Over the last few weeks, you’ve heard me talk about the end of arcs and cycles—how I’m at the end of one myself, and why that means ending a few things in my business (like the Dialogues).
You’ve probably noticed my themes of pausing, creating space, and shaping what’s next, even as I continue to market Leaving the Casino and delivering for clients.
But of course, I’m not pausing without a plan. (Because your girl always has a plan.)
When I talk about taking space, what I actually mean is: I’ve already done the work behind the scenes to make that space purposeful.
I’ve been living in 2026 for some time now.
I’m a planner by nature and by trade.
I’m always living in dual horizons—the current season and the next 2–3 seasons ahead.
Which is frustrating (seeing what I want to do and not being able to get to it for months or years), but also means I know what's likely in store for at least the first few months of next year.
I'm walking into 2026 with a grounded, realistic point of view.
I’ve forecasted my current client commitments into next year, and I’m deeply thankful that much of my business is recurring revenue or returning clients.
I’ve reviewed my 2025 visibility, audience building, and sales patterns, and projected what’s most likely to happen with my 2026 sales if past trends hold steady (and what actions I’ll take if they don’t).
I’ve mapped new projects, including the launch of my new Operations/Business Rhythms cohort program in January. (I’ll be announcing more details soon!)
And I’ve analyzed my expenses and am super glad that the high-cash investments of a rebrand and publishing a book have stopped, and I'm back to smaller investments (like the book tour!).
Because I can clearly see what’s ahead, I know I can slow my pace without compromising the financial stability of the business.
But none of this planning is top-down (aka starting with a revenue goal).
This planning is all rooted in a bottoms-up approach to business planning.
I don’t start with a revenue goal or a “next year I’ll hit X” number.
First, that’s not realistic for most people at the Seed or Sprout stages of business. You simply don’t yet know which levers reliably drive revenue.
Second, it doesn’t account for your actual reality:
- What happened this year
- What’s likely to happen next year if nothing changes
- What capacity you realistically have to make foundational shifts
- What you're optimizing for (because it's not always revenue growth)
This is why I plan the way I do. Starting from the grounded reality of this year.
Starting the first week of December, I’ll use this newsletter to guide you through the same 4-part, evidence-based planning process I use myself:
1. Reality: Review the Facts of Your Year
Assess what actually happened in your business—your results, your client sources, and which activities produced outcomes. This step gives you an accurate baseline to plan from and helps you identify what you can safely prune and just stop doing.
2. Capacity: Determine What’s Possible in the Season You’re In
Identify your true stage of business, your available capacity, and your place in the Zone of Enoughness. This tells you what you can realistically take on and what you might expect in your next chapter.
3. Systems: Identify What Needs Support or Strengthening
Clarify what needs to be improved, simplified, or added—and what’s already on your plate. This defines your priority projects for the year, ensuring you're building systems that compound not just doing activities that keep you busy.
4. Projections: Forecast What’s Reasonably Ahead
Using your data, capacity, and system needs, build a grounded revenue hypothesis—not a wishful goal. What can you reasonably expect, and what changes would materially shift that outlook?
If you’d like to do this work with me 1:1, I have two spots available in December/January to build your 2026 plan together.
Just reply to this email if you’re interested.
And for Deeper Foundations Members: I’ll be turning this entire email series into a workbook you can use to reflect on your year and plan for the next.