February 6, 2025 • 12 mins
When unforeseen challenges strike—like losing your laptop and being out sick for a week—your business systems are put to the ultimate test. In this episode, we explore how our tried-and-true processes kept the wheels turning during a tough time. We also share actionable strategies for delegating tasks and creating systems that empower your team to step in seamlessly. Tune in for candid insights on fine-tuning your processes, ensuring your business not only withstands setbacks but flourishes through them.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:01):
Welcome to CFO Chronicles the secrets behind
success, the go-to podcast forfractional CFOs and accounting
firm owners who want to attractmore high-paying clients and
increase their revenue.
Hosted by James Donovan fromNine Two Media, this podcast
dives into marketing strategiesspecifically designed for lead
(00:22):
generation and clientacquisition.
In each episode, you'll hearfrom industry leaders sharing
their success stories, and Iwant to take the time to speak
about some of the things thatI've been doing in the to your
bottom line.
Speaker 2 (00:51):
I want to take the time to speak about systems and
processes and why they're soimportant for growing a business
and why they're so important toget you out of the business.
Last week I was reminded howhow awesome my team is and how
blessed I am to have the teammembers that I do, and just how
(01:13):
solid some of our systems andprocesses are.
Before getting into what someof those systems and processes
look like, I'll just take thetime to discuss how I got here
in this podcast to reflect onthis and why I want to have an
episode on this.
Last week was a challenge of aweek, to say the least.
(01:36):
I went to bed Sunday nightsending an email to a client,
getting ready for Monday morningthought everything was going to
be great, before getting readyto spend one final week in Playa
del Carmen before going toColombia for a week and then
Mexico City for a week onvacation and then continuing to
(01:58):
work remote from there.
However, when I woke up Mondaymorning, I went to go turn on my
MacBook and there was no power,so a bit of a curveball.
Monday morning I had to runaround town trying to find a new
charger, which was no luck, metup with a couple of friends who
had chargers.
No luck with those onesEventually had to go all the way
(02:21):
out to the Apple store.
Had to go all the way out tothe Apple store, which I then
realized, after diagnosing andspeaking with the workers at
Apple, that the computer wasfried in a power surge.
So this is about Mondayafternoon, now 2 pm, so not in
basically, majority of Monday.
Let the team know hey, I'm notgoing to be around, my laptop's
(02:44):
broken, so that's Monday.
And then figure out all right,there's going to be no laptop
for the week.
So you know, a bit of panicsets in.
What am I going to do?
So I let the team know hey,look, I'm not going to be around
.
I need to try to figure out alaptop situation so that I can
work.
(03:07):
Thankfully, again, I have anamazing team in place who was
able to take on everything andmake sure our clients are looked
after, the fulfillment, thedeliverables are being met and
we're still moving the ball downthe field.
What also was a reminder of thesolid systems we have in place
and why they're so important andwhat systems were highlighted
that need to be optimized.
(03:27):
I was, to make matters worse,extremely sick all week.
So not only was I unable towork from a laptop and
potentially just do a lot ofthings from my phone, I was
actually bedridden for thebetter part of the week only
taking Zoom meetings from myphone.
So the great piece about thisand the reflection that I had
(03:51):
last week was we have so manysystems that have been put in
place over the last couple ofyears that have allowed me to
step away for the week andthings are going to run awesome
and it was a great reminderagain with the team that's in
place.
But we have really solidsystems that, as long as they
(04:12):
stay up to date, people can comeand go and the business, the
work itself, will still get done, and I really want to emphasize
that because we're stilllearning, we're still growing.
There's systems that werehighlighted of my week being out
that, okay, we need to getthese fixed so that the next
(04:34):
time this happens things run alittle bit smoother.
But there was a lot of things Iwas extremely impressed with
that ran for the week I was goneand having no laptop.
I think something that a lot ofbusiness owners can take from
this is, whatever tasks you'redoing, that you think, hey, I'm
(04:57):
the only one that can do this.
You're holding on.
You're not delegating it.
Test out your team members.
They're there for a reason.
If you don't trust your team,why are they even there?
To begin with, record what it isyou're doing Screen share
yourself working on Zoom.
Use that as a document.
(05:20):
Take the time, the thing you'redoing that you think nobody
else can do or that you findyourself consistently doing, day
after day after day.
Take the time to recordyourself on Zoom doing it.
Open up a Google Doc and typeout the steps as you work
through that doc, going throughit, so that now you have a
(05:40):
repeatable process to pass offto one of your team members.
When you have that, walkthrough that with a team member,
show them what it is you'redoing.
Then the next time you watchthem go through it, and then the
third time, they do it on theirown with the SOP that you've
made, and if they have anyquestions they come back to you,
but they refer to that document.
(06:02):
As long as that document staysup to date, you can step away.
