Systemize Your Success Podcast

🎙AI is transforming how we work in our business, but the journey hasn’t always been smooth. We’ve faced plenty of challenges and found that, in some cases, trying to use AI to boost efficiency has actually made some tasks take longer than before. Recently, I had a major mindset shift when I discovered a blind spot that had been preventing both my team and me from fully benefiting from AI. Today, I want to share this realisation with you—because it might be the bottleneck that’s also holding your team back from quicker, better results with AI. KEY TAKEAWAYS  💡Let Go to Move Forward: Trust both your people and your AI. Think of AI as a new team member, train it well and support it by giving it what it needs and retraining until it gets things right. Set the rules, then let it do its thing and watch your free time and results increase. 💡 Learn as You Launch: Deploy new tools or team members quickly, collect feedback, and keep tuning. You only discover what works by doing - waiting gets you nowhere. 💡 Fail Fast, Fix Faster: If something or someone isn’t working out, don’t prolong the pain. Make necessary changes based on experience and keep improving your system. 💡 Let the Numbers Lead: Judge success using real metrics, e.g. email open rates or website traffic, stop being led by your gut feelings. The numbers don´t lie. BEST MOMENTS  04:12 - 💬 “ When we're creating AI agents to do work, it's just the same as delegating. The same fears, the same reservations, the same micromanagement behaviours can actually get into play, here.”  08:15 - 💬 “The challenge for my marketing assistant, now, is that she's not allowed to review anything that the AI does. She's got to delegate properly and let the AI do its thing.” 12:07  - 💬 “I sacked the old GPT. I literally just deleted it, just like you would, if you sack a member of staff…and created a new GPT to solve that problem.” 14:28  - 💬 “This will be a continuous iterative improvement, going forward.” TIMESTAMPED OVERVIEW 00.00 Intro: AI Mindset Shift Challenges 01:41 Why AI can become a time suck – the error most businesses make. 05:38 Treat AI like a new employee – delegate, monitor and retrain. 10:15 Checking results and tweaking. LINKS TO CONNECT WITH THE HOST Podcast: https://www.systemizeyoursuccess.com Website: https://systemsandoutsourcing.com/ Facebook Group: https://facebook.com/groups/systemsandoutsourcing/ LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/company/systemsandoutsourcing/ Instagram: https://instagram.com/systems_and_outsourcing/ YouTube: https://youtube.com/@drsteveday42 TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@drsteveday42 ABOUT THE HOST Steve moved to Sweden in 2015 and transformed how he ran his businesses—switching to a fully remote model. A former NHS doctor, with a background in computing and property investing, he now helps overwhelmed business owners systemise and outsource effectively. Through his courses and coaching, Steve teaches how to automate operations and work with affordable virtual assistants, freeing up time and increasing profits. He runs his UK-based businesses remotely with support from a team of UK and Filipino VAs, and is passionate about helping others build scalable, stress-free companies using smart systems and virtual support. This Podcast has been brought to you by Disruptive Media https://disruptivemedia.co.uk/

🎙Today's episode is about designing a life and a business that gives you true freedom. It's about creating assets, wealth and the stability that allows you to have the life you want. I connect with Julie Talbot, a true digital nomad and founder of Brick by Brick Property Group. She is a mentor and coach who helps people create businesses that offer true freedom. Julie shares how her business enables her, her kids and her husband to explore the world and experience living on every continent This episode will help you reimagine what’s possible and start building a life and business that gives you more freedom, flexibility, and purpose than you can imagine. KEY TAKEAWAYS  💡Rethink Your Path to Freedom: You don’t have to wait for financial freedom before pursuing time or location freedom. 💡Leverage Technology for Freedom: Embrace the tools, processes, tech and business models, e.g. AI and automation, that enable you to manage your business from anywhere and free up more time for what matters.  