Control the Controllables

Welcome to the Thought Follower, weekly tips for the savvy Solopreneur.

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On Thursdays in The Solopreneurs Breakthrough Club, we do Hot Seats.

And last Thursday was a beauty. We had one of those ‘small shift, big clarity’ moments.

A Solopreneur in the group — let’s call her H — brought a live sales conversation to the hot seat. The client was keen. She’d proposed $12k for 3 months of services. They’d countered with $2.5k/month + bonus / commission.

In her words, H was “97% yes”.

But stuck on how to handle this counteroffer.

Not because of the client.
Not because of the price.
Because of fear.

Mind games we play

H explained:

“I just need to protect myself because I know my inclination will be to just do more and more…so they’ll like me.”

She wanted to say yes.

She knew she could deliver value.

But she was mentally trying to solve everything around the actual offer:

• What if they don’t collect emails from podcast interviews?

• What if they launch a book and don’t have a list?

• What if I get pulled into PR or media training or lead magnet creation?

It was a classic case of trying to future-proof the engagement against every possible failure, most of which had nothing to do with the scope she’d presented.

H’s multi-talented skillset was working against her as she sized up all the potential value-adds she could deliver.

Where we get stuck

This is what happens when we get caught up in things outside our control.

We think we’re being thorough…
But really, we’re just feeding the fear.

Here are a few signs you’ve fallen into that trap:

• You’re trying to fix the client’s past (H shared “They’ve been burned before by other marketers…”)

• You’re forecasting failure before you start (e.g. “What if they don’t follow through on their end?”)

• You’re expanding the scope in your head to justify the price (“Maybe I should include a PR plan too…”)

• You’re shouldering the weight of their broken systems

None of that belongs in your decision-making criteria.

Control the controllables

I offered H a simple reframe:

Focus on what you can control.

• Not the client’s email list.

• Not their trauma from past hires.

• Not their funnel.

These are all great opportunities for H to steadily grow her impact with this client in future.

But they have nothing to do with the decision in front of H right now:

Does the counteroffer make sense for me based on the time and value exchange?

There’s a separate discussion for another day about discounting / negotiating rates and when that’s appropriate, too.

But for now, H has stopped spinning on ‘what ifs’ and started thinking clearly about “what’s next.”

From stuck to clear

Her exact words?

“That really hits home.
The biggest bottleneck here is me — and it’s that fear.”
“I feel like systems are a way to contain that and avoid the [scope] creep.”

Now, H has the tools to go back with a clear yes.

She’s outlining exactly what’s included (and what’s not).

And she has a simple set of next steps to land her next 4-figure monthly client - without draining herself worrying about the uncontrollables.

Build the habit

H’s story isn’t unusual.

This is the work of Solopreneurship: keeping it simple when everything wants to get complicated.

So if you’re in a moment of decision —
Pricing. Scoping. Proposal.

Pause and ask:

Am I focused on the things I can control… or everything I can’t?

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