08. Why Most Funnels Burn You Out (And What to Do Instead)

If your funnel feels like a full-time job — you’re not alone. Most traditional funnels are built on pressure, urgency, and constant tweaking… not exactly the dream you had when you started your business.

In this episode, I’m breaking down why so many funnels lead to burnout (even when you “do everything right”), what I recommend doing instead, and how I help my clients build sustainable, soul-aligned funnels that actually work — without relying on hacks or hype.

We’ll dive into:

• The hidden burnout cycle inside most traditional funnels
• Why your tripwire/freebie/email sequence might be draining you
• My Overflow Funnel method — built on trust, not pressure
• The 3 essential pieces every burnout-free funnel needs
• How to attract, nurture, and convert without being “on” all the time

This is your permission to stop performing and start creating a funnel that brings in aligned clients — with ease, intention, and overflow. Let’s build a business that feels good again.

📌 Links & Resources:
→ Join the free Overflow Content Channel on Telegram
→ Take the Overflow Quiz to learn what your funnel needs right now
→ DM me on Instagram: @stine.andersson.co

Transcript

0:27

Most funnels are exhausting, and I don't mean that I had to write a sales page and now I need a snacky snack. Kind of exhausting. I mean, the kind of burnout that makes you want to throw your whole damn laptop out the window and just delete your entire business. You know what I'm talking about? You've set up your funnel, you follow the rules, you built the freebie, you hooked up the landing page, you added a timer. By the way, that's an ick, but it's also a big part of the rules. But I'll get back to that in a later episode. Um, but you did it'cause you're following the rules and you wrote a welcome sequence. You probably even Google like a high converting trip wire examples 2:00 AM while eating peanut butter out of the jar. Or maybe that's just me. Okay, cool. Anyways, but it still doesn't feel like it's working. You're tired, you're still not making consistent sales. You are wondering why it feels like a full-time job just to maintain this thing that you've built, and I just wanna tell you right now, you are not crazy and you didn't do anything wrong. You are just inside a whole system that was never designed to feel good in the first place. So in this episode, we're gonna break that down and I'm gonna walk you through why most traditional funnels burn you out. And what I recommend you doing is that and how I approach funnel strategy in my own business and with every single client in a way that's sustainable, aligned. It's still getting us results, so let's just get into it, shall we? We're gonna start out by talking about why most funnel feel like a hamster wheel. You're just spitting. So a traditional funnel, the way most of us are taught are built around pressure, scarcity, urgency, volume. Timers, it's all about hacking attention. So with this, you need a freebie to grab people. You need a trip wire to immediately monetize those people. You need like a 10 email sequence to nurture, but in reality, you're just trying to keep people interest long enough to pitch them something new. And let me be real, real with you. That is so much work for something that is not guaranteed to convert. I. You end up with this never ending cycle of fixing the funnel. If it doesn't work, the advice is always add more emails, add more scarcity. Try a different headline, split test the buttons, create a. Bonus, try any offer. It never ends. So you are constantly in there tweaking, launching, and chasing like the next thing to make it all work. And I don't know about you, but that does not feel like freedom or that doesn't feel sustainable, and that is not what we got into business for. Because most of us did not start our business to become full-time funnel technicians. We want time, space to be creative, to make impact, and we want to make money, but money that comes with ease, not with the hustle. And that is the part that few people are talking about. Funnels were supposed to be the thing that made it easier to sell. But for a lot of entrepreneurs, they've just become one more thing to constantly manage and overthink. Like I overthink everything, and this would just be one of them. So if your funnel feels heavy, if it feels like you are working for Ed instead of the other way around, we're gonna shift. We're gonna make the shift right now. Okay? So if traditional funnels are built on pressure, we're gonna look at the alternative. And this is where I'm gonna introduce my overflow funnel. And no, this isn't the fluffy name for the same old tactics. Okay? The overflow funnel is built on something completely different. It's built on trust. It's designed to work with your strengths, your energy, and your audience's actual decision making process, not against it. It's not built on hype. It's not built on fake urgency or countdown timers that reset every time you open the page. You know what I'm talking about. It is built on content that compounds. So here's how you can think about it when Pinterest brings in align people every day. Or you might think, I'm not gonna do Pinterest, but let's say it's Instagram or TikTok or your podcast or like wherever you are visible, it's bringing