The Solopreneur Wave

I'm building twelve apps this year and learning everything in public.

No team. No office. No pretending I have it all figured out. Just me, some AI tools, and the willingness to share every mistake along the way.

This approach used to be career suicide. Today, it's become my biggest competitive advantage.

What I'm experiencing mirrors something massive happening across America. While everyone talks about the "future of work," nonemployer businesses are quietly building a $1.7 trillion economy right under our noses.

That's 29.8 million solo entrepreneurs contributing 6.8% of America's entire economic output, without hiring a single person.

The Barriers Have Never Been Lower

My journey started with selling hot dogs from my grandmother's garage in Brazil. Fast forward through violin gigs, carpentry work, and a dozen other random jobs, and I ended up freelancing in Australia.

What began as small copywriting gigs evolved into something bigger. But the real breakthrough came when I stopped trying to be the polished expert.

Americans are filing business applications at 430,000 per month in 2024. That's 50% more than before the pandemic.

The gatekeepers are gone.

A decade ago, turning an idea into working software meant years of coding knowledge or enough capital to hire developers. Today, AI and no-code platforms make that leap possible for anyone with curiosity and internet access.

For my 12 Apps project, I can move from idea to prototype in hours, sometimes days. That speed fundamentally lowers risk. You test quickly, get feedback, and either iterate or move on without sinking months of time or thousands of dollars.

Because these tools are visual and guided by AI, the "who" changes dramatically. Teachers, marketers, small-town entrepreneurs. People who never saw themselves as tech founders can now build products and services.

Why Being Unqualified Became an Advantage

When I first started freelancing, I thought I needed to present myself as a polished expert to win clients.

The real breakthrough came when I began sharing behind-the-scenes work. Half-finished ideas. Experiments that didn't pan out. Lessons I was still figuring out.

Instead of scaring people off, it attracted them.

Clients reached out because they could see how I thought and solved problems, not just the final results. That transparency created trust faster than any list of credentials ever could.

Information isn't scarce anymore. We carry phones that access AI models capable of delivering expert answers in seconds. Facts and how-to guides are everywhere and often free.

What people crave now is authenticity. They want to see someone wrestling with the process, making decisions in real time, and inviting them along for the ride.

When I share the 12 Apps project publicly, I'm not claiming to be the ultimate no-code guru. I'm showing what it really looks like to build, fail, adjust, and build again.

The data backs this up. Solopreneur profitability tells the story: 77% of solo entrepreneurs report being profitable in their first year compared to only 54% of businesses with employees.

People Are Redefining Security

What I'm seeing is that people are redefining what security even means.

A steady paycheck and bigger salary used to be the ultimate safety net. But many of us now view control over our time and environment as the real form of security.

I recently saw a LinkedIn post from recruiter Karen Bello. A candidate turned down a $20,000 raise to preserve full remote work. That's not an anomaly anymore.

For me, choosing the uncertainty of building 12 apps over a traditional job isn't about chasing risk. It's about designing a life where I decide when and how I work, and where I can align projects with my curiosity.

That autonomy lets me adapt faster than any single employer ever could.

In a world where industries get disrupted overnight, flexibility becomes a hedge against uncertainty. Autonomy, not just income, protects your future.

Remote jobs still get ten times more applications than on-site roles. People are voting with their feet, and the vote is clear: flexibility matters more than traditional perks.

What Happens When Work in Progress Becomes the Norm

If this "work in progress" approach becomes standard, the whole idea of how industries create and measure value will shift.

Careers will look less like ladders and more like portfolios. Instead of climbing one corporate hierarchy, people will constantly experiment and innovate. Side projects, micro-ventures, short-term collaborations.

Your reputation gets built on the trail of things you've tried and shared, not on a single job title or credential.

Industries will need to embrace perpetual beta. Products and services won't wait for long development cycles. They'll evolve in public, shaped by community feedback.

We're already seeing this in software, but it will spread everywhere. Education, media, manufacturing, and many other industries.

Trust will come from participation, not polish. Brands that invite customers into the process will outcompete those that only present finished facades.

For individuals, our biggest asset won't be a static resume. It's our ability to stay curious, share the journey, and keep leading while we're still learning.

The 41.6% of solopreneurs who've been running their businesses for less than a year prove this mindset works. They're not waiting for permission or perfect timing.

They're starting where they are, with what they have, and figuring it out as they go.

That's not just changing how we work. It's reshaping the economy itself.