How to Avoid Decision Fatigue

Earlier this summer, I had ankle surgery. After the pain was under control, I returned to my online work. Even though I wasn’t sleeping well and I spent my waking hours with my leg elevated or crutching around the house, my head was clear. 

Completing my work was a breeze! I wondered how this could be.

I added up all the responsibilities I no longer performed.

• I wasn’t cooking dinner, which meant I wasn’t planning dinner (what to buy, when to start prepping, how to make sure all the dishes are ready at the same time, etc.). 

• And laundry! Hahahahaha

• Since it’s my right ankle, I can’t drive so I haven’t been chauffeuring our non-driving child to appointments or social events.

• I’m not planning or coordinating events with other people and everyone is being super nice and patient if something does come up.

• Plus, it’s summer, so we don’t have all the school gatherings and I haven’t had to remind my kids about homework, tests, and projects.

It’s been AMAZING. I’ve been making a quarter of the decisions I usually make. I’ve been able to focus so much more easily.

My husband, on the other hand, has experienced extreme fatigue from long days of making all the decisions for work and home. So much so that he lost his glasses. Completely lost them. We looked everywhere and he checked at work. They’re gone and he’s had to order another pair. He clearly has decision fatigue.

Understandably, he’s rejoicing with each step I make towards recovery. While I’m glad to heal and begin walking, I’m thinking about how to maintain this headspace!

To make things more interesting, school starts next week and we’ll be picking up the pace in the Kalka house. It feels like someone has set a treadmill for a high speed and we’re about to step onto it without realizing. I don’t want to feel like I’m always running anymore. How did we get here?

With our busy-ness, we make an estimated 35,000 decisions a day. (Probably more if you’re a small business owner.)

Insanity! It’s not healthy to keep going like this!

Let’s focus on ways to make fewer decisions in your business. 

notice what’s happening without trying to change anything

In order to go somewhere new, you first have to understand your current state. Notice the number of decisions you make and when you make the most important decisions of your day. 

Try to do this without judgment. No telling yourself, “I should have done this weeks ago,” or “I bet so-and-so can make all these decisions without struggling.”

Give yourself the kindness and self-compassion you deserve.

TAKE CARE OF YOURSELF BEFORE, DURING, AND AFTER

Once you know the time of day that requires you to make your most important decisions, you can find ways to conserve energy for that time. 

For example, if you need the most focus for decisions between 1:00pm and 4:00pm, use the time beforehand to build your energy with a mix of activities like simpler tasks, short breaks, exercise, and healthy food. 

Although you may be busy between 1:00pm and 4:00pm, there are simple ways you can continue to take care of yourself, like noticing your breathing. If you’re feeling stressed, it may become more shallow. Fully inhaling and exhaling will release tension and almost certainly lead to better decisions.

Once you’ve completed your high decision-making time, give yourself a reward with a walk, time to listen to your favorite playlist, or reading. Whatever you choose, let it take you away from your desk and screens.

Your brain needs this break as much as the rest of you! The moment you start thinking, “I just need to finish this before I take a break,” is when you most need a break. Let yourself have this time to unwind.

CUT BACK ON THE LEAST IMPORTANT DECISIONS

During the lighter times of the day, look for unnecessary decisions and see if you can get rid of them.

There are many ways to do this, such as making a menu for the week so you don’t have to figure out what to make for every weeknight. I don’t always do this, but life is so much easier when I do! I’m trying to recommit to this tip and I’ll let you know how it goes!

You can always turn to the minimalist movement for help. Having a uniform or a capsule wardrobe with interchangeable pieces will make getting ready in the morning much faster.

You could clutter your home with thousands of decluttering books!

Clearing cloud clutter is a fantastic way to cut down on decisions. I make sure to do this with files and email, too. Regularly updating my clients’ standard operating procedures on a quarterly basis means they will continue to make decisions accurately and quickly. 

If you’re hesitant to delete files, save them to a flash drive or to a cloud storage service like Dropbox.

