creating structure before the storm
The last year has been one of the most chaotic seasons of my career; layoffs turning into a newly expanded role, learning to juggle undefined new responsibilities while managing the old ones, and navigating an unexpectedly intense recruitment season.
As I sit here reflecting, I realize that the lessons I learned from growing up in the chaos of a family business are the reason I thrived instead of burning out.
My grandfather started our family business in 2001 as a two-person team (just him and my grandmother) and over the next 24 years grew it into one of the most trusted security film and window tinting contractors up and down the Washington State/Northern Oregon I-5 corridor, employing a team of installers, an estimator, an office manager, and administrative assistants.
When I say “our family business" I mean it! From the time I was ten years old I was answering the phone (which was still connected to our house phone) and assisting with material prep. I learned firsthand the sacrifice and hard work it takes to run a small business.
I formally worked for my grandfather during college and then again in the months between graduation and starting my first post-college role.
I gleaned so much from the things he did well (including the brilliant customer service he showed every customer no matter who they were or the size of the job) but also from the things he didn’t formalize as he scaled up.
One of the biggest lessons I learned was this:
Starting out with intentional organization allows you to navigate the chaos that comes from the unexpected.
When my grandfather started out he did everything himself so he just kept all his knowledge and processes in his head. That is fine when it’s two people, but becomes much harder when you have a team of 10.
I used to tell my mom (the office manager) that it’s hard to find time to regroup when you’re in the midst of the storm, so you have to make time when you see it coming.
That lesson ended up being my saving grace this fall.
After the layoffs at my institution, my old role was dissolved and replaced with a new role that included all of my original responsibilities and the full workload of a travel grant manager.
Stepping into a role that was essentially two full jobs merged into one, right at the peak of our enrollment and orientation cycle, …I’m not going to lie, it was a lot!
Even though it was overwhelming, as I got started I was able to tap into the knowledge I’d gotten from my grandfather and prioritize getting organized.
I set up meetings with the teams I was working with to establish a timeline and workflow, and to make sure we were all on the same page.
I took the information I gathered from those meetings to create an SOP manual for the position and for the grant. I mapped out timelines, division of responsibilities, and strategically set up meetings for check-ins.
As a result of that preparation, I was able to juggle:
Executing an expanded recruitment travel schedule
Identifying and resolving unexpected problems with the grant
Setting up and managing cross-department collaboration
Organizing and running info sessions
Coordinating campus visits and student-led tours
Conducting prospective student meetings
Reviewing applications and conducting interviews
Keeping up-to-date with data management
Running a 6 week recruitment campaign
…as well as all the other day-to-day tasks I needed to complete
It was hectic. Chaotic. There were many times I wanted to cry (and several times that I did).
But you know what? The preparations worked and the systems stood.
At the end of it all, I more than doubled our numbers for the Winter Quarter last year, exceeded my recruitment numbers for Spring, and am ahead of where we were last year for Fall.
I also tripled the number of students who were selected for the grant because we now have the structure in place to support them.
I’m writing this post from a much-needed summer vacation. I’m so grateful that I’m able to take it without worrying that I've left loose ends behind or that I’m going to get back to work and have to scramble.
The past year has shown me how capable I am, and I’m really looking forward to my next challenge!
What about you? What strategies have kept you from going crazy when everything hits at once? (if you feel like it, drop it in the comments below, I’d love to hear from you!)
If your answer is “I really don’t know and I could use help putting those systems in place,” that’s what FounderMap is for! I'd love to help you build them!
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