How to stop being the only thing holding your business up, one system at a time
It’s October, and the light around here goes gold for a few weeks before turning grey almost overnight. Fletcher, my basset hound, is not a fan of rain, and he lets the whole house know it.
October always feels like the month of “right, let’s get on with it.” The summer lull is over and winter’s on its way. For a lot of the business owners I talk to, it’s also the month they realise they’ve spent the whole year in survival mode.
Survival mode looks busy. From the outside, long days and a calendar with no gaps can even look like success. But often there’s nothing holding it up except one person doing everything and hoping nothing breaks.
So this month, let’s look at what moving from surviving to scaling looks like in practice.
Working IN the Business vs Working ON It
Most business owners are brilliant at the thing that got them started, so naturally that’s where all their time goes. The trouble is that it only grows as far as your own hours in the day.
Working ON the business means stepping back regularly to ask bigger questions, like how it would run if you weren’t holding it together, and what needs to be in place so it’s still working in six months’ time.
That feels uncomfortable at first, because it feels like time away from the real work. But it’s how a business stops depending entirely on you.
What “Systems” Actually Means (It’s Not As Dull As It Sounds)
I know “systems” isn’t the most thrilling word in the world. It sounds like spreadsheets and flowcharts.
But a system is just a way of doing something so it doesn’t rely on you remembering it, or on you being the only person who can do it. Here’s where I see it matter most.
Money in. Do you invoice and chase payment the same way every time, or does it depend on you remembering to check? A system means it happens whether you’re focused on it that week or not.
Money out. Do you know what’s leaving the business each month, and why? A system means you review recurring costs on a set date, so you’re not scrolling through a bank statement wondering what on earth that charge was.
Tax and savings. Does tax money move into a separate account every time you’re paid, or are you hoping there’s enough left by January? A system takes the decision away from you.
Paying yourself. Is your pay a fixed amount, or whatever’s left once everything else is covered? A system means you get paid like anyone else in the business would.
None of these need to be complicated. They just need to work on a busy week as well as a quiet one.
The Real Cost of Staying in Survival Mode
You stay the bottleneck, with every decision routing through you. Even on holiday you’re checking your phone, because nothing runs without you.
Bringing in help is harder too. Handing work to a team member or contractor takes twice the effort when nothing’s written down, because you have to explain everything from scratch. And money decisions get made under pressure, because you never had the visibility to make them calmly in advance.
This usually happens when a business grows faster than its foundations. It’s very fixable.
Building Systems That Scale: Where to Actually Start
You don’t need to overhaul everything this month. Pick one area and build one system properly.
Start with money. It’s the area most people avoid, and it causes the most stress when it’s left to chance. A separate tax account and a fixed pay day for yourself are both good places to begin.
Write it down. You only need enough that someone else could pick it up tomorrow. A simple checklist for how you invoice a client or handle a new enquiry is plenty.
Put it on a schedule. Decide how often each thing needs doing (weekly, monthly or quarterly) and put it in the calendar, so you’re not deciding each time whether today’s the day.
Review it. Every quarter, ask whether it’s still working or whether the business has outgrown it.
A Story Worth Sharing
I worked with a client last year who looked like she was doing brilliantly. She was fully booked with a great reputation, and completely exhausted, because every part of the business ran through her every day.
We built one system at a time, starting with her invoicing because that was causing the most stress. Once that was running, we sorted her tax savings and set a fixed monthly amount she paid herself.
Her workload didn’t change overnight, but she stopped being the only thing holding the business together. She could take a week off without her stomach dropping every time her phone buzzed, and say yes to new work without wondering how she’d fit it in.
Your October Prompt
Before the last quarter takes over, ask yourself which parts of your business only work because you remember to do them.
Pick one and build a proper system around it this month. Write it down and put it in the calendar.
Want a Structured Way In?
If you keep meaning to sort your foundations, my free Tame the Jungle email course is still open. It’s seven emails over 21 days, covering receipts, invoices, expenses, tax, cash flow and paying yourself properly.
Everyone who completes it gets a complimentary Power Hour with me, where we look at your business and work out what needs building next.
Sign up here: https://go.lednoraccounting.co.uk/tame-the-jungle-landing-page
Amy
Lednor Accounting – The accountant who gives a monkeys!
Want help working out which system to build first? Book a free Grooming for Growth call and let’s talk about what your business needs next.