Last week, I was swapping emails back and forth with my friend Laura Fitton, otherwise known as @Pistachio on Twitter and the owner of Pistachio Consulting. Laura’s business is a lot like 78% of all US businesses – she is a solo business owner with no employees.
She sent me an amusing little note about not knowing what Sparkplugging is all about:
I need to read Sparkplugging more. Somehow I missed the shift from moms stuff to business startup stuff. I am struggling with the challenges of starting [and running] a biz more or less by myself. Some days I rock and some days I’m scattered. Today I am exhausted & staying in bed with NPR & coffee!!!
I immediately recognized where Laura is at in her business – not only because I have been there myself, but because it is one of the most common problems I hear from many of our readers.
Laura is:
- Feeling overwhelmed by the amount of work it takes to run a successful business
- Locked into earning a living by billing out her hours, and unable to bill more hours
- Having difficulty delegating any work because even hiring a freelance assistant takes away time and resources from her ability to make money
- Is trapped doing work that she isn’t particularly good at by doing work like bookkeeping, filing, and administrative tasks, because these things have to be done and there is no one else to do it
- And most of all, is getting down on herself because she thinks that in order to be a successful business owner, she should be on top of every task at any given moment
While the last one might seem like a simple bothersome symptom, in fact, it is THE most frequently mentioned challenge with every business owner I have heard from in the 2 and a half years I have run this site. Some call it self-doubt, others call it fear – I call it the Impostor Syndrome:
From Wikipedia:
Regardless of what level of success they may have achieved in their chosen field of work or study or what external proof they may have of their competence, those with the Impostor Syndrome remain convinced internally they do not deserve the success they have achieved and are actually frauds. Proof of success is dismissed as luck, timing, or as a result of deceiving others into thinking they were more intelligent and competent than they believe themselves to be.
And while it is frequently cited as more common among women, I can’t say that I’ve noticed that as much. Plenty of men have mentioned they struggle with this too. But one thing that nearly all of these people have in common is this: they think they are the only one facing this issue, and that they are alone as they find a way to struggle to overcome it.
Laura and I had an amazing conversation-turned-coaching-session last week because I didn’t want to see my dear friend beating herself up over something that is much less of a problem than it seems to be. There are some very specific things that any business owner can do to get out of this trap which is so incredibly common that I think we could call it the Solo Business Owner Syndrome – and oh, my gosh, I think I just came across a book idea that I should pitch. 
On Friday, I’ll put up part two of this post with the specific solutions she and I talked about – but I want to hear from you!
Can you relate to the challenges that Laura is facing?
What other challenges do you think are related to this constellation of problems that face solo business owners?
And what things have any of you done to work through them?
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Sparkplugging Founder Wendy Piersall is dang passionate about helping people start & grow a business while maintaining life balance (somehow). 
Easton Ellsworth is owner of 
Underlying your post is the best answer of all – talk about it with fellow entrepreneurs. I love the independence of owing my own business. That independent streak sometimes gets in the way when I’ve failed to reach out to others who could help. It’s also important to remind ourselves that our big (I spelled it the right way just for you!)success is usually a by-product of much hard work and our unique talents. As entrepreneurs, we reach success the old fashioned way – we earn it!
George Kruegers last blog post..When It Comes to Investing, Time is on Your Side
I think that you reach a point in your business where you do need to hire some help – you don’t need to bring full time employees on, but even contract workers or interns can help. I took the plunge and hired two contract workers recently, and it’s been wonderful. I know I can better grow my business by focusing on my best talents, while delegating other responsiblities in my growing green marketing consulting business.
Lynn from Organicmania.coms last blog post..Organic and Green Savings: They’re Out There
I am not by myself in the business, but since all of the people who work at it work for me – I feel often like your friend Laura. I do everything that is not done by something else from being and HR person to sales rep, PR agent and strategist all at the same time.
My advice: a lot of the pressure is purely psychological. We get into the business to be independent and do what are love to do. You got to remember that all the time and when time get rough and tough that is the time when you really start HAVING FUN. Don’t let the stress freeze you up, have fun with a challenge.
Also it is important to remember to allocate most of your time to the most important activities for your business to maintain the growth and just let some minor ones slide.
Romans last blog post..It is Toronto Monday or live today and be happy!
Whenever I hear from someone who says “I’ve got too much business, and not enough time” I’m immediately thinking:
1) Raise your rates until your workload meets your desired workload
2) Taking time to look at your business and make strategic decisions usually pays off majorly in the long run.
If you feel like a chicken running around with its head cut off it’s really time to take a pause, run the numbers, talk to a business coach or advisor, and make a plan to restore life-work balance.
Generally the easiest thing to do is raise your rates – you’ll lose some work, but that’s whole point! Just raise your rates little by little until you have some free time each week. Use that time educate yourself, improve your skills, and improve your image and marketing in order to justify your higher rates.
Quality services drive even more business and then you’ll have to raise your rates again …
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Yep, I definitely feel the same way Laura does (especially today being a Tuesday that feels like a Monday). Being an only child, I know I have delegation issues. In the past I always had to fix and clean up what others had done after I delegated. Its not easy to dedicate a whole morning or afternoon to a project when the phone won’t stop ringing. Its a Catch 22. The best I can do is establish boundaries and hope that clients understand that I am only one solo business owner and I don’t have all the answers(I learned that the hard way).
I struggled with self-esteem issues for years and even though I’ve worked on them, I wasn’t prepared for the effect it would have on me when it came to starting my own business. I always love it when a client compliments me on the work I’ve done with them but it still comes as a bit of surprise. This is definitely one of those areas where some coaching can be helpful.
