How To Systematically Scale To Category Queen Status

Imagine every time you sit down to create a piece of content, you already know that there will be a hungry audience waiting to follow the call-to-action you are getting ready to sound.

Imagine for a moment that there are living breathing parents of other tiny people that don’t just hang on your every word but make life-changing decisions based on your content.

What would it look and feel like to know that every word would make a very real difference?

How would it change the way you thought and felt about your work, your power, and your abilities when it comes to creating impact at scale?

When you wake up as a Category Queen one day (if you haven’t already) you will no longer have to worry about things like lead generation or if your prices are too high because you will always have a line around the block for your offers. But you will have to worry about being consistent, protecting the quality of your work, and ensuring that you deliver what you promise at scale.

The only way to do any of that is systems.

We have already discussed at length the role that systems play on your creativity levels but today we are going to take a comprehensive look at how to leverage systems in ways you’ve never considered to scale your services without raising your rates, taking on more clients, compromising your quality to serve mass quantity or becoming removed from your audience.

Warning: if you prefer to stay comfortable and play small to make other people happy that is your right but this money-making, mindset-shifting post will be a waste of your time because these systems are catalysts for lasting and sustainable growth.

The Bad Bitch Benefits Of Being A Category Queen

There is no denying that being a category queen of any niche comes with responsibility but boy does it come with some sexy AF perks too! Here are just a few of the benefits that I experienced and you can fantasize about in anticipation of your rise to the throne:

• You get to cherry-pick your clients and projects because there are so many inbound leads it will be impossible to do them all.
• You can get paid more hourly than doctors and lawyers
• You get offered cool collaborations
• You get sponsorship and influencer deals
• You get invited to speak to exciting audiences in amazing venues
• Your message makes a tangible difference at scale whenever you hit publish

Those are seriously just a few of the perks and we could be here forever if we went through them all but by now I’m pretty sure you understand the urge to never have to worry about lead generation or traffic.

But if you’re anything like most of the people I have worked with that are already established and struggling to scale their service-based business, the first true pleasure you will experience is getting to fire all the vampire clients that are sucking your time, energy and motivation out of you. Just imagine how good that is going to feel to get your worst clients off your back once and for all!

Why We Struggle So Much With Sticking To Our Systems

The biggest reason that systems fail is a lack of commitment on our part to actually use and maintain them.

In fact, many of the women that hire me as their creative business coach to so just because they have so much internal torment around applying systems in their business and I totally empathize.

In fact, one of the ways that I help myself avoid giant rabbit holes is to ask myself before I consider making a purchase how that thing will operationally impact all of my systems. Saves a ton of cash!

9 Types Of Systems Every Category Queen Needs To Claim Her Throne

Again, one of the reasons so many women avoid implementing systems is that they can sound intimidating, time-consuming to set up or overwhelming. The funny thing about it is that they actually create stone-cold confidence and clarity while saving you enormous amounts of time but only if you can being implementing them one at a time…you know…systematically.

Here is a short list of the most important systems to focus on in the beginning:

1. Systems for Mindset Management

The first systems you should create for both your life and your business are systems for managing your mindset. For example, establishing a morning and evening routine incorporating time for mindfulness, such as meditation, reflection journaling, and affirmations. Starting with a simple routine you can consistently follow is an excellent way to build up more confidence in your ability to commit to a system long-term and strengthen your self-trust.

2. Systems for Self Care

It’s a funny thing about Queens, they love decadence but tend to only allow themselves to have it as a reward for extended periods of self-deprivation in the name of achievement chasing, and taking care of loved ones. It’s for this reason that I am so insistent that any woman in her Queen Season of life have a rock-solid system for self-care that nourishes her enough to allow her to achieve her dreams and be seen for the beautiful soul she is underneath those achievements.

