Sometimes finding and working with a single customer, then adding another, and then another, is a very useful and solid way to begin. And sometimes that can even be the end goal — one where your focus is on the relationship and the paid work at hand. Sometimes the best plan is focused on your current customers’ success, not on chasing leads and

While it may seem counterintuitive to focus your marketing and trust-building efforts on a small and specific group of people, there are benefits to doing so. The more specific you are with who your products or services are for, the more you can build trust with that particular audience. The paradox of focusing on a niche is that the more specific

So a company of one is not anti-growth, or anti-revenue, and it’s not just a one-person business either (although it certainly can be). It’s also not just working with a tech-focused or startup mind-set, although leaning on technology, automation, and the connectedness of the internet definitely makes it easier to be a company of one. A company of

In studying how trust is built between companies and consumers, Urban has found that there are three aspects of trust: confidence (“I believe what you say”), competence (“I believe you have the skills to do what you say”), and benevolence (“I believe you’re acting on my behalf”).

Ego is the final reason most companies want to grow. It’s also the trickiest, because it’s harder to overcome. As a society, we give people more clout and respect if they own a large company, so building one is a desirable goal. Many of us dream of being in charge of a large company but fail to look at the bigger picture and think about the impact

Kate showed the company that the number of renewing customers was a far more important metric for success (and far cheaper) than the number of new customers acquired. Magazines.com also changed its home-page messaging in order to speak to existing customers, added more renewal offers, and improved customer support for paid users.

For myself, I happen to like choices. I like that I can choose to make less money by saying no to a project or a client or a customer I don’t think is a good fit for me. I like that I can choose to unplug for three months at a time and go on camping road trips across American deserts with my wife.

As a society, we’re gradually starting to view “work” not as a single place of employment, but as a series of engagements or projects.

“start small, define growth, and keep learning.”