Systems Reset Series: From Scrambling to Strategic — Your Next Step as a Consultant

What if the real reason you’re exhausted isn’t because you need more clients or more hours?

In this final episode of the Systems Reset Series, we pull everything together to help you take the next step to go from scrambling to strategic. We talk about why being great at what you do isn’t enough and how building strategic systems can turn constant chaos into calm. 

If you’ve been nodding along through this series, this episode is the bridge between awareness and action. This is the moment where everything you’ve learned comes together and you see exactly what it looks like to lead with structure and confidence.

Through real insights and clips from my conversation with Emani, you’ll see what happens when you finally stop reacting and start leading with clarity. 

Some of the things we discuss today:

01:24 – The real reason your skills alone can’t sustain growth and what it takes to move from scrambling to strategic.

03:28 – How Emani’s story of burnout shows that talent without systems leads to chaos and what she did to turn it around.

05:29 – Why onboarding isn’t just paperwork but your first act of leadership, and how a simple structure can change your entire client experience.

08:15 – The calendar and boundary reset every consultant needs to protect energy, prevent burnout, and reclaim control of their time.

12:01 – How to take your next step toward building strategic systems for consultants that create freedom, confidence, and a business that runs smoothly behind the scenes.

Related Episodes Mentioned:

EP 218 - Systems Reset Series: Being Great at What You Do Isn’t Enough (And That’s Not Your Fault)

EP 219 - Systems Reset Series: Your Client Onboarding Shouldn’t Be a Guessing Game

EP 220 - Systems Reset Series: Why a Messy Calendar Costs You More Than Time

Resources Mentioned:

⏰ Ready to see where your time is really slipping away?

The Boundary Reset Scorecard is a quick, fillable Google Doc you can complete online in under two minutes. It helps you spot the gaps in your boundaries ,from unclear office hours to unsynced calendars so you know exactly where your time is leaking and what to fix first.

🔧 Ready to turn those ❌’s into ✅’s?

 Join The Mind Your Time Society, your space for guided resets, copy-paste scripts, and a 90-Day Roadmap that makes boundaries stick. You’ll get the tools and support you need to reclaim your calendar, protect your energy, and finally feel in control of your time.

Let me know your thoughts! Click here to send me a text.

Leave a Rating and Review: https://ratethispodcast.com/mindyourtime

Episode Transcript

SPEAKER_00 (00:00):
This is the final episode of the Systems Reset
series, and today we're going tobring it all together because
over the last three weeks you'velearned why your skills alone
aren't enough, while onboardingis actually leadership, and how
your calendar can either protectyou or join your time.
But the truth is, knowing thatit's not enough.

(00:23):
Action is what sparks changes inyour business.
So today we're going to bring itall together and talk about the
next step you need to take tomove from scrambling to
strategic, and you're going toget a sneak peek into the
conversation that I had with oneof the Mind Your Time Society
members who is a serviceprovider who turned her business

(00:45):
around with these exact resetsthat we've been discussing the
past few weeks.
Welcome to the Mind Your TimePodcast.
I'm Shannon Baker, your coffeeloving host and business
operations strategist.
If you're a service providerwho's great at what you do, but
stuck with misfit clients, messyonboarding, or draining
workdays, this show is for you.

(01:06):
Each week I share bothstrategies and practical
insights rooted in my poweremotional framework to help you
streamline your back end,protect your time, and lead your
client experience withconfidence.
Because skills got you clients,but systems will take you
further.
So grab your cup of coffee oryour favorite drink and let's
dive in.
Okay, over the last threeepisodes of the systems reset

(01:27):
series, we've looked at thecracks in your business that are
silently holding you back andtalked about how you can reset
them.
So today we're gonna pull it alltogether so you can really see
the big picture and mostimportantly, know the next step
that you need to take to moveforward and go from scrambling
to strategic.
And know this isn't just a recapof what we've talked about.

(01:48):
This is your consultant's reset,your chance to connect the dots
and decide what you're gonna dodifferently starting this week.
And I'm not going to just tellyou, I'm also gonna let you hear
from Imani.
She's a client, a colleague, anda member of the Mind Your Time
Society.
Her story is living proof thatwhen you take the next step to

(02:11):
reset your systems, your entirebusiness shifts.
So let's go back to thebeginning.
What did we talk about inepisode one?
We discussed that you can begreat at what you do, you can
land clients, and you can evenbe getting referrals.
But if you still feel likeyou're drowning, it's because
your skills alone are not enoughto carry your business forward

(02:34):
if your back end is duct tapetogether.
Now let me give you an example.

