Solo vs. Team: The Ultimate Guide to Entrepreneurship Styles

0:01I knew I needed to grow and I was becoming the blocker for growth so bringing in really smart people was the absolutely best thing that I actually did.

0:13Hi everybody, well welcome back to Brave Bold Brilliant. It is fantastic to be here with you again today and let's get started because we are going to get into a really interesting topic today. So a question that I very often get asked is, you know, should I actually start my business and do it all alone or should I instead build a really great team? So this is what we're going to get into. Now, if you are a business owner, maybe you're starting out in business or you might actually be in a job and thinking about starting your own business. this is absolutely for you so you're in the right place so you know is it better to actually you know go solo be the captain of your own ship or do you bring in others leaders teams members collaborators you know to grow and scale with you and it's not a black and white decision it's complex it's emotional and it is deeply personal so we're going to unpack some of this today and I am actually going to share with you some of the the pros the cons the challenges you know and I'm all about keeping it real because so often when we're in business we just hear the the nice stuff and it's not always easy so I'm going to share with you some of the hard-won lessons from my own journey but you know before we jump in tell me you know are you currently running solo or do you have a team or maybe you're somewhere in between you know drop solo team or hybrid in the comments and let's get the conversation started so we're going to break this down into different parts so part one the power and pitfalls of solo entrepreneurship so let's start with that solo path the lone wolf entrepreneur now let's be honest many of us start this way You know, maybe you're bootstrapping your business.

2:16You might be working from your kitchen table. Maybe you're managing every single aspect yourself. And there's incredible power in this phrase. When you're solo, you're the visionary and the executor. You know, there's no middleman between your ideas and the action. So if you want to pivot, you pivot fast. You learn every part of the business intimately, you know, from marketing to customer service, finance to product development. you're absolutely immersed in it all and that does build expertise and resilience. But here's the thing and certainly when I jumped out of corporate you know I'd spent 25 years in the travel industry running large global travel businesses as the CEO of the travel division for Saga and as the MD of the emerging markets for TUI.

3:04So I was very used to having a large team having resources around me and then all of a sudden when I decided to step out and essentially set up my own business and now that's a multi-million pound portfolio with businesses you know but at the beginning it was just me and it was a hell of a shock it really was because I you know all of a sudden you're there and you realize it's just you with your phone with your laptop, with your reputation, with your experience, and of course, your valuable connections. So I have been there personally, having been on both sides of the table of being in a very large corporate CEO role to being a portfolio entrepreneur and business owner today.

3:49And when you start, it's very often, it's your passion that drives you, because your business, it's 100 % your vision, You know, it's your mission. It's personal. But the solo journey isn't easy. It comes with heavy burdens. You know, the first one, isolation. You know, without teammates or partners, it can get really lonely. And you don't always have someone to celebrate the wins with or to vent your frustrations with. You know, and overwhelm is often a feeling that I hear a lot. You know, I work today with business owners, with founders and with corporate executives as well. And, you know, often we talk about overwhelm.

4:31What do you prioritize? What do you focus on? There's only 24 hours in the day. You're one person. So how do you manage this solo entrepreneur journey, especially at the beginning? You know, so that feeling of overwhelm, it is very real, you know, and, you know, you're wearing all the hats and that means endless tasks. And sometimes all of them are urgent or they seem urgent. So you might struggle to prioritise or worse, you know, you might burn out. The next one is about decision fatigue. Every choice, whether it's big or small, is on you alone. You know, and without fresh perspectives, you risk tunnel vision or analysis paralysis.

5:12You know, and in all honesty, many solo entrepreneurs, they hit a ceiling, not because they lack talent or passion, but simply because there are limits to what one person can do. You know, so if you've ever felt exhausted or stretched too thin, you are definitely not alone. I have been there and it's a shared reality. So I'd love to hear type yes in the chat if you've experienced this. If you're watching this on YouTube, if you're listening this back to on the podcast, you know, send me a message. Let me know how you're getting on and if this is something that you're struggling with at the moment as a solo entrepreneur, because I'm here to help at Brave Bold Brilliant.

5:53We're here to help as a team. So, you know, don't suffer in silence. Don't struggle alone. So let's get into part two of this thing. I want to share a lot with you. What I should have said at the beginning is grab a pen and paper, write this stuff down. And of course, you know, if you're not following Brave Bold Brilliant or myself on social media, let's get connected. Because when we're all connected, we can support each other. We can share experiences. A problem shared is a problem hard. And of course, if you've not checked out our website, www.brave-bold-brilliant.com, please go there. In that resource section, you're going to find loads of really useful free resources.

