Ditch The Drift - Entrepreneurial Guide to Organization Marie Mack

So I’m not going to sugar coat this one. It’s been a tough couple weeks. Things just seem uncertain at this time and to be very honest, I took a week off of creating Ditch the Drift to refocus and find my footing again. 
I’m sure it’s been the same for many of you. And I want to give you the grace to say it’s ok. It’s ok to take a breath and step back to regroup. 
After that, it’s to get back out there!
One thing I’ve noticed in the last week is that the world needs you! They need YOUR business. They need your brilliance. 
They need you! 
The world can’t get what they need if we don’t dust ourselves off and get back out there with our businesses! 
But we can’t deny things are different for everyone and it might be time to pivot or adjust your business just a bit to be able to serve more. 
Like most of you, I’m trying to correlate this experience to others that have happened in my business to predict how things are going to turn out. 
I’ve had several pivots in my business. 
With these experiences one thing stood out like it does with our current position in the world. What stood out is that we made a decision. Then we went all in and talked about all the pros and cons of which way we should go. 
Today I want to walk you through this exercise so you can effectively decide what’s best for your business and if it’s time to pivot or hold the course. 
I’m sharing with you my Trello template to help walk you through this process. Just go to firstcuptoclose.com/4 and you’ll find the steps there along with a training video. 
That way when a change comes your way (as it most certainly will) you are ready to take the time to assess and be sure it's the best decision for your business.
Our easy systems tip for today is all about this pros/cons decision making model. I’m going to run through the steps real quick, then I’ll take you through an example. 
 
Easy Systems Tip: Create Your Pros/Cons 
Create your own Pros/Cons exercise from the template I'm sharing with you. 
Identify the change you want to make.  List all the pros of making this change now (within the next week or two) List all the cons of making this change now (within the next week or two)  Which of the two weighs out. (the factors will very, but after you list your pros and cons there should be a clearer vision of which decision is best for your business) Take action!  Either scrap the idea and celebrate that you have made an educated decision to NOT move forward with it.  Or start putting your plan into place.
Now that you know the steps, let me take you through an example.
Identify the change you want to make. 
Currently, a lot of my clients, including myself, are deciding whether or not it’s a good time to launch their next course in the next couple months. 
List all the pros of making this change now (within the next week or two)
There are a lot of pros for a business owner to launch a program.
Opening up courses that are not evergreen so viewers can have access to them.  Serving a community that might need guidance Income for the business that’s launching.  Creating a safe space for buyers to learn and grow.  List all the cons of making this change now (within the next week or two) 
What about the cons of launching? Let’s talk about those. 
Asking viewers for money when some people are being laid off.  It’s an uncertain time for buyers since they aren’t sure how long things will be like this.  Looking like you're being greedy or salesy.  The launch might not be the right thing for viewers now.  Which of the two weighs out. 
After you take into consideration all of the pros and cons for your decisions, it’s time to think of what’s best for your business. 
In the scenario of launching the next product, a lot of my clients and myself feel like it’s a volatile time in our society and we’re choosing to put a pause on launching.
Next it’s time to