Spend 15 minutes straightening your desk at the end of the day

When you put things away at the end of the work day, you give your future self a gift. The next time you sit down at your desk, you will think, “Wow, what a nice desk. I feel so relaxed and ready for the day! Thank me!”

Find someone to help you make decisions

If you’re a small business owner who’s feeling overwhelmed, it may be time to get yourself a Virtual Assistant. They can help with tasks: you say, “here’s a task and this is how you do it,” they say, “got it!”

If you already have a Virtual Assistant and a couple other team members, it might be time for an Online Business Manager. You say, “I have a lot of plates spinning and I’m managing every part of my business and I’m missing opportunities,” they say, “I’ll create SOPs, manage your team and your projects so you can have the bandwidth to grow your business.”

If this is something you’d like to learn more about, contact me. I’d love to chat with you.

Take your time with this process. It will be an adjustment, however, I think you’ll feel a whole lot better. I know I do! I hope you’ll join me on my journey to shed decisions. There are so many beautiful things to see and do when you have less to decide.

Email Productivity Hacks

What’s black and white and read all over? Email! 

You can’t run from it. You can’t read all of it. However, you can stem the tide.

Here’s how…

AH, EMAIL

Take a deep breath. We’ll get through this. Let’s take a look. 

Unsubscribe from those lists!

Are you on a lot of lists, like a LISTSERV or company email marketing lists? It’s time to unsubscribe! If you have a Virtual Assistant, this is a fantastic task for them to handle.

Customize for organization at a glance.

If you have a Gmail account, spend some time customizing and organizing your email. You’ll be able to find what you’re looking for more quickly with color coded email and labels.

You could get your team to help with triage. 

My husband’s boss asked the team to create a descriptive subject line and start it with one of three words: ACTION, INFO, or HOT. Doing this helps him prioritize at a glance. 

For example, the subject line could read, “HOT-Next week’s conference venue flooded in storm,” and he’d know that this was the most urgent issue, requiring his attention immediately.

Give email limited access to your time.

It will also help to check your email at specific times during the day, otherwise you risk being derailed every time you see a new message or hear an alert. Being intentional about when you check in will help your brain focus on other tasks.

STANDARD OPERATING PROCEDURES

If you perform a task in email more than twice, you should consider creating a Standard Operating Procedure, or SOP. By documenting a process, you are ensuring that it will be done the same way every time. 

“But Stef, it will take too long to create an SOP for all these tasks! I’m already short on time.”

I know, but investing 30-60 minutes to create an SOP now will save you countless hours in the future. Remember those times when you thought to yourself, “Here’s another time where I need to send a carefully-worded email. I did the same thing just last week. Who did I send it to? I better search for that old email so I can remember what I wrote.”

You could spend a LOT of time doing that. An SOP will only take more of your time once and then that task will go quickly and with more accuracy. 

AUTOMATIONS

If you have an email that must be sent repeatedly, automate it. For example, if you need to create an email like the one above—making sure to use the right language so it conveys the same message each time—create an email template. This is super easy to do in Gmail.

• Go to Settings and select “See all settings”

• Click on “Advanced”

• Look for “Templates” and click “Enable”

• Click “Save Changes” below

• Go back to your inbox and click Compose on the upper left

• Write your email

• If you have an automatic signature, delete it (otherwise you’ll have two signatures in your template)

• Click on the three dots on the bottom left of the message (“More options”)

• Hover over “Templates”

• Hover over “Save draft as template”

• Click “Save as new template”

• Type the name of the template and “Save” WARNING: Whatever you name the template will appear in the Subject line of your email. Now is not the time for a sense of humor. You don’t want to accidentally send an accounts receivable email with the subject line, Hey dummy, pay me!

DELEGATing

Now that you have automations and SOPs, it’s time to delegate! Automations can make sure tasks are carried out with precision. For example, once you have a series of templates, you can delegate certain emails that will require those templates. 

Your SOPs will allow you to delegate email tasks with multiple steps to other members of your team. They will be able to perform the task the same way every time and you will be free to do something else!  

I’m sure there are more ways to cut back on email time. What are your strategies? Let me know in the comments below.

