Carly Ries
Ever find yourself daydreaming about being a one-person business owner or switching up your current company of one? What does that look like? What kind of solopreneur do you want to be?
If you don’t have an answer, that’s OK. Chances are a million things have gone through your mind. So where should you direct your energy to make these thoughts a reality?
Whether you know exactly what you want to do or don’t have the slightest idea, but just know you want to fly solo in business, read on. This can absolutely get the wheels turning so you can move forward and put a plan in place.
Let’s get started.
Envisioning your business? Familiarize yourself with Ikigai.
“Say what?”
That’s what went through my mind when I first heard this term. Ikigai is a Japanese word that the Oxford English Dictionary defines as "a motivating force; something or someone that gives a person a sense of purpose or a reason for living".
To achieve this, you need to discover a combination of the following:
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What you're good at
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What you love
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What the world needs
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What you can be paid for
Think about how you can create a business that speaks to each of these categories. Let’s look at them quickly.
Identify your skills and passions
To get started, make a list of skills you have and another list of topics you’re passionate about. From there, try different match combinations from each list and see if a business idea starts churning in your head. I’ve placed an example below for reference.
Determine what people need and what they’ll pay for
Once you’ve created a list of ideas from the section above, score each idea for how much you think people would need it and if they’d be willing to pay for that product or service. Really do your homework on this. It’s no fun to get excited about something and go down a rabbit hole only to discover it’s not a viable business idea.
Keep your goals in mind
Once you have some solid business ideas in mind, see if they align with the goals you’ve set for yourself for becoming a solopreneur. If you want to spend more time with your family but your idea involves a lot of travel, it probably isn’t the best idea for you to pursue. Really think about this. Often people get really excited about a business idea and ignore their goals, only to resent their business for it later on. You don’t want this to happen to you. For all business decisions within your solopreneurship, keep your “why” in mind. It will help guide you through your journey.
Question if it is truly a one-person business
As you begin down the path of solopreneurship, you need to determine if the business is actually a one-person business and if that’s actually what you want. You don’t need to make a definitive decision at this point, but just remember there are various implications of changing a business to one with employees, such as taxes, so be sure to keep that in mind.
Whether you’re new to the solopreneur world or need some inspiration, the exercises above can be fun and enlightening. Once you’ve gone through the steps above, you’re ready to start planning! Having more than one idea is good because ideas can die in the planning stage as you flesh them out. If you have a few, start with your favorite and see where it goes.
Want some help with the planning phase? We encourage you to check out The Solopreneur Success Cycle! It’s an incredible roadmap designed to help you start, run, and grow your company of one and is beneficial for novice and experienced solopreneurs! Be sure to check it out!