Full Circle: Why I'm back to being a Squarespace Designer!
Grab a cup of coffee or tea, and come with me behind the scenes. In this post, I share my 11-year journey from Squarespace designer to course creator and back to Squarespace designer.
When I became a web designer in 2015, little did I know that eleven years later I’d be looking back at:
80+ websites designed over the course of four years.
10 Squarespace courses, taught for eight years.
3 Calm Business courses, still offered today.
Teaching Squarespace at a local community college.
Hitting six figures in revenue for seven consecutive years.
Establishing myself as a well-known Squarespace and Calm Business expert.
I went through two pivots:
2019: From web designer to full-time Squarespace educator.
2024: From Squarespace educator to Calm Business® educator.
The last pivot took over two years, and in that time, a lot of things changed:
AI and LLMs flooded the mainstream, significantly impacting the online course industry, while subscriptions became a popular business model for solopreneurs thanks to platforms like Substack and Skool. I still believed in the power and value of online courses and continued with my Calm Business pivot.
It took me just over two years to create and launch three Calm Business courses. The launches went great, and each generated 5-figures. However, sales have dropped considerably since the last launch. While many small businesses are feeling the impact of the economic downturn and general political uncertainty, I know that, for me, this is also a funnel problem, and a miscalculation.
I have talked about this before, but it bears repeating one more time:
I was able to maintain a 6-figure online course business as a Squarespace educator with a small audience, no ads, and no affiliate program, because…
I launched new courses every year and cross-sold them to my loyal audience and existing students.
I had a multi-five-figure ‘Big October Sale’ every year.
I sold to new customers in between the launches and sales events, thanks to great SEO and being a well-known expert in a niche market.
Also, let's not forget about the heartbreaking pandemic years. Many people were at home with time and money to spend (every time the US government sent checks, I saw a noticeable uptick in sales), and there was a spiked interest in running online businesses. This was a good time for those of us selling online tech and business courses.
When I stopped offering my Squarespace courses at the end of 2023, after teaching them for eight years, I had not yet acknowledged that I was actually burned out. My business no longer felt in my control due to Squarespace's iterative design approach, which meant I had to constantly update my courses – I was always reacting to someone else's decisions, which did not feel calm. So I pivoted. I always loved the idea of creating new, platform-agnostic courses under the umbrella of my emerging Calm Business movement. I remember how chuffed I was when I got Calm Business® trademarked, and the whole philosophy still feels relevant in today’s uncertain times.
The miscalculation I made was thinking that I could just swap one set of courses for another and get the same results.
Here is my reality today:
I had three successful launches of my Calm Business courses, but sales have slowed down since, see above. And without new courses in the pipeline, this was basically my last round of reliable cross-selling to my existing audience and customers.
Under normal circumstances, I would roll up my sleeves and do what needs to be done: build new marketing channels or refresh old ones within these evolving parameters.
Alas, nothing feels quite ‘normal’ these days. My sensitive nervous system is deeply affected by the volatility of our political climate and the onslaught of AI, while entering late midlife makes me want to slow down and work in a more intentional way.
If I were to sum up who I am, it would be this:
I am an educator, designer, and storyteller who loves being creative, writing newsletters, and nurturing relationships.
What I am not is a hustler who loves the spotlight and using manipulative ‘sales psychology’ to push people into buying my courses.
So where do I go from here?
Firstly, I decided to take a six-month sabbatical from May until October 2026. Best decision ever.
I did not know how much I needed this break until I took it. I had been working, more or less non-stop, for eleven years, and the burnout had crept up on me. I knew that my sales would be affected because I didn’t have an evergreen funnel and stopped my usual marketing activities (networking, blogging, writing my newsletter, flash sales, webinars & summits). But I was prepared for this thanks to my safety net: a rainy-day fund from my business and a supportive husband.
The first three months were spent getting offline as best as I could. I caught up on house projects and overdue medical tests, and even read a couple of books! I started meditating and for the first time ever, I am sticking with it. I am journaling a lot.
It took a while to come off the stress and to allow myself to relax and not worry about my business. But once I was feeling better, I began thinking about what I wanted to do.
I considered early retirement but I am not ready for that. I still want to contribute financially, but more than that: I am a creator. In fact, the older I get, the deeper the urge to keep creating and share my considerable experience and skills.
I did a lot of brainstorming with my husband and friends, and really mapped out my options and my feelings about each.
Almost four months into my sabbatical, I have arrived at a clarity that I have not had in a long time:
I am returning to my first love: Squarespace web design.
I had been toying with this idea for quite a while actually, but was still very attached to teaching and being a course creator. However, now that I’ve had some distance from it, I know that I am done with the ‘song & dance’ of online marketing for courses. I have no interest in creating complex evergreen funnels, using ads, running an affiliate program, posting YouTube videos every week, or doing whatever else is needed to keep ‘feeding the beast’. None of this feels calm to me and I am still all about the calm. 🧡
At this point in my life and business, I crave simplicity, creativity, balance, and meaningful connections through 1:1 projects.
I also still really love web design!
I never stopped tinkering with my websites, and every time Squarespace launches a new feature, I get excited about it (now that I no longer have to update a course because of it) and can’t wait to try it out.
What will it look like?
Simplicity is key, so this is the plan:
I am bringing back 3-Day-Wonder websites! They were very popular before I stopped doing client projects in 2019, and I love working on a defined timeline.
I will be designing two websites per month, with August and December being off.
Add-on services will be available, including ongoing website support.
And that’s it! One product, 20 websites per year, a clear process and well-defined client profile.
Who is this for?
3-Day-Wonder websites are ideal for those who know they need a website but don’t have the time or inclination to wrestle with the technology and design. Even with Squarespace and AI, building a website has become more complex, and I am here to take this part of your business off your hands.
I love working with service providers – such as therapists, coaches, nutrition counselors, authors and artists – as well as small brick-and-mortar businesses that do not require an online shop, for instance dentists, bakeries, or eat-in diners.
While my main focus will shift back to web design, I will continue to offer these popular resources:
Phew! Are you still with me?
In many ways, this concludes an 11-year journey that returns me to my roots and what got me into this in the first place: my love of web design. Even during my corporate career, there were always two red threads: using technology to improve efficiencies, and working with people. As a creative person, web design has always felt like a natural extension of this.
Thank you for coming along on this journey! 🧡
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If you are interested in a 3-Day-Wonder website, click here to learn more about it and to book a free consultation! If you want to come along as I rebuild my web design business, subscribe to my Studio Notes for deeper behind-the-scenes musings.
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