Episode 452: From Overwhelmed to Organized: How Smart Systems Create Freedom with Coleen Stubbs

Brynne Tillman 00:02
Brynne, welcome back to Making Sales Social. I’m Brynne Tillman, and I’m excited to introduce you to my guest today, Colleen Stubbs, founder of Simplified CEO Systems. Colleen specializes in helping midlife entrepreneurs build businesses they’re passionate about using smart systems and simple technology so that they can grow without burnout. With over 35 years of experience, she excels in turning confusion into clarity through strategic automation, delegation, and organization. We’re going to dive into how Colleen helps professionals transition from overwhelm to feeling in control of their business. Colleen, welcome to the—

Colleen Stubbs 00:43
Show. Thank you. Thank you so much, Brynne, for having me. I’m happy to be here.

Brynne Tillman 00:47
I’m thrilled to have you here, and I’m really excited to dive into your genius. But before we do, we ask all of our guests the same first question: what does Making Sales Social mean to you?

Colleen Stubbs 01:01
Alright, well, I love Making Sales Social, so let’s get into it. Think of it as a game of business survival. It’s a game where you get dropped from a helicopter into a completely enclosed courtyard. It’s got tall rock walls all the way around it, and the only way to get out and reach your dream life, dream home, dream career—whatever it is you’re doing—is by building relationships with 15% of the people inside the courtyard with you.

How do you do that? Well, I would do it—and how I advise my clients—is to treat it like a buffet. You’re going to want to go through and try a little bit of everything, get to know everybody in there. Then there will be ones you really like, and you’ll want to go back for those. And then there are the ones you absolutely love. Those are the ones you want the recipe for, so you can have them in your life every week at home. Those are the ones you’ll build really good relationships with.

Now imagine this: you just got dropped from a helicopter, your hair’s all fly, glasses crooked, shoes crooked, skirt up in the air. You have to go meet people and give your best shot at building good business relationships to reach your dream life. What makes it easier is if you have your camera crew, your makeup person, your hair person, your team there with you. You get miked up, know exactly what to say, and they get you looking and feeling your best. You go around, presenting yourself as the very best you—able to share your brilliance and be the voice and face of your business without worrying about how you look or if it’s going to work, because you’ve got it all scripted.

That’s exactly what it’s like working inside my Simplified CRM. You bring your business inside my CRM, we take care of the back end and make sure it’s running smoothly, and then we give it back to you. You get to be the face, voice, and brilliance of your business.

Brynne Tillman 03:06
Yeah, that’s fantastic. When we were talking before the show, one of the things that came to mind is that you’ve got all these folks organized in your CRM. You can now speed things up by asking the first couple of people you talk to, “Who should I talk to next?” Leveraging those relationships to get to the next right people fast probably helps significantly with being organized around that.

Colleen Stubbs 03:44
Yes, absolutely. I would add that when you’re talking to people and building these relationships, asking, “Who do you recommend I talk to?” is the perfect opportunity for you as a newcomer to say, “Have you met so-and-so?” By looking at the cover of the book, maybe it’s not what’s inside that counts. You need to get to know them better, share your expertise and experience with others, and that keeps the circle going and helps you build it out faster.

Brynne Tillman 04:16
Oh, I love that. I’m excited to dive into this deeper. Talk to me about how you became the Simplified CEO Systems guru having this impact on businesses. What was your journey?

Colleen Stubbs 04:39
Sure. I’ve been building businesses for 35 years. I’ve built eight brick-and-mortar businesses from concept to profit, and I sold six of them due to burnout. The last two I sold so I could take care of my mom. After my mom passed, I was deciding what I wanted to do next. I knew I didn’t want burnout again, and I didn’t want to sell something and start over later.

I was over 55 at the time, and I wanted to help women permanently. I came online to teach women to build online businesses they were passionate about as a business coach. After working with clients, I saw them launch into the world and get overwhelmed with tech: jumping from platform to platform, figuring out apps to tie everything together, and wondering if they were communicating correctly. They told me, “This is too much. I want to build my dream business, but I don’t want to spend most of my time chasing tech. My dream is to be the face of my business.”

I found an all-inclusive platform, and I tested it for six months. I liked it, but it was overwhelming—thousands of tools and templates. So I customized it for each client, including only what they needed at that time. For example, one client, age 86, just wants a one-page website and newsletter. Perfect. Another client needs landing pages, workflows, email sequences, and calendars. I only include what they need in their office at that moment.

All their systems are automated. They just check in, add new contacts, and tag them correctly so they go into the proper workflows. I teach them all of this. I suggest they check in daily for personal follow-ups. We also have a VA agency to help with other tasks. This creates freedom: freedom to be the voice and face of your business, to show authenticity, and to scale confidently because the back office is running smoothly.

Brynne Tillman 08:33
Yeah, it’s interesting. Entrepreneurs often do busy work themselves instead of training someone, thinking it’s easier. But by the third time, you could have trained someone else. I love what you’re doing with processes. Entrepreneurs also often have weak follow-up. Having a CRM isn’t enough; you need the right workflow. That’s the magic I hear from you. How do you take someone from random, overwhelmed, to confident and executing with minimal effort?

