October 30, 2025 • 17 mins
Wouldn’t it be nice if your business could just stay perfect forever: same clients, same income, same flow? Yeah… we wish!
In this episode of The Aspiring Solopreneur, Carly and Joe get real about how to future-proof your business (and yourself) for the inevitable changes ahead. From spotting shifts in your industry to using AI and automation wisely, diversifying income streams, and planning for the long haul, this episode is your blueprint for staying resilient no matter what tomorrow throws your way.
It’s not about predicting the future, it’s about being ready for it.
What does it mean to future-proof your business as a solopreneur?
Future-proofing is all about building resilience and adaptability into your business so you can thrive no matter what changes come your way. You can’t predict every trend or challenge, but you can create systems, habits, and strategies that help you pivot quickly, like setting aside time to review what’s shifting in your industry, automating key tasks, and staying curious about new tools and opportunities.
How can I stay on top of trends without getting overwhelmed?
Be intentional about what you consume. Set up Google Alerts for your niche, use AI tools to summarize relevant updates, and curate your social media feeds to focus only on accounts that bring you value. The goal isn’t to chase every shiny object,
it’s to pay attention to the shifts that truly impact your clients, your market, or your workflow.
What’s one of the smartest ways to make your business more resilient?
Diversify your income streams within your expertise. For example, if you’re a coach, offer 1:1 sessions, but also create a digital course, downloadable resources, or a group program. That way, if one area slows down, another can pick up the slack. Bonus points if you layer in automation so some of those streams run while you’re off the clock.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Carly Ries (00:00):
Wouldn't it be nice if your solopreneur business
(00:02):
could just stay perfect forever?Same clients, same flows, same
income, same balance. Well,unfortunately, the future has
other plans. Trends shift,technology evolves, and life
happens. In this episode of TheAspiring Solopreneur, Joe and I
dig into the how to future proofyour solo business so you can
adapt and thrive no matter whatcomes your way.
(00:22):
From spotting early industryshifts and curating your feeds
for focus, to using AI andautomation as your secret
weapons, we'll show you how tostay resilient, relevant, and
ready for whatever's next. Evenif that next thing is AI agents
running your inbox while you sipiced tea on the beach. You're
listening to the aspiringsolopreneur, the podcast for
(00:42):
anyone on the solo businessjourney, whether you're just
toying with the idea, takingyour first bold step, or have
been running your own show foryears and want to keep growing,
refining, and thriving. I'mCarly Ries, and along with my
cohost, Joe Rando, we're yourguides through the crazy but
awesome world of being a companyof one. As part of LifeStarr, a
(01:03):
digital hub dedicated to allthings solopreneurship, we help
people design businesses thatalign with their life's
ambitions so they can work tolive, not live to work.
If you're looking for a get richquick scheme, this is not the
place for you. But if you wantreal world insights from
industry experts, lessons fromthe successes and stumbles of
fellow solopreneurs, andpractical strategies for
(01:23):
building and sustaining abusiness you love, you're in the
right spot. Because flying soloin business doesn't mean you're
alone. No matter where you arein your journey, we've got your
back. So, Joe, picture this.
(02:17):
Your business is runningsmoothly. You have the clients
you want. You have the incomeyou want. You have the work life
balance you want. Wouldn't it beso nice if your business could
just stay the same forever?
Like that, same clients, sameflow, same everything.
Joe Rando (02:31):
That would be lovely.
Carly Ries (02:33):
well, unfortunately, that is not the reality because
solopreneurship, as we know, isa wild ride. And the one thing
we do know is that the future isalways shifting. So whether it's
trends, technology, our lives,if we aren't adaptable, we can't
be resilient to things, we riskgetting left behind. I'm
(02:54):
thinking today, we dive into howsolopreneurs can future proof
their businesses and themselvesin that situation, if you're
game
Joe Rando (03:02):
Absolutely.
Carly Ries (03:03):
Starting with trends, I included an example in
a book about running an omeletstand. And there are all these
different things you need to bekeeping an eye on. But if you're
selling omelets, you shouldprobably keep an eye on egg
prices. Because as we know forthe past year, those can
definitely fluctuate, and thatwould definitely impact the
(03:24):
business of an omelet stand. Soevery solopreneur has their own
egg.
