How to Know If You’re Cut Out for Online Business (Hint: It’s Not About Talent)

My office closet is basically a graveyard of business ideas I used to have.

There’s a fancy camera I bought but never learned to use. A 20-piece lighting system that never came out of the box. Editing software that collected digital dust on my desktop.

All of it was for a food blog I started while I was still working as a corporate lawyer. It was called Barrister’s Beet, and I really wanted it to be my thing.

I wanted to be a famous food blogger. So I did what I thought ambitious people did — I bought everything a famous food blogger would need.

The camera. The lights. The software.

But here’s the part I didn’t want to admit: I didn’t actually want to learn how to use any of it.

What I wanted was the result. Pretty photos, a beautiful website, a big audience showing up to see my food. I just didn’t want to put in the messy, frustrating, beginner work to get there.

The Business Lesson That Changed Everything

That’s when it hit me — and honestly, it’s one of the most useful things I’ve figured out about entrepreneurship:

You can tell a lot about what you really want by how willing you are to struggle to get it.

Read that again.

When I shut down Barrister’s Beet (and the health coaching business I started right after), I fully expected to feel the same way about my next idea — Sam Vander Wielen LLC, where I sell legal templates to online entrepreneurs.

But something was different.

I didn’t understand SEO. So I taught myself.

I didn’t know what content would get people to buy. So I played around and figured it out.

Not one of my first 50 email subscribers replied to a single newsletter. So I learned how to write stronger calls-to-action.

I was willing to be bad in order to get good.

That shift — from wanting the outcome to being genuinely okay with the process — changed everything.

What Most People Get Wrong About Building an Audience

These days I hear from a lot of online entrepreneurs who want the big result.

The email list with tens of thousands of subscribers. A huge Instagram following. A packed book tour with fans who actually show up.

And I get it. Those things look amazing from the outside.

But what doesn’t get talked about enough is the gap between where you are and where you want to land. That gap is filled with turbulence. And you have to actually fly through it — not around it.

Here’s what I mean:

To build an audience, you have to get really good at creating content.

Not just making content. Good content. Consistently. Over time. That means writing things that flop, recording episodes that get 12 downloads, posting into the void for longer than feels reasonable.

To grow a big email list, you have to learn how to attract the right people — and then keep them.

That means learning copywriting. Learning what makes someone open an email. Learning what makes them hit reply. I grew my email list to 61,000 subscribers by showing up every week and getting a little bit better each time. There was no shortcut. Just reps.

To sell thousands of copies of a book, you have to build an audience before the book comes out.

In my own book, When I Start My Business, I’ll Be Happy — and I can tell you firsthand, you don’t build an audience overnight. You build it by writing things worth reading, consistently, for years.

So What Should You Actually Focus On First?

If you want to build an audience full of people who buy, share, reply, and actually listen — the first thing you need to focus on isn’t your funnel or your offer or your branding.

It’s your craft.

Getting good at the thing that will eventually attract the people you want. Whether that’s writing, podcasting, making videos, or something else entirely — you have to be willing to suck at it first.

The people who build real audiences aren’t the ones who had a natural talent or a lucky break. They’re the ones who stayed when it was frustrating and kept going when nobody was watching.

The willingness to struggle is the whole thing.

And if you’re not sure where to start, I break this down even further in this week’s episode of the On Your Terms® Podcast →

A Few Questions Worth Sitting With

Before you spend another dollar on equipment, software, or a new strategy — ask yourself:

• Am I willing to learn this, or do I just want the result?
• Am I okay with being a beginner for a while?
• What would I keep doing even if it was hard?

Your answers will tell you everything you need to know.

Links You’ll Love

Thanks to a lot of changes in the online business space, I just updated my free legal workshop: 5 Steps to Legally Protect & Grow Your Online Business to add all the info you need to know about ADA lawsuits, privacy concerns, and more. In it, you’ll also learn exactly how to start an online business the right way — fluff-free. Watch it here→

Marisa Corcoran’s free LIVE copywriting class gives you the 3-part framework to whip up irresistible copy with creativity and chutzpah. Grab your seat for Marisa’s Leave ‘Em Wanting More live class→ $0 (affiliate link) 

📚Get my book When I Start My Business, I’ll Be Happy on sale for $17 here→. (affiliate link)

In it, I teach you how I built my 62k subscriber email list, how I plan and run my $500k 4-day launches, and how to create evergreen content that builds your business in your sleep.

This isn’t a legal book (there’s ZERO legal advice!) — if you’ve wanted to learn more of “how I do it,” my book is the only place I teach you. (affiliate link)

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