RSVP for my next free workshop: From corporate to creator: how to launch your first offer & safely make the leap on Wednesday, January 21.
This time last year, I had been gearing up for my first year of solopreneurship. There were a lot of unknowns.
What would I work on?
How would I find clients?
How would I make money?
But I hoped that if I said yes and kept putting myself out there, the opportunities would come. So, despite me being a bit nervous about my bank accoun, I kept moving forward.
I talked about my journey online (thank you to each of you following along!) and behind the scenes there were many weekends spent working, seasons of hustle and complete rest, and learnings I’ve had along the way.
My 2025 goals
Make $150K in revenue: I had no idea how much I would make my first year, but I knew I’d love to make at least 6-figures. After calculating my “survival” number and “ideal” number, I knew $150K was a good sweet spot.
Build my personal brand: Without a strong personal brand, I knew it would be harder to attract opportunities and find future clients. I came up with the following numbers (aka just made them up):
Grow weekly newsletter subscriptions from 100 to 2000
Double followers on LinkedIn from 2500 to 5000
Near double followers on Instagram from 1200 to 2000
Speak on 4 podcasts to share my story
Test, launch, and learn what my audience would pay for: When you could do anything, it’s hard to narrow down what you can actually provide. I knew that my first year going solo was all about experimentation.
How I actually did in 2025
1. Make $150K in revenue
I didn’t make $150K, but I did hit six-figures!
Unlike a steady paycheck, my revenue fluctuated from month to month, as expected the first year. There was a ramp up period as I was starting to find work, a very busy Spring, a bit slower during the Summer, and then an eventful (literally) Fall.
While I could have looked for another client to get closer to my revenue goal these last two months, I decided not to. Instead, I’ve just been working on my coaching & community work (+ resting).
It’s also worth noting that my lowest revenue month was January—the first month I started my business. After that, my revenue increased before slowing down for the holidays.
January: $358.75 (lowest revenue month)
February: $7,222.24
March: $3,083.95
April: $8,437.50
May: $20,587.35 (highest revenue month)
June: $16,024.33
July: $11,147.53
August: $14,557.00
September: $5,532.80
October: $16,592.06
November: $1,800.00
December: $2,590.62
Total 2025 Revenue: $107,934.13
If you look at where my revenue is coming from, most of my money came from corporate events, retreats, and fractional product marketing (what I used to do in tech).
As I look to the future, fractional work will likely help support me financially while I work on increasing revenue from coaching, community, and my own event/retreat clients.
2. Build my personal brand
I didn’t hit ANY of the numbers I set out for myself, but I did build my personal brand.
Newsletter: I set an ambitious goal of getting 2000 subscribers. How hard could it be? Turns out… pretty hard when you’re also networking, working with multiple clients, and living your life.
While I didn’t hit 2K, I grew by 434% to 534 weekly subscribers and more than that, I’m most proud of not missing a single week.
LinkedIn: I almost hit 5K followers on LinkedIn and ended the year 85% to goal at 4256 (so close!). That’s still 70% growth, which IMO is solid. I didn’t write everyday. In fact, I didn’t really start writing on LinkedIn more than 2x per week until a few months in.
Instagram: Instagram pretty much fell to the wayside during busy seasons. My “strategy” was to post when I could and to keep it fun/creative. The result of my lackadaisical posting meant I gained about 200 followers, 70% to goal and +17.5% growth.
One thing I didn’t plan for was collaborations. By following aligned brands and keeping my eyes open, I collaborated with Freelancing Females and Kindred. I didn’t get paid for these collabs, but I did find a client from each of them!
Podcasts: I wanted to do 1 per quarter, and I achieved that relatively quickly by reaching out to people at the beginning of the year. These were low lift for me but a place where I could share my story and reach new people.
3. Test, launch, and learn what my audience would pay for
I didn’t develop free guides or frameworks, but I did host a virtual workshop that got over 100 registrants. I launched my first cohort, Just Start, where 8 women joined and paid me!
I was far from my goal of hosting 15 events, but I did host 3 IRL events and 2 virtual events. I also went to at least 15 IRL events and dozens of virtual workshops to learn something new.
What I learned in 2025
Show up with enthusiasm. You might not be the most skilled person in the room, but if you’re enthusiastic about learning, this is what will get you noticed. Keep an eye out for the way your energy shifts when you talk about what you do now vs what you actually want to do.
Sell it, then build it. Validate the idea first then build it. I actually built 90% of the content for my Just Start cohort week by week. You don’t have to have everything figured out before people sign up.
There’s no shortage of work. During my corporate days, I’d fear what I’d heard on the news—the economy is going downhill, and it’s going to be hard to find work. But the opposite has been true, especially in my busy season and in the freelancing world. Join communities, connect with old colleagues, reach out to new people on LinkedIn. It might take a little time, but there’s enough work out there for everyone.
You have way less time than you think. I have ideas galore and big ambitions for what I want to do. While that’s a strength of mine, it also means I need to prioritize and overestimate how long it takes to do something. Be realistic with what you actually can get done by setting strong boundaries.
