Andra Hall’s grandmother once gave her some advice: if you’re going to do one thing, make sure you do that one thing really well. For Andra, she loved to bake since childhood—and unexpectedly made it a career when she left the corporate world to care for her daughter Camille, who was ill at the time. Her decision to start CamiCakes Cupcakes has brought sweet rewards, generating $1.1 million in revenues in 2009. There are currently three locations (two in Florida and one in Georgia); plans for a fourth location; and celebrity fans including music producer Jazze Pha and actor Boris Kodjoe, whose favorite flavor, btw, is the Chocolate Raspberry Almond Cream.

We were able to pull Andra out the kitchen for a bit of cupcake conversation.

What’s in a name: I played around with a few names in the beginning when I wasn’t sure if I was going to do cakes or cupcakes, so some people said why not call it CamiCakes, after my daughter Camille. I liked it, so that’s where the name came from.

Cupcake craze: I think there has always been something special about cupcakes. People can still enjoy their favorite flavored cake–or two, or three flavors at a time–just as a cupcake. You no longer have to invest in a whole 50 or 60 dollar cake, and people just got excited about that.

Back-up Plan: It’s hard to know what else I’d be doing right now. I knew that I didn’t want to go back into an office environment, so I think maybe the focus would have been on wedding cakes or other specialty cakes.

Shop talk: I really don’t focus on what other people are doing around me. I just do what feels right, and I go with the things that I like to eat.  Half of the flavors that we have are combinations of flavors that I enjoy eating [such as Sweet Potato, CinnaSwirl, Chocolate Peanut Butter Cream]. Before opening my first doors I also held what I called cupcake socials, and I received lots of feedback from others on which flavors to throw out and which ones to keep exploring. But I never paid any attention to what other shops were doing in terms of creating our menu and deciding what to do in our stores.

Entrepreneur’s secret ingredients: Owning a cupcake shop takes a passion for baking, cakes in particular. Personally, knowing that I had more in me [besides working in an office] and really wanting to do my own thing helped me to get where I am today.

–Arlice Nicole

Photo: Darnell Wilburn

Arlice Nichole is a freelance writer and editor from the Midwest working for digital destinations that include Clutch magazine, BlackEnterprise.com  and NBC Universal. Her work has also been picked up by USAToday, EbonyJet.com and Lifetime Moms.

Maternity maven Liz Lange began her career as an assistant to a features editor at Vogue, but it never felt like the right fit. After meeting a struggling clothing designer, she caught the fashion bug, and begged him to let her apprentice. “I still didn’t have any intention of starting my own line,” she says. That is, until she saw her pregnant friends squeezing into regular clothes and became obsessed with an idea to create maternity fashions that were cuter, tighter, and stretchier than what was on the market.

First came her high-end line (loved by celebs like Sarah Jessica Parker) and several boutiques, then a wildly successful marriage with Target.  Having sold her company for a reported $50 million in 2007, her newest ‘babies’ are a non-maternity line for HSN called Completely Me, and a shopping newsletter with her sister called Shopafrolic.  “I’ve never written a business plan for anything I’ve done,” Liz says. “For me, it’s very organic—jumping on new opportunities that come my way.” Below, more work and life secrets from the designer and mom of two.

Currently reading: “My friend Alexandra Lebenthal’s fantastic page turner The Recessionistas and Delivering Happiness by Tony Hsieh (the CEO of Zappos.com).”

Must-have make-up item: Laura Mercier bronzing gel. “I mix it with my moisturizer every morning to give my skin that tan, glowy look.”

On trusting yourself: “The first year of my business I was paralyzed. Some days I just lied in bed in a curled-up ball when I could have been getting things done! I was asking for validation instead of actually doing something—instead of just believing in my gut instinct and going forward.”

Can’t live without: Constant blow-outs. “My hair is my obsession and I just can’t do it myself. Embarrassing but true!”

Hiring m.o.: Passion matters more than a fancy resume. “One of my best employees ever was a girl who wrote me a very specific letter when she was still in college, describing her excitement for my brand and her experience working for a competitor. She started as an assistant, and was eventually our marketing director.”