3. Systems for Research & Development

I’ve coached hundreds of entrepreneurs over the last eight years, and I am fascinated by their love-hate relationship with research and development. When I think of this phase, I am often reminded of the swamp scene from The Never Ending Story, where our protagonist loses his beloved companion because the comparison traps operate much like that swamp did. But without proper research and development (especially offer validation), it will be impossible to scale so you have to implement a standardized process for this hurdle. Don’t be afraid to outsource this along with your customer service as your first VA tasks because it will go a long way to protect your mindset and other systems.

4. Systems for Strategic Planning

It sounds silly to say you should create a system for creating systems, but that’s exactly what you should do. I like to think of strategies as plans or blueprints, which is why I have converted hundreds of my tutorials and roadmaps and bestselling strategies into planners, which operate as my system for specific tasks. For example, let’s say I wanted to write a business plan for a freelance writer in the graphic design SAAS niche. I have my Scale with Sirenity Business Planner, which walks you through a repeatable system for writing that plan.

5. Systems for Brand Development

Developing a living-breathing brand that people look forward to interacting with and enjoy building an engaged community around doesn’t happen by accident. It requires consistency. It requires intention. It requires systems. One of my favorite ways to systemize my branding is by investing in building out by Brand Hubs, Brand Folders and Brand Templates in Canva so that I can keep a cohesive and consistent feeling across all of my collections fo planners, templates, tools, etc.

6. Systems for Marketing & Sales

This is probably the biggest no-brainer on the list of must-have systems for any business. If you don’t have a system for generating revenue and income you probably won’t have a viable business for long. This is probably the area of your business where you will have the highest volume of systems because there are just so many strategies and methods and software solutions that are constantly evolving based on how tech progresses.

7. Systems for Digital Asset Management

One of the biggest ways that creative service providers like course creators, clip art creators, graphic designers, and photographers sell themselves short is by mismanaging their digital assets. Why? Because I believe that many of them are clueless about just how valuable their files are and because having a digital empire feels different than a brick-and-mortar store with physical products so it doesn’t occur to them that they are essentially the same thing. So if you are one of my photography clients and we are getting ready to scale your business by building you a membership site where you deliver weekly drops of niche stock photos and templates, every single stock photo you take is a renewable asset with infinite earning potential that needs to be properly cataloged, organized and added to your inventory (systematically).

8. Systems for Managing Clients

At the end of the day, you can only scale so far when you keep taking 1:1 clients and that’s okay, Queen. But whether you have one or a dozen 1:1 clients, you need a system to keep you calm and confident while selling, onboarding, nurturing, and supporting your clients. So much of this can be easily automated with things like email campaigns or Zen Desk but what matters is that you have a system that removes you from the most negative components of customer service and client management as soon as possible because they are the biggest drain on a creative solopreneur.

8. Systems for Managing Clients

At the end of the day, you can only scale so far when you keep taking 1:1 clients and that’s okay, Queen. But whether you have one or a dozen 1:1 clients, you need a system to keep you calm and confident while selling, onboarding, nurturing, and supporting your clients. So much of this can be easily automated with things like email campaigns or Zen Desk but what matters is that you have a system that removes you from the most negative components of customer service and client management as soon as possible because they are the biggest drain on a creative solopreneur.

9. Systems For Managing The Money

Once you get really good at generating inbound leads, sales of your evergreen offers and affiliate income so that you’re hedging your risks no matter what the market does, you have to implement systems for protecting and allocating money. Systems for accounting, reporting and taxes are the most obvious money management systems but you could also include any charitable efforts, budgeting and payroll.

Now that you have a better idea of how important systems are to your business and what areas of your business to focus on building systems daily, let’s dive into the most common mistakes that most entrepreneurs make when it comes to creating systems.

