Implement Systems in Your Business to Stay Sane

Imagine if every time you sat behind the wheel of your car the controls had changed and you had to learn how to operate it all over again.  On a normal day, it would make you crazy.  In an emergency, it would be crippling.  That’s what it’s like to run a business without the proper systems in place.  If you don’t have documented policies, procedures and processes to guide your business, you spend your days making all the decisions and giving detailed instructions to your team again and again, eating up precious time you could be spending on making money and growing your business.

When you implement systems, you have a business that can run itself.  It will be easier to operate, will produce a consistent result, and ultimately will allow your clients to receive a great client experience. When a system is working effectively, your team will be able to deliver on or ahead of schedule and exceed client expectations.

A well-designed system touches on every aspect of your business, from how you hire and onboard new team members, to how you attract and manage clients, your sales process, your contracting process, your design process, your purchasing processing, your billing process, and so on.  In this way your team knows what they are supposed to do in any given situation, what is expected of them and the steps they are to follow to ensure quality standards are upheld, who to go to when they have a question or problem, and what goals and deadlines they are to meet.

Once the system is in place and has become part of your team’s standard operating mindset, you can have confidence that the business will run smoothly even when you are not in the office.  That frees you up to work on business development, exploring new growth opportunities, networking to expand your list of potential clients, or even to take some personal time off.  You’ll feel less stressed and avoid the burnout that comes from trying to manage every detail every day.

I’ve devoted an entire chapter of my new book, Business Breakthrough: Your Creative Value Blueprint to Get Paid What You’re Worth, to how to set up systems for your business, with more detail about each of the policies, processes and procedures you should include.  If you currently don’t have systems in place, I urge you to read it.  Trust me, it will be game-changer for your business and your sanity.  The book is available now in Kindle format or paperback.