Every December, the online space turns into a highlight reel.

And yes, those moments deserve to be acknowledged. But here’s the truth most business owners don’t share online:

The hardest parts of entrepreneurship never make the grid.

Welcome to the side of the story no one talks about… and the part that might matter most as you walk into 2026.

Empowered CEOs don’t choose between success and sanity. Learn how smarter leadership, strong systems, and true balance let you thrive in business and life.

Running a virtual assistant business means juggling many moving parts: clients, tasks, deadlines, and communication.

And while we love a good to-do list, these three systems keep everything running smoothly behind the scenes.

Here is a look at the three systems that keep Champagne Collective running like clockwork (and keep us sane) after almost ten years in business.

Building a seven-figure business takes more than strategy and hustle. It takes intention.

Because here’s the truth: you can’t scale and do it all yourself. You can’t grow while micromanaging every corner of your business. And you definitely can’t build an empire on exhaustion. 🙃

Every successful business owner eventually learns that the secret isn’t doing more. It’s doing what actually moves the needle and letting go of what doesn’t.

If I were starting my seven-figure online business today, here are the first three things I’d do differently.

Let’s be honest…nobody talks about how hard Q4 really is.

Between closing out client projects, wrapping up financials, prepping for the new year, and trying to enjoy a little downtime in between, this season can stretch even the most seasoned business owners thin.

It’s the time when everything seems to hit at once: your clients want things finished before the holidays, your team is running at max capacity, and you’re trying to plan for next year while still surviving this one.

At Champagne Collective, we know what that feels like because we’ve lived it. Late nights, full inboxes, and that familiar thought of, “I’ll rest in January.”

But when you lead from exhaustion, everyone feels it. Your energy sets the tone for your team, your clients, and your business as a whole.

Picture this for a second.

You wake up, pour your coffee, and your inbox is already managed.

Client projects? Tracked, updated, and organized in Asana before you even open your laptop.
That content calendar you’ve been avoiding? Already planned, proofed, and scheduled.
The launch you’ve been losing sleep over? Emails are queued, graphics are live, and for once… you’re not running on adrenaline.

Sounds impossible? Well, it’s not.

It’s what happens when your business has the right systems and the right support behind it.

You see a lot of flashy “hacks” online that promise to scale your business overnight: the viral post, the perfect funnel, the next automation app that will finally free you up.

But here’s the truth we learned the hard way: None of that matters if your backend is chaos.

Our agency didn’t grow to seven figures because of one viral moment. It grew because we finally decided to build a business that could run without us running ourselves into the ground.

Here are the three simple, and unsexy, things that completely transformed our company.

If I started over today, here’s exactly what I’d do instead.

If I had to start my business from zero again, I’d do things very differently.

Not because what I did didn’t work, because it did. It got me to six and then seven figures. But I can see now how much time I wasted in the wrong places, how much energy I spent trying to do everything myself, and how long it took me to understand what actually moves the needle.

If I started over today, here’s exactly what I’d do instead.

If you’ve been here a while, you’ve seen me share the messy parts of entrepreneurship: the micromanaging, the scarcity mindset, saying yes when I should’ve said no. None of it was pretty, but all of it shaped the business we’ve built today at Champagne Collective.

Because growth doesn’t come from getting it perfect. It comes from getting it wrong, owning it, and doing better the next time.

Here are a few lessons from nine years in business that I wish I’d learned sooner, so you don’t have to.

We hit a 35% profit margin last month.
That’s well above “healthy.” Most agencies would kill for it.

And still…we panicked. 🫠

Because this year, more clients have handed in their notice than in any year before. Some left due to the economy, some because of financial reasons, and some because of the political climate. Most reasons were completely out of our control.

If you’ve ever had a slow season or lost clients back-to-back, you probably know the feeling: that little voice asking, Are we stable enough? Are we growing fast enough? What if the bottom falls out?

Here’s what we’ve learned (and what I hope helps you if you’re spiraling too).

We’ve all seen the hype online about “milestones” every entrepreneur should hit. 10K followers. Perfect engagement rates. Flawless launches in the “right” season.

But here’s the truth: most of those so-called milestones are vanity metrics.

At Champagne Collective, we believe the milestones worth celebrating are the ones that create clarity, sustainability, and actual growth.

So, let’s talk about what’s really worth raising a glass to this year.

As entrepreneurs, it’s so easy to feel like you “should” be doing certain things in your business to reach success. However, the success you’re chasing requires more than just hard work, determination, and talent. ⁠Read on to learn my best advice for success and how shifting your mindset from “I should” to “I will” can be a game changer in your business. 

As entrepreneurs, we can get so caught up in the day-to-day hustle and desire for success that we forget why we started our business in the first place - to live the life we truly desire. Read on to learn why defining the narrative for your life and building a business that fits that vision is truly the key to success.

We are beyond blessed here at AK/VA to work with incredible, talented, and wildly successful clients who are making an impact on the world each and every day. After working with many business owners, we know what works and what doesn’t work in the online space. Read on to learn how to land these types of clients and what the 5 habits of our most successful clients are so you can implement these habits, too!

Running a business is an amazing way to create time and schedule freedom, break through income ceilings, and achieve your financial goals. In fact, all of those things make being an entrepreneur so damn exhilarating. However, running a business is so much more than just making money. 

Selling always seems to get a bad reputation. So often, entrepreneurs struggle to sell without feeling guilty, slimy, or pushy. But what if selling wasn’t really the problem at all? What if it was your mindset around selling? If you want to drastically improve your mindset and process around selling and actually feel fulfilled in your business, this is the advice you need to take in…

Focus on selling whatever you are most excited about!

The number one thing that you have to do for your business to succeed is simply to give a shit about the people you serve.

That’s it. That’s the golden ticket to success. Give a shit about your current clients.⁠ Give a shit about your potential clients.⁠ And give a shit about your past clients.⁠

I woke up after a sleepless night, holding what felt like the weight of the world on my shoulders. The struggles and tribulations of my clients. The stressors of running a business and managing a team. The expectation to know it all and always get it right the first time.