1 00:00:00,080 --> 00:00:03,160 In the longer term, the goal is that when you take that time off, 2 00:00:03,200 --> 00:00:06,759 your business keeps growing. But in the shorter term, it's more like 3 00:00:06,919 --> 00:00:11,080 keeping the lights on and keeping your business in a holding pattern. So firstly, 4 00:00:11,160 --> 00:00:13,800 what are all of those things that need to happen to keep the lights 5 00:00:13,839 --> 00:00:19,600 on while you were away from your laptop? Welcome to Imperfect Action. I'm 6 00:00:19,600 --> 00:00:23,359 Steph Taylor. For years, I read all the books, downloaded all the 7 00:00:23,359 --> 00:00:27,640 freebees, and did all the courses, but it wasn't until I started taking 8 00:00:27,640 --> 00:00:33,520 imperfect action that my business had its first million dollar year. Imperfect action is 9 00:00:33,560 --> 00:00:39,600 about doing things before you're ready, prioritizing consistent action over perfect action, and 10 00:00:39,759 --> 00:00:44,439 moving forward even when you're not sure you're doing it right. On this show, 11 00:00:44,520 --> 00:00:48,840 you can expect mindset advice, actionable marketing tips, and strategies to build 12 00:00:48,880 --> 00:00:55,280 a business that brings you more profit, more freedom, and even more joy. 13 00:00:55,280 --> 00:00:58,560 Are you on the list to get my daily businesses? Every day I'll 14 00:00:58,600 --> 00:01:00,880 send you a bite sized prompt signed to help you grow your business in a 15 00:01:00,920 --> 00:01:06,519 more intentional way. Sign up at step taylor dot com, forward slash DBB, 16 00:01:07,040 --> 00:01:12,000 or at the link in the show notes. Hey, welcome back to 17 00:01:12,040 --> 00:01:17,319 im perfect Action. This is episode six hundred and sixty seven. Today I'm 18 00:01:17,319 --> 00:01:22,400 talking about how to prepare your business for a few weeks offline. Now, 19 00:01:23,000 --> 00:01:26,879 this is something that I've gone through many times in my business because I love 20 00:01:26,959 --> 00:01:32,480 to take blocks of time away. So back in twenty twenty one, I 21 00:01:32,519 --> 00:01:36,400 took a whole month off and traveled down the coast of Australia in a van 22 00:01:36,599 --> 00:01:40,519 and it was so much fun. And then last year in twenty twenty two, 23 00:01:40,680 --> 00:01:45,239 I took two weeks off completely and went hiking through the Outback. And 24 00:01:45,439 --> 00:01:49,040 both of these times there were things that I had to do to prepare my 25 00:01:49,120 --> 00:01:53,760 business for that time away. But here's the thing I've been I've spent the 26 00:01:53,840 --> 00:01:57,079 last few years building my business so that it can pass what I call the 27 00:01:57,200 --> 00:02:01,959 off grid test, which is where you have both high client satisfaction and high 28 00:02:01,959 --> 00:02:07,439 profitability when you are off the grid or offline. And passing this off grid 29 00:02:07,520 --> 00:02:12,919 test isn't something that happens overnight. It's not like you just create a course 30 00:02:12,960 --> 00:02:15,360 and you launch it and boom, your business runs without you and you've got 31 00:02:15,400 --> 00:02:19,840 all this passive income coming in and there's nothing you have to do It happens 32 00:02:19,879 --> 00:02:23,919 in stages. So when you're first starting out in your business, you're probably 33 00:02:23,960 --> 00:02:27,039 your business is probably a bit more like a bicycle. You're peddling all the 34 00:02:27,080 --> 00:02:30,360 time. But when you stop peddling, the business stops running, the income 35 00:02:30,400 --> 00:02:34,360 stops coming in, and then you might progress and you might end up with 36 00:02:34,400 --> 00:02:38,479 an ebike where you've maybe got some systems in place and maybe a virtual assistant 37 00:02:38,560 --> 00:02:43,439 or some other team members to help you pedals sometimes, but for the most 38 00:02:43,479 --> 00:02:46,520 part, you're still the person doing the peddling. Then the next stage is 39 00:02:46,560 --> 00:02:51,639 where you've got a manual car where it runs, but you're still there pressing 40 00:02:51,680 --> 00:02:55,680 the accelerator, changing the gears. And then that final that goal is that 41 00:02:55,800 --> 00:03:00,960 self driving car where it runs itself, it steers itself, even when you 42 00:03:00,000 --> 00:03:05,960 are not sitting there putting your footing the accelerator, steering the car where you 43 00:03:06,000 --> 00:03:08,439 need it to go. Now. So that's the longer term goal, right 44 00:03:08,479 --> 00:03:14,680 building a business that's profitable when you are offline, And there's a bit of 45 00:03:14,680 --> 00:03:19,719 a balance because a lot of the things that go towards building a business it's 46 00:03:19,719 --> 00:03:24,199 profitable when you