The Million-Dollar, One-Person Business
📝 Table of Contents
Introduction
I’m going to be blunt - my goal with this post is to break your beliefs about what’s possible with entrepreneurship.
The first time I read 'The Million Dollar One Person Business' by Elaine Pofeldt, my mind was blown. In the book, Elaine interviews dozens of founders running successful million-dollar businesses with zero employees. This completely changed my perspective on business, and it laid the groundwork for the type of companies I would build going forward.
Since then, I've encountered many people who have built insanely profitable businesses with little to no employees. Today I want to share some of their stories.
Let's dig into it.
🔑 Key Insights
What is a Solopreneur?
A solopreneur is someone who owns and operates their business by themselves. Solopreneurs are entrepreneurs who don't have a team of employees; instead, they rely on their own skill sets to run and manage their businesses.
How much can a Solopreneur earn?
Solopreneurs can earn anywhere from $100/month to $30,000,000/month (no, that's not a typo). The earning potential of a solopreneur can vary quite a bit, and it depends on several factors, including experience, niche, and audience size.
Many solopreneurs who are just starting off with freelancing can earn anywhere from $500-$10,000/month. But seasoned solopreneurs who utilize digital leverage (such as technology, automation, contractors, and an audience) can earn well into seven figures with the right business idea.
What are the benefits of a one-person business?
There are numerous reasons why someone would start a one-person business.
Freedom & Flexibility. That means working when you want, where you want, with who you want. You can choose your own schedule, work from anywhere, and pursue your passions without having to answer to mid-level managers.
Financial Stability. If the business does well, it can provide financial security and stability for the rest of your life. You also don't have to worry about being laid off (unless you plan on firing yourself).
Autonomy. With the right systems and processes, you can even generate income while you're not working and create a business that runs itself.
Of course, starting a one-person business takes hard work. It requires a lot of sacrifice, dedication, and perseverance. You need a unique idea, an audience that wants your product, and the ability to execute on your vision. But if you can pull it off, you'll unlock a completely different lifestyle that most people only dream of.
Million-Dollar, One-Person Business Examples
Business & Product Types
Million-dollar businesses come in all shapes and sizes, but some of the more popular business types include:
Niche Websites & Directories
Content Creator & Sponsorships
Selling Digital Products
Course Creation (Cohort & Digital)
High-Ticket Services
Starter Story released a fantastic deep-dive report highlighting numerous examples of million-dollar, one-person businesses. I’ve cherry-picked a few of my favorites below.
| Name | Product Type | Yearly Revenue |
|---|---|---|
| Justin Welsh | Content & Courses | $2,450,000 |
| Eric Barone | Video Games | $300,000,000 |
| Dan Koe | Content & Education | $2,500,000 |
| Kat Norton | Content & Courses | $2,000,000 |
| Amit Agarwal | Software | $10,000,000 |
| Becky Bavli | Physical Products | $1,440,000 |
| Dan Ni | Newsletter | $5,000,000 |
| Oliver Brocato | Chocolate | $11,000,000 |
| Pieter Levels | Software | $2,900,000 |
Case Studies
Here are some of my favorite creators who are generating +$1 million/year in their solo businesses.
Eric Barone (Stardew Valley) | +$300,000,000/total
You might not think of video games when considering profitable one person business ideas, but this small business story might change your perception.
Eric Barone created the video game Stardew Valley in 2011 to help improve his chances of getting a job. He wanted to learn all aspects of creating a game from scratch, so he created everything himself (including graphics, music, sfx, etc.).
After working on the game for a few years, he began to gain a cult following through his Website and subreddit. When the game finally launched in 2016, it was a monumental success.
After two months, it sold 1M copies, generating $15M. Today, it has sold 20M copies and has generated over $300M in sales. This was a labor of love that paid off big-time for Eric.
Note: Stardew Valley is a gorgeous game I've personally sunk 50+ hours into. It's easily one of my favorite games and I highly recommend it to anyone, even non-gamers.
Justin Welsh (Education) | +$2,450,000/year
Justin Welsh came onto the scene in a big way in 2019 after recovering from a life-changing bout of burnout. And if you’ve ever spent meaningful time on LinkedIn, you’ve probably seen his content.
Justin first built his audience by sharing his thoughts on LinkedIn each day. His writing style was short, thoughtful, and actionable, which was perfect for gaining traction on a platform like LinkedIn.
In the beginning, he mostly shared what he learned from growing PatientPop to $50 million in MRR. But over time, his content began shifting towards consulting and entrepreneurship, which resonated with a wider audience.
