October 14, 2025 • 16 mins
Full Blog + Resources:
https://sociallyausome.com/post/episode-186-business-systems-failing
You spent 3 hours building the perfect Notion workflow. Used it for 2 days. Now it's digital dust while you're back to chaos.
Sound familiar?
The problem isn't you. It's that neurotypical business systems assume you have consistent executive function, reliable working memory, and can follow multi-step processes. ADHD brains? That's not us.
In This Episode:
✨ Why you keep abandoning every system you create
✨ The 3 limiting beliefs keeping you stuck in chaos
✨ What the business world gets wrong about systems
✨ The 5-strategy framework for lazy systems that stick
✨ How to build your "external brain" so you stop relying on memory
Key Strategies:
→ The "If This, Then That" Rule
→ Maximum Three-Step Rule
→ Build for 30% Brain Capacity
→ External Brain System
→ Lazy Automation Approach
Stop trying to maintain complex systems. Start building embarrassingly simple ones that work even when you forget they exist.
Get the systems, templates & support to build a business that works with your brain: adhdpreneuracademy.com
Instagram: @socially.ausome
Secret Podcast: bit.ly/adhdsecretpodcast
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
(00:00):
You spent three hours building the perfect workflow in Notion,
color-coded everything, created templates, set up automations.
Felt like a productivity genius.And you used it for exactly like
2 days maybe, and now it's collecting digital dust while
you're back to scrambling through a million browser tabs
and sticky notes. I get it.
I totally get it. But the problem here is that
(00:20):
most business systems are built for brains that can remember to
maintain them. And ADHD brings us.
That's just not us. We don't work like that.
You don't need more complex systems.
You need systems so simple that they work even when your brain
is at 30% capacity. And that is what we're talking
about building today. Let's dive into it.
(00:41):
Yo, yes, yo-yo, yo with the least say it right.
No cap. ADHDCEO.
Yeah, we run this track systems that slap brains built
different. We make sales in our sleep.
Yeah, the hustle's efficient. This ain't fluff.
Nah, this is strategy raw for the ADHD minds breaking.
(01:01):
Never Yo law. Hit subscribe.
You'll miss a single show. We're running non dopamine.
Let's go. Let's go, let's go.
I know you OK. I know you probably better than
you know yourself. And so I am gonna just take a
wild guess at what's happened with your business system so
far. You've tried project management
tools, Asana, Trello, click up Notion.
(01:22):
You set them up beautifully and then never open them again.
Or maybe you've created SO PS and processes that require 17
steps and three apps to completeand you followed them like once,
maybe twice. You've automated things that
didn't need automation while manually doing things that
should be automated months ago. And the worst part is that you
keep blaming yourself. Like, I just need more, more
(01:43):
disciplined. I just need to stick with it.
Other people can maintain systems, why can't I?
But here's what nobody tells you.
The problem isn't you. The problem is that neurotypical
business systems you assume willwork don't OK.
You have consistent executive dysfunction and it's very common
for ADHD entrepreneurs to not have a reliable working memory
(02:06):
and the ability to follow those multi step processes without
getting distracted is almost impossible on most days.
Our brains don't work that way. OK, we need systems that are so
simple they're almost embarrassingly basic.
Systems that work when we forgetthey even exist.
Systems that don't require us toremember how to use them.
I want to talk about the storiesyou're kind of telling yourself
(02:27):
about systems and organization, because in order for me to help
you create proper systems that you need, and that's exactly why
I built the ADHD Planer Academy,we really have to understand
those beliefs that you're telling yourself.
And look, I'm not a mindset coach, I'm not a life coach, but
I will tell you that mindset is everything in entrepreneurship.
And so you have that kind of address, those limiting beliefs
(02:48):
that you have so that you can overcome those before you create
systems. Because if you just go into
doing the actual physical work, the tactical stuff, and you
still have those old limiting beliefs following you, it's not
going to work. You're going to fall back into
the same pattern. One thing that I see very
commonly is entrepreneurs telling themselves, I'm too
disorganized. And you probably convince
(03:09):
yourself that you're just not a systems person, right?
That organized streamline business are for people whose
brains work differently than yours.
But ADHD brains actually need systems more than neurotypical
brains do. We just need different kinds of
systems. And so again, inside ADHD
Printer Academy, we really focuson building what I call dopamine
driven systems that do the work for for you instead of requiring
(03:31):
you to do the work to maintain the system.