For some it might be socialmedia algorithms, for others it
might be a supply cost, clientbehavior. The key is to build in
time, like on your calendar, toreview what is changing in your
industry, and what is changingaround you. Do you have any tips
(03:46):
on how you do that for yourself?
Joe Rando (03:48):
Well, one of the things I've done, and I've done
this for years, maybe it's oldhat, but Google has a thing
where you can go in and you canhave Google basically scan the
the web for you all the time andsend you an email with a list of
pages that match your searchterm. So I have one for
solopreneurs. I have one,actually, from my name to see if
(04:12):
anybody's saying anything aboutme. Usually, it's somebody using
the expression, oh, some JoeRando showed up at the party,
but that's okay. But, that's oneof the ones that I really like.
And lately, I've been usingChatGPT. I feel you can use any
of the major LLMs to kinda say,you know, what's happening. You
gotta specify that you wantstuff, say in the last thirty
(04:34):
days, but you can go in and say,what's going on with
solopreneurs, you know, what aresome things that have happened
in the last thirty days, andit'll come back with sometimes
some interesting stuff. A lot oftimes it's just press releases
or other things that, aren'tnecessarily fascinating, but
it's another way that I findthat you can kinda keep an eye
on things.
Carly Ries (04:53):
You know what I also just did recently that I felt so
good, it was like a digitalcleanse. Because over time we
accumulate people that we followon social media that after a
while, useless sounds like Idon't have a heart. But they
don't provide the value thatthey once did. And so I went
(05:14):
through and I unfollowed peoplethat were just kinda cluttering
my feed on LinkedIn and onInstagram for that matter. so
now I only see the relevantinformation that I want to see
that helps me stay on top oftrends, whether it's for
marketing, solopreneurship,things happening in the world.
And when I say things happeningin the world, that's more so the
(05:36):
Instagram side.
But I only see now what'simportant to me, and I got rid
of all the fluff to make it alot easier to follow.
Joe Rando (05:46):
Makes a huge difference. I have to do that
again. I've done that in thepast. And it makes a difference.
it's like you have to curateyour feed. Right?
And if you curate your feedwell, social media is useful,
and if you don't, it can beanywhere from annoying to toxic.
Carly Ries (06:03):
Yeah. Absolutely. And speaking of social media, I
want to clarify trends. I'm nottalking about shiny object
syndrome, the latest TikTokdance, or anything like that.
I just need you to ask yourself,is this trend relevant to your
audience? Or are you justchasing something because it's
new? So that's a big thing. But,yeah, this is not the ice bucket
(06:27):
challenge or anything like that.These are, trends that really
will benefit your business.
Joe Rando (06:32):
I do have a philosophy that I've used over
the years, and I've talked aboutit before, I think. But for
maybe not as much futureproofing, but yeah. it is future
proofing. So I've been in otherbusinesses where, we've sold
something as part of ouroffering that went from being
something that was kind ofproprietary to some degree. And
(06:55):
maybe it's something we did ormaybe something somebody else
did that we bundled into ourproducts.
And all of a sudden, it becomesa commodity. So this thing that
used to be expensive and andkind of precious, now all of a
sudden, everybody's doing it.I'll give you an example. We
used to sell this database ofstore locations for grocery
stores and Targets and Walmarts,and it had all kinds of data
(07:18):
about them.
It was very accurate. Andliterally, if you wanted the
entire database, it was over 6figures a year. And all of a
sudden, people figured out howto scrape the web and go to
these store locator sites andjust scrape the data. Now it
wasn't nearly as good, but theywere selling the entire dataset
for $4,000 a year. Well, we weregetting 50% of that sale.
(07:42):
And all of a sudden, now you'vegot this, you know, much
cheaper. So even if you get 50%,it goes from being maybe $60,000
to $2,000, and that's verypainful. So what we did is we
had a philosophy of wheneverthis kind of thing happened,
treat it like a rising tide andtry to float above it. So in
(08:02):
that case, the data wasn't asgood. It was cheaper, but we
built out a way for people touse that data and then use our
technology to improve it.
