My small business was initially born of necessity – not vision. I was the mom of a newborn doing project specific work so I could keep fueling my fire for public health, while also trying to be present with my growing family (back before Zoom and Teams). After patching it together for a while, I realized that managing a multi-project portfolio was a great fit for my brain’s interest in shifts & change (and my desire for flexibility & autonomy). To help me take myself seriously, manage risk, and try to communicate what I was actually doing, I invented a business called HKG Public Health Projects, LLC and made it all official (i.e., website and business cards, of course). That first chapter taught me a lot. In addition to honing my skills, I learned how to promote myself without cringing, manage rejection & success, hold myself accountable, pay taxes in advance, become my own tech department, give great customer service, and balance many competing priorities. I worked this way on projects I’m still proud of for about 5 years (that included another newborn), before taking a full-time position with my largest client at the time.