How to Shave Hours Off Your Week with AI and Systems - Rachel Lavern

Website: https://www.rachellavern.com 

Linkedin:  https://www.linkedin.com/in/rachellavern/
 

[00:00:01]: Hi, I'm Rachel Laverne. I am a business process optimization consultant. You know, it's ironic. Here I was armed with a degree in IT and an MBA degree and I was implementing business systems for Fortune 500 companies. Yet I had to crash and burn not once but twice before I really learned my lesson. That second crash was the worst. Here I was, a successful consultant earning well into six figures. And I thought I could do it all.  

[00:00:43]: I believe no one else could match my standards. And I kept putting off documenting my systems because I was too busy. Doing that was me. I was that person who'd say no to a friend celebration, skip travel opportunities, all while telling myself, just this, one more thing for my business. Until one day, my body and my mind simply said, enough. I had to walk away from my business completely for seven months as a divorced woman with no other income to fall back on. This wasn't a comfortable choice for me. I had to live entirely off my savings.  

[00:01:37]: But I was so burnt out that even the thought of running my business for one more day felt impossible. Now, if you were to run into me, I'd tell you I was on a sabbatical. But the truth, it was survival. My business, the very thing I'd sacrificed everything for, had literally sucked me dry. But you know what? That breakdown became my breakthrough. It forced me to face a truth I'd been avoiding. Systems and automation aren't just nice to haves. They're the difference between a business that drains you and one that sustains you

[00:02:34]: And everybody needs them, no matter the size of your business. You're a solopreneur. You, you need them. You are a Fortune 500 company. You need them. So that's why today I really love helping coaches and consultants, both titles I once held, avoid the painful lesson I had to learn the hard way. Because I've seen what happens on both sides. I've lived through the overwhelm, the burnout, the guilt of missing out on life.

[00:03:08]: But I've also seen the joy on clients faces when they finally break free from administrative chains, when they can focus on their zone of genius, when they can reclaim their time and life. I realize that no amount of expertise or client dedication can make up for the absence of well organized or automated systems. They're what keeps us from burning out. And that's the very foundation of my work. Now you see, this isn't about just building an efficient business. It's about preserving the brilliance and impact of remarkable people who are meant to serve others, not drowning in tasks that could be Automated or or systematized. Now let me tell you about a client. Michelle, a brilliant business coach I met last year.  

[00:04:09]: She had built her practice with two team members, but she felt like she was drowning. Her calendar was bursting with client meetings, her inbox was overflowing, and she was working late into the night just to keep up with with those admin tasks. I love what I do, Michelle told me. Her eyes were filled with a mix of passion and exhaustion, but she said that she felt like she was in a never ending loop. I want to grow, she always said. But she was afraid that she sacrificed the quality of her service or burnout trying like I did. It is surprisingly common to feel like you've mastered your profession only to feel overwhelmed by everything behind the scenes. Handling emails, client scheduling, marketing.  

[00:05:14]: It's draining, especially when you're compassionate about helping people but struggle to keep up. We spend years getting degrees, certifications and expertise in our field, but no one teaches us how to run a business without running ourselves into the ground. Can you relate? So here's the thing. You're fantastic at what you do. I know you are. That's not the problem. The problem is all those behind the scene tasks that eat up your time and energy. The endless emails, the schedule juggling, the social media posts that never seem to end.  

[00:05:55]: Michelle's story isn't unique. As entrepreneurs scale to six figures and beyond, they often face a perfect storm of challenges. One time becomes their scarcest resource. Manual processes that worked for a handful of clients now become bottlenecks. The line between work and personal life blurs, leading to burnout and the fear of dropping the ball on client commitment grows with each new opportunities. These challenges create a paradox. The very success they worked so hard for now threatens to undermine business and personal well being. What is this costing you? The cost of these challenges goes far beyond money, impacting both personal and professional life in ways that aren't always visible on that balance sheet.

[00:07:05]: It's the wedding anniversary you miss because you were just finishing up some client work. Or did you miss your best friend's milestone birthday celebration so you had to watch through social media the next day after after the celebration? Or is that vacation you canceled because you couldn't imagine your business running without you? It's the creative ideas you never even pursued because you were too exhausted from putting out the daily fires? On the financial side, when your business is bogged down by inefficiencies, those costs add up quickly. I've seen coaches leave 50,000 to, let's just say $100,000 on the table each year. Time lost to tasks that could be automated or delegated. Every hour spent on busy work is an hour you could invest in landing a client, developing a new program, or scaling your impact. Take Michelle for example. As her business grew, so did her work hours, hitting 70 plus hours a week. She missed her children's musical performances and little league games, and her poor husband.  

[00:08:37]: He had to joke to her about needing an appointment just to see her. She was losing out on revenue simply because she couldn't focus on high value activities like developing innovative programs or nurturing key client relationships. She estimated she was losing out on at least $45,000 in potential revenue each year. And the irony wasn't lost on her. Here she was coaching other people, yet struggling to manage her own life. She was overwhelmed. She developed insomnia and started experiencing anxiety attacks. These challenges don't just cost money.  

