The Importance of Systems

James Clear in his book “Atomic Habits” has a phrase I really like -

“You do not rise to the level of your goals. You fall to the level of your systems.”

This week, our complete team at Mercia Ventures have had a very enjoyable two day off site meeting. 

As part of the agenda one of our team members shared their experience and lessons learnt from elite sport, where for over five years they were part of the very successful GB rowing squad.   For those that don’t know, Great Britain is one of the most decorated nations in Olympic rowing, with over 78 medals in total, including 34 gold, 26 silver, and 21 bronze medals.

One of the key messages I took away from the presentation was that behind the successful athletes there is a system executed by the coaches that is in their words “obsessively process focused that creates systemic success”.

In business, systems are essential for creating efficiency, consistency, and success. Often documented as SOP’s (standard operating procedures) they help guide how things are done, ensuring that tasks are completed in an organised, effective and consistent manner.

Sam Carpenter’s book Work the System delves deeply into this concept. Carpenter himself discovered the power of systems after experiencing near-total burnout while managing his business, Centratel, a telephone answering service. Faced with unsustainable stress and long work hours, Carpenter realised that his company’s processes were haphazard and inefficient, leaving him constantly putting out fires. His business, and life, was in crisis mode, which is a familiar feeling for many entrepreneurs and leaders.

The central thesis of Work the System is that a business can only function smoothly when its systems are identified, analysed, and improved. Carpenter emphasises that nearly every business operation can be broken down into smaller, manageable processes. Once these processes are identified, they can be documented, optimised, and standardised. The goal is to create a self-sustaining system that works independently, freeing up the leader to focus on higher-level tasks.

My reflection this weekend is that systems are the foundation for long-term success in elite sport and elite high performance business. By spending time to transition from a reactive to a proactive approach, develop key systems and then continually iterate to continually improve are the building blocks for success.

I would value your thoughts and examples of how you have implemented effective systems in the comments below.