The 20% of Systems That Give Pilates Studio Owners 80% of Their Time Back

In this episode of The Pilates Business Podcast, host Seran Glanfield breaks down why studio owners don’t need more systems - they need the right ones.

 If running your Pilates studio or boutique fitness business feels overwhelming, chaotic, or overly dependent on you, this episode reveals how systemizing just 20% of your business can free up 80% of your time, energy, and mental bandwidth. 

Seran shares the three high-leverage areas that create the biggest shift - your client journey, internal operations, and team delegation - so your studio can run smoothly without you doing everything. 

This episode is a must-listen for Pilates, barre, and yoga studio owners who want a profitable, streamlined business that supports their life instead of consuming it.

~~~
GRAB YOUR FREE RESOURCE 👉 The Studio Owner's Guide to MASTERING REELS 

📲 Follow Seran on Instagram @seran_spring_three

❤️ Loved this episode? Leave a review - your review helps spread the word about the show and I read each and every one!

🎧 Never miss a new episode! Be sure to follow or subscribe to stay up to date

Work with Seran:

🌟 Join the Thrive  Business Coaching Program and get smart strategies that drive growth (and profit) in your boutique fitness studio

🌟Enroll in the Marketing Intensive and get everything you need to finally master your marketing and stand out from the competition

Transcript

The 20 Percent That Changes Everything

SPEAKER_00 0:00

If I told you that just 20% of your studio could be systemized in a way that gives you 80% of your time back, would you believe me? Well, I know most studios agree that they think they need to overhaul absolutely everything: marketing, admins, scheduling, teaching, onboarding, before they can finally get out of overwhelm. But the truth is you only need to systemize a few high-leverage areas to create this massive space in your week, honestly. Today I'm going to show you exactly where those leverage points are. The 20% that frees up your brain, your calendar, and your energy. And it's probably not what you've been focusing on so far. So if you're tired of feeling like your studio runs you, then this episode could change a lot for you. Stay with me. Well, hi there, I'm Sarah Glanfield. I'm a business and marketing strategist just for boutique fitness studio owners like you. If you're ready to be inspired and make a bigger impact, you're in the right place. All you need are a few key strategies, the right mindset, and some support along the way. Join me as I share the real life insights that will help you grow a sustainable and profitable studio. This is the Pilates Business Podcast. Hey friends, welcome back to the Pilates Business Podcast. This is where we talk about building a thriving, profitable boutique fitness studio without losing yourself in the process. I'm Sarah and Glanfield and I have been coaching and consulting for Pilates and bar and yoga and dance cardio studios all around the world for over a decade. And what I know is that there's a lot on your plate. There is a lot that is happening in your world. And as someone who's walked side by side alongside hundreds of studio owners, I've seen those who go to that very, the very brink of burnout. And I've also seen those who manage to sort of breeze through with a smile on their face and have light and energy and abundance around them and build a business that excites them, that invigorates them, and that they are able to balance with other things they want to do in their life. And I think that when it comes to building a business, in order to get the latter, right? That beautiful vision that we I just pictured for you, um, we need to have some systems, right? But I think one of the things that that the questions that first come up when it comes to systems is where do I start? And I see it every day with the studio owners that I coach in Stater Thrive. And in Stata Thrive, we give you the step by step of which systems to implement first, how to do it. We give you the the processes, the step-by-steps, and the tools and the organization to do this, to put these systems into place. And the first question that most people come to me with is I know I need to systemize. I want to have systems in my business, uh, but you know, I don't know where to start. And it feels like I'm trying to do a little bit of everything at once. And it feels a bit like I'm trying to fold laundry in a tornado, right? Impossible. So instead, we end up in this place of just, you know, sort of like, as they say, just sort of like keeping our heads above water, right? Where we're kind of kicking madly underwater, you know, just taking a breath where we can. Um and I think that sometimes we kind of get on a kick of systemizing and getting organized and we add an automation here or a checklist, or we we have a team meeting and we put the agenda together and we have this sort of real sort of, you know, sort of a New Year's resolution style approach to systemization, but it doesn't happen on a consistent basis. And I think that oftentimes um there is there is this this this idea is is sort of uh this that it all has to be systematized, and therefore you are sitting back, pressing buttons, and it all works for you. But that's not exactly how it works. Some systems will save you five minutes, other systems will save you hours. Some will save you mental bandwidth, some will save you time, some will reduce decision fatigue, some will keep your team aligned, some will just make sure that you or and your business makes no mistakes, right? And so when we identify those 20% of systems that create the 80% of freedom and time that we're looking for, that's when your business will shift from feeling