The Metric I care about as a Solopreneur

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Hi there!

I have had a huge advantage within the solopreneur space.

That advantage is information.

I’m on advisory boards. I have an unexpectedly large Twitter following.

Both give me access to a lot of data and anecdotes about consultants and solopreneurs who are crushing it.

There’s an interesting commonality across these successful individuals.

That commonality: speed to first $1 of revenue.

Let’s talk about that, what (I think) it means, and why it matters.

The metric: first dollar of revenue

Here’s my theory: the faster someone reaches $1 of revenue in their solopreneur business, the more likely they are to “succeed” and reach hundreds of thousands of dollars of profit each year.

Said differently: if you make money on day #1, I’d bet you’ll make a lot of money as a solopreneur.

This contradicts “conventional” startup advice, but a solopreneur business is not a conventional startup.

No solopreneur will build the next Uber. You don’t need to spend years on R&D. You shouldn’t listen to conventional startup wisdom.

I think you should try to make $1 on day #1.

Why making $1 quickly is extremely important

There are three reasons why I think this metric is extremely important.

Market Need

In your first few days of solopreneurship, you won’t be able to get your product or service in front of many people.

Maybe you could pitch 100 people in your first week.

But if someone in the first 100 people buy, great news. You’ve got something with mass appeal. You’ll likely find lots of people are interested.

If you’re struggling to get your first customer, you may not have pitched enough people yet. Or, your product/service isn’t desirable.

Either way, those scenarios aren’t great.

Getting dollar #1 in day #1 eliminates any concern about if there is market need for you.

Momentum

Momentum isn’t talked about enough.

But, we’re humans. We’re emotional. We want to feel like we’re going in the right direction.

If we feel like we’re not making progress, we quit.

Solopreneurs who make $1 quickly can feel momentum. They’re more likely to try to make $2 now. Then $3.

Solopreneurship, or any entrepreneurship, is a function of staying in the game long enough to make big money.

Momentum will help keep you on the field.

No Ego

Regardless of stereotypes, most successful entrepreneurs have absolutely no ego when they start their business. (After they make $$$, this can change).

In the beginning, entrepreneurs have to run through shit. Almost everyone takes on work at terrible prices just to get started.

My first paid solopreneur gig was proofreading an email.

I didn’t care. I wanted to make my first dollar.

But, most of my Ivy League classmates would have too big of an ego. They’d think that was beneath them. They’d exclusively try to sell projects for thousands of dollars.

But, since they were new, they didn’t sell anything. They lost momentum. They quit.

And in the end, they wouldn’t make any dollars.

How can I help?

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What am I up to these days?

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Scholastic Capital

I’m now running Scholastic full-time. My business partner and I buy single-family homes in elite school districts and rent them to tenants for 3+ years. We aim to distribute monthly proceeds to investors then and sell the portfolio in 10-15 years for investors to get appreciation.

We’re in the thick of fundraising right now. 95% of my week is meeting with prospective investors.

If you are interested in following along, click here!

Skin-in-the-game consulting

Skin in the game consulting is where I consult for a company, but instead of a fee, I’m paid in equity. That way, our incentives are truly aligned to make sure the company succeeds.

This was an exciting week here. I’m advising a company launching a really nifty software solution that most businesses use today.

I can’t say much yet, but this is a great team and product! Excited to share a full case study with you guys later on!