WHEN YOU DON'T HAVE MONEY, YOU NEED SKILLS.

It was a Monday. The first Monday in weeks where I had actually gotten out of bed. I opened Xero, my least favourite thing to do, and looked at the numbers.

I expected at least $10k. The reality was under $3k.

I knew. The $15,378 rebrand wasn't happening.

A year ago, that number wasn't a problem. Full brand overhaul. New website. Strategy, fonts, the lot. 5 to 12 weeks. I was going ahead with it.

Then my income went from $20k months to $1,200 a month in recurring revenue. And just like that, $15,378 wasn't an option. And it wasn't just the money, it was also the time. I couldn't wait 5 to 12 weeks (which is 3 MONTHS) to be in control of my business again.

I was in the middle of a "break down" (hello peri menopause, nervous system burnout and not taking my medication) and I was feeling out of control EVERYWHERE. So while I was rebuilding my nervous system to trust me again (that I couldn't control)..... I also needed to rebuild my business in a way that could work for me and that I could control.

I still desperately needed a rebrand. The branding I had was beautiful. But very soft. And I am not a soft person. My form of love is giving it to you straight, even when it hurts. That branding was not that.

And my website. I bloody hate it. Cost a fortune to build. It needed to go.

So when you don't have the money, you are forced to get the skills. Or at least borrow them.

I was an early adopter with AI. I knew it was actually what my tired ADHD, dyslexic brain needed. But I never used a fraction of its ability, because I would just pay someone to do it. I had the cash flow. Until I didn't.

So I downloaded Claude and got to work.

I want to be really clear. This is not a love story where everything went perfectly and we all lived happily ever after. No. This was more a toxic relationship at first (not sure which of us was the most toxic), because neither of us understood each other. So there were months of slamming shut my laptop. Many, many "what the fuck Claude" moments. And an embarrassing amount of I'm just shit at tech. But I'm not. I was always just overwhelmed and I didn't know what I didn't know.

But I had two options. Get better or close the business down.

Nothing was consistent. Everything was reactive. Zero routines. I sent newsletters whenever I felt like it. I sent information at the last minute. I was all or nothing on Instagram. Consistent for weeks then disappeared for months.

It required areas of my brain that don't fire quickly. And to be honest, I find that work so fucking boring that it is painful.

Fun fact. ADHD brains literally process boredom as stress, not just boredom. Brain scans show our prefrontal cortex drops off way more sharply during boring tasks than a neurotypical brain. That's why it feels like pain. Not dramatic. Actual neuroscience.

But my business was broke. And when your business is broke you have to do the uncomfortable work.

I remembered a voice message I'd sent Joanne from Better Being Me six months earlier. I'd just gotten my ADHD diagnosis and I was flashing it around like a get out of jail free card.

She'd said:

"Just because it's harder for your brain doesn't mean you still don't have to do it."

Every bloody excuse I had up my sleeve disappeared. I had to find a way to get it done.

I pushed back. I told Claude it was full of shit. That it could do the work, or it needed to figure out how. That was the moment I realised the bad responses weren't failure. They were the work. Experts aren't experts because they're special. They're experts because they kept going when it was shit.

Last Sunday I launched the new brand (which I fucking love)!!! The website goes live late next week.

$34. And 20 hours of my time.

$15,378 was what someone else would have charged me. The number I couldn't pay.

And the skills? Those are mine now. I can do this again. And again. And again.

Doing it on my own was fucking hard. The bigger problem was that there was way too much information. I was trying to build a rocket ship before I could walk.

The noise about AI is insane. It's not lost on me that I'm adding to it.

But here's what I'm not promising. I'm not telling you that you'll automate your whole business with one prompt. I'm not telling you you'll save 20 hours a week by Friday.

I'm telling you we'll sit next to you and help you understand AI for your actual business. Rather than alone, online or in shame.

Sandra x