Simplify Your Life with No-Code Automation (Part 1/3)

⚙️ Welcome to Part 1/3 in the series on getting started with no-code automation

Why Should You Apply No Code Automations to Your Business?

If you google automation guides, you’ll see plenty of different guides, how-tos, and frameworks.

Going through all the information can get pretty overwhelming fast. That’s why most people push their business automation off or ignore it entirely. This never solves the real problem most solopreneurs face when they consider workflow automation – work overload.

Modern business world puts a lot of pressure on solopreneurs. You see so many people online thriving. You want to do the same thing – so you work more.

Suddenly, you lose track of how many hours per day you spend working. You wake up, open your laptop, work, and repeat the whole process the next day.

Just after a few months, you start to feel the first effects of too many things on your plate:

• Efficiency and effectiveness plummet.

• Enthusiasm and motivation dwindle.

• Mental fatigue clouds emotions.

• Body ailments sprout up seemingly out of nowhere.

These are the first symptoms of burnout, which can quickly put an end to your efforts of moving your business forward.

Automation is one of the best solutions you can use to reduce time wasted on repetitive, tedious tasks. This improves your focus on the most important matters and stops you from worrying about organizing your work.

But before we get to put your first automation in place, we need to take care of preparing a solid automation outline. This will help you identify the worst bottlenecks and resolve them first.

Why Should You Outline Your Automation?

Outlining your automation means taking the time to plan out each step of the process before you begin. This includes identifying the tasks that need to be automated, determining the order in which they should be completed, and deciding on the tools and resources needed to accomplish each task.

Have you ever started a project and realized halfway through that you forgot a crucial step? Or have you ever found yourself constantly revising your work because you didn't plan it out properly? These issues can easily be avoided by outlining your automation process. Here are some reasons why making an outline for your automation is important:

• Clear Goals: Having an outline helps you know exactly what you want to achieve with automation. When you have clear goals, it's easier to stay focused and make progress.

• Less Mistakes: When you have a plan, you are less likely to make mistakes. Mistakes can be time-consuming and costly, so it's better to avoid them by being prepared.

• Better Teamwork: If you work with other people, having an outline makes it easier for everyone to understand what's happening. This means your team can work together smoothly and efficiently.

• Easier Changes: Sometimes, you might need to change your automation plan. With an outline, it's simpler to see what needs to be changed and how to do it.

• Save Time: An outline can help you save time because you know what you're doing and where you're going. This means you can work faster and get more done.

In addition to these benefits, outlining your automation can also help you communicate your process to others. If you're working on a team, for example, outlining your automation can help ensure that everyone is on the same page and understands their role in the process.

So, before you start using automation, take some time to make an outline. It will help you be more successful and make your work easier.

Automation Outline Example – Christine’s Case Study

We will use my friend, Christine, who’s facing similar issues, as a test case study.

Christine is an email marketing consultant and a freelance copywriter. Her solo business requires her to manage both the creative and administrative sides of the business. She wants to remove the number of repetitive tasks connected to:

• Onboarding new clients

• Invoicing

• File management

Christine’s automation challenges:

Before I started to work with Christine, I asked her to share some of her obstacles to automating her email marketing consulting business. Here’s what she said:

• She feels overwhelmed with the different skills to learn and what apps to use:

• She never used automations before or heard of them, and she doesn’t know what ROI I can expect.
  

• She’s still early on her freelance journey and isn’t sure what things she should systemize and automate:

I will address all the questions throughout this series. Now, I’ll focus on planning the automation, so it’s well-prepared for implementation.

What does it mean for a task or workflow to be systematized?

First, let's define a system as it relates to business.

A system is a well-structured set of guidelines, processes, and techniques to accomplish specific tasks.

A business system is similar to your daily routine. Just as you brush your teeth, take a shower, and get dressed in a specific order every day, a business system outlines the steps taken in a specific order to complete a task or reach a goal.

This is why automating before you have a system in place isn’t recommended, since you’d have to make changes and fix the automation constantly.

Step 1: List of 5-10 repetitive tasks (15 minutes)

Before you even start to plan your automation, you need to be clear about what exactly you want to automate. This way, you won’t feel like you put a system in place where it isn’t needed.

Here’s what you need to do:

Set a timer for 15 minutes. Write down 5 - 10 repetitive tasks.

Now, before attempting to automate something, ask yourself: “Do I really need to do this in the first place?”

If the answer is no, then eliminate it! There’s no point in automating tasks that only steal your attention, without bringing a satisfying ROI.

If you need a little more help with this, I’ve created a few resources to help walk you through this step:

Build Your Automation Cheat Sheet: Click here to duplicate it

Step 2: Is your workflow ready for automation?

Now that you have a clear list of tasks to automate, we need to make sure your current workflow is ready for automation. This involves answering questions like:

• Is the task completed with software?

• Is the task repetitive or does it have multiple unique steps you need to take every time?

• Does the task need your attention every time, even if it’s partially automated?

I prepared a spreadsheet that lets you categorize the tasks from the Step.

Copy it and add the tasks from Step 1 under the Workflow/Task Name column. Use the dropdown and answer the questions.

1. Is it repetitive?

2. Is it systematized?

3. Is the task completed with software?

If you need some help or inspiration, check out Christine’s:

Step 3: Automation Recipe

If you followed the Notion checklist I shared in Step 1, you learned how automation works. A “recipe” to build an automation looks like this:

“When X happens, then do Y.”

In theory, Christine could automate all the tasks she listed, but since she hasn't systematized them yet, it’s not ideal. Some of them still require a lot of manual input, and wouldn’t make Christine’s life easier – and ultimately, that’s what automation is for.

“Saving emails for swipe file Notion database” is the only workflow that meets the requirements and is ready to automate. It’s a repetitive, already systematic process that doesn’t require any attention from Christine. A perfect task to automate!

Step 4: Write down your “recipe” (10 minutes)

Look at the way you’re currently doing the tasks. Write it down in steps, explaining the process as thoroughly as you can. This will make finding the exact steps of the final automation easier.

For example, here’s the step-by-step process Christine follows every time she adds a new item to her swipe file database in Notion:

1. Whenever she receives a resource in Gmail that she wants to add to her swipe file, she’ll manually save it to a folder within Gmail labeled “Swipe File.”

2. Every Sunday, she manually takes the contents from what she’s saved in the folder and uploads it to a Notion database, tags, and organizes it.

Note: Christine's swipe file collection (Notion database) includes content from other sources, but since we’re keeping it simple. We’re not going to worry about that just yet.