Solopreneurs Doing $1M or More...

[GSF]

http://www.forbes.com/sites/elainep...king-his-diet-sparks-a-seven-figure-business/

Another article by the same journalist about another solopreneur making 7 figures a year.

LOVE IT:

another article this time about a seven figure Amazon solopreneur

http://www.forbes.com/sites/elainep...usiness-insights-from-amazons-lunchbox-ninja/

 

[Leo Hendrix]

Another one, Income of 10K ａｍｏｎｔｈ


http://www.businessinsider.com/johnny-fd-earning-over-10000-a-month-online-2015-8

 

[GSF]

Why More Americans Are Breaking $1 Million in One-Person Businesses

 

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[MTF]

I recently discovered Alex West who's behind CyberLeads | Recently Funded Startups Lead Lists

He's now making $600k a year with 3 VAs and one operator and he works on average 2 hours a day.

Here's his website:

Alex West

www.alexwest.co

His Twitter:

https://twitter.com/alexwestco/

Some interesting videos of his:

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jtE5BERNGQY

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WAigd4b9jsA

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zh17Kbx0QGA

 

[LibertyForMe]

They posted this request on HARO like 2 days ago. I passed because I'm not at a mil a year yet, but I thought it was cool

 

[Andy Black]

Thought this was interesting. Aimed at enterprises, but still relevant to the solopreneur:

• www.blurgroup.com/sizezero/size-zero-enterprise

 

[Hackdroot]

This thread deserves a bump, plus I wanted to share with you some other great articles by the same journalist:

Love these stories. It gives me hope that someday my epiphany will come through.

Rep'd

 

[GSF]

Any more stories?

He's About To Break $2 Million In An Ultra-Lean Business He Started At Age 62

 

[Andy Black]

The biggest things you provide to it are (more than likely) things like authority, vision, expertise, judgement, decision making, risk tolerance, and long term strategy. It's hard to find an everyday employee who is willing to manifest those qualities for you instead of just start their own business. You'd have to hire someone in the 6 figures, I reckon.

When people talk about replacing themselves in a business, I think they're most often talking about some technical job they do in the business. "Product sourcing" or "analyzing reports." If you're good at those things and enjoy them, it makes sense for them to be the last things you hire for, if you do. After all, they aren't what the business needs... you already give it those things. It needs the things that your customers and the market needs, but that you're terrible at or that take your time away from your best skills.

Being strategic and having judgement and bringing vision and expertise don't have to occupy your time in the same way as, say, answering all the phone calls. You get time to think, experiment, or do other things. So replacing "you" the essential business owner, probably isn't urgent like replacing "you" the proposal writer. Therefore, a one word answer to your question is, "last."

Interestingly (to me, at least), you can bake a lot of decisions and strategies and even "judgement" into your business by turning them into things the staff can reference and repeat. Guidelines, rules, policies like "if it fixes the problem without causing <disaster>, do it and let me know if this happens more than 10 times per month)."

These baked-in decisions won't last forever, because nothing does, but you also won't have to make the same decision over and over again when an employee could repeat that decision just as easily. This is why I'm such a pest about "controls," lol. They take your best judgements and clone them to any number of daily business decisions, and in many cases they stay relevant and correct for years.

So you're left with making new decisions only when new situations require your judgement. And/or developing new products, services, etc., should you so choose.

Here's what I think is a good test for how "replaced" you are: The business shouldn't stop if you stop directly working in it. It should just experience a slow entropy that you can reset from time to time by updating things and helping the staff understand whatever is new.

A nice thing about that is it makes business continuity planning easierr. BCP is a good motivation for replacing yourself, or at least becoming replaceable, if you have family that relies on you.

You want the business to survive your own downfall? Or your sudden desire not to work on it anymore? At least if you've hired or automated for all those daily things you're not suited for, you "only" have to find a strategic leader with sound judgement and some domain knowledge. They don't also have to be a customer service representative, reporting analyst, door frame painter, and graphic artist. You'll never find the person willing to be all of those things outside their own business, but you can hire a leader if the business has enough profit. Or the business can coast along at that slow rate of entropy (as opposed to the rapid collapse if it depends on you for everything) while you find a buyer. Maybe that buyer is the one who replaces you.

