Talk Systems to Me with Productivity Expert Brittany Dixon [149]

Talk Systems to Me with Productivity Expert Brittany Dixon.

We chat about systems and not just the systems that involve software, we chat boundaries, and what goes into setting up a system for your business even if you are a newbie or established business.  We typically wait to implement after we've "made it" but setting these up earlier on in your business will support you more than you know.

Free community we discuss in this episode, join here.

More about Brittany:

As a business systems strategist and host of The Productivity Pod(cast), Brittany Dixon helps highly-driven visionary entrepreneurs implement day-to-day operations management, project management, systems and processes, and simple strategy to free up time to do big things in their own zone of genius. Whether she is teaching entrepreneurs simple strategies to reduce overwhelm in their business, Brittany leverages her super-organizer powers to grow businesses so they can scale and soar. When she's not working with her clients or being active in her Productivity Pod community, she loves camping with her family and spending time with her husband and twin girls.  Connect with Brittany on Instagram

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It's November 2022 is not over yet. So ready to move. It doesn't mean we can't take a break. It doesn't mean we can't enjoy our holidays like what all is available are starting, ignite your visibility on Instagram coming up on the 28th of November and that is going to help you streamline your Instagram experience, understand fully know what type of content to be putting on there and understand all the ins and outs real stories. He posts all the things so that you can create a raving fan audience there. Make sure you check it out visibility queen.com Welcome back to this show. I am so excited to have one of my friends. And somebody who has taught me so much about a certain software that I know we're going to touch on today. I want to welcome Brittany Dixon, who is a business strategist and productivity coach, and she helps business owners, which is everyone listening, right? Build a business without burnout. And I want you to raise your virtual hand right now if you want a business without burnout because we can all put ourselves in that situation. So Brittany, do you want to do a little intro and tell my audience about you? Thank you so much for having me. I'm so excited. Um, yeah, so I've been in business for about six years now. It's been a crazy roller coaster journey. But essentially, when I first started out, I was in the wedding and event planning industry. I've always been super organized like type A, I've got like post it notes and all the things my friends always thought I was super weird. So I thought I wouldn't be a wedding planner. For the longest time it was like that would be a really cool job. I can be organized I can do parties got into it. And I realized that I hated the wedding side of it. But I loved like the backend logistics and organizing and those sorts of things. So I actually ended up working for a corporate restaurant here in Columbus, I did the same thing for them the event marketing and sales, and I ended up getting let go. So I became an accidental entrepreneur because I did not fit within a corporate box, which worked out really well for me, right. So when I started the business, I actually started as a professional organizer, and I helped people organize their houses. I'm a mom of twins. And organizing wasn't really a luxury, it was pretty much a necessity for me. And I saw that I could help other moms do the same thing. So that's kind of how I started when I got let go. And then I found this online space by hiring a business coach. And now I organize businesses. So really, I went from organizing events, to houses to businesses. And again, it kind of just all came full circle. But yeah, it's just been a crazy, crazy roller coaster. I love that I know. And I it's so funny because I know that you are a wedding planner. And i i Forget until you told me this funny we forget everybody's backstory until we start talking to them. So let's talk about this systems and this organizing thing. So how did you fall into this? How did you realize that? As business owners, it was like the missing link to where we wanted to go in our businesses. Yeah. So when I transitioned from organizing houses, I really like I had no idea this online, like life even existed, and literally found a business coach on Google at the time I got retargeted on Facebook had no idea what that even was. But I started seeing like all of these business owners and coaches and like course creators, and I'm like, What is this so I like went down this whole rabbit hole at first. But once I kind of finally got my footing, I really saw business owners struggling to grow because they were so disorganized. They didn't start a business to run a business just like me, like I had no clue what I was doing running a business. And they were really good at something. But because they didn't have things in place to help them with routines, and keeping track of things and staying organized with all their different assets and marketing. It just became really hard for them to start scaling. So once I kind of put all those pieces together and saw that was a thing. I was like, Oh, well, I organized events than I organized houses like now I'm just going to help business owners stay organized. Right? So yeah, it was kind of a crazy thing. But I just started doing a lot of free conversations and talking with people. And the same things kept coming up over and over. And I was like, Okay, this is my superpower. And we're