KALAHEO — Before opening up her pie business seven years ago, Sandy Poehnelt made sure she had all her ducks in a row. “Do your homework and meet with someone. You can’t do it alone. Have a mentor.

Back in the day when homework was on my to-do list, I often got conflicting advice from my parental unit. Mom adhered to the laid-back philosophy. She opened escape hatches by pointing out that ...