The above has been my observation anyway. The path and the details are various, depending on the type of business. For example, a business where you're the licensed professional, or the CPA, Lawyer, Engineer, etc., has different things to consider (about replacing the owner) than a business where the owner selects products from wholesale markets, or provides less regulated services. But I think in all cases, the urgency is first on replacing anything that needs doing but is outside of the owner's core strengths; and then on making the owner's judgements persistent in the company, so that it doesn't collapse in the event that they need to go away for a while.

Edit: After posting I realized the original thread started with "solopreneurs." So I guess the above applies if you're willing to have some employees or contractors doing the stuff you don't wanna. There are businesses that don't require any of that, I'm sure. I recently learned of a person who makes $1mm per year doing nothing but testing for software vulnerabilities. All he needs are two hands, two eyes, and the will to keep going, and that's his income.

Great insights. For solopreneurs I think we're counting people who have freelancers in their team as well.

I've always thought of infrastructure as consisting of People, Processes, and Technology. I'd like to scale using Processes and Technology ... which is how we can bake in our judgement and knowledge.

 

[Andy Black]

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fm1FnY0HHvA

Yeah, great video from Noah. Damn, he talks fast.

 

[MTF]

@JasonR, any idea how to do these two things at once? I'm often tempted to face a bigger challenge (do something on a larger scale like, say, Richard Branson), and then I remember I'm happy because my business can be managed by only me and I don't have to deal with all that crap related to bigger ventures that need people, an office, etc.

 

[Ubermensch]

Good to hear you confirm this. I came across him from time to time but always had the impression that he's just a typical internet info marketer who's topic happens to be offshore stuff instead of the usual crap.

Also, I would never trust a 20-something with a baby face with taking my business offshore. I'd want some older, maybe a bit rugged and with a few scars from battles with various tax authorities. Like a white-collar barbarian.

Just so you know, this isn't a shot at you, it's a shot at your obvious ignorance on NC.

Hilarious. Just goes to show that one can have an opinion on something or someone, even if one is actually ignorant about that something or someone. Thinking is not really a prerequisite for opening your mouth. Or, in this case, typing.

Unless I'm mistaken, Andrew is around the same age MJ was when MJ started winning big.

Side note: Since when is age a prerequisite for knowledge?

The main point, though, is that anyone who has actually paid to be a part of the Nomad Cap inside group, or has attended the functions (like the last one in Cancun), knows that Andrew himself does not purport to be the expert. Rather, he has access to the appropriate experts for expats (accountants, attorneys, etc).

This year, I've gotten checks/deposits/fees/commissions bigger than some people's annual income, and I can do this anywhere in the world. Thus far, I've chosen to be in the U.S, but if there's one thing Andrew IS an expert on, it is the tenets of capitalism and how to maximally exploit opportunities for freedom abroad.

 

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[jon.a]

Wow, I got confused. I thought people were bashing @AndrewNC

 

[Get Right]

I know Andrew. but I would never consider him an expert or credible source on any topic. that's about all I will say on this topic.

I saw his "friends list" included Harry Dent. Ummm, I'm out.

 

[GlobalWealth]

I saw his "friends list" included Harry Dent. Ummm, I'm out.

Hahahaha

Sent from my SM-G900FD using Tapatalk

 

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[B. Cole]

I seriously relate to the personal trainer and babysitter’s past employee issues (I currently manage 165 through 9 managers), and like how they rewrote their business models to foster stewardship through their franchisees, effectively replacing their passengers and sinkers with active paddlers.

They traded a workforce of slowlaners for a workforce of entrepreneurs. Brilliant.

Employee engagement is a career long battle for most managers. Slowlaners ain’t dumb, most know it all comes down to “how much money is this guy paying me to be here vs. how much I really give a shit”. They know that all the engagement pep rally bullshit is just the man trying to keep them from hating the deal they signed up for. Rare is the employer that can afford “best job ever” status with all of its employees and stay in business.

Gives me fuel to keep building my own boat so I don’t have to continue motivating other slowlaners to keep someone else’s afloat. Thanks for the share @MJ DeMarco, and congrats on the press!

