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If you feel stuck in indecision, overwhelmed by options, or frozen because you’re afraid of making the wrong move in your design business, this episode is for you.

In this conversation, I’m talking directly to designers who are waiting for more clarity, more confidence, or more certainty before taking action — and how that waiting is often the very thing keeping them stuck. Indecision isn’t neutral. It’s still a decision, and it usually comes with hidden costs: stalled growth, increased stress, team confusion, and long-term burnout.

We’re unpacking why so many designers confuse overthinking with being strategic, and how avoidance quietly undermines your leadership as a CEO. Strong leadership isn’t about having all the answers or getting it perfect — it’s about making informed decisions, learning from them, and allowing momentum to build. Confidence doesn’t come before action. It comes from action.

I also share what decision-making actually looks like at higher levels of leadership, why trying to be “nice” can erode trust in your business, and how delaying decisions spreads stress across your finances, operations, and team. This episode is about shifting out of reaction and into intentional leadership so your business can move forward.

In this episode, I cover:

• Why indecision is often more expensive than making the wrong decision
• How overthinking keeps designers stuck and overwhelmed
• The difference between thoughtful leadership and avoidance
• How delayed decisions affect your team, culture, and profitability
• Why action creates clarity — not the other way around

If you’re ready to stop spinning, stop waiting, and start leading your business with confidence and clarity, this episode will help you rethink how you make decisions and what it’s costing you not to.

Listen in and let’s talk about how to move forward as the CEO your business actually needs.

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As we step into 2026, I wanted to record this episode before you opened your inbox, before you looked at last year’s numbers, and before you started telling yourself stories about what this year needs to be. This is your 2026 pep talk. Because most designers don’t start a new year with a clean slate — they start it carrying the emotional weight of the year before. And if we don’t address that first, it quietly shapes how we show up, the goals we set, and the decisions we make. In this episode, I’m walking you through how to release last year without ignoring it, move out of overwhelm, and step into 2026 with clarity, intention, and confidence.

In this episode, I talk about:

• Why 2026 does not need to be a reaction to 2025 — and how trying to “make up” for last year leads to burnout
• The truth about why most designers struggle (hint: it’s not talent, it’s systems, boundaries, and emotional energy)
• How carrying shame or comparison into a new year limits your capacity before you even begin
• Why defining how you want your business to feel matters more than jumping straight into revenue goals
• How to set goals without shame, pressure, or punishment
• What makes a goal actually supportive using a simple SMART framework
• Why being “behind” is a dangerous story — and how being informed puts you in a position of power
• How intentional reflection leads to better decisions, not self-judgment

If you’re heading into 2026 feeling overwhelmed, behind, or unsure where to start, this episode is your reminder that you are not failing — you’re informed. You’re allowed to begin again, design this year differently, and build a business that works for you instead of the other way around. And if you want help figuring out your next right step, I invite you to book a free 50-minute problem-solving session with me at fixmydesignbiz.com. Let’s get clear, get honest, and move forward intentionally together.

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As this year comes to a close, I wanted to have a very honest conversation—one rooted in experience, not perfection. In this episode, I’m reflecting (with another seasoned firm owner- Michelle Lynne) on the mistakes we’ve made, the lessons we learned the hard way, and what actually matters when you’re trying to move your business forward with clarity instead of chaos.

This isn’t about beating yourself up for what didn’t work. It’s about looking back clearly—without ego or shame—so you can recalibrate your direction, trust yourself again, and make smarter decisions as you head into 2026.

Here’s what we dig into in this episode:

In this episode, I talk about:

• Why you can’t change direction in your business without honestly looking in the rearview mirror
• How growing just for the sake of growth often leads to stress, misalignment, and regret
• Why busyness, headcount, and “looking successful” can hide deeper operational problems
• The real cost of ignoring your intuition—and why it always shows up eventually
• How intuition becomes powerful when it’s supported by data, not separated from it
• Why avoiding your numbers only creates bigger problems down the road
• What I call the “toll of the soul,” and why some profitable work still isn’t worth it
• How letting go sooner—clients, projects, models, or people—can lead to faster alignment
• Why leadership requires hard conversations, not avoidance
• How reflection is meant to recalibrate your business, not keep you stuck in regret

This episode is for designers who know something needs to change—but don’t want to burn everything down to make it happen. My hope is that this conversation helps you look at your business with more honesty, more confidence, and a lot more self-trust as you step into what’s next.

