Not too long ago, my superhero (okay, my personal trainer) said: "It's not the motivation that's failing you; it's your system that's failing you."

So I put her theory to the test; here's what happened.

Obviously, that's a fact I should know, right? I mean, I live and breathe systems every day, so why is it that when it's personal to us, we don't recognise a system failure and only see a personal motivational failure?

Because we're in the failure, we're not on the outside looking in.

Like a personal trainer to their client. They can see the small habits, the gaps, and the things preventing them from reaching their goals. In my case, I'm the personal trainer to my clients and see the small habits, the gaps and the processes that prevent them from reaching their business goals.

When you're working in your own business, it can be really hard to step back from administration and workflows to see what's preventing you from the next step. Not because you're ignorant or blind, but because you're too focused on other tasks or busy putting out spot fires.

The outside glance can see the broken links and the missing nuts and bolts of the machine that are causing the system to fail. Whether it's in the setup, process or a step that no one thought to include. These things can be so small they're easily missed.

Don't blame yourself for that because it's the most common reason I'm contracted to work with a client.

A system isn't just made by a checklist or a workflow sitting in a branded document on your computer. It's a combination of tools, software, people, checklists, processes, procedures, reports, automations and workflows that assist in getting you to a very specific end goal or result.

So, the big question is, how do you find where the breakdown is among all those things? The answer is time, testing, testing, a little more testing (take a big sip of coffee), then do more testing.

And that right there is why the clients who sign an agreement are hiring me.

They don't have the time to go into a black hole of software reports to find why they can't get the exact report they want. And I say black hole, because that's where it takes me sometimes. I find other system failures, or other workflows that aren't directly connected to the current issue but may be causing other system failures.

And just like that, we've gone down our own black hole of system failure.

I also apologise if this has triggered a stressor about a failing system or a breakdown in your business that you're already aware of.

Hot tip incoming!

If you can afford the time, start reviewing your system from its foundation, slowly. There's a good chance you already know where the failure is. Like if you know there's a more direct or easier way to do something, start there.

It might take you an hour or two to do some research or set up the workflow, but if it's going to lead to guaranteed success or save you time in the long run, are those two hours worth it?

Once I saw the failure in my personal training system, I put a fix in place to test the result, which led to great success. Now the hardest part is making the fix permanent to prevent ongoing system failure.

And that's probably my biggest takeaway.

Regardless of how smooth or perfectly oiled your machine is, it's still prone to breakdown. Because software gets upgraded. Personnel change. Life happens.

So service the system regularly. And if you don't have time, get someone to do it for you. Get a personal trainer; an admin assistant; a business support. The small investment will lead to big results, maybe even better than your expectations.

Now, if you'll excuse me, I've got a system to keep testing and reporting on, oh and my coffee's gone cold.

Until the coffee runs out and the chaos returns,

Chrissie ☕