What does it take to grow an affordable online team? 
Have you thought through how to make that successful? (Or botch it up?!?) 
All right! Today we are jumping in a really hot topic for businesses that are interested in growing and scaling… that’s pretty much all of us I think!
First, I want to take a quick moment to thank you for being with me on the journey of sharing my passions for organization and systems! You’re my motivation!
Are you ready to grow your team?
Growing your business takes a great foundation and great team members. I’m going to be honest with you that you won’t be able to do it ALL on your own forever and that’s why you are here, right?!
SO today I’m going to talk about when, how, and where to find affordable team members for your business. 
We’ll also talk about how you can dip your toe into using affordable team members without committing to a long term contactor. 
Let’s Dive in! 
When is a good time to bring on a new contractor?
As a savvy business owner I’ve always been very aware of the balance between bringing on someone to help with a project and doing it myself. 
I have a couple of criteria I use to know if it is a good time to bring on someone new to the team. I ask these questions.
Do I have the skills to be efficient? Do I have the time in my schedule? If the answers are no to these two questions, then it’s time to look for a new team member. 
After working online for over 6 years as a team member in other organizations AND managing my own team, I know there can also be a wrong way to bring on team members. 
How do you know when the WRONG time is to bring on a team member? Here are a couple questions to ask yourself: 
Are you so overwhelmed that you don’t have time to give clear guidance?  Do you have all the information you need to help your team member be successful?  Is your timeline so short that you needed something done yesterday?  How do you know when the RIGHT time is to bring on a team member? Here are a couple questions to ask yourself: 
Have you thought about the type of help you need and the kind of person that would be best for the job? Have you gathered the details to give them the training they need? Are you able to give feedback and guidance as they work through your training? If the answers are yes to these questions, then it’s time to look for a new team member! YAY for growing!
Please be sure to check out episode 2 for my training on creating your Trello board to manage this new team member and tasks. Go to firstcuptoclose.com/2 a free Trello board template and training to jumpstart your team organization. You’ll love it. 
Easy Systems Tip: Create SOPs
Standard Operating Procedures will help your entire team work within your branding, be more efficient, and be given the resources they need to be successful. 
How to: 
If you find that you do a task in your business more than once then it’s time to make an SOP.  In my business we have a specific way we handle customer service and the details for the accounts we manage are in the SOP for that client.  Create a video training (if possible) showing step by step how to complete the task. Also, write out the task in an easy to follow format so any of your team members can pick up the details and jump in to help.  UPDATE these SOPs anytime anything changes in your business.  REVIEW your SOPs often so you can add in more details and consistency in your business.  Once you have the details for how to complete a task and you’re ready to hire someone on, it’s time to find the contractor!
The details I’m going to go over on where to find an affordable team member works well if you have an online task. IF you need a local person to physically work with you in your business, there are many way to post jobs on local job boards or ask in local networking groups. 
I want to share how to grow an affordable online team (but remember that even in local

Last week we talked about some of my favorite free tools I use and suggest to my clients and leads. 
I KNOW these are awesome tools for anyone new to starting a business or business owners who are looking for budget savvy ways to get the most of great programs. 
If you want to hear all the details and grab the resources from that episode you can go to firstcuptoclose.com/1
Today, I want to expand a bit more on Trello. 
Like I mentioned last week, this is my go to platform for organizing my entire business, managing 5+ contractors, and creating systems for my clients to use in their business when they are planning online projects like online summits, affiliate promotions or launching a new course… just to name a couple things. 
I’ll share a link for you to join Trello at firstcuptoclose.com/2 Then you can give it a try. Like I’ve already mentioned, it’s completely free to join. 
Overview of Trello
If you are a pen and paper kind of person, but know you need to have details online, this is the program for you.  Organizing your ideas and your business using boards (like a white board), lists (like columns on a white board), and cards (like using sticky notes under the columns) Each card opens up to give you a bunch of different features! Assigning the card to a team member is one of my favorite features. Color coding for visual people like me! Checklists for those that LOVE checking things off your to-do list. Due Dates to keep you AND your whole team on track. 
Easy Systems Tip: Due Dates on Trello
Use due dates on the Trello cards to keep you and your team on track. You can also set those due dates to email or send notifications when a task is due in the next 24 hours or in the next hour. 
Once you have your Trello Card open, you’ll see an option to set a due date for a task on the card.  Set a due date that’s realistic for the project.  Be sure to let your team members know there’s a due date there and your expectations. (Remember they can’t read your mind.) Once you’ve started using Trello and it’s features you can see how easy it is to pass off tasks to your team. 
Mini Soapbox: We do our contractors and employees a disservice by NOT giving them tasks. They want to help. They want to be a part of your team so use them!
I’m going to share with you a public Trello template I created called Systemize With Trello. This is a free template you can use to start today with being more organized. AND I have some free training to go along with it! You can go to firstcuptoclose.com/2 to grab those gifts. 
Trello is also a HUGE asset to use when planning upcoming projects or brainstorming ideas you have in your business. 
Use Trello to manage all types of projects and ideas
Collaborative place for brainstorming ideas Organizing member details including: Meeting notes, portal details, training references. Summit/affiliate organization like, brainstorm speakers, mission statements, and important links. So far, I can’t think of too many organizational needs I haven’t been able to do with Trello. 
You can take a look for yourself for free. Just got to the link provided at firstcuptoclose.com/2
If you have questions about any of the details I’ve shared today, don’t hesitate to email me! I’ll be glad to help!
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So here we are! Episode 1 of Ditch the Drift and I’m leading with some of my favorite business tools. 
 
