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When Ken Hall of Tennessee found School of Rock, he says he found the courage to leave his corporate gig and finally listen to the music.

Mark Hoon has never been an employee. Instead, he and his wife have been small-business owners for three decades-plus, and franchisees since 2008.

Mandy Solis considers herself lucky to have had a mentor who 'never treated me differently because I was young or a woman.'

Nora Wachter-Lerner survived cancer and decided that for her next gig, she was leaving the corporate world and going back to the kitchen.

More than two decades ago, Ross Drever took over the world's first Gloria Jean's Coffees franchise. Its founder, in 1986, was his dad.

Two North Carolina sisters found Blue Moon the perfect solution to their twin passions: treasures and trinkets, and tots -- especially the five they're mothers to.

Tracey Hamilton of Minneapolis recruits hospitality managers. But her best recruits have been her own two daughters.

Vitality Bowls franchisees David and Irene Tang brought to Indianapolis the açaí bowls they first fell in love with, in Maui.

Bill Papierniak was a minor league general manager in Richmond, Va. Today, the deals he's inking are with Cartridge World.

Government prosecutor April Porter had seen more than enough horrific sex offenses and homicides. She decided to walk away.

Ray and Tina Bramble are so successful that they won 2015's IFA's Franchisee of the Year Award.

Joe Chiarello has bought and sold 16 businesses. Today, he's settled down, at least for now, with Murphy Business & Financial Corporation.

John Mansour wanted his 'second act' to be something outside the restaurant field, so he opened his own Cleaning Authority business in Illinois.

Andrew Brown traces his interest in fixing appliances back to a broken refrigerator in his childhood. Today, he's a top franchisee with Mr. Appliance.

Bob Minkert was enthralled that a hot-air balloon could be used to promote his Mr. Electric franchise. So he went out and bought one.

At one point, she shares, megastar Robert De Niro leaned in to ask her advice about his idea for an invention.

Philip May left a corporate career to own his own business, whose mobile vans fix dental equipment on-site and make all of us healthier.

Who knew that someone would make a movie starring Jennifer Lawrence and Bradley Cooper that centers on a mop inventor.

Trent Dawson's family had been in the plumbing and draining business for three generations before Dawson bought his Mr. Rooter Plumbing seven-and-a-half years ago.

Sonny Nguyen has found prime success in his two Flame Broiler restaurants.

Woody Poole and Milton Guerrero were like brothers, as chief petty officers in the U.S. Navy. Now, they're brothers in business.

Eric Holm is part of Golden Corral's 'Helpings from the Heart' effort, which provides 20,000 meals to Central Florida residents.

Marina Lee traveled the world for Cisco before settling in North Carolina to open her own mini-chain of Gigi's Cupcakes bakeries.

Bill Nowak and Gail Gentry of Buffalo, New York, were chosen 'rookie of the year' by their Checkers franchisor.

Amy VanderMolen loved selling on eBay. So she made her hobby her business.

This Veterans Day, franchisee Andrew Mason is creating customized energy-management plans in Oklahoma City.

Kim and Greg Johnson of Santa Cruz are grateful that franchisor support helped their business survive the recession, unlike area independent car shops.

Cheston C. Syma is back from Iraq and Afghanistan, running ten Sport Clips locations and raising scholarship funds for his fellow vets and active-duty military personnel.

Albuquerque-based Glenn Buckland has been in the franchise business 28-plus years and now divides his time between businesses that clean carpets and refresh wood.

Kevin Papula of Pennsylvania credits his 'work ethic' and five years of steady effort for making his franchise a success.