area, that’s what I did, then took an 18-month contract remote marketing job for a large med-tech company. Read more>>

Alison Brown | Food Trucker & School Administrator

Throughout my life I have always been an independent and hard working person. I come from a line of hard workers. My mom is a teacher and my dad is a self-employed contractor. My three siblings are also teachers and they work hard to raise their families. My brother, a special education teacher, is also a self-employed contractor. He works tirelessly outside of his school work hours to provide for his family. Having a strong work ethic seems to come naturally to me and my family. In addition, leadership roles have found me throughout my life. As a youth and young adult, I was a competitive athlete and often served in the role as captain of the teams I was playing on. Read more>>

Ayzli Butcher | Creator and Teen CEO

I have always struggled with finding products on the store shelves that worked with my sensitive skin. The products are full of ingredients that I couldn’t pronounce, let alone know what they were. Even the products that stated they were for sensitive skin… sheesh… they still made me itch and feel desert dry. Read more>>

Chelsea Nye Melissa Shanahan | Cofounders and Commercial Photographers

After working together for a few years, we were in pursuit of developing new and exciting opportunities outside of operating inside an in-house studio. Sharing the same ethics and values around output quality, artistic discipline, and having complimenting personalities, we drew up a business plan and went for it! Read more>>

Kathryn Koniuszy | Holistic Mentor & Founder of a New Education System

I knew that a new education model would be successful with the following: a team where like minded people have room to both share their talents and develop themselves arms length accountability of measurable goals and rewards for success a streamline schedule that prevents burnout and eliminates wasted time an integral designed curriculum map with leveled experiences aligned with developmental psychology Read more>>

Cora Kosel | Massage Therapist

A friend asked me once of I wanted to be a manager of circumstances or a creator of my dreams. That question is something I still refer to many years later. Starting a business isnt easy, it requires a combination of commitment and passion. I wanted to be able to serve people with quality and commitment while still being the bread winner and the breadmaker for my family. Read more>>

Benny Jacobs-Schwartz | Birding Guide, Wildlife Photographer, & International Trip Leader

Bird watching traditionally was occupied by a very specific demographic and I wanted to change that narrative. I set out to create a space for people to engage in the outdoors with a vibrant, youthful and innovative approach. I knew that if I could infuse fun, style and genuine knowledge I could connect to a larger audience that would probably really enjoy learning about birds, ecology and ways they could get connected to the natural world all around them! Read more>>

Angelika Selix | Photographer

Making interactions meaningful, and not get into your business for the wrong reasons. Personally, my photography business is my main source of income, but I am still focusing on creating lasting moments for families and others. Read more>>