 

[GSF]

These Three Friends Hit $2 Million In Revenue With A Fresh Approach To Publishing

 

[MJ DeMarco]

I've been thinking recently about this again after an unsuccessful attempt to build a non-solopreneur business despite being a lone wolf by nature.

My conclusion is that some people really should listen to themselves. There's nothing wrong with keeping your business small. And no, you don't have "limiting beliefs" if you refuse to have employees and if you don't feel comfortable becoming a "leader" and a real "CEO."

I wrote some thoughts on my blog about it. Here's the article pasted here:

You mentioned "you latest business failure" and I read the blog post, but it didn't mention what elements were in that 1% that made you quit. Because employees were needed? What factors made you say, "f* this?"

 

[Deleted50669]

I’m the same @MTF @eliquid

I could scale by hiring Google Ads freelancers or employees (or whitelabel an agency). I tried it for about two weeks and hated it. My super power is being able to do the work better than the people I hire.

My other super power is how I interact with people in forums, Facebook groups, live workshops, Zoom calls, etc. I tried multiple times to delegate/outsource sales and that failed miserably. Again, they can’t do it as well as me.

So what am I to do if I want to scale while leveraging my superpowers?

Find a business model that fits the life I want to lead, the work I like to do, and the way I like to do it.

There’s so many ways of doing business nowadays that it’s just a case of figuring out where you want to go and how you want to get there.

It also takes courage (or bloody mindedness) to ignore the pressure to do XYZ or ABC lest you’re not a “proper” business owner. I feel there’s a script amongst business owners too, but being unscripted means doing it your own way. Honest to goodness, I’ve lost count of how many people tell me what I should do, need to do, must do, etc.

Tagging @Lex DeVille and @Fox as I think this convo is right up their street too.

I like the concept of a superpower. Everyone has unique strengths. Sometimes the chosen entrepreneurial project isn't compatible, and it causes quite a bit of friction. Can be problematic when you know you're onto an idea but suck as executing it alone.

 

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[MTF]

@JasonR, one more question if you don't mind. You said this:

We can't get to where we want to go without the warehouse or more staff. My goal is to grow this thing to $10M gross and beyond.

Is your goal gross-related only?

I mean, revenue doesn't equal profit and often more revenue actually reduces profit. A lean operation at $2.5M gross may actually generate more profit for the owner than a bigger operation at $10M gross. This is why I'm partial to lean, solopreneurial ventures. More return for less work.

Obviously in no way criticizing or questioning your choices, just curious how you view it and how the numbers work here (not asking for any specifics, just whether increasing the costs and revenue so much doesn't cut a lot into profit).

 

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[MTF]

Yeah, great video from Noah. Damn, he talks fast.

LOL I usually listen to his videos at 2x but this one was so fast I had to slow it down haha. He's been producing some incredibly valuable videos recently. Love these little case studies with all the behind the scenes.

 

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[eliquid]

I recently discovered Alex West who's behind CyberLeads | Recently Funded Startups Lead Lists

He's now making $600k a year with 3 VAs and one operator and he works on average 2 hours a day.

Here's his website:

Alex West

www.alexwest.co

His Twitter:

https://twitter.com/alexwestco/

Some interesting videos of his:

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jtE5BERNGQY

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WAigd4b9jsA

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zh17Kbx0QGA

This business makes me cringe.

I'm not hating on the guy. Glad he is making it in life.

But the business he is in, that is what makes me cringe.

There are like several dozen of these startups doing the same thing and they always appear on AppSumo for $69 LTD and it ruin's it for people who are actually trying to reach out, via cold outreach, to these same companies already.

 

[MTF]

There are like several dozen of these startups doing the same thing and they always appear on AppSumo for $69 LTD and it ruin's it for people who are actually trying to reach out, via cold outreach, to these same companies already.

He addresses that:

Many agencies must be using these lists!​

• Excellent observation, but no.
• The number of subscribers for the monthly list is still in the 10s!
• That is because I have high prices by design and constantly increase them.

But how - I've seen your revenue!​

• I know, right?!
• Well, most of the revenue comes from the "Done For You" service I offer.
• The newsletter remains small on purpose.

