How to Transform Your Productivity with Strategic Action Planning

Are you constantly busy but still feel stuck, like your hard work isn’t moving you closer to your goals? 

It’s time to change that. In this episode, we tackle Step Three of the POWER in Motion Framework: Work On the Plan. This step is all about turning big-picture goals into small, strategic actions that actually lead to success.

Discover how to streamline processes like client onboarding by documenting procedures, identifying inefficiencies, and automating workflows. I’ll share a client success story where these strategies saved her hours each week and transformed her back office. Plus, we’ll uncover common pitfalls like overcomplicating tasks and feeling paralyzed when you don’t know where to start.

You’ll walk away with insights to focus on one area at a time, ensuring you make progress without overwhelm. This episode is packed with practical steps to refine your processes, reclaim your time, and build momentum toward your goals.

Ready to transform your productivity? Tune in now, grab your free Biz Ops Checklist, and check below for more resources, including how to book an SOP Efficiency Check for a personalized video review of one process. Let’s get to work!

1:40 - Why you need the BizOps Checklist to fill in the gaps in your back office and get you moving forward

2:42 - Let’s talk about breaking free from busywork and focusing on real progress

4:00 - Learn how clarity and strategy can turn your goals into real results

6:42 - Hear how one client transformed her business by tackling her onboarding chaos with simple systems

9:20 - Learn how the power of three can keep you focused, productive, and far away from burnout

10:35 - We talk about why staying stuck in chaos is draining your energy and how planning can set you free

References Mentioned In This Episode:

Episode 194 - How To Elevate Your Operations And Become Unstuck And Empowered

Grab the FREE Biz Ops Checklist

Book Your SOP Efficiency Check today!

Leave a Rating and Review: https://ratethispodcast.com/mindyourtime

Resources Mentioned In This Episode:

Check Out The MY-T Society Membership

Listen to My Free Audio Masterclass

Schedule a 20 Minute Chat with Me

Let’s connect online:

Follow Me On Instagram: @the_shannonbaker

Chapters

• 0:00 Working on the Plan
• 13:57 Streamlining Your Back Office

Transcript

Speaker 1: 0:00

If you've been following along with the Power in Motion Framework series, you know we've already covered steps one and two. Pick one goal and organize your operation. These steps are foundational and they set the stage for everything that we're talking about this episode and the next few forward. So if you missed that episode, I highly recommend you pause here and go back and listen so you don't miss any critical steps. I put a link to the episode in the show notes. Now, for those of you who have been following along, welcome back, because today we're moving on to step three, work on the plan. This is where things start to get real. It's the point where you figure out the actions you're going to take, but doing it in a way that's intentional and strategic. So I'm going to walk you through how to break your goal into small, actionable steps, share some of my own experiences with this stage of the process and tell you about a client who used this step to make a major transformation in her business, because I want you to be able to do the same thing.

Speaker 1: 0:58

Welcome to the Mind your Time podcast. I'm Shannon Baker, your coffee-loving host and business strategist. Each week, I will share practical insights and bold strategies for six figure entrepreneurs looking to clean up their back office and create streamlined systems. The weekly episodes will help you take control of your time, scale your business and create success on your own terms. So grab your cup of coffee or your favorite beverage and let's dive into today's topic. So in the past few episodes I have been talking about my signature process power in motion, and today I'm going to be continuing that conversation, but we're going to focus on step three work on the plan. Now, at this point of the process, you should have set a clear goal that's meaningful and measurable for you and your business, and, if you're a member of the Mighty Society membership, the 90-day goal setting worksheets are a great resource that you can use for this step. Everyone should have definitely grabbed a copy of the BizOps checklist by now and completed an audit of your back office. That really is the first step that you can take on your own, for free, to get your operations in order so that you can start to build a strong foundation that supports your goal. Now, if you have not grabbed that checklist yet and completed it, I definitely need you to hit the pause button, click the link in the show notes and grab a copy. It's a fillable PDF that you can complete in less than two minutes, but even though you can do it quickly, it's going to give you insight into the gaps that exist in your back office right now, so that you can create a plan that allows you to fill in those gaps, because they are going to negatively impact your ability to achieve your goal.

