You Are Always In The Marketing Business

PSA time for all the folks thinking of “starting their own thing.”

One of the biggest surprises hiking into Solopreneurship National Park is that you end up carrying twice the weight you had planned.

The first backpack you tote is called: deliver. It contains the two burdens you packed and know all too well:

• Convincing yourself that you’re good enough at your craft, and

• That you’ll know how to unfurl it when called upon

This pack is heavy, but it sits squarely on your shoulders. It is, after all, the main reason you’re trekking in here in the first place. These are the skills you sought to share with the world.

But suddenly, the rangers at the gates of capitalism hand you an extra bundle to lug on your journey. It’s required entry to the park, they say. This pack is labeled: sales and marketing. In it are two questions:

• How are people going to know what you have to deliver?

• How are you going to convince them to pick you?

This one carries like Santa’s sack of bricks.

You can haul it yourself, or you can pay someone to do it, but it has to go with you.

Solopreneurship is always a foray into two businesses: the company you want to start, and the marketing company you now have to run. Because while confidence and know-how are the things you want to share with the world, persuasion and trust will be why you succeed or not.

You can’t just have a welding company; you have to have a welding company that people know about, and one they eventually choose.

Starting something takes gumption, for sure, but make sure you carve out time and save some energy to let people know why they should pick you.

Unfortunately, “Abracadabra, I’m here!” won’t work. Trust me, I’ve tried it many times.

Remember, you are part of an economy, not a commune.

The distance between self-expression and public adoration is outreach and income.

Good luck on your __________ business and marketing business.

I’m still clicking my heels twice for you.