The Successful Solopreneur

The Beat the Odds Roadmap: Six Steps to Solopreneur Success Against All Odds

• Matthew Paetz • Season 2 • Episode 3

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What if the greatest obstacle to your success isn't market competition or lack of resources, but the voice inside your head that whispers "you're not enough"? After investing $100,000 of my inheritance in mentorship and receiving minimal financial return for over 18 months, I discovered a profound truth: success in solopreneurship isn't about forcing your business into someone else's strategy—it's about leveraging what you already possess.

The Beat the Odds Roadmap emerged from this costly lesson. This six-step framework begins with establishing crystal-clear direction (not vague goals like "becoming successful" but specific, measurable outcomes), then discovering your emotional "why" powerful enough to carry you through inevitable challenges. For me, this why transformed when my mother—who spent 50 years in work she hated—was diagnosed with cancer six months before retirement, making her final wish that I never abandon my dreams as she had done.

Your "unfair advantage" lies at the intersection of your natural gifts, specific goals, and available resources. Most solopreneurs discount their natural strengths because they come easily, assuming everyone possesses them. By mapping these elements, you create tangible proof you already have what's needed to succeed. Combined with an honest audit of your self-sabotage patterns and mastering the art of pitching (remember: your income directly correlates to pitches sent—success is math, not luck), you have everything required to become the solopreneur who beats the odds.

Ready to leverage what you already have to create a business aligned with your strengths and values? Join our seven-day "Unlock Your Unfair Advantage" mini-course in the show notes and discover how to build a business you're proud of without wasting years, money, and willpower forcing your unique gifts into someone else's template.

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IG: @matthewpaetz

Click Here to Unlock Your Unfair Advantage

Speaker 1:

Welcome back to the Successful Solopreneur Podcast. I am your host, matthew Pates, and today I want to talk about what it means to beat the odds. I'm sure by now you're very familiar with the chances of success in business and, specifically, solopreneurship. It is, hands down, one of the most difficult journeys anyone will ever take, because, in order for you to achieve your version of success, it means that you are going to have to consistently and I do mean daily confront the parts of yourself that make you feel insecure, confront the parts of yourself that doubt your abilities, the parts of you that feel like an imposter, the parts of you that continue to self-sabotage. No matter how much you want it, no matter the fact that you know better, you still struggle to do better, and this journey is going to be, and I believe solopreneurship is the greatest exercise and personal development that you'll ever encounter and personal development that you'll ever encounter Right, and you know the reason why people often struggle, and there are many nuances to this, but if we were to really look at it from a thousand foot perspective, the main reason why people struggle to succeed is their, their self-doubt, their belief that they are not good enough, smart enough, strong enough, connected enough, rich enough, young enough, old enough, whatever enough to build something that will become a success or create something that will be of value to others. And I can tell you firsthand that has been my journey and still is. I battle these insecurities of not being smart enough. I battle the shame from the mistakes that I have made and, in hindsight, looking back, every single quote, unquote failure that I have experienced I can track back to the lack of self-belief, the lack of confidence and self-assurance that I was operating from, and so much so that last year maybe a little more than that I had the blessing after my mother passed. She left life insurance policy and in her final gift she left me a hundred grand and it was the most money that I'd ever had at one time and I was committed to making sure that I use this money in a way that not only I would be proud, but that would honor the life of my mother, and in doing so I and in doing so I chose to invest that money in mentorship and hiring team to do the things.

Speaker 1:

That 18 months I invested almost all of that money, and to little or no return, financially speaking, for the majority of that time. Only recently have I started to really apply the lessons and see the successes and start to develop a program, which is why I'm even here starting the show and sharing this stuff with you, because when I look back at those 18 months, you know I see a man that had all the ability, he had the wisdom, he had the understanding, but he lacked the self-belief, the confidence and conviction, uh, that he was enough to be able to do this, so that he was worthy to uh, guide others, uh, and help them do the same. And you know, one of the things that you know a lot of that money went towards was, you know, ads and marketing and all this kind of stuff which, if I'm being very honest, I fucking hate. Online marketing, I hate social media marketing I really really do but I also say that with respect to its power and its importance, I understand that marketing is obviously non-negotiable if you're ever going to create a business that is profitable and something that you and your family can depend on.

