I once worked with someone who was very popular and got invited to many things. She’d check her diary and if she was free, she’d usually say yes.

But as the thing she’d said yes to got closer, a tiny bit of remorse would often creep in.

She’d start thinking ‘do I REALLY want to take a day away from my desk to go do that thing?’

Towards the end of last year, I had an identity crisis.

I've always been good at the detail. It's why I was good at my job before I set up my own business. It's why I was such a great VA for the first few years of running my business.

But at the end of last year, I suddenly found myself making lots of silly mistakes.

I've been helping solo business owners be more productive for years, and when I ask people what they've got out of working with me, you think they'd be shouting from the rooftops about all the amazing things that they've got done, wouldn't you?

According to our old friend Google, procrastination is defined as, "the action of delaying or postponing something." According to Tim Urban a more accurate definition is, "the action of ruining your own life for no apparent reason".

A little over-dramatic?

As we move into the second quarter of the year, it’s a good time to pause and reflect. To look at your plans for 2026 and get curious:

How are things going?

What’s been working well for you so far?

A little while ago, one of my Make It Happen Club members emailed me letting me know she was feeling utterly depleted (life had been dealing her some pretty crappy hands all year) and wasn’t sure how to go about making a plan without making a pressure-filled plan.

Many of us solo business owners – it might even be fair to say most of us – are impatient.

When we first start out in business, we might know logically that it can take time to reach the point where we’re bringing in the income we need. But still we get despondent and frustrated that it’s not happening quicker.

10 years ago, I discovered the slow living movement. Since then, I’ve been on a mission to keep “slow and simple” front of mind, both in my business and in life outside work.

Every now and then, though, things begin to creep. The calendar fills up, life starts to feel a little noisier, and I notice that familiar feeling of busyness returning.

When we're busy, it's not always easy to take a break and we push through, telling ourselves we don't have time to stop.  I can tell you how important it is to press pause. But in the heat of the moment, when you're stressed and overwhelmed, having someone tell you why you should take a break isn't always that helpful.

Maybe what you need instead is a list of fun ideas you can play with. Practical suggestions about what taking a break might look like in reality.

A few times a year I run a 12-month planning workshop where I guide people to decide what they want to make happen, and map out their year so they can see which projects they’ll be working on when.

An important part of that process is to figure out what needs to go in the rhythm section.

Have you ever had an idea that sat on your list for ages. An idea you hadn’t really mentioned to anyone, and kept putting off?

For a lot of people, when an idea exists only in your head, you have no reason to do it (beyond it being a great idea). There’s always something more important or urgent to be done, so that idea – however brilliant – never makes it to the top of their list.

Some people are naturally inclined to rebel against structure, preferring to go with the flow and see how the mood takes them. For others, structure is what grounds them, keeping them calm and focused.

I definitely fall into the latter camp, but the former is equally valid. The key is to find a way of doing things that feels good to you, leaving you confident that the important things will get done.

Procrastination and prioritisation. In my mind, the two are connected: when we’re not clear on our priorities, procrastination often follows.

Of course, it’s one thing to be told, “you just need to get your priorities straight”, but quite another to know where to start.

Have you ever done that thing where you got all excited about something, started to work on it, but then a new idea flies into your head, and before you know it you’ve abandoned whatever project you were working on and chased after the new thing like a dog chasing a squirrel?

That, my friend, is shiny object syndrome.

It often seems like we’re all trying to do everything Drowning in options, not just around business, but around how to human. Things happen and change so fast. The FOMO and constant comparison are real. There are so many inputs, so much noise, it’s easy to get swept up. Trying to do all the things, and never feeling it’s enough.

How are you feeling as we welcome in a new year?

Your answer to that question might depend on how the last few weeks unfolded for you. Did you switch off from work entirely, or have you been dipping into your business in the quieter moments?

When you spend too much time engrossed in activities that aren’t actually moving the needle for you and your business, it stands to reason that there’s less time to spend on the things that matter most. So what do you do?

As self-employed business owners we want freedom and flexibility, right? So why on earth would we restrict ourselves by creating a plan for the year, when we could just go with the flow? But if you’re starting to feel the pain of winging it and wondering if having a plan would help, here are nine reasons why a 12-month plan can help you succeed.

By the time they find me, most people have tried everything to be more productive. So it’s only natural they’d be wondering why working with me would be any different.

And for the longest time, I struggled to find the right words! I’ve always known my approach is unique but articulating that has been tricky. But now, I’ve nailed it!

“Right. It’s time to take this seriously. I’m going to write a new blog every week.”

Six months later …

“FFS. I’ve only managed to write four. Why can’t I just stick to the plan, and do what I said I was going to do?”

Always on the lookout for an opportunity to stick their oar in, your inner critic leaps up and joins in with the tirade, and the more you keep not doing the things you said you were going to do, the harder it is to brush those thoughts off.