So when they were out in thefield, they could take their
iPhone and go, oh, that store isnot here. It's over here. Oh,
you know, that store is not4,000 square feet. It's
definitely 6,000 square feet.And edit it and fix all the
(08:23):
data.
And all of a sudden, they wereable to make the data better,
and we were able to sellsoftware that was a 100% profit.
So that's the way I like tothink about it. So when
something like like, ChatGPTcomes along and you're a
copywriter, well, don't say, oh,I'm done. You know, people can
(08:47):
use this instead.
Say, how do I use this toimprove my craft, maybe be more
productive at the same time, andmake the same or more money by
virtue of mastering the use ofthis new tool and building on
top of it?
Carly Ries (09:02):
Absolutely. You made yourself resilient is what you
did, which I think is number isthe key to future proofing your
solo business, like you weresaying. you need to figure out
ways to keep going when negativethings get thrown. Or not even
negative things, but new thingsget thrown in your direction.
Joe Rando (09:20):
Well, yeah, you could view it as a problem or an
opportunity. And, most thingsthat happen to a business are
happening to a lot ofbusinesses. And if you can be
one of the ones that figure outhow to take advantage of it
instead of getting hammered byit, you can survive and maybe
even do better.
Carly Ries (09:38):
Yeah. Absolutely. You're a glass half full kind of
guy, Joe.
Joe Rando (09:44):
I try. I really do. And, you know, I try to be glass
half full.
Carly Ries (09:50):
Yeah. I think you are. And another thing to think
about in terms of building thatresilience is maybe consider
diversifying your incomestreams. Like if you're a coach,
have your one on one sessions,but also have a course that
people can download on demand.And maybe do speaking
engagements. think of ways thatif one area of your business
when I say diversify incomestreams, I'm not saying that you
(10:12):
also need to go buy real estateproperties or this or that. But
within your business itself,think of other ways that you can
bring money in the door so thatif one dips, another one might
be able to rise. And again, it'swith the tide that you're just
walking through.
Joe Rando (10:25):
Going back to what we talked about in the last episode
on, basically taking care ofyourself. If you do get sick, if
you've got some kind of apassive income download, that
can still function while you'renot able to get in front of the
screen or go out to meetings anddo things. So it's another
reason to try to diversify tosome degree. But, yeah, there's
(10:48):
a very strong argument for whatyou're saying in terms of
diversifying, your revenuestream.
Carly Ries (10:52):
Yes. Well, something that I wanna piggyback off of
that. you were saying, I thinkcontinuous learning is key to
building resilience and adaptingand everything. But you were
talking about AI andcopywriters. AI and automation
in general is a great way tohelp future proof your business.
Or, is the future ofsolopreneurship? Is that a weird
(11:13):
blanket statement to say? Thefuture of solopreneurship?
Joe Rando (11:17):
It's not weird at all. It's not weird at all
because the AI, you know, theLLMs, generative AI, they call
it, you know, that makes things.That's great. And it's made us
much more productive assolopreneurs. I mean, I'm doing
way more work than I would havebeen able to do a few years ago.
But the agents, which I don'tknow are quite ready for prime
time yet, but these AI agentsthat are gonna go out and do
(11:39):
things for you, That's huge. Andwhen they get good enough, it's
gonna be almost like you can bean employee based business
without employees.
Carly Ries (11:45):
Yeah.
Joe Rando (11:46):
Which is amazing and scary as hell at the same time.
Carly Ries (11:49):
So crazy. I know. Because we're talking about the
future of solopreneurship rightnow. I don't think any of us can
really comprehend where AI isgoing. I know we can talk about
it, and I know we can hearwhat's gonna happen, but in
terms of it, yeah. It breaks mybrain. It's like when I think
about the universe, it justbreaks my brain. I'm like yeah.
(12:10):
What do we do?
Joe Rando (12:10):
It's so hard. It's so hard. I mean, predicting the
future you know, what was itthat Yogi Berra said? He said
forecasting is difficult,especially about the future.
Exactly. Or something like that.
Carly Ries (12:23):
But for now, AI is a tool that could be used for good
in your business. I mean you cansummarize client meetings, you
can prep for calls, you canbrainstorm marketing ideas? It
can act as your tutor. it canteach you things that you didn't
know. So for now, and movingforward, make it your best
friend and use it to become moreefficient, to streamline things
(12:47):
that would have taken you hoursbefore.