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Wendy,
I SO relate to this post! Being a jack of all trades is a hard place to be. My difficulty is also in managing the workload of home and kids and still trying to carve out the time to build a business. It can be downright discouraging. I am looking forward to your next post.
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Hello Wendy, This is a great topic, because I, too, am so overwhelmed. It’s funny how it’s so hard to find the time to do the things that will save you time. I made a right move in February when I hired my first employee. She is wonderful. It started as 10 hours a week, and now it’s as much as she can work. She has taken a huge load off of me, which allows me to focus on other projects, although I’m still very hands on. But, with the very tiny little bit extra time I got back, I started another website, so I’m still super overwhelmed, but I just hired a writer today,and have a few more people lined up to work with. So, I think it’s important to get help when you need it. And that includes someone to help clean the house. It takes hours to fold the laundry at my house, so I get that time back to work on my business.
I think the feeling of having to do everything yourself is probably one of the most common reasons businesses fail. I wrote about this here:
http://www.erica.biz/2008/you-are-worth-more-than-you-think-overcoming-the-key-reason-entrepreneurs-fail/
In it, I talk about my own struggles to overcome the “I can do everything myself” mentality. I identify with Laura on this issue.
-Erica
Erica Douglasss last blog post..Why I Became A Blogger
I think that EVERYONE can relate to the challenges that Laura is facing! I know I’ve been there and I know that some of my best friends and colleagues have experienced the same thing.
Do you know why I think it’s hard to talk about sometimes? Because we’re conscious of our public perception. We have a fear of being judged AND we’re afraid of losing the trust that others have confided in us. I think that’s why people don’t talk about it openly (though talking about it is a good thing). Talking about it will lead you to find your limiting constraints and talking about it will help you find solutions to overcome those constraints so that the only direction you move in is forward!
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Having been a solo-preneur for a long time now, I can say that I know where she is at right now.
It is essential to start streamlining the areas of your business that are not your strengths. For example, use FreshBooks.com for invoicing – it saves me 6 hours a month and I have found my clients are paying faster, too.
Define the type of work you want to take on – whether project driven or niche driven. That will also help you reduce your spin up time each time you take on a new project and help you become an expert in your niche much faster.
These are just a few of the things I have learned along the way – I hope they are helpful.
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Good post. It’s interesting that you mention the impostor syndrome.
Over 20-years ago, I saw Paul Newman in an interview say that he always had the feeling that someone was going to come through the crowd, take him by the arm and say, “It’s over Newman. It’s all been a mistake. You’re coming back to paint houses.”
When he said that, I immediately understood the feeling. Later I learned that he was describing the impostor syndrome. The Impostor Syndrome is the feeling that you are not as smart, talented, or skilled as people think you are. It’s the feeling that you are a fake and have been getting away with something and are about to be found out. It affects 70% of adults and is especially prevalent in high achieving women.
I’ve spent the past two decades living with and learning about this common condition.
The Impostor Syndrome is a fascinating topic and the subject of my new book, “The Impostor Syndrome: How to Replace Self-Doubt with Self-Confidence and Train Your Brain for Success.”
You can download Chapter One, “Paul Newman and I” at http://www.JohnGraden.com
It’s reassuring to know that successful people like you, Wendy, and Pistachio, have the same set of problems I do!
I dedicated myself to delegating earlier this year and now I have part time people helping me do the dirty work. I still find it hard to NOT do it myself, though.
I also combat feeling alone (no water cooler to stand by gossiping) by getting on Twitter or Facebook, or reading blogs. It’s my way to feel connected to people who are just like me!
Wow, I can really relate to this post. My business is still in its infant stages and I feel overwhelmed. The other day I felt sick and I decided to go lay down and take the day off right away. I have felt worse than that in my lifetime and I definitely could have kept on going, but I think that I allowed myself to “feel sick” as an legitimate excuse to take a break. Sometimes I think I hold back on growing my business because I feel so overwhelmed now and the business is just getting started. I think about how overwhelmed I would feel if the business was booming and then I think maybe I hold back because of it. My biggest problem is balancing time with kids against time into my business. I often think, how do people do it? I am anxiously awaiting your next post!
I love this topic and thank you for bringing it up for us to face head on. My interest level is two fold:
(1) I’m a virtual assistant and I help people who get to this point in their business. People in this situation aren’t a “problem” for me…I love the feeling of satisfaction I get from helping them and they are my clients.
(2) I’m there! How can I say I help people who are THERE and realize I let MYSELF get THERE? What a spot to be in!
I think it helps I realize I’m there. (Admitting it puts you better than half-way to the solution,
right!?) For me I’m identifying the things I simply am not good at, things which drag me down, and I’m off-loading them to someone else…which is exactly what I do for my clients.
I’m excited about your next posts!
What a great post Wendy, and like many commenters have said I find it a little reassuring to know I’m not the only entrepreneur who faces this problem. Some days I feel ready to take on the world and other days I think “what am I doing trying to run a business?” I find social networking (like hanging out on Twitter) helps me a lot, since it gives me people to bounce ideas off, get support from or just see that they are where I am (or they are where I want to be!!)
Laurie/HaloSecretarials last blog post..Friday Finds, Virtual Assistant Style
I’m sooo very glad I came across this post. I just started a solo consulting business and have been feeling a wee overwhelmed by the workload I suddenly find myself juggling. It’s great to know that I’m not alone. I’m also reading “The E-Myth Revisited” which I highly recommend
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