So last time we talked about the midyear spiral, that “I should be further by now” feeling that shows up right around June like clockwork. If you read that one, you know I told you something I need you to say again, out loud, right now:
You’re allowed to be where you are.
But here’s what I really want to dig into today, because I think it’s the heart of the whole thing: progress looks different for everybody. Not almost everybody. Not “everybody except the people who seem to have it together.” Everybody.
And progress isn’t always something you can point to. It’s not always a launch, a revenue number, a finished project with a bow on it. Sometimes it’s quiet. Sometimes it’s invisible, even to you. But it is always, always still progress.
Let’s talk about why that’s true, and then I’ll hand you some of my favorite ways to actually feel it.
Why Your Progress Doesn’t Look Like Theirs (And Why That’s the Point)
Here’s something I want you to really sit with: progress isn’t supposed to look the same for everyone. Different brains, different seasons, different businesses, different lives — they all move at different paces, in different shapes.
For a lot of us, especially those with ADHD or neurodivergent tendencies, the year doesn’t move in a straight line. We sprint, we stall, we have a wildly productive Tuesday followed by a week where we can barely remember what day it is. That’s not a flaw in the system. That is the system. Your system. And it’s allowed to look exactly like that.
So when June rolls around and the world suddenly says “time to evaluate your progress!” and what they really mean is “compare your progress to a straight line that was never realistic for you in the first place” — of course something in you tightens up.
Comparison activates stress. Full stop. When you see someone else’s highlight reel next to what feels like your blooper reel, your body doesn’t know it’s just social media. It responds like a threat. Chest tight. Mind spinning. That familiar voice that says you’re behind, you’re failing, what have you even been doing?
That voice is loud. But it’s also wrong. It’s measuring you against someone else’s timeline, in someone else’s business, with someone else’s brain. Of course the math doesn’t add up. It was never supposed to.
A Quick Reset, Right Here
Before we keep going, I want to offer you something small but real. If you’ve never tried EFT Tapping (Emotional Freedom Techniques), here’s the short version: you tap gently on a few points on your face and chest while naming a feeling and a calming truth. It sounds a little woo the first time. I get it. But it talks straight to your nervous system instead of trying to argue your way out of a feeling with logic. And sometimes that’s exactly the shortcut we need.
Let’s try just one round together.
Comparison activates the nervous system — that tightness you feel when you see someone else’s success isn’t your gut telling you the truth. It’s your body bracing.
While you tap (top of head, eyebrow point, side of eye, under your eye, under nose, under mouth, collarbone, under arm), focus on that tightness for a moment.
Tap with me: “My path is safe.” “ I am moving at the pace meant for me.”
Take a breath. That’s it. You don’t need a whole routine to shift something. Sometimes one true sentence, said while your body is doing something gentle, is enough to loosen the grip just a little.
Now Let’s Find the Progress You’ve Been Missing
Once that grip loosens even slightly, it gets a lot easier to actually see what you’ve done instead of only seeing the gap between where you are and where you thought you’d be.
So here’s an exercise. Pull up your task list, your notes app, your calendar — anything that shows you the last six months. And instead of asking “what didn’t I finish,” ask:
- What did I learn, even if I can’t put a number on it?
- What did I survive, even if it wasn’t glamorous?
- What’s quietly building in the background that hasn’t shown up in my metrics yet, but is absolutely still happening?
That last one matters so much. Some progress is loud and visible such as the launch, the sale, the milestone. But so much of it is quiet. It’s the boundary you finally set with a client. It’s the version of you that didn’t spiral for three days straight this time, only one. It’s the systems you’re building that haven’t paid off yet but absolutely will.
Progress isn’t always visible. But it’s always progress.
A Few of My Favorite Hacks For This Season
Hack #3 Hire support people. I say this to my clients all the time: you do not have to do this alone, and you were never supposed to. Look at what’s eating your time and energy, and ask who could take even one piece of it off your plate. It could be a VA, a contractor, a friend, even an AI tool for the small stuff. Support isn’t a luxury for “later, when the business is bigger.” Support is what gets you to bigger.
Hack #16 Have fun first. I’ll keep saying this until it sinks in: if you let yourself actually enjoy this summer, the trip, the hike, the lazy Saturday — you will have so much more energy to jump back in, even when you’re feeling behind. Fun isn’t the reward you earn after the work. Fun is part of what makes the work possible. Rest is productive. Play is productive. Your nervous system needs both.
Hack #10 Change your scenery. Summer is often filled with travel, and sometimes that refresh is just what we need for a little extra boost of energy. Even if you’re staying home, move to your porch or backyard for a few hours. Go to a local coffee shop or a co-working space. Take a day trip to a lake or somewhere else that just helps boost your energy. You don’t need a whole vacation to get the benefit — sometimes your brain just needs new walls, new sounds, new air to remember it’s allowed to feel a little lighter.
Delegate, delete, delay, do. This one isn’t mine originally, but it’s one of my favorite ways to look at an overwhelming list, especially for ADHD brains. Go through your tasks and sort each one:
- Can I hand this to someone else?
- Can I just let it go entirely?
- Can it genuinely wait?
- Or is it actually mine to do right now?
Most of us only see two options, do it, or feel guilty about not doing it. This opens up two more. And the delay one is worth sitting with, because our brains are wired for now. Impulsivity says everything on the list should happen today. But delaying something isn’t failing at it. It’s sequencing it. Not everything can wait but a lot more can than you think. Once you sort through all four, what’s left is your real list. And it’s almost always shorter and kinder than the one you started with.
One Last Thing Before You Go
Your progress doesn’t have to look like anyone else’s to count. It doesn’t have to be visible on a dashboard, a bank statement, or an Instagram grid to be real.
You’ve been doing things. Learning things. Surviving things. Some of it shows up in your metrics, and some of it is quietly building in the background — not gone, not wasted, just not finished showing itself yet.
Your effort counts. Even the parts no one sees.
You’re not behind. You’re exactly where your particular path has you, moving at the pace that’s actually yours. And that path is safe.
Let’s Keep Going Together
You don’t have to figure this summer out solo.
The Monday Power Hour: Every Monday at 11am PT, I host a free Power Hour where we work on our businesses side by side with other women who genuinely get it. Join us here.
Find Your Best Support: Not sure if you need 1:1 coaching, a small group, or just a gentle nudge in the right direction? Let’s talk it through. Schedule your Clarity Call here.
Your progress is real, even on the days it’s quiet. And you’re allowed to get support along the way.