Fave vacation spot(s): Palm Beach and the Mayan Riviera with the kids during the winter, Paris in the Spring, Capri in July

Holiday stay-slim secret: “All year long, I never just eat to eat; I only eat what I love. (Okay, and I work out with a personal trainer 3 times a week so that I can eat what I love!)”

Advice for recent grads: “Spend your twenties allowing yourself to try a lot of different things. If there’s some way you can focus on what you might love—something that doesn’t feel like work (at least not all the time)—chances are you’ll end up being very good at it and making money.”

Wish for the new year: Clarity and contentment

To learn more about Liz, visit her website, or check out her latest venture, Shopafrolic.

With 15 internships under her belt before graduating college, Lauren Berger gives new meaning to the phrase professional student. Her busy college life may not have left a lot of time for socializing, but it did pay off.  Her college experience in the world of work gave her the idea to start Intern Queen Inc., where Lauren and her team help students land the hottest internships. Read on to see how hard she works to help others live their dream.

How did you build this empire of opportunity for yourself and others?

It’s been one step at a time. I had the idea to start Intern Queen when I was graduating, but I didn’t have the means to fund it full-time yet. So, I worked on one small project after another until I had a website created. Then, in 2008 I left my job at Creative Artist Agency to do Intern Queen full-time.

What’s a typical day like for you?

I’m on the West Coast, so when I’m not traveling, I’m usually up no later than 6 a.m. I try to start my day with a writing project. I’m working on a few book proposals, and I blog daily so that my users always have fresh content. I might work on an article for a different website; tweet a new internship; then I’ll check my e-mails for the day.  I also run a virtual internship program, so my morning could involve a phone call with my interns. Another big part of my day is press and marketing, and my eyes are always on the traffic of the website.

You did 15 internships before graduating! Was that always the plan?

I started interning during my freshman year, and I just loved it! I was challenged in a way I’d never been challenged before, and I wanted more experiences like it. I was learning so much about myself and what I wanted in my life personally and professionally.

I didn’t realize how much weight things like networking and mentorships carried when I was in college. Do you help students maximize their time in school in any other ways?

We just try to supply them with the tools that will help them make the most of their internships. I think a lot of the tips we offer are ones students can apply to their everyday lifestyle, like learning to talk to everyone, always introducing yourself and giving your first and last name. On the Intern Queen Blog, we talk about all sorts of college issues; it’s not limited to internships. Right now, I have a campus ambassador program with more than 40 students from universities around the country that are passionate about Intern Queen and its message. They contribute to the blog a few times a week on what they’re experiencing in their lives, so other students have someone to relate to.

What’s the Intern Queen Phone about?

It’s a new paid service– a conference call series that I actually named after the Dream Phone board game! Students can sign up for any three phone calls that interest them. We have a different intern coordinator that’s our featured guest on each call, and students have the opportunity to introduce themselves to the employer and say why they’re interested in learning about the company. I send questions students have for the coordinator ahead of time, and it’s basically me interviewing the employer about the internship, what stands out to them on resumes, and about how [the interviewee] got started in their own career. It’s such a great way for students to connect directly with the people who read their resumes. We’ve already spoken to the internship coordinator for BWR Public Relations. Next week we have MTV and VH1, then K/O Productions (who did Transformers and Star Trek), and the series wraps up with Marie Claire magazine.

Do you agree that the economy is almost forcing entrepreneurship?

In some ways, I would agree with that. I think the economy has put a lot of people in a situation where starting a business is just the better option for them, which I think is great. No one ever said to me, ‘you know Lauren; you can start your business today. You don’t have to wait until you graduate.’ I really think more people should tell high school and college students that.

Why do you think many young people have a sense of entitlement?

We want things fast, we want it now, and we’re going to do whatever we can to get it. My hope is that this sense of entitlement is really confidence—the confidence to take initiative, go out there, and make things happen. If that means having a sense of entitlement, then I think that’s OK.

–Arlice Nichole

Arlice Nichole, who had her first internship at 30, is a freelance writer and editor from the Midwest. Her work has been picked up by USAToday,  EbonyJet, and Lifetime Moms.