heavy and chaotic to feeling clear and streamlined and predictable. Ah, and we can all take a big deep breath and relax, right? So let's talk about one of how how we approach systems or how I approach systems and where you can really start. And I think that the problem is that many studio owners in your shoes, people in your shoes think that they're overwhelmed because they're doing too much. And so they try to do less or they kick them, they kind of beat themselves up for how much they have going on. But the real issue is there is a lot happening manually in the business that should be never be manual, right? Maybe you are following up with every single individual client one by one by one, and you are the only one who does that. Maybe you're answering the same questions to your clients over and over again, explaining one thing or another. Maybe you're reminding your clients of your policies on a regular basis, or maybe you are surprised that they show them to be completely unaware of your policies, even though you feel like you have said them a lot. And so if you feel like you're playing a whack-a-mole with admin tasks, you know, all of this is sort of the things that will drain your energy and create that sort of decision fatigue in your business, keeps you stuck in the weeds. Truly, it does. It keeps you stuck in the action, in the doing constantly. And that drains you, but it also takes away your opportunity to think beyond where you're at right now, think bigger. And it takes away the ability really to lead your business forward. And so it's no wonder that you feel exhausted because you truly are carrying your whole business on your back. And if it's just you and your business, then maybe that's manageable. But once you start adding teachers and studio managers and teacher trainings and retreats and workshops, it becomes a lot. And you're not overwhelmed because you have too much going on. I think you're perfectly capable of having and building the business that you want that might have all of those moving parts. But you're probably overwhelmed because so much of what you're doing is undefined in terms of what it is that you're aiming for with the activity or the action. And there isn't a system behind it for how you measure success, what needs to get done, when it needs to get done by who's responsible for what. And so once a task becomes a system, truly is when it stops draining you. And you'll find that these systems work in your business together really, really nicely so that your business starts to run like a machine. And that's when you start to unlock that sort of freedom, right? And you start to sort of you can turn the key and you open the door and you can see it, right? And you're stepping into it. And slowly but surely, as you begin to put more systems and processes in place in your business, you can walk fully into that room where there is an expanse ahead of you, there is abundance ahead of you. So I think one of the things that comes up is, you know, we don't know where to start, right? And we often think that everything in our business has to be a system, right? And when we think that everything has to be a system all at once, then, well, that just stops us in our tracks immediately, right? Because that leads to procrastination or this perfectionism thing that maybe some of us have, you know, going on as well. Okay. And maybe you're waiting for that perfect moment, right? When, you know, the studio's a bit quieter, you know, when you have time to think about what you need to do and put together that, you know, that checklist or that process, whatever it might be. But that perfect moment never comes. And while you wait, you're still trapped in the day to day to day to day to day. And so the power doesn't come from having everything systematized, it comes from systemizing the right things. Okay. So think of your studio like a body that you're teaching, right? If your hips are stable and your core is strong and you know, you have, you know, the foundations in place, then a lot of other things can move more easily, right? But if those things are weak, as you know, right, a lot of other things tend to compensate. A lot of struggles come up, a lot of tweaks in the lower back, maybe, and a few other sort of perhaps things that happen that we'd rather not happen, right? So your business functions kind of the same way. There are a few sort of core muscles, right? Powerhouse parts of the business systems that when those are in place and when they are strong, they will improve every single part of your studio. And those are your 20%. And when you systemize those things first, those that's when things get easier, that's when things get lighter, your team becomes more independent, your clients have a stronger experience. Okay. So as you're listening to this, think about what are those core things, the the powerhouse of your business, that are things that have to happen in order for your business to operate. And what systems that are clearly defined do you have in place to ensure that those things happen smoothly? And I think that, you know, I want to give you a few ideas. And I think these are the sort of the higher leverage areas that will give you back maximum amounts of time. And I think that they probably apply to most of you listening. Okay. So I think that probably the most, actually, most of your business sits within these sort of three specific areas. So this is this is going to be helpful to you. Now, the first thing, as you know, if you've listened to me and what I talk about at all, you'll know that I care a lot about the uh the customer journey, right? The client life cycle. And within the client client journey, the customer journey where they go from discovering new to becoming