Are you building the business the you want or that you think should?

I can't stop thinking about a video I watched about a YouTuber who “descaled” his business from a team of 10+ back to being a solo creator.

Here's the TL;DR version: After rapid expansion and explosive growth, he found himself in a job he didn't even want and was doing less, if any at all, of the work he actually loved to do which was creating and editing videos.

This, this very scenario, is the exact reason why Slow & Steady exists and why it is called Slow & Steady.

Because I've heard the story of small business owners ending up in a job that isn't aligned with their true vision or desires a hundred times.

I'm thinking about the client who declared that she hates coaching but made a significant portion of her revenue from coaching clients.

Or the client who launched a Substack community but actually just wanted to make a podcast and write personal essays when she felt like it.

The client who told me that she loved working in school communities but was pursing private clients.

The client who just wanted to write and publish books but was planning on launching a membership site.

Heck, I've been there too – like when I wanted to talk about reproductive health and body literacy but every nutrition client I booked just wanted to lose weight.

Of course there are plenty of reasons why you might take on a project or client in your business that isn't 100% aligned; not the least of which is to make a living in our difficult and expensive times.

But that's not what I'm talking about here.

I'm talking about saying yes because it's what you think you should want or do or say yes to or because you're afraid to say no or to want what you actually want.

When you're using someone else's definition of success or you're just riding the business escalator (h/t Amelia!) instead of staying in alignment with what you truly want for yourself and/or your business.

Slow and steady isn't about playing small or limiting your success or minimizing your ambition.

No, it's about taking your time to decide what's next and what's best; knowing what is true for you and what's in alignment with your goals, your vision for your business, your needs, your desires, your preferences – and not going so fast that you're miles down a road before you realize you took a wrong turn in a direction that isn't even going to get you where you want to go.

That's how you stay steady – taking care of your physical, mental, spiritual and emotional wellness as best you can and not completely overwhelmed or burned out all the time.

When I talk about “just enough” I don't mean doing the bare minimum just to scrap by – I mean that you don't have to be everywhere doing everything all at once. In fact doing just enough of the right activities are actually going to be more a more effective way to reach your goals.

I mean, what's the point of taking on the risk and stress of doing your own thing if you don't even get to do the thing you wanted to do in the first place or you're not having any fun!?

And if you've found yourself in a place so far from your business vision, let's talk.