Busy Isn’t the Same as Profitable: A Year-End Business Reality Check

As we head toward the end of the year, I wanted to do something a little different with this episode.

Instead of rushing straight into goal-setting, planning, and “new year, new energy” vibes, I wanted to create space to pause. To reflect. To actually look at what just happened in your business before you try to fix, change, or overhaul anything.

Because every year I see the same pattern.
We finish the year tired, relieved it’s over, and already thinking about what’s next. New goals, new plans, new strategies. And while I love that energy, what often gets skipped is reflection.

Not reflection to beat yourself up.
Not reflection to replay every mistake.
But reflection so you don’t carry the same patterns into a new year and expect different results.

In this episode, I walk you through the questions I think every product-based business owner needs to ask themselves. We talk about effort versus effectiveness, busy versus profitable, and why “fine” is not the same as sustainable.

I also share why looking at your numbers matters more than ever, how to review your time and energy honestly, and why enjoyment and creativity still need a seat at the table if you want a business you actually want to grow.

This episode is your permission slip to slow down, get curious, and reflect without pressure.

If you want support with this process, I’ve linked my free Business Review & Reset download here, along with a vision board exercise if you like planning visually. You’ll also find links to Transform Your Wholesale and Roadmap to Profit, depending on where you’re at in your business.

And if you’re already multi-six figures and thinking about what’s next, there’s a waitlist link here for a new next-level option I’m building for 2026.

I’m taking a short break from the podcast after this episode to reflect, refine, and build what’s next with intention. Thank you so much for being here, for listening, and for growing alongside me.

Transcript

  Hello and welcome to the podcast. My name's Melissa Robbins. I am going to give you a little bit of a reflection, um, review episode to finish off the year, but of course you can do this at any stage as well. I certainly don't wanna give you huge pressure.

To do a million things before the year ends. I just really wanted to sit down and give you the opportunity for some reflection. 'cause every year I see the same thing happen. We get to the end of the year, we're tired, we're relieved it's over, and we immediately start thinking about what's next?

New goals, new plans, new energy, and that's great. I love that part too. But what usually gets skipped is actually stopping. To look at what's just happened. I mean, you don't do that. You don't really move forward. You carry the same patterns into a new year and hope they behave differently this time. So this episode is a little bit of a pause, a moment to reflect and maybe an opportunity to ask yourself a few better questions before you jump into planning for next year as well.

Okay, so first of all, let's just talk about why reflection still matters. I've been talking about reflection for years now, and honestly it feels more important than ever. Most product business owners I work with are not lazy. They're not unmotivated, they're not unclear about wanting more. They work really hard and they care deeply and they try to do a lot of things and look, that is totally my energy as well.

Usually the problem isn't effort, that's for sure. It's , that you stay so busy doing all the things that you never actually stop to ask whether any of those things are actually working. You follow your gut, you stay in motion and you tick things off.

Maybe I'm just talking about my own experience here as well, and as long as the money's coming in and the business isn't falling over, we tell ourselves everything's fine, but fine and sustainable and not the same thing. And busy definitely isn't the same thing as being profitable. Reflection isn't about going backwards and, you know, spending too much time in the past and picking apart every mistake.

But it's about noticing patterns so that you don't keep repeating them. So thinking back on this year, I want you to think about some moments. When did you feel proud of yourself this year, even if no one else really saw it. When did something finally make sense to you that hadn't before? When did you think that's why that wasn't working?

Or, you know, was there a. Aha moment that you had. And then think about the harder moments too. When did things feel heavier than what they needed to be? When did you feel stretched thin? And if you're being totally honest with yourself, what kept you in that place longer than what you actually wanted?

There's always information in those moments, even if they didn't feel great at the time, what. All these things happening are great lessons and, and even if there's failures that you had, they should be about, what can you take from 'em as well? One thing I love to do, and I know this is not everyone's cup of tea.

But looking at your numbers and looking at them without beating yourself up. I went back, , I've just invested in a new program that I'm about to start for 2026, and part of what I needed to do was go back and look at all my numbers and data, and it totally surprised me what I saw there.

I sort of had a feeling and an inkling on some of them. But then when you actually reflect on the numbers, . When you actually reflect on that true data, you get a different view there as well. And looking at it from a place of not judgment or disappointment, but like curiosity.

What actually did I sell this year? Which products or categories did the heavy lifting? Is it what you thought had happened or did the data tell? Does the data tell a different story? Where did most of your revenue really come from and not where you hoped it would come from, not the strategy you were most excited about, but what actually worked in your business.

