Two years. That’s how long you’ve been “about to” redo your website. I see this constantly with my clients, and if I’m honest, I’ve lived it myself.
I’ve worked with enough clients on their website to know that you don’t put off building your site because of one singular problem stopping you. It’s usually a domino effect of decisions, and the first domino never even has a chance to fall because you’re too busy spiraling.
Here’s what I mean…
The Decision Domino Effect
It usually starts a little something like this…
OK, this is the year I finally redo my website!!
And then, before you’ve opened a single tab…
Wait, where would I even host it? Is what I’m on now even the right platform? Do I need a template?
So that question sits there, annoyingly, unanswered, for a few weeks. Then you circle back and think…
…well, before I pick a platform, shouldn’t I know if my branding’s even right first?
So now “redo my website” quietly becomes “redo my branding,” which feels like a whole separate, bigger project. It sits there too. Then…
I probably need new photos before any of this matters anyway. My headshots are three years old and I look so different now.
Another thing added to the pile. And somewhere in there, a little voice chimes in:
Wait… should I even be charging what I’m charging? Maybe I need to figure out my pricing before I build a whole website around it.
And now “I want to redo my website” has turned into five separate, undone projects, each one waiting on the other to feel “resolved” first, before you’ve even started any of them. No wonder it’s been two (or three) years of having this on your to-do list.
Signs You’re Stuck in the Domino Effect
If any of this sounds familiar, you’re probably deeper in it than you realize:
- You’ve said “I need to redo my website” more than once this year either to yourself, or out loud to someone else
- You’ve researched platforms, templates, or designers, but never actually started
- You keep adding new “homework” before you can start (new photos, new pricing, a rebrand)
- You’ve blocked off time to work on it and ended up doing everything except actually making your site
- Your website has felt “not quite right” for so long you’ve started apologizing for it to people who visit it
This is Not a Motivation Problem
I want to be really clear about something: if this is you, it’s not because you’re lazy or disorganized or bad at following-through on things. Almost every client I work with has some version of this exact spiral, and I’ve caught myself in it too. It’s not a personality flaw. It’s just what happens when a project doesn’t have clear boundaries around it or a plan to follow.
(… FYI, If you have neuro-spicy tendencies, this will probably make it even harder for you to get started on your site!)
Without a deadline, a decision has infinite time to make room for one more decision. And one more. And one more.
Perfectionism, overwhelm, being buried in the actual running of your business, second-guessing yourself… they all show up because the project is open-ended. Close the open loop, and most of that pressure disappears on its own.
Why “Just Sit Down and Do It” Doesn’t Work
If willpower alone could fix this, it already would have. You’ve probably told yourself “this weekend I’ll finally sit down and figure out where to even start”, and then Saturday turns into scrolling Pinterest for inspiration, and Sunday turns into “maybe I’ll actually start this next month, once things calm down.”
The problem isn’t your effort. It’s that these decisions were never meant to be made all at once, alone, with no outside eyes on it. Hosting, branding, photos, pricing… that’s genuinely a lot to hold in your head at the same time, especially while you’re also, you know, running your actual business.
How to Actually Start a Website Redesign (when you don’t know where to begin)
Here’s what I’ve seen work, over and over, for both my clients and myself:
1. Separate the decisions from the deadline. You don’t need every decision perfectly settled before you start. You need to set a start date and an end date, so the decisions get made inside that container instead of stalling it.
2. Pick “good enough for now” over “perfect eventually.” Your pricing can update again in six months. Your headshots can be refreshed next year. None of that has to be locked in forever, it just has to be good enough to launch with today.
3. Get outside eyes on it. This is honestly the biggest thing. When you’re the only one making every call, every decision feels enormous because there’s no one to bounce it off of. A second set of eyes, like someone who’s done this a hundred times, can make a decision in five minutes that would’ve taken you five weeks of internal agonizing on your own.
4. Give it an actual plan. A weekend with no plan turns into no progress. A 1-4-week timeline with a clear start, a clear process, and a clear end is a completely different experience, because there’s no room for the spiral to creep back in.
If You’ve Been “Thinking About It” for a While Too
I’ll be honest with you: I built the One Week Website specifically for this exact spiral of indecision around your website.
You don’t need a miracle! You just need a clear start date, a clear process, someone else holding the line for “is this good enough?” so you don’t have to carry it alone, and an actual end date where your site is live instead of still just a thought in the back of your mind.
If any part of this hit a little too close to home, I’d love to talk about what that could look like for you. We can talk about what’s actually been keeping you stuck at square one, and whether a week is enough to finally take this off your mental to-do list for good. Let’s chat.
