Shows / The Life-First Solopreneur
The Life-First Solopreneur
You didn't become a solopreneur to build a business that runs your life. You did it so your business could serve it. The Life-First Solopreneur is the twice-weekly podcast at the heart of the Life-First Movement. It's for solopreneurs who believe the business should be designed around life, not the other way around. Hosts Joe Rando and Carly Ries, co-authors of Solopreneur Business for Dummies, sit down each week with solopreneurs who are building Life-First Businesses and experts who are…
Episodes
The Life-First SolopreneurBack By Popular Demand: Is Your Life-First Business Just Lazy Solopreneurship in Disguise?
We had such a big response to this episode, we thought we'd bring it back! Does choosing a life-first solo business mean you're lazy? Carly and Joe say…
- The Life-First Solopreneur
The Worst Sales Advice Solopreneurs Keep Following
What if the content you’re already writing could close clients for you, no sales calls required? In this episode of the Life-First Solopreneur, Carly sits down…
- The Life-First Solopreneur
Do We Practice What We Preach? A Solopreneur Reality Check
Do Joe and Carly actually run life-first businesses, or do they just talk about it? After a community member asked that exact question, the hosts of The…
- The Life-First Solopreneur
The 4 Step Authority Formula Every Solopreneur Needs
Feeling stuck on the content treadmill? You’re not alone, and according to George Wright III, more content isn’t the answer. Authority is. George is the…
The Life-First Solopreneur[Re-Release] Commitments vs. Communication: The Mindset Shift Every Solopreneur Needs
In light of our LifeStarr Academy and Lifestarr App launches, we thought we'd re-release a very relevant conversation. Enjoy! Ever open your inbox on a Monday…
- The Life-First Solopreneur
What to Automate and What to Keep Human in Your Solopreneurship
Spending five or more hours a month on invoicing makes you nearly three times more likely to face cash flow problems. That’s just one of the eye-opening stats…
- The Life-First Solopreneur
Flying Solo Without Being Alone: Our Journey Serving Solopreneurs
Ever wonder what really goes on behind the scenes of a business built for solopreneurs? In this episode, Joe Rando and Carly Ries pull back the curtain on the…
- The Life-First Solopreneur
Sales Without the Sleaze for Solopreneurs Who Hate Selling
If the idea of selling makes you want to crawl under your desk, this episode is for you. Nicole Cramer spent 15 years as a high school math teacher before…
The Life-First SolopreneurBack By Popular Demand: The Life-First Solopreneur Manifesto
You left corporate to gain freedom, so why does your business feel like the most demanding boss you've ever had? In this episode, Joe walks Carly through the…
- The Life-First Solopreneur
Why Most Solopreneurs Are Doing PR Completely Backwards
Most solopreneurs think PR means getting into Forbes. PR strategist Haley Raymond says that belief is exactly why so much publicity effort goes nowhere. In…
The Life-First SolopreneurEncore! Why Your Solo Business Isn't Giving You the Life You Wanted (And How to Fix It)
A re-release of a popular episode from earlier this year! If your solopreneur business feels like it's running you instead of the other way around, you've…
- The Life-First Solopreneur
The AI Agent Team Every Solopreneur Wishes They Had (And How To Build It)
What if your AI actually sounded like you? In this episode of The Life-First Solopreneur, our AI go-to guy, George B. Thomas of Sidekick Strategies, shows…
The Life-First SolopreneurFrom The Vault: Life First. Then Business. Here's What That Actually Means For Solopreneurs.