Speaker 1:

But the ways in which I was learning how to market, I really struggled with. You know a lot of the social media strategy specifically, and you know, when I look back at the, you know a lot of the social media strategy specifically, and you know, when I look back at the you know previous, you know seven or eight years that I've been coaching full time, I had to figure out, like, what was it that allowed me to create a business that I could, you know, do full time? And, although it wasn't as successful as I had wanted it to be, for the majority of those years I was able to, you know, to do this full time, which was a huge success. And the truth was I did not do it through marketing, you know, not in the sense of, you know, ads and posting on social media all the time and all this kind of stuff, but how I was able to achieve stability and start to really grow and also build credibility was through collaborations and was through partnerships and using my skills and my expertise to help other coaches improve their programs, help them get their clients more results.

Speaker 1:

As, like I said, my background is in transformative, transformational psychology and, you know, being able to help people overcome the limiting beliefs and the self-doubts and all the stuff that I'm talking about right now that I've been through so that they, too, could achieve more success in these other programs, was kind of my sweet spot and in this process, I started to really extract a framework in one that aligned with me, one that really felt like a fuck yes, instead of a, I'm trying to force my thing into someone else's strategy. Um, and what I came up with is, uh, not just uh, a mirror or a reflection of how I was able to, uh, build a sustainable business, but now has become the literal foundation to what I am sharing with my clients and helping them achieve results that they never had, using exactly what they have, Nothing more Right. So how we're going to talk about beating the odds is really understanding how to leverage what you currently have, because I promise you, no matter what your circumstance, what it is that you want to accomplish, you have everything you absolutely need to begin creating a business that you and your family can depend on, that you can be proud of and I'm not talking about quick fixes or jumping from zero to 100k. You know, in three months, right, the results may vary, but the way in which you can create something successful you're proud of, without wasting a ton of years, a ton of money and a ton of energy and willpower a ton of money and a ton of energy and willpower trying to figure out how to force your thing into someone else's strategy. So what are those six steps? I call this the beat the odds roadmap, and the main odds that we're going to beat are the self-deprecation right, the odds of overcoming your limiting beliefs, your self-doubts, your insecurities right. Those are the things that we ultimately want to beat in order for you to become your version of success, your definition of success, and to do that, the beat the odds roadmap, like I said, comes down to these six steps.

Speaker 1:

So the first one is direction right, and if you have the opportunity, I encourage you to write this stuff down right. But step number one is direction, otherwise known as a clear and specific goal. And I do mean specific right, because most of us have goals right, but if you actually pay attention to the language that you use there, it's very vague. Right, you want to become successful, you want to become healthier, you want to become a great partner, a great husband, a great parent, a great wife, a great mother all the things right, and that's enough to satisfy most conversations you'll have with other people. Right? But the truth is those goals are not specific enough to move the needle right, because what does success actually mean? What does it look like, right? What does becoming a great husband actually mean to you, right? Not to someone else, but to you. So, when you think about this, I want you to get clear and specific on the one goal and I do mean one that you have.

Speaker 1:

Let me put it this way. Let me ask you this in a question what is the one specific goal you would need to accomplish in your business by the end of this year in order for you to feel like a success? Whatever came up for you, that's the goal I want you to start with. So what is the one goal you would have to achieve by the end of this year in order to feel like a success? That goal is now your direction. It's your North Star. So, number one direction.

Speaker 1:

Number two your why. You've probably heard this a lot, and if you haven't, then've probably heard this a lot, and if you haven't, then buckle up, because this is everything right. So your why? What is the reason you're doing this? What is that underlying motivation that is strong enough that you will face whatever challenges, whatever insecurities, whatever struggles or failures you inevitably are going to experience on this journey, right? What is the why. That's strong enough that you won't quit. Right?

Speaker 1:

And there's an exercise I use with my clients to get to the why. Right, and it's as simple as this. It's just simply starting with that goal that you just came up with and then asking yourself why is that so important? And then, whatever comes through when you answer that, ask yourself why is that so important? And then something's going to come up for you and then we're going to continue to ask yourself why is that answer so important to you? And we do this five times right? Literally five. What? And sometimes it doesn't even take five to get there, but somewhere between the third and the fifth, why is that so important to you? Important to you, it's going to become emotional, right? You are going to feel something, you know in your chest, in your gut, that really fucking matters, and that's what we're looking for, right? So what is that why? You know, for me, the why has evolved. It started out with me because I wanted to prove to myself and to my, to my family, that I was capable. I wanted to prove to others that I could do it and I wanted to prove I could do it my way. Proving it was extremely important. It still is to me Right.

