Are you thinking about starting a business? If so, we think you’ll enjoy reading about how these seasoned entrepreneurs thought about the question when they were in your shoes.

Melinda Silva

My decision to start my own business was born from both personal transformation and professional conviction. From 1998 to 2010, I served as a physician leader at Kaiser Permanente, where I was honored to provide care within one of the largest and most respected healthcare systems. But when I personally faced the challenges of perimenopause, I was shocked to find that the very system I had served offered me no real solutions. I felt dismissed, and the conventional treatments failed to restore my well-being. Read More>>

Scott Tejerian

In 2016, I hit rock bottom. After 20 years of waiting tables while pursuing screenwriting, I had come close to some real opportunities, but nothing ever materialized. I was frustrated, miserable, and desperate for change. In a moment of complete desperation, I found myself asking God for help – help me find something, anything else I could do. I had three conditions: it needed to be something I loved, something that helped people, and something that could financially support me and my family. I didn’t want a hobby; I wanted a real career. Read More>>

Bethlehem Teshome

I’ve always loved fashion and art, the act of bringing something to life from your imagination. My mother was an evening gown designer in the ’90s and even made her own wedding gown. Growing up around her creativity sparked an early fascination with design. I would always task myself with design projects using her remnant fabrics, upcycle her clothes and even deconstruct her favorite dresses. Whatever it took to bring the creative vision to life. However, that creativity was not something I prioritized early on in life, it was a quiet form of self expression. Read More>>

Carolyn Watson Dubisch

Well, I’m an artist and writer first and the business(es) happened because we live in a capitalist society and money must be made. For my mask making stop, I launched it because in 2015 I had just had a successful solo show at a gallery and sold nearly all my sculptures. My oldest daughter had just started college and I thought how can I keep these sales going? So I launched an Etsy store called Artisan Masks and started selling lightweight sculpted masks that I have shipped all over the world at this point. My masks have been in movies, used on Netflix and Hulu shows, featured in fashion shows during men’s fashion week in NYC and in so, so many music videos and stage productions. Read More>>