You don’t need to have all the answers for 2026 right now. But you do need to be willing to look clearly at where you’ve been—so you can choose where you’re going on purpose.

If you’re ready to move forward with clarity instead of guesswork, this episode is for you.

Stay in touch with Michelle on Instagram:

https://www.instagram.com/thedesignbakehouse/

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Today’s episode is one I’ve been wanting to record for a long time because it’s built entirely around the questions I hear every single week as a business coach. These are the questions that come up in strategy calls, Voxer messages, office hours, and hallway conversations at High Point. If you’ve ever felt overwhelmed, unsure about hiring, confused by your numbers, or stuck relying on referrals, you are not alone — and this episode is for you. I’m walking you through the real answers, not the emotional ones, so you can start making CEO-level decisions in your business.

IN THIS EPISODE, I COVER:

• Why feeling overwhelmed usually isn’t a hiring problem, but a clarity and systems problem
• How to know whether you actually need help — and whether that should be a contractor or a W2 employee
• What your numbers need to tell you before you ever make a hire
• Why relying only on referrals leaves your business vulnerable, especially in changing markets
• What a sustainable, predictable marketing strategy actually looks like for designers
• How to align your financial reality with your goals instead of relying on vision boards alone
• Why pricing is math and positioning, not emotion
• How to know when you’re truly ready to scale
• Why niching isn’t limiting — it’s how premium businesses grow
• How to raise prices without guilt and stop undervaluing your expertise
• Why you can’t “do it all” at once — and how the accordion model allows your business to support your life

If there’s one thing I want you to take away from this episode, it’s this: you cannot reach your goals without understanding your numbers. Every single time. Clarity comes from data, not panic, and confidence comes from knowing what your business can actually support. If you’re ready to take the next strategic step — not the emotional one — I’d love to help. You can book a free 15-minute problem-solving session with me at fixmydesignbiz.com. Your business should work for you, not the other way around.

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If you want 2026 to look different than 2025, this episode is where that shift begins. Today, I’m walking you step-by-step through the 2025 Business Audit Worksheet and showing you how to look at last year honestly — without judgment, without overwhelm, and without getting stuck in the past. This isn’t busy work or a reflective exercise for the sake of reflection. It’s about understanding what actually happened in your business so you can make grounded, confident decisions about where you’re going next. You can’t build your next chapter without understanding the last one, and this episode gives you the structure to do exactly that.

IN THIS EPISODE:

• Why reviewing 2025 realistically is the most important step before planning 2026
• How to use the 2025 Business Audit Worksheet as a decision-making tool, not a report card
• The difference between being busy and being profitable — and how to spot the gap
• Which numbers matter most when you’re scaling and why avoiding them keeps you stuck
• How to evaluate your time, energy, and stress alongside revenue and profit
• How to identify offers, projects, and clients that delivered both profit and alignment
• Why misaligned services quietly drive burnout — even in “successful” businesses
• How the 80/20 rule reveals what actually moved the needle in 2025
• What you need to stop doing before you can scale sustainably into 2026
• Why letting go of what no longer fits is leadership, not failure

WHY THIS EPISODE MATTERS:
So many designers want clarity for the year ahead, but clarity doesn’t come from guessing, hoping, or planning based on emotion. It comes from data, patterns, and honest reflection. This episode helps you slow down, pull your business over to the side of the road, and assess what really happened in 2025 — so you’re not building 2026 on assumptions, habits, or outdated models. Looking back isn’t about staying stuck. It’s about choosing your next move with intention.

If listening to this episode surfaced questions about your numbers, pricing, offers, or next steps, that’s exactly where real growth begins. I offer a free 15-minute problem-solving session to help you translate what you’re seeing in your audit into clear, actionable decisions for 2026. No pressure, no scripts — just clarity. You can book that conversation at fixmydesignbiz.com. Your business should support your life, not consume it.

Grab your 2025 Audit Worksheet HERE

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Welcome back, designers! This is Part 2 of The Design Business Growth Blueprint, and today we’re shifting from the hard-number reality of Part 1 into something just as important - building your 2026 strategy like a true CEO. Not from vibes, not from wishful thinking, and definitely not from “I just want to make more next year,” but from real data, real capacity, and real clarity about the life you actually want to live.
In this episode, I’m walking you through how I create strategic growth plans inside my own multimillion-dollar design firm, and how you can do the same. Grab your notebook and your favorite pen, we’re going deep.

