Why I'll always be a solopreneur
https://medium.com/swlh/why-ill-always-be-a-solopreneur-4ec2f4bfbabb
There’s an obsession with growth when it comes to business. Grow your company, grow your revenue, grow your team. But there are benefits to keeping things slim. I appreciated these 4 takeaways.
Being braver when you're on your own is actually a thing, for me at least. I feel like the second I have anything that resembles a team, other people's preferences and opinions so easily cloud my vision. Sometimes it's great to have more perspectives but for me, it just causes analysis paralysis and very quickly, things start to go south.
That resonated with me as well. As a team grows, you get a mix of people with different levels of risk-taking, optimism, creativity, etc. This is not a bad thing per se, but when you start worrying about how they will judge your ideas, it can really prune your creativity.
This is me too.
It's not even about being challenged on an idea per se, it's more about how many times I've seen teams totally derail and put out a subpar product because everyone wanted their say.
Design by committee is the literal death of every single potentially groundbreaking product, and I see it happen so often in companies both big and small.
People have a desire to claim ownership, and for some this can be as simple as getting their opinion validated during an exec meeting, or a product demo.
I think one of the reasons some of the most successful founders are so successful is because they have this unshakeable, never floundering, and rock solid vision that no one would ever imagine stepping in front of them.
Often times their intensity would lead to interpersonal conflict (Steve Jobs), but sometimes this sort of intensity is needed in the early stages. It's the energy needed to take something from the wood shop to the limelight. It's the energy needed to stay focused and not stray.
I'm a big music fan, I love rock and metal, and nearly every single one of the bands that have any longevity whatsoever have 1 person calling the shots. One decision maker. One person with the vision. Feedback, changes, and opinions are welcome, but if any of that stuff is at odds with the overall vision: the idea gets tossed out.
I'm sure there are countless examples of products that excelled with 2 visionaries, but I think my point is that the more people you let in, the more your vision gets diluted.
And when you are just getting started, your vision needs to be hyper focused. It's simply the only way you will be able to get traction and grow. You can't be all the things, to all the people
I agree! That's probably my favorite part of being a solopreneur - that my voice is the only voice in the mix, and my decisions affect me, and that's it (well, and my customers). It's very freeing!
I'll always be solopreneur because I always like to try to develop new apps and products, and I want to have the freedom to juggle between them, or start a new one when I feel the need. All I need to do is to vote on it myself. Since the time to product has been minimized significantly, it's good to have this freedom.
Gotta love that freedom!
I don't think I ever can be, I like to listen to others and see if we can implement their ideas.
I don't think I can do my own work alone.
I mean the really good thing is that she's surrounded by people who can provide great feedback. In my experience, you just need others to get things going. I certainly don't have all the skillsets to execute a vision or set of goals and create maximum value for customers just on my own.
Having a co-founder is good if you want to scale exponentially. I am from a country where most local businesses were started by the family person (before the startup boom) and still hold the majority in tier-3 cities.
They are not online but making millions and nobody took inspiration from them that it is pretty possible to earn well without setting up a colossal team.
I prefer going solo for the long runs until I am making sufficient enough to meet my desires
Yeah, I think that's a sensible approach
One thing I would mention is that the writer is a freelancer.
SaaS is a different beast. With some products long term you can't sustain it as a solofounder (at the moment).
What aspects of SaaS makes you say that? Or is it the specific industry you're in? I've seen both successful solo/duopreneur SaaS as well as worked in industries that I wouldn't consider it.
Might be because i'm in a bubble.
Super interesting and maybe there is a bunch of long tail SaaS doing well with solo founders.
Usually they end up selling or growing. Very rare to see otherwise.
Agree. Solopreneurship is a complete waste of time & energy. We are social animals. This applies to business as well. Having a cofounder is a must.
How did you get that from my reply?
If you run a freelance business that is niched and want to work with flexible schedule that is easily possible.
I also think you could make mobile apps that are b2c and not social (but would require a lot of luck).
Being a solopreneur doesn't mean being alone. On the contrary, it makes it more important than ever to have a support system. Those people just aren't part of the business.
That's true. Being your own team gives you the ability to be braver and actually do whatever you want with your business. This sense of freedom is difficult to explain.
I couldn't successfully have a co-founder, even though I tried multiple times and even bent my principles. I finally stopped and evaluated. Co-founder isn't for me and growth at all cost isn't for me. I prefer slim, gradual, profitable and compounding businesses...
💯
Good read, thanks for sharing!
It's not even about being challenged on an idea per se, it's more about how many times I've seen teams totally derail and put out a subpar product because everyone wanted their say.
Design by committee is the literal death of every single potentially groundbreaking product, and I see it happen https://thecapcut.app/capcut-pro-apk-download/ so often in companies both big and small.
People have a desire to claim ownership, and for some this can be as simple as getting their opinion validated during an exec meeting, or a product demo.
There are pros and cons to solopreneurship.
#1 Pro:
-Freedom, enough said.
#1 Con:
-You're at a disadvantage, generally speaking, compared to your other bootstrapped competitors.
This resonated with me. The truth is that it is quite difficult to find people that share your vision and are willing to grind. Plus, the upside as a solopreneur is so much more.
I highly recommend you to engage into working as group. You will exhange your kowledge between each others.
Yeah, that's true 💯
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