Like seriously, if there is anything that wastes more time and money and takes the life out of you, it's moving.
I recently moved and the whole process reminded me that it’s just like managing projects in business. Sometimes don’t go as planned and this reminded me of reasons why I teach what I teach! So i wanted to go through a list of 5 mistakes that I made during my move that were very similar to managing projects within your business (and how to avoid them).
Welcome to Coffee Powered Systems, equipping women with actionable steps to overcome, overwhelm and streamline business and life. So grab your favorite drink and come hang out with me. I'm your host, Miranda Merten. Welcome back to Coffee Powered Systems, I'm your host Miranda Merten, and I want you to grab your favorite beverage and come join me as I talk about project management, I'm streaming from my bedroom tonight in my new house. And I am not feeling like being in the office because it's a little late here.
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But I am so happy I moved into this house, but I'm not going to be moving or in the lot. And the whole process reminded me that just like project management or just like projects in business, they don't go as planned. And it's just like project management. And it reminded me why I teach what I teach. So today I want us to talk about the five mistakes that I made that are similar to managing your business and how you can avoid them.
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So the first one I want to talk about is doing everything yourself. If you don't know, I'm a single mom, my ex lives on the West Coast, so I had to do everything myself for this move. I had to outsource the work, but I didn't outsource the work. And that was my biggest problem. The only thing I outsource was the actual moving company. I packed everything I had to call everyone, cancel any accounts. Obviously, the same goes for your business, right?
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I recommend if there's anything you can outsource, go ahead and get it off your plate. And money shouldn't be an excuse because if you can find someone that's green or newer in their business, in their assistant or VA business, you can work with them. And while they work on doing all the crap you don't want to do, that allows you to work on the tasks that you want to do, and that frees up your time so that you can work on the money producing tasks and you can make more money.
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So the second thing is the wrong estimation of time and budget. I underestimated, as you might expect, time and budget for this project. I got the estimates the work was done and it took longer. As a business owner, you've probably done this before. And it not only makes it hard for you in the long run, but it also makes it hard to hire help because you don't know how to estimate your time and your budget. So keep track of how long you do things.
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One thing I'll give you a tip here. You can drop this down in your piece. So when it's time to hire someone out for that specific project, you will know exactly how long it takes you to do it. And if they charge 20 dollars an hour, go ahead and start with time and a half so you can estimate a little bit more until they get the hang of it. Your time might still be off a little bit, but it'll be a lot closer than just winging it and sticking it in your ear.
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Number three, the mistake number three I made was not following a process. I preach this to you all the time and follow a process and write it down. I say all the time. I tried to do this a little bit with my move, but I got off track and then I started doing things out of order. When that happens, confusion and more time and money is spent. So I always follow a process. No, for failing to recognize the importance of people management.
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Not every one of your people and not everyone that you work with can work without delegation and supervision. So if you don't keep an eye on the project, the overall project, things will get a little unwieldy and your whole vision can go to crap. So you definitely want to keep track of that and keep an eye on your people management. And number five, not using a project management software. I'm not sure why I didn't do this. You shouldn't try to do everything manually.
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You should try to keep everything in your head. And this one could have saved me a lot of time. I use project management software in my business with all of my clients and even in my household with my to do list. But I'm not sure why it didn't cross my mind to do it for my move. Using software, it takes everything out of your head and keeps it organized in a way that you can see it and have it make sense.
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So use the software even if you're just going to use it just to make a list. And those are my top five mistakes that you could probably make in business, maybe you're doing it, maybe you're not. But I also do want to point out two more things. Number one, you want to be ready to adjust your course when the unexpected happens because we all know the unexpected will happen. So you want to keep that up front of mind and you just have to make sure that you're ready to switch it up.
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If something changes, have a backup plan. If Zoom goes out, have a backup, maybe you're using Google me just always. No, stay one step ahead so that you can be prepared for that. And the second thing is that when the project is over, you want to evaluate the completed project. So when I was done with my move, I took a look at what might have went wrong and what could have gone better and also what went right.
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So I don't plan to move again for a while, but I can use this parallel with other projects and note those things, and then I'll be happy for happier for it the next time I do it. So the next time you do a big launch or you write a special newsletter, take a look at your numbers, take a look at your lodge, see what happened, what went well, what your people are resonating with, and then you can make adjustments for that next time.
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All right. So that's all I have for you today. But if you are looking for some motivation to get your operations and peace and order and figure out how and when you should delegate, join my 10 day operations challenge. You can find more information on that at Mirandamerten.com for ten days. I'll drop that link in the bio for you. And that's all I have today. I'll see you next time. Thanks for listening to Coffee Powered Systems. You can find links to everything mentioned in the episode.
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Down in the show. Notes are on the website at mirandamerten.com. If you enjoyed this episode and would love to continue mastering your work flows and processes, subscribe on your favorite podcast player and join me here next time.
