What was your thought process behind starting your own business?

Many books on startups and business talk about how there are right and wrong reasons for starting a business. So, we asked a handful of successful founders about their reasons and the thought-process behind starting their business.

Scherrie King

As a teen with stage 2 – 3 acne. It was awful listening to comments about my skin. The most memorable was a classmate who described my appearance as “you can play connect the dots”. As horrible as it sounded, he was right. Read more>>

Emmy Baribault

Growing up with two business owners as parents, entrepreneurship always felt like part of my future. But it wasn’t until I was recovering from brain surgery for Isolated Cervical Dystonia that I truly decided to take the leap. Read more>>

Charlottie Willis

After planning several events for my own children, I realized I could turn my creativity into a business. One of the most memorable was my daughter’s Sweet 16. The event received so many compliments that people began asking if I offered event planning and decorating services. At the time, I had never done a large-scale event professionally, but I decided to take on the challenge. Read more>>

Kay Smith Cobbs

As a therapist working toward clinical licensure, I have spent many years working in social work and supporting individuals and families through a variety of life challenges. Read more>>

Brian Childers

As I was returning to acting there was a new piece of the process being introduced: ‘self-taping’ an audition instead of showing up at the casting office, receiving the sides and being called in 5-15 minutes later to stand and deliver. Sandra Dorsey, my Strasberg method teacher, told us about a young man in midtown that would tape us and submit our audition for $10. Read more>>

Melissa & Billie Deally & Aadmi

At Amplify Impact Academy, our vision extends far beyond individual transformation. We founded this organization with a deep commitment to creating lasting change by making powerful personal development and healing modalities more accessible to people around the world. Read more>>

Kelsey Holley

Crow’s Vision started as a school project, but the idea was years in the making. I’ve been involved in music communities since my MySpace days, running pages dedicated to artists and helping promote music. During school, an instructor challenged me to stop waiting until graduation and start building the business I was already talking about. Read more>>

Tasha Washington

Family: Our Family’s Favorite Bakery was born from a recipe, but its roots run much deeper than flour, sugar, and butter. Growing up, my grandmother, Alma Louise, was known for her red velvet cake. It wasn’t just a dessert—it was a tradition, a staple at family gatherings, and quite honestly, everyone’s favorite. Read more>>

Isabella Mejia

For me it was an easy decision. I have always been a person with a vivid vision as far as what I want and the way I envision it. I have so much experience in so many different things It has made me obsess over details, and for me I felt like I saw so many type of business lack that component. Read more>>

Janelle Suriel

For me, starting Marvelous Meals was about much more than food. Growing up in a Dominican family, some of my most treasured memories were created around the table. Food was how we celebrated, comforted one another, and expressed love. Read more>>

Rachael Hanible

Growing up in a poor neighborhood where the hope was low and the crime was high, I could not understand why we did not have financial literacy classes or programs in school. Unfortunately, I lost a friend because someone wanted the sneakers he was wearing. Read more>>

Angelique Young

I created Evolutio Wellness because I believe true wellness is so much more than how we look — it’s how we feel, how we move through the world, and how deeply we feel seen and supported. Looking good on the outside means very little if we’re struggling on the inside. And when we feel good internally, it naturally radiates outward. Read more>>

Brian Abreu

I have always had the mindset of entrepreneurship. Background in business at UGA opened my eyes to starting my own businesses. This particular business was a product of past ventures combined with a unique opportunity to use our castle. Read more>>

Stevie Seay

I started my business, SoulFlow Studios, in 2024 after leaving an almost decade-long career in Public Relations and Communications. This dream started in 2018 during my time as a publicist for the Serenbe community, as my team and I had goals of launching a podcast. Read more>>

Lacy Fields

I started my own business because I got tired of waiting for permission to build the kind of life and impact I knew I was capable of creating. I’ve always been someone who sees possibilities and looks for ways to make things better. Read more>>

Diego Herrera-Rios

I started ShooflyAI because I saw a clear gap between where AI technology was heading and how most businesses were actually using it. There was a lot of excitement around AI, but most companies didn’t need more hype. They needed someone who could translate the technology into practical systems that solved real operational problems. Read more>>

Danielle Brison

I wanted to create a safe space for people to come together and have a good time and help us to do positive productive things in the community. I wanted to be able to shine light in the community in dark places because we all need some help. I want to teach people that we live to love and meditate to grow. Read more>>

Sarah Strickland

I was raised by practical, non-risktaking parents who had very stable, professional careers. With their encouragement, I earned my degree in Industrial Engineering and spent over 20 years in the manufacturing sector. I am thankful for this part of my life because it allowed me to raise my 2 children as a single mom. Read more>>