 

[MTF]

Yes, he has a sucky business model. I can bet 90% of his biz comes from the work he does for people not those stupid newsletters and lists LOL

I’m in the same biz, and we never share lists publically or re-use them for companies. Every lead gen process is custom built.

Also, I saw some his data. And his info isn’t up to date, I know because I have some of the same info in our biz.

Like I said above, he's upfront that most of his income comes from the productized service part of the business.

 

[ClaytonAlbright]

I've been hearing a lot about 4-hour workweek. Anyone know if it's any good?

 

[Bellini]

Nice article on Forbes where an entrepreneur plugged The Millionaire Fastlane and profiled a couple million dollar revenue guys working solo. In @Vigilante 's thread "Changing in Latitudes" we discussed how sweet it is to work alone without the headache and hassles of employees.

How Bold Entrepreneurs Are Breaking $1 Million In One-Person Businesses

http://www.forbes.com/sites/elainep...-breaking-1-million-in-one-person-businesses/

Nice start to my weekend.

This is awesome!

I subscribe to the hard copy Forbes Magazine. Not sure how I missed it.

What's even more amazing @MJ DeMarco is that you finally surpassed 90k in your rep account. It's about time.

Just kidding!

 

[eliquid]

Hilarious. Just goes to show that one can have an opinion on something or someone, even if one is actually ignorant about that something or someone. Thinking is not really a prerequisite for opening your mouth. Or, in this case, typing.

Side note: Since when is age a prerequisite for knowledge?

I agree in theory on your point, but I disagree when it comes to reality.

Humans survived all these years to be where we are today because of bias. Without bias being used as a shortcut within our thinking process, we would have never made it as a species.

In reality, prejudice ( or bias ) worked.

Age isn't a prerequisite for knowledge, but if you are trying to get a job or market your services and your marketplace/employer has these biases... you will be subject to them and have to deal with the result of them.

Also, knowledge doesn't mean anything unless it's knowledge gained by first-hand experience and repeated several times to be proved as true. You can read all the books in the world on a given subject and think you have knowledge, but you do not. You can experience something first-hand once and think all situations similar to that are true, but you would be wrong. You can also have all the people you think are experts in a given topic around you, and also be fooled when the above is compounded for them within their lives.

You can not get repeated first-hand experiences without the passing of time. The odds someone has encountered this with little time is very slim ( a bias ). It can happen, I know it can. However, some people would rather play the odds.

I don't care who Andrew is or if he is correct. I don't know him. He could be the real deal.

However, his marketplace has spoken ( both people who trust him, and those who don't ). That is the only truth in this discussion.

 

[Bouncing Soul]

It pisses me off. F*ck.

 

[CommonCents]

Gee, who's that MJ dude, some overnight sensation guru in the press? (only 10-20 years in the making

 

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[Tim Allen Jr.]

Apropos of nothing, maybe, but one of the main things that held me back in the past was my own lack of clarity on whether to build a lifestyle business or a larger enterprise that I can scale and sell, as well as my lack of courage to embrace the model that was really for me, versus the one that I thought I "should" pursue. I think the Silicon Valley glory stories entice most people to desire to become moguls, rather than lifestyle mavens. As for me, a relatively introverted guy who equates managing employees with running an adult daycare center, I'll take the latter.

Knowing how you want your company or companies to run is critical. Also, for overall happiness and well well-being... which typically if you are, you can run your company better. Plus - Who want's to build something only to hate doing it later?

Ultimate goal for myself is to have a portfolio of companies with a round table group of 'people that can do it', where the ultimate goal of each company is to create greater good for the portfolio. I like the idea of like a Johnson & Johnson approach. The more legs to build a better foundation. + for the approach above, the different companies allow you grow/shift where you passions are, never getting tired of doing any 'one' thing. Keep that fire going. Elon Musk does this and in some cases makes people stronger.

Know what I do best, and let people do what they do best, but let the portfolio grow without me needing much oversight.

I'm just watching a Paul Mitchel segment, he doesn't have a laptop, travels on his jet for 1 on 1 meetings, and has a private main office at his house. That's a 'free' lifestyle.

Seen it mentioned here a lot... I want to build/create wealth, not just money. Wealth is something different, I'm a couple of steps away though. So when I do, I'll be able to describe it more succinctly (if that makes sense.)