I’m just gonna say it; your system isn’t the number one thing holding you back from success in your creative business – your self-sabotage is.

You end up in situations that add out-of-scope work to your schedule and convince you to cross your own boundaries with clients because you’re systems aren’t protecting your time or your boundaries.

Not sure what I’m talking about? Lemme paint you a picture:

😬 You feel more dread than excitement when you get a new lead, scrambling to reply to them and catch ’em before they run off to work with someone else;

😖 You say “yes” to client requests that are out of your scope and shame yourself if you stand firm in your boundaries;

😭 You spend so much time chasing leads and clients, going back and forth in the DM’s email or, God forbid – text, that you don’t have time to do anything more than maintain your business.

Let’s talk about how to put all those unsustainable operations practices to rest for once and for all to stop sabotaging your success as a creative visionary. I’m gonna break down the overarching reasons these issues are showing up in your biz and the best ways to turn things around before you sabotage yourself into full-fledged burnout.

❤️‍🔥 BE UNAPOLOGETICALLY PASSIONATE ❤️‍🔥

When you drop everything time and time again to do things you don’t want, or need to do, you’re reinforcing that those things are more important than your role as a creative visionary. Instead of being beholden to a running task list of people to email and tasks to do, you need some boundaries to protect your creative passion.

Consider your systems part of your brand

Stay aligned to your why in your biz and the things that light you up. Your systems are a crucial part of your brand that reflects your values and personality to attract clients who genuinely vibe with you. When you have a system that supports you in committing to your passion, you draw in the right audience with your authenticity and creativity.

Create some basic checklists to help you deliver the same quality service every time. When you develop a consistent, on-brand experience, you build client trust and loyalty. That translates to glowing testimonials and referrals to more aligned leads because all your clients know the value of working with you beyond your creative output.

Beef up your onboarding process

If you find that your clients are hesitant to interact with the project management space you’ve created for them, orient them to the platform in your onboarding process. That can look like walking through it with them on your first official project call or creating a quick tutorial showing them the ropes.

The best way to have a mutually enjoyable project experience is to empower your client to be a collaborator instead of waiting on you to tell them what to do or give them updates. When you demystify your systems for them, they feel more capable of showing up in the ways you need them to in order to do your best work.

Stop wasting time on the small stuff

Automation is a game-changer in allowing you to focus on what truly matters—your creativity. Make sure you take full advantage of tools and systems that streamline repetitive tasks like scheduling, invoicing, and follow-up emails. When you approach those ongoing time-sucks strategically, you can shift the use of that time to fanning the flames of your creativity with inspiration and innovation as you invest more energy and time into growing as a creative visionary.

List out all the day-to-day tasks in your biz that can be automated, like appointment scheduling, invoice reminders, and email responses. Then, take a look at the integrations and functions of the platform you’re already using to see how you can automate those tasks. Whether you’re focusing on client experience, project management or operations efficiency, the platforms you use are the place to find easy-to-use automations and integrations and start saving time ASAP.

🫂 MAKE INTENTIONAL CONNECTIONS 🫂

Instead of coming to clients with whatever energy you have that day, use systems to stay consistent with your people and give them an on-brand, supportive client experience every time. Mailing templates, email automation and audience segmentation are great ways to keep your messaging on-brand, avoid forgetting key info and empower your clients at the perfect moment in every project.

Add value with automated messaging

I’m gonna put this myth to bed right now, responding to someone manually does not automatically add value just because you typed two sentences in “your voice.” What adds way more value is an automated message or template in your voice that allows you to deliver timely and important info, complete with relevant calls to action to leads and clients while saving as much time as possible.

Set up automated emails to make onboarding, follow-ups, and project updates as intentional as possible. This saves you time AND creates a cohesive client experience that allows clients to rely on you more without feeling the need to check in on their own.

Get people out of the DMs and into your system

Do you find yourself fielding leads and clients in the DMs more often than not? Try using Manychat to funnel those leads directly to your contact form with a button in the DMs or an automated response if they send a certain word. That way, you can capture leads efficiently and move them through your sales funnel without all the manual back and forth.

By leveraging automation tools and strategies, you’ll not only streamline your communication process but build meaningful connections with your audience. Consistent and personalized interactions foster trust and loyalty, ultimately driving growth and success for your creative business.

😍 GET YOUR SELF-LOVE ON 😍

Working more efficiently means more time and energy to invest in personal and professional growth. I don’t mean just one time or “whenever you can fit it in“ – I mean consistently. When you aren’t strapped for time, energy, or money 💸 you can get passionate, take risks and expand your horizons – you know, the reasons you started your own biz in the first place.

Put your creative development and fulfillment first

You deserve to prioritize the things that light you up, both personally and professionally. Your systems should allow you to focus on filling up your cup so you can keep showing up as a passionate and authentic creative visionary. When you automate the repetitive and unsexy parts of your creative biz, you cut back on distractions that stand between you and your real objectives, whether it’s more clients, more free time, more cash or more creative exploration.

Let your systems support you

One of the best ways to fight self-sabotage in your business is to let your systems maintain the structure of your processes for you. Instead of compromising your values and priorities, use your processes like a riverbed to guide you and your clients through a supportive and empowering experience where you both come out of it happy. Use project management platforms to keep tasks and deadlines organized, to deliver to the best of your ability every time and give your clients confidence when working with you.

Stay Authentic!

There is no greater secret sauce than your style, personality and creative approach. Anyone who interacts with your brand should get the most genuine version of you and what you offer, whether you’re face to face or not. Structure and automation allow you to show up that way consistently, because you have a guide and support system reinforcing those special parts of working with you. Systems that reinforce your “hell yeses” and filter out your “hell nos” make you feel more confident as a creative. They also help your clients trust your process and act as collaborators toward the success of the project.

When you have strategic systems and processes in place, you take a lot of pressure off of yourself to people-please and prove yourself to clients. The way you structure your biz can do that for you, while you focus on doing what you do best as a creative. On your next CEO day, remember the big three above and identify what systems you can put in place to keep the self-sabotage to a minimum and feel more lit up than ever when you take on new clients.