Saying yes to the shift

Sarah’s business wasn’t working. That’s what she told me, through tears, on our free intro call. She was so, so tired. She’d been trying everything and revenue was still down. She was working more than ever, sending dozens of emails to try to land more projects. She told me, guilt lacing the statement: I just want to take a full-time job again.

Sarah (not her real name) had been working in media for years. She was a veteran of her craft, an incredible editor and someone with deep experience in the editorial management space. If you needed to hire someone to revamp your editorial systems, there was no one better than Sarah. But her work pipeline had dried up.

Sarah isn’t alone. This has been a solid vibe for many of my clients in 2023, especially in the latter half. Sarah and I were also having this conversation right before the holidays, which meant that things were extra quiet. That lull, combined with a complex economy and businesses reducing their budgets, resulted in what felt like a catastrophe.

Can you help me? Sarah whispered.

This is what I told her:

You can’t keep doing what you were doing before and expect it to work. I wish you could, but the world has changed. You have changed. Your customers have changed. Their needs have changed. 2024 is going to be a whole new thing. And none of this is your fault: It’s the natural way of things, accelerated by an economy under duress.