And then on the side of becomingmore efficient, AI and
automation, they're your buds.Automation, if you're not
automating some of your systemsand processes, you need to start
figuring out ways that you cando that now. Because, think if
you were on vacation and yoursystems could automatically be
(13:07):
sending follow-up emails foryou, scheduling social media
posts for you, invoicingclients, doing all this stuff
behind the scenes, and you'resitting on the beach drinking an
iced tea. Like, doesn't thatsound lovely as a solopreneur?
Joe Rando (13:20):
Especially today, it's kinda cold here. Yeah. That
sounds great.
Carly Ries (13:23):
And I mean, don't drink out of a fire hose with
automation. Maybe just try toautomate your scheduling first.
we do that with Calendly. Thatcan happen behind the scenes for
us.
Joe Rando (13:35):
we use HubSpot to do, you know, email nurturing and
onboarding. And I can't evenimagine trying to do that
manually now. we wouldn't doanything else. We'd just be
like, oh, let's say I send theemails, today. And it just you
know, it sends them out, and wecan target different kinds of
(13:55):
people with different kinds ofemails.
I mean, it makes such adifference versus trying to do
anything like that manually.But, yeah, I'm excited for
agents. I'm not ready to turnthem loose yet. I just feel like
it's gonna be one of thosethings where you do a facepalm
because something's gonnahappen, but they'll get there.
Carly Ries (14:17):
Yeah. They will. And they'll get there, I think, lot
faster than we're ready for.They're coming. Coming in hot.
But I think to wrap up theepisode on the future of
solopreneurship, I think youalso need to think about
planning for the long term ofyour business. We, in the book
talk about nine day plans. Wetalk about just how planning for
(14:38):
solopreneurs, you don't need thetraditional business plan. We
have a solopreneur action planthat people follow.
But you need to know where youwant your business to, or have
an idea of where you want yourbusiness to be in five or ten
years to best plan for it. Andyou may not know the concrete
things because that's hard topredict. I mean, in 2019, I
don't think anybody had a fiveyear plan that went the way it
(15:01):
was supposed to the followingyear.
Joe Rando (15:03):
Yeah. Five year plans are long.
Carly Ries (15:06):
They're long, but one thing that I like to do with
those long plans are doingscenario planning. So a what if
exercise. So what if a recessionhits? What if a global pandemic
hits? What if you get floodedand there is also on good sides
too.
What if you get flooded withclients that you don't have the
capacity to take on all at once?What if you're what if a
(15:29):
contractor of yours disappearsmid project? Do like play the
what if game to help set yourbusiness up for long term
success. Joe, you're right. Fiveyears is a long time, but if you
can kinda think more on thefuture and play the what if game
of what could happen during thattime, I feel like you get the
systems and processes andeverything in place now to best
inform.
Joe Rando (15:48):
It's good to think through. I mean, especially with
regard to what you want yourlife to look like. You know? And
that's, that's the thing. If yousay, this is what I want my life
to be like in five years, it'sgonna take five years probably
to get to that point.
Carly Ries (16:05):
Yeah.
Joe Rando (16:06):
And, it's one of those things where a lot of
people don't do that, and theywind up they go, how did I get
here? Yeah. And, honestly, I'vebeen there. I've done that. and
not with unsuccessful businesseseither.
Carly Ries (16:22):
Right. Exactly. So, yeah. Practice what we preach. I
guess, my biggest takeaway fromtoday is when it comes to the
future of solopreneurship, it'snot about predicting every
change because we can't. Butit's about staying curious,
staying flexible, and just beingresilient and ready to evolve
with whatever change does comeyour way.
Joe Rando (16:44):
Yes.
Carly Ries (16:45):
That is a good summary?
Joe Rando (16:46):
That's it.
Carly Ries (16:47):
Alright. Well, I'm gonna leave it with that. But
listeners, thank you so so muchfor tuning in today. As always,
leave that five star review.It's great for the show.
It's great for our egos, ifwe're being honest as well.
Joe Rando (16:59):
And you help other solopreneurs find us.