Because it's not that you're toodisorganized for systems, you've
just been using the wrong ones. And so right now you probably
are disorganized. You probably do have a bunch of
chaos in your life. You probably feel like you
thrive in it at this point, but it's not that you can't get
organized, it's that you're doing it the wrong way.
(03:52):
Another thing that I often see is the more features equals
better systems trap. OK, so that is a belief that the
more robust and your rich a system is, the better it must
be. But that's a very common
misbelief because systems don't equal software.
So one of the most common questions I get is like, what
software's do you recommend? OK, well a software's only as
(04:14):
good as the process you put intoit.
And so you pick kind of the toolwith the most capabilities
thinking that it'll solve all your problems, but you don't
have a system or SOP. And SOP, for those of you that
don't know, stands for standard operating procedures.
I had that question a couple weeks ago and I was like, got to
turn my corporate brain off for a minute and teach that because
I would have thought everybody knew that.
(04:36):
My mistake. But you end up spending more
time trying to figure out the tool you'll actually use instead
of using it to run your actual business.
And so our ADHD brains just do better with boring, simple tools
that do one thing really well. So a Google Doc will be a fancy
project management system if youactually will use the Google Doc
better. And so I love automations.
(04:58):
That is like my entire jam, but you have to have the process
laid out step by step in order to tell the automation what to
do properly in order to tell theproject management tool what to
do properly. Another thing that I see very
often is like, I just need to try harder, right?
We beat ourselves up with this productivity hustle culture lie
that every time a system fails, you think it's a willpower
(05:19):
problem. If you just have more
discipline, you've maintained the system.
If you just tried harder, you'd remember to update it.
But systems that require consistent effort from our ADHD
brains are doomed to fail, not because we're lazy, but because
our brains literally don't have reliable access to the executive
function required to maintain something that complex.
(05:40):
And I'm not calling you down by any means, OK, I'm very smart.
I'm a very smart person. But for me, if it's so complex
I'm overwhelmed, I don't even want to do it.
OK, so This is why I actually created Focused and Free my
monthly membership so that we design systems that work with
executive dysfunction, not against IT.
Systems that assume you'll forget, assume you'll get
(06:00):
distracted because you will or disappear for a week and they
kind of keep running anyway. And so in the membership, we
focus on things like building the processes of the system.
So like, how do you create content?
What are your e-mail work? What are your follow up systems
look like? What what are you doing on a
daily basis? Your DMO?
And then in the Academy, we actually plug those into your
business and build them together.
(06:22):
But I want to really talk about what the business world teaches
us about systems that really do set us up for failure.
So does that automate everything?
Pressure. Again, I am an automation guru.
I love automation. I could talk about it all day,
but work smarter, not harder. Set it and forget it.
They really do skip that part where setting up automation
(06:44):
often requires executive function you don't have or have
on every single day. And so over automation can make
your business feel robotic and disconnected.
Not every single thing needs to be automated.
Some things work better with simple manual processes, but the
goal here isn't maximum automation, it's it's maximum
effectiveness with minimum cognitive load.
(07:04):
And so that is something that again, if you shut down every
time you try to automate everything, you need to take a
step back and really look at, OK, what do I need to automate
first? And I always recommend to my
clients to automate. What do you least likely to do
on your own right? What is the thing that really
just drains your energy? Start with that.
Another myth is document everything.
(07:24):
So business coaches really tell you to create Sops for
everything. I'm gonna tell you, you do need
a process for most things. Okay, but for me, I don't
necessarily reference it as documentation because ADHD
brains either remember how to dosomething in the moment or we
figure it out from scratch. Unfortunately, sometimes again,
but documentation only helps if it's so simple you can reference
(07:45):
it in like 30 seconds or less. So what I like to do, I love
voice memos. OK, I've got 1000 voice memos on
my phone and I actually use an app called voice Pen and that
app just like explodes my voice memos because I can do a voice
memo in voice pen. It gives me the key takeaways,
the highlights, any action itemsI gave myself.
(08:05):
And so it creates the SOP from my voice memo.
Boom, done. OK.
And then another myth or fantasy, I guess I see is that
one system to rule them all. And so there's this idea that
you need, you know, 1 central system where everything lives,
one tool that handles everything.