Does Everything Live in Your Head?

 Does everything live in your head?

I’ve had clients tell me that when it comes to their business, “Everything lives in my head.” 

These business owners were very organized and knew exactly how they wanted their business to be run. However, they were the point person for every single decision. I could see how it drained them.

I suggested we create a business operations manual. Here’s why…

What’s a business operations manual?

When all decisions fall on your shoulders, it sucks away time and leaves you unable to grow your business. 

The trouble with everything living in your head is that in an emergency, no one else will be able to keep your business running smoothly. (This was made obvious during the pandemic.)

Sharing the ins and outs of your business can be a relief

I’m not suggesting you offload all your skills to your team or give someone access to your bank account or do anything that makes you super uncomfortable.

What I do recommend is that you begin by creating an operations manual. This is a file that will contain all the basic information necessary for keeping your business afloat in an emergency. 

A business operations manual gives you peace of mind

You’ll sleep easier knowing that: 

• another team member can step in if and when the need should arise 

Stuff happens—and not just to you. A team member might go on maternity leave, have surgery, or win the lottery and call you from Bali. Knowing who’s Responsible for what and when will let you and your team know where someone left off with their work and the next steps to follow.

• you have a written guide for operational excellence so your team will understand customer needs and expectations

Everyone will be on the same page about providing outstanding service and building client relationships. You will also have a clear policy to point to if a team member needs a reminder.

• you’ll have a resource for training new team members (and shorten training time)

When you’re onboarding a new team member, you will have everything they need to create a successful stress-free experience. You can go beyond a typed file and include video tutorials. This will cater to different learning styles and provide a quick reference once your new hire is getting up to speed.

• you’ll be able to grow your business since you won’t have to answer every question and make every decision 

Once your business operations manual is documented clearly, team members will have another source of information when questions arise. Fewer interruptions mean you will have more time to focus and it will be easier to complete your work and take breaks!

• you’ll have more energy because you’re not doing everything

When you have a set of documented processes, it will be easier to delegate tasks. Once you remove tasks from your plate, you’ll have more breathing room. What could you do with a couple more hours in your day?Grow your business? Go for a walk? Play with your kids? Buy a new toy for your pet? All of the above??

• you’ll know how to plan for the future

Now that you’ve been able to delegate and team members can easily find the answers to many of their questions on their own, you will have the bandwidth to look around and wonder, “What’s next?” You’ll be able to spend time imagining the future of your business, new offerings and products, and how your team might move forward along with you. They may have discovered new talents through your delegation and maybe it’s time you shift their roles so you can all be excited as your business grows!

A business operations manual is an insurance policy for your business

Taking what’s in your head and creating a business operations manual means your team will have access to it. This will cover you in an emergency and allow you to go on vacation with less worry. 

When creating your business operations manual, be sure to add:

• Job descriptions and contact information 

Be sure to add your company’s business address, your website URL,  and contact information for your team members and essential vendors. 

• Operating hours

Your team will appreciate a policy that clearly states when your company does business. Knowing up front will assist them in managing client expectations, too.

• Company policies

Sure, this information is probably in their contracts, but does your team have easy access to company policies? Having accessible policy information could save you heartache later.

• Standard Operating Procedures for all processes

Having all your SOPs in one place will save time in an emergency. Their visibility will also help new hires get acclimated and remind you to update. It will help to have checklists for repeated tasks with many steps. 

• Training examples

Give your new hires a smooth onboarding experience with examples of tasks they will need to complete. Add videos to increase their learning speed. 

• Emergency procedures

Keep these instructions clear and direct. Let your team know what to do if your email, social media, or website get hacked. List who to call and the steps they should take. 

• Passwords 

List the steps for logging into a system, but put your usernames, passwords and codes into a password management platform. This way, your account information is only available to a limited number of people and the passwords are protected.

It takes patience to create your business operations manual 

If you work on your business operations manual for 30 minutes a day, it won’t feel as overwhelming and you’ll have a draft prepared before you know it. Be patient and take the time to cover everything. 

