Systemizing Your Business: Who’s The BOSS?

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Thoughts from your Systems Goddess, Sandye Linnetz, Process Prodigy  

The classic question for all of us is: Do you run your business or is it running you? If you’re like most of the “solopreneurs” on this planet the answer isn’t a simple one. Most likely your answer is “well I think I run it, but there are an awful lot of days when it feels like it runs me!”  Even though you have a vision and a plan, there are bound to be times when you are feeling overworked and under-paid!

They, the self-employed of the planet, say that the best thing about being in business for yourself is that you are your own boss. They also claim that the worst part of running your own business is that you are your own boss.

Sure, it sounds great to:

1. Do what you want to do – not what you’re told to do
2. Get all the glory
3. Set your own hours
4. Designate spending
5. Keep all of the profits
6. Be outrageously creative
7. In other words:

Work less and earn more!

Now, let’s look at the flip side…

1. You will make the rules and they may not be any more fun to follow than someone else’s!
2. Yes, you will get all the glory… but you’ll also get all of the blame!!
3. The hours you set for yourself just might be more than you expected and more than you’d have as an employee.
4. Sure, spend the money however you wish… when there IS money to spend.
5. Sure, you can keep all of the profits… if there are any!
6. Be totally creative… unless you’re too tired and stressed to think!!!
7. In other words:

You may end up working even MORE hours for even less pay!

So, my friends, what’s a well-intentioned “solopreneur” to do?

PLAN
PLAN SOME MORE
PLAN EVEN MORE
Another was of saying this is “CREATE OUTRAGEOUSLY EFFECTIVE SYSTEMS” to run your business – and keep your business from running you. Know where you are. Know where you’re going and have a plan to get there. The freedom, the money and the creativity are all gained or lost through the systems you put into place so that your company can operate smoothly, cost-effectively and simply.

Want to work less and have more vacation time? What’s your system for “cloning” yourself and freeing up your time? Can your staff operate and make good decisions without your presence? How will they know who is to do what??? And how??? Do you have systems in place that are clear, concise and complete - with easily reproducible results?

Want to make more money? Well, what’s your system for building a client base? Maintaining clients? Billing and collections?

Want to make sure that there are profits to keep? What’s your system for tracking costs? Creating pricing? Handling vendors?

Want to set all the rules? Okay? What are they? How do you communicate those rules with your staff? What are your follow-up and check and balance systems to be sure that those rules are being followed?
No, running a business isn’t ROCKET SCIENCE… but it IS SYSTEMS SCIENCE!

I suppose that this blog could be an excellent sales pitch for joining OES (Outrageously Effective Systems – Process Prodigy’s “System of the Month Club”) or for hiring Beth Schneider to be your systems consultant/designer/guru. It is actually – quite simply – a wake up call (if you were asleep) and a call to action; if you’re ready to create a business that will afford you the time, freedom and money that you, and all solopreneurs want!

Join OES. It’s Awesome! Hire Beth. She’s amazing! Most important of all, put systems into place EVERYWHERE!!! As you look around – at work, at home, at the gym… in nature… anywhere… you will begin to recognize systems in action. Systems allow you to produce the same desired results over and over – without constantly recreating the wheel! With systems in place you are prepared and well armed for the battle that business can be.

Plan the work and work the plan!
SYSTEMIZE!
Let your staff, vendors and clients know…
WHO’S THE BOSS!!
© 2008 Beth Schneider, Process Prodigy, Inc. Want to reprint this article? Feel free as long as you include the following: Beth Schneider, President of Process Prodigy Inc., www.processprodigy.com, along with her team of highly sought after operations consultants, reveal the insider secrets billion-dollar corporations pay thousands of dollars for. Specializing in process creation, Process Prodigy tools and techniques have helped entrepreneurs increase productivity by as much as 600%, and revenues by as much as 250%. Visit www.processprodigy.com/ezine and grab your FREE systems starter kit valued at $297.00.

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