Solopreneur CEO

Carin Kilby Clark and Marcia Sheehan
  • 5.0 (2)
  • Entrepreneurship
  • Updated Weekly

The Solopreneur CEO Podcast is for established solopreneurs who have built something real but are tired of carrying the entire load alone. Hosted by Carin Kilby Clark and Marcia Sheehan, the show explores mindset, systems, structure, and support to help you step out of reactive solopreneur mode and into CEO-level leadership. No hustle culture. No burnout glorification. Just honest conversations and practical insights for building a business that supports your life instead of consuming it.

  1. 6h ago

    Getting in the Room Isn’t Enough

    We hear it all the time in business: You need to get in the room. Go to the networking event. Join the community. Attend the conference. Meet more people. Make more connections. And yes, getting out of your business bubble matters. But what if you’re getting into the wrong rooms? Or what if you’re finally in the right room… but you’re sitting in the audience when you should be on the stage? In this episode of Solopreneur CEO, Carin and Marcia are talking about what they’ve learned from a summer of getting OUTSIDE, attending events, networking, joining communities, making connections, and figuring out which opportunities are actually worth their time and energy. Because when you’re a solopreneur, every yes costs you something. That event takes time away from something else. That new community needs your attention. That networking opportunity might mean less energy for your clients, your business, your family, or yourself. And saying yes to everything because you’re afraid you might miss an opportunity isn’t a strategy. We’re talking about how to evaluate the rooms you’re entering, recognizing when you’ve outgrown being an attendee, trusting yourself enough to decline opportunities that don’t fit, and getting clear about what you actually want from the spaces you choose to enter. Plus, we get into the rooms that don’t require you to leave your house at all: online communities. Because whether the room is physical or virtual, the question is the same: Why are you here? Are you there to learn?Build relationships?Find clients?Get support?Be visible?Teach?Lead? You don’t need to be in every room. You need to be intentional about the rooms that deserve your limited time, attention, and energy… and make sure you’re showing up in the right position once you get there.

  2. Sep 15

    Everything Still Works. So What Should You Focus On?

    YouTube is having a moment. Everyone wants evergreen content. Instagram is showing up in Google search. Blogs are apparently still alive and well. 😂 And depending on who you follow, there’s probably another platform or marketing strategy you’re being told you absolutely NEED to be using right now. But here’s the thing: Everything still works. In this episode of Solopreneur CEO, Carin and Marcia are talking about the marketing trends we’re seeing right now, including the shift toward searchable, long-lasting content and why more business owners are reconsidering where they invest their time, money, and energy. But this conversation quickly turns into something bigger. Because you don’t have to be on Instagram. You don’t have to start a YouTube channel. You don’t have to chase the newest marketing strategy just because everyone else seems to be doing it. You need to figure out what works for your business, your goals, and the way you actually want to work. We’re talking about evergreen content, search-based platforms, human connection, production quality vs. message quality, word-of-mouth marketing, and why sometimes the smartest thing you can do is stop overcomplicating everything and EXECUTE. Plus, as we head toward Q4, we’re challenging you to take a look at your digital footprint. If someone discovered your business today, where would your digital breadcrumbs lead them? An outdated offer?A broken link?A challenge that ended three months ago? 😬Or a clear next step toward working with you? Because choosing the right marketing strategy matters. But so does making sure the path you’ve already created is actually leading people somewhere. Let business be simpler. Pay attention to what works. And put your energy there.

  3. Sep 8

    You Don’t Need More Content. You Need Better Marketing.

    You Don’t Need More Content. You Need Better Marketing. You don’t need to post three times a day. You don’t need every Reel to have the perfect hook. And you definitely don’t need to turn yourself into a full-time content creator just to get clients. Because as a solopreneur, your job isn’t to win at content. Your marketing needs to help the right person recognize that you understand their problem and can help them solve it. In this episode of Solopreneur CEO, Carin and Marcia are talking about what happens when we overcomplicate marketing and start measuring ourselves against creators whose business models, goals, and audiences may look nothing like ours. We’re getting into the difference between creating content for attention and marketing a business for sales, why conversations with real people are still some of the best market research you can do, and how to stop guessing about what your audience wants. We also talk about using your clients’ actual language, telling stories they can see themselves in, testing your ideas, paying attention to your numbers, and letting the data tell you what to do more of. Because you might not need more followers, more content, or a more complicated strategy. You might just need to get a whole lot clearer about who you’re trying to reach, what they need to hear, and what you actually need your marketing to do.

  4. Sep 1

    The Client Boundary Problem That’s Costing You More Than Time

    You take on one little extra task because you want to be helpful. Then another. Then another. And suddenly, the project you agreed to isn’t remotely the project you’re actually doing. If you’ve ever looked back at a client project and realized you basically made $10 an hour after everything you did for them, this conversation is for you. In this episode of Solopreneur CEO, Carin and Marcia are talking about boundaries, and why they’re about so much more than telling clients when you’re available. Carin shares the story of a nightmare client relationship that went completely off the rails and the uncomfortable realization she had afterward: the client wasn’t the only problem. There were red flags she ignored, work she kept accepting outside the original scope, and boundaries she should have enforced but didn’t. We’re getting into scope creep, client communication, protecting your capacity, setting expectations from the beginning, and why being endlessly available doesn’t actually create the amazing client experience you think it does. We also talk about something that doesn’t get enough attention: what happens when one bad-fit client takes up so much of your energy that you stop showing up for the right ones. Because boundaries aren’t about being difficult, rigid, or less helpful. They’re part of running a business that works for you AND delivers a better experience for the people you’re there to serve.

