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The Case for Building a Bigger Business

By on 07/17/2012

You’re an individual.

You do your own thing. Your way.

Having a me-myself-and-I business makes sense to you: no committees, no compromise, no commitment, ultimate control.

But could you be short-changing your purpose & greater ambition to ignore the power of a team?

Solo entrepreneurship is all the rage. Its romantic notion of location independence, sky-high profit margins, and ultimate flexibility is alluring. Solo entrepreneurship might even look like your only option if you’re bootstrapping a brand new business: if you can’t even pay yourself, how are you going to share profit with someone else?

At World Domination Summit last weekend, Chris Brogan issued a challenge:

If we are this powerful as individuals, how much more powerful might be we be together?

Chris wasn’t just spouting platitudes. This was a legitimate world domination strategy.

If your purpose is bigger than you (as it should be) and aimed at serving your customers (as it must be), then doesn’t it stand to reason that building a business that’s limited in scope by its very makeup is a problem?

Yes, small can be beautiful. Yes, flexibility is liberating.

I’m not suggesting that your goal should be to create the next Google or Apple. Although, if it is, that’s great! Your goal should be to build the business that makes your purpose a reality.

The question isn’t whether being a “solopreneur” is the right way to go. Is anyone else sick of that word? The question is…

What does the business that will make my purpose a reality look like?

It might be a small, long distance team. It might be a group of friend huddled around a kitchen table. It might be an office or studio at a co-working space. It might be a store front.

Your business might require employees. It might require a team of contractors. It might even require a business partner or a team of co-founders.

But thinking you’re in this alone – and, even worse, romanticizing this notion – is the wrong way to go.

The people who are doing the great things with their businesses are harnessing their networks, the power of paid team members, and the beauty of outside expertise. They may look like a solo act but I guarantee, almost without exception, that they are not alone.

My business has been a small team for 2 years now. This Fall, I’m launching a larger business with a bigger team. Oh, the suspense…

The possibilities are what you make them. There are opportunities for collaboration, expansion, and profit all around you.

***
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Posted in , | 22 Responses

22 responses to “The Case for Building a Bigger Business”

  1. Chantelle
    Chantelle 07/17/2012 at 11:04 am | | Reply

    My old boss used to say that every additional employee lowers quality a little more. That is not always true, but when your business is built on high quality standards it is a scary risk to take.

    1. tara gentile
      tara gentile 07/17/2012 at 11:11 am | | Reply

      Hey Chantelle!
      I think your old boss has a terrible hiring mindset! It’s the boss’/business owner’s job to create, teach, and maintain a business culture of quality and service – along with whatever values are deemed indispensable to the business.

      Hiring an employee is an opportunity to IMPROVE quality and INCREASE sales. You can choose to look at it the other way, but you’ll only make it that much harder on yourself.

  2. Denise
    Denise 07/17/2012 at 11:32 am | | Reply

    I realized a few years ago that I only want to be surrounded by team players whose sole focus is on pushing the project forward and who are passionate about what they do. I’m moving slowly, but I’m slowly finding like-minded individuals. I think it’s important to make sure everyone is on the same page and understands the mission at the get go and that there are plans in place to deal with issues. It’s only through honesty that trust is built.

  3. Michelle
    Michelle 07/17/2012 at 12:00 pm | | Reply

    I’ve slowly come around on this topic – if you’d ask me a year ago, I would have been absolutely adamant about wanting to remain a “solopreneur” forever. Part of what brought me around is exactly what you mention here – I realized that to have the kind of impact I want to have and help people the way I want to, I’m going to *have* to bring people on. Not to mention, it’s an opportunity to have a bigger positive impact on multiple levels – reaching more customers + clients AND putting some of your business profit back into helping more talented, hardworking individuals thrive (as your employees or contractors).

    Another part of it is that I think there’s a lot of bullshit (to be blunt) ideas/concepts around working with others. I had this idea that working with people was always going to be difficult and fraught with misunderstandings, and that any time someone was helping you out you’d have to be on them 110% of the time to make sure they were doing things right and getting things done. It sounded exhausting and like it’d waste more time/effort than it’d save.

    I’ve heard some outsourcing/delegating horror stories and I know cases like this CAN happen, but I also know now through my own experience (and talking to business owners who are “doing it right” and have amazing teams) that it doesn’t have to be this way by any means.

    Thanks for a great article Tara!

  4. Tamarisk
    Tamarisk 07/17/2012 at 12:11 pm | | Reply

    People do exactly this in life and in their relationships. They think they can tough it out, go it alone, that showing vulnerability is the same as weakness…why would it be any different in business? There ARE opportunities for collaboration, expansion and profit all around you in life and in business.

  5. Amanda Howell
    Amanda Howell 07/17/2012 at 12:14 pm | | Reply

    I definitely agree. I think if you stay with the solo mindset, that you’re probably thinking small. Even if you don’t realize it. You can still be the name of your brand, but have a team backing you up. No one can do EVERYTHING once you hit a certain level. And if you aspire to any level of wealth, you WILL hit that level.

  6. Joe Breunig
    Joe Breunig 07/17/2012 at 2:07 pm | | Reply

    Thanks for another wonderful article; I appreciate that you don’t mince words; While it’s important for an entrepreneur to vision on his/her vision, it’s equally important the entrepreneur to surround him/herself with talented people “who share the same vision”. While some people think that I “only write poetry”, what I’ve actually created is intellectual materials – which can be transformed into other products, such as: songs, bookmark, greeting cards, posters and anything else that my text can be transposed (or printed) onto. I continue to reach out to build a team or partnership, but have yet to get any takers. Fortunately, I’m not in a hurry and I have a new book in the works. SO the dreaming and my writing continues.

    -Joe Breunig
    Reaching Towards His Unbounded Glory
    A Journey Of… Poetic Purpose

  7. Srinivas
    Srinivas 07/17/2012 at 10:24 pm | | Reply

    I have a secret weapon in my business. His name is David Crandall. HE’s completely altered the brand perception of BlogcastFM. So I’m all for partnerships when you get people on board who have complimentary skill sets.

  8. Katie McCaskey
    Katie McCaskey 07/18/2012 at 9:10 am | | Reply

    Oh, the suspense, indeed! I’m intrigued. I think the great thing about business is that you’re constantly learning, and, lessons learned one place can provide insight elsewhere, too.

  9. Hannah
    Hannah 07/20/2012 at 6:24 am | | Reply

    Hey Tara,

    I agree with your point about a bigger-scale business. I think if we start out with a fixed idea of what it will look like to run our business, we’re less open to shifts and changes in that idea over time, which can actually be detrimental to the growth and success of our project. It’s much more helpful to look at our needs day by day and see how we feel, rather than chain ourselves to a plan or ideal we made two years ago!

    (p.s. Your book has been so helpful to me, and I’ve recommended it to friends who’ve also found it really, really useful – thanks!)