In this episode, Joe Rando and Carly Ries officially draw a line in the sand. After nearly 300 episodes and hundreds of conversations with solopreneurs, they…
- The Life-First Solopreneur
A Solopreneur's Case Against Trendy Marketing
Tired of being told you need to post three times a day to grow your business? This episode is your permission slip to stop. Carly and Joe sit down with Polly…
- The Life-First Solopreneur
How Smart Solopreneurs Choose Who to Work With
Signing the wrong client can mean months, or years, of stress, churn, and heartburn. In this episode, Carly and Joe break down how to vet clients and…
- The Life-First Solopreneur
The Solopreneur's Guide to Hiring Your First VA Without the Panic
Think being a solopreneur means doing everything yourself? Think again. In this episode, we sit down with Rachael Davila, a virtual assistant since 2005 and…
- The Life-First Solopreneur
The Solopreneur's Guide to Breaking Up With a Bad Client
Every solopreneur eventually meets the client who pays the bills but crushes the soul. The one who calls at odd hours, ignores your boundaries, pays late, and…
- The Life-First Solopreneur
What Solopreneurs Should Stop Copying From Big Brands
Warren Kornblum spent decades inside some of the biggest brands in retail, including Toys R Us across 27 countries, and he is convinced the solopreneur holds…
The Life-First Solopreneur[Re-Release] How to Get Leads Without Social Media (For Solopreneurs Who Hate Posting)
You've been told you need to become a full-time content creator to grow your business. Post every day. Fight the algorithm. Do the newest TikTok dance. But…
The Life-First Solopreneur[Re-Release] The Pricing Strategy That Doubled This Solopreneur's Income in Year One
Are you stuck in the hourly billing trap, racing against the clock while your clients pressure you to go faster, cheaper, and more? In this episode, Jonathan…
- The Life-First Solopreneur
The Rate Increase Conversation Every Solopreneur Dreads
Raising your rates can feel downright terrifying, even when you know deep down that you are worth it. In this episode, Carly shares the very personal story of…
- The Life-First Solopreneur
The AI Trap Many Solopreneurs Walk Into Without Noticing
Are you using AI to sharpen your thinking or to slowly dull it? In this episode, Carly Ries and Joe Rando sit down with Johan Roos, creator of Lego Serious…
- The Life-First Solopreneur
Solopreneurs, Your GPS Needs a Destination First
Do you need a mission statement as a solopreneur? Carly and Joe finally found something they disagree on, and it turns into one of the most useful…
- The Life-First Solopreneur
Why This Solopreneur Refuses to Scale (And You Might Want To Also)
What if you could build a business that supports your life instead of consuming it? In this episode of The Life-First Solopreneur, Carly and Joe sit down with…
The Life-First Solopreneur[Re-Release] Ditch the 9-to-5 Mindset: How Solopreneurs Should Really Structure Their Day
You left your 9-to-5 for freedom, so why does your calendar still run your life? In this episode of The Life-First Solopreneur, Carly and Joe tackle a habit…
- The Life-First Solopreneur
The Dating App Psychology Every Solopreneur Should Steal
What does swiping right on a dating app have to do with growing your business? A lot more than you think. In this episode, Carly and Joe sit down with Colin…
- The Life-First Solopreneur
The Solopreneur's Secret Envy Problem
Carly scrolls LinkedIn and sees a friend announcing new funding and a tenth hire. The comments are exploding. Carly feels a pang of envy, then realizes…
- The Life-First Solopreneur
Busy Is an Illusion, and Other Truths Every Solopreneur Needs to Hear
You are the product. So why are you the last thing on your own to do list? Daffney Allwein has spent 20 years working with over 700 CEOs, executives, and high…
- The Life-First Solopreneur
Is Your Life-First Business Just Lazy Solopreneurship in Disguise?
Does choosing a life-first solo business mean you're lazy? Carly and Joe say absolutely not, and in this episode they explain why. They dig into where the lazy…
- The Life-First Solopreneur
Solopreneurship Starts With One Question: What Do You Really Stand For?
What do you really stand for, and how could knowing the answer transform your business? In this episode of The Life-First Solopreneur, Carly and Joe sit down…
- The Life-First Solopreneur
The Shutdown Ritual Every Solopreneur Needs
Do you struggle to shut your brain off at the end of the workday? If you're a solopreneur working from home, you know the feeling...the laptop closes, but the…
- The Life-First Solopreneur
Solopreneurs, Stop Chasing Work-Life Balance And Chase This Instead
What if the goal was never balance, but harmony? In this episode, Carly and Joe sit down with Dan Scott, founder of Spotlight Advisory Group, a former big-firm…
- The Life-First Solopreneur
Stop Benchmarking Your Solo Business Against Someone Else's Highlight Reel
You're having a great week. Clients are happy, work is steady, and you took the afternoon off. Then you open your feed and see another solopreneur bragging…
- The Life-First Solopreneur
The 3-Step System That Buys Back 50 Hours a Month for Solopreneurs
Most solopreneurs think delegation is something you earn after hitting a revenue milestone. Claire Giovino, co-founder and CEO of 50hrs.com, says that belief…
- The Life-First Solopreneur
The Counterintuitive Key to a Life-First Solopreneur Business
We obsess over income minimums (rent, bills, the baseline we need to survive) but treat the top end as infinite. In this episode, Carly and Joe challenge the…
- The Life-First Solopreneur
Why Betting On Yourself Is the Safest Career Move Now
Is your corporate job really safer than going solo? Hooman Radfar, co-founder of Collective and an early investor in Uber, SpaceX, Stripe, and OpenAI, argues…
- The Life-First Solopreneur
Work-From-Home Boundaries For Solopreneurs
