277: Design your one-person service-based business with Ellen Donnelly, The Ask

You've built a strong profile and reputation in the marketplace - you're a recognised domain expert and/or bona fide thought leader in your field.

Now, how are you going to capitalise on all your hard work? You don't want to work for anyone else, but nor do you want to run a large business and employ stacks of people.

What's the answer?

Establish and grow your own one-person service-based business!

The brilliant thing today is it's never been easier to start a business.

And here's the kicker: one-person enterprises need not remain tiny revenue-wise, with the owner/operator eking out a small income. Thanks to technology, support services ecosystems and removal of geographic barriers, many one-person service-based businesses can become wildly profitable despite not having an office and staff.

The key is to design such a business around yourself.

Or, as my guest for this episode likes to say:

"I believe that designing a one-person business around yourself is the answer to finding work that lights you up, lets you reach your earning potential and can be done entirely on your own terms."

London-based Ellen Donnelly runs a coaching business called The Ask, which specialises in helping entrepreneurial professionals turn their expertise into a profitable one person business in five months.

Ellen recently published a 5-step guide on this very topic (access your copy here) - it's designed to help you package up what you know into a marketable service that clients will pay you for, again and again.

In this episode, Ellen walks us through (and elaborates on) the five steps of her guide.

Some key talking points covered in this conversation include:

• Ellen shares her journey from headhunting tech talent in corporate London to running a thriving business coaching practice called 'The Ask.'
• Ellen unpacks what she calls 'Your Unique Contribution: this is the truest expression of the work you were put on this earth to do and is an underrated business- building strategy.
• Defining Uniqueness: Tips on how to define what sets you apart in terms of abilities, personality traits or life experiences which shapes how you conduct business differently than anyone else even within similar industries.
• Articulating uniqueness effectively: Challenges faced while articulating our inherent uniqueness into marketable packages due to overlooking obvious aspects about ourselves thinking they're too simple.
• Personal authenticity and audience resonance: Importance of identifying what resonates with your audience while staying true to yourself is emphasised upon.
• Overcoming comparison trap and indecision: Strategies shared on overcoming comparison with others and focusing on what suits them best when deciding the type of work they want to do based on their insights.
• Promotion platforms and niche selection : Discussion around numerous options available for marketing efforts such as podcasting or other platforms and challenges in niche selection.

This is a deep-dive chat about designing a one-person service-based business around yourself. If this sounds like you, I'm confident you'll find the conversation relevant and illuminating!

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