Bold Journey

Lamor Ferguson has experienced the barbering industry from nearly every angle — as a barber, shop owner, educator, and mentor to professionals entering the field. Those experiences exposed gaps that went beyond technical skill, inspiring him to create Savage Barber Academy, a platform designed to bring education, business tools, professional accountability, and career opportunities together in one place.

Brittany Futrell has built her career in the food and agriculture space, but some of her strongest inspiration comes from watching her grandmothers grow their own food. Through Angel Wing Sauce Presents Farm Life Tours, she’s turning that generational knowledge into free agricultural experiences for underserved and under-resourced youth across North Carolina.

Coledias Wilson creates one-of-one handbags that blur the line between fashion, sculpture, storytelling, and sustainable design. Inspired by a family steeped in creativity and a lifelong fascination with distinctive style, she transforms vintage handbags and thoughtfully sourced materials into wearable pieces with their own history and point of view.

For Grace Hall, organizing has never really been about having a perfectly tidy home. Through Grace to Organize, memory keepsake boxes, and her new Wardrobe Detox service, she’s helping people think more intentionally about what they keep, what they bring into their lives, and what they make room for. Her approach is grounded in a simple but powerful belief: small, thoughtful choices can create the space and clarity needed to live a more meaningful life.

One of the most essential skills for unlocking our potential is self-discipline. We asked some of the most inspiring creatives and entrepreneurs where their self-discipline comes from. Sydney Scotia I think a lot of my self-discipline comes from growing up as a competitive dancer. There was a period when I was dancing around six hours a day after school and training on weekends. I had started later than a lot of the dancers around me, so I felt like I had a lot of catching up to do.

Optimism is the invisible ingredient that powers so much of the incredible progress in society – from entrepreneurs and investors to artists and creatives who believe in something and are optimistic enough to risk their time, money, and reputation. We asked some of the most optimistic folks we know where they think they get their optimism form. Virlena McUne Growing up as an only child of an older single Mother, I honestly never really knew that I was a kid.

Over the years, we have consistently been blown away by the examples of generosity we’ve witnessed from our community of creatives and entrepreneurs. We asked some of them to open up to us about where they think their generosity comes from. Ashley Saupe I have always been a giver. I feel most happy when I can give to people around me. I don’t know where it comes from though. Perhaps it comes from being born and raised in Alaska where the culture here is to give and help those around you.

We’ve all heard the phrase “work hard, play hard,” but where does our work ethic come from? Is it something we learn from our parents, or are we born with it? Do our friends, work environment or the city we reside in impact it? We asked some of the hardest working folks we know to share where they think they get their work ethic from. Heather White I think my work ethic comes from always believing that if I want something to work, I have to be willing to work for it.

Resilience is often the x-factor that differentiates between mild and wild success. The stories of most of the wildly successful folks in our community have exhibit an extreme degree of resilience and we’ve come to believe that if our goal is to help our community achieve great outcomes we have to help build resources and knowledge around how one can become more resilient.

We asked some of the most productive entrepreneurs and creatives out there to open up to us about the role self-care plays in boosting their effectiveness. Adam Grant My self-care has evolved. For a long time, I thought pushing through was the same as being committed. Now my self-care looks like boundaries, rest, and alignment. Sometimes the most caring thing I can do is step back before I burn out, even if that means making a hard decision like resigning from something that is not sustainable.