Simple systems to make you money

 

Guess what? I’m not organized.

I forget things. I get overwhelmed. When I feel scattered, my instinct is to buy a new container and convince myself that will fix everything. It does not fix everything.

And yet somehow I've been consistently showing up in my business since 2009. Consistently posting. Consistently podcasting. Consistently making offers and making money.

The secret isn't discipline or willpower or having everything perfectly together.

It's simple systems.

In this week's Chill & Prosper, I'm sharing the very simple, unsexy, actually-works systems that run my business without requiring me to be a different kind of person than I am.

Inside the episode I cover:

• My two-step marketing philosophy that has never changed in 15 years
• Why batching is the most underrated thing in business (and how to make it work for your personality)
• How to build consistency without it feeling like a grind
• The simple content rhythms that keep me showing up without burning out
• Why money loves consistency and what that actually means in practice

Because here's the thing. You don't need a complicated system. You need one that's simple enough that you'll actually do it, even when you're tired, distracted, or just not feeling it.

That is the whole point.

xx Denise

P.S. If you've been working through the Virgo Guide this month, you might already be noticing a few things. 

A price that's been too low for way too long. Money that was owed to you that you'd forgotten about. Or just a general sense of "oh, I've been avoiding this." 

That awareness is exactly where the real work begins. 

This month's live Money Bootcamp coaching call goes a layer deeper - we're talking about how to find money you didn't even realize was available to you. 

Join us before the last Thursday of September at denisedt.com/bootcamp, or reply with the word BOOTCAMP and we'll figure out together if it's the right next step for you.

---

Prefer to read?

Here is the transcript for this episode:

Hey friend, it's Denise here, and today we're talking about simple systems that make you money.

Now, please don't turn this off because you think I'm going to tell you to become super organised. I'm not that organised myself!

This is the lazy, ADHD, perimenopausal, busy mum version of systems.

People often tell me that I seem so consistent and organised, but the truth is, I've just created some really simple systems that help me show up consistently without having to think about everything all the time.

And since it's September and Virgo season, it's the perfect time to organise things a little.

I've got a free guide at denise.com/virgo called The Virgo's Guide to Getting Organised with Your Money and Mindset, which will help you put some of these ideas into practice.

The most important thing is to keep it simple.

I know that whenever I'm overwhelmed, my instinct is to buy another container. I do a lot of crafting and make dance costumes, so my office is full of beautifully labelled containers.

But buying another container doesn't magically solve the problem.

Sometimes we need to stop looking for a brand-new system and simply reset what we already have.

My philosophy is that money loves simplicity and consistency.

Now, when I say consistency, how does that make you feel?

Some people immediately resist it. They tell me they get bored doing the same thing over and over again.

And I get that.

But do you like money?

Because consistency is one of the things that has helped me make millions of dollars in my business.

My marketing philosophy is incredibly simple:

Share what you know and make offers.

That's it.

Share your knowledge, give people useful advice, tell them how you can help, and then make an offer.

People often overcomplicate marketing because they think they need an elaborate strategy, but having this simple philosophy makes it much easier to create systems around it.

For example, I try to post on social media almost every day.

But I don't sit down every morning and think, "Oh my God, what am I going to post today?"

I batch my content.

I have themes for different days, and I create content ahead of time so I don't have to make that decision every single day.

I've been able to maintain that consistency since 2009 because I've created a system that works for me.

And that consistency makes money because I'm showing up regularly, being helpful, and staying in people's minds.

The next part of my system is creating something more in-depth once a week.

For me, that's this podcast.

For you, it might be a newsletter, an article, a weekly report, a horoscope, or something else entirely.

Think about the podcasts you listen to or the newsletters you religiously read.

Part of the reason you keep coming back is that they're consistent.

You know they'll be there.

And again, I batch this content.

I'll book a podcast studio for a day and record ten episodes. When I'm filming videos, I might hire an Airbnb for three days and create as much content as possible.

Those recordings can then become newsletters, social media posts, and video clips.

If I tried to do everything week by week, I know I'd skip some weeks because I wouldn't feel like doing it.

So my system is to create the time and involve other people so it actually happens.

We also aim to create a new opt-in each month.

For you, that might be a monthly sale, webinar, or launch.

And then I try to do something bigger each quarter, such as a mini launch.

That's my marketing system.

It's incredibly simple, but it's made us millions of dollars.

The beauty of having a system is that you remove the constant decision-making.

You don't have to keep asking yourself whether you're going to do something.

It's simply what you do.

The same principle applies to your personal finances.

If you want to save more money, you could set up an automatic transfer into a savings account.

You don't have to rely on remembering or feeling motivated.

The system does it for you.

But here's something important: there isn't one perfect system that works for everyone.

The best system is the one that works for you and your brain.

I've bought so many notebooks and tried so many organisational systems, thinking, "This is going to be the one!"

But the systems that stick are the ones that fit how I naturally operate.

For example, I need accountability.

I wouldn't record this podcast at home by myself.

I need to book a studio, involve someone else, and have it scheduled.

The same goes for filming videos.

For some people, the answer might be body doubling, hiring a coach, meeting a friend, or scheduling regular accountability sessions.

Whatever works for you.

One of the most useful places to start is by identifying your friction points.

What keeps annoying you?

What problem keeps happening again and again?

What are you constantly having to remember, fix, or follow up on?

Because if the same problem keeps occurring, nothing will change until you do something differently.

I used to have a recurring issue with coaching clients.

