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.

Cassie And Felix

We have always loved the alternative community and noticed that it was hard to find things that were affordable. What started as a hobby for our own home decor quickly took off into a business. With the idea of keeping everything as affordable as possible we do our best to thrift what we can. What we can’t thrift we price in a way that does not benefit us a ton. Being able to get pieces of art to those that would not usually be able to afford it is so important.  Read More>>

Ruth Renwick

We started the tile business in 2008 when the market had issues and we lost our other business. This was a hobby but a good one and had already started to make money. So we ran with it. Read More>>

Francine Bejarano

When I was in graduate school, I always envisioned having my own private practice. I saw working for myself as the ultimate goal and a mark of success in the field. While it’s possible to start a private practice immediately after graduation, it would have to be cash-pay, which can be difficult to sustain without another source of income. To build financial stability and a steady client base, I chose to work at two group practices. Read More>>

Josh Maxey

What was your thought process behind starting your own business?

Being a musician is being a small business. I knew when I was finishing up music school that it would take the same type of practice and creativity to build a life with the guitar as it takes to play and write music. I began my teaching business while finishing my last year of music school in 2003. I was in Park Slope, Brooklyn, and within a short time had a full schedule based on my advertising and teaming with a local music shop to reach people looking for lessons in our neighborhood. Read More>>

Abbey Hough

Starting my own film business was all about pursuing my passion for storytelling and creating content that resonates with people. I’ve always been drawn to the power of film to evoke emotions, spark conversations, and leave a lasting impact. The film industry can be tough to break into, but I felt that with the right vision, creativity, and hard work, I could carve out my own space. Read More>>

Amy Wilkins

I love eBikes. But I’ve always been a more casual cyclist, taking in the scenery slowly while the road cyclists pass me by. And I didn’t even ride an eBike until I considered buying an eBike shop. (Though, once I found the right eBike for me, it was hard to get me off of it!) Read More>>

Rachel Lanton

I’ve always been a creative person with ideas in my head. I’d see beautiful textiles while traveling and think to myself, ‘Those would look so pretty somehow combined into a piece of art.’ I’d design our bathroom renovation and a friend would say, ‘I wish you’d help me do that!’ I’d create a multi-table charcuterie spread and someone would say, ‘I’d pay you to make that for our own parties!” I’d go through my babies’ old clothes and think, ‘Someone should find a way to reuse these special items into artwork.’ Read More>>

Kristin Klenda

I have been a home maker for the last 25 years. My husband and I made that decion when we had children. It was important to us that I stayed home and be a consistant caregiever for our children while they where little. Once our childeren became older, I also began to take care of our neighbor’s children for extra spending money. 25 years have pased, and my kids have grown up, and the little neighbor kids have became school age.  Read More>>

Bryan Bradigan

I decided to open my own business because I wanted to create an environment where talented individuals—whether in culinary arts, hospitality, or brewing—could truly showcase their skills and creativity. Partnering with such passionate professionals has allowed us to build something unique and dynamic.

Coming from a corporate background, I felt it was the right time for me to grow personally and take on new challenges. My experience prepared me for this transition, giving me the tools and confidence to step out on my own. Read More>>

Mikayla Halmos

I’ve always wanted to work for myself and help others in any way that i could think of. Cosmetology has always been a passion of mine, and i was determined to make that happen! Once i became pregnant i knew that this was something that i needed to accomplish for not only myself but for my son as well. the ability to work for myself and create my own schedule has been amazing because i am able to be active and there for my son and all his medical needs. if i was working a regular 9-5 i would not have that freedom to do so. Read More>>

Crystal Asplund

I originally started my business just doing lash extensions. But I’ve always had an interest in astrology and I studied it and was involved in a group called association for young astrologers. I would talk to my clients about astrology often and I noticed they were very interested in knowing more about astrology and getting a reading. I realized during the 60-90 minutes they were already there for their lash appointment was a perfect time to also look at their astrology chart and talk about what was going on. This is what made me decide to add astrology readings to my current business. It just kind of evolved naturally and my clients requested it. Read More>>

