How to understand the different seasons of your business

You’ve likely heard people talk about the specific seasons of life they are experiencing personally or even the seasonality of their business related to the time of year. People often say things like “I’m in a season of no”, which generally means they are experiencing a time in their life that they need to take things off their plate. Or maybe you have even said something like “this season of life is just very hard right now”. This could be going through medical challenges, loss, or even just entering a new “season” of motherhood.

I’ve used these phrases many times myself. But it wasn’t until I attended a marriage workshop on spiritual seasons, that my eyes were completely opened to what was actually happening in my BUSINESS! I had been in a period for about six months that I felt completely de-motivated and burnt out. I had little to no ideas flowing (which is very rare for me), I didn’t get excited about logging on to work, and I felt really unsure about the future of my business. Many times I questioned whether or not this is still what I should be doing. As a self-motivated person who has been extremely driven most of my life, I couldn’t figure out what was wrong with me.

I was constantly telling my husband that I just didn’t know what direction to go in, and in fact most days I felt directionless. He too was surprised, because the only mode he had ever really seen me in was “go-mode”.

But when I left this workshop, I finally got it! I realized I was in a season of winter both personally and spiritually, but also in my business. As I came to understand, being in a season of winter had nothing to do with the actual season we were physically in (which was spring), but more to do with how I was feeling and experiencing life. I finally reached a point where burn out had completely taken over, and truthfully I just felt overwhelmed and all I wanted to do was rest. I was in a season of deep rest. As I have later come to realize, this was good and was needed, but at the time I felt lazy and unmotivated.

I did, in fact come out of that season (more on this later), and actually now I am in a season of spring, but understanding that it is normal and even healthy to go through personal seasons that WILL inevitably affect your business, was so healing for me. I realized that I needed that season of winter to reflect, re-connect with my faith, re-connect with my family, and ultimately my values instead of pouring ALL of my energy into accomplishing and success. I needed to just be.

Friends, if this sounds familiar and you find yourself asking, “what the heck is wrong with me”? “Why am I not motivated to do this job that I once LOVED”? Know that there is absolutely nothing wrong with you. You might just be in a season of winter and leaning into that season instead of trying to force yourself into another season, will make such a difference for you! This might be the time for you to take some things off your plate, lean on your team members or your passive income instead of selling hard all the time. Or maybe even taking a short sabbatical from your business. Everyone experiences these seasons differently, but the most important thing is to accept where you are and make adjustments to your life and your business to match where you are right now.

Just like we physically will change seasons and winter will turn to a blossoming spring, and spring to a warm summer, you too will shift seasons. I promise you if you try to push out of the season you are in, you will get burnt out really quick. This is often when business owners quit and once they are in a different season they look back and regret it.

If you want to learn more about the seasons, I am leading an entire workshop on this during our upcoming SSA retreat and I would love for you to join us! You can find more information about that and sign up here.

I see you friends. I see you pushing hard and giving it your all and as a result sometimes feeling burnt out. Know you are not alone, and it’s ok to be exactly where you are right now!