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Staying Solo
Staying Solo
Author: Maggie Patterson, BS-Free Business
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Description
Growing a solo service business is tough. It's even harder when you're bombarded with BS advice that steers you away from your values and why you started your business in the first place.
This is the podcast for solo creatives and consultants who want to remain as a team of one and have zero interest in the hustle and grind of typical business teachings.
Most podcasts for solopreneurs and freelancers, hosted by out-of-touch celebrity entrepreneurs who haven't offered one-to-one services in years, miss the mark on today's market realities.
Maggie Patterson, a service business owner for 20 years, understands that to stay solo, you need to know what matters to you, what works for you, and what you should completely ignore.
In each episode, she examines one piece of conventional business advice to discover how it may hurt your business or be completely wrong for you as a solo business owner.
Join Maggie for real talk to help you avoid burnout or the desire to entirely burn down your business to open a flower shop, book store, or cat cafe. (Because those cats won't pay the bills.)
(Formerly the BS-Free Service Business Show)
This is the podcast for solo creatives and consultants who want to remain as a team of one and have zero interest in the hustle and grind of typical business teachings.
Most podcasts for solopreneurs and freelancers, hosted by out-of-touch celebrity entrepreneurs who haven't offered one-to-one services in years, miss the mark on today's market realities.
Maggie Patterson, a service business owner for 20 years, understands that to stay solo, you need to know what matters to you, what works for you, and what you should completely ignore.
In each episode, she examines one piece of conventional business advice to discover how it may hurt your business or be completely wrong for you as a solo business owner.
Join Maggie for real talk to help you avoid burnout or the desire to entirely burn down your business to open a flower shop, book store, or cat cafe. (Because those cats won't pay the bills.)
(Formerly the BS-Free Service Business Show)
482 Episodes
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You did the work. You delivered. The client was happy. And then… the relationship ended. Not because anything went wrong, but because there was no plan for what came next. That's the Deliver-and-Disappear cycle — and it's quietly costing you revenue. In this episode, I'll show you where it's happening in your business and how to restructure your client relationships so projects lead somewhere instead of ending in silence. Topics discussed in this episode include: The "Deliver & Disappear" cycle that's quietly capping your revenue. Why finishing the project shouldn't be the end of the relationship. 5 missed opportunities hiding in your current client experience. How to turn completed work into renewals, expansions, and retainers. A simple shift that makes retention, referrals, and revenue more predictable. For detailed show notes and links to everything in this episode, please visit bsfreebusiness.com. If you enjoyed today's episode, please:. Leave a positive review or rating at www.ratethispodcast.com/stayingsolor Subscribe for new episodes every Monday. Sign up for email updates at www.bsfreebusiness.com/solo
Ever had a potential client seem ready to move forward… and then disappear? Not a no. Not a yes. Just silence. In today's episode, I'm breaking down the four hidden leaks in your sales process that are costing you clients and how to fix them so more of those conversations actually turn into booked clients. Topics discussed in this episode include: The 4 hidden leaksstalling your sales (and filling your pipeline with "maybes"). Why great consult calls still fail without clear next steps. How your proposal might be creating hesitation. The real reason follow-up feels uncomfortable (and why you need to do it anyway). Sign up now for the Profitable & Preferred Summit. For detailed show notes and links to everything in this episode, please visit bsfreebusiness.com. If you enjoyed today's episode, please: Leave a positive review or rating at www.ratethispodcast.com/stayingsolo Subscribe for new episodes every Monday. Sign up for email updates at www.bsfreebusiness.com/solo
You've heard the phrase trust recession but what does it actually mean for your marketing in 2026? In this episode, we break down the research behind shifting buyer behaviour and why visibility alone no longer converts. If your marketing feels harder than it used to, this conversation will help you understand what's changed and how to adapt so your marketing earns trust, reduces buyer risk, and attracts the right clients. Topics discussed in this episode include: What the "trust recession" really means for service businesses. Why visibility and familiarity no longer convert like they used to. The biggest reasons marketing isn't turning into clients right now. How to build credibility and reduce buyer risk in your messaging. What's actually working in 2026: fewer platforms, clearer positioning, and intentional marketing systems. Sign up for the free Profitable & Preferred Summit. For detailed show notes and links to everything in this episode, please visit bsfreebusiness.com. If you enjoyed today's episode, please: Leave a positive review or rating at www.ratethispodcast.com/stayingsolo Subscribe for new episodes every Monday. Sign up for email updates at www.bsfreebusiness.com/solo
60 days from now, your business will still exist...but will it feel the same? In this pop-up episode, we explore why 60 days is the perfect window to shift your business without burning it down. I'll walk you through a simple 3-part exercise to clarify what you want to feel, what's getting in the way, and the decision you've been avoiding that could unlock real momentum. Topics covered: Why 60 days is enough time to create meaningful change. The simple 3-part exercise to get unstuck and take action. Real examples of powerful 60-day business shifts. The cost of avoiding key decisions. Why strategy (not hustle) creates a calmer, more stable business. Get the details and book your Revenue Reset consult call with Maggie now.