And there are a lot of all in ones that are amazing.
(08:26):
I personally use automate and Elevate and it does do most
things, but trying to force everything into one system
usually means it can compromise somewhere else.
And So what I mean by this is Automate and Elevate does
everything for my landing pages,my web pages, It's where I
collect all my payments, my emails, SMS, all that.
But I don't particularly love the way I plan content in it
(08:50):
because I'm a visual person. So I've had multiple people that
are like, why are you using metrical?
Why are you using Trello? And I'm like, I just don't love
the way that that functions and it doesn't work for me.
So I will always tell you that having all of your sales tasks
and sales pages and all of that and one place, yes, that is a
(09:11):
massive benefit. But sometimes the best system is
maybe 3 simple tools that do something really well rather
than one complex tool that does everything mediocrely.
And a lot of people love Automate and Elevates.
Automate and Elevate is a go high level platform.
So if you're using any kind of go high level, a lot of people
love that. Planning for the social media, I
don't love the social media partof it.
(09:32):
I don't. I think Metrical is 10 times
easier to use and I like to visually plan my content out in
Trello. So I do use additional systems,
but and I'll put links in the show notes to all of this
because most of these have some sort of free plan that you can
use to, which is an added bonus.But that breakthrough moment for
me really came when I stopped trying to build systems that
made me look professional and started building systems that
(09:55):
actually worked with my brain. You know, I tried all the fancy
project management tools and somehow I always wind back up
and like a simple Google Sheet, stop trying to automate
everything super complex and throughout anything that was
like a 17 step process and I just replaced it really simply
with do this, then do that. And then my system started to
(10:18):
stick. And once I got something to
stick, then I could build on that.
But that again, that's what I build inside the ADHD Preneur
Academy is literally embarrassingly simple systems
that actually get used instead of impressive systems that
collect dust. So I'm going to give you a
really quick framework here thatyou can use.
And this is what I would say a very simple ADHD friendly
(10:39):
business system looks like strategy #1 the if this, then
that rule. So complex systems fail because
they require you to remember multiple steps in a sequence.
And so instead of every Monday, check my project management
tool, review tasks, prioritize schedule blocks, update status,
blah, blah, blah, try this. When a client pays,
automatically send onboarding e-mail.
When someone DMS me ready, they automatically get the sales
(11:01):
link. If this, then that systems don't
require memory or executive function.
And we actually use this a lot with kids, which is crazy.
But like with a child, if you'retrying to teach them that they
can earn a reward from doing a chore.
I know my son did this a lot in therapy.
If this, then you get this right.
So try to pick one task that youdo repeatedly and turn it into
(11:22):
that automated trigger. And you can use a lot of tools
make that comms a really good one.
Or if you have an all in one like automate and elevate, a lot
of times the automation is already built in.
The next strategy I would would recommend that you plug into is
the maximum three-step rule. So any system that requires more
than three steps is probably going to fail for an ADHD brain.
So look at your current systems.How many steps are in there?
(11:43):
If there's more than three, simplify this.
OK, so for example, your contentcreation system shouldn't be
research outlined, right? Edit format, schedule, create
graphics, write captions, finalize hashtags, cross post,
write the thing, post the thing,do the thing right?
Either it gets automated, batched separately or eliminated
period. But this is the core of what we
(12:03):
teach inside focused in free membership, that ruthless
simplification until systems aretoo simple to fail.
So look at your current processes, count the steps.
If there's more than three, probably not a good idea.
Strategy #3 here is the build for 30% brain capacity.
So your system should work even at your worst, not just your
best. Because there's going to be days
(12:24):
where your brain feels like mushand when you can barely remember
to eat lunch. Your systems need to be able to
function on those days too. So this means like verbal
instructions, not just written checklist, not memory
automations that run without you, templates for everything,
visual cues and reminders. I keep like a brain dead
protocol document. I'm not even kidding.
To where like even when I'm completely fried, I know exactly
(12:46):
what to do and so I'm never stuck choosing between working
or giving up for the day. And that just helps with my
momentum and my confidence. So kind of create you a brain
dead protocol for like 1 important task.
Write it out like you're explaining it to yourself on
your very worst day. Strategy #4 is the external
brain system. So ADHD brains have terrible
(13:07):
working memory. So stop trying to remember
things, OK? It's just not going to work.
