Fortune: How To Actually Keep Your Solo Business Alive Despite Financial Difficulty.
Financial difficulty is not fun for solopreneurs, but there are ways around it.
The difference between solopreneurs and normal people is how we deal with being broke.
Financial difficulty is not fun for anyone, but it doesn’t have to be the end of your solopreneurial adventure.
Normal people vs solopreneurs.
Both normal people and solopreneurs may (or may not) have spent a long time getting trained and educated for their various roles, and neither is more important or preferable to the other. Both may value their roles and be doing what they were meant to do.
However, how they deal with financial matters can vary greatly depending on the approach. How successful a person is in either employment or self-employment is down to a million different factors, not least of which is the current global financial climate.
Normal people.
A normal person will get a “proper” job, working for someone else, with a regular income, for regular(ish) hours. If they are lucky, their income will be at least a living wage, and they might even get perks.
It’s a sensible option.
But it comes at the cost of their freedom. A normal person works according to their employer’s schedules and how many holiday or sick days they can take each year.
If they have financial difficulty and need more money, they can do more hours if available. If not, then reducing spending is a good alternative.
A life spent making money for someone else, playing by someone else’s rules.
But often with more security.
Solopreneurs.
Solopreneurs often work in their chosen fields because they love their trade. For me, that is dog behaviour. I am fascinated by it and rewarded highly when I see the changes I can make in a dog's and dog’s parents' lives.
Solopreneurs often value their time or their vocation more than money and guard their freedom jealously. Sure, we may be free to work all hours to earn sod all money … but at least we do not have the boss breathing down our neck and telling us when we are allowed to get sick, and what we do earn is ours and not the employer’s to take.
If we succeed as Solopreneurs, we might hire employees to earn money and grow our business so we can concentrate on other things or take on the roles we enjoy most in our company. (At this point, we become “entrepreneurs” as we no longer do it alone.)
If it all goes wrong.
If we are not successful and find ourselves in dire straits, we are facing a few options:
Quit and get a “proper” job.
Sell some assets or belongings, or borrow cash and hope things improve.
Develop your skills, both in your trade and in running a business, to create better/different services that are more in demand and charge accordingly.
The only two fundamental ways to grow a business financially are to sell more products or services or to charge more.
We can also try to reduce our expenditures, but some business owners have quite an outlay each month that can’t be avoided.
Don’t panic. I won’t try to sell you a business course. Plenty of coaches and advisors can do that far better than I can.
But I want to tell you that you are not alone if you struggle as an entrepreneur, especially in this current climate. Also, I want to share with you what I believe is the best way to change your fortune.
The problem: A very quiet period at work.
I have recently noticed a downturn in 121 clients, which is pretty standard after Christmas or the Summer holidays, but this year has been particularly quiet. I’ve watched in horror as several friends nationwide have had to close.
I was asked if I wanted some money to help cover the bills this month.
I said, “No.”
If we are given money and things don’t improve, we will still struggle afterwards. The problems will still be there, and now we have a debt (either financially or emotionally) to the person or organisation that bailed us out.
While taking the easy way out in the short term is tempting, it might not be best in the long term. As solopreneurs, we have to do what keeps food in our bellies, but if that risks making the situation worse in the long term or just dragging out a bad time, then a solopreneur who wants to hang on to their business long term should avoid that where possible.
Instead, you need to suck it up and find a way to move forward properly.
The solution: diversify your services and grow your skill set.
Instead, I decided to look for a solution. I needed something that I could do to keep my head above water while the dog-owning world recovers from the financial hits of the past few years and trade picks back up again.
I don’t want to work for anyone else, and I certainly have no plans to close Locke’s Dogs or Fun Not Fear®. I’ve worked too hard and too long to become good at what I love, so I needed to find a second business idea to support me and keep Twyla in treats.
So, it was time to assess my strengths, weaknesses, dislikes, and likes and determine the best way forward.
I read and write a lot, and as a native English speaker, I speak pretty good English.
I’m well-versed in learning theory and have been teaching dogparents for the past 8 years.
I’m pretty good on a computer.
I’m flexible with hours as long as they fit around my 121s and dogsitting
I don’t want a boss
I want to learn new skills and keep my brain active
I like being at home with the dog when I can be
So, I have been quietly training and getting certified as a tutor to help international students with their English Language skills.
In doing this, I will also become a better teacher in general, which will benefit my dogparents in the long term.
As solopreneurs, we are our business. If we can do several things under our sole trader umbrella, it makes sense to diversify and spread risks—just like stocks and shares. “Never put all your eggs in one basket,” as my Nan used to say.
I know that a teaching career would not excite everyone, but it is a huge undertaking for me at 44 years old, and I’m really proud of myself for not giving in or having some breakdown when all I needed to do was have a good think and come up with a solution.
The only time borrowing may help long-term.
If you borrow, pay the bills, and then struggle some more, you have achieved nothing but to drag out the inevitable. The only time you should be borrowing is to invest that money into yourself, to build your skill set with courses and learning so you do not find yourself in a situation like this in the future.
Free courses.
Free courses are often a good option to get you moving towards your goals in the short term.
There are free courses all over the internet on a million different topics that vary in quality. The good ones, however, are run by more reputable organisations and are often a lead into a paid course or to something else the organisation provides. While you may not wish to go on and purchase a pile of expensive courses, the free ones can often teach you a few things that might be super useful to you on your current journey.
It’s always a good idea to keep your brain active and evolving. Not only for your business health but also your mental health and your brain.
If you are a struggling solopreneur, think: what can you learn or do to diversify your services or grow your skill set?
And if you have already done so, what did you change, and how has that worked for you?
Tell me in the comments, I’d love to hear how you survived your rough patch.
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