Most people don't raise their rates until they're exhausted or furious and by then, it's damage control. In this episode, we're breaking down five early signs it's time to raise your prices before things hit that point. Topics discussed in this episode include: Waiting until you're exhausted is the worst time to raise your rates. The five early signs your pricing needs attention before resentment kicks in. How to tell when your value has outgrown your prices. Why working around your pricing is a red flag, not a strategy. How to raise your rates without drama, panic, or blowing up what's working. For detailed show notes and links to everything in this episode, please visit bsfreebusiness.com. If you enjoyed today's episode, please: Leave a positive review or rating at www.ratethispodcast.com/stayingsolo Subscribe for new episodes every Monday. Sign up for email updates at www.bsfreebusiness.com/solo
Most pricing advice says, "Just raise your rates." If it were that simple, you would've done it already. Undercharging isn't the problem; it's the symptom. In this episode, we're digging into why your pricing stopped working and how to fix it without guesswork. Topics discussed in this episode include: Why "just raise your rates" misses the real problem. How undercharging shows up after your business has already changed. The hidden pressure points keeping your pricing stuck. The cost of continuing to undercharge. For detailed show notes and links to everything in this episode, please visit bsfreebusiness.com. If you enjoyed today's episode, please: Leave a positive review or rating at www.ratethispodcast.com/stayingsolo Subscribe for new episodes every Monday. Sign up for email updates at www.bsfreebusiness.com/solo
Future you is already over this. The stuff you're tolerating right now isn't going away — unless you deal with it. In this episode, we're talking about what to fix so you're not still stuck with it six months from now. Topics discussed in this episode include: The stuff you're tolerating now that future you will hate. Why do the problems you keep avoiding never magically fix themselves? The difference between "coping" and actually getting it handled. How to make decisions that stick (and stop backsliding). What future do you really want from this business? For detailed show notes and links to everything in this episode, please visit bsfreebusiness.com. If you enjoyed today's episode, please:. Leave a positive review or rating at www.ratethispodcast.com/stayingsolor Subscribe for new episodes every Monday. Sign up for email updates at www.bsfreebusiness.com/solo
Somehow, service businesses became the problem. Not because they stopped working, but because it became profitable to say they were broken. If you've been told you're underpaid, burned out, or capped because you sell services, that's a lie. In this episode, we're talking about what's actually broken — and how to fix your strategy without ditching services. Topics discussed in this episode include: Why service businesses were branded "broken" — and who benefits from that lie. The real reason services feel exhausting (hint: it's not the work.) How bad clients, burnout, and income ceilings get misdiagnosed. The Strategy Stack that fixes pressure without blowing up your business. Why you don't need a new business model — you need better strategy. For detailed show notes and links to everything in this episode, please visit bsfreebusiness.com. If you enjoyed today's episode, please:. Leave a positive review or rating at www.ratethispodcast.com/stayingsolor Subscribe for new episodes every Monday. Sign up for email updates at www.bsfreebusiness.com/solo
"I'll fix this when things calm down" is one of the most convincing lies we can tell ourselves about our business. Because things don't calm down, they normalize. The workload, the pressure, and the vigilance can become the baseline. In this episode, we're breaking down why waiting for ease keeps you stuck and what actually creates room for change while the business is still working. Topics discussed in this episode include: Why waiting for things to calm down is a trap. How "working fine" still steals your time, energy, and pay. The real reason change feels risky. The small decisions that actually create room to change. For detailed show notes and links to everything in this episode, please visit bsfreebusiness.com. If you enjoyed today's episode, please: Leave a positive review or rating at www.ratethispodcast.com/stayingsolo Subscribe for new episodes every Monday. Sign up for email updates at www.bsfreebusiness.com/solo
January has a way of telling the truth. Because once the hype dies down and the "new year, new you" noise fades, you're left with a simple question: Do I actually want another year of this business? Not because it's failing. But because it's working… and still doesn't quite fit. In this episode, we're diving into what to do when nothing's wrong, it's just time for an upgrade. Topics discussed in this episode include: The hidden cost of "fine" (and why it keeps you stuck). How endurance can be mistaken for sustainability. Why you don't need a big old breakdown to justify a change. What an intentional upgrade looks like for 2026. For detailed show notes and links to everything in this episode, please visit bsfreebusiness.com. If you enjoyed today's episode, please: Leave a positive review or rating at www.ratethispodcast.com/stayingsolo Subscribe for new episodes every Monday. Sign up for email updates at www.bsfreebusiness.com/solo
