Yes, You Really Can Operate A Successful 1-Person Business!

Just because you are the only person in your business, this doesn't mean that you can't make money or grow your business to generate more revenue and be more efficient.

Thanks to online tools and services, starting a business has never been easier, making it possible to run an entire company with only one employee – you! That's right; you can start your own company and still have time to enjoy the things you love with just a little extra effort upfront.

For most people, starting their own business means operating as a full-time entrepreneur or business owner, where you're working by yourself and taking on all aspects of the business as your responsibility.

However, if you're not ready to go full-time, you can still start your own successful 1-person business by offering consulting services instead. Here are five reasons why you can become a successful 1-person business.

Just Start Already!

Most of us overthink starting a business far too much. We think about how our businesses might fail and how we need to do everything perfectly from day one. While it's important to make a plan, if you wait until every detail is perfect, you'll never start your business.

Getting started with your own business can be one of the most empowering things you'll ever do—and some of our greatest accomplishments are often born out of necessity or desperation rather than planning or careful consideration! It's easy to say that we want success for ourselves, but often it's even easier just to let other people tell us what we should be doing.

Stop giving excuses for why you can't start a business. If you have an idea, jump on it and get started already! Don't wait until you feel like your business is ready or that you know everything there is to know about how to start a business.

The only way to learn anything is by doing it, not by talking about it. There are many successful one-person businesses out there who grew their first customers without having much of an idea at all; make sure you focus on making your customers happy.

Define Success For Yourself

There's no one definition of success. So when you start your business, make sure to define what success looks like for you. Maybe it means making a certain amount of money or hitting a certain number of clients or having more time for yourself and your loved ones.

Be clear about how you'll measure success and whether any particular outcomes are non-negotiable (i.e., if you don't hit that benchmark by Year 3, sell off some assets or close up shop). It may sound obvious, but some entrepreneurs find they don't have enough time to get everything done once their company starts picking up steam.

As an entrepreneur, you can't just be working for a paycheck. The business has to be fulfilling in its own right, or you'll quickly become demotivated and unproductive. That's why it helps to have a mission beyond just making money and reaching certain targets. Making your hours is great, but you need to love what you do if you want to see yourself through startup struggles—and make it successful.

Don't Compare Yourself To Others

There's always someone who is doing better than you, but there's also someone who is doing worse. Your goal should be to improve every day and measure your success based on that. It doesn't matter if you are selling $1,000 worth of product or $100,000.

If you're not making progress toward your goals and dreams, it means you need to make a change! Look in the mirror at yourself and ask, How can I become better? And do something about it! Every single successful person has had these same thoughts. If they didn't do anything about it, they wouldn't be where they are today.

If you feel discouraged or overwhelmed, take a step back and review your progress. It's easy to lose sight of how far you've come when focused on what you still need to do. If something small has been holding you back, then fix it! If nothing is holding you back, then keep going!

Automate Everything

When you operate a small business, it's easy to feel like there aren't enough hours in your day. Even if you know that automation will increase your productivity (which it will), getting started can seem intimidating.

That's why it helps to focus on one area of your business at a time. Start with automating one task—scheduling social media posts or updating a spreadsheet regularly—and then build up from there. Once you've mastered automation, you'll discover many ways to make yourself more efficient. Running a successful business can be as simple as showing up for work each day and focusing on making great content for your audience.

Building a successful business does come down to understanding your audience, providing valuable content, and being consistent in your message. If you can automate some of your daily tasks, you'll find it much easier to focus on those things that matter most to you.

Just think about how much time you'll save by not spending hours scheduling posts for each social network and making sure they don't look exactly alike!

Monetize Your Value

Since you can't depend on someone else to get your business going, you'll need to convince customers that your services or products are worth paying for. This can be one of the most difficult parts of starting a business.

Many never make it past ideation because they have no idea how to find paying customers. If you don't have money saved up and know what services people need, then start by offering free consulting sessions or working with other solopreneurs until you can afford to work on retainer.

If you want to bring in money, you'll need to start charging for your services. The sooner you do that, the better. It can be hard to land your first clients if you don't have a reputation or proof of concept behind you; if that's your situation and it's too early to charge for your services, offer free consulting sessions or work with other solopreneurs until you can afford to work on retainer.

Alternatively, offer an upsell service so that every customer who wants one gets an upgraded version of their product at a premium price. This helps ensure that your customers are already familiar with paying for value before paying for yours.

Get Started with BetterLegal

Regardless of what state you're working from, BetterLegal provides a complete business formation service for one no-hassle price and without all the confusion of our competitors. We can help you set up your company in 2-5 business days. From business education to tax preparation, etc., you can count on us or our curated list of partners for the best services for your brand.