I Didn’t Have a Plan, I Had a Non-Negotiable

People see the six-figure milestone and assume I had it all figured out.

That I had a clear plan. A full night’s sleep. Maybe even a solid childcare setup and some runway built in.

The truth?

I didn’t have any of that.
What I did have was an end goal—and a moment where I said, “Never again.”

A year ago, I was at my desk, crying between therapy sessions and sucking the tears back in before my next student hopped on the call.
I was 6 days postpartum, my baby was in the NICU, and I was working.
My husband had just been diagnosed with a heart condition.
And I felt like everything was falling apart.

That day, I realized something:
If I didn’t find a way to take control of my schedule and scale my finances, I wouldn’t survive the next crisis and I would be stuck at the same income for the rest of my career.

Life had changed in a second.
And we thought we had everything squared away.
That’s when you find the weak spots fast.

I didn’t have a map. I had a non-negotiable.

I also had grief—layered and heavy.
So I did something I hadn’t done in a long time: I set up a meeting with my therapist.
Not to fix everything. But to begin processing what I’d just been through—and what I was walking into. I was worried that if my husband got to a point that he couldn’t work anymore, what would our plan be? I could not sustain our family on the income I was making.

I needed more stability. Not just financially—but logistically, emotionally, and as a family. I needed to know that next time life got scary, we wouldn’t unravel.

I didn’t want to just survive, I wanted to thrive.

(In fact I’m very positive I sobbed to my therapist and said “I am not thriving” lol)

So I got crystal clear on my priorities. And I started working with what I had.

I wasn’t doing it alone.

I had mentors —I joined The Grow Program and Jena helped me understand the big picture and how to get there. I bought Elise’s training and packet to help me focus on school contracting. They helped me see what was possible and what to prioritize.

And lastly I had a husband who, even with everything going on, believed in what I was building and held it down at home when I needed to stretch.

• I started working part-time, when the baby slept, getting organized.

• I built relationships before I had a full business model.

• I filled in for districts who needed virtual support.

• I channeled my “why” into the brand I was building from scratch.

It wasn’t clean. It wasn’t linear. And it definitely wasn’t easy. I worked full days until 2am more nights than I can count. I rebranded and became aligned knowing that my effort HAD to pay off.

And this year?
I quietly ran the numbers one afternoon: a six-figure business, built in nine months.

I had hoped, but I never thought it was possible.

AND that’s not even the win I’m most proud of.

The win is:
I can take off work and be with my kids when they need me.
I can show up for my family with more calm, more clarity, and more capacity.
We’re not at the mercy of emergencies anymore. When an emergency arises, I have systems in place that will carry us.

So no—I didn’t have a perfect plan.

I had a moment that changed everything.
A decision I couldn’t back down from.
And the discipline to build from there, even when everything around me felt fragile.

If you’re waiting for life to calm down before you make your move?

Maybe what you need isn’t more time.
Maybe you just need your non-negotiable.