There’s nothing like the joy of waking up in the morning, sitting down with a steaming hot coffee at your computer to start the business day, and… opening an email that makes you want to crawl back into bed and stay there until Friday at 5pm.
That happens to all of us at some point. Especially entrepreneurs. Our businesses are tied so closely to our sense of self-worth, it can be really difficult to disentangle that sometimes.
Last month, I had one of those days. Despite a lot of really exciting new things happening, I was ready to throw in the towel.
“What am I still doing here, putting in all this effort, with virtually no pay-off?”
When “Doing Everything Right” Still Feels Wrong
It was one of those perfect storm situations. We’re in the middle of shifting our business model to better serve our clients, which means restructuring programs, updating systems, and basically rebuilding the plane while flying it. On paper, everything was going well—our clients were getting incredible results, we had exciting new offerings in development, and the feedback was overwhelmingly positive.
But it’s still that bumpy start-up road where you have to continue to do things without any promise that it will pay off. And sometimes it hurts.
Every email felt urgent. Every decision felt monumental. Every small hiccup felt like evidence that maybe I was in over my head. And then I opened the email and went, “Nope.”
The Thing That Saved Me (And It’s Not What I Expected)
I kept pushing through the day, leaving the dumpster-fire aside and pretending it wasn’t happening. And then something magical happened. Not all at once, though.
I had a regularly scheduled call booked with my Black Sheep Co. co-founder, Shelby Eloria. We always start by talking about wins, so that instantly made me refocus on something less dumpster-firey. When I got to talking about the challenge that had come up that morning, I tried to brush past it, but she asked me some questions (she’s amazing at that!) By the end of the hour, I had a bit more clarity around the situation.
After a bit of client work, I had my mastermind group. These ladies are incredible and make Wednesdays the best day of the week, every single week. We follow a similar structure – wins, challenges, focus for the week. I got even more insight into some much simpler solutions to my issue than the ones I’d been brooding over. They helped me reframe what was going on so I could think it through from a different perspective.
And then came Lean Marketing Lab, which is always a ton of fun and makes me feel like, “yes! This is it. This is what I’m supposed to be doing, this is giving people exactly what they need, and it’s a group of people I genuinely care about and enjoy being around. We did our usual, creating content for the weeks ahead using some very simple prompts, and by the end of it, someone said, “I can’t believe how easy you make this.”
She didn’t know how much I needed to hear those words.
Throughout the day, I also messaged with a ton of other people who have slowly become such important people in my business—and my life. My co-directors at Vision + Spark, some amazing clients who are getting awesome results, and even some people from other organizations that have supported me recently.
What a shift. By the end of the day, the crappy email seemed like a small hiccup to deal with. I did deal with it, and it went well, and it was over. And I was reminded that on the toughest days, the people around you are the most important element of anything—business included.
Why Your Support Network Matters More Than Anything Else in Your Business
I wish I could tell you that I have some profound daily ritual or motivational quote taped to my monitor that instantly fixes everything. The truth is much simpler—and honestly, much better.
It’s the people.
Not in some generic “surround yourself with positivity” way, but in a very specific, very real way. Over the nine years we’ve been building Fine Point, I’ve developed relationships with clients, business partners, and referral partners who just get it. They understand the reality of running a small business. They’ve been deep in it, too. Some of them have been deep in it with me.
When I’m having one of those days, I don’t need a pep talk. I need people who understand, who lend an ear and their time, and turn mountains back into molehills.
Here’s what I’ve learned about the people who keep me going when things get tough:
They don’t just cheer you on—they challenge you. When I’m spiraling about whether we’re making the right business decisions, these people ask the hard questions that help me think clearly instead of just react emotionally.
They share resources, not just encouragement. Last week, when I was struggling with a delicate issue, a business partner didn’t just tell me “you’ve got this.” She sent me a contact I could reach out to for specific help with my problem.
They remind you that you’re not alone in feeling alone. There’s something powerful about hearing another business owner say, “Oh yeah, I had a week like that last month too.” It doesn’t minimize your experience—it normalizes it. And it reminds you that like everything, this is just a phase.
The Unexpected Business Advantage of Real Relationships
What started as personal support has become one of our biggest business advantages. When Alex from Astronomic Audio needs copywriting support for a client project, he thinks of us first—not because we have the flashiest marketing, but because he trusts our work and knows we’ll make him look good.
When Jessica from Altitude Accounting has a client who needs help with their brand messaging, the referral feels natural because she’s seen firsthand how we approach business challenges.
When Katie from Paper Lime Creative wants to work on building her business, we sit down together and work through it as a team.
These aren’t transactional networking relationships where we’re all trying to sell each other something. They’re genuine partnerships built on mutual respect and shared understanding of what it actually takes to run a sustainable business.
Building Your Own Support Network (Without the Awkward Networking Events)
You don’t need to attend seventeen networking events or join every business group in your city. What you need is to be intentional about cultivating relationships with people who:
- Understand your industry challenges without needing a full explanation (to be clear, this doesn’t always mean they need to be in your industry! Sometimes outside perspectives are equally valuable).
- Share similar values about how they want to run their businesses (and their personal lives, in most cases).
- Can offer perspective when you’re too close to a problem to see it clearly.
- Celebrate wins and normalize struggles in equal measure.
Start small. Focus on quality over quantity. Be the kind of business partner you’d want to have—generous with insights, honest about challenges, and reliable when someone needs support. When someone tells you, “Wow, that really helped,” make note of it so you can help them in that way again.
What Keeps You Going?
I’m curious—what gets you through those days when business feels harder than it should? Is it a person, a practice, a perspective shift?
More importantly, when was the last time you told someone in your professional network that their support actually matters to you?
Here’s my challenge: Give someone a shout-out. Whether it’s on social media, in an email, through a written thank you card, or just a quick text—let someone know that their support, advice, or partnership has made a difference in your business journey.
Because here’s what I’ve learned: the entrepreneurs who thrive aren’t the ones who have it all figured out. They’re the ones who’ve built relationships that help them figure it out as they go.
Ready to build your own support network through strategic content? Our Lean Marketing Lab community brings together incredible entrepreneurs who understand that building a business is easier when you’re not doing it alone. Join us for weekly strategy sessions, real-time feedback, and connections with business owners who get what you’re going through!
