Hey {{first_name | there}},

I’ve been going to the same yoga class every Monday for the last three years.

That may not seem weird to you, but what if I told you the class was the exact same every time I went?

The sequence—Ashtanga Primary—is the same every single time. The teacher is the same. And at least 50% of the attendees are the same as when I started practicing.

When I say there is little-to-no variance in this class, I mean it.

I’ve advanced in my practice tremendously since I first started. And because the sequence is the same every time, it can feel a little repetitive. But as soon as I start to think, “I’m a bit bored, maybe I should change up my class schedule,” my teacher will make the teeniest change that puts me back in beginner mode.

For example, last week, my teacher asked us to always start on our left side, rather than the traditional right. This minor adjustment completely broke my brain.

Stepping back with my left foot for Pyramid?! Forget about it!
Rolling to the left in Garbha Pindasana?! No thank you!
Binding my left foot first in Lotus? How the hell…

Going back to beginner mode gave me something new to work toward and highlighted some areas where my practice has been on autopilot.

And the same can be true in business.

Summers are inevitably slow. Clients are hard to reach, and calendar appointments are suggestions at best. The restlessness and boredom that set in can start to feel like a signal that something is broken and needs to change.

Some people respond by burning everything to the ground—new niche, new offers, new everything—because boredom feels like evidence and burning it down feels like doing something. Others go the opposite direction: one small experiment turns into a lifestyle and, by September, the experiment has become the business, and now they’ve got to reverse-engineer an identity that fits it.

If you’re nodding along, it’s worth asking: Have you really pulled all the possible levers you could, or are you just bored?

Instead of burning things down, here are three small, intentional changes to explore inside what’s already working within your business.

I am a creature of habit. It shows up in everything from my Monday yoga class to the time I set aside to write this newsletter you’re reading. Instead of burning everything down in a fit of boredom, can you find one small change that spices things up? Is Tuesday your ‘No Meetings’ day? Move it to Thursday! You may talk to some new folks who only have availability on Tuesday! Do you do all your meetings in the afternoon? Move them to the morning and see what happens. You may find you’re sharper and have different types of ideas at different times of day.

For the first four years of my business, I was staunchly against pro bono work. I was a bit traumatized from my agency days and the types of projects I was working on and the stress they put the agency under. But a few years ago, after wrapping up a big brand build for a non-profit, I offered to support them every month via a very small engagement. It became a playground—a place to see what my business could become without jeopardizing the work that actually pays my bills. The parameters kept it from becoming my whole personality.

I have a client who says she's bad at sales. I always push back on that and say, "You're not bad at sales. You haven't really tried to sell." Doing a new thing is scary. Remember the first time you posted on LinkedIn? OOF. Rough. But you did it, and now you're a pro. Right now, I've been working on my cold outreach muscle. Six years in business and here I am, having rarely exercised it. At this point, that muscle has atrophied. Working out is hard, especially when I've got an ego, and I know I'm going to be spotted in the gym doing curls with a 2-pound weight. But the 2-pound curl is still a curl. You keep showing up, increase the weight, and eventually you’ll get stronger. If you've got a task you don't want to do but know you need to, I'm hosting a free "I Don't Want To!" co-working hour.

If you try these things and you’re still bored in your business and itching to burn it all down, then okay, I’ll be here with a match! Because if something was wrong before the summer made it glaringly obvious, that’s a different conversation. It might look like a slow client pipeline, positioning that’s stopped working, or a business that’s grown past the tactics that worked three years ago. You’ll know which situation you’re in because boredom responds to a change of scenery, but these problems won’t.

That’s why I’ve given Calibration Sessions a facelift! They’re 90-minute sessions designed to figure out where you are, what’s getting in the way, and what to do next. You’ll leave with a 30-day Navigation Plan that will put you on the path toward predictable growth.

Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have some cold outreach to avoid.

Thanks for reading,

I’ve got 3 spots for Calibration Sessions in July! These 90-minute sessions will help you identify your best opportunities and chart your path to predictable growth.

My books are currently open for brand-led strategic advisory engagements. These engagements help ambitious practice owners develop the positioning and business structures that help them command premium pricing and pivot upmarket.

You made it to the end of the email! Here’s a lil treat for you!