Niyati Jiwani

My decision to start my own art business came from a deep desire to share the peace I experience while painting with others. Art has been a part of my life since childhood, but after returning to painting with renewed dedication, I realized I wanted it to become more than a passion, it became my purpose. Read more>>

Chloe Vondutch-Gorgeous Gucci

My decision to start my own business came from recognizing a need and realizing that I had the vision, passion, and determination to fill that gap myself. I wanted more than just a job—I wanted to create something that reflected my values, creativity, and purpose. Like many entrepreneurs, I saw opportunities where others saw obstacles. Read more>>

Ravae Sinclair

My decision to start my own business was shaped by two careers that, at first glance, seem very different but are deeply connected. Before working full-time in maternal health, I spent years as a Public Defender representing individuals facing misdemeanor and felony charges. Read more>>

James Montford

My decision to start my own Counseling service came from a desire to serve people in a deeper and more meaningful way. Throughout my journey as a pastor, counselor, mentor, and educator, I recognized a growing need for faith-informed counseling, mental health support, and personal development within our communities. Read more>>

Angela Zeng

My path to founding Karviva wasn’t a sudden leap, it was a slow-building conviction. I grew up in a family of traditional Chinese herbalists, where the idea that food is medicine wasn’t a wellness trend, it was daily life. Read more>>

Irismar Adames

My thought process behind starting Alkys_Treasure really began during the COVID-19 pandemic. Like many people, that period gave me time to slow down, reflect, and reconnect with my creative side. Creating became a source of peace, joy, and an outlet during such an uncertain time. I realized I love taking ordinary items and turning them into something personal and meaningful. Read more>>

Johnathan Pitts

My thought process behind starting my own business came from wanting more creative freedom and ownership over my work. I have always loved food, but I knew I wanted to build something that represented my voice, my background, and the way I see hospitality. I wanted to create a brand where I could provide more than just meals. Read more>>

Thesa Long

My thought process behind starting my own business was never just about doing hair. It was about creating an environment where women could receive personalized care, professional expertise, and a healthy hair care experience built on consistency, intentional care, and a personalized healthy hair care regime. Read more>>

Yaimee Grant

My thought process behind starting my own business was something within me for a long time. I wanted to have more control over my time, so i can be there for my family, make a bigger impact without limitations and do something I enjoy. Read more>>

Renata Jordan

My thought process behind starting my own business was to help, encourage and inspire those that have the desire to tell a story. I want my experiences, and knowledge to become a source of guidance and transformation for others. I would like to share the struggles that l have overcome that others may be dealing with or have dealt with in the past. Read more>>

Donta Taylor

My thought process was to be able to help other artists grow their following and fan base. But I’m here to make it easier. When I was coming up in the industry I didn’t have the help or guidance to make my way. Read more>>

Cornelius Smith

Operation D.E.F.R.O.S.T was initially established for the purpose of self-healing. I sought to address my personal challenges with abandonment, anger, and poverty by extending assistance to individuals within my community who were facing similar difficulties. Read more>>

Nicole Goodman

Sharing the Table honestly started as a way to do what I already loved, just with intention behind it. I’ve always been drawn to food and hospitality, not just the aesthetics of it, but what it represents. Gathering, connection, community. I wanted to build something that captured that feeling and translated it into content people could actually feel. The name says it all for me. Read more>>

Donnie Bqnks

So my start behind starting my own business was simply financial freedom. It was simply giving people a new defined look on what it is to be entrepreneur in the Heating & Air Field , and to make it look different. Read more>>

Yakubu Izuagbe

The idea for Unlmtd Studio came from seeing a gap in Atlanta’s creative community. As a music producer, DJ, photographer, filmmaker, and creative entrepreneur, I was constantly searching for inspiring spaces where my art, music, and creative work could come to life. Many local studios lacked the flexibility I look for in a creative space. So I decided to open my own. Read more>>

Leneé Mitchell

The thought process I had behind starting my business was taking home 100% of my money, making my own schedule, running my business completely different than companies I’d worked for in the past, building my OWN brand, etc. The typical thinking points, though right or wrong, my true thinking process. Read more>>

Shantanik Langston

What I kept seeing, after more than a decade managing technology projects, was a gap between what AI can actually do and what most organizations are able to pull off. That gap isn’t really a technology problem. It’s a people problem, a process problem, and a trust problem. Read more>>

Shaunell Davis

When I first started my business, my thought process was to create myself a job. Any time I worked for a corporation I would be successful and feel like I was somehow drowning at the same time. Read more>>

Kayla Faith

When I started Journey of Faith, it wasn’t because I wanted to tell my story it was because I wanted my story to serve a greater purpose. Living with sickle cell disease has brought challenges that many people never see. I’ve experienced multiple strokes, brain surgeries, open-heart surgery, countless hospitalizations, and lifelong blood transfusions. Read more>>