Deciding to start a business is an unusual decision. It’s often considered irrational and yet for many it’s the best decision they’ve ever made. So we asked folks to think back to when they were starting their businesses and to tell us about their decision making process.

Wally Veigel | Business Owner

To be succinct I was unhappy working for others for years and although I knew nothing about owning a business I really wanted to own my own. I decided I needed a change and weighed the options of going to CSU for Mechanical Engineering or starting my own business. Read more>>

Angelica Clemmer | Artists & Gallery Owner

Growing up in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware put me right in the center of a community that is based on small businesses and Chef owned restaurants. My friends parents were business owners and summers were amazing, we could get a cool summer job doing anything we wanted. I was able to develop my love for surfing and art. Read more>>

Kylee Beard | Birth, Bereavement, and Fertility Doula

Honestly, starting my own business was never the plan. I just wanted to be able to doula my friends. I am a co-facilitator for a miscarriage support group and I chose to pursue birth doula training so that I could support these moms that were going on to have their rainbow babies after miscarriage. Read more>>

Melanie Damore | Owner and Instructor of Denver Art Days

I had a pretty gnarly experience my last few years as a public school teacher, and when my mental health started to take a dip, I knew I needed a change. I had never worked in any other occupation, but knew I had a strong art and design background. Read more>>

Kathryn Love | Doula | Aspiring Traditional Midwife | Birth Photographer

The “how” of how i ended up here is in my opinion a beautiful, long, traumatic story. But i wouldn’t know this was my calling until my 3rd child. I had my first child when i was 20 years old. The father of my child was determined to say that the baby wasn’t his. Read more>>

Darin Lee | Endodontist/Root Canal Specialist

I graduated from my Endodontic/Root Canal Residency in 2006 from the University of Southern California. I joined a large, group, practice in Littleton/Centennial area. Due to different philosophies in treating patients we decided to go our separate ways in 2009. Read more>>

Tiffany Jorgenson | Business Owner, Certified Nurse-Midwife

When I began contemplating starting my own business, my biggest thought process was that there was no one offering exactly the service I wanted to provide. A CNM offering home birth services that also took health insurance did not exist in Colorado so I knew I had to fill in that gap and it had always been my dream to provide home birth services with my career specialty. Read more>>

Mike Simpson | artist

Typically, the options for artist’s to sell their work have been the traditional gallery representation model, shows and direct sales. The internet has greatly advanced the opportunity for artists to represent themselves and market their work directly to the buyer. Not all artists are cut out to be the salesman of their own work however, so the gallery model has some great appeal, however, the completion for this venue is great. Read more>>

David Wagner | Landscape Designer

I worked on the contractor side of landscaping for just short of a decade. During this time I found that homeowners and contractors would run into the same headaches at the same points, project after project. Some were minor and others major, but I knew there was a better process that could eliminate most, if not all, of these headaches. Read more>>

Josh Ausborne | Rapper

Just most importantly staying open minded having the dedication to succeed and drive to take myself where I wanted to go focusing on the task at hand and creating a plan to bring my dreams to reality and my ideas to life Read more>>

Samantha Andersen | Owner of The White Wolf Yoga & Yoga Instructor

I opened The White Wolf Yoga the day after my certification to teach was complete. My OWN business was empowering because it gave me the freedom to teach anywhere. I can run as an independent contractor through other companies, community events, private clients, my own classes, special themed-classes and it can grow and shift – as it has over the years. Read more>>

Lexie Younger | Owner and lead designer

I purchased my business from the previous owner. I worked with the owner of One Enchanted Eve starting at the age of 18. Then in 2011 she was looking to retire and travel the world. It was a whirlwind at the age of 23 asking for my parents help to make the purchase. At first I did everything the One Enchanted Evening way. Read more>>

Tom Cohen | Outdoor & Active Lifestyle Photographer

here wasn’t a thought, or a process, to it at all. I started working as a salaried staff photographer pretty soon after moving to Colorado. After a couple whirlwind years working directly under legendary local photographer, mentor and friend, Jack Affleck, our company began following the industry trend of hiring contract photographers and videographers. My job became very irrelevant very quickly. Read more>>

Kayla Reiter | Kettlebell Flow Instructor

I have been a personal trainer for 8 years and have taught knock-off crossfit at Lifetime and been going to yoga for over 10 years and I wanted to bring the mindfulness and breathwork I learned in yoga to strength- training. I also am a distance runner and has-been triathlete with a lot of njuries and want to teach people how to do a lot withoutt getting injured! Read more>>

Niccole Hendrickson | Entrepreneur | Leader of Women

My biggest mantra — and one that primed me for self-employment — is, “It’s me against me.” Read more>>

Ali Rice & Michelle Marchewka | Co-Owners of Wreck’d Collective

As creative minds we wanted to own our own business where we could thrive off of building up our unique ideas. We love thrifting and are passionate about the longevity of our planet so we thought, “Why not create new pieces from the unique gems that we find?!” Honestly, what’s better than being your own boss? It’s what most of us are dreaming about. We finally decided to take the leap this year and haven’t looked back since. Read more>>

Kyle Hampton | Direct Primary Care Physician and Co-Owner of Arktos Direct Care

The thought process or idea that lead to our business came out of a desire to do things better and knowing that we could do it better. Read more>>

Sheldon Wyman | Entrepreneur and Real Estate Media Specialist

Starting my own business had been the plan for a while, ever since I was in college. I began college thinking I wanted to be a mechanical engineer. However, as I pursued that degree, I realized I didn’t want to be stuck in one career path without creative choice. After switching majors a few times, I ultimately chose economics with a business administration minor. Read more>> 

Carolee Hawkins | Realtor

I had always thought about a career in real estate, but honestly, it is a little daunting going from a steady paycheck and knowing what to expect to an entirely new career that is paid on commission based upon on what is oftentimes a person’s largest financial asset. I don’t take that role lightly. Read more>>