Speaker 1:

But if you've been listening to the show, you've heard me share the story about my mother's passing and specifically, the conversations we had in her final weeks, where she shared her regrets and how she worked 50 years in a job that she hated, although she took care of us and, you know, is honorable. You know it wasn't work that inspired her. It wasn't work that inspired her. It wasn't work that felt meaningful to her, um, and her whole goal, like many people of her generation and before and even of our generation, was to, you know, when she got to her retirement, then she would go live the life that she ultimately wanted to live, and it was six months prior to her retirement date literal date that she was diagnosed with cancer stage four. So she spent the years that she thought was going to be used and lived for her on her terms, fighting cancer and certainly not the way that she planned that time. And it was the final weeks where she was sharing with me. You know she didn't have many, but there was a few regrets that she carried as she reflected back on her life, and they were that she didn't pursue the things that she wanted out of fear of other people's opinions and out of fear that she wasn't good enough to become successful at those things. And you know, it was one of her final wishes for me to never give up on my dreams, never give up on what I'm passionate about and do whatever the it takes to see it through, just like she did with raising my sister and I. And that has become my why, because life is too short and too precious to spend it doing work you hate. That's the why.

Speaker 1:

I could spend multiple episodes on just this topic, but let's get back to the six steps to beating the odds. So one is direction, that clear goal. Two is the why what is the purpose? That's what your why is. It's the purpose and what you and why you're pursuing this goal, why you're going to become a successful solopreneur. And then number three. Number three is defining your unfair advantage. This is the whole crux of what it is that I teach. It's getting clear on what your unfair advantage is, and we'll record episodes where I break down this specifically.

Speaker 1:

But essentially, what I want you to do is think of a Venn diagram three circles, and essentially, where they overlap is going to be your unfair advantage. The first circle on the top. If you think about it in like a triangle the top circle you're going to write down your goal that clear, specific goal you just came up with a few minutes ago possible to identify the characteristics, the experiences, the tools, strategies, resources, gifts, all the things that will help you improve your chances of success at achieving that goal. If you don't have a goal, the goal sets the tone, sets the foundation for you to be able to begin to recognize and identify what characteristics, attributes and resources you currently have. That will help increase your chances of success. So we must start with a clear, specific goal. That's why it's number one on these six.

Speaker 1:

And then, if you think about the circle on this Venn diagram in the bottom left, what I would have you write down there is I want you to be unapologetically honest with yourself about this, right. I want you to get clear on what are your gifts, your God given gifts, the things that come so naturally to you that it almost feels awkward that you're good at it. Right, you almost. You often may discredit this because it because this, because it becomes so natural to you, because a lot of us feel that our gifts are. We struggle with so many things all of us do that we think the things that come so easy to us must be easy to everyone else, because, my goodness, if I can do it, it must be easy for them. But that's just simply not the truth. The mass majority of people you'll ever encounter cannot do what you do as well as you do it the things that come naturally to you. So, in that bottom left circle, you're going to write down your God-given gifts. I encourage you to do it in bullet point fashion for clarity.

Speaker 1:

I want you to write down your talents. Gifts and talents often go hand in hand, but however you like to look at that. And then I want you to write down your skills. What are the unique and specific skills that you currently possess, right, that are of value to other people? And if you're struggling to identify what this is, what are you already getting paid to do? What are the skills that keep you employed? Right, and I want you to do this without judgment or criticism. There's no skill that is too small, right? This isn't about being impressive. This is about being clear and honest with yourself. What are your skills, right?

Speaker 1:

And then the last circle, the one down in the bottom right, this Venn diagram, I would have you begin to identify specifically what are the resources you currently have Money, time, social media, email lists, all number of things we could work through. Right, but what are the resources you currently have and the relationships you have that would increase your chances of success towards that goal? Right, and this is about writing down people that you know you can use or take advantage of. Right, no, no, no, no, no. This is about identifying the people who you could collaborate with. Right, because they may have the resources that you don't, but you share the same common mission.

