What am I doing on Sunday, you ask? I’ll be catching up on invoicing, client emails, booking reminders, and the list goes on and on.
Does this sound like you running your business?
Did you know there is an easier way?
You’ve probably heard everyone, including your mailman, talk about Automation. We wanted to clear things up a bit on how it can help you and what low-hanging fruit you can grab hold of right now.
Time management can do wonders for getting more done in the week, but are you making time for the right things or making time to do things you probably should have an admin for in the first place?
So, what can you automate?
With AI, this has opened up drastically, but generally, anything repetitive (especially computer-based tasks) is easy to automate. Think of things you do every single week and take hours but are completely mindless. Maybe you have a procedure, maybe you have a checklist, but you spend your hours checking off tasks one at a time.
The easiest way to find these types of tasks is to think through them and list all the tasks you do every day, week, and month. Go through and find anything that you could right down the steps for and get an admin to do
Think, “Is this the best use of my time?”.
Now, prioritize those tasks. Which ones are the most cumbersome? First, prioritize based on how soul-sucking they are for you. Prioritize your energy. These tasks take a lot out of you and can limit your ability to do other things that need to get done or show up as your best self for your family and friends. Let’s get rid of those first.
Next, which ones take the most time out of your day, week and year? These are your next priorities. Remember, a weekly task that takes you 2 hours to do is better to automate compared to one that takes you 5 minutes a day every day. Keep in mind the first step while going through these.
Next, write out the steps you do as if you are going to give a checklist to someone brand new to your company and get them to do it. This will be important to capture everything.
Now, the fun part! Finding the right tool. You don’t use a hammer to pound in a screw. You need the right tool for the job. Do some research, and you will definitely find something. There are thousands of tools out there. Remember, if you can find a multi-tool that will be able to handle more of the tasks and more of the steps (even if it’s not perfect), that’s better in the long term than having a dozen automation tools.
Now we build it out and launch!! Test it first. Find a way to isolate your task so you can run a few tests through without it capturing everything … for now. Remember this is like training a new employee initially. So their may be some misunderstandings in your setup. Be patient. Typically, they are quick to fix and will save you headaches later. Not to mention, you will save a lot of time in the long term.
Once you’ve tested things and they are running like a finely tuned engine, IT’s TIME TO LAUNCH!!!!
Remove your testing parameters and go live. Now sit back and sip an Old Fashions (or whatever your flavour is) on Sundays or spend time at the park with your family instead of being on lockdown doing your admin tasks.
One last note, be sure to keep an eye on things for the first bit. There may be some weird scenarios you forgot about, and it’s best to catch them early and fix things up.
Remember, we are here to help. you can book a consultation at the link below, and we’ll go through everything for you.
Happy automating, and let us know what you end up doing with your extra time.