Just Get Started #478 Adriana Tica - The State of Solopreneurship in 2026
Episode 478 features Adriana Tica, Founder of Strategic AF, to share her in-depth State of Solopreneurship Report for 2025 and why it matters for your business in 2026.
Chapters:
00:00 — Adriana returns + why solopreneur data matters 01:00 — Why she built the report (bad benchmarks + “MrBeast metrics”)
02:18 — Rapid Fire 1: fortune cookie message (unique like everyone else)
04:17 — Rapid Fire 2: her next “Just Get Started” (community in 2026)
07:15 — Rapid Fire 3: silencing the inner critic 0
9:43 — Rapid Fire 4: Perfectionism, delayed launches, typos, and the Pratt-Fall effect
12:00 — Rapid Fire 5: Do you learn more from wins or losses? (and the role of timing)
15:03 — The newsletter correlation: why top earners all have one
23:43 — LinkedIn drives revenue… but “owned channels” are the 2026 focus
26:14 — CTA strategy: reverse planning your content around offers
33:04 — Services as the cash cow + why products require massive trust/audience
36:36 — Revenue bragging vs profit reality (margins matter) 38:49 — The 2 biggest levers: owned channels + pick your business model
42:57 — Why you start with services, then productize from patterns
46:09 — Wrap-up + where to find Adriana
Solopreneurship can feel like you’re building in a vacuum until you realize you’ve been benchmarking your “pilot episode” against someone else’s “season three.” In this episode, Adriana Tica returns to break down her State of Solopreneurship Report. Why she built it (spoiler: rage), what the data actually says about making money as a solo operator, and the uncomfortable truth about chasing algorithms, “six-figure launches,” and creator-business hype.
What you’ll learn:
If you’re tired of marketing fluff and want real-world levers you can pull in 2026—this one’s for you.
Why most solopreneur “benchmarks” are fake (and mentally expensive)
The common thread among $500K–$1M+ solopreneurs (hint: newsletters)
LinkedIn vs “owned channels” and how to stop renting your audience
How to build CTAs that don’t feel gross (and actually convert)
Services vs products: traffic game vs relationship game
Why “7-figure business” talk is meaningless without margins
👋 Go connect with Adriana:
Website: https://adrianatica.com/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/adrianatica/
Medium: https://medium.com/@adrianatica
Download Adriana’s State of Solopreneurship Report: (https://www.adrianatica.com/the-state-of-solopreneurship-report-is-here-anniversary-edition-saf-156)
👋Say Hi to your host, Brian!
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/brianondrako/
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