In today's episode, I'm talking about something I think every business owner experiences at some point: the quiet season.
Those moments when enquiries slow down, engagement drops, and it's easy to wonder whether any of your work is making a difference.
I begin with a quote from Eddie Murphy before the Academy Awards that has stayed with me for years: "It is always wonderful to win, but if I don't win, I am still Eddie in the morning."
The more I reflected on those words, the more they stayed with me. They made me wonder how often I allow business results to shape the way I see myself. Maybe you've noticed that in your own journey too.
I also share a personal story about a social media post that hardly anyone engaged with. At the time, I wondered if it had missed the mark. Months later, a realtor reached out to tell me she'd never forgotten that post. That one conversation turned into years of working together and referrals that I never could have predicted.
It reminded me that some of the most meaningful moments in business happen long before we realise they're unfolding.
This episode covers:
✅ Why a quiet season may not mean you're moving in the wrong direction
✅ What Eddie Murphy's story reminded me about identity
✅ Why low engagement rarely tells the whole story
✅ The difference between public metrics and real impact
✅ What I've noticed happens when we tie our worth to numbers
✅ Why continuing to show up can sometimes reveal more than immediate results ever could
✅ A few questions I find myself coming back to when business feels quiet
✅ Why I've come to believe our value isn't determined by applause
I also spend some time talking about the pressure many of us feel to measure success through likes, views, followers and algorithms.
The truth is, people often take in far more than they respond to. Someone may read your content today, remember it months from now, recommend you to someone else, or become a client long after they first came across your work.
Not every seed grows where we can see it.
My hope is that this conversation offers another way of looking at those quieter seasons. Perhaps it creates a little more room to separate identity from results and to remember that timing, attention and circumstances all influence how our work is received.
The applause didn't create who you are.
Its absence doesn't take that away either.
You're still you in the morning.
✨ Download the Creative Clarity Assessment
If you'd like a little space to reflect on where you are in business, I've created a free Creative Clarity Assessment. It offers a simple way to pause, notice what may already be working, explore where you might be feeling stuck and consider what your next step could look like.
💼
Explore Business Therapy™
If you're navigating the realities of building a business and you're looking for a space to think, reflect and explore your next chapter, I'd love to welcome you into Business Therapy™. Learn more at
www.jokedurojaiye.me
📖 Download the Free Unmute Yourself Discussion Guide
If this conversation gave you something to think about, the
Unmute Yourself Discussion Guide offers space for further reflection around voice, visibility, growth and purpose. You can download it here.
Click here to download.
📖 Read the book, Unmute Yourself
Unmute Yourself is a reflection on growth, self trust and becoming the version of yourself your next level is asking for.
You can also explore more conversations inside the Business Therapy™ space, where business and life are approached in a way that feels aligned with who you are becoming
. you can order here.
What is Business Therapy™ With Joké?
BUSINESS Therapy™ is the podcast for creative entrepreneurs, women business owners, founders, and high capacity women who are ready to build a business that works without losing themselves in the process.
Hosted by Joké Durojaiye, Life Coach + Business Strategist and creator of BUSINESS Therapy™, the podcast brings together the personal and professional sides of entrepreneurship.
Joké brings more than two decades of experience turning creativity into business. But she didn't start with all the answers.
She did what most creative women do.
She worked harder when she should have thought clearer.
The shift from creative to CEO mindset was real.
Joké fumbled her way through turning her love for design into a real business that pays the bills.
Now, she helps creative women make that same shift, because building a business is never just about the business. The person running it matters too.
BUSINESS Therapy™ explores the strategy, mindset, and emotional realities of entrepreneurship, including the moments that don't make it into the business plan. The difficult client. The slow sales month. The negative review. The decision you've been avoiding. The comparison that makes you question your progress. The business that has grown, but somehow feels harder to run.
Joké brings these conversations back to one central idea: Separate the math from the drama.
Because you can be brilliant at what you do and still struggle with the business of doing it.
Expect practical business strategy, honest conversations, fresh perspective, and the questions that help you see what is really happening in your business so you can decide what to do next.
BUSINESS Therapy™ is business education and emotional intelligence for creative minds, designed to help you build with greater clarity, intention, and business intelligence.
BUSINESS Therapy™ With Joké is ranked among the top 10% of podcasts globally, according to Listen Notes, based on its Listen Score.
Listen when you need clarity under pressure, a better way to think about the business, or simply need someone to talk business with.