IN THIS EPISODE, I BREAK DOWN:
• The difference between being a business owner running on feelings and being a CEO making decisions from data
• The four essential data categories every designer needs to evaluate before planning 2026: revenue + profit reality, time tracking, true capacity, and demand
• Why numbers don’t shame you — they reveal you — and how that clarity becomes your power
• How to evaluate where your time actually goes and why time, not money, determines your scalability
• Why your business should expand and contract like an accordion depending on the season of life you’re in
• The three must-haves for growing into high six figures and seven figures: repeatable services, pricing that reflects demand and capacity, and a proactive team plan
• The biggest traps designers fall into every year, feeling-based goals, vanity
• Why the 2026 Business Blueprint Worksheet will help you set up a confident, strategic Q1

This episode is all about stepping into your CEO era - not by hustling harder, but by grounding your decisions in numbers, capacity, clarity, and the reality of the life you’re building. As you look toward 2026, I want you to sit with one big question: What does your life need next year? When you honor that answer, everything else gets clearer.

If you want support building out your strategy, head over to fixmydesignbiz.com and grab the 2026 Business Blueprint Worksheet when you register for the masterclass. It will walk you through your data, help you find your gaps and opportunities, and give you the clarity you need to set goals like a CEO, not a business owner running on fumes.

I can’t wait to hear what your life is asking for in 2026. Send me a DM on Instagram or LinkedIn and tell me - I read every single one.

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In this kickoff episode of our two-part series, I’m taking you behind the scenes of the work most designers avoid: facing the truth about what actually happened inside your business this year. Before we can build your 2026 vision (that’s coming in Part 2!), we have to strip away the assumptions, the emotions, the “I think I made money here… maybe?” and look at the real data. I’m talking revenue, margins, client load, time spent, energy, alignment—everything. I know this work is uncomfortable. But this is the difference between running a busy, high-cortisol design business… and building a profitable, strategic, scalable one.

In this episode, I dive into:
• Why most designers avoid looking at their numbers—and why that avoidance keeps you stuck
• The “numerical autopsy” that reveals what actually worked in your business
• How assumptions lead to hustle… but truth leads to strategy
• The difference between being busy and being profitable, and the real markers of each
• The revenue vs. margin conversation designers desperately need to hear
• How to evaluate your client load, your time, and your emotional bandwidth
• The 80/20 rule for figuring out which actions created the majority of your results
• How to identify your dream clients and reverse-engineer where they came from
• What your marketing actually delivered this year (and what was just noise)
• The one thing you already know isn’t working… and why you’re still doing it
• What it takes to build capacity instead of just pushing your capability until it snaps

This episode is your permission—and your push—to stop guessing about your business and start knowing. Because when you know the truth, you can actually make decisions that move you toward clarity, profitability, and a business that finally feels aligned with who you are now.

Part 2 is coming next, and that’s where we’ll take everything you uncover today and turn it into a vision and action plan for 2026 that isn’t emotional, frantic, or based on old patterns—but strategic, grounded, and sustainable.

If you’re ready to stop avoiding your numbers and start leading your business like a CEO, this one is for you.

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In today’s episode, I’m getting real with you — lovingly calling you out and calling you up. If you’ve been stuck in planning mode, waiting for the “right time,” or drowning in overwhelm while nothing truly moves your business forward, this is your wake-up call. I’m sharing the mindset shifts, micro-actions, and systems my clients use to stop overthinking, start taking action, and create a design business that actually supports their life.

IN THIS EPISODE, I TALK ABOUT:

• Why overwhelm isn’t a capability issue — it’s a direction issue
• The real reason designers get paralyzed by analysis
• How to identify the #1 bottleneck slowing every project down
• Why confidence is a byproduct of action (and won’t show up first)
• The power of taking one 20-minute step today, not someday
• What “micro-CEO time” looks like and why it changes everything
• How to balance running your current business while building the one you actually want
• Why hiring for what drains you is more effective than hiring for what feels “expected”
• How improving one strategic area can ripple across your entire business

If you feel stuck or overwhelmed, I want you to hear this: you don’t need a perfect plan, a free week, or a burst of confidence to create real change. You need one clear decision and one 20-minute action. That’s it. DM me and tell me the one thing you’re committing to after listening — I respond to every message, and I’m here to support you as you step out of analysis mode and into the version of your business you actually want to lead.

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