I debated the theme for this episode because there is the inspiring and optimistic option to talk about how systems are freedom for you. The other option is to talk about how systems will save you in times of stress or emergency or in the ebb and flow of life and motherhood. It’s not that both aren’t true, but I’d love to think that we can be motivated by rewards and not just by stress… but I think we can have a conversation about both.
What do I mean that systems are freedom?
Well, if you ever want to take time off from your business (take a day, a week, a month), do you plan to shut down your business totally or is it possible that it can run and even make money without you running it? Now if everything you do and everything that needs to be done are currently living in your head or notes in a notebook that lives on your desk – that’s not going to buy you any freedom. Likewise, what if you have an unexpected emergency and can’t get online for 7 days? Ex. a natural disaster, an illness, a family emergency. What would happen to your business and your clients? I’m not going to spend too much time selling you on why you would benefit from having these systems in place, because I think you know it’s worth it – I’m going to talk a little bit about the what and how of it all. I’m asking you to really think about not creating another version of a 9-5 job or the corporate job you left and be open to really having more freedom and leveraging your skills in new ways.
What systems do you need?
- Document and File Management: Google Drive
- A Project Management Tool: Someplace to document EVERYTHING you do or what would need to be done in your business on a daily/weekly or monthly basis. This includes admin tasks, launches, content creation, team management, SOP reviews, etc. A good example of this would be ClickUp.
- CRM: Most businesses are going to need a customer relationship management tool. This is going to automate and elevate your client experience. Your invoices, contracts, scheduler, lead conversations and forms can all be managed with this tool. this includes software like Dubsado and Honeybook.
- If you CRM does not have a scheduler tool you may need to add this on in the form of Acuity or Calendly
- Email Management Tool: Mailerlite is free and a good place to start. For paid, I really love Converkit.
- Automation Tool: Sometimes these systems don’t have integrations to make them talk together. In this case I connect them with an automation tool like Zapier. For example, new leads = Dubsado to ClickUp. Clickup assigns a date and and a template if I want a task that comes in from Dubsado. Something to keep in mind is Zapier does break so the more native integrations a platform offers the better.
Now what I don’t want you to do is spin your wheels for weeks, or worse months, trying to decide between platforms. You WILL make some mistakes. That’s ok, you can switch later. As an OBM part of what I do for my clients is make recommendations – these are some questions I go through when making those decisions:
- Budget – especially in relation to how many users you will have and what features you need because some features are only available with upgraded versions of the software. Most are going to have a free trial so you can try things out.
- What problem/issue do you need the platform to solve? Does this software solve it?
- How easy is it to set up? Can you do it or will there realistically be an additional charge for you to pay someone to set it up?
- What integrations does it have? Can it help you eliminate other things you are currently paying for? For example if you’re paying for Acuity you can use the scheduling tool in Dubsado and save money. Also the less things that have to be connected externally the better.
Now we’ve talked about software but what else is a huge step towards getting freedom in your business? SOPs.
All business owners should be documenting of recurring tasks AKA SOPs. The best place to start with this is a time study/task audit of what you’re doing in a day/week/month. Start by recording a video of you doing the task the next time you do it and saving it in a spreadsheet or file. Use a tool like Tango’s Google Chrome extension and or SOP templates to document that written process.
Does this sound overwhelming and you don’t know where to start? I’ve created for you a pack to get started documenting ASAP. It includes:
SOP Tracking Database (Value $27)
Video Training: Hiring Clarity Modules (Value $47)
Team Communication Guidebook Template (Value $17)
SOP Templates (Value $97)
BONUS: OBMs Favorite Business Tools (Value $17)
BONUS: SOP Start-Up Guide (Value $37)
BONUS: SOP Tech Stack Shortcuts (Value $17)
BONUS: Team Onboarding Questionnaire (Value $17)
Listen, let me just say, I know especially for freedom minded people and people that are resistant to schedules – this episode if you even listen to it might sound like a bummer.
But I can promise you – the more structure you have the more freedom you create. As Jocko Willink would say: discipline = freedom.
I haven’t talked to one single person that started a business that said there goal was to work more. these systems, automation and documents are your ticket to freedom.
Also if you missed out on HHPOF – bringing on a team is one way you can gain your time back – in conjunction with what we’ve already talked about. There is a one time offer on the backend of the SOP pack that let’s you into the program for over $200 off!
Fall/Q4 is the pefect time to get these systems in place. Before you plan for 2023 let’s get this taken care of!
Connect with me:
Instagram: @juliecalcoteobm
Hiring Freebie: www.julietraining.com/starterkit