Stop Pretending To Be Something You're Not (and Start Being Who You Are)
A lesson from ice hockey merch.
The Solopreneur Stack helps solo-business people become (and remain) successful and sustainable through quick tips, in-depth guidance and personal experience stories. Become a paid subscriber for just £7 a month and unlock every article and resource in our archive.
At first, I had no idea the lady was talking to me.
We’d just gotten off the plane at Heathrow. We were tired, sweaty and still had another flight to catch before home was on the horizon.
I wasn’t in the mood to chat and my brain hadn’t yet kicked into gear.
“Better luck next year, huh?” she said.
“Um… yes?” I replied with a bewildered smile.
“Yeah, we’ll be back,” she agreed confidently.
Christine was suppressing a grin in the background. I still hadn’t figured out what was going on.
Finally, it hit me. The hat.
The lady frowned at me, and then grinned herself. “You’re not from Boston, are you?” she said.
I was wearing a Boston Bruins baseball cap, one I’d picked up during our trip to Canada earlier that month. It made a nice addition to my growing collection of bald-spot coverings. I’d only ever watched a few minutes of a Bruins game in my life.
The lady (presumably from Boston) and I both chuckled, and she went on her way. I was mildly embarrassed but too tired to really care. Christine, of course, thought it was hilarious.
Gotcha
I was well “caught out” that day, as we say here in Northern Ireland.
While I wasn’t pretending to be a Bruins supporter, strictly speaking, anyone who saw me wearing that black and yellow hat could justifiably have assumed I was a fan of the team. Why else would I be wearing it, unless I was just some weirdo who collected baseball caps?
That airport encounter taught me a valuable lesson, though.
It’s important to be honest about who we are, especially as solopreneurs. If we stick certain labels on ourselves, other people will assume we’re telling the truth. Why wouldn’t they, after all?
We should never claim to be something we’re not, or know something we don’t. We shouldn’t suggest - directly or otherwise - that we’re capable of doing something we’ve never done before.
I see this all the time. “Advice” content from solopreneurs and business owners that’s based entirely on what other people have done.
An article entitled ‘How to build a six-figure coaching business’ written by someone who makes low five-figures from a dozen clients.
A YouTube video about how to successfully market a novel made by someone who’s sold ten copies of their own book (to family members).
A podcast about building a 20,000-subscriber email list recorded by someone with 100 subs of their own.
And so on, and so forth.
Back it up
The point is, it’s a bad idea to offer advice to others that you can’t back up with personal experience. If you haven’t done it yourself, how can you help others do it?
The only viable alternative to that is creating content around what other people have done specifically. Identify someone who has built a six-figure coaching business and break down their process. Explain how that author sold a million copies of their book. Analyse how that solopreneur gained 20,000 email subscribers and share it with your own audience.
If you haven’t done it yourself, tell us how someone else has done it. Trust me, that approach is just as valuable.
And above all, be honest about where you are now in your own journey.
Don’t have a big audience yet? So what? Tell us how you plan to grow it.
Not making much from your solo business in your first year? Of course you aren’t! Share how you’re feeling, and others will relate to it.
Being you is enough
Don't claim to be something you're not as a solopreneur. It won’t help you in the long run.
Do you know what will? Building trust and credibility with your audience by talking openly and honestly about what you’re currently going through.
That’s how you develop a loyal following. That’s how you become a successful solopreneur with long-term stickability.
Oh, and be careful where you choose to wear your ice hockey merch.
You would think your point would be obvious to everyone, but clearly, it isn't.
I especially like the baseball cap story. Clever illustration!
Sage advice.