You know it's not going to work.OK, build that external memory
instead. So it's not about fancy tools,
it's about having one place where everything lives that you
don't have to remember to check because it reminds you.
So it could be a combination of like Google Calendar and a
Google Doc tool, Doesn't matter.What matters is it's simple
(13:28):
enough. You actually use it inclusively.
And so build this somewhere thatyou will check every day and it
will give you reminders. Trello is another really good
option for this. And then strategy #5 OK,
automation should make your lifeeasier.
So try the lazy automation approach.
If setting up automation tasks takes more effort than just
(13:49):
doing the damn task, skip it. Start with simple automations
like auto responders or e-mail templates.
Save reply scheduling tools. Then build on that.
Don't get into the complex workflows with like Zapier and
multiple apps until you're supercomfortable and you're like
nerdy about it like me. So try setting up one stupid
simple automation. Just pre schedule your content
(14:10):
for the week. Boom, done.
So I'm going to give you a few quick implementation strategies
and we're going to call it a day.
So for client management, try simple spreadsheets.
I also love Trello. And then, of course, I love
automating LD. So try 3 columns waiting,
active, complete or lead purchased.
You know customer. For content systems, create one
(14:32):
batch template and reuse it overand over and over.
Stop trying to reinvent your content system every week.
For financial tracking, go find a financial person.
I'm not your best. I use QuickBooks.
Boom done. My CPA said that's what I
needed. And then for task management,
keep some sort of living management system.
So I do love click up, but also Google Docs or Notion and then
(14:54):
delete the task when they're done.
But if I were you, I would definitely get on the wait list
for flow first, thinking my bookcoming out later this year
because I'll be really diving into a lot of these specific
frameworks. And then of course, I teach
these inside ADHD Printer Academy.
So the secret isn't finding the perfect tool or building the
perfect process. It is building systems so simple
(15:14):
they work even when you forget they exist.
So stop trying to maintain complex systems and start
building lazy ones that maintainthemselves.
A simple system you'll actually use beats the perfect system
that stays in your head. So before you go, I want you to
pick one system you're going to simplify this week.
Just one. And if this episode gave you
permission to simplify, I want you to share it with another
(15:34):
ADHD entrepreneur who's drowningin over complicated systems.
And of course, if you're ready to build systems that actually
stick, I want you to join us inside ADHD issue from our
Academy where we build lazy systems together, Dopamine
driven systems. Your business isn't need
perfect, OK, It needs systems that work with your brain.
So make sure you check the show notes for links to everything
(15:55):
that I recommended For more information that will help you
execution wise. And as always, if you got any
value out of this episode at all, please leave us a review.
It is the absolute best compliment you can give.
And until next time, make it simple, make it social, make it
awesome.
You spent three hours building the perfect workflow in Notion,
color-coded everything, created templates, set up automations.
Felt like a productivity genius.And you used it for exactly like
2 days maybe, and now it's collecting digital dust while
you're back to scrambling through a million browser tabs
and sticky notes. I get it.
I totally get it. But the problem here is that
(00:20):
most business systems are built for brains that can remember to
maintain them. And ADHD brings us.
That's just not us. We don't work like that.
You don't need more complex systems.
You need systems so simple that they work even when your brain
is at 30% capacity. And that is what we're talking
about building today. Let's dive into it.
(00:41):
Yo, yes, yo-yo, yo with the least say it right.
No cap. ADHDCEO.
Yeah, we run this track systems that slap brains built
different. We make sales in our sleep.
Yeah, the hustle's efficient. This ain't fluff.
Nah, this is strategy raw for the ADHD minds breaking.
(01:01):
Never Yo law. Hit subscribe.
You'll miss a single show. We're running non dopamine.
Let's go. Let's go, let's go.
I know you OK. I know you probably better than
you know yourself. And so I am gonna just take a
wild guess at what's happened with your business system so
far. You've tried project management
tools, Asana, Trello, click up Notion.
(01:22):
You set them up beautifully and then never open them again.
Or maybe you've created SO PS and processes that require 17
steps and three apps to completeand you followed them like once,
maybe twice. You've automated things that
didn't need automation while manually doing things that
should be automated months ago. And the worst part is that you
keep blaming yourself. Like, I just need more, more
(01:43):
disciplined. I just need to stick with it.