In 2020 Justin launched his first product titled ‘LinkedIn Playbook’, which broke down the exact frameworks he used to build his LinkedIn following to +20k in a short amount of time. The course was priced at $50 and resulted in $75k worth of sales in the first year. 🤯
He’s since launched even more robust info products, such as LinkedIn OS and Content OS (both of which are some of my favorite courses I’ve ever taken). His practical teaching style makes his courses super easy to consume, and the information is insanely actionable. Plus the $150 price point is a no-brainer for most people.
This combination is what catapulted his business to the millions. In 2022, Justin’s solo business brought in $1.7M. And he’s on track to bring in $2.5M in 2023.
He describes his business as a ‘lifestyle business’, which is designed to run mostly automated aside from the content creation aspect, which he still does himself. Justin also gets a little help from his part-time VA (virtual assistant) who helps with admin tasks, such as email and scheduling.
Pieter Levels (NomadsList) - $2,700,000/year
I first learned about Pieter a few years back while I was planning a trip to Southeast Asia. I was trying to figure out which areas were safe for tourists, which is how I stumbled across NomadList; a platform he built where users can "rank" cities in various categories, including safety, internet speeds, amenities, and more.
NomadList makes $46,000/month with zero employees (although he does have one support contractor). But what’s even crazier is that this is just one of the businesses in his portfolio.
Pieter has built over 70+ products in his career, including new heavy-hitters such as PhotoAI.com ($60K MRR) and RemoteOK ($56k/mo). He also sells an e-book that generates ~$15k/month.
But what I love most about Pieter is how pragmatic he is. He doesn’t brag about his success; in fact, he openly states that his success rate is only 5%. He cites most of his success to the fact that he just keeps shipping.
Finally, Pieter published my all-time favorite blog post in 2021 titled "Why I'm Unreachable and Maybe You Should be Too". This is a perfect example of the kind of dedication and self-reliance that solopreneurs need to have to make it the distance.
Kat Norton (Miss Excel) - $2,000,000/year
Picture this: a world where learning Microsoft Excel doesn't have to be a snooze-fest.
That's exactly what Kat Norton accomplished with her Miss Excel business. She started her own company and spiced up a mundane topic by putting her unique spin on it, including posting viral reels on TikTok to gain attention early on.
By posting daily videos and hosting monthly "Excel parties" (think: webinars but way more fun), Kat has revolutionized how people view Excel. Her events are so engaging that she can bring in a cool $100K in just one day.
This is an excellent example of taking an established concept, putting your own personal spin on it, and turning it into a million-dollar business idea.
Brett Williams (Design Joy) - $1,000,0000/year
Brett took Twitter by storm when he shared that his little one-person design agency, DesignJoy, was on track to make $1,000,000/year in revenue. A truly incredible feat.
But while Brett considers himself a decent-enough designer, he insists it’s not his skill level that allows him to charge so much. Rather, it’s the unique positioning of offering a productized service that allows him to charge more than his competitors.
His "Design as a Subscription" model allows for unlimited graphic design requests for a single monthly fee ($4,995/m at the time of writing). Brett fulfills all of the design requests himself, allowing him to retain 100% of the revenue.
Agency of One
Just so we’re clear, his clients are fully aware that he’s a solo design agency.
Some people would view a solo-business as a disadvantage, but it’s actually worked in his favor.
Since he’s opened up about how his business operates, he’s been able to charge more and build a waitlist of clients who want to work with him. It goes to show that radical transparency can pay dividends for a solo business.
To top it all off, Brett uses a systemized process using Trello so he can avoid getting bogged down with client meetings. Yes, that's right - he runs a $1-million agency with zero meetings (I told you this was possible!).
How to Succeed
Starting a one-person business that generates millions in revenue is obviously very difficult. And while I've outlined some great examples of people who have figured it out, there's many more solopreneurs who are struggling to earn a living wage.
Reaching the seven-figure mark requires a combination of hard work, strategic thinking, systems, exposure and loads of luck. Here are a few tips for starting a one-person business that could blossom into a million dollar business idea.
1. Identify a Profitable Niche
One of the first steps to starting a successful one-person business is to identify a profitable niche. This means finding an area of the market that isn't saturated with competition and has a high demand for products or services. Conducting market research, analyzing trends, and studying the competition can help identify a profitable niche.
I use tools like AHREF's for this. It allows me to analyze things such as number of searches per month, keyword difficulty and even shows me who my competitors would be.
