There was a time I wanted to be an anchorwoman. But that’s a story for another day. Yesterday, I sat down to write and thought: Why do we still underestimate business operations? I talk about them constantly, and for good reason.. Because if Fortune 500 companies rely on strong operations to survive… Why do founders think they can scale without them? Let’s be clear: SOPs weren’t created for the sake of documentation. They were built because things started to break. The moment work involves more than one person: → Quality dips → Outcomes get inconsistent → Margins quietly suffer And that’s not a modern problem. It’s a human systems problem. → Medieval guilds enforced strict rules → Naval ships ran on precise routines → Factories couldn’t scale informal knowledge → Militaries adopted SOPs as survival tools Operations aren't "corporate." They're how complex businesses stay stable, across centuries. I wrote about this in more detail👇. If you care about scaling, sustainability, or profit, read it. https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/quiet-history-behind-every-scalable-business-sops-jessica-marie-culle?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_android&utm_campaign=share_via

Most profit leaks don’t show up on the P&L. They show up in the operation. When owners tell me, “We’re making money, but it doesn’t feel like it,” this is where I start looking. Here’s a quick diagnostic I use with clients. Read it slowly. 1. Unclear ownership Do people know who owns the outcome or just the task? 2. Manual work that no one questions Is someone doing something “because we always have”? 3. Tool sprawl Are you paying for software that overlaps or isn’t fully used? 4. Rework How often does work get done twice because expectations weren’t clear? 5. Poor handoffs Where does work stall or bounce between people? 6. Unmeasured effort Do you track activity, or only results after it’s too late? 7. Overbuilt processes Did complexity get added to solve a one-time problem? 8. Underbuilt processes Is critical work living in someone’s head? 9. Meetings as a substitute for clarity Are meetings fixing confusion or creating more of it? 10. Revenue without operational insight Do you know why numbers move, or just that they did? If even a few of these feel familiar, you’re not failing. You’re operating without visibility. This is exactly what shows up in Ops Audits. Not dramatic problems. Quiet, compounding leaks. This is also what I break down in my Protect Your Profit masterclass: How to keep more of the money you make by using AI the right way, without automating the wrong things or creating new messes. We focus on eliminating operational ambiguity first, so AI becomes leverage instead of noise. If this sounds familiar, start there.

-How to link Google Calendar to Notion using Zapier -How to customize your Notion database to track activities, results, and conversions Ideas for tracking ROI on your time, not just your tasks -How this shift improves decision-making and resource planning Post questions/comments. Let me know how this worked for you.

Fill in the blanks and post how it worked for you in the comments. REAL MODE PROMPT (FILLABLE VERSION) Prompt to paste into ChatGPT: I want you to operate in Real Mode by default for all conversations related to: My role: [e.g., business owner, consultant, manager, creator] My industry or niche: [e.g., small business operations, healthcare, real estate, marketing, tech] My primary goal right now: [e.g., increase profit, scale operations, validate an idea, reduce waste] Real Mode rules: Be honest, factual, and grounded in real-world constraints. Pressure-test my ideas instead of agreeing with them. Identify risks, weak assumptions, blind spots, and execution gaps specific to my industry. Tell me when something is unrealistic, inefficient, or unlikely to work as presented. Push back when needed, even if the idea sounds good or feels exciting. Base feedback on logic, evidence, tradeoffs, and how things actually work in practice. Context to prioritize when evaluating my ideas: Time constraints: [e.g., limited time, aggressive timeline, flexible] Budget reality: [e.g., bootstrapped, limited cash, funded] Experience level: [e.g., beginner, intermediate, advanced] Resources available: [e.g., small team, solo, existing systems, none] Do not soften the truth to be polite. Do not default to motivation or encouragement. Do not assume my idea is good unless it holds up under scrutiny. If I want brainstorming, creativity, or encouragement without pushback, I will explicitly say: “Real Mode off.” Otherwise, Real Mode stays ON by default

Quick history lesson, because context always matters. Wednesday is called “hump day” because it sits right in the middle of the workweek. You have climbed Monday and Tuesday. Thursday and Friday are in sight. Wednesday is the hump you have to get over to move forward. Here’s the thing. Most business owners are living in a permanent hump day. Revenue is coming in, but it feels heavy. You are working hard, but the money is not sticking. You are doing all the things, yet the numbers still don’t look the way they should. That is not a motivation problem. That is an operations problem. Broken systems quietly drain cash. Messy workflows create hidden costs. Poor visibility makes it impossible to see where money is leaking until it is already gone. That is exactly why I built the Protect Your Profit Masterclass. Tonight, I am walking you through: - Where businesses actually lose money without realizing it - How broken processes quietly tax your profit every single month - How to use AI as a tool, not hype, to tighten operations and keep more of what you earn - How to move from “busy” to controlled, intentional, and profitable Think of this class as helping you get over the hump. Not by working harder. By working clearer. Stop hustling uphill and actually move forward, leta change the season up! Let’s stop bleeding money. Let’s stabilize your operations. Let’s make the climb worth it. I am so grateful for every one of you, and I cannot wait to see you there.👇🏾