I have some bad news: if you stay in business long enough, you’ll probably find yourself having to keep things going during a personal crisis. Maybe you already have? Perhaps you’re navigating a personal crisis right now and your stress-induced, late night Google search for support has brought you here. I hope what follows is helpful. I learned much of it the hard way.
What Do I Mean by Personal Crisis?
A personal crisis can be defined as ‘a problematic period in a person’s life that is triggered by one or several difficult events.’ Examples of events that fall into this category include accidents, illness, bereavement, or being the victim of crime. I’d also include other major life changes like the end of a relationship, separation, divorce, financial disaster, or a sudden need to relocate.
A personal crisis is intense and overwhelming. It’s also incredibly stressful, disruptive and sometimes permanently life-altering. Even in the short-term, a personal crisis tends to hinder our ability to function normally.
Navigating a ‘Drop Everything’ Emergency {or Two}
Most people go through some sort of personal crisis at least once in their lives. In the time that I’ve been running my business, I’ve experienced a few. The two most notable occurred ten years apart.
In the spring of 2016, I was hospitalised suddenly after contracting the flu on top of a bacterial infection. As a result, I was eventually diagnosed with Chronic Fatigue Syndrome {CFS}, sometimes called Myalgic Encephalomyeltitis {ME}. You can learn more about how I run my business with a chronic illness here.
Earlier this year, as my parents were nearing the end of a month-long trip down under, my bonus dad died suddenly from a catastrophic brain bleed following a fall outside my sister’s home in Australia.
It took me around 24 hours to decide I was going to fly out and join my family. What happened next is all a bit of a blur, but somehow, I managed to pack and prepare for at least four weeks away in just a couple of days.
So, as March began, I found myself in the southern hemisphere – supporting my family, completing masses of complicated death admin, and ultimately planning a cremation while also continuing to run my copywriting business.
What I’ve Learned from Running My Business During a Personal Crisis
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1. Your Business Model Matters
My business model changed a lot in the ten years that elapsed between these two separate emergencies.
In 2016, if I wasn’t at my desk, I wasn’t earning, so I returned to work much sooner than I should have. My pricing was all over the place, as were my boundaries, and I didn’t yet understand the importance of building buffers into my business {see below}. Rest and self-care were alien concepts to me, and I thought doing my best meant working hard at the expense of everything else, including my health.
In 2026, my business model is much more sustainable. I support a number of clients on retainer, and my packages are based on the volume of content I provide rather than hours spent at my desk. For everything else, I charge project rates. I also have very firm boundaries around things like my working hours and how I communicate with clients.
These things serve me every day, and when this latest crisis hit, I knew I was operating from a very solid foundation. It’s OK to be a work in progress – I can still see room for improvement in my own business – but your business model needs to work when life is going well, and when it isn’t. Ask yourself, will your systems and processes hold up under pressure? Is the way you deliver your services flexible enough that it won’t matter if your capacity changes?
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2. Good Communication is Vital
It’s totally up to you how much you share about the personal crisis you’re going through, but it’s vital you keep clients updated about how it’s impacting your ability to work.
If you’re dealing with a degree of uncertainty and you don’t know how things are going to play out, tell them – I’m sure they’ll appreciate your honesty. They’ll also be reassured to know they’ll be the first people you contact as soon as you have a clearer sense what’s happening.
It’s worth pointing out the advice above assumes you’re able to do the communicating, but some personal crises could make this difficult, if not impossible. As someone who once found herself sending work emails from her hospital bed, I want to encourage you to create a contingency plan for this sort of situation. Make sure someone close to you knows who to contact and how, should the need arise. You could even go as far as creating email templates they could use in case of emergency.
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3. We Need to Build Buffers
There are two types of buffers I believe business owners should prioritise – financial buffers and time buffers. Both give you much-needed wiggle room when a personal crisis hits.
A financial buffer could look like income protection insurance and/or savings in the bank. Knowing you’ve got some money to fall back on definitely takes the pressure off. But I also know putting income aside, especially in the early years of building a business, can feel hard. Avoiding debt, keeping overheads to a minimum, and limiting unnecessary spending is also a financial buffer of sorts. Knowing your numbers is always important, but you’ll really feel the benefit if you find yourself dealing with an emergency that could impact your ability to earn.
