Jade Boyd: Welcome to the business edit podcast, a podcast about redefining productivity for the modern woman in business and finding ways to work smarter, not harder in business and life. I’m your host, Jade Boyd, an MBA business minimalist and productivity coach. I help overwhelmed business owners simplify and scale their service based businesses by doing less but better.

I help my clients create business minimalist strategies and systems that allow them to pursue ambitious goals while working at a human pace. On this. podcast. We’ll explore simple ways to grow your business with a life first approach. If you’re ready to scale your business, bring order to chaos, ditch the busy work and spend more time living your life than managing your life.

You’ve come to the right place. Welcome to the business edit podcast.

Jade Boyd: So as you know, this podcast is about doing less but better and focusing on the things that are driving results in your business and in your life and, you know, getting [00:01:00] organized and finding ways that you can be productive by not trying to get everything done, but by really reducing the amount of things on your to do list in the first place.

So today I thought I would share about five different things that I am not doing in 2025.

And I do feel like ever since I came back from maternity leave last fall, I have been continually refining my processes and decluttering and pitching things that previously I had time to do and were helping a little bit, but maybe not driving the most results in my business. And overall, I’ve just changed a lot about how I operate.

out of necessity in order to keep going and make this sustainable. So let’s dive into five things that I’ve decided that I’m not doing in 2025. The first one is Pinterest, and I think I might have mentioned this one before on the podcast but I will no longer be doing any Pinterest marketing in 2025.

It’s something [00:02:00] that I had tried for a few years and we were, again, getting a little bit of traction. It’s not that it was a complete waste of time, but I was paying another person to do this for me. And ultimately, it just wasn’t the highest ROI compared to other things that I could have invested in to grow my business.

So in 2025, I will no longer be creating pins for Pinterest. And I’m not saying that that’s a bad marketing strategy, but with any platform, you do kind of have to go all in and create for that platform. Even if you’re repurposing content, you do have to repurpose it in a way that It actually works for that platform if you want to see really, really good results.

And Pinterest has changed a lot since I started using it. And again, we just weren’t getting the traffic to make it worth it for me. And I wasn’t willing to invest another year or more of my time. Or effort or money making the platform work, I think we could, but ultimately, I would rather put that focus into other platforms [00:03:00] like podcasting.

So in 2025, I will not be doing Pinterest marketing.

And that is something that I went back and forth on for probably over a year. And when I finally decided like, okay, we’re not going to do this. It actually felt like a huge relief. So

that was one of the easier things to let go of. The next thing I decided that I’m not doing is sending podcast interviewees questions beforehand. episodes, I would come up with a list of questions beforehand, and I would send them in like a prep email manually to the person who was coming on the show.

And I’m still prepping interviews and having a general list of topics that I want to discuss, but I found that even when I was doing questions, we were kind of going off script and taking the conversation in a different direction. So I don’t want to go into conversations completely unprepared, but eliminating those questions It’s not only saves me an email to send, which I mean, takes five to 10 minutes.

So it’s not that [00:04:00] much of my time, but it adds up if I’m going to be doing 25, 30 guest interviews this year, tiny changes in my workflow. That’s just like one less thing to do again, just frees up time and space for me to invest my time in other areas of my business and also not working, which is what I really need in this season of my life.

And ultimately, I did go through my entire podcast workflow and automated more of the emails that were being sent and changed, you know, the language and everything around that and kind of streamline things even further. This is probably like version 10 of my podcast workflow at this point. I continue to refine it and I’ve just realized that I can get away with not doing a lot of the things that I previously thought that I had to do.

And overall, again, it feels like a relief not to have to send those emails and I’m feeling really good about it. The third one I covered in depth in a recent [00:05:00] episode, I am not setting goals for my business in 2025, which is a huge change. And again, go back and listen to the episode that I recorded, the last one of 2024.

It’s just titled why i’m not setting business goals this year and I go really really in depth of why i’m not setting goals This year, but also in other areas of my life I feel like I am just focused more on the process and enjoying the journey And have found recently that it actually helps me be more successful than setting big goals.

Anyway, like for example I Technically set a reading goal every year, but at this point it’s just kind of like a check mark and something fun Like there’s no doubt that i’m actually going to reach the goal. It’s not a huge goal ever since I set the goal to read 100 books and really really got into reading I built the habit of reading consistently and now it’s just kind of on autopilot.

Like, I don’t have to decide or force myself to read X number of pages or X number of books each month. I’m just a reader. [00:06:00] And so naturally I’m going to read 50 plus books a year and it just happens. So yes, it’s kind of a goal for me, but also it’s not something that I have to really try to do. And I think that is the power of habits.

It helps you achieve things without actually having to try to achieve things, which is the best, less, but better. strategy for doing anything. Another thing that I noticed this in is journaling. So in my planning stack episode, I talked about how I’m doing a five year journal. And so you write a journal entry every single day.

