Are you considering the rewards and realities of flying solo? Today’s business landscape includes a rapidly growing group of highly motivated business owners, the solopreneurs. More than ever before, the world of solopreneurs is delicately balanced on their management and leadership savvy combined with powerful self-discipline tools, including: visioning and planning, resource management and cash flow oversight, and accountability.
So who are solopreneurs? And how are they different than entrepreneurs?
We are living and working in an exciting era! Technology has been part of the productivity fabric for several decades. Consequently, people with highly developed, fine-tuned technology skills can become hyper-productive business managers. Tech tools make it possible for us to achieve deep layers of productivity and social networking tasks with the ease of a few keystrokes or mouse clicks. Hence, the power of technology can be very liberating for creative business building.
Today, we recognize that many people who have taken the proverbial quantum leap into a solo-run business are highly motivated, and they are idea enthusiasts who have extensive, often sophisticated business and technical skills. As the great Peter Drucker anticipated, we are knee-deep in the “knowledge economy”. Fast Company describes the “flux generation” as a high-potential segment of today’s movers and shakers who have the ability to navigate through chaos and savor uncertainty. Our successful solopreneurs of this millennium are certainly members of the “flux generation”.
“Multitasker”, a term often considered a highly desirable quality to list on our resume, is a power source for solopreneurs; enabling them to communicate, produce and serve customers with minimal external support. “Doing it my way” can be the mantra for many of them.
Some urban dictionary sources describe an entrepreneur as:
- Someone who works alone, “solo,” running their business single-handedly.
- They might have contractors for hire, yet have full responsibility for the running of their business.
I share one of our blogosphere colleague’s views (from the blogsite http://brandandbloom.com) that, “….this makes being ‘solopreneur’ sound a bit uninspiring.”
Our blogger, Andrea, describes an entrepreneur as someone who:
- “Capitalizes and expands on an idea”
- “Not necessarily an idea that they are attached too, just a really good one.”
Entrepreneurs are fully invested in the development of a unique, never-been-done before idea. Many entrepreneurs, after the prior idea is a running business, move on to the next never-been-done before idea. In our American society, we thrive on these entrepreneurs who fortify a business toward success, develop people to lead, manage and produce for the new business. Many entrepreneurs act on the expansion ideas generated from the initial enterprise to create new businesses.
Andrea, our blogger, appropriately describes the solopreneur as “one who capitalizes on their passion”. The solopreneur has their never-been-done before idea and holds onto this core idea to fully develop the business enterprise. The business may include all of the trappings of entrepreneurial challenges and rewards, but the impassioned idea is the business driver.
Visioning and Planning: Critical Skills for the “Road Less Traveled” Solopreneur
“Would you tell me, please which way I ought to go from here?” she asked.
“That depends a good deal on where you want to get to,” was the reply.
“I don’t much care where–” she said.
“Then, it doesn’t matter which way you go.”
Alice and the Cheshire Cat, from Lewis Carroll’s, Alice in Wonderland
Poignant reminder that the path we take will determine our destination. Whether it’s the path that we are taking for ourselves, or the one on which we want to lead others, it really does matter where we want to go. No matter what happens, you will end up somewhere in the course of the next month or the next year. So where will it be? Like Alice, it depends on what path you take.
Most solopreneurs are inspired! They have places they want to go. And typically, they want to go to a place where they will have sales or donations, lowered costs, new and evolving markets, new systems and networks, upgraded equipment and facilities, etc. These might be considered objectives or goals. But are these goals part of a bigger mission, or vision? Does it really matter? YES it does!
The solopreneur vision identifies and closes the gap of the distance between “where we are” or and “where we want to go”. When the vision is crystallized, the solopreneur must tactically plan how to most effectively arrive and sustain success. Some fundamental solopreneur questions that must be answered:
- How will I get there?
- What will I need?
- Who will go with me?
- How will this vision compel investors?
The answers to these important questions are how the enthused solopreneur prepares for their inspired journey.
Cash and Resources: How Will You Fuel the Dream?
Of course, the bottom line, cash flow, can be a relentless problem for every solopreneur. Cash flow is the fuel for your business. According to the Business Insider, as of last March (2011), Discover Card’s monthly survey of owners of companies with fewer than six employees (i.e., microbusiness owners) showed that 43 percent reported experiencing temporary cash flow problems.
Many experts emphasize that cash flow projections are the key to making wise and profitable business decisions. So how does a solopreneur manage this sometimes challenging, and often detail-burdened task? Many of my readers may remember the profound quote from the movie, Bladerunner (1982), “The light that burns twice as bright, burns half as long.” Character, Eldon Tyrell. To keep their light burning brightly solopreneurs are burdened to keep the cash flowing to support product development, marketing, and other areas that required funding.
