Systems Reset Series: From Scrambling to Strategic — Your Next Step as a Consultant

What if the real reason you’re exhausted isn’t because you need more clients or more hours?

In this final episode of the Systems Reset Series, we pull everything together to help you take the next step to go from scrambling to strategic. We talk about why being great at what you do isn’t enough and how building strategic systems can turn constant chaos into calm. 

If you’ve been nodding along through this series, this episode is the bridge between awareness and action. This is the moment where everything you’ve learned comes together and you see exactly what it looks like to lead with structure and confidence.

Through real insights and clips from my conversation with Emani, you’ll see what happens when you finally stop reacting and start leading with clarity. 

Some of the things we discuss today:

01:24 – The real reason your skills alone can’t sustain growth and what it takes to move from scrambling to strategic.

03:28 – How Emani’s story of burnout shows that talent without systems leads to chaos and what she did to turn it around.

05:29 – Why onboarding isn’t just paperwork but your first act of leadership, and how a simple structure can change your entire client experience.

08:15 – The calendar and boundary reset every consultant needs to protect energy, prevent burnout, and reclaim control of their time.

12:01 – How to take your next step toward building strategic systems for consultants that create freedom, confidence, and a business that runs smoothly behind the scenes.

Related Episodes Mentioned:

EP 218 - Systems Reset Series: Being Great at What You Do Isn’t Enough (And That’s Not Your Fault)

EP 219 - Systems Reset Series: Your Client Onboarding Shouldn’t Be a Guessing Game

EP 220 - Systems Reset Series: Why a Messy Calendar Costs You More Than Time

Resources Mentioned:

⏰ Ready to see where your time is really slipping away?

The Boundary Reset Scorecard is a quick, fillable Google Doc you can complete online in under two minutes. It helps you spot the gaps in your boundaries ,from unclear office hours to unsynced calendars so you know exactly where your time is leaking and what to fix first.

🔧 Ready to turn those ❌’s into ✅’s?

 Join The Mind Your Time Society, your space for guided resets, copy-paste scripts, and a 90-Day Roadmap that makes boundaries stick. You’ll get the tools and support you need to reclaim your calendar, protect your energy, and finally feel in control of your time.

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

Chapters

• 1:24 The real reason your skills alone can’t sustain growth and what it takes to move from scrambling to strategic.
• 3:28 How Emani’s story of burnout shows that talent without systems leads to chaos—and what she did to turn it around.
• 5:29 Why onboarding isn’t just paperwork but your first act of leadership, and how a simple structure can change your entire client experience.
• 8:15 The calendar and boundary reset every consultant needs to protect energy, prevent burnout, and reclaim control of their time.
• 12:01 How to take your next step toward building strategic systems for consultants that create freedom, confidence, and a business that runs smoothly behind the scenes.

Transcript

SPEAKER_00: 0:00

This is the final episode of the Systems Reset series, and today we're going to bring it all together because over the last three weeks you've learned why your skills alone aren't enough, while onboarding is actually leadership, and how your calendar can either protect you or join your time. But the truth is, knowing that it's not enough. Action is what sparks changes in your business. So today we're going to bring it all together and talk about the next step you need to take to move from scrambling to strategic, and you're going to get a sneak peek into the conversation that I had with one of the Mind Your Time Society members who is a service provider who turned her business around with these exact resets that we've been discussing the past few weeks. Welcome to the Mind Your Time Podcast. I'm Shannon Baker, your coffee loving host and business operations strategist. If you're a service provider who's great at what you do, but stuck with misfit clients, messy onboarding, or draining workdays, this show is for you. Each week I share both strategies and practical insights rooted in my power emotional framework to help you streamline your back end, protect your time, and lead your client experience with confidence. Because skills got you clients, but systems will take you further. So grab your cup of coffee or your favorite drink and let's dive in. Okay, over the last three episodes of the systems reset series, we've looked at the cracks in your business that are silently holding you back and talked about how you can reset them. So today we're gonna pull it all together so you can really see the big picture and most importantly, know the next step that you need to take to move forward and go from scrambling to strategic. And know this isn't just a recap of what we've talked about. This is your consultant's reset, your chance to connect the dots and decide what you're gonna do differently starting this week. And I'm not going to just tell you, I'm also gonna let you hear from Imani. She's a client, a colleague, and a member of the Mind Your Time Society. Her story is living proof that when you take the next step to reset your systems, your entire business shifts. So let's go back to the beginning. What did we talk about in episode one? We discussed that you can be great at what you do, you can land clients, and you can even be getting referrals. But if you still feel like you're drowning, it's because your skills alone are not enough to carry your business forward if your back end is duct tape together. Now let me give you an example. Imagine this: you wrapped up a smooth discovery call, the client is excited, they're a great lead, you're excited, they sign your cry contract, they sign your contract, but then the headaches start. You've requested files, they send them late, then they text you at 10 o'clock at night, and suddenly you're pulling an all-nighter just to start this relationship off on the right foot. And the problem that continues to happen. And it's not because you don't know how to deliver, but it's because your back end is not built to protect your time or to set clear expectations. And I want you to hear this from someone who lived through this experience, but she fixed it.