Add images and videos to leave no room for error! Remember: some of this information gathering can be delegated to your team, so make use of them! Or, hire an online business manager to handle this process for you.

Once you complete your operations manual, give your team members the task of checking it quarterly. A lot can change in three months!

By creating and maintaining your operations manual, you and your team will feel confident about what to do on a daily basis and in an emergency. Take this step towards helping your business to run without you and notice if you feel lighter. Be sure to let me know how it goes!

How to Get Started with a Virtual Assistant

You’ve finally hired a Virtual Assistant and it’s going to be great, but how do you get started? Some VAs will give you instructions on how to prepare for your first meeting together, but in case they don’t, I’ve got you covered!

How to Prepare

Providing Access

Decide how you’d like to communicate and make sure your VA has your email address (I can’t imagine they wouldn’t, but…). Give them your Slack, your Voxer, and possibly your cell for emergencies. Let your VA know what hours you will be available.

If you’re planning to have a long-term relationship with your VA, you should consider creating a Gmail account for them. If you both use Google Workspace, you’ll be able to share documents, calendars, and forms. Most importantly, you’ll be able to access your VA’s account, so if your VA is on vacation and you need something, the info will be accessible to you—or if you and your VA part ways, all documents and correspondence will belong to you.

Give your VA access to all the accounts and platforms they’ll need to complete tasks, like Asana, Canva, Hootsuite, Quickbooks, and your social media platforms. Be sure to set the permissions so that your VA has the ability to do things like scheduling social media posts or adding clients to your CRM.

To give your VA access to multiple accounts, it’s best to use a password manager tool like LastPass. Taking this extra safety precausion will protect your passwords, allow you to track logins, and cancel access should the need arise.

Considering Tasks

Make a list of the tasks you envision your VA performing. Then, create a spreadsheet, putting the tasks into three categories.

1. Tasks you hate

2. Tasks that must be accurate or are time-sensitive, or both

3. Tasks you love but aren’t skilled at doing

Some tasks might fit into more than one category, but start with tasks that only fit Category 1. Choose tasks that aren’t as affected by the small errors that come with performing a task for the first time.

Create SOPs for each of the tasks. By taking your VA through each step in writing, you’ll make it easier for them to learn—and having a document to refer back to will mean fewer moments of confusion. Plus, if there comes a time when someone else will need to do that task, you’ll be ahead of the game.

Now, this is not to say that your VA won’t need direction. During the meeting, spend some time sharing your screen to let them see how each task is done. Be available to answer questions. You may even want to make a loom video for them to refer back to.

Once your VA is up to speed, give them a task from Category 2. When they’ve mastered that, add another task. This is how you avoid overwhelming them and ensure that tasks don’t bounce back to you.

Check your VA’s work—at least the first few times they complete tasks—to make sure they understand and are completing the work acurately. Kindly let the VA know what they need to pay extra attention to. Also let them know when they’re doing a great job!

Since your VA is learning something new (not just the task, but your preferred way of completing it and documenting it), it will probably take more time from start to finish. They will be slower than you and that’s to be expected. You’re experienced and have done that task repeatedly. Please be patient and give your VA a chance to grow comfortable. In about a month, you’ll be so happy. It’s worth it, I promise!

Set up a weekly check-in time. One 15-minute call a week is sometimes all it takes to clarify priorities. Let your VA know you’re available to them, expecially in these early stages. It’s normal to have a few kinks to work out, but if you take the time to be supportive, you and your VA will grow into an efficient team.

If this all feels overwhelming, you might consider outsourcing the VA onboarding process. If you’d like to learn more about this process, contact me and we’ll talk it over.

Best wishes as you take a huge step towards the work/life balance you deserve!

How to Hire a Virtual Assistant

You’re a small business owner who’s been working on your own. You’re starting to see results from your efforts and that’s encouraging, but you’re also feeling overwhelmed. You’re drowning as you try to complete all the things and it’s becoming visible to your clients.

You’re not responding to requests for support, you’re forgetting things, and although you need to accomplish more, your productivity has decreased.