You don't need to do that taskanymore.
You have a repeatable process.
Your quality assurance is builtin, because you shouldn't be
moving on to the next step inthat process unless the step
(06:22):
above has been completed.
And when you have those inplace and you have solid team
members who you trust, it makesthe situations where when your
laptop breaks and you're in aremote country or you're sick
all week and you can't get in,there's significantly less
stress because you know theright things are going to get
(06:45):
done, because you have the rightprocesses there.
A lot of businesses run intobottlenecks and they can't get
past that hump or it goes intofull panic mode.
When the owner's out, it'sbecause there's no trusted team
members there, there's nosystems that are documented,
(07:08):
there's no processes to rely onso that that job can be done.
I'm sure if you think, what doyou do in the run of a day?
There's multiple tasks that youthink your team members can't
do, and I want to challenge youto record those processes and
(07:31):
pass them off to your team, andchallenge your team to do them,
to come back and say I did that.
I also want to take on somethingelse.
What else can I take off ofyour plate?
That is how you're going to getout of that feeling of
overwhelm and maybe you're doinga lot of the in the business
tasks on a daily basis.
Document what you do, walkthrough the process with a team
(07:56):
member, hand that over to themwith full ownership of that new
task, and then you can step awayfrom that and you're there to
support and answer the questions.
But if you continue to just dothe work without recording
yourself doing it, withoutbuilding that SOP, you're
(08:17):
forever going to be stuck in theday-to-day.
You're forever going to bestuck doing that task.
I've learned this the hard way.
I've also experienced this onthe other side of the coin by
being able to take two weeks offfrom the business and
everything still runs smooth.
Unfortunately, having my laptopbreak and being sick for a week
business and everything stillruns smooth.
Unfortunately, having my laptopbreak and being sick for a week
(08:38):
, but everything still runs andit's incredible how strong your
business is.
With the right systems in place, you don't need a lot of team
members to make great thingshappen.
So that's the message I reallywanted to focus on today as I
was going through this last weekSystems, systems, systems,
(08:59):
processes, processes, processes.
The nice thing about all ofthis is we are also blessed with
being able to identify wheresome of our gaps in our systems
are when is some of the techthat's breaking in the
automations?
What's not working?
There's a great book I read acouple of years ago called the
(09:22):
Two Week Vacation Test.
I strongly encourage anyentrepreneur to read this book.
It allows you to set up yourbusiness so that you are working
towards being able to take twoweeks off from the business and
everything's going to runwithout you.
Not to get into the whole book,but you don't start right away
(09:44):
by just disappearing for twoweeks.
You can start by taking a nightoff.
You can do that throughout theweek and then you take your
weekend off and then from thereyou work up to maybe a long
weekend and et cetera, et cetera.
But as you're going through this, the time that you're taking
off, also be checking in withyour team to see, hey, what
worked when I was gone, whatdidn't work, what did you need
(10:08):
me for?
And whatever worked awesome,cool.
Those are the systems that youknow are working and you just
double check them to make sureeverything's happening correctly
.
And what didn't work, build aprocess around it.
And the more of those processesyou get built, the more and
more you can start stepping awayfrom the business or stepping
(10:28):
in the direction of focusing onthose higher leverage tasks.
So I hope this is helpful.
I hope there's some insightsthat anyone listening can take
away from this, from my pastweek of not having a laptop and
being sick and taking Zoom callsfrom my cell phone.
It's all about your systems.
(10:48):
Document your process, pass itoff to your team, walk through
with them so they understand,have that transfer of ownership
and watch your business grow.
It's truly remarkable what canhappen when you're able to step
away and start focusing on thosehigher leverage tasks.
If you find yourself beingstressed on a day-to-day basis,
(11:09):
record your processes so you canpass it off to your team and
you can get more done in the runof a day.
I hope this was helpful.
Thanks for tuning into thisepisode of CFO Chronicles the
secrets behind success.
I hope you found value intoday's conversation.
As we wrap up, I'd love for youto do two things.
First, make sure to subscribeto this podcast so you don't
(11:29):
miss any future episodes.
If you enjoyed today'sdiscussion, please rate and
review the show.
It helps others discover theinsights we share here.
Second, if you're ready to takeyour business to the next level
and attract the high-endclients you deserve.
Head over toaccountingleadsnowcom or click
the link in the show notes tobook your strategy.
Call it's time to positionyourself as the advisor your
(11:50):
clients need.
And don't forget you canconnect with me on LinkedIn to
stay up to date on what'shappening in the world of
accounting and financial growth.
We've got more exciting topicscoming up, so stay tuned for the
next episode of CFO Chronicles.
Until then, keep pushingforward.
Your growth is just onestrategic move away.
Speaker 1 (12:19):
Thanks for listening to CFO Chronicles, the secrets
behind success.
