How do you know when you should keep going versus when it makes sense to cut your losses and try something new? It’s a difficult decision most entrepreneurs and creatives have faced along their journey and so we asked some brilliant folks from the community to share their thoughts.

Michael McMaster | Owner Symbiotik Kombucha

If I’m being honest, I think about giving up all the time. I think about giving up when I feel overwhelmed, when I feel tired, and when I feel like I’m not making much progress. Starting your own business is hard and then executing the plan on building the business is even harder. I understand why many people just give up. It’s a long, frustrating road riddled with the unexpected and the unknown. The self doubt is relentless. I constantly fall victim to impostor syndrome. Everything takes longer than you think it will and the hours are endless. In a word, it’s brutal. It would be so easy to just give up. Go work for someone else again. Someone else who has it all figured out already. The temptation is always there. These are the early years of running a business. The vision is there, but the path is hard to see sometimes. You’re in the dark a lot, not knowing if you are going in the right direction or not. And you know what? It’s impossible to know without taking that next step. Read more>>

Erin Jerome | Salon Owner & Stylist

Two years ago I wouldn’t have even known how to begin to answer this question, but here I am today, 1 year & 2 months into owning my own business. Oh, did I mention, that roughly 17 days after I began down my path as “business woman”, I was forced to shut my doors due to the pandemic? Crazy. I know, but to be perfectly honest giving up never even crossed my mind. I’m a wife, & a mom to 3 littles who depend on me. When I got the news that we were going to have to close our doors, I immediately jumped into “survival mode”. I joined forces with other local business owners in my town, created community fundraisers, & got creative on ways to generate an income through an E-Commerce site. I’ve learned over the years that nothing in life is handed to you, especially not success. It takes a lot of hard work, & there are always going to be obstacles. Its having the passion, & drive, for what you do that keeps you going. Read more>>

Kelsey Willow | Photographer

The age old question that is always blindsiding me as a creative! For me, during hard seasons of life is when I most often question what I am doing and in the midst of stress I tend to want to give up. The truth is, creating is what always saves me. It is what always brings me joy and pulls me out of any funk I happen to be in. Deeper than that though, I think that at this point in my journey, giving up would mean stepping away from who I am meant to be and what I am meant to be doing. Connecting with people is something that gives me life. The goodness of rich conversations and intimate connections frozen in time with beautiful images is what keeps me going! I cannot imagine life without those connections and the joy that a beautiful image brings to my very soul. That. That is how I keep going. I never want to know life without the joy I feel behind that camera and the world I see through my lens. I think that if you hold passion for something, true passion, you should never give that up!. Read more>>