For sole proprietorships there is only one owner of the business and the owner does not share power or decision making with other owners. In the case of sole proprietorships the business is not a separate legal entity apart from the owner. 

The advantages of a sole proprietorship compared to other business forms is that

• It is easy to form and operate. There is no need for formal filings or approval from the federal or state governments to start operating the business. However, if the business is operating under a name that is different from the sole proprietor, most states usually require that a fictitious name statement is filed with the government.
• The sole proprietor does not need to share any profits generated from the business with others.
• The right for any business decisions lies with the owner, including who to hire or fire, strategic decisions of the business, etc.
• The business can be sold without having to get approval from any other owners, shareholders or investors.

The disadvantages over other business forms include

• Sole proprietor has unlimited personal liability and may lose his personal assets if any liabilities which arise cannot be paid out of the business assets
• While the sole owner can keep all of the profits from the business and does not need to share it with any other owners, the owner also bears in full any losses generated by the business.
• Funding the business can turn out to be more difficult as the owner cannot obtain capital from shareholders or partners, i.e. the funds are limited by what the owner already has or can borrow.