in aligned people every day. When your blog or your other long form content is doing the deep nurturing and showing your authority, and then your emails are inviting people in through connections, not pressure. When you have all of that, you don't have to burn out. You don't have to do all of those icky strategies we've just talked about that take up all your energy. You are no longer trying to convince everyone. You are speaking to the right people. You know the ones who want your offer, and your funnel becomes more of a filter to pre-qualify them, not for you to perform for them. So you're not gonna try and be on all the time. And you're not constantly launching new things or creeping it fresh. You're gonna let your brilliance, your work, do the actual work for you and letting it build over time. So that sounds easy, but I'm not saying it's your effort. So let's just be very clear on that. It's still a funnel, it's still a strategy, but instead of focusing on doing more, more, more, more, more, having to have more, more, we're gonna focus on the right things. We're gonna talk about the right message, the right structure, the right rhythm. And let me tell you, when we set it up this way, it is not gonna feel like a grind. It's gonna feel like clarity, and it's gonna feel like overflow. So what do you. Ah. So what do you actually do to create this kind of funnel? Let me break it down. There are three core pieces I help my clients build inside their overflow, their overflow funnel. And when these three things work together, that's when we get the magic. So we got a freebie, a lead magnet that actually helps and leads to your offer. It's not gonna be a random checklist because someone said you need a one. This is a freebie that's gonna give people clarity, relief, or even a small win. It's gonna give actual value and not something they can just go and Google or ask Chat GPT. The kicker is gonna naturally lead into your core offer. It should connect the dots between their current struggle and your solution. So no more free base that are completely disconnected or just to grow your list. It's about building something intentional, strategic, and very helpful. Number two, you're gonna have. A content engine that brings in traffic consistently. And for me and my clients, this is very often Pinterest and blogging. Um, but you have to find your way. But every piece of content that we publish is searchable, it's evergreen, and it's gonna drive traffic on autopilot. And by that I mean. It brings in traffic to content that we've created a long time ago. So we've already put in the work and now we're kinda reaping the benefits. So we don't, we don't have to go viral or post every day. It's about consistency, and staying consistent because then aligned traffic is gonna come into your world without having to perform. So for us, it's Pinterest brings the people, our blog nurtures them, and our funnel invites them in. And then number three is an email sequence that tells a story and it builds that trust. And this is where the sales happen, and it's not through pressure, but through connections. So we're not gonna hit people with buy now in email number two. We're gonna walk them through a transformation, showing them what's possible, answer objections, sharing stories, offer a lot, a lot of value in the welcome sequence. Do not be afraid to offer value, it's just gonna position you as more of an expert and set you apart from your peers. And then we're gonna extend a clear invitation to take the next step. So yes, it takes more intention upfront. It's slower than slapping together a trip wire funnel over a weekend with a scarcity count on timer. But here's the thing, this is the kind of funnel that compounds over time. It builds momentum, it builds brand equity, and it brings in people who get you and want to work with you. And most importantly, it doesn't burn you out and. This is what overflow really means. You are not constantly proving yourself. You're letting your work work for you. And then you gotta remember that even though you have this whole welcome sequence that does its thing over time, and it's more about like offering the value, nurturing, answering objections, they're still gonna receive your. Weekly newsletters or your like updates and all of that stuff that you send in emails every day, every other day, every week, where you do more of a hard sell, so you'll still be selling them. This is more to warm them up, letting them get to know you because they might be completely new in your world. So. That wraps it up, and this is just the beginning. If something lit you up while you're, we're listening to this podcast, if you're nodding along like, yes, I am ready for this. Here's your next step. You go grab the overflow Clarity Guide. It's totally free, and I will walk you through what an aligned sustainable funnel actually looks like. And if you're ready to map this out for your own business, book an overflow strategy session. We'll sit down together, get into the nitty gritty, and build a plan that actually works with you or for you. Because I know that you deserve to grow without grinding. You deserve a funnel that feels like freedom, not a full-time job. And I'd be so honored to help you build it. And until next time, stay in your brilliance, stay in overflow, and I will talk to you soon.