Carly Ries (17:01):
Yes. Exactly.
Joe Rando (17:02):
Yeah. That's a kind thing to do.
Carly Ries (17:03):
Yeah. Ignore that ego thing I just said. And
subscribe on your favoritepodcast platform, including
YouTube. Share this episode witha friend if you think they'll
find it helpful, and we will seeyou next time on The Aspiring
Solopreneur.
You may be going solo inbusiness, but that doesn't mean
you're alone. In fact, millionsof people are in your shoes,
(17:24):
running a one person businessand figuring it out as they go.
So why not connect with them andlearn from each other's
successes and failures? AtLifeStarr, we're creating a one
person business community whereyou can go to meet and get
advice from other solopreneurs.Be sure to join in on the
conversations atcommunity.lifestarr.com.
Wouldn't it be nice if your solopreneur business
(00:02):
could just stay perfect forever?Same clients, same flows, same
income, same balance. Well,unfortunately, the future has
other plans. Trends shift,technology evolves, and life
happens. In this episode of TheAspiring Solopreneur, Joe and I
dig into the how to future proofyour solo business so you can
adapt and thrive no matter whatcomes your way.
(00:22):
From spotting early industryshifts and curating your feeds
for focus, to using AI andautomation as your secret
weapons, we'll show you how tostay resilient, relevant, and
ready for whatever's next. Evenif that next thing is AI agents
running your inbox while you sipiced tea on the beach. You're
listening to the aspiringsolopreneur, the podcast for
(00:42):
anyone on the solo businessjourney, whether you're just
toying with the idea, takingyour first bold step, or have
been running your own show foryears and want to keep growing,
refining, and thriving. I'mCarly Ries, and along with my
cohost, Joe Rando, we're yourguides through the crazy but
awesome world of being a companyof one. As part of LifeStarr, a
(01:03):
digital hub dedicated to allthings solopreneurship, we help
people design businesses thatalign with their life's
ambitions so they can work tolive, not live to work.
If you're looking for a get richquick scheme, this is not the
place for you. But if you wantreal world insights from
industry experts, lessons fromthe successes and stumbles of
fellow solopreneurs, andpractical strategies for
(01:23):
building and sustaining abusiness you love, you're in the
right spot. Because flying soloin business doesn't mean you're
alone. No matter where you arein your journey, we've got your
back. So, Joe, picture this.
(02:17):
Your business is runningsmoothly. You have the clients
you want. You have the incomeyou want. You have the work life
balance you want. Wouldn't it beso nice if your business could
just stay the same forever?
Like that, same clients, sameflow, same everything.
Joe Rando (02:31):
That would be lovely.
Carly Ries (02:33):
well, unfortunately, that is not the reality because
solopreneurship, as we know, isa wild ride. And the one thing
we do know is that the future isalways shifting. So whether it's
trends, technology, our lives,if we aren't adaptable, we can't
be resilient to things, we riskgetting left behind. I'm
(02:54):
thinking today, we dive into howsolopreneurs can future proof
their businesses and themselvesin that situation, if you're
game
Joe Rando (03:02):
Absolutely.
Carly Ries (03:03):
Starting with trends, I included an example in
a book about running an omeletstand. And there are all these
different things you need to bekeeping an eye on. But if you're
selling omelets, you shouldprobably keep an eye on egg
prices. Because as we know forthe past year, those can
definitely fluctuate, and thatwould definitely impact the
(03:24):
business of an omelet stand. Soevery solopreneur has their own
egg.
For some it might be socialmedia algorithms, for others it
might be a supply cost, clientbehavior. The key is to build in
time, like on your calendar, toreview what is changing in your
industry, and what is changingaround you. Do you have any tips
(03:46):
on how you do that for yourself?
Joe Rando (03:48):
Well, one of the things I've done, and I've done
this for years, maybe it's oldhat, but Google has a thing
where you can go in and you canhave Google basically scan the
the web for you all the time andsend you an email with a list of
pages that match your searchterm. So I have one for
solopreneurs. I have one,actually, from my name to see if
(04:12):
anybody's saying anything aboutme. Usually, it's somebody using
the expression, oh, some JoeRando showed up at the party,
but that's okay. But, that's oneof the ones that I really like.
