It’s really, really nice to have systems.

I owe much of my freedom to systems.

It did not start this way.

Like many entrepreneurs, I began as a TECHNICIAN, doing everything myself.

I made the sales calls, ran the ads, fulfilled the service, and did customer support.

… Then my business grew, and I started to go batshit crazy.

Perhaps you’ve been here. 🫠 🫠

The logical next step is to hire help, but this alone will not save you.

It can make things worse. If the business is stuck in your head, everyone comes to YOU for answers.

At first, you feel important. Then you feel annoyed. Then resentful.

Congratulations. You have created a soul-sucking monstrosity that entirely depends on you and maybe gets you paid.

This is why you need systems. This email will help.

I nearly shot myself building a multi-7-figure agency but made it out the other side.

Here’s my system-building process:

1) Start with process maps

My brother (biz partner) and I started building process maps after watching this absolute banger video from Ryan Deiss.

The process map is the first step in getting a business “out of your head.”

We use Lucidchart for mapping. It’s simple and free. Below is a screenshot of the process maps we currently have in our business.

Looks extremely dry and boring. It is. Boring also makes money.

You start with process maps because they help you identify where you’re dropping the ball.

This brings us to step 2:

2) Fix where you’re dropping the ball

You’re most likely dropping the ball right after the sale.

This is a good place to start building systems.

For example, we are supposed to call all new clients the day after they sign up.

During the mapping process, I discovered we didn’t have a defined process to ensure this happened.

As a result, the calls weren’t being made. This was losing us customers.

To fix, we created an SOP (Standard Operating Procedure) to ensure the calls happened consistently.

How do you make SOPs? I’m glad you asked.

3) Make SOPs with AI

Rather than manually typing out an entire process, you can make a video and then have AI transcribe it.

Loom is great for this. It’s a screen recording software with a built-in feature to turn any video into an SOP. See below:

The SOPs it creates are insanely accurate. I rarely have to make changes.

It’s pure magic. Moments like these make me very grateful to be alive in this time period.

Mind you, some processes cannot be filmed and must be typed up manually.

This is a boring, painful exercise that is also a very good use of your time.

Next step:

4) Transfer SOPs into checklists for repeated task management

When you have processes you want to track, convert the SOPs into checklists in software like Notion. See below:

Whenever we get a new client, the page is duplicated and someone checks off the steps as they go.

Boom boom boom.

Finally, we have step 5:

5) Hire people who are smart enough to manage systems

Do NOT outsource the initial system design. Your business will function better with you as the chief architect, not someone else.

You SHOULD, however, outsource system management. Managing systems is boring and sucks.

Hire smart people and then have them “own” their respective systems.

They will be responsible for updating them as your business changes.

Congrats. Your business is now running without you. 🤝 

Hope this email was helpful. I’ll end it with a quote from Tim Ferriss:

“Being busy is a form of laziness—lazy thinking and indiscriminate action. Being busy is most often used as a guise for avoiding the few critically important but uncomfortable actions.”

Building systems = critically important but uncomfortable action.

Get buildin’ and get it done.

See you next week. 🫡 

Graydon

If you found this post helpful/entertaining or know someone who would, I’d love if you could share it with them and invite them to subscribe:

https://www.entreflaneur.com/p/delicious-systems

Cool things I found during my weekly internet stroll.

Pretty surreal to see the Unitree G1 humanoid robot for sale on a website.

The Unitree G1 is also insane and can dance.

Cool tool for visualizing different time zones. Helpful for travel and scheduling.

Footage of astronauts tripping and falling on the moon. They are so silly. 💁‍♂️

Cheatsheet for using Grok 3.

Served up by Spijker & me.

Muhuuuuu | Lazare, ADDAM (BE)

If You Need It | MAXI MERAKI

Sense of You | Jay West, Manuel Sahagun, Cody Chesnutt