Your growth is just onestrategic move away.
And leave a review or commentto join the conversation.
Your feedback helps us bringyou the best insights in finance
and marketing.
Until next time, keep strivingfor success and unlocking your
business's potential.
Welcome to CFO Chronicles the secrets behind
success, the go-to podcast forfractional CFOs and accounting
firm owners who want to attractmore high-paying clients and
increase their revenue.
Hosted by James Donovan fromNine Two Media, this podcast
dives into marketing strategiesspecifically designed for lead
(00:22):
generation and clientacquisition.
In each episode, you'll hearfrom industry leaders sharing
their success stories, and Iwant to take the time to speak
about some of the things thatI've been doing in the to your
bottom line.
Speaker 2 (00:51):
I want to take the time to speak about systems and
processes and why they're soimportant for growing a business
and why they're so important toget you out of the business.
Last week I was reminded howhow awesome my team is and how
blessed I am to have the teammembers that I do, and just how
(01:13):
solid some of our systems andprocesses are.
Before getting into what someof those systems and processes
look like, I'll just take thetime to discuss how I got here
in this podcast to reflect onthis and why I want to have an
episode on this.
Last week was a challenge of aweek, to say the least.
(01:36):
I went to bed Sunday nightsending an email to a client,
getting ready for Monday morningthought everything was going to
be great, before getting readyto spend one final week in Playa
del Carmen before going toColombia for a week and then
Mexico City for a week onvacation and then continuing to
(01:58):
work remote from there.
However, when I woke up Mondaymorning, I went to go turn on my
MacBook and there was no power,so a bit of a curveball.
Monday morning I had to runaround town trying to find a new
charger, which was no luck, metup with a couple of friends who
had chargers.
No luck with those onesEventually had to go all the way
(02:21):
out to the Apple store.
Had to go all the way out tothe Apple store, which I then
realized, after diagnosing andspeaking with the workers at
Apple, that the computer wasfried in a power surge.
So this is about Mondayafternoon, now 2 pm, so not in
basically, majority of Monday.
Let the team know hey, I'm notgoing to be around, my laptop's
(02:44):
broken, so that's Monday.
And then figure out all right,there's going to be no laptop
for the week.
So you know, a bit of panicsets in.
What am I going to do?
So I let the team know hey,look, I'm not going to be around
.
I need to try to figure out alaptop situation so that I can
work.
(03:07):
Thankfully, again, I have anamazing team in place who was
able to take on everything andmake sure our clients are looked
after, the fulfillment, thedeliverables are being met and
we're still moving the ball downthe field.
What also was a reminder of thesolid systems we have in place
and why they're so important andwhat systems were highlighted
that need to be optimized.
(03:27):
I was, to make matters worse,extremely sick all week.
So not only was I unable towork from a laptop and
potentially just do a lot ofthings from my phone, I was
actually bedridden for thebetter part of the week only
taking Zoom meetings from myphone.
So the great piece about thisand the reflection that I had
(03:51):
last week was we have so manysystems that have been put in
place over the last couple ofyears that have allowed me to
step away for the week andthings are going to run awesome
and it was a great reminderagain with the team that's in
place.
But we have really solidsystems that, as long as they
(04:12):
stay up to date, people can comeand go and the business, the
work itself, will still get done, and I really want to emphasize
that because we're stilllearning, we're still growing.
There's systems that werehighlighted of my week being out
that, okay, we need to getthese fixed so that the next
(04:34):
time this happens things run alittle bit smoother.
But there was a lot of things Iwas extremely impressed with
that ran for the week I was goneand having no laptop.
I think something that a lot ofbusiness owners can take from
this is, whatever tasks you'redoing, that you think, hey, I'm
(04:57):
the only one that can do this.
You're holding on.
You're not delegating it.
Test out your team members.
They're there for a reason.
If you don't trust your team,why are they even there?
To begin with, record what it isyou're doing Screen share
yourself working on Zoom.
Use that as a document.
(05:20):
Take the time, the thing you'redoing that you think nobody
else can do or that you findyourself consistently doing, day
after day after day.
Take the time to recordyourself on Zoom doing it.
Open up a Google Doc and typeout the steps as you work
through that doc, going throughit, so that now you have a
(05:40):
repeatable process to pass offto one of your team members.
When you have that, walkthrough that with a team member,
show them what it is you'redoing.
Then the next time you watchthem go through it, and then the
third time, they do it on theirown with the SOP that you've
made, and if they have anyquestions they come back to you,
but they refer to that document.
(06:02):
As long as that document staysup to date, you can step away.
You don't need to do that taskanymore.
You have a repeatable process.
Your quality assurance is builtin, because you shouldn't be
moving on to the next step inthat process unless the step
(06:22):
above has been completed.