SPEAKER_01: 3:28

I had the skills, I had the talents, the gift, all the things, but I didn't really know how to structure a business that was scalable. Um, and I know we'll get into this later, but also the boundaries piece was boundaries and systems, I say, were the biggest piece um in the beginning of my business that caused burnout, all of the things like I was really struggling. Like I barely slept. I mean, answering calls 10, 11 p.m. and really not building a system or foundation for my business. Like I lacked, it was very, very a rocky um foundation for my business. And it showed um later down the line.

SPEAKER_00: 4:10

Okay, now did you catch that? Imani didn't struggle because she lacked talent. She struggled because her systems weren't protecting her, and that led her almost to burnout. I mean, she had some serious health issues. That's the first step that you can take to move from scrambling to strategic. You start by recognizing that brilliance and skill set alone is not going to build a sustainable business that doesn't bring you out. But systems are the key that give your skills staying power. Now, in episode two, we continue this thought, but we really dug into the client onboarding process itself. Because many consultants treat onboarding like it's just about a bunch of paperwork. You get the contract signed, you send the invoice, you get paid, and then you just get to work. But the truth is, onboarding is your first chance to show your client how you lead. Without that, your clients are gonna make up their own rules. They're gonna send files and random emails if they send them at all. They're gonna text you when it's convenient for them, and then you're gonna be left scrambling to keep up. And once that tone is set, it is really hard to make a shift later. I even remember a Saturday morning when a client called me out of the blue and they were panicking about something that we'd already discussed multiple times in emails. But instead of reinforcing my boundary at that time, I scrambled to fix it and make them happy. That made me realize that the problem wasn't that it was a bad client, but the problem was that I hadn't set the tone with boundaries. Imani experienced some similar struggles over and over again in her business until she reset her onboarding process. Now, when Imani talks about resetting her onboarding process, she's going to mention the project management tool Airtable, but I don't want you to get hung up on the tool because that's not the point. The point is how she created one simple system that made it easy for her clients to give her what she needed. They could do that on time. It was all in one place and it kept communication clear and in one central location.

SPEAKER_01: 6:31

Airtable is very important, but the onboarding was very important as well because I think before I I had calls with my clients, but it wasn't a true extensive onboarding package to say, here's your like I think at the end we put a checklist. This is what I need to in order to be able to start. If I don't get these things, then it prolongs or pushes back our actual start date. And so being able to do that was really helpful for me. And I don't have to before y'all, I used to do too much.

