Welcome to Systems 101 where we are going to be taking a deep dive into systems. We need systems to successfully scale our biz and do it in a way that is sustainable for us. We want our businesses to scale to a point where we’re able to delegate and be able to not build our business around us being present.

Here’s the truth, systems can feel really overwhelming, but that’s where we come in. I’m here to give you the low-down on systems so you can scale without the overwhelm and take back your life.

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What Happens When You Don’t Have Systems In Place

What I see happen when clients come to us is one of two things:

  1. You’ve started your business and have grown really quickly without systems and now you have reached a plateau where you can’t take on any more clients because everything is a mess. And what happens at this point is that you have no time to go back and implement them in your business.
  2. You are just getting started in your business, but systems are not your jam. They’re kind of confusing and they’re overwhelming.

As the CEO of your biz, when you don’t have systems in place you become the bottleneck of your biz. This happens because every single decision has to filter through you first because you don’t have a system in place for people to be able to successfully make decisions without you. 

When your business relies on you for everything, things, like taking a vacation or going on maternity leave, or taking a few days off, is going to be really hard because your business can’t run without you being present. 

Having bottlenecks in your biz leads to confusion, unneeded repetition of tasks and time from your team, unclear team communication, missed deadlines, messy work, and loss of time (which is also loss of money).  

What Are Systems?

Simply put, systems are processes, tools, and tech people, and strategies that all work together to solve a problem or achieve a goal. 

In the online biz space, the most common misconception is that systems are just technology and software. They do include tech and platforms, but systems also include operational systems, people systems, processes, and workflows. They include all of the things that help you streamline the back end of your business. 

Why Are Systems Important?

Systems are the single greatest form of leverage in your business. Even if you don’t have a team or you’re preparing to scale or hire a team, they are what’s going to get you there because it’s going to put you in a position to be able to delegate. 

Systems allow you to establish a really direct path to success and eliminate bottlenecks in your biz. When you have systems, you’re not the bottleneck and your team should be coming to you as a last resort.

They also improve decision-making in your biz. If an issue comes up in your business, you want to make sure that there’s a process to alleviate that issue. 

When Should I Start Using Systems?

The honest answer? NOW!

Whether your business is in its concept phase, or you’ve been in business for 15 years, systems are a necessary step to take now. 

What tools and platforms should I use?

Our goal for Team SU is to have a lean and streamlined system. We live in a business world where there are all these tools and platforms and shiny object syndrome is a real issue. But just because there are so many tools to use, doesn’t mean that’s what’s the best for our business.

In this space, we’re in a constant state of connectedness, where we’re always seeing what other people are doing. So if we aren’t focusing on what we’re doing and what is personally best for our business, then we aren’t running our own race. 

There are really no real rules for what you need to have in your business; they just need to support your business.  We recommend only using a handful of tools in your business to avoid overwhelm. We want to make sure that we are taking the leanest and most direct approach to systemize our business.

From a tools perspective, our advice to start what we like to call “The Big 3”:

  1. Project management tool like ClickUp. Check Out ClickUp Here! (and use code SYSTEMSUP15 to get 15% off the Unlimited Plan or 15% off Business Plan)
  2. Communication Hub like Slack
  3. File Storage like Google Drive

If you’re just getting started with choosing platforms in your biz these three are going to help you overcome the overwhelm and get started.

If you’re looking for more support, check out our free training, The 5 Ops Systems You Need To Run Your Coaching Business. In this training, we take a deep dive into the five operational systems that you need and how you can go through and audit these systems in your business to see where you are currently at. 

Systemizing your business can feel really overwhelming, but the key is to just start. They are 100% necessary no matter what stage you are at in your business and they are going to constantly evolve as you grow and scale. 

Setting up systems is a work in progress and the key is to remember that they need to work for your biz!

Links Mentioned:

5 Ops Systems Mini Training
Elevate: The Coach Approach To Elevated Systems

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What Are Systems?

August 25, 2021

What are systems