Reflections on an “Okay” Year in Business: Why Less Revenue Doesn’t Mean Less Success

2024 was a year of recalibration—not a failure. Amid personal challenges, I simplified my business, shifted priorities, and found peace in less. Here’s what I learned about success, revenue, and making space for what truly matters in life and business.

I’m writing this on my second working day of the year as I ease back into my three-day work week. And honestly, these three weeks of being completely off the grid and away from work has given me the space I needed to really sit and reflect on what happened last year.

Initially, I’d planned to write something a bit of a behind-the-scenes piece on my “okay” year in business. But the more I thought about it, the more I realized how much of my judgment of the year was tied entirely to revenue—and how I’ve let that become the primary metric for success.

Haley Nahman put it perfectly in a recent essay…

“In America, the pursuit of wealth has become a virtue in its own right. To work hard, to hustle, to get your bag – these ideas are increasingly divorced from achieving the means to live well and have instead become goals in themselves, regardless of what we actually need…”

Our industry, especially in business coaching, puts so much emphasis on numbers that it’s easy to forget what really matters (but more on my thoughts on this in next Sunday’s issue).

My business did something remarkable last year that the doggish focus on numbers made me ignore—it held me through one of the hardest seasons of my life. 

Amidst health challenges, grief and loss, moving homes, and so many other stressors, my business became the steady, grounding force I needed. 

When I had zero capacity to focus on anything other than what was happening in my life personally, my business continued to support me financially and give me the space that this season has required.

I never would have been able to pull back to the extent I did last year with my old business model.

All of this to say, if you’ve ever had a year where things felt flat after a season of growth, you’re not alone and it doesn’t mean anything is wrong. 

In fact, over the years I’ve witnessed many people blow up their businesses thinking something was wrong simply because of a revenue dip, only to spend the next few years trying to revert back to what was working before they responded so rashly.

Sometimes, what looks like a “quiet” year is actually a recalibration. Some years, you might hit big revenue goals but not feel like you’re thriving. Other times, it’s simply a sign that the industry is shifting, or you may bring in less revenue but find yourself paying yourself more, with fewer expenses, and everything feels simpler.

Simplifying my business has been one of the greatest blessings of the last two years. I’ve stripped everything back to the essentials—we have everything we need and nothing we don’t. 

And the result is that every dollar after paying my small team of contractors and our few subscriptions goes entirely back to me. 

There’s something so grounding about knowing that the lion share of what your business brings in, comes back to you in a way that you can really feel. It’s taken so much pressure off and reminded me yet again, that there’s no price on peace of mind and that top line revenue pales in comparison to a healthy and stable profit margin.

This space—this clarity—would never have been possible had I not made the changes I have these past few years.

For the first time, we spent Christmas Day with local friends of ours. Fourteen adults, 16 kids – absolutely wild, but so special. And it struck me, sitting around that table, how much I’ve been able to pour into creating deep friendships and a strong sense of community these past few years.

Let’s be honest—creating real, meaningful connections as an adult can feel impossible, especially when you’ve moved away from where you grew up. Add to that the reality of being a business owner who works from home, and it’s even harder.

But this is one of the things I’m most proud of. Creating more space in my business is what’s given me the bandwidth to invest in local friendships and a real tribe in our neighbourhood, and that dinner table was a testament to that.

Thinking about 2025, my plan feels so relaxed and simple.

I could whittle my entire strategy on a post-it note, it’s that distilled and clear.

And I’m executing on the plan working my three-day work week (around 15 hrs/week), with two very part-time contractors and one signature offer.

We’re working further in advance, constantly streamlining, and pulling back to create more ease and rinse and repeat systems. 

Even today, I’m wrapping up early to take my kid to basketball, while Mike takes the other to gymnastics. We’ll likely rally round the dinner table when we get home, do the night time bath routine and play games like Jenga by the fire until bedtime. These are the things I want to be present for—the everyday moments with my people.

I’ve always said that health is a big priority of mine but the onslaught of health issues I faced last year was a gleaming example of just how misaligned what I said my priorities were, compared to how I was actually spending my time. But that’s changing.  The time I’m not working is just as intentional as the time I am. Those 2 weekdays off are entirely for me—focusing on what nourishes me and the things that make me feel good.

So 2025 is more about taking care of myself – mentally and physically – and using the space I’ve created to work on fun, creative personal projects like learning how to garden and really making our backyard feel like a warm extension of our home, than it is about hitting milestones. 

I’ll be honest: as much as I teach this, I’m still a work in progress. There are so many layers and  nuances to this. A lot of it is about chipping away at old conditioning, but it’s also about learning strategies that meet you where you are.

You don’t have to choose between living a life that feels true and authentic for you and growing your business (as cliche as it sounds). 

But it does take work—both practical and mindset. And as someone who’s on an advanced leg of this journey, I feel so grateful to be able to share a bit of the behind-the-scenes in real time with you, and also take these insights and turn it into frameworks and teachings that get to support my students, too.

Here’s to a year of simplicity, sustainability, and making space for what truly matters.