Autumn Is the Strategy Season Every Founder Needs
By Shannon Kate Murray, Founder & Editor of High Flying DesignAutumn gets billed as cosy season - lattes, knits, crunchy leaves. But nature’s not winding down. She’s sharpening her focus: shedding, stockpiling, preparing. And that’s exactly the energy female founders can borrow right now.
Because let’s be honest: Q4 can be a storm. Research shows over 40% of small businesses see revenue dips before the year closes - and women, who are already carrying more of the “mental load,” often feel it hardest. Autumn offers a blueprint: resilience, rhythm, and strategy.
Let It Go (Like a Tree)
Trees don’t cling to dead leaves. They pull their energy back to the core. Founders should take note.
What’s draining you more than it’s delivering? Maybe it’s an old offer that’s not selling, a marketing channel you keep forcing, or a clingy client who eats your energy. Letting go can sting - like admitting something didn’t work - but it frees space for what’s next. Call it pruning for growth.
Not Every Seed Sprouts Now
Acorns crunch underfoot in autumn. Not all will become trees. Some will feed others, some will wait.
Same with your ideas. Not everything has to launch this quarter. Draft the deck, capture the concept, let it marinate. Business cycles are seasonal too - forcing growth in the wrong climate only burns you out. Some projects deserve to bide their time until spring.
Stockpile Like a Squirrel
For centuries, autumn was about gathering and preserving. Farmers filled barns. Animals tucked away acorns. No one assumed abundance would last forever.
Founders need that mindset too. Build your reserves now: cashflow cushions, evergreen offers, email lists, recurring clients. And don’t forget emotional reserves - your support system, your boundaries, your rituals that stop December from flattening you. Stockpiling is sustainability.
Weather the Storms
Autumn isn’t all golden sunsets. It’s gales, broken branches, plans ruined by rain. But storms are revealing: they show you where the structure isn’t strong.
In business, that’s the algorithm change, the client curveball, the sudden dip in sales. Painful, yes. Useful, also yes. They show you what needs shoring up. If something snaps, decide: rebuild stronger or finally release it. Leaders know the difference.
Balance Before the Dark
The equinox is one of the few times when day and night balance perfectly. Across cultures, it’s been a moment of gratitude before winter.
Founders rarely stop to reflect - it’s always the next milestone, the next quarter. But autumn invites pause. What’s already working? What’s abundant? What deserves protecting? Take stock, thank your team, acknowledge your wins. Gratitude isn’t soft. It’s a strategy.
Strategy Season
Autumn isn’t about slowing down into comfort. It’s about clarity. Shedding what no longer serves, planting without forcing, stockpiling reserves, learning from disruption, and reflecting before the push ahead.
Nature doesn’t apologise for her seasons. Neither should women in business. So, as you sip the seasonal latte and admire the leaves, ask yourself: what needs dropping, what deserves storing, and which idea is quietly waiting for spring?
Growth isn’t endless summer. It’s rhythm, resilience, and trusting the cycle.
Ready for your own autumn reset?
The Flight Plan is a focused 90-minute clarity + strategy session designed for founders who feel stuck, overwhelmed, or spinning in circles.
In just one session, we’ll cut through the noise, untangle your ideas, and map a realistic action plan that feels clear and doable. You’ll walk away with focus, simple systems to keep you organised, and momentum you can trust.