Hyper-growth is overrated. On the internet, it’s easy to compare your journey to someone else. I would constantly have to remind myself that it’s about the long game—there is no rush. Sure, I could have sacrificed social events to get more posts out or I even could have taken on another client to earn more $$$ but life isn’t always about the hustle. Do what you’ll be proud of, not what others will be proud of you for.
Final thoughts
My first year of solopreneurship has been fruitful but not just because I hit 6-figures. It’s because there were challenges, internal struggles, and lessons that helped me build resilience and knowledge I can take with me going into year two.
People ask me why I’m so transparent with this stuff. It’s because I’m writing this for the corporate version of me who was scared to make any moves but did it anyway.
This newsletter has been my rock throughout the year and your replies don’t go unnoticed. So thank you for believing in me and trusting me. It means so much ❤
Your turn
What did you earn and learn in 2025?
P.S. If we haven’t met yet or it’s been awhile, book a free career strategy call with me in the new year. You can also RSVP for my next free workshop, From corporate to creator: how to launch your first offer & safely make the leap, happening virtually on Wednesday, January 21.
✨ Weekly Yearly Feels
Inspired by Anna Mack’s yearly summary, I’m doing an extended version for this 2025 recap. Hope you enjoy!
January
I hosted a visioning event at my apartment and a few “random” people showed up after posting it online. I was pleasantly surprised.
I flew out to San Diego to work on my first corporate retreat. It felt so grateful to be able to do this work.
February
I found a client after posting on LinkedIn I left my job. It was a one-time research project with Camp Chateau, a summer camp for women in France. Aligned (and dreamy!)
I planned a virtual event: Consulting to Creative Entrepreneurship where I talked to friends about their career pivots
March
I was starting to feel a little bit anxious that I wasn’t earning enough $$$ and then suddenly a fractional PMM opportunity presented itself. I took it.
I started freelancing with an event agency that I networked my way into from a previous colleague.
April
I flew to Orlando for a quick site visit and stayed the night.
May
With the help of some friends, I DIYed a firepit in my Airbnb in the Catskills. My back hurt for days.
I helped plan another company retreat at Autocamp in the Catskills with Recess.
June
I went back to Orlando for 10 days to work onsite at a conference. But hey, I also got to go to Epic Universe!
I took time off to go on a family vacation in Joshua Tree!
I started working with a business coach to help me launch and refine my offers.
July
I had another site visit (this time in NYC) at Spring Studios in Tribeca.
I headed to London for three weeks (thanks Kindred), and I extended it to five.
I started working with Hampton to help coordinate member retreats and coordinated their onsite in NYC.
August
I hosted my first virtual workshop: Career pivots for multi-passionate people. I had hoped for 30 people but the topic resonated and 100 people signed up! I was nervous.
September
I headed to California for a wedding and when I got back, I went on two site visits and worked a conference.
I officially launched my Just Start cohort, spent a bunch of time writing email copy, creating social posts, and then realized I maybe didn’t need to go that hard.
October
I helped onsite at Coaching Corner’s retreat, the next day facilitated a Recess retreat, then the next week executed a nonprofit gala. Event season in full swing!
I saw a message in Kindred’s Slack workspace asking about collabs. I volunteered, and the team came over and shot my first brand video. I felt famous.
I spent 4 hours on my halloween costume. I was an easy bake oven.
November
I won a fully sponsored spot to Canyon Ranch’s Beat Burnout Retreat in Lenox, MA. I loved it and needed it.
I finally decided to invest in taking a fundamental coaching course. It gave me the tools and confidence to sell my services more. I spun up a Black Friday offer and got 4 people who signed up + multiple more booking career strategy calls with me.
I celebrated turning 32 🎉
I halted all client work and turned focus on foundations building
December
I created a new landing page for my Reimagine, my 4 month 1:1 offer
I’m currently lightly working but mostly relaxing in California with family and friends (skiing in Tahoe next week!)
I feel excited for 2026 and will share my goals soon 🙂
📖 Keep Reading
📆 Upcoming Events
From corporate to creator: How to launch your first offer & safely make the leap | Wed. Jan 21
If you’ve been dreaming of the day you’ll be your own boss but want support making that happen, this is for you. We’ll map out your mindset blocks, offer, and plan to make 2026 the year you make a bold leap.
🔗 RSVP here
💼 Ways to Work With Me
Unblock Strategy Sprint
Get 90 minutes of strategic support on Zoom, personalized strengths mapping with an Enneagram assessment, and 2 weeks of async support to help unblock your goals and come up with a concrete action plan.
Just Start Cohort - $100 off when you sign up for the waitlist
A 7-week cohort starting in February for the curious soul who wants to make a career pivot, without walking away from the stability they’ve worked hard to build. You’ll launch a mini career experiment alongside others exploring their next step.
Reimagine 1:1 Coaching - 2 founding spots left
Reimagine is a highly personalized 1:1 coaching program for multi-passionate women ready to build their portfolio career. Book a free career strategy call with me to learn more.