In a recent online forum, John Mariotti, of Small Business Trends shared the reality that many solopreneurs underestimate how long it is from when they spend their cash to when they start collecting it back (in any significant quantity). Solopreneurs must develop and continuously refine their pragmatic skills. And although they are especially effective multitaskers, for the business to survive and thrive, solopreneurs should engage financial partners who can help them to refine their cash management skills and help to ease the task load.
In the new series, How to Soar as a Solopreneur, 30 Minute Business Dig on BlogTalkRadio.com will explore and share tools, and tips on outside resources, and techniques that can be smoothly integrated into businesses to help with some, often tormenting cash flow issues such as:
- Pricing models (where to begin, when and how to respond to changes)
- Undervaluing (market awareness strategies)
- Collections, payment plans, deposits (efficiency tools to sustain business operations and maintain customer loyalty and explore common pitfalls).
Cash flow, the solopreneurs bottom line, provides business continuity and sustainable success.
One is the Loneliest Number: Accountability is Your Internal Cheerleading System
Scott Eblin, acclaimed author and executive coach, clarifies the difference between accountability and responsibility this way:
- If you’re accountable, you answer for it.
- If you’re responsible, you do it.
When you are flying solo, accountability is NOT an option, it is mandatory. Because the solopreneur is the key player in the business, an accountability system that can be an autopilot when times get tough, is the fundamental tool that sustains high levels of productivity.
The solopreneur’s commitment to a new business is anchored by responsibilities that include:
- Self (health and wellness: emotional and physical)
- Values (ethics and beliefs)
- Personal relationships (family, friends, community)
- Professional relationships (colleagues and business partners)
- Financial (personal and business cash flows)
- People Skills (influencing and sales)
Yes, this complex list clearly indicates the need for solopreneurs to groom and refine the important leadership quality of accountability. Many executive coaches stress that entrepreneurs, and especially solopreneurs, recognize and honor these important responsibilities. Remember, the solopreneur operates from a uniquely passionate psychological place. Like many artists, such passion can cause isolation from people who are not engaged in the work. In other words, if others do not share the vision, the solopreneur can become discouraged and lonely. Thus, the disconnection with people can set the stage for ineffective decisions or actions.
Accountability partners are trusted confidants who are committed to the solopreneur’s success. An executive coach can provide valuable support at all phases of business development. From the critical startup to the day-to-day challenges of an operating business, a coach is the layer of accountability that asks the questions to keep fuel in the business. The coach listens without judgment, provide tools to overcome challenges, helps to navigate failed actions, and celebrates all, tiny and large, achievements.
How will you optimize your accountability resources, as you strive to squeeze every penny out of your daily business? Learn to be self-inspired with a skilled coach. Engage in activities that position you with peer coaches. And share challenges and insights (and pain) with trusted accountability partners. Your coach, your accountability partner, can be vital to help you engage more fully with others, give and receive honest and supportive feedback, and fully develop your leadership qualities that are critical to business success.
Success is Yours to Earn
“Only those who risk going too far can possibly know how far they can go”.
(Dr. Walter Bishop, Fringe episode 47)
The life of a solopreneur is risky, creative, exciting, and demanding. Every reward is earned. And, although success is beaming on the horizon, the solopreneur is the business leader who must have a keen, appreciative eye on details, people, trends, business processes, themselves, and so much more. In the next few months, join us on 30 Minute Business Dig as we explore the exciting and demanding world of solopreneurship. And, be sure to share your thoughts with us as we research and develop content for your programming: Go to our Facebook business page, and key 30 Minute Business Dig in the search bar. In each broadcast, leadership develop expert and executive coach, Dr. Deborah Frey, FreyWorks & Associates joins cliché buster extraordinaire, Lisa Kanda of Elkay Corporate Advisors, to deliver the content that you want to know more about. What do you want to know about flying solo?
Confidence is the difference between feeling unstoppable and scared out of your wits! Your self-image is the source of confidence that makes an enormous impact on how others see you and how successful you will be.
With the frantic pace of productivity, demanding schedules, and layers of responsibility, how can you learn to hear your peeps? How do you observe and absorb information? Do what highly successful leaders do, pause. Look around, listen, (eyes and ears), and appreciate and validate others. Consider what you might receive if you said to a friend or colleague, “Ted, thank you for making me laugh today.” Or, “Susan, you always charge in to tackle the tough problems. Thank you for your courage.” Or, to a server or clerk, “Your attitude just made my day a lot better. Thanks!”