Imagine this (02:39):
you wrapped up a smooth discovery call, the
client is excited, they're agreat lead, you're excited, they
sign your cry contract, theysign your contract, but then the
headaches start.
You've requested files, theysend them late, then they text

(02:59):
you at 10 o'clock at night, andsuddenly you're pulling an
all-nighter just to start thisrelationship off on the right
foot.
And the problem that continuesto happen.
And it's not because you don'tknow how to deliver, but it's
because your back end is notbuilt to protect your time or to
set clear expectations.

(03:21):
And I want you to hear this fromsomeone who lived through this
experience, but she fixed it.

SPEAKER_01 (03:28):
I had the skills, I had the talents, the gift, all
the things, but I didn't reallyknow how to structure a business
that was scalable.
Um, and I know we'll get intothis later, but also the
boundaries piece was boundariesand systems, I say, were the
biggest piece um in thebeginning of my business that
caused burnout, all of thethings like I was really

(03:51):
struggling.
Like I barely slept.
I mean, answering calls 10, 11p.m.
and really not building a systemor foundation for my business.
Like I lacked, it was very, verya rocky um foundation for my
business.
And it showed um later down theline.

SPEAKER_00 (04:10):
Okay, now did you catch that?
Imani didn't struggle becauseshe lacked talent.
She struggled because hersystems weren't protecting her,
and that led her almost toburnout.
I mean, she had some serioushealth issues.
That's the first step that youcan take to move from scrambling

(04:31):
to strategic.
You start by recognizing thatbrilliance and skill set alone
is not going to build asustainable business that
doesn't bring you out.
But systems are the key thatgive your skills staying power.
Now, in episode two, we continuethis thought, but we really dug

(04:52):
into the client onboardingprocess itself.
Because many consultants treatonboarding like it's just about
a bunch of paperwork.
You get the contract signed, yousend the invoice, you get paid,
and then you just get to work.
But the truth is, onboarding isyour first chance to show your
client how you lead.
Without that, your clients aregonna make up their own rules.

(05:13):
They're gonna send files andrandom emails if they send them
at all.
They're gonna text you when it'sconvenient for them, and then
you're gonna be left scramblingto keep up.
And once that tone is set, it isreally hard to make a shift
later.
I even remember a Saturdaymorning when a client called me
out of the blue and they werepanicking about something that

(05:36):
we'd already discussed multipletimes in emails.
But instead of reinforcing myboundary at that time, I
scrambled to fix it and makethem happy.
That made me realize that theproblem wasn't that it was a bad
client, but the problem was thatI hadn't set the tone with
boundaries.
Imani experienced some similarstruggles over and over again in

(06:00):
her business until she reset heronboarding process.
Now, when Imani talks aboutresetting her onboarding
process, she's going to mentionthe project management tool
Airtable, but I don't want youto get hung up on the tool
because that's not the point.
The point is how she created onesimple system that made it easy
for her clients to give her whatshe needed.

(06:22):
They could do that on time.
It was all in one place and itkept communication clear and in
one central location.

SPEAKER_01 (06:31):
Airtable is very important, but the onboarding
was very important as wellbecause I think before I I had
calls with my clients, but itwasn't a true extensive
onboarding package to say,here's your like I think at the
end we put a checklist.
This is what I need to in orderto be able to start.

(06:52):
If I don't get these things,then it prolongs or pushes back
our actual start date.
And so being able to do that wasreally helpful for me.
And I don't have to beforey'all, I used to do too much.

SPEAKER_00 (07:07):
So you see, this experience wasn't just about air
table, it was about Imanifinally having a process that
works, not just for her, butalso for her clients.
She created a template she couldduplicate that made it easy for
her clients to go in there andgive her what she needs, and she
doesn't have to chase them anylonger.

(07:29):
That's the real lesson here.
You don't need to reinvent thewheel or invest in fancy
software or learn how to usesomething new like Airtable,
unless that's what you want todo, and I can help you with
that.
But you just need a system thatsets the tone from the
beginning.
Amani's a perfect example.
We created that template thatshe can now reuse.

(07:50):
It's client-friendly.
She walks them through how touse it, and now she is leading
the process instead of chasingher clients.
That's the power of treatingonboarding as part of your
leadership.
And that's your next step.
I want you to build anonboarding process that sets the
tone for how you work with yourclients, not how your clients

(08:11):
decide they want to work withyou.
Then in episode three of theseries, we shifted to talk about
your calendar.
And I'm going to be honest andremind you: a messy calendar
costs you more than time.
It will drain your energy, itwill erode your confidence, and
it will blur the line betweenwork and life until you feel
like you're a 7-Eleven, alwaysopen, always on call.