And when you have those inplace and you have solid team
members who you trust, it makesthe situations where when your
laptop breaks and you're in aremote country or you're sick
all week and you can't get in,there's significantly less
stress because you know theright things are going to get
(06:45):
done, because you have the rightprocesses there.
A lot of businesses run intobottlenecks and they can't get
past that hump or it goes intofull panic mode.
When the owner's out, it'sbecause there's no trusted team
members there, there's nosystems that are documented,
(07:08):
there's no processes to rely onso that that job can be done.
I'm sure if you think, what doyou do in the run of a day?
There's multiple tasks that youthink your team members can't
do, and I want to challenge youto record those processes and
(07:31):
pass them off to your team, andchallenge your team to do them,
to come back and say I did that.
I also want to take on somethingelse.
What else can I take off ofyour plate?
That is how you're going to getout of that feeling of
overwhelm and maybe you're doinga lot of the in the business
tasks on a daily basis.
Document what you do, walkthrough the process with a team
(07:56):
member, hand that over to themwith full ownership of that new
task, and then you can step awayfrom that and you're there to
support and answer the questions.
But if you continue to just dothe work without recording
yourself doing it, withoutbuilding that SOP, you're
(08:17):
forever going to be stuck in theday-to-day.
You're forever going to bestuck doing that task.
I've learned this the hard way.
I've also experienced this onthe other side of the coin by
being able to take two weeks offfrom the business and
everything still runs smooth.
Unfortunately, having my laptopbreak and being sick for a week
business and everything stillruns smooth.
Unfortunately, having my laptopbreak and being sick for a week
(08:38):
, but everything still runs andit's incredible how strong your
business is.
With the right systems in place, you don't need a lot of team
members to make great thingshappen.
So that's the message I reallywanted to focus on today as I
was going through this last weekSystems, systems, systems,
(08:59):
processes, processes, processes.
The nice thing about all ofthis is we are also blessed with
being able to identify wheresome of our gaps in our systems
are when is some of the techthat's breaking in the
automations?
What's not working?
There's a great book I read acouple of years ago called the
(09:22):
Two Week Vacation Test.
I strongly encourage anyentrepreneur to read this book.
It allows you to set up yourbusiness so that you are working
towards being able to take twoweeks off from the business and
everything's going to runwithout you.
Not to get into the whole book,but you don't start right away
(09:44):
by just disappearing for twoweeks.
You can start by taking a nightoff.
You can do that throughout theweek and then you take your
weekend off and then from thereyou work up to maybe a long
weekend and et cetera, et cetera.
But as you're going through this, the time that you're taking
off, also be checking in withyour team to see, hey, what
worked when I was gone, whatdidn't work, what did you need
(10:08):
me for?
And whatever worked awesome,cool.
Those are the systems that youknow are working and you just
double check them to make sureeverything's happening correctly
.
And what didn't work, build aprocess around it.
And the more of those processesyou get built, the more and
more you can start stepping awayfrom the business or stepping
(10:28):
in the direction of focusing onthose higher leverage tasks.
So I hope this is helpful.
I hope there's some insightsthat anyone listening can take
away from this, from my pastweek of not having a laptop and
being sick and taking Zoom callsfrom my cell phone.
It's all about your systems.
(10:48):
Document your process, pass itoff to your team, walk through
with them so they understand,have that transfer of ownership
and watch your business grow.
It's truly remarkable what canhappen when you're able to step
away and start focusing on thosehigher leverage tasks.
If you find yourself beingstressed on a day-to-day basis,
(11:09):
record your processes so you canpass it off to your team and
you can get more done in the runof a day.
I hope this was helpful.
Thanks for tuning into thisepisode of CFO Chronicles the
secrets behind success.
I hope you found value intoday's conversation.
As we wrap up, I'd love for youto do two things.
First, make sure to subscribeto this podcast so you don't
(11:29):
miss any future episodes.
If you enjoyed today'sdiscussion, please rate and
review the show.
It helps others discover theinsights we share here.
Second, if you're ready to takeyour business to the next level
and attract the high-endclients you deserve.
Head over toaccountingleadsnowcom or click
the link in the show notes tobook your strategy.
Call it's time to positionyourself as the advisor your
(11:50):
clients need.
And don't forget you canconnect with me on LinkedIn to
stay up to date on what'shappening in the world of
accounting and financial growth.
We've got more exciting topicscoming up, so stay tuned for the
next episode of CFO Chronicles.
Until then, keep pushingforward.
Your growth is just onestrategic move away.
Speaker 1 (12:19):
Thanks for listening to CFO Chronicles, the secrets
behind success.
Your growth is just onestrategic move away.
And leave a review or commentto join the conversation.
Your feedback helps us bringyou the best insights in finance
and marketing.
Until next time, keep strivingfor success and unlocking your
business's potential.
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