It’s clear that something has to change. This is your dream job but the only way for it to stop feeling like a nightmare is to get some support. You need a virtual assistant.

Let me tell you how to hire one…

Figure out your budget

It’s important to be clear about what you can afford. You can find virtual assistants for $3/hour up to $100/hour. The reason for this broad range has to do with experience, skills, and the size of the pool of freelancers. For example, if you’re looking for a virtual assistant on Upwork, there are many, MANY to choose from. To be competitive, some VAs will lower their rates.

There are people that say, “Those are VAs from countries like the Philippines. The cost of living is much lower there, so $3 an hour is a great rate for them!”

This is not true. I am in social media groups with many VAs from the Philippines and they all say that $3 and hour is not a living wage. These are highly skilled individuals who deserve to be paid fairly and if you hire someone for $3/hour, chances are they will leave you as soon as they find someone who will pay them $5/hour, which is understandable. It’s my opinion that this is not a risk worth taking, not to mention the bad juju.

Virtual assistants who charge higher rates are specialized. If you would like someone to focus on social media, content creation, or web development, you can expect to pay more.

Decide on a freelancer platform, an agency, or a freelance virtual assistant

There are many ways to find your VA. Let’s look at three.

Freelancer Platform

A freelancer platform like Upwork or Fiverr allows you to search with filters like location, experience, price range, specialty, rating, and delivery time. You will quickly have a list of qualified VAs who can take on your time-sensitive project.

You will communicate with your VA through the platform and both of you will sign a contract. Payment is also through the platform. Your relationship can be short-term or extend into other projects.

Agency

With an agency, you work through the agency’s human resources managers or owners to pin down what you need and the agency managers/owners match you with a virtual assistant. This works well if you’re a busy entrepreneur who doesn’t have the time to vet someone. Another bonus is that if your VA becomes unavailable for some reason (either short-term for something like a surgery or permanently because they’ve left the agency), the agency will find you a replacement. This way, you will have a very little time without assistance.

Freelance Virtual Assistant

If you will only feel comfortable working with someone you’ve personally vetted and you’re looking for someone who will stay with you for a long time, you should look for a freelance virtual assistant on your own. One way to find someone is to post a job on VA Facebook or LinkedIn groups (following their best practices, of course). The fastest way might be to post on social media and let people know you’re looking. (This is how I was put in contact with one of my clients.) This is the most time-consuming approach, but because you’re involved in the entire process, it will most likely lead you to someone you will form a bond with and trust.

Ask the right questions during your discovery call

A discovery call is the first conversation you have with a virtual assistant. It’s often on Zoom or FaceTime and it’s your chance to get to know each other. You will find out if you and the VA will get along well together and have the same working style.

Remember that this isn’t usually a corporate 9 to 5 situation. When the VA completes their work doesn’t matter if it’s done on time, however, if you need someone who will be available nights, say so. If you need someone to make phone calls between 1:00pm and 5:00pm ET, be sure to mention that. Also be sure to tell them your preferred method of communication and when you are available to answer questions.

Ask how they will communicate their progress to you. For example, I send my clients a weekly email that lists the projects I worked on with the time spent on each. I let them know the time they have remaining for the month and make sure my work priorities are aligned with theirs.

See if your personalities are compatible. If you like to joke around but the VA is serious, it might not be a great fit. If you have a relaxed work style but the VA prefers deadlines with precise instructions, you should probably keep looking for someone who “gets” you. And it might be that you like the VA but they decide that you’re not a good fit for them. That’s okay. It’s good that they told you before you were invested in the relationship and it allows you to move on quickly.

Before hiring on a virtual assistant, check references

If you’re going the freelancer route, check the freelancer’s references. I have done this for clients and believe me, you can learn a lot from a 15-minute conversation with someone. Don’t skip this step!

Sign your contract

Once you and your virtual assistant agree to work together, they will send you a contract. You will usually be expected to pay them before work begins.

This is an exciting time for you! You’re taking the first step towards having less on your plate! If you have any questions, feel free to post them below or if you’d like me to help you build your team, drop me a line. Check back next week for my blog post on getting started with your VA.

