I had this idea to create T-shirts to go along with my artistry back when we were living in a three-bedroom apartment in the greater Atlanta area. Space was tight, trying to add apparel to our home, but that didn’t stop me, and it shouldn’t stop you. My wife, our three children, a dog, and I were all sharing that space, and I had to keep my T-shirts in a closet on a makeshift shelf that I rigged up myself. Looking back, that closet was the beginning of something special. It was my garage.

When people see someone at their mountaintop experience—think Steve Jobs with Apple or David Green with Hobby Lobby—they often don’t know how to trace it back to where it all began. These businesses, just like mine, had humble beginnings. Apple was born in a garage in Los Altos, California, with two guys and a vision. Hobby Lobby started in a garage as well, with David and Barbara Green crafting picture frames. They didn’t know at that time that these garages would be the launchpads for something monumental. That’s what I call the garage phase—the starting point that no one sees but is crucial to any journey.

For me, the garage phase was that apartment, shipping a few shirts a month out of a closet. Then, it grew to a couple dozen, and from there, the demand kept climbing. The experience was like a winding road, not a straight shot to success, and that’s how it is for any company. There were times I had to pause, rethink, and recalibrate. I was juggling different ventures, from working a full-time job to pursuing a career as a rapper and starting my first legit business, Z180 Radio.

But here’s the thing: if I hadn’t started the garage phase—if I hadn’t simply started—I wouldn’t have figured out any of it. The brand Unapologetic emerged out of this grind, this hustle. When the opportunity finally came to officially launch a T-shirt brand, I had to think back to those early days. Years of dabbling and experimenting had prepared me for the moment I decided to make it a full-fledged business. I’d been playing around with the idea because, as an artist, I knew I needed to think ahead. I wanted to create something that went beyond music, to have merchandise that could support the journey, especially when the income wasn’t always steady.

(And by the way, I believe all artists should think strategically about their financial stability, but that’s a topic for another blog.)

The point is, everybody starts somewhere. The key is to just start. The garage phase is just the beginning, but it’s a powerful phase. It’s where you learn, adapt, and grow. And the best part? You get to imagine as big as you want. God gave us a powerful gift with imagination, so keep dreaming about where you want to be.

God Bless The Entrepreneur.