Integrity: One of my favorite traits of Solopreneur companies

Business in general has earned a bad reputation in the United States. The headlines are full of bad or socially irresponsible actions taken by companies, and usually the culprit is a big company. We have become familiar with a win-lose business model: if someone wins, that means someone lost. This thinking has become so ingrained in our thinking that for many people who are not associated with high-service, high-integrity, ethical businesses, the idea that business can be a force for good is foreign to them. I often spend time trying to dispel this myth, and I always strive for a win-win business model: the business owner wins, the customer wins, and the world wins in some way.

One of the reasons large companies often misbehave is that it’s easy to hide behind one’s own organization. Decisions and responsibility are distributed among many people so that no one person can be blamed. This is the opposite for solopreneur companies, and that’s one of the reasons why integrity is common in one-person companies. If she does business with Jane and not with some big anonymous company, Jane can’t hide her actions behind any facade. As independent entrepreneurs, we bring a lot of ourselves to the business. We use our life experience to benefit others and often share our current struggles and triumphs when serving our clients. The incentive to maintain high integrity comes from not wanting to tarnish our personal reputation with unsavory activities, as well as from the natural human desire to be of service and make a contribution. When we see others benefit from our work, we naturally want to do more.

The solopreneur business model tends to encourage and reward integrity, but this also works in the opposite direction: in my experience, the people who are drawn to the solopreneur business model tend to be those who strive for integrity and high customer service. Otherwise, they would choose a different business model that allows for more anonymity. If a person is looking to get rich quick through some scam or near-scam, it would be unwise to build a brand and business around them. As an example, every time I have visited websites of those scam products that promise the moon and a money back guarantee, there is never a person involved. It’s hard to know who works there, where they are, or even how to reach a person. This to me is a red flag that no one working there is willing to stick with the product or business.

If you are an independent entrepreneur or are drawn to this business model, take a moment to enjoy the fact that you are choosing a business model that allows your integrity to shine through.