Between Loving and Living

Having been a one-person business owner for the past 22 years I've learned a thing or two about the ups, downs, ins, and outs of building a solo business.

In my experience, the first several years were the most challenging by far. As I worked to establish myself, I said yes to everything. This kept me busy and paid my bills, but spread me thin at times. But I don't regret approaching the early years the way I did. It gave me time to decide exactly which services I ultimately wanted to build my business around while also giving me the chance to learn new skills and build confidence. In other words I had the chance to find out what I loved and what I could make a living with.

As you step onto your one-person business path, you will likely have a similar experience. At the start of your journey you'll often find yourself caught between work that makes you money and work you love to do until you find the mix that suits you and those your serve perfectly.

Sometimes making a living and loving what you do come together in all their glory. These times, at the beginning anyway, are fewer and farther between. But between fewer and farther you will have the chance to clarify what it is you want to do for the long haul. 

Keeping these four loving/living quadrants in mind helped me navigate my way through the early years of my one-person business adventure. To be honest, they come into play most days as the adventure continues.

Quadrant 01

You're doing work you love and making a good living doing it. This is the goal for many one-person business owners, but not all of them and not all the time. One of the joys of running a one-person business is the freedom to ramp up or ramp down your work as required or desired.

Quadrant 02

With a little time and effort invested in learning a new skill set you could easily move into this quadrant. You'd love it and be perfectly satisfied with the living you make.

Quadrant 03

Quadrant three represents work you know you can definitely do, but it may not pay much and you certainly aren't in love with it. The nice thing about this quadrant is it's always there when you need to fall back on it.

Quadrant 04

This quadrant can be a bit tricky. It can feel really good for a long time because you're making a great living. You're financially comfortable. At some point the fact you're not loving it, if you're like most others, will come into play. At this point you have a decision to make. Do you remain comfortable or do you tolerate a bit of discomfort to move toward something you love?

There are no rights or wrongs to the quadrant you find yourself in for whatever reason you find yourself in it. There is opportunity for growth of one sort or another in each. It will be up to you to determine which feels the best for you at any given stage of building your one-person business.

There's most a certainly a balance to be struck between loving and living. How you balance it is up to you. The getting to decide for yourself is, after all, one of the reasons to start a one-person business.

One last thing to keep in mind...there's only one letter's difference between loving and living! 😉