Speaker 1: 2:42

Now, before we get into this step, let me ask you a question. How often do you end the day wondering what you actually accomplished? Maybe you checked off a bunch of things that you did, but none of them have anything to do with helping you get closer to your goal. I've been there. It's frustrating, right, and it's so easy to fall into this cycle of being busy but not productive and definitely not making any progress. Again, I've been there. It's happened to me in the past and I'm pretty confident that it's going to happen to me again in the future. It's really a part of the growth process.

Speaker 1: 3:19

When I first started my business, I really thought that being busy meant I was being productive. I would work eight to nine hours a day at my day job and I was working full time. Come home, help my daughter with any homework that was left cook dinner and after we ate, I would flip the laptop open and spend hours working on client emails, looking for files or trying to remember where I left off with a project the night before. By the end of the day, I will be exhausted, but I didn't feel any closer to achieving my goals, and the truth is, none of that chaos that I created was helping me grow my business in a sustainable way. It was really just keeping me stuck in the weeds and spinning my wheels.

Speaker 1: 4:00

That is exactly why having a plan matters. I know you've heard this before A goal without a plan is just a wish. Without a good plan, you're just reacting to whatever feels urgent in the moment. And this is what happens when you don't have space to be intentional or strategic. And you definitely can't be proactive without a clear goal, without operations to support that goal and without a good strategy or plan. So let's break this down and talk about what it actually means to work on the plan. So, simply put, it starts with clarity. You have to know what you're working towards. That's why step one of the Power In Motion framework is for you to pick one goal, and it has to be the right goal, based on the season in your life, because if you pick the wrong goal, even having a plan will not matter. Now again, let me remind you if you skip that episode, I need you to go back and listen to it, because everything else that we're going to talk about it builds from there. A link to that episode is in the show notes.

Speaker 1: 5:03

Now, once you have the right goal and you've completed an audit of your back office operations with the BizOps checklist, the next step is to create a plan with small, actionable steps. Think of these as bite-sized pieces that are easy to tackle, that won't leave you feeling overwhelmed. Here's an example If your goal is to streamline your client onboarding process, you might start by breaking it down into smaller steps, like documenting your current processes or the current process, audit that process, identify inefficiencies, choose tools to automate your workflows and then create templates for client communication. Now, each of these steps is manageable on its own and together they're going to get you closer to your goal. But here's where people get stuck they overcomplicate things, they try to tackle everything at once, or they just don't know where to start. So if that's you answer this question what's one area of your business that feels messy or chaotic right now. Maybe it's your onboarding process, maybe it's your digital filing system Could be. You need help figuring out how to manage your schedule, whatever it is. I want you to take a deep breath and remind yourself that you don't have to fix everything all at once. Pick one thing, create a plan, start small Again. That is where the BizOps checklist can help you. This free resource was designed to help you audit your back office operations and identify areas that need attention, and you can pick which ones are most urgent. It's quick, simple and will give you a clear roadmap for what you need to work on to move forward.

Speaker 1: 6:42

So let me share a story about one of my clients and how this checklist can help. When she came to me, she was feeling completely overwhelmed by her business. Her processes were in her head, like most people that I work with, and the biggest pain point was her client onboarding process, because it was a total mess. She had no system in place and every new client meant hours of manual work. And this was a huge issue in her business, because sometimes she has to onboard multiple clients at one time because of the nature of her business. So imagine onboarding two to three new clients and having to recreate the wheel each time. She was constantly missing something and it was taking a toll on her mentally and physically because she was losing sleep thinking about what she forgot to do.

Speaker 1: 7:30

So we started with having her complete the BizOps checklist. This gave us a clear picture of what wasn't working in her business and then, based on her goal, we identified what she needed to focus on first. So we reviewed her results together and she decided to book an SOP efficiency check to get my eyes on her onboarding process and get even more clarity. During that session, I pinpointed very specific inefficiencies and laid out a simple plan of action that she could take. It included things like choose a project management tool like mondaycom or something else, creating project templates, developing reusable message templates and there are a ton of them available inside of the Mighty Society membership that you can customize for your business and even automating intake forms, because they can be rinse and repeat. Within a few weeks, she was on her way to having a streamlined system that saved her hours every month, and it made her clients feel more cared for and she looked more professional.

