Have you ever been on vacation and wished you didn’t have to come back? Have you ever woken up in the morning and wished that you could just skip the office today? Are you surrounded by mountains of paperwork that seem to mate like rabbits when you are not looking?

The secret to breaking these cycles forever is systems and processes that can be executed by anyone on your team. Imagine a world where every process was documented with easy-to-follow, step-by-step directions. Anyone could tap into your company knowledge base or pick up the manual and be able to execute any process flawlessly. How would that free you up for more productive and exciting work?

What if ALL of your client meeting preparation was on autopilot?

What if your systems and processes were so well organized that ALL of your client meeting preparation could be done by your team and all that was required from you was one hour to review and make minor adjustments before presenting everything to your clients? This is not only possible, it is the way I have been running my business for the past decade. I only do work that ONLY I can do. Everything else is delegated to an internal or external deliverables team member.

Who MANAGES all those people? I don’t have TIME for that!

The short answer is that they largely manage themselves. Each Deliverables Team member has clear job descriptions and clear accountabilities to other team members and to our clients. Our deadlines are real because their work is reviewed by other deliverables team members in regular meetings so employees who show up with shoddy or incomplete work are quickly identified. That allows the team to train them further or replace them as appropriate, using our training and recruiting processes.

What if they could train themselves?

I long ago learned that training was both critical and time consuming. What I discovered was that I could do the training ONCE using video, audio or print materials, and from then on my team could train themselves because our systems and processes were so strong. I am a big believer in checklists and we use checklists to drive everything. If we have done everything on the checklist, we know that we are running like a well tuned engine.

What if all the training, all the checklists and all of the systems and processes were already created?

Well, they are. We’ve put them all together in a turn-key client service system called the trusted Advisor Tool Kit. You can learn more at www.trustedAdvisorToolKit.com.  Regardless of whether you use my system or develop your own, the key to freeing your time and your life to live it as you choose lies in creating a business model that requires as little of your personal time as possible. Otherwise, your business owns you and you personally must be there every day because YOU are the PRODUCT. If you can shift your mindset to your SYSTEMS AND PROCESSES and the CLIENT DELIVERABLES are the PRODUCT, you are free to create and add the unique value that ONLY you can bring to the business.

Strategic Delegation

We make a sharp distinction between delegation and strategic delegation. Delegation just means giving your work to others to complete. Strategic Delegation is training others to do WORK THAT ADDS REAL VALUE FOR CLIENTS, and DOES NOT include shuffling papers or filling out forms.  That work may be delegated as well but we would not categorize it as Strategic Delegation.

With the exception of client acquisition, there is no other task that should be higher on your priority list than designing and executing the systems and processes that will allow your business to run flawlessly. It will be a gift to you, your family and your clients.  So, declare Christmas in July right now by giving yourself the gift of time. It will make your business more valuable and your clients happier!