Why Being a Sole Trader Isn’t Sustainable

Why Being a Sole Trader Isn’t Sustainable

When speaking with other owner/operators and you’ll quickly discover that there’s no lifestyle as a sole trader. They are struggling. They are suffering. They are knocking on doors to get business, or they are chained to their desks. They haven’t taken a holiday in years. They are worried about every dollar they spend, because they physically worked for every dollar they earned, rather than finding ways to make money work FOR them.  

There are many misconceptions when it comes to starting a business.  The biggest misconception is that a person can turn their skill or a well-loved hobby into a business. The good news is you certainly CAN turn a passion or skill into a business. If you know how. 

Whether you’re a builder, a craftsperson, a writer, a web developer, a barista, an artist, an inventor or a plumber – the list goes on – in order to have a viable, profitable and successful business, it’s imperative to understand business systems. 

As a cheese maker, your business is not the cheese – it’s your business systems. As much as I love cheese – who doesn’t?! – your business won’t survive on cheese alone. There are so many more precious ingredients.  

If you’re a sole trader:

• You sell your work for time and materials  
• You focus entirely on product  
• You have a passion but aren’t sure how to turn that into a business 
• You earn an income that equates to employment in that same field 
• You get paid by the hour (for services) 
• You are typically creative  
• You may be lacking strategic business skills 
• You are having trouble leaving your day job to run the business full time 
• You enjoy this activity as a leisure or pastime  
• You’re not sure how to maximise your income

If you’re a business owner:

• You focus on business systems  
• You always look at your competitors 
• You constantly assess human behaviour
• You have the intention to make a profit 
• You have built a commercial website (even if you’re a service)
• You have plans to grow the business
• You do whatever it takes (morally!) to build the business  
• You care about the entire business, from finance to marketing and everything in between
• You work ON rather than IN the business 

So, are you a sole trader or a business owner? Can you see a future in the long term of your business? How is it going to make a sustained profit in the years ahead?  

If you are a sole trader, fear not. There are ways you can still build your business! 

• Get educated to understand business systems.  
• Get a business partner for the things you aren’t good at or hate doing.   
• Hire employees to work IN the business. 
• Employ specialists, ensuring they know more than you do in their field.
• In order to hire people, sacrifice elsewhere in your life – small sacrifices today will lead to extraordinary gain tomorrow 
• Write a business plan if you haven’t already  Differentiate the business from any other in your marketing communications 
• Get partners and advocates on board and find businesses who could be pointing people in your direction. (They make dresses, you make shoes – voila!)  
• All the failure rates point to businesses with less than 500k revenue. Push yourself out of small business and into medium to big business.  
• Get your turnover up over 2m per year and aim to employ five staff 
• Get wider in your market  
• Get a growth mindset 

The reason you need to grow your business is simple.  

Sole traders have created a business that they work IN, rather than a business they work ON. Happiness is always on the horizon, but is never truly theirs. It’s no way to live for 50 years of your life and it breaks my heart to see business owners like this, chained to their business with little to show for it. 

To get a lifestyle that you aspire to, you need to grow your business. 

It’s time to take your business to the next level.  

Join one of our workshops to get a better business!