Time buffers are intentional gaps added to a schedule to help you manage unexpected delays and reduce stress. This can be as simple as giving yourself 10-15 minutes between meetings, but it can also mean allowing extra time for new tasks or project completion.
When it comes to scheduling work, I find it useful to remember that my capacity and my availability are two different things. One dictates how much can be done, and the other dictates when it can be done. If you’re always working right at the limit or beyond your capacity, a personal crisis could tip you over the edge.
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4. You Cannot Do It All During an Emergency
It’s impossible to function normally during a personal crisis, so the situation demands radical prioritisation. You must decide what is truly essential for survival and press pause on anything else. Nora Robert’s glass ball theory can be helpful in this situation:
‘… the key to juggling is to know that some of the balls you have in the air are made of plastic and some are made of glass. If you drop a plastic ball, it bounces, no harm done. If you drop a glass ball, it shatters, so you have to know which balls are glass and which are plastic and prioritise catching the glass ones.’
It’s also important to ask for help and accept it when it’s offered. There might be practical tasks you can outsource or maybe you just need someone to sit and listen while you verbally process what you’re going through. In my experience, people want to support you when life gets tough. Let them.
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5. I’m More Resilient Than I Realise
I’m incredibly proud of the way I’ve navigated this most recent crisis. At the same time, I don’t want to romanticise the experience.
In recent weeks, I have repeatedly fantasised about being traditionally employed so I could be signed off work or given paid compassionate leave. In reality, being self-employed played a crucial role in my ability to drop everything and fly to the other side of the world when my mum and sister needed me. I feel very lucky that I get to be such an understanding, compassionate boss to myself.
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Let’s Hear from Some Other Female Founders…
‘When my incredible Dad had a stroke during heart surgery in 2024, our lives changed forever. There was no rulebook for how to keep a business running through a family crisis. I learned a few painful lessons – some balls just have to be dropped in order to survive.
I stopped any attempts to market myself and instead leaned on my network for referrals and white label work. I communicated as openly as I felt able with clients and I created a ‘Managing Expectations’ document that all clients signed to give us all some grace and structure whilst also being human.
I am a hard-working perfectionist. It was painful being so vulnerable while also letting go of this ‘perfect way’. If you’re in it right now, know this: trying to apply a firm business strategy during a personal crisis completely dismisses your needs. Yes, you need to earn, but there is no you without seeking support and downing tools first. The business can wait and I’m grateful it did. I’m now finding my way back and realising I am not my business and that it’s OK to take time out.’
Maddy Shine, SEO Strategist
Maddy shared more about this experience in a blog post and included some excellent advice about what to say {or not say} to someone going through a family crisis.
‘I’ve had to run my business through a few personal crises and the things that have helped the most are actually some of the core foundations of my business.
One: having a business model that works for me. Working by the hour doesn’t work for me because I don’t want to work all the hours! Instead, my clients work with me on a payment plan and package basis. This means when life is lifeing, and I have to pause work, my income isn’t affected.
Two: clear, honest communication. Recently, when my boyfriend was critically ill in hospital, I let my clients know what was going on. I told them I wouldn’t be working for a week and that I would give them an update on my availability by the start of the following week. Clients have told me this was really helpful. They appreciated knowing when and how they’d be able to work with me, but they also valued hearing how I was and not having to wait for updates on social media.
Finally, I refuse to work with dicks and dicks don’t want to work with me! I do this through very open and honest marketing. People know exactly what they’re going to get with me. This means all my clients are really understanding, empathetic and kind when I need them to be.’
Jo Hopper, Business Coach
Jo’s recent YouTube video documents some of what she describes above and offers more insight into how she was able to take emergency time off.
On Being Human
A personal crisis should never be confused with a personal failing. Needing to slow down, step away, or take emergency time off because you’re dealing with something awful doesn’t make you a bad business owner, it makes you a human being.
Work With Me
I’m Franky, an experienced copywriter and digital content creator who’s spent more than a decade helping ambitious business owners and solopreneurs communicate with their ideal clients. Need fresh copy or creative content for your small business? I can help! Browse my portfolio here and get in touch to discuss your project.
Love Audrey xxx
