Why Being A Sole Entrepreneur is The Loneliest Profession
Contributed by SBOC Member:
Pat Miller
Founder of the Small Business Owners Community
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The Technology That Changed Everything
Have you seen the drones following skiers at the 2026 Winter Olympics?
It’s the coolest TV technology since the first down line in football.
Before the drones, you watched skiing from the side or head-on. You could see the skiers were going fast. You could tell it was athletic. But you didn’t really understand.
Now there’s a drone going 70 miles per hour behind each skier, following them down the mountain. And suddenly you see how steep that hill actually is. You see them going from way over here to way over there in fractions of a second.
It changed how you watch skiing. It changed what you understand about the sport.
What Small Business Owners Wish People Could See
This is what small business owners need.
We need a drone that follows us around all day so our families and friends can finally understand what we actually do. What it actually takes.
They think we have “a job.” They think we’re “building a company.” Isn’t that cute.
If they could see what we see:
- Walking into a networking room and having to approach strangers over and over, day after day, room after room
- Sitting on a Zoom asking someone to give us more money than a new car costs
- Dealing with an angry customer who threatens to leave
- Signing an SBA loan worth more than our house
- Pitching a client, asking for more per hour than lawyers make
Normal people have no perspective how hard this is. They have no idea how fast we’re moving, the risks we’re taking, the guts it requires to build our own small business.
The Loneliest Profession
They say the loneliest profession in the world is being a small business owner.
It’s true.
Nobody else really gets it. Your spouse might be supportive, but they don’t fully understand the weight of payroll. Your friends might be impressed, but they don’t feel the terror of a quiet sales month.
If we had a drone filming our average day, they’d be in awe. They’d finally understand the bravery, the tenacity, the sheer hard work it takes.
I See You
Since we don’t have drones following small business owners around yet, let me be clear:
I see you.
I see how you’re turning risk into reward. I see the courage it takes to wake up every day and bet on yourself. I see the sacrifices and the stress and the late nights.
And I salute you.
Keep going. Ski on.
Key Takeaways
- Olympic ski drones changed how viewers understand the difficulty of skiing
- Small business owners wish someone could see how hard entrepreneurship really is
- Family and friends often underestimate the courage and risk involved
- Being a small business owner is called “the loneliest profession” for good reason
- You deserve recognition for the risks you take daily
Listen to the full discussion on Businessing with Pat Miller.
Don’t Grow It Alone®
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Contributed by
Pat Miller
Founder of the Small Business Owners Community
Pat spent two decades in broadcasting management and hosting. After leaving the radio industry, he spent time consulting small businesses and realized the support system for entrepreneurs was broken. Where could you find help for improving small businesses and building real connections with other like-minded people. In June of 2020, the Idea Collective Small Business Community was born.