“I’ve never stayed in a job just for the paycheck,” says cookbook author and former magazine editor Silvana Nardone. “If the passion is gone, I’ll leave and try something else.” During her career, she’s walked away from magazines to open an Italian bakery, then returned to become the founding editor of Every Day with Rachael Ray. Now, she’s left again to focus on writing books. Her recently released cookbook, Cooking for Isaiah, was inspired by her son’s diagnosis with gluten intolerance.

What’s helped her navigate out of the corporate terrain and back again? Having a strong internal compass, for one. A fan of flip-flops and jeans, she’ll leave in her nose ring for a job interview. “I don’t even own a suit! What you see is what you get,” she says. “Sometimes that works, especially because I’m in a creative industry, and other times, people feel I’m too naive.” As an editor-in-chief, she encouraged her employees to put family first. “People were really surprised when I told them ‘of course you should go see your kid in the play!’ You don’t have to suck up to me. Just do your job and do it well.”

That’s an approach Silvana has taken in her own career: focus on the product, don’t get bogged down in politics. “I want you to experience the best I have to offer,” she says. “Whatever I do, I throw myself in 100 percent. You have to go for yours and fully embrace it!”

Here, a few more secrets from the baker turned editor turned gluten-free GGG:

Perfect day off: Farmer’s market, cooking and eating together casually in the kitchen while the sun sets in the background.

Always in my pantry: Popcorn kernels and chocolate chips, in no specific order.

Organization strategy: Lists that I glance at every now and then.

Secret to a great meal: Fresh conversation and ingredients.

Working-from-home outfit: Comfy cords, chunky turtleneck sweater, slippers, cup of hot green tea.

Kindle or iPad? iPad

Best beauty tip: Less is more.

To learn more about Silvana (or, for fabulous cooking tips in general), visit www.dishtoweldiaries.com.

Photo credit: Stephen Scott Gross

Name: Kia Martinson-Wenzel

Gig: Holiday Helper

Vitals: 33 years-old, married, two kids, based in Connecticut

On the web: www.estoccasions.com

I’m a self-taught wedding and event planner by trade. As a military wife, I got my start helping out with “Hail and Farewell” parties on the base—basically dinner parties to ‘hail’ the new people and say goodbye to those who are leaving.

Recently, local businesses started asking for help decorating their office holiday parties. They wanted their employees to actually enjoy the event—not be working! (At one doctor’s office, for example, their caterer was short-staffed one year, so the secretary ended up serving the food in her beautiful holiday dress).

Now, I offer holiday helper services on everything from hanging Christmas lights on your house ($100-$300) to wrapping presents to gift shopping. One client who travels a lot asks us to pick out a present for his mom each year—something with a personal touch, even if it’s simply a pie from a local bakery. Another client asked me to set up their family portrait and create a Christmas photo card, so that all she’d have to do was sign the finished product. It only took me a few hours to make the appointments and create the card online—a pretty easy $50 for me (and she thought a bargain for the headache she avoided!).

Given the economy, I try to help clients get ready for the holidays by using what they already have in new ways. I might help someone “tablescape” (i.e., make the table look pretty!) by taking down a mirror and adding some candles or grouped ornaments from their existing collection.  Design consults like this can run $25 – $50. I’d say I’ll make at least $1000 total with our holiday helper services this year. But it’s not just about the money.  It’s rewarding to help some spread holiday cheer in the community—and unlike a wedding, you see the results in just a few weeks.

How can you get started as a holiday “personal assistant”?

Use Facebook. I post status updates on our Facebook page. I announce that “Our Holiday Helpers are back!”—or I’ll be more specific about what I’m actually doing— “Just finished spray painting trees for a winter wonderland.” That gets people interested in what we’re working on. We also do pay-per-click Facebook ads, which are a cost-effective way to reach our target audience of young professionals.

Go old-school. You can print up a little flier or cute Holiday business card and spread the word to neighbors and local business.

Show your stuff. If you want to showcase your card-making, scrapbooking, or holiday decorating, connect with some friends and set up a holiday block party. Think of it as kind of like hosting, say, a Pampered Chef or lia sophia party, only a softer sell!

–As told to Go-Getter Girls staff