avatarMichael Lim

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You’ll Destroy Your One-Person Business In 2024 If You Can’t Do These Things

Get comfortable aggressively iterating.

Photo by Elisa Ventur on Unsplash

In April 2023, I knew my one-person business was failing.

I had a mountain of bills, no client pipeline, and a tax liability that could ruin me. Interest rates were rising, forcing businesses to put everything on hold. Some clients paused our work, and others ghosted me.

I went to bed every night with anxiety. I cried on my evening walks.

Here’s what I did to turn it around.

No amount of advice can prepare you for failure.

It’s one of the worst feelings in the world.

I’ve read hundreds of books, and thousands of hours of podcasts, and spoken to so many entrepreneurs about failure. But nothing can prepare you for the experience of failing.

It’s unlike anything I’ve ever felt before.

The combination of feeling shame, guilt, and embarrassment. The fear of failure hung around like a heavy shadow I couldn’t get rid of. The judgment of people around me. The relentless thoughts.

It’s amazing how your mind can make you feel so worthless.

Failure makes you understand your inner voice. It reflects who you are when the chips are down. It reveals how much resilience you have and what you do when your back is against the wall.

But this is a happy story. Read on.

No matter how bad the situation, you’ve always got options.

I quickly realized that I was the only person that could save me.

No one else was coming. I couldn’t keep waiting for a client to call me back or a knight in shining armor to give me money. I took responsibility for everything that happened.

I started preparing for a Plan B.

I signed up for Uber Eats delivery. I spoke to my accountant to talk through the worst-case scenario. I looked at loan options for my business. I went through prior investments just in case I needed to sell something.

I took action to give myself more choices.

When your back is against the wall, the best thing you can do is give yourself options. Remove the wall. Or blast through it completely. When you feel trapped, you get desperate. So don’t get trapped.

Remove the trap.

It’s not the strongest that survives, but the most adaptable.

I pivoted my customer base.

My core assumptions for my consulting business were completely wrong. The 2 customer avatars I thought wanted my services did not. I couldn’t offer them any real value.

So I pivoted.

Instead of going for the big Tier-1 Construction firms, I made two choices:

  • I targeted small-to-medium construction firms (SMEs) who were winning government tenders. This meant they had money, and desperately needed my services because they were smaller and less resourced.
  • I offered my services to other consultancies who targeted the same customer base. I would essentially ‘white label’ my services under their brand name for a project. My skill set is still rare, so many consultancies need this capability and would pay a premium for it.

This pivot was critical.

I immediately had customers. Within a month, I got back to 10k per month. Within three months, I cracked $20k per month. I came agonizingly close to $25k per month.

Five months later, one of the consultancies I was subcontracting for offered to acquire my one-person business.

Adapt and pivot, or die trying.

This is the foundation of everything.

When I burned myself out, I prioritized my health.

  • I revamped my diet to ensure I was getting my macronutrients from mostly whole foods (predominantly plant-based sources).
  • I tracked every workout and ensured I followed the principle of progressive overload.
  • I made an effort to find and join a community of other creators and one-person business owners.
  • I made sure to sleep 7–8 hours per night and developed good sleep hygiene with a mindful early morning routine.

When I got the foundations of my health back on track, my progress skyrocketed.

The point of my one-person business experience?

Get comfortable aggressively iterating.

Now that I’ve sold my one-person business, I’ve started another one while I work 9–5 for this new consultancy (where I’ve got substantial equity holdings).

I’ve taken everything I’ve learned and created a productized ghostwriting service.

  • It’s a fixed monthly retainer — no proposals, contracts, or invoicing. Clients pay at the start of every month upfront and in full. I deliver a set amount of work each month, I don’t bill my time.
  • There are limited meetings — all communication is recorded by AI and stored on Trello. No phone calls or texting. Any additional meetings are charged on top.

So far, I’ve built a recurring monthly revenue of $6–7k. This is more than most people make working a full-time job in Australia. If you can learn a profitable online skill, you can almost print money.

I’m planning on taking this to the next level in 2024.

My goal is to get back to $15–20k per month alongside a full-time job. I’ll likely bring on subcontractors. I’ve already hired a Virtual Assistant. I’ve got a community and coach to help me through this transition.

Keep moving and improving.

The last 8 months have been a rollercoaster.

But it’s one of the most fun times of my life.

I’ve learned more about myself than ever before. I grew more in the last year than I have 6 years at my old full-time job. No expensive MBA could ever teach me what I went through in the last 8 months.

2023 has challenged me in ways I never thought possible.

But while hard, it’s given me so much clarity and focus for what I want to be doing in 2024. I never had this type of ‘boot-to-the-throat’ energy towards what I want to achieve.

2024 is going to be an incredible year. I’ll see ya there.

Grab your FREE copy of my NEW one-person workbook (and mini-course) — How To Start Your Next Six-Figure One-Person Business In Six Easy Questions 🔥

Business
Entrepreneurship
Self Improvement
Growth
Money
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