Other people can maintain systems, why can't I?
But here's what nobody tells you.
The problem isn't you. The problem is that neurotypical
business systems you assume willwork don't OK.
You have consistent executive dysfunction and it's very common
for ADHD entrepreneurs to not have a reliable working memory
(02:06):
and the ability to follow those multi step processes without
getting distracted is almost impossible on most days.
Our brains don't work that way. OK, we need systems that are so
simple they're almost embarrassingly basic.
Systems that work when we forgetthey even exist.
Systems that don't require us toremember how to use them.
I want to talk about the storiesyou're kind of telling yourself
(02:27):
about systems and organization, because in order for me to help
you create proper systems that you need, and that's exactly why
I built the ADHD Planer Academy,we really have to understand
those beliefs that you're telling yourself.
And look, I'm not a mindset coach, I'm not a life coach, but
I will tell you that mindset is everything in entrepreneurship.
And so you have that kind of address, those limiting beliefs
(02:48):
that you have so that you can overcome those before you create
systems. Because if you just go into
doing the actual physical work, the tactical stuff, and you
still have those old limiting beliefs following you, it's not
going to work. You're going to fall back into
the same pattern. One thing that I see very
commonly is entrepreneurs telling themselves, I'm too
disorganized. And you probably convince
(03:09):
yourself that you're just not a systems person, right?
That organized streamline business are for people whose
brains work differently than yours.
But ADHD brains actually need systems more than neurotypical
brains do. We just need different kinds of
systems. And so again, inside ADHD
Printer Academy, we really focuson building what I call dopamine
driven systems that do the work for for you instead of requiring
(03:31):
you to do the work to maintain the system.
Because it's not that you're toodisorganized for systems, you've
just been using the wrong ones. And so right now you probably
are disorganized. You probably do have a bunch of
chaos in your life. You probably feel like you
thrive in it at this point, but it's not that you can't get
organized, it's that you're doing it the wrong way.
(03:52):
Another thing that I often see is the more features equals
better systems trap. OK, so that is a belief that the
more robust and your rich a system is, the better it must
be. But that's a very common
misbelief because systems don't equal software.
So one of the most common questions I get is like, what
software's do you recommend? OK, well a software's only as
(04:14):
good as the process you put intoit.
And so you pick kind of the toolwith the most capabilities
thinking that it'll solve all your problems, but you don't
have a system or SOP. And SOP, for those of you that
don't know, stands for standard operating procedures.
I had that question a couple weeks ago and I was like, got to
turn my corporate brain off for a minute and teach that because
I would have thought everybody knew that.
(04:36):
My mistake. But you end up spending more
time trying to figure out the tool you'll actually use instead
of using it to run your actual business.
And so our ADHD brains just do better with boring, simple tools
that do one thing really well. So a Google Doc will be a fancy
project management system if youactually will use the Google Doc
better. And so I love automations.
(04:58):
That is like my entire jam, but you have to have the process
laid out step by step in order to tell the automation what to
do properly in order to tell theproject management tool what to
do properly. Another thing that I see very
often is like, I just need to try harder, right?
We beat ourselves up with this productivity hustle culture lie
that every time a system fails, you think it's a willpower
(05:19):
problem. If you just have more
discipline, you've maintained the system.
If you just tried harder, you'd remember to update it.
But systems that require consistent effort from our ADHD
brains are doomed to fail, not because we're lazy, but because
our brains literally don't have reliable access to the executive
function required to maintain something that complex.
(05:40):
And I'm not calling you down by any means, OK, I'm very smart.
I'm a very smart person. But for me, if it's so complex
I'm overwhelmed, I don't even want to do it.
OK, so This is why I actually created Focused and Free my
monthly membership so that we design systems that work with
executive dysfunction, not against IT.
Systems that assume you'll forget, assume you'll get
(06:00):
distracted because you will or disappear for a week and they
kind of keep running anyway. And so in the membership, we
focus on things like building the processes of the system.
So like, how do you create content?
What are your e-mail work? What are your follow up systems
look like? What what are you doing on a
daily basis? Your DMO?
And then in the Academy, we actually plug those into your
business and build them together.
(06:22):
But I want to really talk about what the business world teaches
us about systems that really do set us up for failure.
So does that automate everything?
Pressure. Again, I am an automation guru.
