More than a decade ago, I built a web design business helping creative entrepreneurs. And while entrepreneurship brought me freedom, I soon found myself caught in a common trap: saying ‘yes’ to everything.

What began as a web design business morphed into:

Keeping websites updated and functional on a monthly basis,
Hosting sites on my hosting account and handling everything that comes with that,
Serving as a virtual assistant for several businesses, including podcast editing, social media marketing, creating lead magnets, and updating blogs for my clients,
Guidance and support through 1:1 sessions to help my clients with their business development,
Creating courses to answer all my clients’ questions and in marketplaces like Skillshare and Udemy,
Creating digital products to attract new customers,
And so much more.

Juggling so many roles meant I was spreading myself too thin.

I want to note that having multiple passions and offerings isn’t a drawback; But here’s what I learned the hard way: you need to charge rates that allow you to deliver those services while also being able to take care of yourself.

The Downside of Undercharging

I wasn’t a good boss to myself.

I kept adding more and more to my plate while charging too little for everything. Take my web maintenance offering - instead of setting up proper retainer fees that would offer consistent monthly income, I settled for minimal fees that didn’t reflect the true value of my work.

I repeated this same pattern in all my services; my income plateaued while my workload increased. I started working more and more weekends, missing out on personal time, while still being unable to break past a certain income level - all because I wasn’t valuing my time and expertise.

The Breaking Point

It was clear I’d hit burnout.

Personal problems, coupled with escalating work pressures, caused everyday tasks to be nearly impossible.

The math wasn’t mathing.

Low pricing + high workload + personal commitments = unsustainable business.

I longed to develop my own courses and creative projects, but client work took all my energy. Every time I tried to make space for my own projects, a new client would emerge or an existing client would have urgent demands.

I struggled to say no - because I cared about my clients, and because I hadn’t built enough financial cushion to be selective with my time.

The Impact on My Body

My health started declining.

I struggled to handle even simple virtual assistant duties. A minor setback with my health snowballed into an unwinnable race to catch up.

Quality suffered. Deadlines slipped. The more I pushed myself to get back to work, the worse things became.

Eventually, I hit a wall. I reached a point where I couldn’t get out of bed, let alone serve my clients effectively. Ultimately, I had to sacrifice my business. I had to make the tough decision to let go of most my clients because my body was forcing me to rest.

Pressing the Reset Button

Focusing on my creative writing MFA, I downsized my client roster to one. I maintained this lighter load for around a year.

This break wasn’t just a rest; it was essential for understanding sustainable work practices that benefited both my mind and body.

Getting to Know My Natural Rhythms

My intentional rest that year revealed a different work style.

I prioritized shorter workdays, regular breaks, and respecting my physical limits to avoid burnout.

While completing my MFA, I learned to pace myself in a way I never had before. This time of rest helped me understand two important things: how my neurodivergent brain works best, and how to honor my body’s needs with chronic illness. My old work habits disregarded my body’s and mind’s natural needs.

My return to some type of work started slowly, initially with local nonprofits, then with contractor positions. I’ve worked in those contract positions for over two years now, with the occasional foray into helping old clients with their websites.

This period became about more than just recovery - it was about deep learning and intentional rebuilding.

I finally realized that self-care is essential, not optional, for long-term business success. I realized that self-care wasn’t selfish, but a necessity for success in my work and in serving my clients effectively.

Building Back Different

I’m trying a new method for my upcoming business launch. Rebuilding isn’t the goal; instead, I’m methodically constructing a new foundation, step-by-step.

I’m moving intentionally slower, planning more thoroughly, and building in safeguards to protect my health and energy from the start. This is very much a work in progress; I’m discovering and implementing better ways of working as I go, always asking myself, ‘Is this sustainable?’ before adding other things to my business.

The concept of flexibility extends to the whole business model, not just my working hours. Here are three intentional choices I’m making:

1. Service Evolution

I’ve found that some services are only useful during particular seasons of my life, and it’s important to plan them properly from the beginning.

My initial offerings are limited to two core services: business coaching and a comprehensive website audit, including a marketing strategy. These services align with both my expertise and my energy levels.

Creating Clear Containers

One of my biggest lessons was about the importance of smaller, well-defined containers for my work.

