If you’ve been in business for any length of time, you’ve probably said out loud or maybe just under your breath; “If I don’t do it, it won’t get done right.” Sounds familiar right? Don’t worry you’re not alone. Plenty of entrepreneurs and business owners often struggle with building processes that live outside of their heads. They know every task, where to find the materials and tools, and specifically how it should be done. Some can explain each task to you inside and out, yet they believe that no one else can quite do it like they can. We all know what happens don’t we? They stay trapped in the weeds, doing $20 tasks when they should be making $20,000 decisions.
Ok now let’s talk about the solution, it’s C.R.A.P.! Stay with me… C.R.A.P. means Core Repeatable Actionable Processes
These processes are the foundation that allow successful companies to scale without the founder working 70-hour weeks and experiencing symptoms of burnout.
Why Processes Are the Difference Between Growth and Gridlock
The difference between thriving and failing isn’t always talent or money, it usually is process discipline, or lack thereof. Companies that struggle with unwritten or inefficient processes were the ones burning out their leaders and teams, making the same mistakes over and over, losing customers, and hitting ceilings they couldn’t break through. If your business depends entirely on the owner being present for every decision and every task, you need better processes. On the other hand, the companies that grow and scale are able to do so through documentation, testing, and refining their processes until those processes became second nature. Anyone on the team or within a department could step in, follow the system, and deliver consistent results. And here’s the thing: processes don’t kill creativity, they actually protect it. When you have reliable systems in place, you’re no longer spending all your energy putting out fires or micromanaging the details. Instead, you’re free to focus on vision, strategy, and the kind of growth work that really moves your business forward.
Let’s Break Down C.R.A.P.
Core is the first piece. Not everything in your business needs to be systematized. But the tasks and things that truly matter, you know the ones that keep the lights on (KTLO as I like to say) and the money flowing, absolutely do matter. Think about your sales, onboarding, lead generating, customer service, fulfillment, and marketing campaigns. If you walked away for a week and the business would suffer, that’s a Core process.
Repeatable is next. Here’s the rule of thumb: if you do it more than twice, it needs a process. Writing proposals, responding to the same client questions, onboarding a new hire, it’s the repeated work and tasks that slowly eats away your time if you don’t capture it. When you find yourself saying, “Didn’t I just do this last week?” that’s your cue to write it down.
Actionable is a really impart part. A process isn’t valuable if it lives in a 40-page manual that nobody reads. It has (and I can’t stress this enough, NEEDS) to be simple enough for someone else to pick up and follow without a phone call, email, or Teams message to you. That means step-by-step instructions, stored somewhere everyone can easily reach or access, and tested by someone other than you. If your process can’t survive without you hovering, it’s not really Actionable.
And then there’s the Processes; the thing that ties it all together. A good process isn’t just a list of steps. It’s a system of accountability. Every process should spell out what’s being done, who’s responsible, when it’s supposed to happen, and how it gets executed. Once you have that documented, you’ve created something powerful: a business that can scale, train new people quickly, and eventually run without you.
The Missteps That Keep Owners Stuck
Now, here’s where most business professionals go wrong. They overcomplicate the whole thing. They create documents so bloated with jargon and corporate fluff that nobody actually uses them. Or they keep everything in their heads, which means they become the bottleneck for every decision. Some don’t bother to update their processes, and those processes grow stale and useless. Don’t let this be you!
The Payoff of Getting Your C.R.A.P. Together
When you do it right, the payoff is real! First, you get your time back. We’ve all wished that we could create a clone of ourselves to reduce those long days of busywork. This is how those days get cut down because someone else can now do or take over those tasks and things that you were doing. Your staff and team are going to appreciate these too. They’ll clarity and confidence and can have a measurable way to prove their value in your company. They know what’s expected and how to deliver it without second-guessing themselves. One more positive byproduct is that your business becomes resilient and your clients start to trust you more because their experience is consistent. Oh and you can step really away for a week or two and take vacation, leave your laptop at home and phone on DND all while having full confidence the wheels won’t fall off your business. That’s the real shift, you stop being just an operator of a small business and start stepping into the role of a CEO.
Closing Theory
Here’s the truth: building processes isn’t glamorous. You won’t see the payoff tomorrow. You will start to win back some time each day, and then a month from now, you’ll wonder why you ever tried to run your business without them. C.R.A.P. is what separates overwhelmed owners from confident CEOs. It’s what turns long nights into scalable companies. And it’s what lets you step away without fear.
So the only question I have for you is “what C.R.A.P. does your business need today?”
A Simple Checklist to Get You Started
To keep this practical, here’s a straightforward checklist. Print it out. Stick it by your desk. Hand it to your assistant. Make it a point to start using today.
