Let's start from the beginning. What is SoloTUDE?
I am on a mission to understand if that very attitude to succeed on your own terms is deep routed in us, is a mix of life experiences and luck or whether it is something you can learn.
Hey,
So let's start at the very beginning. What is SoloTUDE, and why, at the age of 36, have I decided to create this podcast and newsletter? Why now?
A mix of things, if I am being truly honest. As I sit here typing away on a very typical stormy day in July (you can never quite rely on the British weather), I have started the bones of this post because of an urge, a desire, a hunger almost.
Let me go back a few steps before I divulge that feeling further. It is probably best you find out a little more about me. I’m a marketer. Always have been. Fifteen years in the game so far, and about eight of those years working freelance. So if there is one thing I know how to do well, it is to market a brand. And I also know a thing or two about doing it by yourself.
And that, right there, is where I have sat for the last six months with the idea for this podcast and blog bubbling away. Reams and reams of paper have been used, felt tips have been worn down to a nubbing, and my phone is now full of pics of my dog and whiteboard ramblings.
It’s been keeping me up at night and causing me a level of anticipation even I didn’t know I had. SoloTUDE had left me with a question. How do I approach this concept to the world? And boy, have I overthought it.
I had visions of this being a slick and planned-out launch that my marketing peers would expect from me. Shiny website, coordinated social posts, lead magnets, and everything else that comes with launching an idea to the world. But what I realised today, after walking my dog, was the above is not what SoloTUDE is about.
What is SoloTUDE?
SoloTUDE, at its very essence, is about embracing the power of solo with attitude. Solitude, with an I, is often seen by many as being a negative aspect of life. It embodies loneliness. You can close your eyes, and the word just sums up grey. SoloTUDE is the complete opposite. And why have I randomly decided to capitalise the TUDE half of the word?
Simple. I am on a mission to understand if that attitude to succeed on your own terms is deeply routed in our DNA, is a mix of life experiences and luck or whether it is something you can learn.
In future blogs and episodes, I will share my journey and why I am on the quest to understand whether I was always meant to do things differently. I will also talk openly about my struggles to connect and understand those around me who find safety and security in just doing the same thing.
I want to talk about how vulnerability and facing fears have left me open to pain and abuse and ask the question of whether we can truly be free and safe. Or if being open and taking a leap on your own will always mean you have to look over your shoulder.
I never said SoloTUDE was going to be shiny and light.
It will be an anthology of inspiring stories from people who are achieving success in their fields through their hard work, determination, and independent spirit. Regardless of gender, race, role or industry, I am going to sit down with individuals who have embraced solo with attitude to understand their motivations and hear their individual stories.
Think
Solo entrepreneurs who have started successful businesses on their own
Independent artists who have built a following without the support of a record label or gallery
Self-published authors who have achieved commercial success without the backing of a major publishing house
Solo travellers and digital nomads
Creatives who have used social media to build their own audience
Scientists or researchers who have made significant discoveries through independent study and experimentation
Academics who have pursued their own research interests outside of traditional institutions
Activists that have brought about social or political change through independent action.
It is in these open and raw stories that we will all learn. Nothing is off the table. There will be no judgement.
I want to make SoloTUDE not solitude and create a community who are creating spaces for themselves in this world. I also want this to be a safe space where anyone out there can feel the courage to take risks and do something they have always wanted to do. That SoloTUDE spirit is within you.
It might have been dropped like a Beyonce album. It might not be shiny at the moment. But all I know, from this point on, it will be one hell of a ride. Will it be successful, or will it fail? Will it inspire or be mocked? Who knows. I can’t predict the future (wish I could), but what I can say is with SoloTUDE in my core, we are about to find out.