What is a system - and why do I need one?

According to Google:

“A system is a collection of interconnected parts or elements that work together, following certain rules, to form a unified whole, achieving a specific purpose or function that the individual parts lack on their own”

Now why should you care?

Every business - regardless of whether you’re a solo business owner, work in a small team, have multiple franchises, or even manage a non-profit - needs systems to function effectively on a daily basis.

Think of how all the parts of your body work together for this same purpose:

• Your skeleton keeps you upright so that you’re not just some sort of meat bag trying to throw yourself from one place to another
• Your muscles are what move your bones around
• Your brain tells your muscles (and other parts) what to do
• Your heart pumps blood and oxygen throughout your body so that your muscles can function
• Your lungs give oxygen to your heart, as well as exhale carbon dioxide so you don’t develop hypercapnia

And that doesn’t even include other things like your lymph nodes (helps defend against infection), skin (kinda helps keep all the muscles, and, you know - BLOOD - inside you…), stomach (someone’s gotta break down that cheeseburger you just ate!), or bladder & intestines (because where else would you store all that bodily waste?!?).

When you think of your business as a series of systems to regularly care for so it can live a long and pain-free life, you tend to invest in better tools, processes, or “supplements” (i.e. professional support) to keep it operational.

Now - what kinds of systems do you need?

That depends.

(just so you can start learning about how I operate: that will most likely be my default answer for most questions because I am very anti “one-size-fits-all” “solutions.” I have yet to find an off-the-rack system for myself in the decades I have been both a business owner AND an employee, working at everything from a small mom & pop shop to a massive, global, 100-year-old corporate entity. Real life is not the Lord of the Rings. There will never be “one ring to rule them all” because [spoiler alert] Frodo handled that situation #likeaBOSS)

Anyway. Back to business.

The systems YOU need for your own business (and brain) depend on a number of factors:

• Are you a solo business owner? Or do you have a partner? Board of Directors to report to? Internal or external stakeholders?
• Do you run a brick & mortar local business? Or an online one?
• Are you well-connected in your community? Or does no one know you exist (yet)?
• Do you have experience with copywriting? Graphic design? Building tech stacks? Creating marketing funnels? Developing a Sales Playbook? Product Development? Doing market research? Bookkeeping? Enforcing legal policies? Handling large machinery? Applying for permits? Hiring & firing? Formatting websites? Setting up payment portals? Automating tasks? Cold-calling? Content creation? Social Media? Establishing, managing, and growing a mailing list?

As you can see, the list is infinite when you are the owner of a business…

(plus, if you’re neurodivergent or also have ADHD, let’s add: “do you have to be reminded to eat or drink water? Do you know where your keys are this very moment? Do you struggle with paying all your bills on time? When was the last time you stuck with an idea for longer than 6 months? How many times a week do you find yourself wrapped in a fuzzy blanket on the couch binge-watching your favorite comfort food show like Friends, or The Office, or The Walking Dead for hours at a time instead of working on your business because you are so overwhelmed by everything you have to do each day that you just shut down completely?” Yeah…the struggle is real…lol)

However: pretty please with a cherry on top do NOT give up on your business yet, my dear.

Because if you are as hellbent on running your business as I am, if you are as passionate about what you do and who you help as I am, if you believe with all of your heart that this business venture is exactly what you need and want in your life (because getting a “real job” is just pure torture, or simply doesn’t allow you to live the way YOU want to live) - I assure you: we can make it happen.

Your first step?

Sign up for a (free!) Strategic Process Review with me so we can see what IS working for your business - and what needs attention:

Once we are aware of what your needs are today, we can make smarter decisions for where to focus our efforts tomorrow (as well as hopefully take a bunch of stuff off your plate so you can BREATHE!).

Most people say, “Where there’s a will, there’s a way.”

But I say: willpower isn’t the way—systems are.

Let’s make those systems happen for you & your business this year, shall we?

Until next time!

-Stella