gonna create something with this. So in my business, and I'm going to be honest, and totally call myself out here. Systems was not something that I thought I needed at the beginning. Tell us a little bit more about why it's so important to set up that foundation at the beginning versus waiting till you and I'm doing air quotes. If you can't see this air close to say you made it right, let's I'll do that when I made it when I make it or when I'm successful. So let's talk a little bit about that and why that's so vital for business. Yeah. So I think it's important to kind of start off with a word systems because I think so many people that hear that word, and they're like, oh my gosh, I don't need that. Like it's just me. I don't need systems. It's fine. Everything's in my head. And systems really are just routines and workflows. It's not necessarily the tech and I actually tell people a lot of times like it's not the tech that's going to fix your problems and the software that's going to fix your problems. It's how you use it, if you're consistent with it if you're actually putting things in it. So I think when people hear systems, it's just this like scary thing, and they think they don't need them. But really, it is just keeping you organized, right? So this goes all the way down to like your calendar management, your time management, your routines, all the way down to like organizing your Google Drive so that you can find stuff. So systems really are just how you're working day to day and how how you can kind of keep track things. So I think systems are even more vital if you're a solopreneur. Because you're doing so many different things. So to your point, I think a lot of people think they have to have a team and like have have to have made it to have systems. And really, I think they're even more vital when you're solo, because you've got to keep track of so many things and wear so many different hats. I love that. And I think too, I mean, and correct me if I'm wrong. If we set this up as a foundation, when we bring team members in, it actually is a lot easier than trying to redo everybody's like the way they do things if you've already got all this set in stone in your business. Yeah, I think that a lot of people think they don't need systems until they bring on a team. But typically, when you're bringing on a team, you're already starting to scale and grow. And if you're trying to set the foundations while you're going through this growth phase, like it's going to be really, really difficult because again, everything's in your head as a solopreneur. And it's gonna be really hard for you to pass stuff off to people, you're going to spend a lot more time doing that, again, while you're growing, instead of having those foundations in place ahead of time. And then I've actually talked to people before, and they're like, Oh, I've went through like five virtual assistants, and it's not working. And I'm like, Well, you're the common denominator and that and I think we should probably put some better foundations in place. So I think it really is important to have that before you even think about scaling, if that's your plan. And if that's your goal, because it's just so much easier than to have a foundation, you can start passing stuff off easier. Now obviously, there's like a transition when you bring on team members. But I think it's just you've got to have some stuff in place before you think about scaling for sure. I love that and the way that you first described systems. In my mind, I also think of boundaries being a system. Would you agree? Absolutely. And I had no boundaries when I started my business. And it's really hard to course correct. It's like letting your puppy chew on everything. We believe. This is so easy to talk about letting your puppy chew on everything, but then deciding, oh, yeah, you can't do that anymore. And it seems easy to just let them chew on the thing like, oh my gosh, just do it, it's fine. And then you have to like break that habit. And it's so much harder to break it later on that you might as well have that stuff in place ahead of time. Yeah, boundaries was huge. For me, I would email people at all hours of the night, I will be working until midnight like, and that's hard to break. Because you get in this habit of doing stuff. And you're you just it's hard to like get out of that. So by setting a better foundation to begin with, it's gonna be so much easier later on. I think their time I realized I needed boundaries. When I was sitting, working at my computer. I want to say maybe I was even on a live video and my phone was ringing. And I look at it as a client calling me. And I'm like, There's no emergencies and social media. I'm sorry, there's nothing going on in the world right now. There's truly no PR emergency going on. Why are they calm? And why do they feel like that's okay? It was not a butt dial. It was nothing like that. And I was like this is this is I'm too easy to get ahold of I'm too I'm too accessible. Like I get to work on these boundaries. And it took me way too long. And so even as a part of systems, make sure that you're implementing that because trust me, it is hard to break them. It is so hard to break. It's kind of like it's, it's sometimes it's even harder for us than it is teaching our clients. Oh, absolutely. And one example for me as far as boundaries go, like if I if I'm emailing at night, because I'm doing stuff and I want to get stuff off my brain and I see something come in, I always schedule it to go out the next day at 8am. Because I'm like, I'm not, I'm not gonna send you an email at 10 for you to expect me respond at 10 o'clock. Like that's not happening. That was one of the biggest things