Welcome to Business and Balance, your go-to newsletter for online business owners ready to reclaim control & grow their business in a way that's true to them and sustainable in the long run. Each week, you’ll get practical tips, time-saving tools, and strategies to streamline your services, grow your business, and create space for what truly matters. It’s all about working smarter, not harder, so you can build success and savor life.
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Heyy Reader,
It's been a long time since I've sent a video in an email. So I thought I'd send one today with an update of what's going on over here!
P.S. Please excuse my terrible lighting. I live in an old house with horrific lighting. I've tried to buy lamps to help, but they make me look like a ghost.
🤝 SPECIAL SPRING DIGITAL PRODUCT SALE FROM BVS
SPRING BRINGS THINGS
I was trying to be super cute with my headline. I hope you like it hahahaha.
Anyway, it's spring and I'm feeling the changes of the new season. I know so many of us really feel like spring is the best time to put our businesses to work.
January is filled with low energy and yucky weather.
Spring is literal rebirth of the Earth. (Sorry if you're in the Southern Hemisphere. I love fall and spring equally, really.)
Right now, there are 4 offers in there: The Inbox Igniter, 90 Days of Social Media Content, and 30 Day Project Management Power Plan are all available at a discount. You can also get a Support Consulting Call for 10% off!
This sale is only active until April 30th at 11:30pm CST, so make sure you get it now! After April 30th, you won't be able to use the coupon. If something happens and the link doesn't automatically apply the coupon, the code is SPRINGFLOWERS.
It seems that so many business owners are intrigued by automations, but they aren't quite confident with them. I get that. They take a lot of work and if you make one tiny mistake, it throws the whole thing off and you have to figure out where the issue is.
But the truth is, good automations can save you a ton of time. And they seem to be the buzz right now around the internet.
Personally, I'm not a fan of heavy automations, but I do love a good automation that saves me time, energy, and money. (Email automations are my fav!).
This week's blog post is all about the automations you actually NEED as well as automations you might want.
Be sure to check out the blog post to learn more about automations and my recommendations for automating.
My friend Angeliese Wisdom is a bookkeeper who asked me to share her free offer with you.
Feeling overwhelmed trying to manage your business finances and stay aligned with your faith?
This free guide, Biblical Stewardship & Prayer, is a gentle nudge back to peace. Inside, you will find 4 biblical financial principles and 3 simple, Spirit-led prayers that can be customized to fit your situation. This guide helps you to invite Jesus into your money decisions, no spreadsheet required. If you're ready to stop stressing and start stewarding, this is for you.
This is not my actual task (because that contains confidential information), but this is a preview of a replica.
How are you keeping up with your growing business?
SOPs are essential for growth whether you're a solopreneur or looking to scale a team.
But what good does having the SOPs do if you aren't regularly updating them and assuring they are still relevant?
I recommend you update your SOPs as your processes change. However, I'm also a human and know that as non-robotic beings, this isn't always going to happen. In fact, it's probably unrealistic to expect yourself to do that every single time in the thick of things unless you have a dedicated team member (like an OBM) to frequently update your SOPs.
I create a tri-yearly (did I make that up?) task for updating my SOPs. Here's my process:
I assign this task in ClickUp and have it due every 4 months.
I then assign subtasks for each SOP type and set that due at intervals that make sense. For example, I have much fewer hiring SOPs than I do marketing SOPs so it doesn't make sense to have 2 months dedicated to hiring SOPs and 2 months dedicated to marketing SOPs.
I then assign subtasks for my subtasks for each individual SOP. I try to review 1 SOP a week (or less!).
Why do I recommend this?
It means I'm taking a look at my SOPs on a yearly basis and making sure they're being updated. It also means I'm not overwhelming myself by doing it all at once and then just not doing it at all.
Remember, your systems don't matter if you're not actually implementing them. You have to make them work and make them realistic for you.
I do recommend you review and update SOPs at least once a year. It keeps your business growing and flowing.
THE ONE HOUR WIN
FRIEND, YOU NEED TO FOCUS!
