Transparency, for the win.

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I'm writing to you today as a humanist, rather than a business owner.

I haven't sent a newsletter in two months because I'm coming down from a massive life transition while also averaging 2-3 new client projects a month.

And you know what I did?

I kept my client projects running, but slowed everything else down.

Did you know, you’re allowed to do that?

It goes against all the advice you’re fed as an online business owner, freelancer, or independent contractor.

Marketing Rule #19836: Thou must send a newsletter every single week until you die.
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​Because capitalism doesn’t take a break, and neither should you.

Marketing Rule #28945: Thou must never acknowledge that you took a break.
​
​Because capitalism isn't human, and neither are you.

But let’s recap what I did over the last 15 months and why I'm cool with being transparent about it all:
​(If you’re new here, here’s what you’ve missed.)

• I moved from Rhode Island to Oxford, England, for my husband's yearlong sabbatical.
• Moved into my in-laws' attached "Granny Flat" and enrolled my kids in the local primary school.
• Lost after-school childcare and went from working 40 hours a week to 30—if I was lucky and no one got sick.
• Navigated a pediatric scoliosis diagnosis, and started evaluations for for dyslexia, dysgraphia, and some neurospiciness.
• Navigated both the NHS and U.S. healthcare systems. Spoiler: Both are deeply broken.
• Worked from a non-ergonomic dining room table, took client calls from my husband's office in the Economics Department, and eventually made my case to the university that my work merited a Bodleian "Reader Card." A.K.A. access to work amongst the leather-bound tomes of ancient knowledge. (See: the dreamiest of all Oxford libraries, the Radcliffe Camera.)

• Worked across 14 different time zones with 17 different clients on 28 different projects.
• Quiet-quit social media without meaning to. (I'm not feeling performative.)
• Paused my Copywriting Cohort Course because I didn't have the capacity. (This hurt my ego. A lot.)
• Travelled to seven countries: Scotland, France, Spain, Italy, Germany, the Netherlands, and Egypt.
• Reunited with high school friends in Edinburgh, 20 years after graduating together, to dance to Punjabi wedding music mere meters away from a first edition printing of Darwin's Origin of the Species. (Wild, considering we graduated from a tiny agricultural town on the other side of the world.)
• Lost my grandmother. Didn't get to say goodbye.
• Felt anxious and helpless over Skype as family dealt with mental health issues.
• Moved back to the U.S. at the end of August after a giant UK family camping trip with 27 aunties, uncles, and cousins, plus a final two-week stint camping from the Alps to L'Ardèche Valley—just to make the transition home that much more ridiculous.
• Returned home to a country that breaks my heart, every single day.

The good news is, over the last 15 months, my business grew in ways I can track.

But, →I← grew in ways I cannot track.

So I took a pause.

As an independent business owner, you’re told to build, build, build—but when are you allowed to step back and look at what you’ve built?

In my case, that's 6 Service Offerings, 13 Digital Products (including 1 Course), 11 Free Resources, 1 Quiz, 100+ blog posts, and ~3,500 newsletter subscribers. 🫶

Go me, but...

Taking a pause will very quickly reveal which tasks, offers, and activities are essential to keeping the lights on, and which ones are making you look busy.

Taking a pause will very quickly reveal which aspirational voices you look up to are actually ill-suited for how you want to show up in this world.

Taking a pause will very quickly reveal if you’ve built a sustainable business.

As part of my slow-down process, I read Jenni Gritters' new book, The Sustainable Solopreneur.

In the book, Jenni marries practical psychological research (MY ONE TRUE LOVE!) with core markers of sustainability in nature—things like creativity, intention, flexibility, self-awareness, and reciprocity—to help you move from the call of more, more, more to finally finding safety and ease in a slower-paced business-of-one.

Here are some quotes I underlined as I read:

"I set boundaries so people can meet the real me."

"I care about myself as much as I care about my clients/work."

"All rules are breakable."

"Money is the byproduct of impact and generosity, rather than struggling and muscle."

"There is magic in the mundane." (Cue the viral IG reels track, "I think I like this little life…")

"We need a fallow moment to let everything rest before building something new."

Hello. Yes. It me.

So, my dear readers, I took a fallow moment and am wrapping up end-of-year projects and giving myself a moment to process where I’ve been and where I’m going, as a human, and as a business owner.

If you're in a similar season—coming down from hustle mode, or curiously watching other business owners cosplay their Soft-Girl Era while simultaneously going hard on yet another launch (the cognitive dissonance of it all), and you’re wondering what sustainable business even means anymore—I can't recommend Jenni's work enough.

If you’re looking for a different kind of back-to-school energy that’s more autumnal intentionality than Black Friday Slop Sale, The Sustainable Solopreneur is my latest resource recommendation for you to enjoy.
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May you be blessed this season with cozy blankets, crackling fires, nourishing soups, and an annual rewatch of Pride & Prejudice (the Keira version, obviously).

Until soon,

Copywriting Services→ Portfolio→ Template Shop→

113 Cherry St #92768, Seattle, WA 98104-2205

Thank you to Convertkit for letting me use their address so I don't have to waste money on a P.O. Box.
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