Working from home blurs the line between "on the clock" and "off." In this episode, Carly and Joe dig into why work-life harmony still requires firm…
- The Life-First Solopreneur
The Clarity Problem Killing Solopreneur Search Rankings
Most service-based solopreneurs think they have a keyword problem. According to SEO and AI search specialist Julia Bocchese, what they actually have is a…
- The Life-First Solopreneur
The Life-First Solopreneur Manifesto
You left corporate to gain freedom, so why does your business feel like the most demanding boss you've ever had? In this episode, Joe walks Carly through the…
- The Life-First Solopreneur
How She Made $100K in Her First 90 Days as a Coach
Andrea Engstrom did $2 million in sales for someone else before she ever bet on herself. When she finally launched her own coaching program, she generated over…
- The Life-First Solopreneur
Why Solopreneur Vacations Feel Impossible and How to Fix That
Think you can't take a real vacation as a solopreneur? Carly and Joe are calling it what it is: a design flaw, not a workload problem. In this episode, they…
- The Life-First Solopreneur
How Solopreneurs Get Seen Without a Team or a Budget
What would you do with 90 days, $100, and zero credibility? Personal branding expert Alejandro Sanoja says forget everything else, go on a podcast tour. In…
- The Life-First Solopreneur
How A Solopreneur Can Set Client Boundaries Without Sounding Like a Jerk
Setting boundaries is one thing. Setting them without feeling like a jerk is another. In this follow-up to their popular boundary-setting episode, Carly and…
- The Life-First Solopreneur
How One Talk Can Generate Opportunities for 15 Years with Ashley Stahl
Ashley Stahl, career strategist, founder of Wise Whisper Agency, and speaker of one of the most-watched TED Talks of all time, joins the show to break down…
- The Life-First Solopreneur
Commitments vs. Communication: The Mindset Shift Every Solopreneur Needs
Ever open your inbox on a Monday morning, spend two hours responding to everything, and realize you haven't actually moved your business forward? You're not…
- The Life-First Solopreneur
The Hidden Cost of Not Trademarking Your Solo Business Name
Think forming an LLC protects your business name? Think again. In this episode of The Aspiring Solopreneur, trademark attorney Joey Vitale, founder of Indie…
- The Life-First Solopreneur
Why Saying Yes Is Costing You the Solo Life You Designed
This episode tackles one of the biggest struggles solopreneurs face: the guilt that comes with saying no. Carly and Joe dig into why so many solopreneurs feel…
- The Life-First Solopreneur
How to Build a Solo Business Without Losing Your Peace in the Process
Alyssa Rogers is a certified life coach, burnout coach, military wife, and mom who is building her coaching business while still working a 9-to-5. After losing…
- The Life-First Solopreneur
Ditch the 9-to-5 Mindset: How Solopreneurs Should Really Structure Their Day
You left your 9-to-5 for freedom, so why does your calendar still run your life? In this episode of The Aspiring Solopreneur, Carly and Joe tackle a habit most…
- The Life-First Solopreneur
Why Your 40s and 50s May Be the Best Time To Become A Solopreneur
He was fired from 39% of his entertainment industry jobs. Then he turned serial failure into a superpower. John Tarnoff spent decades as a Hollywood studio…
- The Life-First Solopreneur
The Life-First Business Framework: Pricing, Clients & Freedom
Most solopreneurs think their biggest problem is getting more clients. But what if the real issue is that you built the wrong business in the first place? In…
- The Life-First Solopreneur
Stop Avoiding Your Numbers: Financial Confidence for Solopreneurs
Most solopreneurs got into business to chase a passion, not to crunch numbers. But avoiding your financial data is one of the fastest ways to stay stuck…
- The Life-First Solopreneur
Why Your Solo Business Isn't Giving You the Life You Wanted (And How to Fix It)
If your solopreneur business feels like it's running you instead of the other way around, you've fallen into the Ownership Trap. In this episode, Carly and Joe…
- The Life-First Solopreneur
Stop Overpaying Taxes: The Real Rules for Location-Independent Solopreneurs
Most solopreneurs spend zero time thinking about taxes until April 14th. Bobby Casey has spent decades thinking about almost nothing else, for his own…
- The Life-First Solopreneur
Life First. Then Business. Here's What That Actually Means For Solopreneurs.
In this episode, Joe Rando and Carly Ries officially draw a line in the sand. After nearly 300 episodes and hundreds of conversations with solopreneurs, they…
- The Life-First Solopreneur
You Still Have to Run the Business: The Truth About AI for Solopreneurs
Most solopreneurs think AI is the answer to their chaos. It isn't. It's an amplifier. And if what it's amplifying is a broken system, a vague product, or a…
The Life-First Solopreneur[Re-Release] The Psychology Behind Pricing For Solopreneurs That Actually Converts
If you’re a solopreneur wondering “Am I charging enough?” or feeling awkward about raising your prices, this episode is for you. In this episode, Carly Ries…
- The Life-First Solopreneur
The Pricing Strategy That Doubled This Solopreneur's Income in Year One
Are you stuck in the hourly billing trap, racing against the clock while your clients pressure you to go faster, cheaper, and more? In this episode, Jonathan…
- The Life-First Solopreneur
How to Get Leads Without Social Media (For Solopreneurs Who Hate Posting)
You've been told you need to become a full-time content creator to grow your business. Post every day. Fight the algorithm. Do the newest TikTok dance. But…
- The Life-First Solopreneur
Your Phone Is Sabotaging Your Solopreneur Success (Here's the Fix)
Are you grinding 18-hour days and still feeling like you're falling behind? The problem might not be your work ethic, it might be the device in your pocket. In…