Fact: your revenue doesn't tell the truth about your life. You can be booked out and still feel depleted, disconnected, and barely holding it together. Because success on paper doesn't mean success in practice. A delightfully boring business flips the script—more ease, more breathing room, more actual delight. So today, we're resetting what "success" means and putting delight back at the center. Topics discussed in this episode include: Why traditional success metrics don't reflect a life that actually feels good. Why delight is the real data you should be tracking. The hidden conditioning that makes joy and rest feel "unproductive." What a delight-filled, right-sized business looks like. Simple business decisions that create space for ease and margin. One tiny "micro-delight" challenge to reset how success feels. The Squad is open for new members until December 19th. Get details and join us here. For detailed show notes and links to everything in this episode, please visit bsfreebusiness.com. If you enjoyed today's episode, please: Leave a positive review or rating at www.ratethispodcast.com/stayingsolo Subscribe for new episodes every Monday. Sign up for email updates at www.bsfreebusiness.com/solo
If it feels like other people land better clients with ease, here's the truth: it's not luck, it's structure. In this just-in-time episode, we run a Mini Client Audit to uncover what's actually blocking better clients from finding (and choosing) you. You'll hear: The visibility mistake most booked service providers don't realize they're making The subtle way you might be pushing your best-fit clients away without meaning to What's really happening after the sales call when things go silent Landing better clients aren't about trying harder. They're about fixing the right things. And this episode shows you exactly where to start. If you're ready for a real plan to get booked with better clients in 2026, that's exactly what we're building inside the Staying Solo Squad this January. We're kicking things off by creating your One-Page Booked & Unbothered Sales Plan, the simple, sustainable roadmap to attract the right clients, build real trust, and keep the work (and money) flowing all year long. Doors are open until December 18th. Join us.
Ever hit a money milestone and instantly feel like it's… still not enough? You're not broken, you're human. When money has felt unpredictable at any point in your life, "enough" doesn't feel safe; it feels suspicious. And that's usually when the internet tries to sell you a mindset fix you may not even need. In this episode, we're digging into why your brain reacts this way and why choosing enough might be one of the most unexpectedly delightful decisions you can make in your business and your life. Topics discussed in this episode include: Why money milestones may not feel safe. How scarcity conditioning and money trauma fuel the chase for "more". Why choosing enough is a countercultural power move. What enough actually looks like in your business and life. How sufficiency creates a steadier, more sustainable business. For detailed show notes and links to everything in this episode, please visit bsfreebusiness.com. If you enjoyed today's episode, please:. Leave a positive review or rating at www.ratethispodcast.com/stayingsolor Subscribe for new episodes every Monday. Sign up for email updates at www.bsfreebusiness.com/solo
Perfection isn't ambition — it's armour. It keeps you safe from judgment, mistakes, and uncertainty… but it also keeps you stuck. And when your business relies on you taking action, that kind of safety gets expensive fast. In today's episode, The Delight of Progress (Not Perfection), we're digging into what perfectionism is really protecting you from, and why choosing progress is actually the safer path forward. Topics discussed in this episode include: How perfectionism keeps you stuck (and why it feels so productive). The hidden cost of waiting for "perfect". The tiny steps that create real momentum with messy action. Why progress is the true competitive advantage in your business. For detailed show notes and links to everything in this episode, please visit bsfreebusiness.com. If you enjoyed today's episode, please:. Leave a positive review or rating at www.ratethispodcast.com/stayingsolor Subscribe for new episodes every Monday. Sign up for email updates at www.bsfreebusiness.com/solo
If you're trying to run your business with 2019 energy, no wonder you're exhausted. After years of uncertainty, you can't manage your time like a machine. You need to manage your capacity like a human. And that starts with the Delightful No — the kind of boundary that protects your energy, your focus, and your sanity. Topics discussed in this episode include: Why you're depleted, not disorganized. How collective stress has reshaped your true capacity. The myth of "I can handle it all with better time management." Why every yes has a cost. How the Delightful No protects your energy and focus. A simple YES Plan for using your capacity intentionally. Practical ways to say no without guilt. For detailed show notes and links to everything in this episode, please visit bsfreebusiness.com. If you enjoyed today's episode, please:. Leave a positive review or rating at www.ratethispodcast.com/stayingsolor Subscribe for new episodes every Monday. Sign up for email updates at www.bsfreebusiness.com/solo