are offline, they don't necessarily grow your business in the short 47 00:03:24,319 --> 00:03:28,000 term. They don't bring in revenue in the short term, but they set 48 00:03:28,039 --> 00:03:31,280 the foundations in place so that when you step away, your business doesn't fall 49 00:03:31,319 --> 00:03:37,800 apart. But this is also not necessarily attainable in the short term, and 50 00:03:38,039 --> 00:03:39,800 it doesn't mean that you need to take you need to get all of your 51 00:03:39,840 --> 00:03:43,680 ducks in a row before you can take any time off at all. No, 52 00:03:43,960 --> 00:03:46,960 it doesn't. So today I'm going to share what you need to do 53 00:03:46,039 --> 00:03:51,400 to build a business in the long term that is profitable when you're offline, 54 00:03:51,919 --> 00:03:54,000 but also the things that you can do in the short term. If you 55 00:03:54,039 --> 00:03:58,240 want to take a few weeks off right now and you don't have the time 56 00:03:58,319 --> 00:04:00,360 to hire and train a team and do all of the things, get all 57 00:04:00,360 --> 00:04:04,120 the foundations in place so you can take that time off. So long term, 58 00:04:04,199 --> 00:04:08,639 let's start with the long term, building a business that is profitable when 59 00:04:08,680 --> 00:04:13,560 you are offline, building those foundations to support that business keep it running when 60 00:04:13,560 --> 00:04:15,600 you are not there. The first thing we want to look at is what 61 00:04:15,800 --> 00:04:20,079 is the vision five years from now, ten years from now. What do 62 00:04:20,160 --> 00:04:26,639 you do in your business? What do you not do? What does your 63 00:04:26,720 --> 00:04:31,000 day to day look like, What does your life look like? And for 64 00:04:31,040 --> 00:04:35,199 everything that you no longer do in your business, you need an action plan 65 00:04:35,319 --> 00:04:39,839 to get this off your plate. You either need to hire someone else who 66 00:04:39,839 --> 00:04:42,920 can do it, or you need to automate it or put a system in 67 00:04:42,959 --> 00:04:46,639 place to do it, or you need to delete it all together, stop 68 00:04:46,720 --> 00:04:51,279 doing it all together. An example of one thing that you might not really 69 00:04:51,279 --> 00:04:56,920 want to do is show up and sell all the time on social media or 70 00:04:56,920 --> 00:05:00,959 on live webinars or whatever. It is great. So in that case, 71 00:05:00,040 --> 00:05:03,480 maybe you would create some sales processes that run when you're offline. You'd build 72 00:05:03,519 --> 00:05:08,600 out an evergreen funnel that is selling so that you are not having to be 73 00:05:08,680 --> 00:05:13,759 there constantly showing up and doing sales calls or doing live webinars. Another one 74 00:05:13,839 --> 00:05:17,319 might be creating marketing structure and processes so your business can continue to grow when 75 00:05:17,360 --> 00:05:24,759 you're offline. I created a free workbook called Escape the Messy Middle, which 76 00:05:24,839 --> 00:05:30,319 is my guide to getting out of this messy middle stage where your business is 77 00:05:30,399 --> 00:05:34,279 running but you can't quite see that path to that business that will run without 78 00:05:34,399 --> 00:05:40,000 you that freedom, and this guide is really there to help you to identify 79 00:05:40,079 --> 00:05:43,199 what you need to do next to start to build a business. That runs 80 00:05:43,240 --> 00:05:45,959 even when you are not at your desk. If you want that guide, 81 00:05:46,279 --> 00:05:48,160 send me a DM on Instagram. I'm there at step Taylor dot com. 82 00:05:48,600 --> 00:05:54,240 Send me EMM just those three letters and I will automatically send you the link 83 00:05:54,279 --> 00:05:58,120 to download that guide. Okay, so that's what we need to do in 84 00:05:58,120 --> 00:06:01,279 the long term. But does that mean you cannot take any time off until 85 00:06:01,399 --> 00:06:05,240 you've got all of those foundations in place. No, it doesn't. So 86 00:06:05,319 --> 00:06:08,759 in the short term, if you are wanting to take a few weeks off, 87 00:06:08,839 --> 00:06:11,480 or if you need to for whatever reason, take a few weeks off, 88 00:06:11,560 --> 00:06:14,480 or even a weekend, a couple of days. I know, if 89 00:06:14,519 --> 00:06:16,480 you're quite early in your business, you might find that all of your time 90 00:06:16,560 --> 00:06:20,199 is going to that and you cannot step away for a moment. What do 91 00:06:20,240 --> 00:06:26,240 you need to do to take some time away from your business? So the 92 00:06:26,279 --> 00:06:29,720 first thing that you need to identify is what are all of the things that 93 00:06:29,759 --> 00:06:34,079 need to happen while I'm away from my laptop. For example, three podcast 94 00:06:34,120 --> 00:06:36,879 episodes need to go out, three emails need to go to my list, 95 00:06:38,199 --> 00:06:42,160 These social media posts need to go out, this client project needs to be 96 00:06:42,199 --> 00:06:46,639 delivered, These customer support emails need to be responded to those all of the 97 00:06:46,680 --> 00:06:49,279 things that need to happen to keep the lights on while I'm away from my 98 00:06:49,360 --> 00:06:54,360 laptop. The difference between the short term and the long term as well. 99 00:06:54,439 --> 00:06:58,680 So the difference between taking some time off now when you don't have all the 100 00:06:58,720 --> 00:07:01,399 foundations in place verse is long term, when you've got those foundations in place 101 00:07:01,759 --> 00:07:05,439 and you take time off is in the longer term, the goal is that 102 00:07:05,480 --> 00:07:10,120 when you take that time off, your business keeps growing. But in the 103 00:07:10,160 --> 00:07:14,000 shorter term it's more like keeping the lights on and keeping your business in a 104 00:07:14,040 --> 00:07:16,040 holding pattern. So, firstly, what are all of those things that need 105 00:07:16,079 --> 00:07:19,560 to happen to keep the lights on while you are away from your laptop? 106 00:07:19,920 --> 00:07:24,439 And then for each of those things that you've written out in your list, 107 00:07:24,720 --> 00:07:28,639 we need to identify will you prepare it ahead of time, will you delegate 108 00:07:28,680 --> 00:07:30,360 it, will you automate it, will you delay it? Or will you 109 00:07:30,399 --> 00:07:35,639 delete it? So preparing it looks like batching your podcast episodes and scheduling before 110 00:07:35,800 --> 00:07:42,079 you go away, or doing that client project before you go away. Delegating 111 00:07:42,079 --> 00:07:45,600 it looks like giving ownership to someone else. So maybe you'll bring in a 112 00:07:45,680 --> 00:07:50,519 virtual assistant to manage those customer support emails while you're away. Automating it looks 113 00:07:50,560 --> 00:07:56,439 like scheduling posts and emails to go out while you're away. It also might 114 00:07:56,480 --> 00:08:01,160 look like automating your email list building process if you haven't already done that. 115 00:08:01,040 --> 00:08:05,480 Delaying it. For example, if you have a meeting booked in your calendar, 116 00:08:05,920 --> 00:08:09,959 can you maybe move that meeting till after you get back, or can 117 00:08:11,000 --> 00:08:13,800 you have a conversation with the client whose project is due and ask them if 118 00:08:13,839 --> 00:08:18,240 they would be all right with you doing it a week later. And then 119 00:08:18,279 --> 00:08:22,480 the last one is you potentially could delete it. For example, I don't 120 00:08:22,519 --> 00:08:26,319 take clients when i know I'm going to be offline. There's only one way 121 00:08:26,360 --> 00:08:30,439 really to work with me, and that is in a sort of one off 122 00:08:30,439 --> 00:08:33,720 container. I don't work with retainer or ongoing clients, and I don't book 123 00:08:33,799 --> 00:08:39,360 in clients when i know I'm going to be offline. So another way that 124 00:08:39,480 --> 00:08:43,159 you can delete it. For example, with this podcast, over the Christmas 125 00:08:43,200 --> 00:08:46,240 and New Year break, we tend to schedule best of episodes, so we 126 00:08:46,360 --> 00:08:50,559 reshare the best episodes from the previous year, so that I can take a 127 00:08:50,600 --> 00:08:54,840 little bit of a break off from recording new episodes or I will record them 128 00:08:54,879 --> 00:09:00,240 ahead of time. But if we can remove a task from the list, 129 00:09:00,399 --> 00:09:03,039 that's always going to be one of the easier ways to really get your business 130 00:09:03,080 --> 00:09:05,720 ready for you to take some time off and a lot of the time we 131 00:09:05,960 --> 00:09:09,639 create things that we think we need to do, but we don't actually need 132 00:09:09,679 --> 00:09:11,960 to do them. So there you have it. What are all of the 133 00:09:13,000 --> 00:09:16,159 things that need to happen while I'm away from my laptop? And then will 134 00:09:16,200 --> 00:09:18,879 we prepare it to delegate it automated, delay it or delete it? For 135 00:09:18,919 --> 00:09:24,279 each of those tasks, make sure you pop on over to Instagram and DM 136 00:09:24,279 --> 00:09:26,320 me there. I'm there at Steff Taylor dot com. Send me EMM and 137 00:09:26,320 --> 00:09:31,399 I'll send you the Escape the Messy Middle Workbook so you can start to build 138 00:09:31,399 --> 00:09:35,480 that business that is still profitable and still growing when you are offline. That 139 00:09:35,639 --> 00:09:37,799 is it for today's episode. Thank you so much for listening. Catch you 140 00:09:37,879 --> 00:09:39,279 next time.