that was super, super helpful. Because before I was like, Oh, I have to get back to immediately and then it was like this whole conversation at 10pm. And I'm like, Okay, this is crazy. But again, it's hard to break, right? You've got to get in the habit of scheduling instead of just hitting send. And if you set those foundations ahead of time, it's gonna be a lot easier as you start to scale to still have that free time for sure. Yeah. So something that you are an expert in that we talk about a lot and that I love is asana and I know you've been using like 17 hats. You've been talking about that a lot lately. Let's talk about the prioritizing of a type of project management type system versus a pen and paper or a million notebooks that you have all over your House like, how can this make a person's business more effective? Yeah, for sure. Asana honestly is like my second brain, I keep track of not just business stuff, but house stuff. And it wasn't until I actually put something in place that I realized how much like stress and anxiety it took off of me too, because I'm just not thinking about things. 24/7. So I think it's really important, especially as you're building a business, that if you're using 17, different notebooks and post it notes, like that might work for a while, but at some point, things are gonna start slipping through the cracks, you're gonna start forgetting things, client experience might not be great, people might be upset with you forgetting to send stuff. And eventually, the stress and anxiety is just gonna crack. So by having something like Asana or Trello, or whatever you use, again, the tool is not like the thing that's going to fix it, it's using it. But by having something like that, you have an all in one hub where you can go and say like, Okay, this is what I'm doing today. This is my checklist for today, I just, I saw so many entrepreneurs, they would sit down at their desk, whatever time they started, and try to figure out what to work on. And then three hours later, they're like, I've got nothing done, except for email, and communication and texting, like all this stuff coming in at them. I've got nothing done. And now I have to go pick up the kids or now I have to go do errands or whatever. And they get stuck in this like trap of never getting things done. So by having this it kind of gives you that plan ahead of time where you can just hit the ground running, get the tasks done and move on. I'm just keep information in like, I don't have to think about anything because I basically can just search us on it and find it. And it helps me remember when I've done stuff, right? I'm like, oh, yeah, did I already send that and you can go back and look at it. So there's like an accountability piece to it too. But really, it just the biggest thing for me it took off the stress and anxiety of having to remember stuff constantly. Yeah, I love and like recurring tasks is like one of my favorite things. Oh my gosh, yes. And it's funny, because sometimes I'll get like out of the habit of going to it. And then I'm like, wait a minute, this makes my life so much more. It's mean, it's checking a box, right? It's literally checking a box and checking it off. And it's funny, probably like the end of 2021. I worked with Brittany to like redo my whole Asana. I've been using Asana for years. But I had no idea the capabilities that it could do. Like I was literally playing around with it, I was not a power user. Now I would say I'm getting closer to being a power user. But literally, it was just like I dabbled in it. And there's just so much that it can do and take off your plate. And so if you are looking for an Asana resource, or a project management resource, make sure you check out Britney and connect with her because her VIP days are amazing. And she can support you with that. So let's just touch on really quick 17 hats, because I know you've been asking about it a lot lately, and how can it make our systems and our business life easier? Yeah. So I would say that, that a project management tool and a CRM tool, those are the two most crucial things, especially for solopreneurs. And I get even more like resistance with CRMs. Because they're like, No, seriously, it's just me, I don't need a CRM. But a CRM is a customer relationship manager. And it's not just for potential clients leads sales, that sort of thing. It's also for business, relationships, networking, it really is just to keep track of your relationships and everything you've talked about, right? We all have so many forms of communication now with Facebook, Instagram messages, emails, texting, like all of this stuff, and to really again, have some sort of all in one hub that you can keep track of those notes and follow up tasks. For me, I go in during my sales time, and I can just go down a list and follow up with the people I need to follow up with make notes, set new follow up tasks. So it's a place that allows me to keep track of relationships and not forget about people, because I've totally done it before. I'm sure everyone has gone into your Facebook Messenger and you scroll down and you're like, oh my gosh, I was supposed to send them something. Sometimes it's an invoice. And sometimes you forget, and you're literally leaving money on the table. So a CRM really allows you to just keep track of all of those follow ups and make sure that you're not forgetting people because the fortunes in the follow up, you've got to touch base with people. It's not a one and done thing for sales. And I actually have an example I had to follow up with a guy three times to even get on a phone call. And then once I sent a proposal, I had to follow up seven times before he closed and if I wouldn't