Finding Ease In Your Business

Have you ever tried to pack for a camping trip the night before you leave? My little sister has a chronic habit of waiting until about 10 PM to get started. Coming from a family that frequently went on camping trips, this habit would cause a lot of trouble when we were younger. She usually ended up sitting on the floor of her room, surrounded by half folded clothes, an unrolled sleeping bag, several stuffed animals, more books than she could possibly carry, and an open, empty bag, with a lost expression of defeat. If I remember correctly, she looked a little something like this:

It was usually at this point that mom or I would need to step in and provide a little direction to ensure she would be ready to leave on time the next morning, without forgetting something crucially important, like, oh I don’t know, soap.

The same can be said for business.

When we feel like we have to pack all of our ideas into the limited time we have each day, week, and month while growing our businesses… Even though you’ve seen plenty of experienced and successful business owners manage it before, you feel lost. What’s the best strategy to follow? How do you make it all work? Desperation sets in as you face the endless advice of Youtube videos and social media, leading to a full-on spiral.  

What it Looks like to Run a Growing Business

The good news is, your business is growing! You’ve built a distinct brand and attracted the attention of your target audience. The less good news is, you’ve reached a point where you will need to reevaluate and restructure some of your existing systems and processes to have the capacity to take on new clients and sustainably grow your business. So, how do you manage all of this?

How to Tell What Your Business Needs Next: Clarity or Support

There are two main obstacles most business owners run into when they are trying to grow their business:

1. Knowing what they need
2. Having the time and resources to implement all the moving pieces required to reach that next stage of growth

Even outside of packing for trips, my sister always had trouble keeping her room tidy enough to find… anything, and because of that, it took her about twice as long to get anything done. It wasn’t that she tried to make things messy or slow, she just did things differently, and figuring out how to do them efficiently took a little time. In the same way, learning how to move your business forward and finding the time and resources that work for you, can take some time and practice.

The Scattered Dreamer

Think Vanellope Von Schweetz’s race car in Wreck-It Ralph: organized enough to make a functional go-cart, but not enough to avoid destroying the entire factory in the process.

Maybe you were the kid who couldn’t keep their room clean, making it nearly impossible to find anything you needed when you needed it. As life happened, old papers, toys, clothes, and

who knows what else got left on every flat surface until cleaning your room became a week-long team project that didn’t seem worth it until after you could see the floor again.

In your case, all of those little bits of client data, half-finished projects, lists of new ideas, and outdated documents have created a confusing maze of files and folders in your Google Drive. You and your team members end up struggling to find the right documents, end up with unnecessary copies, and just feel generally lost in your various systems.

The Exhausted Visionary

Imagine the White Rabbit from Alice in Wonderland: always going somewhere and doing something, but never fast enough to get where he’s going on time.

Maybe you were the kid who struggled to do uninteresting chores. No matter how much it needs to get done, no matter how many times you’ve been reminded about it, mundane tasks like folding laundry, packing and unpacking a suitcase, unloading the dishwasher, etc. take hours or days instead of minutes.

You know it’s possible to get these things done faster but just can’t seem to speed up the process.

For you, all of the little housekeeping tasks you dread doing are monopolizing your time and headspace. You find yourself drained, wishing there was a way to make things easier without sacrificing the growth you’ve fought so hard for.

Or, if you’re like my sister, you were (and in her case, still are) both! That doesn’t mean you’re destined to struggle, it just means you need a little guidance and a few helpful systems & processes to give you the support you need.

Taking Your Business to the Next Level

If you find yourself in the position of the scattered dreamer or exhausted visionary, you have:

• great ideas for new projects
• a desire to take on new clients
• a goal to expand your business

But lack the:

• time
• energy
• resources

To make it happen without sacrificing what’s already taking up space in your day-to-day work schedule.

The question now is:

How do you find a way to achieve your goals on top of managing existing clients and running the behind-the-scenes parts of your business?

It’s time to bring in an expert to support you. Don’t worry about cleaning up the mess of unpacked clothes and hiking supplies lying around the backpack – an expert’s job is to help you find how to organize everything in the way that works best for you, exactly where you are!

“Owning and running a business on your own is like having legos all over the floor – some built into tiny structures and a whole bunch of other pieces scattered all over the floor. Caitlyn comes in, hears your vision for what you desire to build.. and immediately creates a sense of peace and order with your legos in such a clear, calm, and efficient way.” – Bridgette Simmonds

Here at Upwell Strategies, our purpose is to meet you where you are in your business to provide insight into the changes and systems needed to accomplish your goals with our Audit. Learn more about how we can support your sustainable growth – no matter what season you’re in!