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FROM THE FOUNDER
We are all self-employed
Being an employee is like running a one-client business, requiring service, marketing, relationships, and constant value creation.
A few weeks ago on the podcast that I do with my partner (and former Zweig White employee) Eric Howerton, Big Talk About Small Business , the topic was “solopreneurs.” While I have always disliked that label because not everyone who is self-employed is an entrepreneur – some are just small business owners – the conclusion we came to is that being an employee is just like being self-employed and having only one client on retainer.
Mark Zweig
While we could build a case that having only one “client” devalues your “business” due to client concentration risk, thinking about yourself as being self-employed with only one client has certain lessons and implications for you: 1. You better keep your client (i.e., employer) happy, or you are out of business. No doubt that may not always be easy and sometimes you will probably have to do some things for them you don’t want to do or feel you should have to do. But hey – they are your only client. So meeting their needs and exceeding their expectations for the services provided by your firm is essential. 2. It pays to have more than one relationship inside your client company. People come and
go. You don’t want your “business” dependent on a relationship with one person. Too risky. So the implications of that are you need to have a good relationship with your boss, your boss’s boss, and other decision-makers inside the organization. You have to be known to others inside the company to protect your “business.” 3. You need to keep marketing to your client even though they already are a client. They are subject to cognitive dissonance just like anyone is who buys anything. Not to mention you should always be selling them new stuff (the message being that your capabilities are broader than what you are currently used for).
See MARK ZWEIG, page 6
THE ZWEIG LETTER DECEMBER 29, 2025, ISSUE 1614
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