I love automation. I could talk about it all day,
but work smarter, not harder. Set it and forget it.
They really do skip that part where setting up automation
(06:44):
often requires executive function you don't have or have
on every single day. And so over automation can make
your business feel robotic and disconnected.
Not every single thing needs to be automated.
Some things work better with simple manual processes, but the
goal here isn't maximum automation, it's it's maximum
effectiveness with minimum cognitive load.
(07:04):
And so that is something that again, if you shut down every
time you try to automate everything, you need to take a
step back and really look at, OK, what do I need to automate
first? And I always recommend to my
clients to automate. What do you least likely to do
on your own right? What is the thing that really
just drains your energy? Start with that.
Another myth is document everything.
(07:24):
So business coaches really tell you to create Sops for
everything. I'm gonna tell you, you do need
a process for most things. Okay, but for me, I don't
necessarily reference it as documentation because ADHD
brains either remember how to dosomething in the moment or we
figure it out from scratch. Unfortunately, sometimes again,
but documentation only helps if it's so simple you can reference
(07:45):
it in like 30 seconds or less. So what I like to do, I love
voice memos. OK, I've got 1000 voice memos on
my phone and I actually use an app called voice Pen and that
app just like explodes my voice memos because I can do a voice
memo in voice pen. It gives me the key takeaways,
the highlights, any action itemsI gave myself.
(08:05):
And so it creates the SOP from my voice memo.
Boom, done. OK.
And then another myth or fantasy, I guess I see is that
one system to rule them all. And so there's this idea that
you need, you know, 1 central system where everything lives,
one tool that handles everything.
And there are a lot of all in ones that are amazing.
(08:26):
I personally use automate and Elevate and it does do most
things, but trying to force everything into one system
usually means it can compromise somewhere else.
And So what I mean by this is Automate and Elevate does
everything for my landing pages,my web pages, It's where I
collect all my payments, my emails, SMS, all that.
But I don't particularly love the way I plan content in it
(08:50):
because I'm a visual person. So I've had multiple people that
are like, why are you using metrical?
Why are you using Trello? And I'm like, I just don't love
the way that that functions and it doesn't work for me.
So I will always tell you that having all of your sales tasks
and sales pages and all of that and one place, yes, that is a
(09:11):
massive benefit. But sometimes the best system is
maybe 3 simple tools that do something really well rather
than one complex tool that does everything mediocrely.
And a lot of people love Automate and Elevates.
Automate and Elevate is a go high level platform.
So if you're using any kind of go high level, a lot of people
love that. Planning for the social media, I
don't love the social media partof it.
(09:32):
I don't. I think Metrical is 10 times
easier to use and I like to visually plan my content out in
Trello. So I do use additional systems,
but and I'll put links in the show notes to all of this
because most of these have some sort of free plan that you can
use to, which is an added bonus.But that breakthrough moment for
me really came when I stopped trying to build systems that
made me look professional and started building systems that
(09:55):
actually worked with my brain. You know, I tried all the fancy
project management tools and somehow I always wind back up
and like a simple Google Sheet, stop trying to automate
everything super complex and throughout anything that was
like a 17 step process and I just replaced it really simply
with do this, then do that. And then my system started to
(10:18):
stick. And once I got something to
stick, then I could build on that.
But that again, that's what I build inside the ADHD Preneur
Academy is literally embarrassingly simple systems
that actually get used instead of impressive systems that
collect dust. So I'm going to give you a
really quick framework here thatyou can use.
And this is what I would say a very simple ADHD friendly
(10:39):
business system looks like strategy #1 the if this, then
that rule. So complex systems fail because
they require you to remember multiple steps in a sequence.
And so instead of every Monday, check my project management
tool, review tasks, prioritize schedule blocks, update status,
blah, blah, blah, try this. When a client pays,
automatically send onboarding e-mail.
When someone DMS me ready, they automatically get the sales
(11:01):
link. If this, then that systems don't
require memory or executive function.
And we actually use this a lot with kids, which is crazy.
But like with a child, if you'retrying to teach them that they
can earn a reward from doing a chore.
I know my son did this a lot in therapy.
If this, then you get this right.
So try to pick one task that youdo repeatedly and turn it into
(11:22):
that automated trigger. And you can use a lot of tools
make that comms a really good one.