And if I were to write, you know, finish five year journal every single day on my to do list, it would start feeling like a chore. And that’s traditionally how goals are broken down, right? You have this like big goal. I want to journal 365 days in a row.

And then you break it down, it’s like, well, I just have to put that on my to do list every day. But instead, I have just put my journal out in my living room every morning. Caleb and I, like, wake up and kind of hang out on the couch in the [00:07:00] living room and drink coffee, eat breakfast. And I have, like, my stack of books there that I’m currently reading and my five year journal.

And so naturally, because it’s in the context where I have time to journal, It’s just made it easier for me to keep up with that habit, and I don’t have to write it on my to do list. And I found that the shorter my to do list is every day, the less overwhelmed I feel. So it’s not that I’m not getting that thing done, but again, I’m kind of automating it to where it’s incorporated into my routine, instead of forcing myself to stick to this, like, regimented to do list or regimented structure every day.

Okay, the third thing I’m not doing this year is discounting my services in any way, shape, or form. And this is something that I kind of decided in maybe November, like late last year, and started to think of, of like, okay, I’m not doing that anymore. And several times I’ve considered doing it, And have stopped myself because now it’s just like a rule.

There’s no discounting [00:08:00] Services in my business. It’s just not something that i’m going to do moving forward And I would say this does not apply to like obviously if somebody books one Coaching call versus signs up to coach with me for a year like the time With those coaching calls is going to be less because they’re booking more so bundling calls I’m not counting as discounting.

It’s like once the price is decided, I’m not going to be like, Oh, you get a hundred dollars off if you book this month or, you know, 10 percent off this week only. It’s just not something that I’m ever going to do or like no, like open cart discounts. None of that is going to happen anymore. Instead, I’m going to focus on creating a really great client experience and attracting people to my offers instead of doing like push or

Heavy like urgency marketing, which I haven’t really discounted a lot in the past, but it’s just been helpful for me to be like, okay, I’m, I’m drawing the line and if you’re not the right person for the offer, then that’s okay. And I really just want to focus with working [00:09:00] with the most aligned hell yes clients this year.

And so it’s just not something that I’m going to do anymore.

Okay, so I know I said that there’s five things but technically this last one is kind of two There’s a couple of services that i’ve decided not to continue offering this year The first one was an easy decision. The second one was actually a very difficult decision So the first service that i’m not offering is the co work club, which is something that I started in q2 2024, so it’s It’s only something that I’ve done for like nine months, but basically it was a monthly in person co work club with local entrepreneurs, people that I’ve been friends with for a long time.

And the main benefit was the social aspect of like having business friends to check in with people who knew you well. And we did like hot seat round tables and had a little bit of time for co working here and then. And it was a three hour meeting every month, which is a lot of time for childcare because there’s no way I would take.

My daughter [00:10:00] to a three hour meeting. It was a ton of fun. It was great to get out of the house It was great to see everybody but ultimately again, it’s not that it wasn’t a good use of my time But it probably wasn’t the best use of my time for my business If the main benefit is social I can get a lot of social benefit in my life In contexts Where I can take my daughter along more easily and not pay for child care

So it’s ultimately something that I love doing but just wasn’t going to be the best fit for this season And so it’s something that was a little bit of an easy decision Especially since I haven’t offered it for that long and it was kind of like low profit as well easy decision to let go of that one The harder thing to let go of and I haven’t talked about this previously on the podcast This is something that i’ve kind of kept close to my chest because it was a very You hard decision and in many ways, I have lots of feelings about it still.

I’m still processing that. But ultimately in this post maternity Leave phase, I have [00:11:00] noticed that it’s just hard for me anytime without child care that I have to show up for a scheduled meeting. And as an introvert, I love people and I love interacting with clients and I do walk away from every meeting, every podcast interview, every coaching call.

I wouldn’t say every, 99 percent of them, I walk away feeling like man, this is so fun, I loved that, I really enjoy the work that I get to do. And even in the fall, I remember my friend came and watched my daughter. While I had a three hour coaching call and beforehand, I was like, Oh my gosh, I feel so tired.

Like my daughter didn’t sleep last night. I’m kind of dreading. We’re going to be on the zoom call for three hours. And I just wish that I didn’t have to do this today. And then afterwards, I was like, I have the best career ever. That was so fun. Like, why was I dreading that? That was amazing. And so I feel like I continually have that love hate relationship with meetings, especially coaching and podcast interviews that are [00:12:00] on.

My calendar. But childcare has been really hard to find since we moved after a few weeks after my daughter was born and got on waitlist for part time daycare. And there’s been no movement on the waitlist that we’re on. And so we’ve tried to find other spots for part time near where we live. And it’s just been really hard.

So in reality, we’re not going to get that for several months, maybe at all this year. And so looking at my business and the amount of meetings on my calendar and just my capacity, Timewise, I’ve ultimately decided that I’m going to press pause on the business edit coaching program, which is my signature coaching program It is like my number one Profit driver in my business at least for last year.

