Why systems make a difference

When starting my business, I literally flew by the seat of my pants. Although I was a planner by nature, it hadn’t occurred to me to write down the systems I use to plan.

Fast forward to today. I have a medical issue thatis taking me away from my business more than I would like. But because now I have systems in place, many of the things I would normally have to do on my own are being taken care of.

It’s not perfect, but it is helping me immensely. And I am relieved that many tasks are being taken care of in the way that I prefer.

Here’s how I’ve done it:

1) Write down the steps to accomplish common tasks. I know this seems like a pain when you an do it faster without this – but trust me – this is vital. I usually do it as I am doing the task at hand so I don’t miss a step.

2) Put how-tos in a place that accessible by anyone who needs it. Mine is on a private wiki.

3) Outsource the tasks.

Although I started writing my systems before I found Beth Schneider’s Outrageously Effective Systems,  I have found the program to be quite helpful in getting most of my systems in a format all my staff can use.

Now I just need to go back and work with Beth on the systems that have failed during this mini-crisis so they won’t happen again.