Some days, you look at the online business world and wonder, what are we even doing? We were sold freedom and ended up with nonstop optimization, fake urgency, and the pressure to perform 24/7. In a world this chaotic, the smartest move you can make is building a business that isn't. You can't control the economy, the algorithm, or a flaky client, but you can control how your business runs. And when you do, your business stops being the source of drama and becomes the calm in the storm. In this episode, we're exploring the power of a delightfully boring business. Topics discussed in this episode include: Why the business "freedom" dream isn't working. How hustle culture morphed into non-stop optimization. What a delightfully boring business really looks like. Why predictability reduces stress and boosts clarity. How to build a business that stays steady no matter what. For detailed show notes and links to everything in this episode, please visit bsfreebusiness.com. If you enjoyed today's episode, please:. Leave a positive review or rating at www.ratethispodcast.com/stayingsolo Subscribe for new episodes every Monday. Sign up for email updates at www.bsfreebusiness.com/solo
Not every business pivot starts with a breakdown. Sometimes it hits quietly — like staring at yet another sales page for a client you genuinely like and thinking, I can't keep doing this. That was the moment for Natalie Taylor. You can love your clients, be fully booked, and still know something has to change. In this episode, Natalie shares how she went from burned-out and booked-out to building a business that actually fits her life — not the other way around. Topics discussed in this episode include: Natalie's quiet "I'm done" moment that changed everything. Burnout in a business that looks successful from the outside. How Natalie shifted from copywriter to strategic consultant. Letting go of clients + safety nets without burning it all down. The mindset shifts that made her reinvention actually stick. For detailed show notes and links to everything in this episode, please visit bsfreebusiness.com. If you enjoyed today's episode, please:. Leave a positive review or rating at www.ratethispodcast.com/stayingsolor Subscribe for new episodes every Monday. Sign up for email updates at www.bsfreebusiness.com/solo
Ever had everything look fine…clients happy, money flowing, nothing on fire…yet something still feels off? That quiet friction? That low-level hum you can't shake? That's not anxiety. It's a warning light. In this episode, we're digging into what's really going on beneath the surface and how to fix it before it cracks wide open. Topics discussed in this episode include: The hidden cracks that show up even when business looks "fine".. Signs your business model, pricing, or positioning needs to evolve. The role of a strategy reset and why it's not a teardown. The three-phase Revenue Reset framework: Define, Design, Deliver.. For detailed show notes and links to everything in this episode, please visit bsfreebusiness.com. If you enjoyed today's episode, please:. Leave a positive review or rating at www.ratethispodcast.com/stayingsolo Subscribe for new episodes every Monday. Sign up for email updates at www.bsfreebusiness.com/solo
Everyone loves to brag about being "booked out." But let's be honest, booked out can also mean booked solid, burned out, and barely making bank. What no one tells you is that a full calendar doesn't guarantee profit, margin, or breathing room. Sometimes it just means you've built yourself a job you can't step away from. In this episode, we're rethinking what "booked out" should actually look like and how to make more without stuffing your schedule. Because "fewer clients, more money" isn't a tagline. It's the most sustainable way to run your business. Topics discussed in this episode include: The myth of "more clients = more success" and how it keeps you stuck. The real cost of volume-based business models and why the real secret is focusing on value. Three strategies to earn more with fewer clients. For detailed show notes and links to everything in this episode, please visit bsfreebusiness.com. If you enjoyed today's episode, please:. Leave a positive review or rating at www.ratethispodcast.com/stayingsolo Subscribe for new episodes every Monday. Sign up for email updates at www.bsfreebusiness.com/solo
You'd think being great at what you do would make business easier. But the better you get, the more the cracks show. The clients, systems, and strategy that used to work? Now they feel too small. You've outgrown the business you built. So you tweak, tinker, and try to make it fit again but the friction keeps coming back, because you're not meant to patch it, you're meant to rebuild it. Topics discussed in this episode include: The "season of stuck" and why it's a normal sign of growth. Why patching symptoms (tweaks, tweaks, tweaks) never fixes the real problem. How shifting clients, markets, and standards creates hidden misalignment. The three areas that actually need your attention. Why pausing is strategic and not optional. For detailed show notes and links to everything in this episode, please visit bsfreebusiness.com. If you enjoyed today's episode, please:. Leave a positive review or rating at www.ratethispodcast.com/stayingsolo Subscribe for new episodes every Monday. Sign up for email updates at www.bsfreebusiness.com/solo






