6:37So if you're bootstrapping your business as a solopreneur, which you may well be doing at the moment, you need the help, need all the help you can get. So free resources is a great way. It's one way that we give back at Brave Bold Brilliant. It's one way that I help other people having, you know, been on this journey myself for many, many years. So let's get into part two. Now, part two, you know, this is around the upside and challenges of building a team. Right. So let's talk about that, because, you know, at some point, many entrepreneurs, they face the decision to bring others on board. And this can be as simple as hiring a virtual assistant or as complex as building an entire leadership team.

7:21Now, the benefits are clear. Obviously, first one, leverage. You've got more hands on deck, you can multiply your impact. You know, more people means you've got more ideas, more bandwidth and more energy, a fresh perspective. Secondly, by building the right people in your business and hiring people that are smarter than you. Don't let your ego get in the way. You know, you cannot be an expert at everything. as a business leader, as a business founder, as a business owner, or even just someone that's managing a team that's interested in the topic of business and entrepreneurship. You know, you can only do so much.

8:01And actually, hiring smart people is the best thing you can do. So don't let your ego get in the way. Honestly, it's one of the things that often stops people from building great teams and of course when you bring specialists experts into your business you know you can they can really focus on those specialist areas allowing you to focus on your strengths and of course when you've got the support of teammates around you it provides emotional and intellectual support and you've got partners in problem solving and accountability however team building it comes with its own challenges as well so first thing is you've got to let go of control And that's a big one because many entrepreneurs or people in the executive world, in the business world, if you're in a large organization, the same thing actually does play out.

8:51You know, many entrepreneurs struggle to delegate because they worry that no one else can do it right. No one's going to do it as good as me. But if you hold on too tightly, you know, that's you're going to become the blocker for your growth. So that's the big worry. Now, the bigger the team, the more communication complexities are involved. You know, you need to communicate to your team. There are more misunderstandings, maybe conflicts. Could be different working styles that can create friction. You know, and of course, when you bring people in, you're looking for leadership responsibility. Managing a team requires skills beyond your core business.

9:27You might be really passionate about, you know, what you offer, your service, your product, your customers, your clients, etc. However, you know, that doesn't mean to say you're going to be a great leader. You know, and leadership, I believe it is a skill that you can learn. It is a skill that you can nurture and grow over time. You know, so it isn't just a given. And the same, actually, in business. Often people get promoted because they're good at their job, but actually doesn't necessarily mean that they've been taught how to be a great leader. And of course, managing people is different to leading people.

10:02So it allows you really to kind of step out of maybe your comfort zone. maybe you've not had to lead a team before, you know, and that involves things like, you know, conflict resolution, motivation, you know, you're hiring, sometimes you've got to have those difficult conversations. You know, a friend once told me actually, hiring people is easy, leading people is hard. And that's so true. If you've ever hired or managed a team, what's been your biggest challenge, you know, let us know what those challenges are, and we'll can see how we might be able to help. So let's get into part three. I told you there was a lot that we're going to cover today, didn't I?

10:40But knowing when to shift. So one of the hardest parts of running a business is knowing when and how to make that shift from solo to team. You know, and no one size fits all. Every business is different. Every individual leader is different. And some businesses thrive solo for many years. You know, others grow rapidly and need support immediately. So your situation will be very different to my situation, will be very different to your colleagues and your friends and people in your network. You know, so let me just go through now some of the signs that it might be time to build a team. And as I say, write these down.

11:22So it could be you're spending more time on tasks that you don't enjoy, or you're not great at instead of strategic growth. You might be missing deadlines, overstretching yourself or opportunities, you might be missing them because you don't have enough hours in the day. You could be feeling isolated, stressed, burnt out. You know, you want to scale, but you're limited by your capacity. But here's a key mindset shift. Building a team, it does not mean losing your vision or values. It means amplifying them. You want team members who believe in your mission, who bring those fresh ideas, but they respect the culture and the business that you've built from scratch.

12:05You know, you want people who elevate your business and your values and what you stand for, you know, without diluting the essence. So hiring people is absolutely choosing the right people. get the right people on the bus, get them all sitting in the right seat, get them all facing in the same direction and give them the tools in order to do their job. So it sounds very simple, but that in a nutshell is what it's all about when you're actually hiring and you're building a team. So let's get into part four. You know, there may actually be a hybrid mode and this is where you find your own balance.

12:44You know, entrepreneurship, it's not binary. Many successful leaders find a hybrid balance. You know, it might be that, you know, you keep your core team very small and then you might outsource projects. It might be that you have partners or freelancers or associates who come in and they go on a needs base only. You know, so the key is flexibility and awareness. So you need to ask yourself, what parts of my business absolutely need more direct input? Where could someone else bring more expertise or energy than I can? What can I automate or delegate? You know, and this kind of balance lets you keep control over your vision, but it frees you from drowning in the day to day tasks.