How to Create a Volunteer Recruitment Email

Recruiting volunteers can be an intimidating task, but I’m here to help you streamline this process. Keep reading to learn how…

For 5 years, I had a job where I managed up to 54 volunteers at a time. I learned the best strategies for volunteer engagement and community building so I would get the support I needed. Now I’m part of an organization that regularly needs assistance: Scouts. The other members of our committee were surprised when I recently filled all the volunteer slots for an event in under 48 hours. Here’s how I did it:

Figure out what you need first

A month or two in advance of the event, gather all the information necessary to clearly communicate your needs to the group. For example, If you need volunteers for a fundraising event, make sure you have all Five Ws: Who, What, Where, When, Why, + How. Not having all the information is a surefire way to get 0 responses because no one wants to be the only one there or find themselves wandering through an empty parking lot at 11:00pm to put trash in the dumpster. Being clear about what you need will make it easier for people to say “yes” to your request and more likely that they’ll assist you in the future.

Here’s an example of a volunteer recruitment email:

Good evening, scouting families.

Next Tuesday is our Court of Honor, which will take place at the park pavilion at 7:00pm. We will serve ice cream from the local dairy afterwards!

We need some volunteers!

• Several people to assist with set-up at 6:30pm (arranging tables and food, unloading troop supplies)

• Several volunteers to assist with clean-up until 9:00pm (packing up troop supplies, cleaning tables, moving tables back where we found them, disposal of trash)

• 2 volunteers to scoop ice cream

• 2 packages of cookies (family packs)

• 2 packages of cupcakes (12-packs)

• 2 packages of Italian ice (12-packs in an ice chest)

• 3 families to bring water bottles (24-packs in an ice chest)

  Please contact me as soon as you’re able to let me know that you’re able to contribute. We need your help to make it a great night.

Thanks and have a nice weekend,

Stephanie Kalka, Troop Secretary/Recruiting Coordinator

Send a clear email to the right people

In this email, I answered any question someone might have that would stand in the way of them volunteering. Everything is clearly laid out for the recipient’s reference. And at the end of the email, I am already assuming they’re going to volunteer their time and I’m thanking them because it’s SO important to thank your volunteers—even before they’ve volunteered.

Before you send the email to everyone one your list, check the list in and remove people who have already mentioned that they won’t be available for the event. This way, you won’t receive emails that say, “I already told you I won’t be around that weekend,” etc. Annoy them this time and they might avoid you next time.

After you send your email, you will hear from those friends and colleagues who understand the work that goes into planning for this sort of event. These people are my favorites. Even if they respond to say they aren’t available, at least they let you know.

Send a second email

Give the initial email 48 to 72 hours to work its magic. You will have a handful of people to fill up volunteer slots. Before sending the email again, remove the people on the list who have signed up. If you send an email to someone who’s already volunteered, they will be might be confused. Then they’ll probably send you an email asking if you put them on the schedule, which will create unnecessary back-and-forth. Clean up your list and update the email to say something like, “We heard from a few people and are grateful to them for stepping up. We still need XX people for these time slots on these days.” Once your email has been proofread, send it out.

Send “special invitation” emails

You will hear from several people, usually with an apology, “Sorry I didn’t let you know sooner, but yes, I can volunteer at this time on this day.” Some will decline, and that’s all right. Now you will be left with the people who haven’t responded at all. I think of these people as the “special invitation” group. Sometimes they’re overwhelmed, sometimes they just want to hide in the herd and let the overachievers do the heavy lifting. Whatever their reason, you will need to reach out to each of them personally.

Create a personalized email for each of these people. Something like this:

Hi L,

How was your son’s soccer tournament? The last time I saw Fred, I couldn’t believe how tall he’s gotten!

I know you’re busy, but is there any way you two could assist with the Court of Honor set-up? We could really use the help of an experienced family that night, since the other volunteers are new this year. You have such a nice way of making people feel welcome and I think the Smith family would increase their participation if they spent some time getting to know you guys. Would you please think about participating? Will you let me know tonight?

