Create Systems Based Off Personality Type For Increased Productivity

System To Get You From A to B

Systems, simply put, are a way of doing things. When I talk about systems, I am talking about the series of steps it takes to get a task done from point A to point B. Systems are everywhere.

They’re present in all the tasks that we do as business owners.

I know too many business owners who believe making a system sounds like a daunting task. However, it can really save time in the long term.

Let’s start by identifying the systems present in your own business. I’ll then show you how to use different personality profiles to approach optimizing systems.

 

How To Identify and Evaluate Systems

Look at all the tasks that you do on a weekly basis, bi-weekly basis, and monthly basis. Then get a poster board and sticky notes. With each sticky note outline all the steps you take to complete a task. This’ll give you a visual presentation of the system you’re optimizing. Identify what you do and the steps you’re using to complete these tasks.

When you see a system ask yourself if a task is absolutely necessary to achieve the end result or can you delete it altogether.
 
This will allow you to optimize the system step by step before you formulize it. Remove steps that are unnecessary. If we can identify the weak links in our steps then we can save time later. It’s all about making things we already do better.
 

Using Your Personality To Come Up With The Right System

I use 4 personality types, developed by Gretchen Rubin, to identify what kind of approach needs to be taken when optimizing systems for my clients. They are the following: Upholders, Questioners, Rebels, and Obligers.
The first group are the Upholders. Upholders create rules and love rules. They’re the easiest type to work with regarding systems. If you’re an Upholder you’ll be able to figure out and identify what in your systems you need to change very quickly.

If something isn’t working based on your rules, you change the rules and then you’re on your way.

In comparison, the next 3 groups require distinct approaches to leverage their individual personalities to system optimization.

The second group are the Questioners. Questioners are unsurprisingly the type of people who ask alot of questions. They’re very inquisitive and will keep asking questions until they understand something. Questioners won’t follow a system if they don’t fully understand it.

The way we can solve this problem is by finding an answer they’re happy with. Questioners need to understand why they’re doing something in order to do it well. If you’re a Questioner, find answers to your questions that are satisfactory and it’ll make creating and following systems easier for you.

The third group are the Rebels. They’re people who value their individuality and will go against anything anyone says to them. They need to look at what is important to them when approaching systems.

If they find a system that is right for them and is in line with what they value, then they’ll implement that system. Understand what they value, then make a system based around that.

The fourth group are Obligers. Obligers will finish a deadline if set by another person however they’ll have trouble setting their own deadlines.

With Obligers it’ll be important to set up an environment of accountability around their efforts to create systems.

Play with these four personality types and see if you fit them. Then use one of the strategies to help you create your own systems. If you use this knowledge you’ll have a way to evaluate yourself and build systems for your business.

 

Action Steps

1. Think of all the tasks you do regularly on a weekly, bi-weekly, and monthly basis. Then lay them out out on a poster board with sticky notes placing all the steps in order. This’ll help you figure out what steps you need to change or take out.
2. Identify which personality type you are, then use the corresponding strategy to build systems.
3. Test out your systems and continue to optimize them.

 

Result You Will Achieve

A map to improve your current systems as well as a method to identify how to best work with systems according to your personality type.

 
This article is based on an EHQ interview with the mentor.