170: #170 Starting Again When You Don't Know What's Next

It’s January 2026 and the internet is screaming fresh start! and big year energy! - but this episode is the quieter truth underneath that.

Because sometimes the most honest place you can be in business is this: you know what can’t continue… but you don’t yet know what’s replacing it.

In this episode of Messy Business, I share what it’s actually felt like to close my main programme at the end of December - a decision that came from capacity, health, burnout, shingles, life being life… and the realisation that carrying on would’ve meant showing up as a husk of myself. I talk about the mix of emotions (relief, sadness, fear, pride), and why that huge sense of lightness is often the clearest sign you’ve made the right call.

We explore the difference between ending something gracefully and burning everything down dramatically - and why ending doesn’t mean failing. Sometimes it simply means the structure no longer fits who you are and what you can hold.

I also talk about what I’ve outgrown: the business model that relied on scheduled Zoom calls. Not the people, not the support - the structure. Because it wasn’t the calls themselves that were the problem… it was the fact they existed in the diary, acting like a constant constraint when life was already full.

This episode is a reminder that being good at something, or being known for something, doesn’t mean it’s still right. And it’s also a gentle nudge to stop keeping things alive purely because past-you set them up.

Along the way, I share what I do know about 2026 - even without a shiny plan:

• I’m not building my business around endless Zoom calls
• I’m not creating content for algorithms
• The podcast stays front and centre
• I’m leaning into more creativity, flexibility, and experimentation
• And there will be simpler ways to access my brain without me holding a huge container

And I leave you with reflective questions that might land hard (in a good way):

• What are you doing purely because past-you set it up?
• If nothing was required of you for three months, what would you naturally gravitate towards?
• Where are you overriding your body and brain because you said you would?
• What are you saying yes to that leaves you resentful… and what lights you up without trying?

✨ You don’t need a dramatic rebrand or a big announcement. Sometimes the first move forward is just quietly not renewing something.

📙 Read my book: Life in Business - https://libbylangley.com/book

If this episode resonated with you, I’d love to hear about it. Tag me on Instagram https://instagram.com/libbylangley and tell me what you’re ready to stop forcing in 2026 - and what you want to make space for instead.