If you’re like me, when you go to do your Christmas Shopping, it’s a bit like a military operation.You know what you want, where you’re going to get it, where you’re going to have a coffee, and how long you want it to take.

Of course when you get there, you get distracted…maybe by your other half or a friend who drags you into a shop you weren’t planning to go into…maybe by all the shiny objects around you…or maybe you have lunch instead of that quick coffee, with a glass of wine, or two…

As a result, you spend more money that you planned, it took longer than you planned and you’ve bought more shiny objects than you’d planned…usually for yourself!

You may well have enjoyed the expedition, but you’ve spent more time and energy than you wanted to…and you still have to get those presents.

It's a bit like running your business!

Nobody gets excited by ‘process and systems'…in fact if I say the words I usually see people’s eyes glaze over.  …and you'll probably stop reading about now!

But the truth is, most of us run our lives in a systematic way…we do things in the same way every day...we have a process for many of the things we do from the route we take to the office, to which sock we put on first. And we fine tune those systems to be as simple, as logical and as energy efficient as possible.We look to make things easier for ourselves.

The only reason to have a system is to make life easier.

Bizarrely though, we don’t always take the same thought process into our business.In fact, rather than simplifying the way things are done, we add complication, make things more difficult, and waste time, energy and money by the bucketload.

You do already have processes and systems in your business…you may know them simply as ‘the way we do things around here’. The truth is though, that if you are feeling overwhelmed by everything you have to get done, if you don’t trust your people and feel the need to check up on them, if you are indispensable in your business…then you haven’t taken the time to make these systems as simple, logical and energy efficient as possible.

As a former mentor so politely put it, ‘If things are crap in your business, it's because you have crap systems!’.

So, if December is a quiet month for you, use the breathing space to think about what is working in your business, and what isn’t.

Think about what frustrates you most, what takes longer than it should, what causes your team most problems, which area of your business is not achieving the results you expect.

Think about the areas of your business that are the biggest priority for you, and look at how logical your processes and procedures are in these areas.

Have you added in unnecessary steps?

Are you making your team, or your customers, jump through hoops to get from A to B?

Do you have silly rules or policies that just get in the way of your team doing a good job for you?

Get conscious about the systems you have in your business (and life generally), work out how you could simplify them and make them more logical, and set yourself up for an easier life in 2015.

…If you want simple, logical processes inyour business...if you get the What and want to know more about the How…then do pick up a copy of my bookProcess to Profit which shares a lot of info about setting up the systems you'll need…or, if you don't have time to read a book, please give me a call on 0203 189 1707, or drop me a line, and I’d be happy to talk through some options with you.

For more information on how MPL can help you visit www.mariannepage.co.uk or contact me on hello@mariannepage.co.uk

It’s been a tough old week this week…12 days long so far!  But it’s given me two really good reminders that I want to share with you.

The first is that overwhelm happens to everyone at some time or another.We all have our days where we feel completely swamped by how much we have on our plate, and the little time we have to get it all done.

I had two days like that this week…I’ve just started with a new big client, so obviously I want to make sure everything is just right for them…my new e book is at the final stages, so needs checking…the online version of my Systemise programme needs some final tweaks…the stuff I learned last weekend at the small business conference needs implementing…bills need paying…oh, and Christmas is just around the corner, and I’ve got the family coming!

Arghhhhh…debilitating! I didn’t seem able to get anything done effectively, because there was so much to do.

You know the feeling!

I needed to take myself in hand and remind myself what I teach other people about how to overcome overwhelm.

Do, Ditch or Delegate!

So I got out my blank sheet of paper and I wrote down everything that I believed I had to do, and by when.I looked at whether or not it really had to be done, and if it did whether it really had to be done by me, or if I could delegate it.

I realised that much of my pressure was self-imposed…that I’d given myself needlessly tight deadlines…that not everything I had to do needed to be created from scratch…much of the work was already done.

I crossed off everything that didn’t need to be done by Christmas.I dedicated some of the time I was spending on doing stuff that could be delegated, to finding someone to delegate to.I created my mind map of what absolutely had to be done before Christmas…a much smaller map than I’d started with…and I breathed again.

Having come through that temporary blip and enjoyed a very productive end to my week, I then gave myself the second reminder…

Reward is important.And when you’re the boss, no-one’s going to reward you…you have to reward yourself.

Remember the old saying, ‘all work and no play makes Jack a dull boy’?

Well my version is ‘all hard work and no reward for a job well done, makes Jill less motivated, and less at the top of her game for her next 12 day week!’

So here I am writing this in the lovely local surroundings of Harrold Country Park, enjoying a delicious bacon sandwich, grateful for the blip that sent me here.

How are you going to reward yourself this week?

For more information on how MPL can help you visit www.mariannepage.co.uk or contact me on hello@mariannepage.co.uk

Continuing the theme from last week's blog...it was McDonald's UK's 40th birthday last month.  40th? ...really?! Don't know about you, but it made me feel old!
Anyway...as a (rather talented, if I say so myself) ex burger flipper, I thought I'd mark the occasion by revisiting one of my favourite books - 'Grinding it Out', by McDonald's Founder, Ray Kroc.
It's a really good read, full of gems, and if you haven't read it, I highly recommend that you do.
There's a sentence fairly early on in the book that struck a chord with me, and may well resonate with you too.  It comes when Kroc is talking about his time as a ribbon salesmen, and how he became a big success by getting to know his customers and understanding what each individual needed.
'No self respecting pitcher throws the same to every batter', he says, 'and no self respecting [business owner] makes the same pitch to every client.'
Oops!
Talk about 'hitting home'!  That sentence really did, as I realised that I had been pitching the same ball to all of my clients for the last few months.
Ok, so I'm really passionate about what I do, and I want my clients to benefit from everything I have to offer - even when they don't want everything (ring a bell?).  Those words from Ray Kroc made me recognise that I've not been listening...or only half listening to my clients...letting my passion and enthusiasm cloud my judgement.
As a result I've not tailored my offer sufficiently to my clients needs...suggested that they invest in a meal at The Ivy, when what they were after was burger n fries.
And guess what the outcome has been?
Yup. Lost customers.
Expensive wake up call...but I get it now! My eyes are open and, more importantly, so are my ears...both of them!
Are yours?
For more information on how MPL can help you visit www.mariannepage.co.uk or contact me on hello@mariannepage.co.uk