have had a CRM, I would have totally forgot about him after probably the second time. So it's really a hub for the sales side whereas Asana is a hub for like tasks and information. And I just want to touch on something that Brittany said like how important it is, from a consumer standpoint. I had asked for a I knew how much something cost. I was like, can you send me that invoice? Can you send me that invoice, the longer it took for them to send me the invoice the more I started talking myself out of it, I was ready to pay that invoice. But after 48 hours, I was literally like I was barely in at that point. So we don't want to lose that customer because they literally are having time talking themselves out of it. When all this time goes by they're like, Okay, well, if it takes this long to send an invoice, what else is going to be behind? Like, do you not want my money? I'm trying to give it to you. So don't give them the opportunity to sit there and question the decision that they just made verbally 100%. And if you've got something like 17 hats, it has templates for proposals and invoices and contracts. So they can be sent out very quickly, as soon as you get off a sales call. And the sooner you can send that right after they've talked to you, the sooner they're going to close. Again, like you said, the more time you give them, they're like, oh, maybe I don't want to do this, maybe I'm gonna back out or oh, they're not giving it to me quick enough. So maybe the project is going to take a really long time. And it starts seeding all of this out. So as you've got to have a really clean client experience and 17 Hats allows you to do a lot of that. So I love it. I love it. So if you could only pick one thing that helped your business, what would what would it be? Like one tool that you could use in your business? What would it be? Oh, goodness, I don't even know if it's software. I think it's honestly my weekly planning routine, like on Fridays, planning out the next week and making sure that it's ready before I even jumped in is huge. I think that has honestly been the game changer because I'm being proactive instead of like rolling into Monday with no plan and then stuffs just coming at me 24/7 I think it really has allowed me to hit my goals faster. Because I'm always saying like, okay, what are the goals? What's the week need to look like? What are the goals? What does need to look like? So I would honestly say that routine has probably been the biggest game changer for me. And did we hear what she said that is a routine, which is a system, my friends, it is not necessarily Asana or this program or the software you need to buy. So having that system in place helps you also to set boundaries with yourself. And so I think that's huge. I love that I love yeah, now I do use my calendar and Asana for that routine, right? Like those are the tools that assist me with that. But it's literally just like a step by step thing that I do. And it's just it's been a huge, huge game changer. I love it. I love it. So when you work with business owners, I know you obviously work with them in different ways in different capacities, like what are some of the results that they see and things that happen in their business when they whether they're in your DIY program, or you do a VIP day. Yeah, so typically, with the hustle to flow stuff with a group coaching program, they really just see how they can go and implement these things themselves, which I think is huge. I could come in and do it for them, they're really not at that point yet to kind of invest in that. But then going in and learning the foundations and how this should work is going to help them as they start to grow as well. So a lot of it really does come down to time management and then realizing they're not managing their time well, and that that's why they're not hitting their goals. And then just the disorganization, right. So on that side of things, it's really like teaching them the foundations and really figuring out what works for them. On the VIP intensive side. I mean, I've seen clients that they had a spreadsheet, and we're not keeping track of any sales whatsoever, or any opportunities in any efficient way. And then we put a CRM in place, and they're like, Oh, we actually have like a million dollars in our pipeline, we should probably keep checking back in with those people. So the CRM being set up and being able to keep track of those people from a sales perspective. I mean, from a task perspective, doing an Asana setup, I think it really just gives people increased productivity. And they're able to actually get stuff done versus like floundering constantly. So I think it really is just the organization. But also it frees up their mind to think about things creatively. Because if you've got systems in place, you can actually think and do like all the creative stuff versus having to think about all of the like, mundane repeat stuff that should be somewhere. AKA what she's really saying is it frees up time for you to make more money because you're not having all these things hold you back. And if your CRM they say the fortunes in the follow up, right? If you're not following up with people, you're missing out on opportunities, which can really drive and help increase your bottom line. So yeah, and at least your time, right? If you're managing your time well for me, I take off or I block off every single Friday, so I can have a three day weekend. If I want I can take off an entire week to go to a mastermind I can take off a random Wednesday to go hang out with the kids like it just gives you time because you're being more proactive with your business and you're more efficient with your business that you can