Raise your hand if you’re a budget savvy business owner. 
 
Are you also looking to grow your team? 
 
The tools I’m going to share with you today will cost you nadda and they are perfect for staying organized AND growing your team if you’re ready for that. 
 
First, I want to say that it’s hard to set up the kind of systems and organization without these free tools so let’s dive!
 
We are going to talk about:
Trello Google Drive Facebook  
 
Trello  
This is my go-to organizational tool. I use Trello to organize my entire business and teach others to do the same all the time. 
First, it’s free! I can’t remember a time I’ve paid for anything on Trello. If you’re a budget conscious entrepreneur like I am, this is the tool for you.
Here are some highlights about Trello I share in this episode:  
Like using sticky notes If you’re still using pen and paper, you’ll love transitioning to Trello Due dates are ESSENTIAL! Easy sharing with the whole team It’s just one of those tools you can use to setup your business for growth and scaling from the very beginning!
 
Google Drive  
Having a business specific cloud where you can share your files is imperative. 
Remember when you used to have to send files through email and HOPE you had the most up to date file?
 
That’s all over with your cloud and I like Google Drive. It’s free up to 15 GB of data. After that it’s totally worth it to upgrade, but it’s not an immediate expense.
 
As your team grows, everyone needs to be on the same page… literally. 
 
Easy Systems Tip: Take 5 minutes a day to organize your online files. 
If you’ve been in business for a while, some of those files are collecting cloud dust and are no use to you if you can't find them. 
Use these steps to stay organized: 
Every workday set a timer for 5 minutes and organize the files in your cloud (Dropbox, Google Drive... your desktop even!) To remember to do this task every workday, set a recurring reminder at the same time EACH WORKDAY during a time where you can stop and focus on this task. When organizing files, make higher-level files then subfiles inside.
For example, 2020 > Products > {Name of Product}. Facebook One last FREE tool for your business. That’s Facebook.

Social media platforms are used by 1 in 3 people in the world with Facebook as the lead social media platform. 
With all the changes, it’s still one of the best places to support your current clients AND find new leads (without having to pay to be on the platform).
Some of my clients say they don’t want to be on Facebook because it’s too distracting and can kill productivity. Both CAN be true, but doesn’t have to be. I’m sharing in this episode my #1 FREE tool to stay productive on Facebook.
The other resource I use to keep from falling into the rabbit hole that is Facebook is to time block. Set a time. Go to Facebook for a specific purpose and stay focused while you are there. 
TRAIN yourself to know when you are getting off track and pivot back to your main focus when you do. 
There are billions of people on Facebook so use that as a place to connect with new leads for free and support your clients in private groups!
Of course there are plenty of ways to use paid tools and everything I’ve share with you in this episode can be upgraded to something free. BUT you can start with something FREE first. 
If you have questions about any of the tools I’ve shared today, don’t hesitate to email me! I’ll be glad to help!
 
Subscribe & Review in iTunes
Are you subscribed to my podcast? If you’re not, I want to encourage you to do that today. I don’t want you to miss an episode. Click here to subscribe in iTunes!
If you’re feeling the love, I would be so grateful if you left me a review on iTunes as well. Those

Ditch the Drift is for the entrepreneur with a passion for their craft. Whether you are brand new to business or a thriving business owner, you’ll find resources you can use here. 
A lot of the time I find that business owners find themselves wandering through their workday with a to-do list that seems never ending and they are worried they should be further along in their business by now… or aren’t sure if the little “hobby” they have created will really ever amount to something lucrative. 
If this is you, then you’re in the right place. It’s time to ditch the drift in your business and find your way.  
This podcast is dedicated to helping you find your true north with a solid foundation in your business through organization and systems.  
Each week I’ll share practical organizational tips you can implement in your business within minutes without feeling overwhelmed so that you can reach your goals of growing and scaling with ease. 
Thanks so much for joining me and have an awesome and productive day!