Our sessions would run over time, and clients would email me between sessions with lots of different questions.

It was creating stress and taking up so much energy.

So I created a simple system.

Every week, clients received an automated email with a link to the same Google form.

It asked them to list their priorities for the week, what they wanted to discuss on our call, and anything else they needed to tell me.

That meant they had already thought through their questions and prioritised what mattered before we got on the call.

And if someone emailed me with another question, I could simply say, "Great, add that to your form."

Such a small change, but it saved me so much time and energy.

And of course, saving time and energy can help you make more money.

Another example is appointment reminders.

I use Calendly for bookings, and it automatically sends reminders and follow-ups.

I don't have to remember to send them, and my team doesn't have to chase people.

I also appreciate this as a customer.

When a practitioner sends me a text reminding me about an appointment the next day, it's genuinely helpful.

It gives me a chance to rearrange things and make sure I'm there.

The same applies to payments.

If you're constantly chasing invoices or feeling uncomfortable asking for money, think about how you could simplify that process.

Could you ask for prepayment?

Take a deposit?

Keep a customer's card on file, with their permission?

Set up automatic payment reminders?

As a customer, I love it when businesses make payments easy. I don't want to have to remember to pay someone or worry that I've forgotten.

So ask yourself:

What am I spending time on again and again?

What is my team repeatedly dealing with?

Where are we creating temporary fixes for something we could solve properly?

Sometimes the answer is automation.

Sometimes it's a boundary.

Sometimes it's a standard operating procedure, a better piece of software, or a different way of working.

You might even discover that upgrading your bookkeeping software saves you hours of work and reduces what you're spending on bookkeeping.

Look for the things that are taking up your time, money, energy, or mental bandwidth.

And remember, systems aren't just for business.

I've become obsessed with removing tiny annoyances from my everyday life.

For example, I love my Skechers slip-in shoes.

They have fake laces and a structured heel, so I can put them on without bending down or tying anything.

Now, I know that sounds incredibly lazy!

But I don't want to spend my life force energy thinking about my shoelaces.

As someone with ADHD, in perimenopause, with multiple kids, pets, clients, and responsibilities, having one less thing to think about genuinely helps.

It's about reducing decision fatigue.

Think about all the tiny decisions you make throughout the day.

What are we having for dinner?

Do we need toilet paper?

Have I paid for parking?

Do I need to vacuum?

Each one takes a little bit of energy.

And sometimes you can create a system that removes that decision entirely.

Maybe you set up recurring deliveries for household essentials.

Maybe you get a robot vacuum cleaner.

I love mine. It automatically starts at 10am every morning, and I don't even have to think about it.

I came home the other day and saw those beautiful vacuum tracks on the rug.

It made me so happy!

Someone in my local Facebook group mentioned getting a parking fine because they'd forgotten to pay on time.

Another person pointed out that they could schedule their parking in advance through the app.

Brilliant!

If you're parking at work every day, why keep making the same decision?

You can automate it.

Some people simplify their lives by wearing the same clothes every day.

Steve Jobs famously did this.

But maybe choosing your outfit is something you love, and you don't want to automate that.

That's fine.

Maybe you'd rather simplify your meals instead.

We get good-quality frozen meals that take about four minutes in the microwave.

For me, that's one less thing to think about.

Does it directly make me money?

No.

But it gives me more bandwidth to use my energy in creative ways.

And sometimes systems aren't about fixing problems.

They're about creating ease and pleasure.

Maybe it's a coffee machine that has your coffee ready when you wake up.

Or an ice maker in your fridge so you never have to refill ice trays.

I love that there's always ice in my fridge!

It's such a small thing, but it brings me joy.

So think about what you could simplify, automate, or upgrade.

Not necessarily because it's causing chaos, but because it would make your life a little easier.

I call this philosophy the keyless life.

For years, before I was diagnosed with ADHD at 42, I was constantly losing my keys, bus pass, wallet, and cards.

And I carried so much shame about it.

I thought I was disorganised.

I thought I was bad at things.

And that started to translate into beliefs like, "I'm bad with money."

But eventually I realised that instead of constantly trying to fix myself, I could create systems that worked around the things I struggled with.

Putting my payment cards on my phone changed my life.

I don't lose my phone, but I used to lose my cards all the time.

I've also got my Medicare card and other important information on my phone.

And one of the biggest changes was installing electronic keypads on my doors.

I don't have to remember my keys anymore.

It's simply not a problem.

When I stay in an Airbnb that uses physical keys, I suddenly remember how much energy I used to spend thinking about them.

That's the philosophy behind the keyless life:

Don't spend all your energy trying to get better at something you struggle with if you can create a system that removes the problem.

Imagine your brain is like a computer with fifty tabs open.

Every tab is using a little bit of energy.

Every tiny decision, reminder, and unfinished task is taking up some of your bandwidth.

And you deserve to have calm and simplicity wherever possible.

You don't have to become a completely different person to be organised.

You don't have to become naturally consistent.

You can create organisation.

You can create consistency.

That's what I've done.

I'm not naturally organised, but I've created systems that help me stay organised.

I'm not naturally consistent, but I've created systems that allow me to show up consistently.

And you can do the same.

If you want some help getting started, download my free guide at denise.com/virgo.

It's full of simple ways to organise your money and mindset, identify what you want to fix first, and create systems that help you make more money and help more people.

Remember, you don't need perfection.

You just need something simple that works for you.

And sometimes the smallest changes can make the biggest difference.