You’re not behind, and you’re not the only one.
If you run a business, carry much of the household income, and are tired in a way sleep doesn’t fix, I’m glad you found this place.
You may have landed here from a Note, a friend, or a search at midnight. You may not be sure you belong yet. This page is here to help you decide.
You’re in the right place if:
You run a business, and a big share of your household’s income depends on it
You’re good at what you do, and worn out by how much of it rests on you
Part of you wants out, and you haven’t said so to anyone
You’ve moved, or you’re thinking about it, and you can’t see how your business fits
You’ve made good money and wonder where it went
You keep rehearsing a conversation at home about what comes next, and you haven’t had it yet
You’re tired of advice that treats your business and your life as separate problems
If three or four of those fit, you don’t need to fix yourself. You need someone to say out loud what you’ve been carrying, and then help you work out what to do about it.
Why I’m writing this
Most advice for business owners starts with the business. Better offers, a better funnel, a better team. It assumes the business is the problem.
I’ve watched it go the other way, again and again. The life changes, and the business doesn’t. A new relationship. A move. A baby. A husband’s job in another country. The business that fit the old life only runs while she’s in the room, and the new life doesn’t keep her there. So she works harder, and she decides she’s the problem.
She isn’t. The order is wrong. You decide the life you want first. Then you build your business or career around it. Almost no one is taught to do it in that order, and almost no one talks about how heavy it is to do it the other way round.
That’s what I’m writing about here.
Who I am
I’m Sonaya. In 2014, I fell in love with a man who live in London. Within a year, my business was coming apart. Contracts went out late. Clients were onboarded late. Nothing was wrong with the business. It was built for a life I wasn’t living anymore.
I’d started it in New Jersey in 2011. Since then I’ve moved from New Jersey to London, to Copenhagen, back to the UK, and now to Doha. That’s four moves and three countries, with a family, and a business I kept running through every one.
I spend my days inside other people’s businesses, building the systems that let founders step out of the room. So I know what it takes for a business to run without you, and I know what it costs when it can’t. I also know what it’s like to live this, not just advise on it.
What “global life” means here
A global citizen is someone whose life isn’t tied to one country. You’ve moved abroad, you work across borders, or you’re deciding whether to. I’m building this publication into the place where you learn what that means and how to live it.
Start here: the series
The best first step is a free series called What Women Who Run Businesses Can’t Say Out Loud.
It’s seven parts. It names the things that are hard to say: the wish to quit, the resentment nobody warns you about, the money you made and didn’t keep, and the conversation you keep rehearsing.
Read it slowly. Read the part that sounds like you first.
What you’ll find here:
The series and my Notes, free, always
Conversations with people who’ve built a life abroad, and what they’d do differently
Ways to work out your next chapter, not just read about it
What this is not
I won’t tell you to quit your business or move abroad. I won’t hand you hustle advice or a five-step fix. I don’t give investment advice or financial planning. This is a place to work out what life you want, and what your business has to do to pay for it.
If you want more
Members get a weekly deeper essay with a worksheet, a monthly interview with a Life Brief, templates and tools, and a monthly live Q&A where I answer your questions.
Membership is for when you want to go further, and you’re welcome to upgrade anytime.
If you’re ready for more help
December 1st I’m opening five spots for Foundations, a guided experience for people who’ve moved abroad, or want to, and need clarity on their next chapter, including what happens to their business.
Don’t read quietly
Reply to any email. Comment. Tell me where you are. I read every one, and you don’t have to figure this out alone.
Sonaya