The dark side of solopreneurship: Myths vs. reality
The harsh reality of solopreneurship
Solopreneurship is the act of running a business alone, handling everything from product creation to marketing without employees. Unlike traditional entrepreneurs, solopreneurs focus on self-sufficiency, often leveraging automation, outsourcing, and digital tools to scale.
It's August '23. I give my team lead my one month notice, which is waved, and start my solopreneurship journey.
In my mind, I am going to get to $1M in one year.
And I had huge plans.
Build a YouTube channel
Write on LinkedIn Daily
Build a chess-clubs app
Build BookWiz with Anton
Build a game with Unity
Do freelance to get some money
All at the same time. My logic is:
I have at least 12 hours a day. I am my own boss. There's no way I can't achieve all of these. And I will be financially free fast. The books say it's all about grit and consistency. Easy peasy.
And all I see in front of my eyes are successful people who became an "overnight" success and thinking: "That's me in a year".
Myth #1: Complete freedom and flexibility
The Myth
Work whenever you want – You imagine having complete control over your schedule, no mandatory meetings, no fixed hours. You’re the boss.
Travel while working – You picture yourself living the digital nomad dream—coding on beaches, taking meetings from mountain retreats, exploring the world without sacrificing your career.
Ultimate work-life balance – You expect the perfect harmony between professional success and personal fulfillment, with boundaries entirely under your control.
The Reality
The ‘always-on’ mentality – You quickly realize it’s almost impossible to disconnect. You think about it at night and every minute you spend away feels like another opportunity to add a feature missed.
Endless self-discipline struggles – Without a boss or set hours, you’re the one responsible for staying productive. Some days, you crush it. Other days, you waste hours doing nothing. You convince yourself that it’s fine and that you’ll be better tomorrow.
Blurring lines between work and personal life – Your home becomes your office, your office becomes your home. You tell yourself you’ll stop working at 6 PM, but next thing you know, it’s almost midnight, and you’re still tweaking that one last thing.
Okay, now that I have a plan and all these things I want to do, I need to start thinking logically.
What do I need to be financially free? Passive income!
I am not aiming to be Grant Cardone and collect money from doors, but more like Sahil Lavingia. Build a SaaS and live the dream.
Myth #2: Passive income dreams
The Myth
Build once, profit forever - The idea that you can create a digital product and watch the money roll in indefinitely without lifting a finger.
Minimal effort - Once your product is live, it will practically sell itself with little to no maintenance. It's a great idea, isn't it?
Make money while you sleep - Your business is running 24/7, generating income even when you're offline.
The Reality
Constant maintenance is required - Your SaaS product needs regular updates, bug fixes, and feature improvements to stay relevant and competitive.
You need to market - You know what they say: "Idea without execution is worth nothing".
Well, marketing is the execution. The better you market, the more users you have, the more feedback you get, the better the product, the more users you get etc.Customer service is unavoidable. Even so-called “passive” products come with active customer questions, support tickets, and issues that need your attention. Even if those don't come in, you have your brain telling you there are many bugs that need your attention.
Myth #3: Lower stress levels
The Myth
No boss equals no stress - The widespread belief that eliminating boss figures automatically creates a stress-free working environment
Control over all decisions - The assumption that making all choices yourself eliminates anxiety and pressure from external sources.
Perfect work environment - The fantasy that you'll create ideal working conditions tailored precisely to your preferences
The Reality
Multiple stakeholder management - You become accountable to users, customers, partners, and clients. Way more stressful than having a boss, let me tell you that.
Financial uncertainty - Until you start making money, you are constantly under pressure and doubt that you'll ever be able to make it.
Decision fatigue - The mental exhaustion from making countless daily choices without input or validation leads to burnout. Fast.
(Idea for a domain: burnoutfa.st. Seems popular with the kids today)
A few months in. A horrifying massacre took place in my country. A war was forced upon us. I sank into a depression and couldn’t find any motivation to do anything.
It started improving when I uploaded a YouTube video and got back to writing online.
But I started realizing something. It’s not going to be as easy as I thought.
Myth #4: Instant success
The Myth
Overnight success stories - Beautiful tales of entrepreneurs who seemingly went from zero to millions overnight. You can do it do, fast.
Quick profitability - The belief that your business will generate substantial income within weeks or months of launch.
Rapid growth - Expectations of exponential user acquisition and market penetration without significant time investment or setbacks.
The Reality
Typical timeline - Most successful solopreneurs take at least a year to figure out what the hell is going on. Then, the real journey begins.
Investment requirements - Substantial time, money, and emotional capital must be invested before seeing meaningful returns.
My 18-month journey to stability - The path from enthusiastic launch to sustainable business model, including pivots, failures, and the gradual building of systems that finally... has not yet arrived for me.
But it will, soon :)
I am 6 months into the journey. Nothing had succeeded and I start feeling new things.
I feel loneliness.
Now, it’s not that I am alone. I have my supportive girlfriend alongside me, my family and friends.
But nobody can understand my frustrations. The burnouts, the mental exhaustion.
I am living alone in my own head.
Myth #5: Solo Means Alone
The Myth
Complete independence - The illusion that solopreneurs operate in isolation, relying solely on their own skills and resources without external support.
No team needed - The misconception that successful solopreneurs handle every aspect of their business without collaboration or delegation.
Self-sufficient success - The belief that true solopreneurship means mastering all business functions independently.
The Reality
Importance of networks - Successful solopreneurs grow big, professional connections for advice, opportunities, and support.
Outsourcing necessities - Strategic delegation of the 80 (of the 80-20) tasks to freelancers and services creates space for focusing on high-value activities (the 20).
Partnership values - Temporary collaborations and partnerships multiply capabilities without sacrificing autonomy. Do it.
Final words.
It’s been 19 months since I started the journey. And let me tell you something.
I could not be happier about a decision I made.
Although it’s been difficult most of the time, the journey is amazing and you learn so much about yourself.
You grow. You learn. You become independent.
And even though the journey is tough and it does take time, you acquire skills that will serve you for the rest of your life.
Building relationships, building communities, building profitable businesses and getting to know yourself better than ever before.
That’s not something you’ll ever learn while working for someone else.
So take the step. Give it a go. One year. What could go wrong? :)
This is a great take on solopreneurship — revealing the reality of it.
Thanks for writing this, Orel!
Also, thanks for the support with the mention.
Great job writing this. I am not a soloprenuer but always wondered it couldn’t be all floral and shiny. Thanks for throwing light on this topic. Everyone needs to read this!