💡Align with Your Superpowers: Double down on your unique strengths and passions; when your business aligns with what makes you come alive, you’ll find greater motivation and success. BEST MOMENTS  04:31 - 💬 “I am mentoring and guiding people who want to run a property business, but with location freedom baked in from the start.” — Julie Talbot 22.42 - 💬 “ We can live in the way that we want to, if we choose to, if we choose to design our lives that way.” — Julie Talbot 35:45  - 💬 “Figure out what you actually want from the business, what will make you happy, what you're actually good at, what you're going to stick at, and which type of business  fits that, not the other way around.” — Steve Day TIMESTAMPED OVERVIEW 00:00 Intro: “Designing a Life of Freedom” 03:34 Running a property business remotely. 15:23 Living a nomadic lifestyle with kids. 33:15 Aligning your business with your passion 46:03 The Freedom and Success Mindset VALUABLE RESOURCES  From Dr Steve Day: Free access to our Recruit Right Hiring and DIDACT Frameworks here: https://sys.academy/guides From Julie Talbot: 3 Steps to Location Freedom: ⁠https://bit.ly/3simplestepstofreedom⁠ LINKS TO CONNECT WITH THE GUEST Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/julierosetalbot/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/julie.talbot.359 ABOUT THE GUEST Julie is an active UK property investor, strategist, and freedom seeker, reshaping how to grow and manage a UK property business by putting time and location freedom first. With a background in business design and process management, Julie helps expats and nomads make strategic choices that unlock time and location freedom so that they can scale or manage their UK property ventures, from wherever they are or want to be in the world.  LINKS TO CONNECT WITH THE HOST Podcast: https://www.systemizeyoursuccess.com Website: https://systemsandoutsourcing.com/ Facebook Group: https://facebook.com/groups/systemsandoutsourcing/ LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/company/systemsandoutsourcing/ Instagram: https://instagram.com/systems_and_outsourcing/ YouTube: https://youtube.com/@drsteveday42 TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@drsteveday42 ABOUT THE HOST Steve moved to Sweden in 2015 and transformed how he ran his businesses—switching to a fully remote model. A former NHS doctor, with a background in computing and property investing, he now helps overwhelmed business owners systemise and outsource effectively. Through his courses and coaching, Steve teaches how to automate operations and work with affordable virtual assistants, freeing up time and increasing profits. He runs his UK-based businesses remotely with support from a team of UK and Filipino VAs, and is passionate about helping others build scalable, stress-free companies using smart systems and virtual support. This Podcast has been brought to you by Disruptive Media https://disruptivemedia.co.uk/

🎙Letting people go or sacking people is pretty rubbish as a business owner. It can make you feel terrible inside. It does for me anyway. And today I want to talk about the latest time I´ve had to let somebody go, the reasons behind that decision, and how, actually, I feel pretty good about it, even though it was literally just two minutes ago that I did it.  I thought I'd record this episode while it's on my mind. I'm in the moment, so I can share what I'm feeling right now, how this has changed dramatically from previous times that I've had to let people go, and what I feel going forward—this has taught me about hiring and firing.  KEY TAKEAWAYS  💡 Don´t Be Afraid to Let People Go Quickly: Use each new employee´s probation period properly. Review performance objectively and, even if you like them personally, don’t hang on to anyone who isn’t the right fit. Delaying tough decisions makes things harder for everyone. 💡 Prepare Well and Be Upfront: Think through what you’re going to say. Be honest, clear, and kind when sharing the news, and explain why they do not meet your business's needs. This helps everyone know where they stand and shows respect for the person, while enabling you to keep your business moving forward. 💡 Right Person, Right Role: Strong skills and a good attitude matter, but so does matching expertise to job requirements. Hire for the role you need filled now, don´t compromise and inadvertently hire someone with potential who needs lots of training up. 💡 Learn From the Experience: Every time you have to let someone go, whether that is at the end of their probationary period or later, pause and review why things did not work out. Use what you learn to change how you hire and run things in the future. BEST MOMENTS  00:01 - 💬 “ Letting people go or sacking people is pretty rubbish. As a business owner, it can make you feel terrible inside. It does for me anyway.”  