And lately, I've been usingChatGPT. I feel you can use any
of the major LLMs to kinda say,you know, what's happening. You
gotta specify that you wantstuff, say in the last thirty
(04:34):
days, but you can go in and say,what's going on with
solopreneurs, you know, what aresome things that have happened
in the last thirty days, andit'll come back with sometimes
some interesting stuff. A lot oftimes it's just press releases
or other things that, aren'tnecessarily fascinating, but
it's another way that I findthat you can kinda keep an eye
on things.
Carly Ries (04:53):
You know what I also just did recently that I felt so
good, it was like a digitalcleanse. Because over time we
accumulate people that we followon social media that after a
while, useless sounds like Idon't have a heart. But they
don't provide the value thatthey once did. And so I went
(05:14):
through and I unfollowed peoplethat were just kinda cluttering
my feed on LinkedIn and onInstagram for that matter. so
now I only see the relevantinformation that I want to see
that helps me stay on top oftrends, whether it's for
marketing, solopreneurship,things happening in the world.
And when I say things happeningin the world, that's more so the
(05:36):
Instagram side.
But I only see now what'simportant to me, and I got rid
of all the fluff to make it alot easier to follow.
Joe Rando (05:46):
Makes a huge difference. I have to do that
again. I've done that in thepast. And it makes a difference.
it's like you have to curateyour feed. Right?
And if you curate your feedwell, social media is useful,
and if you don't, it can beanywhere from annoying to toxic.
Carly Ries (06:03):
Yeah. Absolutely. And speaking of social media, I
want to clarify trends. I'm nottalking about shiny object
syndrome, the latest TikTokdance, or anything like that.
I just need you to ask yourself,is this trend relevant to your
audience? Or are you justchasing something because it's
new? So that's a big thing. But,yeah, this is not the ice bucket
(06:27):
challenge or anything like that.These are, trends that really
will benefit your business.
Joe Rando (06:32):
I do have a philosophy that I've used over
the years, and I've talked aboutit before, I think. But for
maybe not as much futureproofing, but yeah. it is future
proofing. So I've been in otherbusinesses where, we've sold
something as part of ouroffering that went from being
something that was kind ofproprietary to some degree. And
(06:55):
maybe it's something we did ormaybe something somebody else
did that we bundled into ourproducts.
And all of a sudden, it becomesa commodity. So this thing that
used to be expensive and andkind of precious, now all of a
sudden, everybody's doing it.I'll give you an example. We
used to sell this database ofstore locations for grocery
stores and Targets and Walmarts,and it had all kinds of data
(07:18):
about them.
It was very accurate. Andliterally, if you wanted the
entire database, it was over 6figures a year. And all of a
sudden, people figured out howto scrape the web and go to
these store locator sites andjust scrape the data. Now it
wasn't nearly as good, but theywere selling the entire dataset
for $4,000 a year. Well, we weregetting 50% of that sale.
(07:42):
And all of a sudden, now you'vegot this, you know, much
cheaper. So even if you get 50%,it goes from being maybe $60,000
to $2,000, and that's verypainful. So what we did is we
had a philosophy of wheneverthis kind of thing happened,
treat it like a rising tide andtry to float above it. So in
(08:02):
that case, the data wasn't asgood. It was cheaper, but we
built out a way for people touse that data and then use our
technology to improve it.
So when they were out in thefield, they could take their
iPhone and go, oh, that store isnot here. It's over here. Oh,
you know, that store is not4,000 square feet. It's
definitely 6,000 square feet.And edit it and fix all the
(08:23):
data.
And all of a sudden, they wereable to make the data better,
and we were able to sellsoftware that was a 100% profit.
So that's the way I like tothink about it. So when
something like like, ChatGPTcomes along and you're a
copywriter, well, don't say, oh,I'm done. You know, people can
(08:47):
use this instead.
Say, how do I use this toimprove my craft, maybe be more
productive at the same time, andmake the same or more money by
virtue of mastering the use ofthis new tool and building on
top of it?
Carly Ries (09:02):
Absolutely. You made yourself resilient is what you
did, which I think is number isthe key to future proofing your
solo business, like you weresaying. you need to figure out
ways to keep going when negativethings get thrown. Or not even
negative things, but new thingsget thrown in your direction.