Ashley Coffey

As an athlete and professional dancer, I have seen a lot of injuries. Some from age, some from bad coaching, and some from lack of awareness when it comes to fitness education & technique. Add that with my love for teaching, and passion for community, you get NEXUS. My partner Marielle Hendry (NEXUS Co-Owner & Head Coach) and I saw a problem in the fitness world and took on being a part of the solution. We wanted to contribute to a better, more inclusive fitness community here in Colorado Springs. One day at a time, we built NEXUS from the ground up. Starting your own business is a lot of hard work, late nights, and mental burnout, yet we always came back to the NEXUS vision to keep us going. It paid off! Here we are 2 years later with a thriving gym, strong community, and educational material that is available to anyone. Read More>>

Chappell Kingsland

Musical talent is not just for the superstars. There are so many PHENOMENALLY talented instrumentalists and vocalists right around us in Colorado! I founded the Wild Beautiful Orchestra as a way to collaborate with many of these musicians. I am the Executive Director, Musical Arranger, and a Performer (on piano, guitar, bass, percussion and vocals). I absolutely love every part of the process: dreaming up the most exciting concerts and recordings that I can imagine, working with a team to make it possible, writing the musical arrangements, rehearsing with awesome musicians, recording in the studio, and performing for diverse audiences. I get to do all these things that I love while I’m creating work opportunities for other musicians. Read More>>

Mia O’driscoll

I have always wanted to be in the medical field or do something where I can help others succeed. I enjoyed my time working in various areas of the medical field but was always tempted to open my own business. At first, it seemed too daunting and risky – I didn’t have any background in business and you never know if you will be successful. So opening a business was put on the backburner. Once I had children, I knew it was a pivotal time to decide what to do next. I wanted to balance feeling successful in the workplace with spending time with my family. Read More>>

Alyssa Cavanaugh

My thought process behind starting my own business is pretty simple–I deeply value schedule flexibility and having a proper work-life balance. I recognize my talent for visual storytelling and have found a niche need for my services in my community. It is very fulfilling for me to work for myself, and I love getting to help people in a way that uses my creativity. Read More>>

Kennedi Jackson

Thought process that started my business was my story. It started with a lifelong dream of making it to the Olympics as a track and field athlete. The founder and creator of Athlete Advocate was admitted into Illinois State University in the Fall of 2018. The dream had come to an end where she had to decide between her education and my athletic career. It was an abrupt holt where instead of “walking-on” as D1 athlete she was made the tough decision and ended up choosing her academics since that had a “future”. Read More>>

Danelle Mccollum

Initially I started my website as a hobby–a place to store and organize my recipe collection. At the time I had no idea a food blog could even be a business. Read More>>

Greer Mackie

I love what I do as a physical therapist – working with patients and helping them get back to a full spectrum of activities that they’ve been missing out on because of symptoms. I pride myself on my thorough treatment approach and ability to communicate effectively, so with my treatment style I require quality time to spend with people one-on-one. Read More>>

Georgette Braden

As the person behind FAprepschool, my thought process was driven by a combination of personal aviation passion and experience. My journey was full of excitement, success, and challenges. I decided to give up my flight attendant job at Emirates Airlines when I became a mom, I felt responsible to be physically available for my two boys, since my husband is a pilot. That was one of the reasons behind my creation. When I moved to USA, I realised how hard it was to be a working mother in aviation, I also did not want to give up on my passion.  Read More>>

Doug Delong

For the majority of my working life, I was a music educator, working as a band teacher at the middle school level. Music had always been a huge part of my life, and as an adult, it made sense to provide young kids the joy, satisfaction, and inspiration that comes with performing music. Teaching kids to read music, play instruments, and develop a love for the musical arts was exciting and rewarding! As my career in music education drew to a close, and thoughts turned towards retirement, I began to consider ways to incorporate some level of artistic creativity into retired life. Read More>>

Richelle Mckim

When I first attempted to homeschool, I found a lot of enrichment programs, but couldn’t find any that helped with core academics nearby. It was important to me that I wasn’t driving 45 minutes away, because I wanted to join a program where we could also build community with local friends. So, I built what I couldn’t find. Read More>>