Colleen Stubbs 09:57
We sit down with clients and define their end goal for each person added to their CRM. Maybe you tag someone as a prospect or contact—what is the end goal? Then we create a workflow specific to that goal. For example, with networking, I add power partners or contacts to my CRM and tag them accordingly.

If you and I are in a networking meeting and you need a copywriter, I can pull up a list in my CRM and refer you. Those copywriters don’t get my newsletter—that’s a different workflow. Other clients may start with a “starter kit” workflow, like sharing a pamphlet on time management, then scheduling a one-on-one call later. Multiple touchpoints are essential because nobody buys just a product; they connect with the business owner.

Brynne Tillman 12:05
One challenge: we have people download an ebook, then enter a three-email drip, and finally go into a big pool. How do you bridge the gap between being in the system and having a conversation?

Colleen Stubbs 12:36
A simple way is reaching out personally. For example, you struggled with time blocking this week. I could email just you, sharing an updated template and tips. That opens the door, builds the relationship, and creates opportunity for a call. I also like sending cards for different occasions to stay top of mind.

Brynne Tillman 14:00
I love that. You really stress earning the right to the conversation. Just because someone connected on LinkedIn or downloaded an ebook doesn’t make them a prospect. With large email lists, the workflow can get lost. How do you ensure the right activity and scoring is handed to the entrepreneur or salesperson to follow up appropriately?

Colleen Stubbs 15:11
You can go back in your pipeline and see where people drop off, and you want to get to them before that happens. You can retag them differently, segregate them, and redirect them into a new workflow. Maybe for those people, you’ll hold a webinar or a meet-and-greet, or whatever you decide. That’s how you can redirect them into a new workflow.

Brynne Tillman 15:41
I love that. Let’s talk a little about automation. We never use automation on LinkedIn, but email automation is magic. How much automation do you use, and how much personal engagement is needed? What might that workflow look like?

Colleen Stubbs 16:05
Sure. There’s a fine balance. Your workflows should always be flowing in the background, with links and interactive elements for people to reach out. But you also need to be the face and voice of your business. You need to engage on social media and proactively engage with anyone who reaches out. Not salesy—just building relationships and bringing value.

Think about friendships: if your friends always call with requests but never ask how you are, you get tired of it. It’s the same in business. Check in with a smaller circle of people regularly. As those relationships stabilize, they’ll reach out to you—and that’s success.

Brynne Tillman 17:17
It’s like creating a flywheel. It’s a lot of work upfront, but once it’s going, you have a consistent flow of people at the right timing.

Colleen Stubbs 17:28
Exactly. Mentioning people often helps, especially if others can use them. For example, I’m not reaching out to you, Brynne, but if Kathy calls and says, “Colleen mentioned you as an expert in…,” I stay top of mind in a grateful, authentic way.

Brynne Tillman 17:53
I love that. You’re helping people ensure they don’t miss steps. Can you share a success story about implementing a program?

Colleen Stubbs 18:12
Sure. I recently had a client who changed CRMs but didn’t fully transition for two months. She said, “We just need to get in there.” We jumped on Zoom, and she had a list of tasks. I thought everything was done, but we went through five items—and every single one was complete. You could hear her tone change—confidence grow. Everything was done. All she needed to do was plug in. You can’t put a price on that freedom when you’re not overwhelmed or burned out.

Brynne Tillman 19:16
That’s fantastic. For entrepreneurs listening, what’s the number one tip to start if they feel random and chaotic?

Colleen Stubbs 19:33
The first thing I do is evaluate all the tools you’re using. Get rid of anything you’re not using. Audit your tool stack. Remove the things not running smoothly. Then make a plan to get them running smoothly—maybe by connecting them differently. The more hands-off you can be in your business, the more successful you’ll be.

Automation and delegation running in the background are key. I understand the challenges—people are stressed about who to delegate to. When I came online, I would have never hired a VA, especially from another country. But someone recommended a VA they’d used for years, and now I have a VA for life. Inside my membership, I have 12 power partners available for my clients: copywriters, VAs, card dealers, and more. If there’s a problem, I have a way to reach them.

It’s a huge safety net, especially for someone like me coming online for the first time. Having access to experienced people to guide you is invaluable.

Brynne Tillman 21:43
Absolutely. I love that this system was born out of your need to overcome overwhelm. You did this for yourself, and now you help others. My second-to-last question is: what question should I have asked you that I didn’t?

Colleen Stubbs 22:21
You know, I think you got it. I think you did.

Brynne Tillman 22:25
Okay. Well, then my last question is, how can people get hold of you?

Colleen Stubbs 22:30
Sure. Here’s my number—

Brynne Tillman 22:33
Most of this is podcast, so we’re going to go—

Colleen Stubbs 22:40
417-362-10081, text me anytime. I’m also at simplifiedCEOsystems.com. Perfect. I am Simplified CEO Systems on Facebook and LinkedIn.

Brynne Tillman 22:56
Love this. This was so powerful. I really believe this is the difference between having a lifestyle business and being able to scale. For folks wondering how to gain a competitive advantage, having a good system in place might just do it. Thank you very much for your insights—I really appreciate it. And to all our listeners, when you’re out and about, don’t forget to make your sales social.

Outro
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