I'm back behind the microphone after a summer break, and feeling ready for a catch-up! So I'm looking back at the last few months, sharing a little of what I've been up to, and celebrating the first birthday of Seasons in Business.

September can be a funny old month, with that familiar back-to-school feeling arriving just as Christmas starts creeping closer. With Mabon, the autumn equinox, just behind us, I'm sharing three reflection questions to help you check in with your energy, think about what matters most, and find a pace that works for you as we head into autumn.

Mentioned in this episode:

Download your free Autumn Planning Guide: https://www.sarahandmaude.com/seasonal-planning

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This episode was written, recorded and produced by Sarah Phelps.

Welcome to Seasons in Business, a podcast for creative business owners who want to build something thoughtful and sustainable at a pace that actually feels good. I'm your host, designer and printmaker Sarah Phelps. And if, like me, you're craving a slower, more spacious way to grow with a little gentle encouragement along the way, you're in the right place. So turn off your notifications, grab a cup of tea or coffee, and get cosy.

Hi everyone, and welcome back to Seasons in Business. It's been a while, and it was lovely to take a break from the podcast over the summer, but I have to say, it feels really good to be back behind the microphone again. Because I actually missed recording these episodes more than I thought I would. And coming back with this episode feels a bit special too, because it marks a whole year since I first launched the podcast.

There's lots of good stuff to come over the next few months, but for this first episode back, I thought we could have a bit of a catch-up. I want to tell you a little bit about summer, because mine definitely didn't go quite as I planned it, and then have a chat about moving into autumn and how we might want to approach the next few months.

So summer in my stationery business usually involves designing Christmas cards in the middle of a heatwave. So I'm often thinking about jingle bells and Christmas trees while trying not to melt into a puddle on the floor. But this summer was very different.

So just after the last episode of the podcast went out, I got a phone call to schedule the gallbladder surgery that I'd been waiting for. I'd been expecting it to happen around September, so when they offered me a date in early July, it was a bit of a surprise. But obviously, after being on the waiting list for over a year, I said yes.

And thankfully, aside from the being terrified of going to sleep and waking up part, everything went really well. Except the resting part, which it turns out I'm really not very good at. So for the first couple of weeks afterwards, I had to rest, and I mean properly rest. No lifting, no exercise, no driving, which was hard because when I'm not working, I'm normally pottering around finding jobs to do. So suddenly having to just stop felt really strange.

There was a lot less client work than usual and a lot less gardening than I'd normally do in summer. Instead, there was a lot of sitting on the patio, watching the bees, eating ice lollies, and slowly getting back on my feet. But the funny thing is, once I stopped fighting it, I actually really enjoyed it. Not the surgery part, obviously, but having permission — or really no choice — to completely switch off gave me space to clear my head in a way that I hadn't for a really long time. And I realised I couldn't actually remember the last time I'd properly just stopped like that.

It's been almost three months now post-surgery, and I feel so much better. I feel much more like myself again, and I don't think I realised how much I'd been missing that. When you've been feeling unwell for a long time — for me, it had been more than two years — you adapt, you work around things, and after a while that just becomes a new normal. Then you start feeling better and think, "Oh, this is what it used to feel like."

Looking back, I think that explains quite a lot about how I was feeling by the time episode 20 went out. At the time, I wasn't sure whether I was tired of podcasting, even though I loved it, tired of work, or just tired of everything. And I think it turns out I was mostly just tired.

So coming back now feels really different. I'm looking forward to recording again. I've got ideas I have the energy to think about, and work feels really exciting again.

And all of that energy and excitement has definitely given September a back-to-school feeling for me, especially after the first part of the year felt so all over the place. I found myself looking at ideas I wrote down months ago and generally feeling much more interested in what is coming next.

But I'm also trying to remember that just because I have more energy, it doesn't mean I have to rush to use it all. There's definitely a temptation to catch up on everything I didn't manage earlier in the year and think, "Right, I feel better now. Let's do everything." But I really don't want to arrive in December completely exhausted just because I felt optimistic in September.

So instead, I'm easing in. I'm enjoying some client work, making plans, and giving new ideas a bit of space without deciding if every single one of them needs to become a project. So I think the pace I'm taking into autumn is steady progress. Not holding myself back, but not rushing forward either.

