I will never forget Juanita, an ugly lady who worked at my grandparents house.
We were all afraid of her!
Juanita was the “Police” at my grandma’s house.
With so many grandkids my grandma ensured her home was “in perfect order” while she was out.
We would have so much fun driving Juanita crazy trying to control us! Sometimes, she would even get a pan and chase us all around the house!
To answer the question:
I used to operate my business like my grandma. My presence controlled my business! When I was out, I relied on my own “Juanita” to supervise every single detail of the operation.
I remember the daily battle:
- Don’t touch that!
- Don’t do that!
- Don’t treat the customer like that!
- Do this first, not that!
- ENDLESS SUPERVISION!
As my business grew, I became a slave of my business and realized that there’s a better way to do it!
How? With processes and systems!
As I implemented these processes and systems throughout the day to day operation, a slow and steady transformation took place in my small business.
I worked less and less!
Suddenly, I worked an hour a day instead of ten, yet, the money continued to pour in. I’d be sick for a few days and the cash hadn’t stopped rolling in. I’d take a month off and the money continued to roll in.
I eventually realized that I had achieved freedom from the daily operation of the business. It didn’t require my presence or Juanitas!
To better understand processes, imagine a McDonald’s franchise.
McDonald’s restaurants are found in 120 countries around the world and serve 68 million customers each day. McDonald’s operates 36,899 restaurants worldwide, employing more than 375,000 people as of the end of 2016, tho as at last year, it has declined to 205,000 employees.
Sure, there is a store manager in each location, but every McDonald’s location around the world has the same process, the same recipes, the same way of doing things.
Basically, a process is the perfect way you KILL the “beautiful” CREATIVITY, INITIATIVE AND THINKING of employees in charge of the day to day operations!
“Please follow the process!”
EMPLOYEE: “But, what if I add more ketchup?”
“NO! You follow the process!”
EMPLOYEE: “But I like the fries more crispy!”
“NO! You follow the process!”
EMPLOYEE: “What about selling some hotdogs?”
YOU: “NO! NO! NO! NO!”
You get the idea…
Is there a Juanita in each location? NO!
Here’s the magic:
These systems and processes are what make a business valuable and scalable!
Why is McDonalds the most successful restaurant in the world?
Believe me… it’s NOT because of the burgers!