Or if you have an all in one like automate and elevate, a lot
of times the automation is already built in.
The next strategy I would would recommend that you plug into is
the maximum three-step rule. So any system that requires more
than three steps is probably going to fail for an ADHD brain.
So look at your current systems.How many steps are in there?
(11:43):
If there's more than three, simplify this.
OK, so for example, your contentcreation system shouldn't be
research outlined, right? Edit format, schedule, create
graphics, write captions, finalize hashtags, cross post,
write the thing, post the thing,do the thing right?
Either it gets automated, batched separately or eliminated
period. But this is the core of what we
(12:03):
teach inside focused in free membership, that ruthless
simplification until systems aretoo simple to fail.
So look at your current processes, count the steps.
If there's more than three, probably not a good idea.
Strategy #3 here is the build for 30% brain capacity.
So your system should work even at your worst, not just your
best. Because there's going to be days
(12:24):
where your brain feels like mushand when you can barely remember
to eat lunch. Your systems need to be able to
function on those days too. So this means like verbal
instructions, not just written checklist, not memory
automations that run without you, templates for everything,
visual cues and reminders. I keep like a brain dead
protocol document. I'm not even kidding.
To where like even when I'm completely fried, I know exactly
(12:46):
what to do and so I'm never stuck choosing between working
or giving up for the day. And that just helps with my
momentum and my confidence. So kind of create you a brain
dead protocol for like 1 important task.
Write it out like you're explaining it to yourself on
your very worst day. Strategy #4 is the external
brain system. So ADHD brains have terrible
(13:07):
working memory. So stop trying to remember
things, OK? It's just not going to work.
You know it's not going to work.OK, build that external memory
instead. So it's not about fancy tools,
it's about having one place where everything lives that you
don't have to remember to check because it reminds you.
So it could be a combination of like Google Calendar and a
Google Doc tool, Doesn't matter.What matters is it's simple
(13:28):
enough. You actually use it inclusively.
And so build this somewhere thatyou will check every day and it
will give you reminders. Trello is another really good
option for this. And then strategy #5 OK,
automation should make your lifeeasier.
So try the lazy automation approach.
If setting up automation tasks takes more effort than just
(13:49):
doing the damn task, skip it. Start with simple automations
like auto responders or e-mail templates.
Save reply scheduling tools. Then build on that.
Don't get into the complex workflows with like Zapier and
multiple apps until you're supercomfortable and you're like
nerdy about it like me. So try setting up one stupid
simple automation. Just pre schedule your content
(14:10):
for the week. Boom, done.
So I'm going to give you a few quick implementation strategies
and we're going to call it a day.
So for client management, try simple spreadsheets.
I also love Trello. And then, of course, I love
automating LD. So try 3 columns waiting,
active, complete or lead purchased.
You know customer. For content systems, create one
(14:32):
batch template and reuse it overand over and over.
Stop trying to reinvent your content system every week.
For financial tracking, go find a financial person.
I'm not your best. I use QuickBooks.
Boom done. My CPA said that's what I
needed. And then for task management,
keep some sort of living management system.
So I do love click up, but also Google Docs or Notion and then
(14:54):
delete the task when they're done.
But if I were you, I would definitely get on the wait list
for flow first, thinking my bookcoming out later this year
because I'll be really diving into a lot of these specific
frameworks. And then of course, I teach
these inside ADHD Printer Academy.
So the secret isn't finding the perfect tool or building the
perfect process. It is building systems so simple
(15:14):
they work even when you forget they exist.
So stop trying to maintain complex systems and start
building lazy ones that maintainthemselves.
A simple system you'll actually use beats the perfect system
that stays in your head. So before you go, I want you to
pick one system you're going to simplify this week.
Just one. And if this episode gave you
permission to simplify, I want you to share it with another
(15:34):
ADHD entrepreneur who's drowningin over complicated systems.
And of course, if you're ready to build systems that actually
stick, I want you to join us inside ADHD issue from our
Academy where we build lazy systems together, Dopamine
driven systems. Your business isn't need
perfect, OK, It needs systems that work with your brain.
So make sure you check the show notes for links to everything
(15:55):
that I recommended For more information that will help you
execution wise. And as always, if you got any
value out of this episode at all, please leave us a review.
It is the absolute best compliment you can give.
And until next time, make it simple, make it social, make it
awesome.
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