Of course, that's just where I'm at this September, and maybe you're feeling that back-to-school energy too. You've made some lists, you have plans and ideas, and you're suddenly thinking about all of the things you'd like to do before Christmas. Or maybe you feel completely the opposite. Maybe summer was exhausting, work didn't really slow down, or you're already heading into the busiest part of the year and you just feel tired.

I always think September has a funny kind of energy. It's not technically the beginning of the year, but because of the new school year, it often feels like one. There's the urge to crack open a new notebook, make plans, and start again. And at the same time, it can also feel like the beginning of the final push towards the end of the year, and I think that can make it a bit confusing.

For some businesses, especially ones that involve gifting, the next few months can be really busy. Christmas orders start coming in. There might be markets to get ready for, products to make — all the usual work plus a bit more because of the time of year. But for other businesses, autumn might actually bring a bit of breathing room. If you work in weddings, for example, this might be the point where the summer rush starts to ease and you finally have time to catch up on the things you've had to put off.

So the season won't look the same for all of us, and I think it helps to remember that there isn't a right way to feel about it.

And that's one of the reasons I like these seasonal turning points, because they give me a reason to stop for a minute and notice where I'm at. As this episode goes out, we've just passed Mabon, the autumn equinox. The evenings are drawing in, there's a bit of a chill in the air when the sun goes down, and the first leaves are starting to turn. Summer still feels quite close, but we're definitely moving into something new.

And whatever the last few months looked like for you — whether they were busy, slow, brilliant, productive, challenging, or maybe a mixture of all of those things — this is a lovely moment to pause and look back, to check in with where you are and how you're feeling, and think about how you'd like the next few months to look.

I know I'm definitely looking back as well as forwards, because I know that back in spring, there were quite a few things I thought I'd have done by now, and honestly, quite a few of them haven't happened because life happened. And I'm actually okay with that, because when I look back, it's not as though nothing happened.

I've worked with some great clients, I've had some lovely conversations, and there are ideas that have been sitting on pieces of paper for months that I'm finally starting to look at again. They're not necessarily the things I thought I'd be looking back on when I made those plans earlier in the year, but then a plan isn't a prediction. Sometimes the year takes a detour. Sometimes something else needs your attention, an unexpected opportunity comes along, or you simply change your mind on what matters.

So maybe this is a good moment to check in with yourself too. Not to write a list of 20 things you need to finish before Christmas, but just to work out where you are now.

There are three things I've been thinking about.

How am I actually feeling going into autumn? Not how I think I should be feeling because it's September, or how everyone else on Instagram seems to be feeling. How do I actually feel?

What really matters over the next few months? Because there are always more things we could be doing in our businesses. I certainly never seem to run out of ideas. But which of them actually needs attention now?

And finally, what pace can I realistically keep up between now and the end of the year? I think this one matters because it's really easy to make a plan that works brilliantly for an ideal week. But not many weeks are ideal, and I'd rather make a plan that still feels okay when we actually get to November and other things have got in the way.

You might also like to think about what you're bringing with you from summer, what you're happy to leave there, and where you could do with a little more space. And you don't need to answer all of these questions right now. I just think sometimes stopping long enough to ask the questions can really help you to notice.

And if you'd like a bit more space to think about all of this, I've just released this year's Autumn Seasonal Planning Guide. It's free to download, and it's full of prompts to help you look back at the last few months, work out where you are now, and think about what you want from autumn. Nothing too formal, just a bit of space to get things out of your head and onto paper. I'll put a link in the show notes if you'd like to download a copy.

So that's where I'm at, heading into autumn. I have ideas and things I want to make and explore, and after the year I've had so far, it feels really lovely to have that energy back. And whatever your plans for autumn, just remember you don't need to match anyone else's pace, and you definitely don't need to have the whole season figured out today.

Thanks so much for joining me for this first episode back. And as Seasons in Business turns one, thank you for being here, whether you've listened from the beginning or this is your very first episode. I have lots planned for the next few episodes, including my first guest, so I hope you'll join me for that.

But for now, I hope you have a lovely start to autumn, whatever that looks like for you. If you're enjoying the podcast, you can support the show by hitting follow, sharing a favourite episode, or leaving a rating or review. It all helps more people find the podcast.

And if you'd like to say hello, because you know I love to hear from you, you can find me on Instagram at @seasonsinbusiness or email me at [email protected]. Thanks so much for listening, and I'll see you next time.