Speaker 1:

Right, when I first began coaching, you know my background is in and the trauma space, um, helping people, uh, overcome, you know, their deepest and darkest traumas in their life, and you know that was my specialty, still is, but what I sucked at was marketing and building a business. So who I collabed with were business coaches. Right, where I came in and operated as as what we call their chief success officer and helping their clients overcome their personal struggles, doubts, insecurities, traumas, to unlock their potential, so that they could utilize and leverage the things that the business coach was teaching more effectively. Right, so it's identifying who you can collab with, not who you take advantage of. That's a very, very big, key distinction, because a lot of us feel weird reaching out to people and initiating these conversations or these ideas because we fear as if you know, you know they're it's going to feel like I'm asking for a favor, right, but that's not what this is about. That's not how we do it at the successful solopreneur. So I digress your unfair advantage. Get clear on your specific goal. Identify God-given talents, skills and then your resources and relationships. Right, and it's not just what you have, but it's what you have access to, right. I want you to think about that. It's what you have access to, right. So that's number three.

Speaker 1:

Number four is what I call your honest audit. Right, this is where you're going to become uncomfortably clear with your patterns of self-sabotage. What are the habits and the behaviors that are consistently getting in the way of your potential, that are consistently getting in the way of your goals, your promises, your dreams? We all have them. I certainly still do Right, but we want to get uncomfortably clear with how you sabotage Right. What are the things you do to avoid the things that scare you, that are uncomfortable, that you don't want to do? Right? You know, procrastination is a big one. Uh, perfection, perfectionism is a big one. Um, social media, pornography, drinking um, drugs, social media, pornography, drinking drugs, shitty foods right Binge watching television these are all forms of self-sabotage if these behaviors are getting in the way of what you know you should be doing in order to create the success that you ultimately deserve, right? So it's about the relationship we have with these things, not whether or not we do them right. So, again, we'll have further episodes where I deep dive into self-sabotage. But number four is an honest audit how do you self-sabotage? Right? So that we can create a game plan to, um, begin avoiding and potentially overcoming those patterns. And then, number five this is a big one, they all are.

Speaker 1:

But number five is that this is literally the key to your opportunities. I don't give a shit who you are, where you're from, what your circumstances are. Where you're from, what your circumstances are, it comes down to your pitch. Learning how to pitch to people that you can collaborate with is everything Right? And this is one of the big things that I'm going to teach you.

Speaker 1:

Inside of the solopreneur, the successful solopreneur is how to pitch specific frameworks that we use in order to present our offer, our interest in a way that the other person gets excited. Right Wants to contribute, wants to be a part of, wants to be included in the mission, right. So we'll go through that in specific detail later. Or if you join the seven day mini course, the unfair unlock, your unfair advantage mini course, in the show notes I'll walk you through and give you the frameworks for all that stuff in that course. So number five is pitch, and the key here is pitching, is practice.

Speaker 1:

Your income and your opportunities are directly tied to the amount of pitches you send Hard stop, literal hard stop. The more pitches you send, the more shots on goal you take right, the more likely you are to succeed. Period Right. It's a numbers game. Success is math, not luck. And then number six is really what we all are here to do, and number six is once we've applied the previous five is then you become the one who beats the odds, you become the successful solopreneur, you are living your definition of success. So to say that quickly, the beat the odds roadmap.

Speaker 1:

The six steps First is your direction, your clear, specific goal. Number two is your why, which is the purpose and why you're doing all of this in the first place, right. Number three is your unfair advantage. This tackles your limiting beliefs. It is proof on paper that you have what it takes right, and then learning how to leverage those things. Number four is your honest audit. That's where you get clear on the specific ways that you get in the way of your own success, your self-sabotage.

Speaker 1:

Number five pitch Creating pitches that inspire people to join you, that inspire them to contribute to the mission and want to collaborate with you. And then number six is becoming the one who beats the odds, becoming the successful solopreneur. So I hope all of this tracks. If you're still with me, I'd say I appreciate it. You are spending your most valuable resource with me right now, which is your time, and for that I am forever grateful and honored, and my intention is to continue to build this relationship and help you achieve your definition of success and what it means to become the successful solopreneur. So, until the next episodes, I hope you have a powerful day and I'll see you on the other side of your definition of success. Take care.