Beth Soldner

I started Soldner Virtual Solutions out of a deep desire to stay home with my children during the day, while also being able to bring in an income for our family. I have a degree in Elementary Education that I used for a few years before having children, but being a military spouse made it really time consuming, frustrating, and expensive to transfer licensure every 2 – 3 years. After 2 rounds of license transferring, I knew teaching wasn’t going to be something I wanted to pursue anymore. Our first child was born in 2021, and SVS was born about 6 months later! It’s been a total blast owning my own business and helping other businesses to grow and thrive. Read More>>

Chris Marchase

Before founding Pikes Peak Probate Services I owned a professional Numismatic company, Colorado Tokens and Rare Coins, buying and selling rare coins, which is a capital based type of business. It was very difficult and expensive buying inventory for resale, with a slim profit margin. Not to mention it is a very difficult industry and I wanted to start a more serviced based company utilizing my mind and personal efforts more so than buying a product and listing it for resale. Read More>>

Sierra Moreno

Well, a lot of us that become tattoo artists tend to be one of 2 ways you either like traveling and going from shop to shop or being stationary and finding a place to call your home shop. After almost 15 years of being a tattoo artist I was tired of paying other people for me to be able to work. A lot of tattoo shops get a bad rap because people walk in and feel unwelcome, they feel like were untouchable or they put artist up on this pedestal just because were talented people doing what we love.  Read More>>

Emily Foster

I have always loved creating. From a young age, I remember asking for those giant jewelry-making kits from Costco for my birthday or Christmas. I even had several birthday parties at a local bead shop during my elementary school years, where we would make various bracelets or necklaces. I also loved selling my creations. Instead of lemonade stands, I was known for selling the crafts I made—especially those cute Perler bead designs that you have to iron. My sweet neighbors would often stop by to “sell out” my inventory, and I remember feeling SO special. I found joy in crafting and bringing joy to others through my creations. From an early age, I was a little entrepreneur. Read More>>

Monica Labonte

Overtime, I have fine tuned my passions and realized my dreams through trial and error. I have worked so many different jobs but I keep coming back to music, one way or another. I also have a deep need and desire to help people. With my degree in Speech, Language and Hearing Sciences and my experience and love for making music and singing, I get to combine all of my strengths into teaching, performing and writing. I also have a son who is in kindergarten and running my own business allows me the flexibility of time that a different type of job would not. Read More>>

Kendra Conner

I come from a family of incredibly hard workers- my mom was a stay at home mom (so she did all the jobs) and my dad was an electrician who worked all the overtime hours to make ends meet. Though I am thankful for their example in hard work, I feel that the work and home life balance was a luxury that they did not get to enjoy. My mentor is a dad, a chiropractor, and an active member of his community- he enjoyed his job, worked his schedule around his family’s activities, and he got to say yes to opportunities in the community. I knew that I wanted children and a solid career and starting a business was my way to do both- getting to start one with my husband was an extra perk. Read More>>

Zachariah Ben

Bidii Baby Foods was founded during the pandemic. My wife and I found ourselves pregnant with our first child, while also facing severe food insecurity on the Navajo Nation. That motivated us to expand our small family farm and start processing shelf stable, Indigenous baby foods.
My wife has a public health background, so she was motivated to create foods that support early childhood development and nutrition in order to have the greatest impact in curbing chronic health issues later in life. Read More>>

Rachel Strand

Surprisingly, it was kind of a spur-of-the-moment thing. It was 2014, and the Denver Broncos were one of the best teams in the league. I wasn’t much of a social media person at the time, and I think I only had Facebook. Also, Instagram was somewhat in its ‘infancy’ and nowhere near as popular as it is now. So I just decided one day, “Hey, why don’t I stop saving all these Broncos photos and memes to my phone and actually post them somewhere?” Then, I created DailyDenverBroncos. What initially started as a place for me to just post random Broncos photos, evolved over the years into one of the most followed and most well-known Broncos news and fan pages. Read More>>

Rachel Mynes

“I have two daughters, and one of my greatest joys has been throwing them adorable birthday parties. For the first few years, I always ordered their cakes from a local home baker, but when she retired, I struggled to find another baker whose work I truly loved. That’s when I decided to learn how to bake and decorate cakes myself so I could continue making beautiful and delicious cakes for my girls. Read More>>

Brenton Lott

My thought process behind starting the Petra Mons company was providing my friends in CO a locally sourced and made game that brings people together to stack some stones. Read More>>

