Throughout my design career, I've been told what a successful business is supposed to look like: a fancy studio, a full team, a packed speaking schedule, and a founder who's basically a full-time manager instead of a creator. Then, I read Company of One by Paul Jarvis, and it changed everything I thought I knew about what "success" was allowed to look like for a one-woman show like mine.
Enter today's guest, Jessica Freeman, a web designer, SEO strategist, and the founder of The Ordinary Business, a community and podcast for the small but mighty business owners doing the work instead of chasing flashy numbers.
Jessica believes that being an ordinary business owner is the whole point, and once you stop trying to look like an agency, you get to build a business (and a life) that's actually yours.
SPOTLIGHT MOMENTS
✦ Why the "successful business" blueprint never fit for either of us
✦ How one snarky Threads post accidentally turned into an entire community and business
✦ The "shoulds" Jess let go of: the perfect email strategy, chasing every podcast feature, vanity metrics
✦ Why followers don't equal income, and what community looks like once you strip away the buzzwords
TAKE THE STAGE
Open a note on your phone and ask yourself: what does "enough" actually look like for my business? Not the version you think you're supposed to want, the one that fits the life you're actually trying to build.
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Mentioned in this episode:
✦ The Ordinary Business: Jess's community, summit, and podcast for solopreneurs and tiny teams who'd rather be sustainable than scale
✦ Company of One by Paul Jarvis
Follow & Connect with Jessica:
✦ Follow her on Instagram
✦ Check out her Website
Follow & Connect with Eva:
✦ Say hey on Instagram
✦ Check out my Website
✦ Get my Uncaged emails
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TIMESTAMPS
00:00 Welcome to The Freak Show
03:34 Jess's Freak Show Audition
14:30 Building The Ordinary Business Movement (Accidentally)
21:18 Letting Go of the "Shoulds"
37:35 What Real Community Looks Like
54:11 Jess's Final Bow