This is a serious question and not meant to be annoying...Did you know you can set "do not disturb" times in advance and at a recurring interval fairly easily?
Because I did not.
Until about a year ago.
This is your quick, one hour win for the week--set up "do not disturb" or "focus" times on your computer and phone during periods you want to work.
So what exactly am I saying here?
I don't know about Androids or PCs, but on my Mac and iPhone, I can set up "Focus" time where the only notifications I allow are phone calls FROM PEOPLE I CHOOSE.
I was so excited when I learned that I could set up to still get messages from the people who might need me for an emergency, but not annoying calls from unknowns.
I don't know if you hang out on Threads or not, but I've been seeing a lot of chatter like:
"Yes, you need SOPs before you delegate to a VA."
"No, you don't need SOPs before you delegate to a VA."
So, what's right?
Personally, I believe you should have your SOPs in place (or at least in the works) before hiring a VA. When I was a VA I worked with more than 30 business owners.
The ones who lasted a month or less? Had no SOPs and no clue what they wanted their processes to look like and they blamed me for not doing tasks the way they wanted.
And the ones who lasted a decent amount of time, we actually helped each other, and things went smoothly, had their SOPs or at least defined processes.
So technically you do not have to have SOPs in order to hire a VA.
But it makes things much easier and ensures you're getting the quality of work you expect.
And those SOPs can always be updated or completely changed if your VA has a better way or you change processes together.
TIME FOR WHAT YOU LOVE
YEA, NO. THAT'S NON-NEGOTIABLE.
Have you ever heard someone say something and think, "Yea, that's a no from me?"
Cuz, same.
I have several non-negotiables (sp?) in my business, but it wasn't until the past year that I actually set them in stone, stood my ground on them, and put them in my contract.
Your non-negotiables are the things you are not willing to back down on. And as someone who truly believes in you and wants you to succeed, I really hope you stick to them.
And trust me, as a recovering people pleaser, I know just how hard that is.
But also, I think if you're honest and open about them, people will respect you more.
For example, last week I did a Day of Voxer with one of my coaches, Carly Jo Bell.
She had strict rules on the timeline, what I should expect from her, what she expects from me, etc.
It was actually very professional and I totally get why she did it. I respect her peace and I was setting her up to best support me by respecting her non-negotiables.
I do not accept business related messages via text. Slack, email, Google Chat, Teams, etc are okay, but text is an absolute no from me.
I do not do phone calls. Video calls are fine, but I cannot focus or listen on a phone call and I no longer take them.
If you or anyone associated with you or your brand (aka your team) are disrespectful (I outline this better in my contract to be very specific to protect everyone involved. I do not terminate over trivial things.) to my team, I reserve the right to immediate termination of the contract without a refund.
If you or anyone associated with you or your brand reach out to me or my team via personal avenues without prior permission and without it being an ABSOLUTE emergency (like death) I reserve the right to immediate termination of the contract without a refund.
I don't answer client messages after 6pm CST.
I don't answer client messages on Sunday.
What are your non-negotiables?
P.S. Got a question about my non-negotiables? Or setting yours? Let me know! I have legit explanations for every single one and I'm happy to share why I feel so strongly about these. :)
BOHANNON VIRTUAL SOLUTIONS RECOMMENDS
READY, SET, FOCUS!
If you ever struggle to stay on task, you need RoFocus.
RoFocus is a Google Chrome extension that will play ambient music while you work to help you ignore/avoid noise distractions (like your dogs roughly playing on your bed) while you work. It also has a built-in Pomodoro style timer to help you keep track of the time you're spending on tasks and make sure you're taking breaks. It's pretty cool and you should check it out. Totes free.
Business & Balance, by Sammy Bohannon, is your go-to newsletter for online business owners ready to reclaim control & grow their business in a way that's true to them and sustainable in the long run. Each week, you’ll get practical tips, time-saving tools, and strategies to streamline your services, grow your business, and create space for what truly matters. It’s all about working smarter, not harder, so you can build success and savor life. Plus, after you sign up, you have the chance to see Sammy's adorable dogs, Penelope and Willow. No, seriously. She made a whole page on her website for it.