Another tool you can use is Google Trends. Just put in the main idea/keyword, adjust the parameters (choose Global if it's an online business) and change the date range to five-years. This way you can get a grasp on whether the searches for this term are trending upwards or downwards over time.
2. Build a Strong Brand
Building a strong brand is important for any business, but it's essential for one-person businesses. A strong brand can help establish credibility, differentiate from the competition, and attract customers, but solopreneurs will have two brands to manage:
Their company brand (ie. logo, website, design, copywriting)
And their own personal brand (ie. website, blog, newsletter, socials, etc.)
One tip here is to build your personal website as early on in your journey as you can - even before you build the website for your product/service.
As a one-person business, people want to buy from you. So sharing your ideas in the form of tweets, emails and newsletters is paramount for building early support of your products.
I recommend Squarespace for your website. It's the easiest platform to build a beautiful site (without having design experience). It's also one of the cheapest. If you need to be convinced further, poke around this website a bit. It's 100% built-in Squarespace.
3. Create Systems and Processes
Creating efficient systems and processes is crucial for scaling a one-person business. This means streamlining operations, automating tasks, and delegating responsibilities. By creating systems and processes, the business owner can focus on high-level tasks and ensure the business runs smoothly.
4. Outsource and Delegate
Outsourcing tasks can free up your time and allow you to focus on more high-level tasks.
For example, you can hire freelancers, virtual assistants, or other contractors to handle marketing, accounting, or customer service tasks.
Everything changed in my photography business when I hired photographers (contractors) to handle the photoshoots, and a copywriter to write the custom bios. Now I spend my free time growing the business including developing the brand, building partnerships and optimizing our SEO to get more bookings.
Challenges
Running a million-dollar one-person business may sound like a dream come true, but the reality is that it often comes with significant challenges that most people don't understand.
After chatting with fellow solopreneurs, here are some of the most common challenges they face when running their one person businesses.
Time Management
One of the biggest challenges of running a one-person business is managing your time effectively. With no managers to keep you on track, you have to develop a very sharp awareness over your workload and task list.
You also have to wear multiple hats and juggle tons of responsibilities. This can lead to burnout and decreased productivity (which we'll cover below).
To overcome this, you must develop skills and techniques to prioritize tasks, set clear goals, and establish a routine. For me, I've found success using a combination of Notion for larger projects, and a Kanban whiteboard for managing day-to-day tasks.
Isolation and Burnout
Running a one-person business can be a lonely experience, and the lack of social interaction can lead to isolation and burnout.
You might feel overwhelmed by the constant pressure to perform and meet revenue targets. And you might feel the pressure from outsiders who are rooting for you to fail.
I'll cover burnout in a future article, but my biggest piece of advice is to find your tribe.
Join online communities for fellow solopreneurs and business owners. Join slack groups with other indie hackers, and network with people who are in the same boat as you. These people will understand your struggles and help keep you motivated through the tough parts of running a small business.
I joined a facebook group for video agency owners in my first year of business, which fundamentally changed my business for the better. I suddenly had access to +5,000 people who were trying to solve the same problems as I was, which meant we could share tips, roadblocks, and lessons learned openly.
Limited Growth Potential
Another challenge of one-person businesses is the limited growth potential. If you're handling everything yourself, you might struggle to scale business beyond a certain point.
This is why smart creators use digital leverage such as tools, automation and contractors to push beyond their limitations. They will also explore new revenue streams early on, such as licensing, digital products or courses to expand their revenue without eating up their time.
Conclusion
As more people seek to take control of their careers and pursue their passions, the number of successful solopreneurs will increase. Here are some key takeaways from my research into million-dollar, one-person businesses:
Niche Expertise - Many successful solopreneurs focus on a specific niche or industry where they have expertise and can provide unique value to customers
Digital Leverage - You need to utilize digital leverage (such as software, outsourcing and automation) to scale beyond the limitations of most one-person businesses
Personal Brand - Building a personal brand and growing an audience is a key part of running a successful one-person business. Utilize communities like Twitter and platforms like Squarespace to do this early on.
Want to go deeper?
The Million Dollar One-Person Business by Elaine Pofeldt provides a detailed look into how a wide variety of solopreneurs were able to scale their businesses into the millions.
Additional Resources
Trends.vc covered on Million-Dollar One-Person Businesses in a free report that includes examples, predictions and opportunities.
Pat Walls from Starter Story released the Solopreneur Report: 50 People Making Millions With No Employees. You can use this Google Sheet to filter by income, product type, etc.
Starter Story also has a fantastic blog post covering profitable One-Person Business Ideas.
