If there’s one thing I wish I’d known sooner, it’s this…
You don’t need a fancy website, a logo, or even a business plan to make your first money online. What you do need is a one-person business. Just you, your laptop and a few free tools.
You’ve probably heard that phrase ‘one-person business’ mentioned a lot lately but the concept has been around a long time. I run one, many of you run one and, especially now, it’s exactly what you should do to succeed and break out of any rut or difficult situation you might be in as well as to grow.
Here’s the simple way to set one up (or scale an existing one) this week:
1. Attract people (traffic)
The cheapest way to get attention? Social media. It’s free, and you don’t need video or design skills to start…just words.
Pick one place you’ll actually use:
- X (Twitter): https://twitter.com
- Threads: https://www.threads.net/
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/
Stuck on what to post? Try:
AnswerThePublic (https://answerthepublic.com/) – type in your topic and it shows you real questions people are asking online.
2. Collect emails (your safety net)
Social platforms come and go but your email list is yours forever.
Good beginner-friendly options:
- Beehiiv (free up to 2,500 subscribers): https://www.beehiiv.com/
- MailerLite (free up to 1,000 subscribers): https://www.mailerlite.com/free-plan
- Kit (free up to 10,000 subscribers): https://kit.com/
- AWeber (free up to 500 subscribers): https://www.aweber.com
Here’s a helpful guide on How to Start an Email List for Free: https://www.mailerlite.com/ultimate-guide-to-email-marketing/email-list
3. Take payments
You don’t need a complicated store, just a way to let people click buy.
- Gumroad: https://gumroad.com
- Payhip: https://payhip.com/
- Stan Store: https://stan.store/
- Buy Me a Coffee: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/
4. Save your ideas (because ideas mean income)
So many good ideas get lost because they’re scribbled on scraps of paper or stuck in our heads. Keep them in one place:
- Notion: https://www.notion.so/product
- Google Docs: https://docs.google.com/
- Evernote: https://evernote.com/
- Obsidian: https://obsidian.md/
Another good tutorial: How to Get Started In Notion (YouTube tutorial):
5. What to sell? Start tiny.
Don’t start with a 50-lesson course. Begin with something small that proves people will pay you.
A $10-$19 checklist, template, or short guide. Use Canva https://www.canva.com/ to create professional-looking printables.
A short eBook. Here’s a guide: How to Self-Publish an eBook on Amazon Kindle https://kdp.amazon.com/en_US/help/topic/G200635650
And one on how to write a short ebook fast:
A micro-service (like 4 coaching calls). Use Calendly https://calendly.com/ to schedule calls without back-and-forth emails.
6. Talk about it (promotion!)
Here’s where most people freeze. They create something but never mention it. Please don’t hide your work.
Simple promo plan:
- Post a tip or story daily (or close to it) on your chosen platform.
- End with: “If you’d like more, join my newsletter here.”
- In your weekly newsletter (like this one), mention your offer.
If selling feels scary, read:
How to Sell Without Being Pushy: https://blog.hubspot.com/sales/how-to-sell-without-being-pushy
A one-person business doesn’t mean staying small. It means starting smart. Once you’ve proven you can sell one thing, you can grow in any direction you like.
So this week, don’t overcomplicate it. Pick your platform, collect a few emails, sell one small thing. And tell people about it.
Your TED talk this week is called The Secret of How to Think Like an Entrepreneur by Amy Wilkinson…