actually take the time off that you want. I love it. I love it. So I asked this question constantly and I have to ask you what has visibility done for your business? Oh, yes. So one gotten me completely outside of my comfort zone. I'm a behind the scenes kind of girl, I would much rather organize your asana than beyond video and talking about it to the world. So it definitely got me out of my comfort zone. But honestly, I think that I'm now known as the system's girl. And I don't think that would have been possible if I wouldn't have gotten out and done video and talk to people done podcasts, different things like that. So I think it's really allowed me to become the expert and kind of seen as the expert and also get real uncomfortable all the time. I love it. I love it. Love it. Love it. So let's talk about your you have a free community. And it's on mighty networks, correct this? Yes. Let's talk a little bit about that and why my listeners should get to choose? Yeah, for sure, for sure. So we've got the productivity pod community. And we essentially we wanted to start it because it was a community for our students in hustle to flow. And then once we kind of saw some traction with that, we kind of expanded it because I wanted to provide a free resource for people for productivity tips and different things that they may need help with, we actually do a free office hours where you can come and ask me questions, we've got a networking event and a coffee chat, so you can get to know other members. But really, we moved into mighty networks because Facebook was very distracting. Couple other reasons, just from a like productivity standpoint, and actually being intentional going into a group, I felt like Facebook was very distracting with notifications. And people would come into the group and not do anything because then they'd get distracted doing something else. So we wanted to have a separate spot for people to come and interact and network and really learn things. So we moved over to the app, and it's got its own app, which is really, really awesome. So they can access it from from anywhere. We always suggest putting it right beside Facebook so that you can see the notifications coming in. But it's been really fun seeing people just interact in there and kind of hang out. I love that not only is she teaching you to be more productive, and to be more organized, but she's also walking like she's walking the walk. And I think that's huge. I'm always immersing yourself into what you teach and teaching other people like get away from Facebook, get the distraction free zone, this is where you come when you're ready. And I love that. So so much. So good. So good. So what if there was one last thing that maybe we didn't cover? What would you want to say to my audience or one last tip that you'd like to leave them? Yeah, um, I think when people think about systems, processes, workflows, all of these different things that I do, they think it's like this one and done, where you're going to do it, you're going to set it up, and then it's going to work for you. And that's just not the case. It is an ongoing thing. I like to tell people, it's a mindset and a you have to switch into the systems thinking mindset of how can I create that as a template? How can I make that easier? How can I take out steps? And you really have to think about that, because honestly, there's times that I'll update things on a daily basis. And I'm like, You know what, it doesn't work that way, let me go fix this, or create a task to fix it later. Right. So I think people just need to think that it's this ongoing thing, because even as you start growing, you're going to change tools, eventually you're going to bring on more team members. Essentially, anything you change in your business is going to make a change in your systems and your workflows. So really, just like it's a systems mindset that you've got to get into. I love it. I love it. So, so good. So where can everyone find you on social media website, all that good stuff, for sure, for sure. Website is VCO hq.co. We've also got productivity podcast.co. So you can check out the podcast, productivity pod community.co. And then I hang out on Instagram the most and we just started tic toc two. And those are both Brittany and Co dot consulting so you can find us there. I'll make sure that we put all of these in the show notes so you guys can access them. Thank you so much, Brittany, for coming on the show talking about systems and productivity. We really had no one. Like that's really an expert in that come talk on that yet. So I think this is gonna be so vital for my listeners. So make sure you share this episode if you love it, make sure you tag Brittany, reach out to her if you need support with Asana, 17 Hats CRMs whatever because she I think is tried everything and can support you and make sure she leads you in the right direction for the tool that you need. So thank you again so much, my friend. Have an anatomy. Yes, thank you have an amazing day friends. Bye. I hope you enjoyed this episode. Feel free to share it on your favorite platform and tag me I love re sharing these and giving you a shout out as well. My goal is to always support you and help you see a transformation not only your business, but in your life. We will never outgrow our business. Remember that so we get to work on ourselves and see that transformation come through on both A personal and business side. I would love to work with you and 2023 I have loads of opportunities that will fit the pricing and the budget that you have. Let's chat. I'm truly interested in creating an unforgettable experience for you to grow, transform and see how big your business can grow in 2023