Last year, my wife and I decided to give up TV for 40 days.
Instead of zoning out in front of a screen every night, we spent more time talking, reading, praying, or just getting to bed earlier. And you know what? One year later, we’ve mostly kept the habit. We’ll watch a show from time to time, but much less than before—and honestly, we don’t miss it.
When you take a break from something, you get to decide whether you actually need it in your life.
That got me thinking—what if we applied the same principle to our business?
Fast to Slow Down to Speed Up
We tend to accumulate things in our businesses—tools, routines, software subscriptions, marketing tactics—without always stopping to ask: Is this actually helping me? Sometimes, we just keep doing things out of habit or because it feels like we should. But it’s just unnecessary baggage, weighing us down and adding cost (especially if you’re flying Frontier).
So here’s the challenge: Consider a “business fast.“ Give something up for 40 days. Temporarily remove distractions and revaluate what truly deserves your time and attention.
Some things to press pause on:
✅ A time-wasting app – Do you find yourself doom scrolling before you’ve finished your first cup of coffee, or checking analytics multiple times a day for no real reason? (Guilty.)
✅ A marketing tactic that isn’t working – Are you posting on multiple social media platforms because you “that’s what you’re supposed to do,” or because it actually drives results?
✅ A software subscription you’re barely using – Do you really need the paid version of that tool? Are you confident its adding value to your life, or is it causing you to stress out and use it just so you feel you’re getting your money’s worth?
✅ A bad productivity habit – Multitasking, endless email checking, or switching between tasks too often?
Maybe the best thing to give up is something you haven’t even started yet.
The Power of Saying No (or not right now)
A common struggle entrepreneurs face is shiny object syndrome. There’s always a new marketing strategy to try, a new software to test, or a new opportunity to chase. But every time we say yes to something new, we’re saying no to something else. Like it our not, our time and energy is a finite resource.
A business fast is one way to flip that equation—to say no to something so that you can say yes to focusing on what’s already in front of you.
Saying “yes” to too many opportunities thins you out. Saying “no” creates more opportunities to go deeper.
Less is More
I got an unexpected phone call from an old college friend this weekend. He explained he was giving up social media for Lent, but he wanted to be intentional about staying connected with folks—so he picked up the phone started calling people instead.
We had a great conversation that lasted almost and hour, and even made plans for our families to get together later this year, something we haven’t done in over a decade.
That’s the beauty of stepping away from distractions and defaults—you create space for deeper, more meaningful connections in both life and business.
What Will You Gain?
At the end of 40 days, I believe one of two things will happen:
1️⃣ You’ll realize you didn’t need that thing in the first place and won’t go back to it.
2️⃣ You’ll realize it’s valuable, but now you’ll use it with more purpose and intention.
Either way, you win.
I just deleted the YouTube Studio and TikTok apps from my phone because I found myself checking them way too often. (Don’t worry—I’ll still read and reply to every comment, just on my computer twice a week.)
What’s one thing you can set aside for the next 40 days? It doesn’t have to be big—it just has to be intentional. Leave a comment or send me a message and let me know what you’re fasting from. I’d love to hear what you’re choosing to say no to so you can say yes to something better.
