Solopreneur is the new label for those who don't really enjoy working with other human beings unless of course, you're the boss! Or the type of person who does not like to take orders. Sounds like me! It's actually one of the reasons I am starting a business by myself. No more horrible bosses. I am the tyrant of my own life now. I have tons of ideas and my alone time usually lets me pour out my creative juices. This can be hard if I am still working for others. In my past work experiences, the bosses usually wanted to have everything their way. They are the bosses, right? They rarely listened to my input and I felt like I didn't have any sense of control in my work or anything. This time around, I want to be in charge. My work, my design.
Striking out on your own can be an intimidating prospect but I believe it's all going to be worth it. The most important thing right now is that I am happy with what I'm doing. Now that I have gotten some of the things out of the way, like the government permits, it's time to focus on getting my product or service out there. It's time to make some sales. It's time to regularly put something on the table.
For the first time in my life, I actually like spending most of my time working. It's probably because I really enjoy what I do right now. In the past, all I wanted was to get out of the office on time. All I wanted was not to see the same faces every day. I was spending more time at work than with friends or family against my will. I didn't have the power to choose who to work with which led to less than enjoyable disputes and all that office politics. I really can't imagine going back to the same corporate office scene and I don't have the emotional capacity to put up with that kind of stress. I'm glad I am taking the solopreneurial route however challenging.
Being a solopreneur does not really mean I'm all alone here. I know there are people out there who are doing related businesses or those who are in my position. Sometimes I just need to get out of my way to connect with like-minded individuals to find that much-needed encouragement and motivation from others. I think this is the challenge as I've gotten used to being on my own now. There's this typical introverted kind of awkwardness whenever I try to expose myself to the world. Something that I need to overcome in order to be successful in this field. However, this can be hard to change now. There must be something in between to make things work out without having to force myself to be a completely different person. I still prefer to be myself with no apologies, even in business.
I think that working on my own is way healthier as it boosts the quality of my life. I can always choose to pause my work to recharge, take a break or do other things not business-related. The kind of stress I experience in being a solopreneur is still more tolerable than when I was working in a corporate setting. I always get that quick dopamine hit whenever I fulfill some small dream-related task. Even though I am just starting out and not yet earning six figures, I am just happy that I have every chance to be creative. It makes my life more meaningful. Right now, I am more focused on my passion to be the best in what I do.
Being a solopreneur means that I set the tone. As a one-woman operation, I like that I can control every aspect of the business. I set my schedule, routine, where I work, what my office looks like, the hours I keep, whether my cat is allowed to be in the office to the design of my website - everything is up to me. I like the fact that I'm in control of everything now and that there's always room for my own creativity. As long as I remain confident in my ability to make the tough calls, I can shape the company in any way I like. This also means that I can make changes quickly if I find that there's a business model that works more effectively.