[00:09:27]: They cost moments, health and fulfillment. And aren't those the very reasons most of us started down this path in the first place? The real cost For Michelle, it's that growing gap between the dream she had for her business and the reality she's living. As business owners, we often feel caught between our drive for growth and our need for balance. This is where smart growth comes in. Imagine a bridge. On one side there's business growth, the revenue, clients and impact we want. And on the other side there's life, balance, time for family, personal well being and freedom. Magic happens in the middle where smart systems, automation and AI create a path to achieve both.  

[00:10:28]: So let's walk you through some practical strategies to reach this middle ground. Ways to grow your business without sacrificing that life you want. Michelle had similar questions. How do I find more hours without dropping the ball? With a clear seven step plan, she regained control of her time. And here's how Michelle started By tracking every little thing she did each day. From booking calls to following up with clients, she logged it all. One area that stood out was her client proposal process. Every time she onboarded a new client or created a proposal for potential work, she found herself spending hours tailoring templates and rephrasing sections and double checking details to align with each client's unique needs.  

[00:11:24]: So by the end of the week, Michelle realized that she was dedicating nearly six hours every month to just to this task. Next, Michelle research AI tools made for business coaches like her. After looking into her options, she found three that fit perfectly. Data Robot for forecasting business trends, Gong IO for analyzing client conversations and Persado for writing tailored content Kind of like a writer who knows just what to say to make your clients lean in. And with these three, Michelle had a powerhouse lineup ready to start, saving her time and energy. By selecting tools built specifically for her line of work, she was then able to avoid wasting money and time on generic software and fast track her results. Then Michelle mapped out her most time consuming repetitive tasks and matched each one to a tool. She asked herself questions such as what takes up most of my time and what do I do repeatedly? And what tasks, if done faster or better, would help my business grow the most.  

[00:12:53]: Her answers were financial forecasting, client insights, and personal personalized marketing. By focusing on these three areas, Michelle learned that she could make the biggest impact. And this clear focus meant that she wouldn't get overwhelmed trying to automate everything at once. Instead, she could see meaningful improvements right away in her most time consuming activities. Instead of jumping in all at once, Michelle introduced one tool at a time. She was able to test and refine without overwhelming herself or her team. For instance, in month one, she implemented an AI proposal generator that created polished client specific proposals in minutes. Then she dived into predictive financial modeling with Datarobot.  

[00:13:53]: And next she integrated GONG IO to help fine tune her client calls. By taking it one step at a time, she experienced immediate wins without a steep learning curve. And this allowed her to integrate new tools seamlessly. It was like training a team to work her way, except this team was running 247 and they didn't request time off. So rather than delivering generic outputs, her AI tools produced content that resonated with her clients, saving her time and elevating her client experience. Now, of course, Michelle didn't make a big announcement about her new AI systems, but her clients noticed. Suddenly they were getting faster replies, tailored recommendations and her insights. They were even sharper.  

[00:14:55]: When they would comment on the improvements. She just simply explained that she made some upgrades to serve them even better. So without adding hours to her day, Michelle was able to create a seamless client experience that felt more attentive and professional. Lastly, Michelle set aside time every month to assess her AI tools, keeping a pulse on what was working and where she could adjust. So by continuously evolving her systems, Michelle ensured that her AI tools grew in sync with her business. And the results were amazing. Within three or four months, Michelle was saving just under 20 hours per week. And this was time that she reinvested in a group coaching program that added revenue.  

[00:15:53]: But even better, she was there for her family, showing up to her children's events and finally taking a weekend getaway with her hubby. If you're a busy bootstrapped business owner like me, you understand the value of every minute and every dollar. My current AI tech stack costs about 71 to 75 dollars per month and it saves me at least 10 to 20 hours per week. That's 60 extra hours for less than 70 bucks or 75 bucks. And that's a great deal if you ask me. This is the AI power tech stack that's working for my business, and it might help yours too. And I'm going to present them in order of frequency with my most used tools. First, there's Chat GPT.  

[00:16:53]: How I use it is just for my research, analysis, decision making, innovation and creation. I like it. It remains on my most used AI platform because its models have stayed out ahead the competition and the improvements in the voices and the imagery and things like that make it a highly versatile productivity tool. And typically I'm firing up ChatGPT when I need background information on a topic or certain ideas or suggestions, or when I'm doing strategic analysis or evaluation of an idea or plan. And then there's data organization or cleanup. Claw 3.5 I paid 0 for that. I use it for creation. I like it.  

[00:17:49]: It's still my top writing partner. It's very good at replicating tone of voice and also improving format, structure, tone and transitions. Then there's Gemini for Google Workspace. I pay about $17 per month. I use it for research and analysis. I like it because first the chat box. I find Gemini to be roughly on par with ChatGPT, and my primary use cases for Gemini are when I'm seeking answers that incorporate real time web browsing and when I'm working on larger strategic projects. And then there's Grammarly.  

