251: What Actually Worked in 2025 (and What We’re Ditching in 2026)

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What do you get when you put seven experienced, introverted, neurodivergent business owners on a Zoom call to reflect on the year?

A conversation that’s part strategy session, part therapy, and all real talk.

In our most recent Weird Hermits roundtable, we cracked open the good, the bad, and the deeply weird parts of running six-figure businesses in 2025. No glossy case studies. No “just manifest it” energy. Just honest reflection on what actually moved the needle and what we’re leaving behind in 2026.

Here’s a taste of what came up:

→ Monica tripled her revenue in the second half of the year by building “Inbox Experiments, ” GPT-powered freebies that sparked hundreds of email replies and real sales conversations.

→ Tara weathered a hard season thanks to her evergreen systems. Her six-month nurture sequence, Pinterest traffic, and SEO kept her business running while she stepped away.

→ Kate stopped chasing 7-figure milestones and focused on high-profit, low-stress systems. One ad she launched in February became her best performer by July, because she kept refining her backend funnel.

→ Steph realized she was outsourcing things she could’ve automated. After simplifying her systems and reconnecting with her love for deep implementation, her profits surged and burnout dropped.

→ Ruth faced a financial reckoning in 2024 and used it to completely revamp her money systems. Now, she’s tracking everything, building reserves, and feeling more in control than ever.

→ Liz let go of a legacy brand (RIP Blogger Breakthrough) and rebranded to Creator Ops Hub. It was scary… but gave her the clarity and alignment she’d been craving.

→ Sage, who hosted the roundtable, shifted from low-ticket tripwires to more premium offers like her Goodbye 9 to 5 Mastermind and saw revenue and energy skyrocket. She’s focusing on what brings her joy: coaching, teaching, and helping her clients hit consistent 10K months.

→ Destini (that’s me!) doubled down on rinse-and-repeat systems and ad strategies. My HobbyScool events continued to deliver consistent results, and I also talked about how I am currently experiencing extreme burnout and what I'm doing to address it.

We also opened up about:

• Boundary-setting (and boundary-breaking)
• Overthinking vs. making quick decisions
• Letting go of overcomplicated funnels
• Automating lead gen to buy back time
• And reimagining what “success” actually looks like now

🎧 Listen to the full 2026 Planning Roundtable

If you're making moves for the new year and wondering what to change, automate, or simplify, this is a conversation you won’t want to miss. It’s unfiltered, encouraging, and full of aha moments you can apply right now.