Strategy Hour Podcast | Episode 992: Prioritizing Your Life When Shit Hits the Fan [FAN FAVORITE]
Host: Abagail Pumphrey, Business Strategist & CEO of Boss Project
Date: October 2, 2025
Episode Overview
This episode centers on how to build and refine an online business that supports you not just during smooth sailing but—critically—when “shit hits the fan.” Abagail shares candid stories from her own entrepreneurial journey and offers actionable strategies for prioritizing life, creating business systems that don’t fall apart in times of crisis, and finding the right support—at home and at work. The tone is honest, practical, and deeply empathetic, aiming to empower business owners (especially women) to build sustainable businesses that serve their lives, not the other way around.
Key Discussion Points & Insights
1. The Fall “Reset” & The Importance of Refinement
Timestamp: 04:35 – 06:00
- Fall is positioned as a season of renewal—a time not for building something entirely new, but rather for refining and fortifying what you already have.
- Many entrepreneurs get caught up in goal-setting for the season; Abagail advocates instead for optimizing your current setup to withstand life's unpredictable events.
2. The Reality of Life’s Interruptions—And Why Your Business Must Be Ready
Timestamp: 06:01 – 10:15
- “Shit’s going to hit the fan whether you want it to or not.” (Abagail Pumphrey, 07:08)
- Abagail recounts personal crises—her traumatic brain injury, years of infertility struggles, supporting parents through divorce, and full-time caregiving for a relative with Alzheimer’s—to highlight how life events interrupt even the best-laid business plans.
- The episode emphasizes that these challenges aren't unique to any one person: every business owner has their own "laundry list of crap" that can derail professional success.
3. Redefining Business Priorities During Hard Times
Timestamp: 10:16 – 15:30
- Priorities shift radically during life’s curveballs, and a resilient business must flex with those changes.
- Sometimes survival means scaling back: “When I was in recovery...I wanted to work five to 15 hours a week and make a reasonable salary. I wasn’t trying to build this million dollar empire.” (Abagail, 13:52)
- Flexibility and self-care become not just nice-to-haves but business necessities.
4. Flaws in the “Productivity Hack” Paradigm
Timestamp: 15:31 – 17:30
- Abagail critiques the self-help industry’s tendency to push productivity routines as the answer to everything.
- “There’s so many self help gurus...that are trying to get you to wish away these things when many of the times they’re just part of who you are, they’re part of your life right now. You can’t fix them and you’re not supposed to.” (16:55)
- The goal is not to fix or outwork life’s problems, but to build a business that can weather them.
5. The Core Problem: Business Dependency on the Owner
Timestamp: 17:31 – 19:15
- “If your business isn’t built for you to walk away, you’re building a business that’s dependent on you. That sucks.” (18:02)
- Stories of clients who successfully took vacations or stepped away from their businesses—without chaos—illustrate what’s possible.
6. Practical Steps to Regain Control: Home First, Then Work
Timestamp: 23:38 – 31:20
- Before you can make work changes, relieve stress at home: identify your top five stressors (be specific!) and seek help.
- Start with your partner, communicate clearly (“not complaining, not dumping, but making a specific ask”), and revisit these roles regularly.
- Don’t be afraid to pay for help or ask your broader network for support—Abagail candidly shares her experience learning to accept help (19:17–25:00).
“Building up those relationships and building up that trust in your network to be vulnerable and asking can be hard. I was not afraid, especially in those early days, to pay for the help that I needed because I wasn’t gonna burden someone.” (Abagail, 30:04)
7. Building a Business That’s an Asset
Timestamp: 31:21 – 34:45
- The distinction: many have “created a job” for themselves, not a true “business asset.”
- To change this, regain time first—delegating and systematizing so you can work ON your business, not just IN it.
8. Strategies for Creating a Business That Runs Without You
Timestamp: 34:46 – 38:34
- Productize your offers, clearly define roles, and build a support team.
- Work in stages: first, handle short absences (can your business survive a day without you?), then extend to vacations, and so on.
- Concrete parallels are drawn to established businesses: doctor’s offices, florists, service businesses—these systems are possible for entrepreneurs, too.
9. Concrete First Steps & Resources
Timestamp: 38:35 – 40:42
- The first actionable step: attend Sales Flow (now reworked as Slash Untitled), which provides a framework for sustainable business operations.
- The episode closes with invitations to connect, provide feedback, and consider Boss Project’s incubator program for deeper implementation.
Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments
-
“If your business isn’t built for you to walk away, you’re building a business that’s dependent on you. That sucks.”
— Abagail Pumphrey (18:02, repeated for emphasis at 19:10) -
“There’s so many self-help gurus...that are trying to get you to wish away these things when many of the times they’re just part of who you are, they’re part of your life right now. You can’t fix them and you’re not supposed to. That’s not the thing. You’re not trying to fix it. You’re trying to live while it’s happening.”
— Abagail Pumphrey (16:55) -
“I want you to feel unshakable. Not that the thing itself, the stressor itself isn’t going to still be stressful or challenging. It is and it will be. But I want that to be your focus, not all the additional stress it could cause.”
— Abagail Pumphrey (29:55) -
“You created a job for yourself, but you haven’t yet created an asset. An asset that will run without you. It may not exist now, but I want to help you unlock it.”
— Abagail Pumphrey (32:10) -
“[Support at home] will change a lot for you, I promise. But starting at home is going to allow you to have the space... to build the systems and efficiencies at work or to get that rest that I talked about so that you actually can feel recharged.”
— Abagail Pumphrey (26:45)
Important Timestamps & Segment Guide
- 04:35 – Framing fall as a time to refine, not just start anew
- 07:08 – “Shit’s going to hit the fan...” introduction to the reality of unpredictable life events
- 13:52 – How priorities and working capacity change in crisis
- 16:55 – Critique of productivity “miracles” and toxic self-help culture
- 18:02 – (Key quote) If your business isn’t built for you to walk away...
- 23:38 – Start by reducing stress at home with small, specific asks for help
- 26:45 – Building support at home enables needed changes at work
- 29:55 – Empowerment: feeling unshakable in business
- 32:10 – Turning your job into an asset: the long-term mindset
- 34:46 – Practical business systemization: productized offers and team building
- 38:35 – First actionable step: attend Sales Flow / Slash Untitled
- 40:25 – Closing invitations to connect, more resources, and support options
Calls to Action
- Connect on Instagram: DM Abagail (@AbigailSays) to introduce yourself and share your biggest takeaway.
- Join the new event (Slash Untitled): Get details at bossproject.com/untitled
- Incubator Admission: For 1:1 support and deeper business transformation, visit bossproject.com/incubator
- Podcast Community: Join VIP list at bossproject.com/signup
Episode Tone & Style
Abagail’s delivery is candid, compassionate, and empowering—balancing vulnerability (through personal sharing) with pragmatic, actionable business advice. Her language is informal, peppered with humor and realism, while consistently rooting for her listeners’ success and sustainability.
In summary:
This episode is both a reality check and a strategic masterclass for online business owners grappling with the unpredictability of life. Abagail Pumphrey breaks down what it really takes to build a business that truly supports you—even when, inevitably, things go off the rails—and outlines exactly how to start making it happen.