In the past, projects dragged on, causing them to grow beyond the original plan and exhausting everyone involved. Now, I’m building in clear timelines and checkpoints.

My website audit and marketing strategy package takes two weeks; one day for the video audit, roughly a week for the strategy, plus buffer time for low-energy days. This structured timeline helps make sure I deliver high-quality work while respecting my own needs for rest and recovery.

The Power of Seasons

I’m now offering a ‘try before you commit’ model for my one-on-one coaching. To ensure compatibility, we begin with one session before committing to a longer-term project.

Then, I offer longer coaching packages structured in 2-3 month seasons, not in extended commitments of six months to a year. This allows regular check-ins, progress evaluations, and decisions about continuation—creating natural breaks that prevent burnout and keep the relationship energizing for everyone.

Know that just because you create something doesn’t mean you have to offer it forever.

When something no longer suits your energy levels or way of thinking, finish what you started and then move on to new projects. However, it’s even more beneficial to things that align with your natural rhythms and energy levels from the start, if you can.

2. Energy-Aligned Delivery

Managing my energy is key to how I structure and deliver my services.

I’ve intentionally created a balance between high-energy, client-facing work and lower-energy, asynchronous delivery.

Asynchronous by Design

My website audit and marketing strategy package doesn’t require real-time interaction.

This service prioritizes independent work to replace day-long, draining Zoom calls with every client. Clients get a video audit and a detailed strategy document after completing a comprehensive intake questionnaire.

This work still takes effort. Yet, I can schedule it for when I’m feeling my best and take breaks as needed. Instead of dealing with back-to-back client calls, I’ll record the video audit when I’m feeling energetic and focus on the strategy document in manageable chunks.

Working with Natural Rhythms

This balanced approach - combining the one-on-one coaching with asynchronous delivery - creates natural ebbs and flows in my schedule.

I avoid constant high energy output, ensuring I can meet my clients’ needs while attending to my own physical needs.

3. Intentional Marketing

Instead of trying to be everywhere online, I’m focusing first on discoverability.

Visibility also matters, but it frequently involves creating a large volume of content, such as posting five TikToks daily. Short-form content, while seemingly quick, necessitates significant energy for creation and upkeep. I tried this for a short while in 2024 and discovered it’s not for me, so now I’m taking a different approach, as I’ll briefly outline below.

My Current Content Creation Strategy

Long-form blog content, planned and written in advance, is the core of my marketing approach.

Even as I write this, my website isn’t live yet - and that’s by design. A month of pre-launch content creation will allow for a gradual and consistent content release once the site goes live.

This approach means that I will have content available from the outset, resulting in less pressure to create these longer pieces of content on a weekly schedule.

Here’s my plan:

1 - To start, I defined my main content areas (also called content pillars), focusing on topics related to my services and interests. Next, I developed a content library by brainstorming blog post topics based on each pillar.

My preparation ensures I always know what to say before creating content.

2 - To make content creation easier on my body and brain, I’m using voice dictation instead of typing everything. This not only speeds up the process but also prevents the physical strain of constant typing.

It’s just me, my phone, and my thoughts - a much more sustainable approach to content creation. Once I get my thoughts down, it then becomes about revising. I find this step much simpler and less draining, both mentally and physically.

3 - I’m also being intentional about content length and structure. For example, this post was originally part of a longer article, but I decided to divide it into two for better readability.

Being able to make these decisions without time pressure is exactly why I’m creating content so far in advance. Weekly deadlines make it much more challenging to make thoughtful decisions, at least for me.

4 - Lastly, I’m dedicated to a seasonal workflow: one month for blog creation, the next for repurposing that content (details in a future post!). This batch content creation method ensures consistency while removing the constant pressure from content creation.

It’s about building a sustainable marketing system that works with my energy levels, not against them.

The Way Ahead

Creating a sustainable business isn’t about copying others; it’s about building a system that suits your unique needs and lifestyle.

My path from burnout to recovery might not mirror yours, yet the essential truth persists: sustainable success hinges on respecting your physical and mental needs, as well as the needs in all the areas of your life.

Join the Conversation

I’d love to hear from you! Have you experienced burnout in your creative business? What changes have you made to work more sustainably?

Tell us your story in the comments section. Your insights might be exactly what another creative entrepreneur needs to hear today.

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How I Transformed My Creative Business After Burnout