When it comes to creating systems, it’s necessary to build thoughtfully and make sure they actually work.

Okay, we know that the last sentence is obvious. However, after consulting with business owners for years I typically find quite the opposite. So often, when we are looking at new software or ideas for our business, our ideal state kicks in.

However, here’s the honest truth. You don’t need systems build for fiction, you need them for reality. For when a client has deferred on their payments and payroll is due in a matter of days. For when a job was billed at a flat rate and the client keeps on jumping over boundaries and their project scope. For when a team member has gone rogue – you’re paying their salary and yet you have no idea what projects they are working on.

Over the past year of listening to entrepreneurs, here are 5 tips on how to create systems that work.

1. Know thyself. (And ask the hard questions.)

One of the biggest challenges as a CEO is not identifying our blindspots. You can find yourself busy working in daily tasks of the business that it’s easy to avoid taking a look at reality. It’s time to ask the hard questions that you may have been avoiding and get incredibly self aware:

• What’s the motivation behind my company? What are the core values behind it? How do our customers experience our core values? If they weren’t written on a wall or in a book, how would we know?
• What does your ideal day look like? Get detailed here. What does your morning routine, evening routine, start and finish to the work day look like? Are there certain days that are better for meetings than others? Do you have dedicated days to complete tasks and projects whereas other days are for meetings and networking?
• Do systems and processes make you scared? If so, why? Have you believed that being creative means an on-the-go, carefree, nomadic life? Does structure feel counter to being creative? Figure out how to reconcile this tension. Without systems, you might feel like you’re drowning (and struggle to think critically. Without critical thinking, our brains can’t be creative.) Take a moment to pause and address any feelings that come to surface. If needed pull out your journal and free write to get things out on paper.

2. Break things down into smaller parts.

Apart of my job at the agency is to take large, somewhat chaotic problems from a customer and put them into order. People hire us to take their business chaos and make it clear through thoughtful brands, campaigns, websites and visuals. Frequently these projects take anywhere from a few months to over a year’s time to complete. We start each customer engagement with an initial conversation and then break the project down into clear phases and pre-production deadlines.

Now let’s make it actionable.

Take a look at what you need to do. Break out a pen and paper. List it out and break it down. Know what your capacity is and what is manageable for you. For month long projects, I break down pre-production deadlines week by week. This allows for a bit more flexibility throughout my days allowing for things to have breathing room. However, I do know what I need to get accomplished throughout the week and get to it. If you’re offering services and have income goals for your year, look at your pricing structure and how much work you need to do to get there. For example, if you want to increase your sales by $20,000 for the year, divide that amount by 4. This means you need to increase your sales by $5,000 each quarter. This is a manageable $1600 per month, around $400 a week. Base your hourly rate and pricing structure accordingly.

3. Develop systems for pain points in your business (or life). 

Have an email list to develop that you’ve been putting off? Are you terrible at keeping a house and a healthy lifestyle? Do you have sheer panic when it comes to tax season? Develop systems for the things that slow you down and are pain points. In our house, this is really practical. We love things to be clean, but really hate spending days off doing chores. We take one morning to get everything done. Here’s how it works for us. We start with laundry. While we are doing our first load of wash, we put anything in the dryer that might need dry cleaning. As things are in the wash, we clean out the fridge, make a grocery list, and do a quick clean of the house. We switch laundry, put in our second load, and head to the store to put up anything we might need for the week. In around 3 hours, we complete everything we need to do (including 3 loads of laundry and a load of dry cleaning) for the week and it’s ready to have anyone over. We do the same thing for our bookkeeping. When our credit card bill comes in, we transpose expenses to excel. We try to do it once a month, but if we get a bit behind, we do it once a quarter. Taking things in smaller pieces, relieves pressure, and keeps overwhelm at bay.

4. Stick to your systems.

There are weeks where we don’t WANT to stick to our systems. We see friends who have a 9-5 and life seems easy for them. However, you were made for more. You want a successful small business and are looking to scale. Dreams are never easy. It takes work and hours to get where you want to go. Systems that are repeatable and automated allow you to reduce decision fatigue and focus on the things that matter.

5. Remember : systems equal freedom. 

As an entrepreneur you started for a reason. You wanted more for yourself. You had an idea and something that you dreamed about. You saw a problem in the market and couldn’t wait to solve it. You raised capital, had sleepless nights, and put in the sweat equity to have an incredible business. Systems allow for freedom, growth, and abundance to occur. Systems allow you to tweak things, make improvements, and with a bit of discipline provide creative freedom unlike ever before.

How are you doing at developing systems? Is this a pain point in your business? What tasks do you need a system and a workflow for? Hire us to build your systems and workflows.