She came to me with everything on fire. On the surface, she had a multi-million dollar company that was bringing in accounts and getting shit done.
On the INSIDE, she felt like a disaster.
She had several people under her who were supposed to be running the company, but they were crossing boundaries, not pulling their weight, and not ideal for their job descriptions (she had hired friends and family).
She spent day and night putting out fires in her business from the disorganization and unclear title responsibilities of her staff.
She stressed constantly knowing that in all probability the work would get done and the clients would end up happy, but it would cost HER time, sanity, and her health to micro-manage everything to get there.
On the surface everything was working: she had money, a beautiful home, she traveled (for work, but still), and she dressed the part of a successful company owner.
But she was fraying at the seams and it didn’t feel worth it any longer. She couldn’t take even a few more months of it.
While business success is pretty much what we’re aiming for, a core principal in magic is being CLEAR about your intentions.
And “success” can be deceiving. Because “success” is often more about what you HAVE than how you FEEL…
(I use the term “sovereignty” to describe what I’m going for in my business: feeling like the authority. Feeling in control. Taking the reins and ruling benevolently. Feeling on top of what’s going on. And being able to delegate to the best people I can find.)
And what I want is to create a business, work, a WORKDAY that FEELS good. Where I feel on top of things. Where there’s space and time for what I need through the day. Where I feel in control and like many hands make the work light.
Does this resonate for you?
Whether your business is bringing in a profit or not, are you:
- Working more hours than you want to be?
- Overtaking responsibility?
- Unable to delegate properly?
- reinventing the wheel for paperwork, processes, and other bits and pieces because you don’t have concrete systems and organization in place?
- Are your clients missing out on what they came to you for…OR are they getting it- at huge personal cost to YOU?
Tips and tools if you’re in years 1-3 of your business:
1. Build systems and organization as you go.
- create templates for everything you do more than once.
- have new hires create SOP or manuals AS they train so the area and training is getting more and more documented as it grows
- create clear, detailed job descriptions and make sure you’re hiring people who are strong in what you need them to be strong in (which is usually a weak area for you).
- make time in your calendar for anything that needs your attention—don’t just assume that if you put it on a list the time will appear
2. GET SUPPORT to solve for your weaknesses.
- Don’t just assume that you’ll get to it or get better at something you suck at or hate. It’s WORTH it to hire someone who ROCKS at what you DON’T rock at: bookkeeper. VA. Business coach. Social media strategist. etc.
If you’re in years 3+ of your biz:
DO NOT DIY it. WHATEVER you’re trying to do all by yourself, it won’t turn out well, I promise.
1. Get a professional business audit to examine every single area of your biz, see what you need, what’s not working, and how to fix it. (Want more info? Hit reply- you and I can do this together)
2. Understand how to hire for the job, ask for what you need, show up in leadership, and solve for any weaknesses you have. Your team should hold ALLL the plates up in the air that you don’t have hands for, or tend to drop. More hands, more successfully spinning plates.
3. Pulse-take: if something doesn’t feel good to you, there’s a tweak or adjustment to make. If you’re having trouble making it, don’t do it alone and get help.
I had a client enroll with me who HATED that her young child had to go to aftercare 5 days a week. Kiddo hated being in school from 8 am to 6 pm every day, and it made them both miserable. While not a “business” piece, she set the intention for us to focus on re-structuring her time so that she could get kiddo at 3, come home, do an hour more of work at home, and then QUIT for the evening to get quality family time.
***We made that happen TWO WEEKS int our private work.***
SO: On a scale of 1-10 (1= I”M SO HAPPY! 10=SAVE ME)
How do you feel Sunday nights thinking about Monday morning?
How does your work with your clients feel?
How does the back end (admin) of your biz feel?
How does your time ON your biz feel (anything you do that GROWS your biz: article/SM creation, content creation, promotions, networking/community building, finances, etc)
And how ready are you to try something different this year?
PS. Extra points for forwarding this to a friend who feels like her business is on fire all the time, or who is struggling with her time and her work.
