Knowing When to Close a Chapter: Lessons from Ending the Conekto Community
Sometimes in life you need a pause; a hyphen, or even a semi-colon. Other times you need to halt; to come to a full stop. A total cessation.
I talk about this in my post 7 Questions to Review Your Year. The fourth question is: “What would I like to stop doing altogether?” And for me currently, it’s the Conekto Community.
So I’m hitting the stop button on Conekto Community from September. The platform will remain open for the rest of the month but will close on September 30th.
Now, back to that question above—the “like to stop” part is not true for me. I’ve thoroughly enjoyed building and running Conekto, from our weekly accountability calls to tracking progress, to meeting together for monthly sessions.
It’s been a lot of fun!
It’s been wonderful to see people get things done over the years. I’ve seen people start writing screenplays, revamp websites, complete books, take their businesses in completely new directions, and more.
So why stop now?
A few reasons.
Firstly, if you’re a regular reader of these posts, you’ll know I’ve been going through a lot personally in recent years. It’s been very overwhelming caring for my mother who has Alzheimer’s. Anyone who’s been in a similar situation will know the almost impossible range of emotions one can go through, tied to caring for someone whilst living with them.
As of mid-July, my mum has been placed into a wonderful care home who are far better able to cater for her increasing health care needs than I am. I am grateful to God that we found a good home, as they certainly don’t all provide a high quality of care.
What that means for me is that for the first time in four and a half years, I now have freedom to assess, reflect and plan. And, part of that reflection means looking at what’s been working and what hasn’t—what should continue and what needs to close. And closing something is not easy. When you’ve poured yourself into it, there can be a real sense of failure.
Round and round in circles Ѻ
One of the realities I’ve faced is that I’ve not been able to attract more members. I had hoped to have multiple groups running, with up to ten members in each group by year one yet alone year three.
Now, there will be a hundred and one reasons why that didn’t happen. A big part down to the lack of marketing I’ve done, and certainly in recent years, the limited mental capacity I had to do this, whilst looking after my mother.
Also, the type of messaging I put out may not have connected with the right people at the right time.
Certainly when I speak about Conekto and explain the accountability structure, the vast majority of people—especially those within the target audience of creatives and solopreneurs—have loved it. Not just a “that’s a good idea” response, but often, “I really need that right now!”
But then… all goes quiet.
The commitment to actually join just isn’t strong enough. It’s a self-defeating loop. If your problem is lack of accountability to get things done, and one of those things to get done is to join a community to help you get things done… well, you see where this is going. Round and round.
That’s why I’m closing Conekto Community now. That’s not to say it won’t return someday. But right now, I need to receive rather than give out more. 🌱
Assess, reflect, plan 📝
In the rest of this post, I’d like to help you think through your own closures by sharing some of the questions I ask myself to avoid analysis paralysis.
I’m not a prophet (shocking, I know 😉) so I don’t know the future. Each situation is different. And it’s rarely an easy decision, even when it feels inevitable.
Where are you?
You might be in one of these scenarios:
Running a business for years—it’s been your baby—but something just isn’t right.
Pursuing your art full-time, only to find costs stacking up and the “if you build it, they will come” dream fading.
Freelancing, but realising it’s draining more than it’s giving, even if the finances are still okay.
I’ve heard stories like this time and again through many years of hosting my monthly networking group. And I’ve lived it myself—starting, closing, and leaving several businesses and projects.
To close or not to close ⚖️
So how do you go about assessing whether to close or not to? Here are a few questions to ask yourself.
Why did I start this in the first place?
Sometimes you need a reminder to draw you back to the start. That exciting, possibly daunting time when you saw a problem and felt you had a great solution for it. That’s why you set up your business or started your project in the first place. It’s so easy to lose sight of this.
Is it still working for me (or others)?
Your work or project may have been just what you needed when you started. But we are constantly changing people. Perhaps it’s now not meeting the needs you had originally when starting out.
And be careful not to think too selfishly with this. All work requires a sacrifice of some kind. This is normal. So it may be that you need to keep it going for other people. It’s only a decision you can make and each situation is different. Just reflect on why you are making the decision. If it’s not working for you currently, this could be a temporary thing and with minor changes it may work very well for you.
Is it still in alignment with my mission? (Do I know what my mission is??)
If you know what your mission is, this is an easy one to evaluate. If you don’t know what your mission is, I encourage you to read my post on How to Get Clarity on Your Purpose.
Does it drain me or energise me?
As above, this one is not as simple as saying, “Yes, it’s draining me, so stop.” It may well be that small changes or boundaries need to be set up which will radically change how it is affecting you.
In the same way, if it is energising you, that doesn’t automatically mean it is right to keep going. All the answers need to be weighed against each other to enable you to make a good decision.
How are the finances? Is it making a profit or cost?
Many people quit things due to not making enough money. This is completely normal if that is part of your goal, which, to be honest, is a goal for most of us.
If you are not making a decent profit, that doesn’t mean you need to immediately shut it down. It may require a change of perspective. For example, it may be that you wanted to do it full time, but now is not the right time for that. You may need another income (which could be another job) which itself will take the pressure off having to make your project earn, and you can focus on doing a better and better job.
Final Thought
So—what about you? Is there anything you’re considering closing, or at least making big changes to? I hope this post helps with your thinking.
Finally, I want to thank everyone who has been part of Conekto over the past few years. Whether you joined the accountability sessions, connected through the platform, or were part of the wider network—thank you. 🙏🏾
Until we’re next in touch, stay creative! 🎨
