Last week, Austin Kleon announced pre-orders for his newest book, Don’t Call It Art.

Which

A) thrilled me, since I’m a big fan,

B) gave me a great reminder to visit these two classics: 

And C) added fuel to a persistent theme I’ve been thinking about a lot lately as a business owner, which is the need to create space for creative curiosities. 

These are the kinds of ideas that might not earn the most money, nor directly lead to the most growth.

(And for those reasons, they often get shelved - or never built - in favor of more logical priorities.)

But here’s the thing:

I’ve found that removing all of those sparks and that novelty from my to-do list tends to leave me feeling totally unmotivated about my work. And if I do it for too long, it can lead to a solopreneur slump, where I feel uninspired and a bit blah about my business. 

On the other hand, when I pursue a creative curiosity - like a new type of YouTube narrative video, or a fresh addition/change to a program - I feel energized and proud of my work.

And even when that new type of work is quite challenging, it still boosts a sense of motivation that doesn’t feel forced, and which often carries to other types of tasks on my to-do list. 

So over the last several months, I’ve been trying to make room for more of those creative ideas.

And this month, a new idea sparked, and I’ve decided to ignite it.

Lately, I’ve been thinking about what makes my approach different from my competitors.

Because initially, my expertise stemmed from my former full-time senior leadership roles with Ramit Sethi and Teachable.

And after that, my authority rose as Wit & Wire grew past the $1M revenue mark (lifetime, not annually). 

But while I’m proud of my own success, I don’t think my way is the sole “right” or “best” way to build a business. 

And I wouldn’t recommend that every business owner should do exactly what I did if they want to be successful.

Our strengths are all unique. Our goals are all different.

And we all have powerful perspectives on what’s working right now in the online business space. 

In fact, I’ve seen that firsthand with my closest client circles. They use platforms and strategies I don’t use, and can help each other in ways I couldn’t alone.

And I see that as the program’s biggest strength, not my own weakness. 

I curate the group and am lucky enough to bring exceptional people together.

And I think our collective insights and experiences are what make all of our businesses better.

(Mine included.)

In Steal Like an Artist, Austin Kleon shares a numbered list of 10 things to unlock your creativity. 

And here’s #6:

It speaks to me every time I’ve seen it over the years, and it’s exactly what I’m hoping to do with this new beta project.

Fun fact: data analytics used to be a major part of my full-time work. 

(In fact, I taught data analytics classes in person at General Assembly for years. And yes, I’m still the go-to person for my friends and family when they want Excel advice.)

It’s something I enjoy, and I’ve also been a student of our industry for over a decade.

I regularly save articles, videos, and stats about what’s shifting in the course creation, digital product, and solopreneurship industries.

But more than that, I realized that a lot of my best data and anecdotes come from the work I do everyday with exceptional business owners in Wit & Wire’s programs.

And I’m also connected to a lot of great course creators, coaches, consultants, freelancers, community leaders, YouTubers, LinkedIn-ers, influencers, writers, and whatever-we-call-ourselves-ers. 

So I thought, “What if I could collect and analyze data from a larger group of successful solopreneurs to help us all see if we’re experiencing similar shifts or trends in our industry?”

And what if I could help answer questions like…

These are all questions that I’ve genuinely been wondering on my own lately. And I realized that instead of just spiraling on my own, I could ask others what they’re experiencing and then share it. 

My goal is to create a monthly observation on a specific topic or question facing solopreneurs today, in what I think might be the most accelerated rate of change I’ve ever experienced in my career.

I’m calling it Solo Signals, and for now, the monthly brief will be free and delivered via email. 

In the near future, I’m thinking of adding a paid membership where you can access the archives - which will grow over time - and a more in-depth biannual report with trends and insights I’m planning to collect from 100+ full-time solo business owners. 

Crucially, you’ll also have the chance to share your own experiences (via short polls/surveys) for future issues, which is one of the major ways I’m hoping to collect data and share value with all subscribers.

But I want to be up front that this is all very work-in-progress, so we’ll call this Plan A. I welcome any feedback or ideas for future issues.

I’m feeling energized about this new project, and I’m grateful for any of your contributions.

I’m excited to do good work and share it with you.

I’ll see you soon,
Melissa