that amazing, loyal advocate, champion of your business. They're showing up with great energy, they're buying from you, they are consistently buying from you the time, their friends about you, those amazing clients that you have, right? At every phase and every point along that customer journey, there is opportunities to create systems that make sure that they stay in touch with your business, that stay connected to your business. When parts of this, if not many parts of this is systemized, you do stop chasing people, right? So you stop manually nurturing, you stop sitting there waiting, you stop reacting. Um, and when you're in control of this process because you're driving it, you're creating it, you're curating it, then your conversions will go up. And that when I say conversions, I mean that those the people that come all the way through that journey and land with you as the loyal clients, not just a trickle, but a lot of those people who find you stay with you. And this includes the way that people connect with you and how you respond back. That's a system. Okay. How people buy your introductory offer and what happens during the intro offer period, what happens even during their first session in your business. These are all micro systems that add up to bigger parts of a process, right? New client onboarding, how you have sales conversations with them, when you have sales conversations with them. Those are all systems. And systemizing these will give you back hours each and every week. Not just time, it will bring you more revenue. It will ultimately then bring you more freedom and the ability to build and grow beyond what you have right now. And the reality is that so many other studio owners that I see struggling, the bottleneck comes from lacking systems in all of these places. So, all the way through the customer journey, there's opportunities for systems and processes, and you have to be looking for them. And the beautiful part of this is that when these systems work so nicely in the background, which they should, even when you're teaching, even when you're picking up the kids from school, even when you're taking vacation or you're attending a continued education training, those systems still work without you, right? Which means that your business is operating without you, which is a really powerful position to find yourself in. So then beyond the client journey, obviously there is also this day-to-day operations, the internal operations, the thing, the, you know, the the the cogs, right, in the machine that have to turn in order for you to be able to deliver the exceptional services that you deliver in your studio. These are often the invisible things, the people that are the things that a lot of people don't see in your business. And they can often be the things that eat away your time if you don't control them. So that's things like scheduling clients, making sure your policies are in place and up to date, making sure that your automations are refined, tracking your key numbers and knowing what to track, team training, team communication, um, ensuring that your class schedule is what it needs to be. All of these things are items that require your attention. And when you don't systemize how you approach this, then you'll find yourself in constant reaction mode. You're constantly poking out fires, you're constantly thinking about that when you're doing other things and you're thinking about the things you need to get to, when you're doing the thing that you already should be doing, right? And these are this is where we find ourselves in overwhelm, right? But when you take the time and work on putting systems in place around maybe two, three, or four of these things, then your business will run with so much less friction and you will run it with outside of a place of overwhelm. You'll have clarity and direction, you'll have peace of mind knowing that those things are going to get taken care of because you have a system in place for that. So maybe that means that your team has more responsibility. Maybe your team knows your expectations of them. Maybe your clients know what to expect. And maybe you then stop being the bottleneck because you're currently doing all the things. And I think that you know leads nicely into this the next phase, which is ultimately as you grow your studio business, there will be a big return on your time when you're able to successfully delegate, not just tasks, but also responsibility. And delegation, yes, you've got teachers in your business, I'm sure. That's fantastic. Um, we want to um we want to make sure those teachers, though, represent your business in the way that you want your business to be represented, right? And that means that you're gonna need to onboard your teachers. You're gonna need to hire teachers who are high performing, who care, who have the, the, the integrity to teach in the way that you want. You need to then keep them connected with your studio and focus on what matters most. And that requires a system. That requires onboarding, an onboarding system and ongoing trainings, ongoing um avenues to be able to communicate clearly with your team and build those team relationships. So your teaching of your teachers is a system, your delegation approach is a system, your team onboarding is a system. And if you're teaching too many classes because your team isn't fully empowered to help, or your team doesn't know that they're that you even would like them to do more or take on more, then there is no amount of you just keeping going and going faster and doing more that will fix your overwhelm. So some of the biggest breakthroughs I see happen when studio owners create structure around what teachers are responsible for what, um, how subs are handled, how