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.

Dr. Amie Dougherty PT, DPT | Pediatric Physical Therapist, Mom, & Owner

I created Milestones At Play Physical Therapy & Wellness to provide quality and individualized physical therapy without limitations in a family-centered, play-based environment. As a clinician with over a decade of experience under the insurance model I began to notice limitations to services I was able to provide for my families. Unfortunately, there were limitations to the type of therapy, frequency of therapy, and even the ability to receive therapy. Read more>>

Huey Rawls | Award Winning Filmmaker & Author

I didn’t really think of my brand as a business starting off. I was mainly trying to think of a unique way to identify myself when editing and shooting videos as a freelancer. I was looking at different names and meanings when I noticed the term NERVY which in some context means bold and courageous. I thought of my style of storytelling and the messages I wanted to convey visually as being distinct. And then it hit me….So Nervy Films and the rest is history! Read more>>

ALICE WARD | LICENSED PROFESSIONAL COUNSELOR-SUPERVISOR

My initial spark started from a conversation with an older black female. She asked me, “why don’t you have your own business.” I had never thought about that question before then. Then she stated, ‘world needs what you have and you can’t do all and use all what’s inside you working in a system where you don’t call the shots.’ She really had my wheels turning, and as I silently processing what she is saying, she added, ‘besides systems keep you bound.’ Read more>>

Jackie Carl | Life Coach for Entreprenuers

It was the perfect formula of these elements: -Success leaves clues – I look for clues for success in everything all the time. I experienced incredible success before finding a coach, but I found joy in my journey and next-level momentum only after finding the right coach for me. Read more>>

Jade Boleware | CEO

The thought process behind starting my own business was apart of grief. My brother passed and I wanted to do something special for him Read more>>

Korea Brinkley | Balloon Artist & Event Planner

Honestly It Just Started Out as Something Fun & Creative to do ! I’ve always loved decorating & over time really Found out that not only did I love it I was Really Good at it ! It definitely took someone on the outside to see what I didn’t see in myself First Read more>>

Katie Stadler | Founder & Executive Director at BeHumanKindness

BeHumanKindness was created in response to the Ukrainian refugee crisis. My first trip to Warsaw, Poland was 3 1/2 weeks into the full scale invasion of Ukraine. I traveled over as a volunteer, praying to connect with an existing NGO that was serving the vulnerable refugees, all of them mainly women and children. Read more>>

Joanji Pasquariello | Photography

For me, the best way to start this business was to set myself a goal that would give rumba to what I always dreamed of. it seems impossible? but not for anyone, we believe that we can achieve what we want with effort, from there is born that dream of seeing my name in each photograph and knowing that people can look for me because my work is kind and loving, that is a great impulse, Read more>>

Alyse Daniels | Entrepreneur & Philanthropist

The reason I started my vending machine business was because I was unhappy working long hours in corporate America, and I didn’t feel like I was being compensated fairly for the amount of work I was doing. Despite being practically in charge of the company, I felt like I didn’t have enough control over my own career. I think I just felt the same way many folks are feeling these days. Nobody is satisfied spending their entire life busting their butt just so that someone else can sit around enjoying the fruits of their hard labor. If I was going to go hard, I wanted to go hard for my own brand. Read more>>

Tara Porter | Life Insurance Broker, Motivational Speaker and Stylist

As a very young girl I found that I had some talent in the beauty industry. My interest was sparked because of my mothers natural talent. She never did hair professionally only for family and friends, mostly us (her daughters). I just knew that I enjoyed it and I was good at it. Couple that with watching my father become an entrepreneur, I believe that there was a seed planted. Read more>>

Julie Sellers | Caterer & Entrepreneur

Honestly, if you would have told my younger self that I would have started a catering business with my dad at 26 years old, I wouldn’t have believed you. Sure I loved to cook and have a passion for great food and customer service–but my life was on a different path. I was born into the restaurant business. Read more>>

Francis (Ssu-ing) Wu | Architect and architectural photographer

I was trained as an architect, I went to architecture school in Taiwan and graduate school in Michigan. Observation of the existing environment has always been a big topic in architectural design, and I found my interest in photography echoes that idea. The more I use cameras to capture human interaction with a space, the more I’m bonded to this format of art, and eventually decided to start a business as a side gig. Read more>>

Nadine Harris | Licensed Esthetician

The idea of my business started in 2008 as a budding makeup artist. My sister and I had a conversation about opening a salon. As my career in tech ended, I thought you become licensed as I wanted to do lash extensions and in my state licensing was required. Read more>>

Adriana Keith | Licensed Esthetician & Master Lash Artist

I started my journey into the beauty industry while in college at North Carolina A&T State University as only a lash artist. My workload was heavy as I simultaneously handled both work and school. Servicing all college students and seeing the impact that just one lash appointment had on my clients was an amazing feeling. Read more>>

Larry Dale Carpenter Jr | CEO Red Brand Media

I decided to throw my hat into the ring and run for political office in Tarrant County for the March 1st, 2022 primary. Unfortunately, things didn’t turn out the way I wanted, but I found that there was a huge market for the ideals and principles that I ran on. With risk, there is loss. With loss, there is knowledge. Read more>>

Billy Gill | Acupuncturist and Yoga Teacher

I wanted to combine my training and expertise in Yoga and Acupuncture in a very fluid and effective way. I haven’t seen the two combined like this before. I’ve taught yoga for nearly two decades and I’ve seen how it transforms people’s lives but the overemphasis on doing tricky poses in yoga yields a lot of injuries. Read more>>

Leslie Ford | Founder – 100 Women Who Care Fort Worth

I started 100 Women Who Care Fort Worth in 2016 for two reasons – 1. I wanted to create a grassroots vehicle for female-led philanthropic giving in Fort Worth. 2. I was mad because my husband had joined a group (100 Men Who Give a Damn) and I couldn’t join. So I started my own. Read more>>