[00:18:41]: I pay about 12 bucks for it a month. I use it for editing and proofreading, of course. And I like it because it provides spell check, style suggestions. And of course it improves my grammar and the clarity there. And now on to my weekly tools. I use 11 labs, about $5 per month. I use it for text to voice generation. I like it because it makes it incredibly simple to generate natural sounding narration from text and then their Zoom meeting summary.  

[00:19:18]: I pay zero for that because it's included in Zoom Workplace Pro. I use it to analyze meeting summaries. I like it because it's a great companion to, not a replacement of note taking during meetings. It does a really good job of capturing action items and I'm really impressed by its attempt to group a conversation's takeaways by theme rather than just chronological order. And it works very well in combination with Fireflies AI, which I'm going to mention momentarily. And it just offers true transcription and Zoom recently released AI companion which will make it even easier to summarize and take action on meetings. Firefly I pay 0 for it, and that's meeting transcriptions and summaries. And it does what Zoom currently doesn't provide Relatable and searchable meeting transcripts for my monthly tools I use hyperwrite and I pay $0 a month for that.  

[00:20:29]: I use it for creation writing. I like it because I primarily toggle on their type ahead Google Chrome extension whenever I'm facing writer's block. I find it somewhat distracting otherwise, with the inline suggestions disrupting my train of thought. And then there's Thinkific. I pay $36 a month in the basic plan AI is included and I use it for a landing page generation. I like it because think if it's hosts our AI Education and training Just last month I used its AI assisted landing page builder for a new course. The landing page assistant asked a few questions about the target audience, the challenges they're facing, and how the course solves them. So based on my responses, it generated a solid first draft of the landing page.  

[00:21:30]: And then there's description descript I play zero for that. I use it for video editing and audio editing. I like it because at best I'm a beginner level video and audio editor. But Descript's AI powered editing and intuitive UI makes editing fast and easy. So check it out if you need to edit podcasts or YouTube videos or webinars are on demand courses. It can also generate short video clips, captions, transcripts, and AI voice clones. And then there is perplexity. I pay zero for that.  

[00:22:14]: I use it for research. I like it because it's a good starting point for background knowledge and research, for learning topics quickly, and for finding valuable stats. But since Gemini and Chat GPT browse the web and can often cite sources, I don't use it as much. And then there's Bottlebox. I pay zero for it. I use it for innovation and analysis. I like it because it's able to select which model I want for a test, and I can invite a second or a third model in to provide feedback or to improve the output. And I use it to upload important files to a knowledge base so they're available to attach to prompts in a couple of clicks.
[00:23:11]: Or I've also added them to chats in that workspace by Default. So think brand style guides or product documents or buyer Persona profiles, et cetera. And then lastly, HubSpot, I pay zero for that because it's included in my starter platform and I use that for marketing sales platform management. I've been a little bit underwhelmed by HubSpot's writing assistance. I prefer more detailed prompts. But I'm not gonna underestimate HubSpot. The company's been investing in AI for years, so right now I'm appreciating their AI powered features like list assistant. Oh, and by the way, I also pay for beautiful AI for my presentation slides like this one.  

[00:24:11]: That's very meta of me, isn't it? But it's about $40 a month. But I love it for jump starting my presentations. So what should your AI stat look like? To answer that, you need to figure out what your most immediate goal is. What's your aiy? In other words, what problem are you trying to solve? Do you want to save time? Do you want to drive revenue? Do you want to expand capabilities? Which one? You just figure out that one thing. So if there was anything I would want you to take away from this session is you are brilliant person and you are meant to change lives. So getting buried under tasks that can be automated, it's like watching a master artists spend their days organizing their paintbrushes instead of creating masterpieces. You didn't start this journey to become a professional email writer or a calendar juggler. You started it to change lives.

[00:25:24]: Right? I remember sitting at my desk on many a late night, missing yet another family dinner, thinking this isn't what I signed up up for. Maybe you've had that moment too. But here's the beautiful truth. You have the power to change this. AI isn't about replacing human creativity or connection. It's about amplifying what makes you uniquely brilliant at what you do. When you set up the right systems and AI tools, you're not just building a business, you're. You're reclaiming your life.  

[00:26:02]: You're saying yes to being present for those precious moments that make life worth living. And that's why I created a gift just for you. A step to help you win back your time. Now, because I know that getting started is often the most difficult part, I'm giving you a free resource that's a step by step system that frees up your time without adding complexity to your day. And this free checklist will show you exactly how to gain more hours in your week. You know, when Michelle sent me a photo of her at her son's championship game, I realized that this was about so much more than just growing a business. Her son scored the winning goal, and Michelle was there to see it, not checking her phone or worrying about pending tasks. That's what this revolution of AI means for you.

[00:27:08]: It's like having a virtual assistant who works tirelessly in the background, freeing you to be present for the precious moments in your life. It's not just about scaling your business. It's about building a legacy, both in your business and in your life. Because at the end of the day, success isn't about the figures in your bank account. It's about having the freedom to be there for the people you love, while making the impact you were born to make. And that's the true power of using AI as your virtual assistant. It gives you back your life while helping you serve at your highest level.