1 Year as a Solo-Practitioner

One year ago I quit my lucrative agency job and ventured out on my own. It was the best decision I ever made - twice.

You see, I actually quit my full-time in-house design job back in 2012 to pursue my own business after gearing up as a freelancer for about two years beforehand. I had no intention of ever taking on a full-time job again, but not more than a month later I had two unexpected full-time job offers in-hand - one that I just couldn’t pass up that was 100% remote and a 50% salary increase from the job I had just quit. That flexibility and increase in income is what allowed me to move both my husband and myself across the country to our new home in San Diego.

Quitting that first job with the intention of running my own business was the best decision I had made at that point in my career - even if at that point things didn’t turn out how I had planned for my business.

For the next three and a half years I focused on my job at the agency, but slowly but surely I continued to get more and more client referrals and my husband and business partner was able to help me continue to grow our business on the side. By 2015, barely more than 2 years after quitting my in-house job, our business was making as much as my original salary had been - and we were justing working on the weekends.

The prospect of again quitting my full-time job to focus on our business just made sense for the type of flexible lifestyle I wanted to have. Sure, I was leaving some money on the table and we knew it would be tight at first, but with your own business the sky is the limit and there are other measures of success than just earnings. So, one year ago, I quit my job to focus on my growing business full-time. And yet again, it was the best career decision I have ever made.

There’s a few things I’ve learned during the past year, and really during the past near seven years that I’ve been running my business. I hope these learnings will encourage those on the fence of venturing out on their own to go ahead and take the leap.

1. Define what success means for you.

Success doesn’t have to be about money, a good portfolio, note-worthy clientele, or any of the other things you see hyped up at business seminars and conferences. It took me a long time, and still takes a conscious effort to not measure my worth in dollars. Success for me means the ability to stay home with my canine kids and provide a home to foster dogs in need, it means the flexibility to go to community meetings and represent the under-represented in my neighborhood, it means the extra time I can choose to set aside to be involved in leadership roles in professional organizations like AIGA San Diego and my local Business Association, it means the ability to take time off unquestioned when the chronic disease I have forces me to stay home or stay in bed for an entire day or more. Success for me boils down to a flexible lifestyle where I can choose the work I put my time and talent into, choose the clients I work with (and, yes, I’ve had to “fire” some), and choose to work or not on any given day. 

2. There’s no magic book or class that will teach you what you need to know.

I often see books and seminars toted as fast-tracks or formulas for success. The truth is it takes time, experience, tons of mistakes, and a great community of mentors and peers to figure it all out. While classes, conferences, seminars, and books are all valuable tools to equip yourself with knowledge and save yourself the trouble of common pitfalls, I’ve found it takes experience and surrounding yourself with mentors to get where you want to go. Which leads me to my next point…

3. Seek community and mentorship.

I’ve found wonderful communities both in the design community and the business community here in San Diego. I’m part of three groups: 

AIGA San Diego, of which I’m a current board member, is an invaluable group of designers from all career stages. There I can get inspiration, meet and learn from local design leaders and students alike, and form valuable business partnerships.

My local business association, also a group I currently serve on the board of, exposes me to professionals from all industries and has been a great place to learn how very successful local business women and men got to where they are today, and also serves as a great source for new business. 

The third group and one I founded, is a design critique group created first and foremost for solo practitioners like myself to get meaningful feedback on work that would otherwise be created in a vacuum. It’s also a great place to air common frustrations many of us run into in our similar work experiences. The critique group especially gives me a chance to both be mentored and to mentor others, which I find is equally valuable.

4. Don’t sweat the money.

My biggest worry was that I would be constantly anxious about finances once I didn’t have a regular paycheck coming in, but despite the fact that I have not made up for my “lost” income in this first year of working for myself, I haven’t been worried about making ends meet at all. I have a minimum I need to make, proved that I could do so for two years prior to stepping out on my own, and prepared with extra savings ahead of quitting my job. If you have similar preparations and plans in place, it’s a lot easier. And ultimately I’ve found the converse of the saying “the more you make, the more you spend” is true in that “the less you make, the less you spend”. When I was making a lot more money just a year ago, I couldn’t figure out where it was all going, nor could I determine how to cut back on spending. Somehow once that money wasn’t coming in anymore, I never missed it! 

It’s also difficult to put success into perspective when you just see the outcome of other’s successes but not the sacrifices they made to get there. If you really have a conversation with people society deems successful, I’ve found you’ll often learn they sacrificed many things such as relationships, lifetime savings, mental health, etc. in the early days while they pursued their dreams. We never see the people who never quite made it, or the setbacks and failures encountered by those who did.

5. Take time to pursue your personal interests.

I’ve often found that when I take time to pursue my personal interests, whether that’s art, gardening, civic involvement, animal rescue, etc. it not only results in much needed personal fulfillment, but many times leads to connections that end up being fruitful to my business. It’s all about intention and expectation. Truly pursue your personal interests for personal reasons - be authentic. Despite your most honest non-business intentions, you may find these endeavors many times yield positive outcomes for your business. 

6. Show up. 

This is the most simple piece of advice I can give anyone trying to start their own business. Just show up. Show up to community events, business events, conferences, etc. The more people you know, the more potential clients you have. I have never advertised my business other than just making personal connections, and so far, I haven’t needed to. 

I’m not the most extroverted person, but I make a conscious effort to show up to things and just get to know people. You never know who might be interested in the service or product you have to offer. 

I’ve literally gone into see a doctor and come away with them as a client - twice. I’ve gone to networking meetings and after a short time been asked to join the board - also twice. There’s so much value in just showing up and being authentic and genuinely interested in others. I never make hard sales, cold calls, or pushy sales pitches contrary to so much advice out there. Honestly, I don’t have a remarkable personality or skill or talent. Yet, just showing up and listening to others’ needs has provided me with all the business I need.