The 7 Deadly Sins Of Creating Systems

As always, there are some common pitfalls that can prevent you from enjoying the success that you deserve when it comes to systemizing and scaling your service-based business. It is always my goal to help you not only anticipate obstacles but confidently troubleshoot them with curiosity and patience. So get ready for the 7 mistakes that spell certain death for your systems:

1. Not Committing To Them

If you aren’t going to commit to actually integrating, sticking to, and maintaining a system then creating it is a waste of time. However, if you do make a commitment to yourself to implement a small and simple system, it can help you ignite a positive feedback loop that allows you to begin developing the self-trust you need to stay committed. Remember, when it comes to committing it isn’t about trying it’s a decision to do it with conviction.

2. Making Them Complicated

Sometimes we fear systems because we fear the complicated and we have created a story in our minds that systems are some big time-consuming and sophisticated thing but odds are the more simple you make them the more successful you will be with them. Systems aren’t about making your business look and feel sophisticated; they’re about empowering and liberating you.

3. Not Including The Team

One of the biggest mistakes I see executive teams and entrepreneurs make when it comes to implementing a new system is failing to integrate feedback from the team. Typically, one system feeds into another and another so it’s extremely helpful to have insights from multiple departments shed light on how one system will improve or impact another. Plus, these are the people that are actually using the systems daily so they have the right to have their feedback considered. You don’t have to implement everything or allow too many cooks in the kitchen but collecting feedback before narrowing down the most valuable insights can save a fortune in wasted time, software subscriptions, and payroll.

4. Creating Them With Rigidity

Rigid systems suck and you (or your team) will eventually rebel against them. There are moments where strict rules make a positive difference but eliminate them whenever possible to make way for more flexibility, risk-taking, and confidence in your team. One of the reasons Facebook grew as fast as it did was Zucks’ “move fast and break shit” philosophy that encouraged his team to leverage their existing models and systems to constantly evolve and grow and challenge the ideas of what was possible. Consider that as you rule over your systems from your category queen throne.

5. Reinventing The Wheel

Overwhelmed by the idea of creating systems for every area of your business? You don’t have to! You can implement done-for-you systems that just need a few tweaks to make sense for your business that are proven to work so you don’t have to keep starting from scratch. I have hundreds of done-for-you systems to walk you and your team through everything form mindset to marketing and everything in between and there are thousands on the interwebs. The point is you don’t have to sit through some big long course on how to write and implement new systems in your business, you can start right this second so no excuses.

6. Avoiding Automation

Since the primary perk of systemizing is conserving time and resources, it blows my mind how hard it can be for many of us to embrace automation but at the same time, I really get it too. When I was waiting tables as a teenager I HATED having food runners because it disrupted my flow and I always felt like I was forgetting something. That feeling came back when I began playing with automation.

7. Clinging To Control

Control is a tricky paradox for the leader of any company or team. You have to maintain enough control to lead with efficiency and meet your goals but you can’t do that unless you release enough control to allow your team, tools, and systems to empower you the way they intend. Clinging to control over exactly how things are done or micromanaging will never be in your best interest so the sooner you can challenge yourself to start growing your surrender muscles the better. The more trust you place in your team (starts with you getting vulnerable) the easier it will be for them to rise to every challenge and keep raising the bar in the name of your mission.

If you’re anything like myself, and most of the powerful women that hired me your first instinct, might be to guilt, or shame yourself for a lack of systems in your business, but hold up! Because the reality is, I guarantee that you have already created, at least a handful of Microsystems throughout your business that you aren’t even aware of at the moment.

Any time that we carry guilt and shame around a certain area of our business we begin avoiding it.

*Cue the productive procrastination triggering more guilt and shame

But here’s the thing…

I would be willing to bet that you actually already do have at least a few systems established in your business although you may not think of them that way.

In fact, I think part of the reason many women are so scared to approach systems is that they sound like a complex web of tasks that require extreme attention to detail and software.

The reality is a system is (ideally) a simple, streamlined, and clear set of standard tasks for recurring results. So if you have a morning routine that you repeat daily to feel your best – that’s a system. So take a step back and a deep breathe and tell me…What is your biggest obstacle when it comes to scaling to category queen status using systems? Comment below for custom-tailored coaching.