People usually think it’s too much when people see my calendar or hear about my success systems. They feel the structure will suffocate, prevent creativity, or take too much time.
The reality is the opposite.
When I suggest clients create an ideal work week, they automatically tell me how each day is different and that an ideal work week will not work for them.
I agree that you will need a different work week than my ideal work week. This is why you need to create your ideal work week. It is also why I suggest an ideal workweek, not an ideal workday.
Routines (which is what a recurring system/process is) are great for your business. It helps you get stuff done and avoid working on the things that make you feel busy but don’t help you.
Let me explain.
In my success system, I plan my week. I start with the outline of my ideal week but then make adjustments for different priorities and appointments.
When I plan my week, I start with the most important things and work down. This is the order I schedule:
Family/health
Client delivery, appointments, goals
The recurring tasks necessary for growing my business (networking, sales, invoicing, etc.)
Everything else.
You can imagine that the “everything else” has very little room when I schedule based on this order. This helps ensure I don’t do busy work or get lost in social media.
This priority also helps ensure I make steady progress toward my goals.
I only have so much brain power, willpower, or discipline in a day. I don’t want to use it up deciding what to do. Planning my week ahead of time ensures that I know what to do when and can save my creativity and energy for when I’m solving problems, working with a client, or doing things that are good for my business.
My routines are good for my business.
With my ideal work week, I have a structure of when I will do client meetings, when I will do my important admin tasks, when I will write this blog, etc.
When sending a calendar link to a client, it is based on my ideal work week. When I send a coffee date link, it is based on when I plan to do networking and sales calls.
This helps me keep the other times clear. I keep my time to work on goals, exercise, and spend time with friends and family as intended.
For the most part, these calendar links work well. However, once in a while, someone needs something outside of the meeting times. When this happens, I have the choice; if I make an exception, I do it with intention.
I also have routines for how I start and end my day.
For example, I start my morning with what I call Victory Morning. It’s an hour for me. I journal, read, meditate, and get my body moving.
Once I’m at my desk, I have a day-open routine to get set up for the day. This routine helps me switch mindsets and get into the correct workflow. I finish the day with a day-close routine, which allows me to double-check that I got what I needed to get done. It also helps me transition away from the work mindset.
Routines are critical now that I work from home. Otherwise, I have trouble “shutting down” from work mode.
There are routine things that need to be done in a business. Invoicing, paying bills, and taxes are a few that come to mind. For many, these are boring things. But they are necessary.
You can set up some automatic processes but must be involved at specific points, or nothing happens.
You could also hire a bookkeeper or virtual assistant to help you with these tasks, but this can go sideways if you don’t know your business first.
I set aside a couple of hours on Mondays to plow through my “admin” tasks. This includes invoicing, paying bills, processing payroll, checking my accounts receivable, and more. The couple of hours I spend gives me peace of mind for the rest of the week.
I also have a month-end process where I ensure everything is updated and can review my results.
Quarterly planning helps me do a regular check-in with my goals, and month end allows me to do a regular check-in on my results.
These tasks are usually things my mastermind group members hate to do. This is why if you set up a regular process, they don’t become so overwhelming that you struggle to get started.
Where can you schedule a couple of ours to do your admin work?
Having documented systems/processes/routines helps you maintain and deliver consistently.
I like using checklists to ensure I onboard, deliver, and offboard a client consistently. I have a list of things to do for creating and posting a blog.
I have these checklists/processes to ensure I deliver consistent results, so when I outsource, there is a clear understanding of what I want done.
This will help as you grow and bring on a team. Your routines will help everyone understand the common objectives and who is responsible for what.
If you have ever studied project management, you are constantly faced with deciding between time, money, or quality in a project. You can do two of the three, but rarely all three.
Routines are the way I try to achieve all three in my life.
Routines save me time because I know what to work on and when. I don’t have to figure it out or wait until I feel like it or have the time. I make the time.
Routines save me money or make me money because I’m doing the right activities to move my business forward. Including the necessary admin tasks. Tasks that often relate to the flow of money.
Routines create better quality in my life. They allow me to deliver consistently, they give me the boundaries to ensure I live a life rich with things I love, and it frees my energy to problem solve and get creative.
My days are scheduled, but I build in breaks and lots of time for relaxing and having fun. And when I do, I am not guilty because I know I spent my time wisely.
If you want to live with more routine, start with something small and build from there.
Please message me and let me know where you are with your journey.
You will never change your life until you change something you do daily. The secret of your success is found in your daily routine.John C. Maxwell
You will never change your life until you change something you do daily. The secret of your success is found in your daily routine.
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