When you’re a small business owner or solopreneur, it’s easy to become gradually isolated from those around you. You need to rely on yourself and make sure that everything gets completed on time. This can see you eating at your desk. Your friends don’t have the same worries as you and you don’t want to bore them, so there goes your drinks after work. Slowly but surely, these missed occasions add up and soon you may find yourself isolated.

Isolation can take a serious toll on our health and relationships as we as cause us to lose perspective on our businesses.

Does it really need to be this way, though? And what should we do if we’re feeling isolated from our friends and family because of our business commitments? Nicky Roche joins us on this episode of the number one small business podcast to share her experiences of this very common problem and how to change the situation.

Issue Challenged in this Small Business Podcast:

How can I overcome small business isolation?

About Nicky:

Nicky Roche is an entrepreneur, consultant and podcaster. Her show, Small Business Drivers, aims to help small business owners around the world optimize their working processes and focus on the main drivers of their businesses and interactions with others. She is also aiming to create a worldwide community of likeminded individuals who can share their experiences and grow their businesses. Nicky believes that networking with people who are in the same boat can not only help stave off the feelings of isolation but can also bring positive gains to your business.

Nicky is on this episode of the number one small business podcast to discuss the issue of small business isolation and how we can overcome it.

Actionable Tips:

* Dream big but define that dream. Take the time to define a vision of what you want and where you want to be. Having a clear, defined idea of what you want makes other decisions much easier.
* Don’t be scared to share and learn from others. Intelligent people, confident in their own abilities, shouldn’t be afraid to share with others. Mutually beneficial relationships will help your business grow.
* Bridge the knowledge gap one brick at a time. Don’t be overwhelmed at the start and learn as much as you can. How do you know what you can do if you put a ceiling on your abilities?

 

Top Quotes:

* “If we’d all just share our motivations, challenges and solutions, everybody could benefit from it.”
* “People need to understand that adjusting the sails is expected. People need to learn to not be so hard on themselves and to remind themselves of the things that they have achieved.”
* “Sometimes it’s about ensuring the people who are influencing your mind set and business decisions are the right people who are in your life at the time.”
* “One of the drivers of business success is networking because life and business are team sports.”
* “There’s an instant reward for networking. The people you associate with ask different questions and they see your business from a different perspective. They might spark something in your mind that you hadn’t thought about before.”
* “I don’t think people realize how much expertise they have. Many entrepreneurs, through isolation, minimize their own expertise. In actual fact, they are experts in something already thanks to their business and they’re an expert in something that someone else isn’t.”
* “Isolation creates a lack of perspective. If you let other people into your life, you regain that perspective. If those people don’t help you regain that perspective, then change the people you’re associating with.”

Nicky’s Links:

* Small Business Drivers (http://smallbusinessdrivers.