Emylee here. Words like “systems”, “audits”, “workflows”, “processes” and “checklists” - they can either make the extreme Type A person rejoice and ask for more or they can make the whimsical creative clam up and cringe.

Here at Think Creative Collective, part of “thinking creative” is to put on the business hat every once in awhile so we can check in with our growth and sustainability. And that’s exactly what a systems audit does for you.

Cut through the clutter in every form of your life and make this your most productive year yet. This is not another KonMari manifesto (although you totally should read that book!), it's a no BS, start-now kind of system for making your business work for you, not the other way around. You've got this, lady. 

When you begin to treat your business like a business, things start to shift. It’s really simple. If you’re still treating your business like a “hobby” or “side hustle” it will only ever be one of those things. Even if your business isn’t exactly where you want or need it to be today you can still treat it like it’s on its way to getting there. Just because your business hasn’t reached the figure you want it to (yet!) doesn’t mean you can’t treat it like it’s the next best thing since the dollar section at Target! Here are the ways we treat our jobs like the big biz they are.

You’ve tried planners, apps, notebooks, post-it notes and even set up entire walls of “organization” in order to master your productivity. Babe, quit trying so hard. You just need to know your productivity spirit animal and you will be set for life. You’ll know the environment you thrive in, where you get stuck and what you should do next.

But first, it only seemed right that we arm you with a few tips to get more done right away!

You pour hours and hours of hard work into your latest content, course, product or service only to wonder, “what if someone steals this and sells it as their own? Can you contact them and ask them to remove it? What if they don’t take it down? Or what if they’ve been selling it as their own and making money off it?”

Or you’re 3 months into a 6-month service contract with a client when they suddenly change their credit card number and bails. Now what? You were relying on that money coming in and can’t afford to just let it go. But you didn’t have them sign anything, so how can you hold them accountable?

Success itself is arbitrary. It doesn’t mean you make a certain amount of money or have reached a level of fame. It is self defined. Success to me may not mean what success is to you at all. The thing about success, however, is that regardless of what you are seeking, there are always people seeking answers. “How do I get there?” There being the magical location where it all seems to fall into place.

People tend to ask those they view as successful, “How did you do it?” They assume that if they take the same steps, or follow the same path, they too will get there. Well, I am about to tell you that there is no answer, and there is no magic pill or pre-charted course. Success is made up of all the minute decisions that begin to add up. The small choices that make a radical change.

We all wish we could snap our fingers and have that list of to-dos magically turn into a list of things we’ve accomplished. Sometimes we are so knee deep in the muck of it all that it’s super hard to clearly see the next steps that need to be taken. In the same way you might go through your house and separate items into 3 piles – Keep, Donate and Trash – I believe tasks in your business should be divided up as well, helping you to tackle them in the most productive way possible.