131. The CEO Reset I Do Every August Before Fall Begins

The moms who don't reset in August are the ones who hit October completely burnt out, wondering why their business is running them instead of the other way around.

I’m sharing the story of last year when I watched my  son walk into kindergarten for the very first time and spent the whole moment mentally problem-solving business issues. I was there, but I wasn't really there. That day I made a promise: never again. And the CEO Reset was born.

In this episode, I’m walking you through the exact four-part reset I run every single August — one you can knock out in a single CEO date with your notebook and your favorite beverage:

• The Reflection Audit — the four honest questions that show you what to keep, cut, and hand off
• The Offer Clarity Check — because offers drift, and five things on your website isn't a strategy
• The Capacity Calendar — mapping the hours you actually have this fall, not the ones you wish you had
• The Fall Focus Word — a little woo, wildly grounding

You're not behind. You're a mom running a real business with limited hours and a whole lot of heart and you deserve a strategy that fits your actual life.

Ready to do the reset with support? The CEO Mom Fall Reset kicks off the week of August 25th. 

The MOMentum Hub is a free community for mom entrepreneurs who want clarity, consistency, and momentum without burnout.

Inside, you’ll find weekly momentum resets, short audios you can actually finish, simple prompts, and supportive conversations that fit real life.

Join for free and build momentum one focused week at a time.

Connect with Us:

Instagram

Website

Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:31

What if the most strategic thing you could do for your business right now had nothing to do with posting more, launching faster, or doing more and everything to do with pausing on purpose? Let's talk about it. I'm Jenny Sunneson, business strategist, podcast mentor, and the founder of Moms Make Money Collective. Let's build something sustainable. Hey, hey, and welcome back to the Sustainable CEO Mom podcast. I'm your host, Jenny Sunnison, and today we're gonna be talking about something that I genuinely look forward to every single year. And something that I think most mom entreprene are completely skipping, and it's costing them their entire fall. So we're talking about the CEO reset, specifically the reset that I do every August before the fall begins. And before you think, Johnny, I don't have time for a reset. I have a business to run, I have kids going back to school, and 110 million things on my to-do list. I hear you and I've been you. And that's exactly why this episode exists. Because here is the thing the moms who do not reset in August are the ones who hit October completely burnt out, wondering why their business feels like it's running them instead of the other way around. And the moms who do reset, they walk in the fall with clarity, a plan. And this is the part that I love actual energy left at the end of the day. So let's get into it. So I want to take you back to August of last year. My son was about to start kindergarten, like real school, the big deal, the thing we'd be talking about and counting down to for months. And I had every intention of being present for it. I wanted to be the mom who was emotionally available, excited, not distracted, basically the mom who wasn't mentally running through her content calendar while her kid was picking out his backpack. But when that week actually arrived, I was a complete mess. Not because of the kindergarten emotions, although, yes, there were some tears on both of our parts, but because my business was an absolute mess. I hadn't planned ahead. I had no idea what I was launching in September. My content was scrambled, my offer strategy felt fuzzy. And I remember watching him walk through those doors for the very first time. And instead of being fully in that moment, part of my brain was problem-solving work stuff. I was there, but I wasn't really there, if you know what I mean. And I made a promise to myself that day that is never going to happen again. And that is what brought about the CEO reset that I will now do every single August going forward. And it's one of the best things that I have ever done for my business and my family. And I can't wait to share with you today how to do that. So before I walk you through the framework, I do need to address the voice in your head right now. The one that's saying, But I'm already behind. I can't afford to slow down in August. I need to be doing more, not pausing. Well, I want to challenge that. Here's the truth August is a transition month. Your kids are shifting, your family rhythm is shifting, your energy is shifting. And if you try to white knuckle your way through it with the same chaotic momentum that you've had all summer, you are going to slam into September like a car without brakes. A reset is not a retreat. It's not quitting, it's not falling behind. A reset is a CEO level decision. It's what separates reactive business owners from strategic ones. You do not build a sustainable business by grinding harder every single season. You build it by knowing when to run fast and when to recalibrate so that you can run fast. August is your recalibration month, and when you use it well, you will be shocked at how much momentum you can create from that stillness. Give yourself permission to do this. So I call it the four-part CEO reset, and I walk through each of these every August. The steps are not complicated. You can do all four of these in one solid CEO date with yourself, your favorite beverage, and your notebook or your laptop. So the first part of this is the reflection audit. So before you plan forward, you gotta look back. I spend about 15 to 20 minutes asking myself these four questions. The first one, what worked in the last six months? Like actually worked in terms of revenue, joy, and sustainability? The second question I ask myself is what drained me that I need to stop doing, simplify, or handoff? The third question, what did I say yes to that I should have said no to? And then the fourth one, and this is a big one, where was I showing up as a CEO? And where was I showing up as a burned-out employee of my own business? You cannot course correct without honesty. The reflection audit is where you get truly honest with yourself. Then the second part of this is the offer clarity check. And this is where I look at my offer suite with fresh eyes and ask, does this still make sense? Offers can drift. What you launched six months ago might not align with where you're going now, or you might have five things on your website when you really should only be focused on two of them. For August specifically, I'm asking, what is the one thing I want to be known for this fall? What is the offer that I'm going to put real energy behind for Q4? You don't need a complicated launch. You don't need a complicated launch strategy yet. You just need clarity on what you're selling and why it's the right thing to be selling right now. Then we have part three, which is the capacity calendar. And this is the one that mom entrepreneurs skip the most and they end up regretting the most. Your capacity is going to change in the fall. Your kids' schedules are changing. School pickup exists now. There are new activities, new routines, and new demands on your time and attention. And if you don't plan for that reality, you will be blindsided by it. In August, I like to map out my actual working hours for the fall. Not the hours that I wish I had, but the hours that I actually do have. And then I reverse engineer my business goals into that real capacity. And this is also where I look at what I can automate, batch, or systemize before fall hits, because the prep that I do in August is the reason I don't lose my mind. And this one is simple and a little woo, but I'm not sorry about it. So I pick one word that so this one is really simple. I pick one word that represents what I want fall to feel like. Last year it was present, and the year before that was momentum. And this word becomes my filter. When an opportunity comes up, I ask, does this support my focus word? When I'm feeling scattered, I come back to the word. It sounds pretty small, but it's surprisingly grounding. So here's what I want you to hear before we wrap up. You are not behind, you're not failing, you are a mom running a real business with a limited number of hours and a whole lot of heart, and you deserve a strategy that actually fits your life. The CEO reset isn't about having it all figured out before fall even hits. It's about walking into the next season with intention instead of inertia. The moms that I see burning out in Q4 are the ones that never stop to ask, what do I actually want this season to look like? They just kept going, kept reacting, and kept putting out fires until the fire was them. You're listening to this podcast right now, which means that you're already different. You're already thinking like a CEO, not just an employee of your life and business. Now let's make sure that your business reflects that. So if you're listening to this and you're thinking, okay, I actually want to do this reset with support, then I have something just for you. The CEO Mom Fall Reset is a four-week live group program designed specifically for mom entrepreneurs who want to walk into the fall with a clear plan, a simplified strategy, and a business that's actually built for the season ahead. We start the week of August 25th, and for $397, you get four weeks of live support, community, and the strategic framework to make this your best fall yet without the burnout. There's also some awesome bonuses that give you continued support through the end of Q4. This is not a course that you buy and forget about. This is a live hands-on experience where we do the reset together in real time. So if that sounds exactly like what you need right now, the link to join is in the show notes, or you can go directly to momsmakemoney collective.com slash fall dash reset. Once again, that is momsmakemoneycollective.com slash fall dash reset. All right, that is a wrap on today's episode. If this episode resonated with you, I would love it if you shared with a fellow mom entrepreneur who needs a little permission to reset before the fall. And hey, if you haven't yet, make sure to leave a review on Apple Podcasts. It genuinely helps this show reach more moms who need it, and I read every single one. Until next time, take care of yourself because your business runs better when you do. I'll see you next week. If this episode resonated with you, share it with another service-based mom who's building something real. And when you're ready to move from reactive business ownership to sustainable CEO leadership, your next step is waiting for you. You'll find the right path, whether that's the accelerator, the collective, or a deeper intensive, by going to momsmakemoneycollective.com. You're not just building a business, you're building it your way sustainably. With profit, with margin, and with intention. Because hustle is optional, leadership isn't. I'll see you next week.