Speaker 1: 8:35

Now imagine what that kind of transformation could do for your business. What would it feel like to have a plan in place or process in place that actually works, and then have a plan that saves you time and energy instead of draining the life out of you? One of the biggest lessons I've learned is that you don't have to do this alone, and you shouldn't have to waste time searching Google or YouTube to find the resources that you need, and that's one of the reasons that I created the Mighty Society membership. It's packed with resources to help you implement systems, templates you can customize and workflows that you can make your own, but all of it together will make your business operate more efficiently, and on top of that, you get access to live masterclass sessions where we can troubleshoot and refine your processes together.

Speaker 1: 9:20

Here's another thing you need to keep in mind once you create your plan, you have to set realistic timelines. How often have you started working on a project only to abandon it halfway through because it just felt too big or it was overwhelming? That usually happens because we're trying to do too much at one time. That's why I always tell my clients to focus on the power of three. Just set three goals at one time. Just pick three things to complete each week. This keeps you focused and prevents you from burning out.

Speaker 1: 9:52

So here's a practical example. Let's say one of your tasks is to organize your digital filing system. That could be a huge job right Now. Of course, I can tackle this for you in a power week. But if you decide you want to try this on your own, instead of trying to do it all at once in one sitting, break it into smaller chunks so you can focus on one folder or one category at a time, but make sure you set a timer for 30 minutes and when that timer goes off, you stop, you celebrate what you accomplished and you move on to the next thing. These small steps add up and they will give you the momentum you need to keep going, and do not forget to celebrate the small wins as you make progress.

Speaker 1: 10:35

But let's talk about what happens if you don't have a plan. Well, simply put, you stay stuck in chaos, you waste time trying to figure out what to do next and you lose energy because you're spinning your wheels. I've seen it happen time and time again. Without a clear plan, progress feels impossible. So let's recap what we've covered today.

Speaker 1: 10:55

Working on the plan is about refining a simple plan and taking consistent, aligned action. So start small by breaking your goals into actionable steps, and use a tool like the BizOps checklist to identify what process needs your attention first. Stay focused by working in manageable chunks and remember progress is about momentum, not perfection. And don't forget if digital clutter is one of the things that's holding you back. A power week can help you reclaim your time and your energy, and I do the heavy lifting for you.

Speaker 1: 11:33

Now, before I let you go, I have a challenge for you, one. I want you to download the BizOp checklist and set aside 15 minutes to complete it and really evaluate your results. Then identify one area of your business that you're going to focus on and create an action plan with three simple steps. If you're ready to dig deeper into your operations and get actionable feedback tailored to your goals, then book an SOP efficiency check with me. I will give you a detailed video of that one process and highlight the inefficiencies that exist and give you clear steps to not only improve it, but streamline it. Now I only have a limited number of spots available each month, so don't wait. Check out the link in the show notes and reserve your spot today, and if you need ongoing support, you're welcome to join us inside of the Mighty Society membership. That's where you'll find resources, templates, get access to the live masterclasses and all other things, including me, to help you refine your systems and keep your momentum going.

Speaker 1: 12:39

Now, next week, we're going to get into step number four, which is execute the plan. If you've ever struggled to stay consistent, you don't want to miss it. But if this episode really resonated with you, help me, help others, share it with a friend who needs to hear it. But also let me know what you're going to do. First, dm me on Instagram at the underscore, shannon Baker. But don't forget to grab the free Biz Ops checklist. The link is in the show notes. And until next week, keep working on your plan, keep streamlining and keep living your legacy. Thank you for tuning in this week.

Speaker 1: 13:20

Remember, just listening to this episode will not get you better results. So I challenge you to break the mold and take action today. If you're unsure where to start, book a call with me to get your questions answered about the Mighty Society membership or anything else that I mentioned. A link to my calendar is in the show notes. Not ready to take that step yet? No problem, be sure to connect with me on Instagram at the underscore Shannon Baker. You can ask me your questions there or let me know that you enjoyed the episode by taking a screenshot, sharing it and tagging me.

Speaker 1: 13:57

Now, if you haven't already grabbed my free audio masterclass, why don't you just start there? It's a great first step to assess your back office on your own, and this masterclass provides valuable insights and practical steps to help you organize your processes, reduce chaos and improve efficiency. Go to theshannonbakercom. Forward slash audio masterclass Now. If you haven't left a review for the podcast yet, please do so. I would love to hear from you, and it's an easy way to show some love to the podcast and help me reach more small business owners who are ready to defy the status quo. I can't wait to hear from you. So until next time, keep calm and streamline.