Did you notice certain months when sales jumped and where others dipped? In my, one of my sessions within my roadmap and in my, nail your email marketing, I ask my clients to go through and week by week or month by month, look at actually what their sales were. What was it that caused those big?

Bumps and dips as well. What was happening around those times? Maybe you were emailing more or maybe you, maybe there was a lag between when you had a launch of a particular item and then you had sales coming after that. Maybe you were promoting constant, consistently, or maybe you were completely exhausted and barely showing up.

So what was actually happening around those times? And this is a really important one to take note of as well. Did your revenue increase, but your expenses crept up even faster. It's something a lot of people miss when they're only looking at that top line sales as well. So having a look at your sales, but also your expenses and also your profit at the same time, and that's where having a look at things on a month by month basis can really showcase what's truly taking place

I also want you to think about your time and energy and your capacity. Because we all go through seasons in life too, and at different stages you've got different amounts of energy or time to give. So having a little think about your time this year, not in a dramatic way, but just honestly, how much were you actually working most weeks and was that what you thought it would be or what you wanted it to be?

What were the biggest drains on your time? The things that felt urgent or necessary, but didn't really move the business forward? And this question, can land a little bit uncomfortably, but it really does matter. What are you still doing that you already know that you probably shouldn't be?

Every year I see it, business owners holding onto things that really no longer make sense. But they're simply doing them 'cause they're familiar or they're the letting go of them feels so scary. And if you are in this business, you're probably a creative. So let's talk a little bit about creativity as well.

, What did you genuinely enjoy creating this year? Whether it was your product, your ideas, or campaigns. What reminded you of why you started in the first place, and then on the flip side, what drained you even if it made money? That's a really important distinction because if your business keeps growing in direction that you don't actually enjoy, resentment can easily sneak in, and then motivation becomes harder to access to even when things are technically going well.

So it's definitely worth asking yourself whether your business could be adjusted to give you more of what lights you up and less of what you simply tolerate. And look, that's not to say that you can completely stop marketing in your business because. Let's be honest.

Often it's marketing that drains you and you started the business to be a creative, not to be a marketer. However, clearly we need to understand that sales and marketing are part of business, so how can we do them in a way that feels good for us? Still gets us the results we want as well.

Now next is lessons we're taking forward. 'cause every year has lessons, even the good ones or the bad one. The good and the bad ones. What challenged you this year and how did you respond? What would you do differently now, knowing what you know, what beliefs about yourself shifted this year?

What did you stop questioning? What did you start trusting more? And I really want you to sit with this one. What are you most proud of, of yourself for this year? Not the revenue, not how busy you are, but you. What are you most proud of that you did or achieved or stepped out? Stepped out of your comfort zone with?

So looking ahead without rushing, we don't wanna map out your whole entire year tomorrow. What is one thing you'll do differently next year? Not a full reinvention, but not a massive overhaul, just one meaningful shift. Then ask yourself what you'd actually need to change in your business to support that.

Is it your schedule, your product mix, your pricing, your systems, your boundaries. Now, if you do want a bit of help with this part, I've got a couple of things in the show notes for you as well. I have a full business review and reset download, free download that you can grab. And that walks you through all this reflection properly without it feeling overwhelming.

And I've also included a vision board exercise if you're someone who likes to plan ahead and get visual, because I do love doing that with my clients as well. And if you are heading into the new year thinking you wanna clear a plan and start strong. I do have lots of little things in the show notes where you can access, I've got My Transform Your Wholesale program, which is your all in one system to add those wholesale sales to your revenue stream.

. We always like to be able to add some sales in a new way, and then I have my roadmap to profit, which is linked in the show notes as well, which , gives you all the foundations and elements and systems to grow your product business from a zero to 20 K.



They're there to help you kick up the year with structure instead of guesswork, depending on where you're at in your business as well. Those of you who are already multi-six figures and know that you looking for that next level, I'm adding an additional option next year for those of you who are in that stage.

If that's you, there's a wait list linked in the show notes. You can raise your hand and I'll share more of that when it's ready. I'm gonna take a little break from the podcast after this episode. So I'm gonna create some space for reflecting, refining what's already working space to build what's next with intention.

And when I come back, it'll be with clarity and a very clear sense of who I'm here to help next as well. So just remember this. You don't need to rush into the new year to make it meaningful, but sometimes we need to do a little reflection to know what has worked and to give ourselves a plan and step into the new year, feeling good about what's coming next.

Thank you so much for being here. Thank you for listening. And I'll talk to you soon.