Joe Rando (09:20):
Well, yeah, you could view it as a problem or an
opportunity. And, most thingsthat happen to a business are
happening to a lot ofbusinesses. And if you can be
one of the ones that figure outhow to take advantage of it
instead of getting hammered byit, you can survive and maybe
even do better.
Carly Ries (09:38):
Yeah. Absolutely. You're a glass half full kind of
guy, Joe.
Joe Rando (09:44):
I try. I really do. And, you know, I try to be glass
half full.
Carly Ries (09:50):
Yeah. I think you are. And another thing to think
about in terms of building thatresilience is maybe consider
diversifying your incomestreams. Like if you're a coach,
have your one on one sessions,but also have a course that
people can download on demand.And maybe do speaking
engagements. think of ways thatif one area of your business
when I say diversify incomestreams, I'm not saying that you
(10:12):
also need to go buy real estateproperties or this or that. But
within your business itself,think of other ways that you can
bring money in the door so thatif one dips, another one might
be able to rise. And again, it'swith the tide that you're just
walking through.
Joe Rando (10:25):
Going back to what we talked about in the last episode
on, basically taking care ofyourself. If you do get sick, if
you've got some kind of apassive income download, that
can still function while you'renot able to get in front of the
screen or go out to meetings anddo things. So it's another
reason to try to diversify tosome degree. But, yeah, there's
(10:48):
a very strong argument for whatyou're saying in terms of
diversifying, your revenuestream.
Carly Ries (10:52):
Yes. Well, something that I wanna piggyback off of
that. you were saying, I thinkcontinuous learning is key to
building resilience and adaptingand everything. But you were
talking about AI andcopywriters. AI and automation
in general is a great way tohelp future proof your business.
Or, is the future ofsolopreneurship? Is that a weird
(11:13):
blanket statement to say? Thefuture of solopreneurship?
Joe Rando (11:17):
It's not weird at all. It's not weird at all
because the AI, you know, theLLMs, generative AI, they call
it, you know, that makes things.That's great. And it's made us
much more productive assolopreneurs. I mean, I'm doing
way more work than I would havebeen able to do a few years ago.
But the agents, which I don'tknow are quite ready for prime
time yet, but these AI agentsthat are gonna go out and do
(11:39):
things for you, That's huge. Andwhen they get good enough, it's
gonna be almost like you can bean employee based business
without employees.
Carly Ries (11:45):
Yeah.
Joe Rando (11:46):
Which is amazing and scary as hell at the same time.
Carly Ries (11:49):
So crazy. I know. Because we're talking about the
future of solopreneurship rightnow. I don't think any of us can
really comprehend where AI isgoing. I know we can talk about
it, and I know we can hearwhat's gonna happen, but in
terms of it, yeah. It breaks mybrain. It's like when I think
about the universe, it justbreaks my brain. I'm like yeah.
(12:10):
What do we do?
Joe Rando (12:10):
It's so hard. It's so hard. I mean, predicting the
future you know, what was itthat Yogi Berra said? He said
forecasting is difficult,especially about the future.
Exactly. Or something like that.
Carly Ries (12:23):
But for now, AI is a tool that could be used for good
in your business. I mean you cansummarize client meetings, you
can prep for calls, you canbrainstorm marketing ideas? It
can act as your tutor. it canteach you things that you didn't
know. So for now, and movingforward, make it your best
friend and use it to become moreefficient, to streamline things
(12:47):
that would have taken you hoursbefore.
And then on the side of becomingmore efficient, AI and
automation, they're your buds.Automation, if you're not
automating some of your systemsand processes, you need to start
figuring out ways that you cando that now. Because, think if
you were on vacation and yoursystems could automatically be
(13:07):
sending follow-up emails foryou, scheduling social media
posts for you, invoicingclients, doing all this stuff
behind the scenes, and you'resitting on the beach drinking an
iced tea. Like, doesn't thatsound lovely as a solopreneur?
Joe Rando (13:20):
Especially today, it's kinda cold here. Yeah. That
sounds great.