Thanks for considering,

Stephanie

Like I did in this sample email, find a way to relate to the person. What did they mention when you saw them last? Do they have pets? Have they recently moved or gotten a new car? Find something personal to ask them about. If you begin with, “We really need you to volunteer…” they’ll tune you out. Talk about them and ask them questions about their file and they’ll be more likely to listen.

Try to make one request. Ask them for this one thing and be very clear about it. Tell them why you think they are the person best equipped for this one job. Pay them a compliment. I know it sounds like I’m buttering them up—and I am—but the compliment is sincere. I really mean what I say and I’m hoping that the positive traits I noticed in L will encourage her to participate in the fundraiser because her specific skills are needed. You may be thinking, “I don’t have time for this. These folks should just volunteer because we all know everyone has to participate for the event to be successful.”

This is true, but not everyone will do the right thing just because it’s expected of them. Some people will not help unless you take the time to make it look more attractive to them in a Tom-Sawyer-painting-the-fence kind of way.

Is this exasperating? You bet! Can I take the time to gently recruit volunteers if it means I will cultivate better relationships and make the event a success? YES, I CAN!

Remind your volunteers

Once you have all the volunteers you need, be sure to send out reminder emails and provide them with your contact information in case of emergency. Send a reminder out several days before and the night before so they remember that you’re counting on them. Thank them for being part of the team.

Thank your volunteers

Thank your volunteers in person at the event and then thank them by email after the event. Point out something specific they did at the event if you can think of something. Take the time to do this and your team will be much more likely to help you in the future. You will be known as an excellent leader who cares about the individual people within their community.

I wish you luck with your email requests. If you would like to have a consultation with me about this or any other business process topic, please reach out!

How to Write Standard Operating Procedures

I know what you’re thinking: “In the time it will take for me to document every step of this business process, I could just do it myself.”

You could. And things might work well that way for a long time. But something could happen that’s beyond your control that will keep you from performing tasks as you usually do (like COVID, or an injury, or a family member who needs your support). There may come a time when you will be forced to step away from your business. Your business could grow to the point where you don’t have the time to personally train every new hire.

If you track your processes now and create standard operating procedures, it’s like creating a blueprint for your business. No matter what happens, someone can complete those tasks. You could even go on vacation knowing that everything will keep chugging along as if you were still there. Wouldn’t that be nice?

Here’s what you have to do to get there

Start with the most urgent tasks first. The ones that would cause a calamity if they weren’t completed. Make a list and then pick one.

Document the purpose of the procedure. Explain in a few sentences why this task is important. Lay it out so someone who is new to your business can understand.

Document the schedule for the task. Is this task completed daily? A certain time of the day? Is the task dependent on receiving other information first? Remember, you’re writing this procedure for someone who is unfamiliar with it so be clear.

List the responsible parties. You, obviously, but anyone else? If you have dependencies, or are a dependency for someone else, identify them, including contact information.

Document the procedure step by step. It helps to document while performing the task. Are there ongoing sub-tasks that fulfill the main task? Will approval be needed for different steps? Who will approve those steps if you’re not there? Think through everything as if you’re doing it for the first time. Drawing the workflow (on paper, or an online tool like Miro) will help you clarify the order of operations and communicate it to others.

Test your SOP. Follow your steps and see if you can complete the task in the steps you’ve laid out. Better yet, have someone else follow the steps. Adjust your SOP to meet the needs of the person who will follow it. For example, acronyms might make sens to you but might confuse someone else. Write every word out so that someone else can understand.

Review and edit periodically. Check up on your SOP every six to twelve months to see if any of the steps need updating. Technology and processes change, so scheduling a time to make revisions is key.

Keep documenting!

Once you’ve completed one SOP, move on to the next most urgent process, and then the next. Put your SOP files into a folder and make sure all the members of your team have access to the folder. Once you have a SOP folder, let me know if you feel a bit more relaxed knowing that you have a process in place for those times when you need to step away. Time to plan a vacation!