How to Keep Building Your Business During Hard Times (Without Burning Out)

How to Keep Building Your Business During Hard Times (Without Burning Out)

Nobody told me this when I started my online business: life was not going to pause so I could build it.

There would be seasons of grief, health struggles, family chaos, financial pressure, and mental health battles happening right alongside my launch deadlines, my DMs, and my team check-ins. And most of the advice I found assumed I had the luxury of stepping away until things settled down.

But what if they never do?

The Myth of “Wait Until Things Are Better”

I built my multi-7-figure business through back-to-back losses that would have leveled most people: my own brain surgery and recovery, my father’s terminal AML leukemia diagnosis, his passing, and then my mother’s death shortly after, arriving like a wave I didn’t see coming while I was still underwater from the last one.

Through it all, my business kept moving. Customers needed me. My team needed me. And, practically speaking, I had a mortgage to pay, bills to cover, and groceries to buy for my dad during his treatment.

When people ask why I didn’t just stop and take a break, my answer is simple: I didn’t have that option.

And more importantly? Neither do most people.

You might have a young family to take care of. You might be stressing about what the future looks like for your aging parents. Maybe you have a dream that requires cash you don’t quite have yet. Whatever it is, I know you’ve got something pulling at you.

What most people don’t tell you, because they’ve never actually done it themselves, is that you don’t need to stop building your business until that thing resolves itself. Especially when it may never fully resolve.

You can actually build a business that supports you through it. I know, because I did it.

Building a Business That Holds You Up

What I learned through those years is that a well-built online business does not have to be a liability during hard times. Done right, it can be the very thing that gives you breathing room.

The flexibility to hold my parents’ hands as they passed. The financial stability to grieve without financial panic piled on top. The spaciousness to slowly crawl out of depression at my own pace.

That did not happen by accident. I had to be intentional about the kind of business I was building, one that could function even when I could not show up at full capacity.

I like to say I had to learn how to build a plane for emergency landing while it was already landing.

What I Wrote About in My Book

This is exactly the philosophy behind my book, When I Start My Business, I’ll Be Happy. I wrote it specifically for the entrepreneur who is juggling real life while trying to build something meaningful. Not a future idealized version of yourself with unlimited time and zero problems, but you, right now, with everything you’re carrying.

Inside, I walk you through how to:

• Build an email list that reduces your dependence on relentless social media pressure
• Identify exactly what product your customers are already waiting to buy, so it practically sells itself
• Create less content that works harder for you, using my Big 3 strategy

A Special Offer for the Book’s One-Year Anniversary

To celebrate the book’s one-year release anniversary on April 15, I’m gifting everyone who purchases it this month a ticket to a live 90-minute book club call on April 30. Think of it as 90 minutes of live business coaching for the price of a book.

TO JOIN BOOK CLUB:

1. Buy my book anywhere you want (it’s 40% off on Amazon today, or checkout Bookshop, Barnes & Noble, Inkwood (NJ), or Book Hampton (NY).
2. Fill out this form on this page

Voila! Once you’ve done those 2 simple things, you’ll get an email from us with your Book Club invite details.

Can I be real with you, as always?

If you’ve considered getting my book but haven’t…

​ This is your sign.

​I want to write more books. I’m a first-time author trying to become a full-time author, and I’m asking for your help.

​Buying my book is one of the most direct ways you can support what I’m building — and in return, you get 90-minutes of business coaching with me on April 30th.

​That’s a pretty good deal.

​If you’ve already read it — thank you from the bottom of my heart. If you lived near me, I’d make you lentil soup. Grab another copy to gift to a friend, leave it in a little library, drop it in a co-working space. Every copy counts.

Will I see you at book club? Did you grab a copy?! Comment below and let me know so I can personally thank you.

Links You’ll Love

My friend Tarzan Kay is hosting a free 5-day event called The Girlboss Apology Tour — 14 interviews + 3 live events all about building a business that’s actually yours, not a copy of whatever worked for someone else in 2018. Grab your free ticket before April 13→ (I’m one of the speakers!)

​My 63k email list is hands down my best not-so-secret weapon in growing my business. This week on my podcast, On Your Terms®️, I shared how I decide what to email my list about each week, even when I’m drawing a blank.

Listen on Apple, Substack, or on Spotify.

My most popular Substack post in March was about how I wish I never told anyone about my gap year. I’m learning a lot about keeping some things to myself before sharing them online. I’m also learning how to create without performance or feedback. LMK if you want to hear more!

ON YOUR TERMS®

I didn’t grow an email list of 63k entrepreneurs out of thin air. And I didn’t keep them around, replying each week with “I loved this email so much!” by accident, either.

You asked me how I decide what I email my list each week.

So I sat down to tell you my exact strategy of how I decide what to email them, how I consistently generate sales from it, and why I think I have one of the most dedicated, loyal bunch of readers.

LISTEN HERE→ How I Actually Decide What to Email My List (even when I have no idea)