02:24  - 💬 “I´ve learned that hanging on to people just because you like them isn't a good recipe for running a business, and what happens is it eventually just starts eroding away at you as a leader.” 10:11 - 💬 “ Do it quickly, do it fairly, do it concisely, don't drag it out, or just hang on for a few weeks hoping for the best.” TIMESTAMPED OVERVIEW 00:00 Managing the emotional aspect of letting someone go 03:33 Preparing, being clear and showing respect 06:11 Explaining your decision 09:08 Recruiting in a way that minimises the need to sack people LINKS TO CONNECT WITH THE HOST Podcast: https://www.systemizeyoursuccess.com Website: https://systemsandoutsourcing.com/ Facebook Group: https://facebook.com/groups/systemsandoutsourcing/ LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/company/systemsandoutsourcing/ Instagram: https://instagram.com/systems_and_outsourcing/ YouTube: https://youtube.com/@drsteveday42 TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@drsteveday42 ABOUT THE HOST Steve moved to Sweden in 2015 and transformed how he ran his businesses—switching to a fully remote model. A former NHS doctor, with a background in computing and property investing, he now helps overwhelmed business owners systemise and outsource effectively. Through his courses and coaching, Steve teaches how to automate operations and work with affordable virtual assistants, freeing up time and increasing profits. He runs his UK-based businesses remotely with support from a team of UK and Filipino VAs, and is passionate about helping others build scalable, stress-free companies using smart systems and virtual support. This Podcast has been brought to you by Disruptive Media https://disruptivemedia.co.uk/

🎙In this episode of Systemize Your Success, I sit down with Jeff Tilley from muncly.com. He helps people to implement CRMs for sales and customer service and is a true expert in his field.  If you’re thinking about using a CRM or wondering what else you should be doing with your CRM, then listen to this episode before you invest and avoid making the common mistakes Jeff outlines. We also discuss AI, how it's affecting the workforce, the myths, the hype, the scaremongering and what we're seeing day to day on the work floor.  KEY TAKEAWAYS  💡Strategic Planning Precedes Automation: Before adopting digital tools, clarify what you want to achieve. A thoughtful plan rooted in your business goals helps prevent wasted time and buying systems you don´t need yet. 💡A CRM Won´t Automatically Solve Problems: A CRM is a smart, centralised contact and communication hub that helps your business manage and nurture customer relationships at scale - but it’s only valuable if you have the right processes and people to use it. 💡Don’t Overlook Simple, Effective Tools: Sometimes the best productivity systems are low-tech, e.g., notebooks and voice recorders are powerful for capturing ideas, reflection, and organising your work. BEST MOMENTS  10:19 - 💬 “You have to invest your time to educate yourself. And you can save a bit of your time by hiring somebody like me.” — Jeff Tilley 20:04 - 💬 “There are many good apps out there …. picking them for the right reasons, with a very clear intention and plan of what you hope to get out of it, that is more important than the actual app itself.” — Steve Day 46:03 - 💬 “I use a CRM because it has lots of these other apps which I was already using, and it allowed me to consolidate them into a single platform.” — Steve Day TIMESTAMPED OVERVIEW 07:04 Planning is essential when introducing tech 17:55 The challenges of implementing CRMs and tech 20:02 Debate about the role of AI 42:30 When to use a CRM 53:03 Defining success LINKS TO CONNECT WITH THE GUEST Website: ⁠https://muncly.com/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jtihonov/ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@tilley_live/ ABOUT THE GUEST Jeff is the Founder and CEO of Muncly, described as a boutique Salesforce consultancy helping small and medium-sized businesses streamline their processes through tailored CRM and automation solutions. Jeff combines sales, tech, and systems-thinking to offer clients structured workflows, process documentation, and efficiently implemented technology—precisely the kind of systems-driven delegation mindset your audience appreciates. LINKS TO CONNECT WITH THE HOST Podcast: https://www.systemizeyoursuccess.com Website: https://systemsandoutsourcing.com/ Facebook Group: https://facebook.com/groups/systemsandoutsourcing/ LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/company/systemsandoutsourcing/ Instagram: https://instagram.com/systems_and_outsourcing/ YouTube: https://youtube.com/@drsteveday42 TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@drsteveday42 ABOUT THE HOST Steve moved to Sweden in 2015 and transformed how he ran his businesses—switching to a fully remote model. A former NHS doctor, with a background in computing and property investing, he now helps overwhelmed business owners systemise and outsource effectively. Through his courses and coaching, Steve teaches how to automate operations and work with affordable virtual assistants, freeing up time and increasing profits. He runs his UK-based businesses remotely with support from a team of UK and Filipino VAs, and is passionate about helping others build scalable, stress-free companies using smart systems and virtual support. This Podcast has been brought to you by Disruptive Media https://disruptivemedia.co.uk/

🎙In this episode, I reveal the single most powerful question you can ask your team to transform day-to-day problems into lasting systems and always up-to-date solutions. I share how a simple query from my comms assistant about a client subscription turned into a brilliant opportunity to create a permanent, self-updating knowledgebase - a resource that saves time, prevents repeated issues, and empowers staff to think like system builders.  If you want your team to stop bringing you problems and start bringing you solutions, this episode will show you how to shift their mindset, and yours, toward true systems thinking. KEY TAKEAWAYS  💡The One Question That Changes Everything: Asking “What do we need to put in place, so you never have to ask me this question again?” develops staff into proactive problem-solvers, future-proofs your business and improves efficiency. 💡Create Living Knowledge Bases: Every time a question arises, build or add to an existing resource, e.g. an internal FAQ database that captures the solution and answer everyone can reference in the future. Build a system so it never has to be asked again. 💡System Thinking = Freedom: When your team takes ownership of system creation, you reclaim time, reduce bottlenecks, and free yourself to focus on your visionary work. 💡Embed Ownership Into Roles: Assign responsibility for maintaining and updating these resources within position agreements and task matrices to ensure long-term consistency and future-proof the system resource. BEST MOMENTS 02:46 - 💬 “ I don't want to be somebody who is giving answers to questions. I want somebody who is there to solve big problems… I want to be the person who is leading the business and being the visionary.”  06:10 - 💬 “Can you see how amazing it would be if you sat in a meeting and someone came to you like that? They’re not bringing you the problem - they’re bringing you the solution.” 06:55 - 💬 “ That is a proper systems way of thinking. It's not about constraining people into systems. It's about empowering people.” 11:29 - 💬 “ We've created this incredible future-proofing system that covers every scenario that exists today, but also that may exist in the future, i.e. new products and services.” TIMESTAMPED OVERVIEW 00:00 The Challenge and the Question That Solves It 04:20 Training Staff in Systems Thinking  06:29 Creating a Culture of Problem-Solving 07:40 Equipping Staff to Create Value 09:29 Future Proofing Your Systems 11:48 Conclusion VALUABLE RESOURCES For our ‘Ideas Over Issues Framework’, here's Our Best Guides, Frameworks, and Templates: https://sys.academy/guides Systemize Your Success Academy: https://join.sys.academy/ LINKS TO CONNECT WITH THE HOST Podcast: https://www.systemizeyoursuccess.com Website: https://systemsandoutsourcing.com/ Facebook Group: https://facebook.com/groups/systemsandoutsourcing/ LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/company/systemsandoutsourcing/ Instagram: https://instagram.com/systems_and_outsourcing/ YouTube: https://youtube.com/@drsteveday42 TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@drsteveday42 ABOUT THE HOST Steve moved to Sweden in 2015 and transformed how he ran his businesses—switching to a fully remote model. A former NHS doctor, with a background in computing and property investing, he now helps overwhelmed business owners systemise and outsource effectively. Through his courses and coaching, Steve teaches how to automate operations and work with affordable virtual assistants, freeing up time and increasing profits. He runs his UK-based businesses remotely with support from a team of UK and Filipino VAs, and is passionate about helping others build scalable, stress-free companies using smart systems and virtual support. This Podcast has been brought to you by Disruptive Media https://disruptivemedia.co.uk/