SPEAKER_00: 7:07

So you see, this experience wasn't just about air table, it was about Imani finally having a process that works, not just for her, but also for her clients. She created a template she could duplicate that made it easy for her clients to go in there and give her what she needs, and she doesn't have to chase them any longer. That's the real lesson here. You don't need to reinvent the wheel or invest in fancy software or learn how to use something new like Airtable, unless that's what you want to do, and I can help you with that. But you just need a system that sets the tone from the beginning. Amani's a perfect example. We created that template that she can now reuse. It's client-friendly. She walks them through how to use it, and now she is leading the process instead of chasing her clients. That's the power of treating onboarding as part of your leadership. And that's your next step. I want you to build an onboarding process that sets the tone for how you work with your clients, not how your clients decide they want to work with you. Then in episode three of the series, we shifted to talk about your calendar. And I'm going to be honest and remind you: a messy calendar costs you more than time. It will drain your energy, it will erode your confidence, and it will blur the line between work and life until you feel like you're a 7-Eleven, always open, always on call. I've been there. Early in my business, I would say yes to a lot of things I should have said no to, even emails after dinner. I squeezed in calls between family time, and guess what? I ended up being exhausted, resentful, and running on fumes. The shift came when I put boundaries in place. That's having office hours where I communicate with clients, an autoresponder, and using time blocks that identify my family obligations and family time and even time for me to care for myself. That's when I started feeling like I was in control of my time again. And Imani had to learn how to make the same shift in her business. This is what she had to say.

SPEAKER_01: 9:22

When it came to the boundaries with the calendar, I used to take meetings every day of the business week, Monday through Friday, nine to five, or at least three. Because of course I didn't have a separate work phone. So it was already, if I see it, I'm just gonna respond. But I realize that's not the best option because then people become accustomed to you answering at nine, 10 o'clock at night trying to get things done. So setting those boundaries on my calendar. Now I only take meetings Mondays and Wednesdays, school, like nine to five on both days. Thursdays, 11 to 2. Other than that, Tuesdays are my admin day and working on anything internal and Friday is my rest day.

SPEAKER_00: 10:34

So you can see that right there is freedom. Imani stopped being available five days a week for anyone who wanted her time. She created space so that she could work on her business, so that she could rest, and so that she could be present every day in her life. And here's one thing I want you to remember the difference between struggling and thriving is the difference between being on demand and being in demand. That's what happens when your calendar reflects your boundaries instead of burning you out. So let's zoom out for a second and bring it all together. Reminders for you. Being great at what you do isn't enough. You need systems. New client onboarding isn't busy work, it's leadership. And your calendar is not just about appointments, it's about protecting your time and energy. These simple resets are connected on so many levels, and they have a huge impact on the way that your business operates. The next step for you is putting them into action so you can finally move from scrambling to strategic. Now, this week's quick win challenge is very simple. If you haven't already done so, grab the free boundary reset scorecard from the show notes. And let me be clear: this is not just another checklist that you can add to the bottomless pit of downloads you have. If you use it in less than two minutes, you will see exactly where you're leaking time. If you've ever ended the week exhausted and thought to yourself, okay, I have worked nonstop all week, but I'm not exactly sure what I accomplished. This scorecard is gonna help you see why that's the case. Even better, it's gonna show you the first step you need to take to fix it. That's how you start moving from scrambling to strategic one step at a time. So before I wrap up, I just want to say this. This series is a spark to help you get started. But your next step is where the real change happens. So if you've been waiting for a sign, this is it. It's time for a consultants reset. The back office power checklist, the starter stack, the 90-day roadmap, these are some of the exact tools inside the Mind Your Time Society that helped Imani go from scrambling to strategic. And I'd love to take this walk with you through the next step because you don't have to figure this out on your own and you don't have to keep running on fumes. Join us inside the Mind Your Time Society, and you get access to the 90-day roadmap and many other resources so we can reset your systems together and you can finally lead your business with confidence instead of it running you. Now remember, your skills got your clients, but systems and your ability to lead with them, that's what's gonna help you keep them. And now it's your time to take the next step. Thanks for tuning in today. If this episode hit home, it's because you already know you're ready to stop patching up the problems and start running your business like the pro you are. But listening won't fix the cracks. Action will. Your next step? Grab the back office power checklist at theshannonbaker.com forward slash checklist. It'll show you exactly what's working, what's missing, and where your back end is silently slowing you down. And if you're ready to go deeper, founder circle inside the Mind Your Time Society is where we can fix it together with the systems insanity suite and you'll get the clarity that you've been craving. Not quite there yet? Come say hi to me on Instagram at the underscore Shannon Baker. I would love to hear what resonated with you the most. And if you're loving the podcast, please leave a quick review because it goes a long way in helping more service providers like you find the podcast. You can do that right now at ratethispodcast.com forward slash mind your time. Skills got your clients, systems and your expertise are what's gonna help you keep them. So until next time, keep calm and streamline.