13:31So does this sound familiar? Because I have been through all of these phases in the various businesses that I've built, the various businesses that I've owned, the various businesses that I've sold. And of course, today I'm very privileged. I get to mentor. I get to work with executive boards on strategy, growth, turnaround, mergers and acquisitions. I get to work with entrepreneurs who are starting and scaling their business, you know. And so I personally have been through these different phases. But it's also what I do today and what we do today as a team at Brave Bold Brilliant with the people that we support and help because it is lonely on your own.

14:15So if you are in this scenario that we're covering here today on Brave Bold Brilliant and you need help, you need guidance, you need support, just reach out. Send me a DM, put a comment, drop me an email, you know, at info at brave-bold-brilliant.com. You'll find us there. Go on the website. You can find us everywhere. So please don't sit in silence. If this is resonating with you and you're thinking, oh, my gosh, yeah, definitely. I have felt these problems. It's very real. Then just reach out. Please just reach out. You know, personally, I am still very hands on with my brand and content. Right.

14:57But I lean on the team for marketing, tech support, admin. You know, it's a partnership, not a handoff. So you have to find the right combination for you. So let me just, you know, in part five, reflect on some personal stories. You know, when I started, I was fully solo. So as I say, when I jumped out of full time corporate CEO five years ago, you know, I was ready to set my own thing up. I was ready to be the captain of my own ship. And I like that control, actually. I like the fact that, you know, I didn't have to go through a gazillion levels of governance. I didn't have to present to the shareholders and the investment committee when I wanted to make a decision or invest in a business or, you know, create a new product or service.

15:48So I really love that kind of element of being able to just make a decision and get on with it. But it did come at a cost. You know, I was really in the beginning, I was stretched. You know, I often felt alone in my challenges, despite having the most amazing partner and husband in Chris, you know, and having a fabulous network around me. You know, there were still times when I felt quite lonely and overwhelmed, overwhelmed. overwhelm. And there was a time when I resisted hiring because I thought, well, no one can match my vision. But that could have cost me everything. It could have. But it was when I embraced leadership and, you know, built and built and leaned into the skills that I knew I had from all of my previous experience before.

16:35You know, I've had thousands of people on my teams in corporate. So I know the value of having the best team in the business. But when it's your own business when it's your own money and that you're investing it does feel different um and those choices that you make with people they tend to be a bit more personal I will say even though you know logically you shouldn't be getting over emotional about stuff when it's your baby it's hard not to so that's the reality you know but I really embraced I knew I needed to grow and I was becoming the blocker for growth so bringing in really smart people was the absolutely best thing that I actually did.

17:14And, you know, and then it allowed me to focus on the things that I was good at and to really get the joy back into what I was doing rather than just feeling like I was a hamster on a wheel all the time. You know, so it was a real lesson for me, you know, deciding to bring in the right resources. And not everyone's going to work out and that's okay. You know, so leadership, it doesn't mean you give up on your passion. It means you inspire others to share it with you. And that's so important, whatever you're doing, whether you're in a job, whether you're in the corporate world or in a larger business, or whether you're, you know, starting or scaling your own business, it's so important that, you know, you lead with passion, you love what you do.

17:57So, you know, I'd love to hear more from you, you know, so please contact us, put a comment if you're watching this on social media, if you're listening to this on the podcast you know are you solo or are you building a team or maybe you're somewhere in between you know what's been your biggest challenge or breakthrough let me know what advice you know would you give to someone struggling with this decision you know maybe actually you've got I'm sure you've got some great experience that you can absolutely do so you know please don't be shy leave us a comment in our social media feed if you're watching this on social media or listening to it if you're listening this on the podcast brave ball brilliant or our youtube channel again you know let's uh let's start a conversation and i will respond to you personally personally so that we can keep it real and share our experiences to help each other so thank you so much for spending time with me and if this conversation has helped you please like the video on YouTube, please subscribe to Brave Bold Brilliant on any podcast platform or the YouTube.

19:07Share it with someone who's on their entrepreneurial journey. And remember, entrepreneurship is a journey. It's not a destination. So whether you walk it alone or with a team, keep showing up with courage and heart. Be brave, be bold and always be brilliant. And I'll see you next time. I really hope you've enjoyed this episode of Brave Bold Brilliant. remember check out our new website www.brave-bold-brilliant.com you're going to find loads of resources on there that's going to help you with your leadership journey and with the businesses that you're trying to scale up and grow so take care everyone and remember there are no limits to your growth but it is by being brave and bold that you're going to unlock your brilliant