people on your team make decisions and what decisions they are able to make without you, what expectations are, and then how the workload is distributed across your team. And this is often one of the sort of, I think, sort of something that feels big. But once you start to go down the path of thinking really clearly about how you structure your team and how you structure your time and the organization around you and your team, then this is where you reclaim your time in really big, meaningful chunks for real. So the final thing I just want to touch on first is about what where you sit in this. Okay. Because often you might find yourself um approaching systems like a checklist, right? I just need to put a system in, check the box, and then I'll feel on top of things. But the reality is that checklists don't create freedom alone. What this requires you to do is to step into the role of a CEO, of a leader of your business. And without the mindset shifts, you will likely create systems that you don't follow or your team doesn't follow, or no one else follows, or systems that are too complicated to sustain. And then you end up right back where you started. Systems aren't just documents, they're not just decisions, they're not just the checklists, they are leadership tools. So in order for you to embrace systems in your business, you have to shift your identity in your business from being the doer, right? The operator, right? The the active, you know, the in the busy work to being the leader of your business, to be the person who takes your business forward. And then these systems become an extension of your values and of your vision. They're not chores, they become the foundation, right? Those pieces of the mechanics of your business that runs without depending on you for every tiny decision. And inside Thrive, this identity shift is when I see some of the biggest transformations happen. When we become aware of just how much relies on our input, and we recognize then that that is just that bottleneck that you cannot get, you can't stuff more in, right? That we have to, we have to break through that. And being aware of your role and what your role means for your business is really important. So without that shift, you will probably find this is just more checklists and more to-dos on your to-do list. But with the shift, you see your business as being a series of systems. Systems to give your clients a great experience, systems to give your teachers a great experience, systems that make everything run more smoothly. Okay. And I will say that I, you know, often it helps you give you a lot of clarity as well, because if you can't systemize something, then sometimes that thing might not be a might not have a place in your business. A lot of things that we do here inside of at Spring Three and behind the scenes inside of Thrive are built on. These exact systems on the system that I'm talking about with you. So I witness firsthand just how powerful it can be. And I have a lot of ideas for different things that I want to do and would like to do and could think about doing. But oftentimes it comes down to okay, is this something that I can systemize? Is there a process here? Can I delegate this? Who else can take care of this? And if some of it I can we can figure out the answers to those questions, then maybe there's an opportunity there. But the filter is is this a system? Is there a system here that allows me to step away, that allows someone else on my team to step in if I'm unavailable? And so I want to give that to you as well as a little insight because you know we're all building businesses here and we're all building businesses that are gonna grow with us, and we all need to grow as well. Okay. So let's bring this home. Getting back your time doesn't come necessarily from systemizing absolutely everything, but it probably comes from identifying and systemizing the top 20% of things that your studio does and that carries the biggest load. And that's typically part of the client journey, uh, your internal operations and your team and teaching and delegation structure. And when more of that is defined and automated and repeatable, your studio will stop relying on you, on your constant presence, on having your hand in every pot. You also can stop reacting and start leading. And truly, that is so freeing. I cannot tell you how exciting and invigorating it feels when you have systems in place. Okay. And then your time finally becomes your own again. We're all creative beings, I think, in this world. And we have a lot of things that we're excited about doing, but without that time and energy and focus, we often are unable to pursue those. So if you are want a little bit of help with identifying the 20% of things in your business that could use some systems, and then building those systems that create freedom, not more work, but more freedom, for you to focus on whatever it is that you want to focus on, then I want to invite you to learn more about Thrive. This is my business coaching for Boutique Fitness Studio Owners. Inside Thrive, we don't just build systems. We help you to build a streamlined, scalable studio that supports your life instead of consuming it. We help you step into that leadership role and guide you towards it and into it and beyond. So you can learn more at springthree.com forward slash thrive. Did you love this episode and want more? Head to spring3.com and check out my free resources that will help you run a profitable and fulfilling studio business. And before you go, one last reminder. There is no one way to do what you do, only your way. So, whatever it is that you want to do, create, or offer, you've got this. Thanks again for joining me today and have a wonderful rest of your day.