Carly Ries (13:23):
And I mean, don't drink out of a fire hose with
automation. Maybe just try toautomate your scheduling first.
we do that with Calendly. Thatcan happen behind the scenes for
us.
Joe Rando (13:35):
we use HubSpot to do, you know, email nurturing and
onboarding. And I can't evenimagine trying to do that
manually now. we wouldn't doanything else. We'd just be
like, oh, let's say I send theemails, today. And it just you
know, it sends them out, and wecan target different kinds of
(13:55):
people with different kinds ofemails.
I mean, it makes such adifference versus trying to do
anything like that manually.But, yeah, I'm excited for
agents. I'm not ready to turnthem loose yet. I just feel like
it's gonna be one of thosethings where you do a facepalm
because something's gonnahappen, but they'll get there.
Carly Ries (14:17):
Yeah. They will. And they'll get there, I think, lot
faster than we're ready for.They're coming. Coming in hot.
But I think to wrap up theepisode on the future of
solopreneurship, I think youalso need to think about
planning for the long term ofyour business. We, in the book
talk about nine day plans. Wetalk about just how planning for
(14:38):
solopreneurs, you don't need thetraditional business plan. We
have a solopreneur action planthat people follow.
But you need to know where youwant your business to, or have
an idea of where you want yourbusiness to be in five or ten
years to best plan for it. Andyou may not know the concrete
things because that's hard topredict. I mean, in 2019, I
don't think anybody had a fiveyear plan that went the way it
(15:01):
was supposed to the followingyear.
Joe Rando (15:03):
Yeah. Five year plans are long.
Carly Ries (15:06):
They're long, but one thing that I like to do with
those long plans are doingscenario planning. So a what if
exercise. So what if a recessionhits? What if a global pandemic
hits? What if you get floodedand there is also on good sides
too.
What if you get flooded withclients that you don't have the
capacity to take on all at once?What if you're what if a
(15:29):
contractor of yours disappearsmid project? Do like play the
what if game to help set yourbusiness up for long term
success. Joe, you're right. Fiveyears is a long time, but if you
can kinda think more on thefuture and play the what if game
of what could happen during thattime, I feel like you get the
systems and processes andeverything in place now to best
inform.
Joe Rando (15:48):
It's good to think through. I mean, especially with
regard to what you want yourlife to look like. You know? And
that's, that's the thing. If yousay, this is what I want my life
to be like in five years, it'sgonna take five years probably
to get to that point.
Carly Ries (16:05):
Yeah.
Joe Rando (16:06):
And, it's one of those things where a lot of
people don't do that, and theywind up they go, how did I get
here? Yeah. And, honestly, I'vebeen there. I've done that. and
not with unsuccessful businesseseither.
Carly Ries (16:22):
Right. Exactly. So, yeah. Practice what we preach. I
guess, my biggest takeaway fromtoday is when it comes to the
future of solopreneurship, it'snot about predicting every
change because we can't. Butit's about staying curious,
staying flexible, and just beingresilient and ready to evolve
with whatever change does comeyour way.
Joe Rando (16:44):
Yes.
Carly Ries (16:45):
That is a good summary?
Joe Rando (16:46):
That's it.
Carly Ries (16:47):
Alright. Well, I'm gonna leave it with that. But
listeners, thank you so so muchfor tuning in today. As always,
leave that five star review.It's great for the show.
It's great for our egos, ifwe're being honest as well.
Joe Rando (16:59):
And you help other solopreneurs find us.
Carly Ries (17:01):
Yes. Exactly.
Joe Rando (17:02):
Yeah. That's a kind thing to do.
Carly Ries (17:03):
Yeah. Ignore that ego thing I just said. And
subscribe on your favoritepodcast platform, including
YouTube. Share this episode witha friend if you think they'll
find it helpful, and we will seeyou next time on The Aspiring
Solopreneur.
You may be going solo inbusiness, but that doesn't mean
you're alone. In fact, millionsof people are in your shoes,
(17:24):
running a one person businessand figuring it out as they go.
So why not connect with them andlearn from each other's
successes and failures? AtLifeStarr, we're creating a one
person business community whereyou can go to meet and get
advice from other solopreneurs.Be sure to join in on the
conversations atcommunity.lifestarr.com.
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