It was my number one Way that I made money and so to press pause on that is a huge shift In my business and something that even when I went away I booked a hotel for my annual planning meeting and I didn’t even consider it I was just like of course i’m going to offer that it’s like my number one program and my baby.

I love it so much But then I just kept feeling I was kind of disquieted as people were showing [00:13:00] interest in the program. Something within me was like almost not wanting to book clients into that program. And that was my red flag of like, okay, what’s going on here? Why don’t I want to book clients? And the number one thing that I want people to book, right?

And I think part of that is just that it’s a lot to be available. I mean, it’s only one hour a week for coaching, which doesn’t seem like a lot at all on a live call, but it does in practice, even showing up to that one call feels hard in the season that I’m in and organizing childcare. for that one day a week.

It just, it just seems hard to me right now, which may sound a little pathetic to you depending on what life stage you’re in, but that’s where I’m at. And also being available for multiple people on Slack every single day of the week, it has just forced me to, like, every time my daughter goes down for a nap, I feel like I have to be working.

And it’s made me feel. Like I’m not able to live the slow type of life that I really do want to live. And so [00:14:00] I’ve ultimately decided not that it’s going to go away forever, because I know that this is just a season, but I am going to pause it and finish out my coaching contracts up until April. And then after that, we’re going to hit pause and until if, and when I feel like it’s aligned to bring that back in the future.

And so you might be asking, well, what are you going to do instead? And I do feel like any phase for business owners when you’re in between launching and selling a program A lot of business owners get in that rut of like, okay, well, what do I talk about then? Cause I don’t have an offer to talk about, like, what am I actually going to do?

And for me, my main focus this year is going to be on my podcast and growing my audience and serving you guys really, really well. And so if you haven’t taken the time to like rate and review the podcast or send an episode that you love to a friend or share on your Instagram stories I would really, really appreciate that, especially this year, if you could share the love with the podcast, because it is going to be my number one focus this year, bringing the best of the best content and [00:15:00] conversations and guests to this podcast for you all.

And also growing my audience until I have clarity on what that next thing is going to be for me in business. Also, I am thinking about turning the business at it. All of the trainings are recorded. The workbook’s done. There are amazing guest experts who’ve been in the business that it, who we have bonus trainings from.

I have probably five to 10 bonus trainings recorded myself for the business at it. It is an amazing program, even without the coaching. It is. So, so good and something I’m so proud of. And so I’m also thinking about turning that into a digital course with either no coaching access or a more limited form of coaching access later this year.

And so that might be something that’s coming down the pipeline, but generally, and it’s funny, cause I’ve heard this from other business owners. That I’ve talked to recently as well. I am just ready to switch to a more passive form Of revenue rather than focusing on an active form for this [00:16:00] season at least not long term coaching Shorter term coaching in a different capacity.

I I think I need it for my sanity Like human interaction and also to work with real people makes sense It’s me. A better educator when it comes to the podcast content too,

but for now, that is a huge decision and a huge pivot that I’m making in 2025. So. doubling down on passive revenue, digital course sales, growing an audience, podcasting, email marketing. Those are the things that I’m going to be focusing on this year and taking you along for the journey too. As I make this big pivot, I am going to learn a lot and obviously invest education for myself in a different direction too.

So I hope hearing what I am not doing in 2025 to grow my business and kind of take this next step into the future of Jade Boyd Co. has helped you brainstorm some. Some things that you might be ready to let go of, or some things that you might be investing in that might not be the best use of your time, even though [00:17:00] they’re a little bit helpful or driving a little bit of results might, you might have that feeling or that unsettledness like I talked about of like, Hmm, this just doesn’t feel right.

Or like I dread this every time I have to show up and do it. So I hope that if you have that feeling right now that you’re able to step away from something in your business and free up some time for what matters most to you, what’s driving. success in your business and what feels most aligned to you in the season of life that you’re in.

And if you did have an aha moment of something that you’re ready to let go of after listening to this, I would love to hear it too. So feel free to DM me on Instagram and tell me what you’re not doing in 2025.

Thanks so much for tuning in today and I will see you next week.

Thank you so much for listening to this episode of the business edit podcast. If you enjoyed today’s episode, I’d be so grateful if you take a screenshot and share it on Instagram, tagging me at jadeboyd. co. I’m on a mission to empower a new generation of women to become the type. Of [00:18:00] wives, moms, and business owners that they’ve always wanted to be because empowered women change their families and communities for the better, and this is how we’ll change the world.

Sharing your takeaways from this episode on Instagram will help more women in business discover helpful episodes and level up in life and business each week. Don’t forget to check out the show notes for the tools and resources mentioned in today’s episode because good ideas don’t grow businesses.

Action does. I’ll see you next time on The Business Edit podcast.