Create Extra Hours in Your Day With This Simple 3-Step Process

How to Master Working from Home as a Freelancer

Setting Up Shop

It’s been said (quite often, in fact) that there are two things we could all use more of: time and money. So we all go around blocking social media, hustling our services and products to our email lists, and crowdsourcing our decision making so we can come to a conclusion thatmuch more quickly.

But I have a secret for you: finding more time (and money) isn’t in the big picture. It’s in the details. Creating processes (sometimes called workflows or systems) can streamline your business operations and save you hours each week. The magic in it all is that when you create processes to save time, you can use those magical minutes to go out and make money!

Look, I know that you’re here at One Woman Shop and you’re thinking “That’s fine, Val. But I don’t have a company or a team. It’s just me. I’m one woman. I can keep it all in my head and I’m pretty clear on how it all works anyways.”

That’s true -- and I’ve had that exact same thought. But what happens when you want to take a week off (like I did with my honeymoon)? Or you have a major life event that forces you to step away for an extended period of time (like when I had my baby)?

There’s no better time to set up process docs than today

Setting up your process documentation now, as you go, saves you from having to hustle and set it all up when you want or need to step away. Better yet, there may come a day when you want to hire some support in your business. Imagine handing over those process docs in your onboarding process and never wasting a minute (or dollar) with your new team member. Now that’s efficient!

Here’s what you need to know: your processes already exist -- they’re the things you do every day/week/month in your business (typically behind-the-scenes) that make it run. It’s those CEO tasks that really make your business a business; not just a hobby. And since they are things you already do, it takes (almost) zero extra effort to craft your ideal process documentation and start to streamline the way you run things.

Want a simple hack to nailing down your processes in no time at all?

Here are the three simple steps to get it done:

  1. Record a video of you doing the task and talking out the steps while you do it (here’s a list of some of my favorite video recording tools to make it easy)
  2. Hand that video over to your VA or a contractor and ask them to make the checklist from the video. If contracting this out isn’t possible, have a friend or colleague do it for you and offer to trade them the same favor -- you’ll both get your processes nailed down together!
  3. Review the final checklist for gaps or missing pieces and complete the documentation in your favorite project management tool (like Asana)

Boom! Not only do you have a set of process documentation done, you are on your way to building out a Company Operating System. (Well, aren’t you fancy!)

The best part? In just a few extra minutes each week, you can complete 1-2 process doc recordings and have your documentation for your entire business up and running in a few short weeks. Be careful, though. Making process videos gets addictive so you might find yourself with documentation sooner than you thought!

Start streamlining to get those lost hours back

Questions? Let me know in the comments below -- and tell me which process you are headed off to document this week. (A great place to start is with your blog posting or social media scheduling!)

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Val is a Client Experience + Systems Strategist with a passion for side hustlers, freelancers, and creative entrepreneurs. After over a decade behind the scenes, Val has the innate ability to hone in on exactly what counts. Her clients love finding the space and time to build their dream businesses full of happy customers. You can find her sharing her very best resources at valgeisler.com.

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  1. Shannon Byrne says:

    I don’t have an assistant or the resources to do this, but I could definitely see doing a written version and create the check list myself! Thanks for the great post!

    • Val Geisler says:

      That’s the beauty of it, Shannon – it’s so flexible. The key is to getting it down *before* you want to delegate it out. Set yourself up for future success! xo

  2. Nicole says:

    This is SO sensible. Thank you!

  3. Julienne says:

    This is a great point. I’m a VA and I do this a lot with my clients. I record so that the biz has a record of how I do things and they record for that initial learning curve when I’m taking on a new task.

  4. This is a great thing to do now that I just hired a VA! Ahhhh! Love this! Thank you so much.

  5. Angela says:

    Oh, processes, they may take time to set up but are quite worth it! Excellent reminder.

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