What does burnout actually look like at its worst?
For Tara Punter – founder of The Thriving Business Woman, coach, mentor, speaker and podcast host – it was a hot water bottle that exploded and sent her to A&E, alone, during COVID, in unbearable pain. Her business was turning over multi-six figures. She had more clients than she could count. And she was burning out every three months.
In a recent episode of pepp talks, Tara shared the raw, real story of how she got there, what she changed, and how she now runs a thriving business entirely on her own terms – without funnels, Facebook ads or working herself into the ground.
Whether you are deep in hustle mode, quietly exhausted, or simply wondering if there is a better way to build a business – this is for you.
Burnout Isn’t a Badge of Honour
In 2020, Tara’s business was flying. But behind the scenes, she was burning out with alarming regularity – every three months, almost without fail. She had no lunch breaks, back-to-back calls, and eventually her brain would simply shut down.
“I would open my laptop, try to type an email, and my brain literally wouldn’t work,” she recalls. “Every three months I would have to clear my calendar for a week and lie on the sofa.”
The final wake-up call came when a hot water bottle – filled in exhausted desperation to soothe a painful shoulder she had been ignoring all week – exploded across her body. The burns sent her to A&E. Sitting there alone, she had a moment of absolute clarity: this could never happen again.
The lesson? Burnout is not hustle culture’s prize. It is your body’s last resort.
The Signs to Watch For
Since rebuilding her business after that September 2020 turning point, Tara has become highly attuned to her own early warning signals. She describes two key ones:
- Feeling out of control – when her habits slip, her routines go out of the window and she feels scattered across too many things at once.
- Losing clarity, creativity or focus – the three things she believes every business owner genuinely needs. When any one of these dims, she pays attention.
Rather than pushing through, she now responds immediately – blocking out time in her calendar, going for a long walk, or simply creating space to refill her cup before it runs dry.
Running a Business Your Way
One of the most liberating parts of Tara’s story is how she rebuilt – not by following the rules, but by questioning every single one of them.
She ditched complex tech, funnels and elaborate sales pages. She sends a Stripe payment link. She records her podcast, presses stop and uploads it – no editing. She built a brand in bold pinks and corals when people told her it wasn’t professional. She has named her new programme Horsepower, blending her love of cars and horses – because she could.
“You are your business,” she says. “You want your brand to be such a true representation of you. It’s as important you attract people as it is you repel them.”
This is not recklessness – it is the result of ten years of trial and error, learning what works for her and releasing what doesn’t. And it is working.
Should Is a Banned Word
One of the most practical tools Tara shares is deceptively simple: ban the word ‘should’.
I should be further along. I should have more followers. I should be making more money.
“The second you say ‘should’, you’re in comparison and you’re taking away what you have actually done,” Tara explains. Her solution? Swap it for ‘could‘. It shifts the energy from shame and comparison to possibility and agency – immediately.
Protecting Your Energy Is the Work
Perhaps the most powerful theme running through this conversation is energy – specifically, how fiercely Tara protects hers.
She turns down events, family occasions and opportunities that she knows will knock her vibe or pull her out of her power. She is intentional about who she spends time with, what content she consumes and what she allows into her mind. She floods it instead with inspiration, success stories and coaches who challenge her to grow.
“When my mind is on fire, I can do anything,” she says. “When something takes me out of my power – that has a massive impact on my business.”
This is not about being selfish or antisocial. It is about understanding that your energy is your most valuable business resource – and that you cannot pour from an empty cup (we all know this – but how often do we forget it?!).
The Takeaway
Tara’s story is a powerful reminder that thriving in business is not about working harder or doing more.
It is about knowing yourself – your values, your energy, your unique way of doing things – and building a business around that, rather than the other way around.
Stop surviving. Start thriving.
Listen to, or watch, the full conversation with Tara Punter on pepp talks – available now on Spotify, Apple Podcasts and YouTube.
And if you’d like to explore ways that I can support you to build a business on your terms, I would love to have a chat – you can start the ball rolling by getting in touch here.