(08:36):
I've been there.
Early in my business, I wouldsay yes to a lot of things I
should have said no to, evenemails after dinner.
I squeezed in calls betweenfamily time, and guess what?
I ended up being exhausted,resentful, and running on fumes.
The shift came when I putboundaries in place.

(08:56):
That's having office hours whereI communicate with clients, an
autoresponder, and using timeblocks that identify my family
obligations and family time andeven time for me to care for
myself.
That's when I started feelinglike I was in control of my time
again.
And Imani had to learn how tomake the same shift in her

(09:19):
business.
This is what she had to say.

SPEAKER_01 (09:22):
When it came to the boundaries with the calendar, I
used to take meetings every dayof the business week, Monday
through Friday, nine to five, orat least three.

(10:02):
Because of course I didn't havea separate work phone.
So it was already, if I see it,I'm just gonna respond.
But I realize that's not thebest option because then people
become accustomed to youanswering at nine, 10 o'clock at
night trying to get things done.
So setting those boundaries onmy calendar.
Now I only take meetings Mondaysand Wednesdays, school, like

(10:23):
nine to five on both days.
Thursdays, 11 to 2.
Other than that, Tuesdays are myadmin day and working on
anything internal and Friday ismy rest day.

SPEAKER_00 (10:34):
So you can see that right there is freedom.
Imani stopped being availablefive days a week for anyone who
wanted her time.
She created space so that shecould work on her business, so
that she could rest, and so thatshe could be present every day
in her life.
And here's one thing I want youto remember the difference

(10:56):
between struggling and thrivingis the difference between being
on demand and being in demand.
That's what happens when yourcalendar reflects your
boundaries instead of burningyou out.
So let's zoom out for a secondand bring it all together.
Reminders for you.

(11:17):
Being great at what you do isn'tenough.
You need systems.
New client onboarding isn't busywork, it's leadership.
And your calendar is not justabout appointments, it's about
protecting your time and energy.
These simple resets areconnected on so many levels, and
they have a huge impact on theway that your business operates.
The next step for you is puttingthem into action so you can

(11:40):
finally move from scrambling tostrategic.
Now, this week's quick winchallenge is very simple.
If you haven't already done so,grab the free boundary reset
scorecard from the show notes.

And let me be clear (11:52):
this is not just another checklist that you
can add to the bottomless pit ofdownloads you have.
If you use it in less than twominutes, you will see exactly
where you're leaking time.
If you've ever ended the weekexhausted and thought to
yourself, okay, I have workednonstop all week, but I'm not

(12:15):
exactly sure what Iaccomplished.
This scorecard is gonna help yousee why that's the case.
Even better, it's gonna show youthe first step you need to take
to fix it.
That's how you start moving fromscrambling to strategic one step
at a time.

(12:35):
So before I wrap up, I just wantto say this.
This series is a spark to helpyou get started.
But your next step is where thereal change happens.
So if you've been waiting for asign, this is it.
It's time for a consultantsreset.
The back office power checklist,the starter stack, the 90-day

(12:57):
roadmap, these are some of theexact tools inside the Mind Your
Time Society that helped Imanigo from scrambling to strategic.
And I'd love to take this walkwith you through the next step
because you don't have to figurethis out on your own and you
don't have to keep running onfumes.
Join us inside the Mind YourTime Society, and you get access

(13:17):
to the 90-day roadmap and manyother resources so we can reset
your systems together and youcan finally lead your business
with confidence instead of itrunning you.
Now remember, your skills gotyour clients, but systems and
your ability to lead with them,that's what's gonna help you

(13:39):
keep them.
And now it's your time to takethe next step.
Thanks for tuning in today.
If this episode hit home, it'sbecause you already know you're
ready to stop patching up theproblems and start running your
business like the pro you are.
But listening won't fix thecracks.
Action will.
Your next step?

(14:00):
Grab the back office powerchecklist at theshannonbaker.com
forward slash checklist.
It'll show you exactly what'sworking, what's missing, and
where your back end is silentlyslowing you down.
And if you're ready to godeeper, founder circle inside
the Mind Your Time Society iswhere we can fix it together
with the systems insanity suiteand you'll get the clarity that

(14:21):
you've been craving.
Not quite there yet?
Come say hi to me on Instagramat the underscore Shannon Baker.
I would love to hear whatresonated with you the most.
And if you're loving thepodcast, please leave a quick
review because it goes a longway in helping more service
providers like you find thepodcast.
You can do that right now atratethispodcast.com forward

(14:44):
slash mind your time.
Skills got your clients, systemsand your expertise are what's
gonna help you keep them.
So until next time, keep calmand streamline.