  5. Aug 25

    Are You Actually Ready for the Success You Want?

    Solopreneur CEO is back for Season 2, and we’re kicking things off with an honest conversation about what happens when life changes, your priorities shift, and the way you’ve been running your business doesn’t quite fit anymore. In this episode, Carin and Marcia catch up on what the summer taught them about success, capacity, taking care of yourself, and giving yourself permission to build differently in different seasons of life. But the conversation takes an interesting turn: We spend so much time thinking about how to create the success we want… but are we actually prepared to receive it? What if the growth you’ve been working toward happened tomorrow? What would break? What would need to change? And are you building your business from a place of expecting that success, or quietly preparing for it not to work? We’re talking about defining success on your own terms, protecting your capacity, building a business that can flex with your real life, and becoming the kind of CEO who is actually ready for what she says she wants. Season 2 is here. And we’re just getting started.

  6. Jun 2

    From Operator Mode to Solopreneur CEO

    Six months ago, we relaunched this podcast with a simple idea: Building a successful business shouldn’t require sacrificing yourself in the process. As we wrap up Season One, we’re reflecting on the conversations, lessons, and patterns that kept showing up again and again. Burnout. Time. Systems. Leadership. Community. And the realization that so many solopreneurs are trying to solve structural problems with personal pressure. Throughout this season, we kept coming back to the same truth: Working harder doesn’t create a sustainable business. Building differently does. In this Season One finale, we discuss: the invisible load so many solopreneurs carrywhy burnout is often a symptom, not the root problemthe difference between operating your business and leading ithow systems, boundaries, and support create sustainabilitythe role community plays in helping solopreneurs growthe identity shifts required to move from operator mode into CEO leadershipwhat we’re most excited to explore in Season TwoThis conversation is a chance to pause, reflect, and look at how far you’ve come, not just this season, but in your business journey as a whole. Thank you for listening, sharing episodes, joining the community, and being part of these conversations. We’ll be back in August for Season Two. Until then, the conversation continues inside our free community at: https://thesolopreneurceo.com

  7. May 26

    What Keeps Smart Solopreneurs Stuck Longer Than They Should

    You’ve listened to the podcasts. Bought the courses. Saved the posts. Consumed the strategies. So why do you still feel stuck? Why do so many smart, capable solopreneurs still find themselves overwhelmed, reactive, overthinking every decision, and struggling to fully step into CEO leadership? In this solo episode, Carin explores a deeper issue that most business advice completely overlooks: environment. Because at a certain point, the problem is no longer a lack of information. It’s trying to build a different kind of business while surrounded by environments, messaging, expectations, and patterns that keep pulling you back into survival mode. In this episode, Carin talks about: why implementation is emotional, relational, and identity-basedhow isolation quietly distorts perspective for solopreneursthe hidden impact of the online business environmentwhy “knowing what to do” is often not the real problemthe difference between consuming information and integrating itwhy support, conversation, and community are forms of business infrastructureThis is an honest conversation about burnout, overconsumption, CEO leadership, and what actually helps solopreneurs create lasting change. 🎯 Join our free community for solopreneurs building sustainable businesses without burnout: https://thesolopreneurceo.com

    What Keeps Smart Solopreneurs Stuck Longer Than They Should

  8. May 19

    How I Run This: Redefining Success as a Solopreneur with Tara Whitaker (Part 2)

    What if success doesn’t have to mean building a bigger business? What if “enough” is actually enough? In Part 2 of this How I Run This conversation, Marcia continues her discussion with Tara Whitaker about entrepreneurship, money, parenting, community, visibility, and the pressure solopreneurs feel to constantly grow, scale, and prove themselves.   This conversation gets especially honest around the realities of solopreneurship and the difference between building a business that looks impressive… versus building one that actually supports your life. They talk about: Why Tara has intentionally chosen not to build a large company or teamThe pressure online business owners feel to constantly scaleThe emotional cost of chasing external definitions of successParenting, flexibility, and designing business around real lifeWhy “enough” looks different for everyoneThe role of money, impact, and values in entrepreneurshipCommunity, participation, and what solopreneurs actually need support withThis is a grounded, refreshing conversation about ambition, capacity, and building a business that fits the life you actually want. 🎯 Join our free community for solopreneurs building sustainable businesses without burnout: https://thesolopreneurceo.com

    How I Run This: Redefining Success as a Solopreneur with Tara Whitaker (Part 2)
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Ratings & Reviews

5
out of 5
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About

The Solopreneur CEO Podcast is for established solopreneurs who have built something real but are tired of carrying the entire load alone. Hosted by Carin Kilby Clark and Marcia Sheehan, the show explores mindset, systems, structure, and support to help you step out of reactive solopreneur mode and into CEO-level leadership. No hustle culture. No burnout glorification. Just honest conversations and practical insights for building a business that supports your life instead of consuming it.

Information

  • Creator
    Carin Kilby Clark and Marcia Sheehan
  • Years Active
    2026
  • Episodes
    28
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © Carin Kilby Clark and Marcia Sheehan
  • Show Website
    Solopreneur CEO

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