I’m writing this at 5.30pm following a morning of coaching clients and then an afternoon at the beach with the kids.
Summer juggle, right?
For most of us running our own businesses, summer is a strange season. It’s supposed to feel lighter, and in some ways it does. But it brings its own juggle: clients who go quiet then suddenly need everything at once, school holidays that swallow your focused work time whole, and a nagging sense that you should be either fully on or fully off, when you’re somehow neither.
Here are six things genuinely helping me this summer.
First, decide what “good enough” looks like for July and August. Not every month needs to be your most productive one. This isn’t the season to launch the big thing or sort your pricing. Pick a smaller set of things that matter, and let the rest wait. September is coming.
Second, protect the mornings. Whether it’s an hour before the kids wake up or the window while they’re with friend, guard it. Do the one thing that matters most first. Everything else can flex.
Third, have the boundaries conversation before you need it. Don’t wait until a client emails you mid-beach-day to realise you never set expectations. A short note before you take time off, letting people know your schedule, takes two minutes and saves a week of low-level anxiety.
Fourth, lower the bar for what counts as marketing. Experience tells me the businesses that stay visible over summer aren’t posting daily, they’re picking one small, repeatable thing and sticking to it. One post a week is enough to stay warm until September.
Fifth, tell someone what you’re actually finding hard. Not your clients, not LinkedIn. Just one person who gets it. Naming it takes the edge off.
Sixth, decide now what your first week back in September looks like. Not the whole month, just the first week. A little structure waiting for you makes it easier to switch off now.
I’m heading off to Canada with my family at the end of next week, and I genuinely cannot wait. I’ll be back in September, rested, focused, and ready.
Which brings me to something I want to mention before I go.
If part of what your September needs is structure, accountability, and a brilliant group of people around you to grow your business, Elevate, my six-month group mastermind starting in September, might be exactly that first week back you’re looking for. There are just two weeks left at the Founding Member Rate before doors close, and there are a small number of places remaining.
DM me and I’ll send you the details, or confidentially message me if you’re ready to book a call. kerry@kerryjonescoaching.com