Brandi Armijo

Well, at the time I was ready to leave the salon I was at and be closer to home …. Meanwhile a friend/past coworker sent me the into of a place looking for a nail tech to rent out space. That was closer to home. while I was getting things ready for that the current salon I was working at eneded up closing down. So it was good timing. Read More>>

Hannah Schoeninger

Starting my own business was always a dream of mine, and once I became licensed to practice family law it was became a streamlined path for me to be able to open my own business. My license was created to bridge the gap in access to justice for pro se litigants in domestic court matters and opening and co-owning a law firm became an achievable dream that wouldn’t have been available to me prior to my license. Read More>>

Justin Carr

I reached a point in my previous business where I was working for an employer that I couldn’t go any further.. I had reached a glass ceiling and I thought I could do more for myself if I started on my own. I deliberate it over this decision for quite a while, and I have no regrets. Read More>>

Tkale Johnson

When I first decided to start my in-home bakery, I wanted to have a job that allowed me to spend time with my kids as well as give me a creative outlet. Being able to work from home allowed me to set my own hours and move my work around my kids’ schedules. It also allowed me to essentially make edible art as art has always been one of my passions. I was able to create a life where I felt like a stay at home mom as well as have my dream career! Read More>>

George Peebles

I remember when I started my own business like it was yesterday. I grew up fishing since the age of 2 in Wisconsin taught by my father. I have always had the blessing of finding time to get out fishing whenever I could for the last 38 years. Being in the wilderness and specifically fishing has always been my outlet to feeling connected to something larger.  Read More>>

Steven Clarke

I was studying a combination of film, new media and Architecture at the Art Institute of Chicago and my work became about the intersections of design and art. When I started working in successful Architecture offices in Chicago I felt that the spirit of design and connections to other creatives was lacking. A chair that spoke to musicians in the current moment was more rewarding to pursue than drawing the same antiquated house that a developer brings to a design meeting.  Read More>>

Jordan Kepler

I have always wanted to start and run my own business. Through high school and college I tried starting a good handful of different businesses, screen printing, recyclable cardboard furniture and even custom skateboards. Though, knife making was the only venture so far that started out as a hobby and passion. Even when nothing was selling in the beginning I just loved to make the knives, so it didn’t really matter. Playing with fire and creating a work of art from raw materials took over my life. As my skills and knowledge of knife making grew I started to think I might be able to make this a business. Read More>>

Sam And Rachael Vandyke

There wasn’t really a formal plan, the idea came to us after visiting a dog bakery while on vacation in Hawaii. It was such a fun and unique place, and we realized there was nothing like it in our area. We’ve always loved our dogs, they’re a huge part of our lives, so the idea of combining that love with a small business felt like a perfect fit. Read More>>

Laura Campbell

When people ask why I started Unfolding, I tell them the truth: it began with my own personal crisis. My divorce was one of the most painful and disorienting experiences of my life. Everything I thought I knew—about my future, my family, and even myself—was unraveling. I felt like I was standing at the edge of something unknown, with no clear path forward. Read More>>

Yahdi Cotto

My journey toward starting my own bilingual chiropractic business began while working as a Research Epidemiologist in Puerto Rico, specifically in Breast Cancer Research. Listening to countless women express their desire to learn proactive ways to care for their health and prevent devastating conditions inspired me to seek a career focused on true preventative care. This led me to chiropractic, where I became passionate about corrective care and optimizing brain-body communication by removing interference in the nervous system. By restoring spinal structure, I realized I could be an instrument to help the body heal and function at its highest potential, ultimately empowering individuals to take control of their well-being. Read More>>

Rachel Story

We moved to China to teach English in 2010 and never moved home. That’s the short story, anyway. It sparked an insatiable wanderlust in both of us. Grateful Gnomads started as a simple way to keep our family and friends updated on our whereabouts during our gap year trip in 2013-2014. We were backpacking across Southeast Asia and China, having the time of our lives, and wanted a way to document our experiences. But somewhere along the way, we realized that we never wanted to go back to working in an office. The freedom of long-term travel, the excitement of exploring new cultures, and the ability to design our own lifestyle were too good to give up. Read More>>