Work
Run your small business without keeping it in your head
5 min read · Updated
KEY TAKEAWAYS
- Running a small business feels heavy when everything lives in your head and arrives through every channel.
- Five cards cover most of it: this week, waiting on, contacts, how we do things and ideas.
- Short step lists let someone else take over and stop mistakes.
- Whatever comes in, chat, email or phone, gets one line on the board.
A customer messages on WhatsApp. A supplier emails about a late delivery. Your accountant needs a receipt. And you still haven't answered yesterday's order question.
"I keep the whole business in my head."
That works, until it doesn't. Usually on a busy week.
Why does running a small business feel so heavy?
- Everything comes back to you. You're the only one who knows where things are.
- Work arrives through every channel: chat, email, phone, in person.
- Waiting is invisible. You're waiting on three people and none of them know.
- The routine lives in your head, so nobody can take over.
What should a small business board show?
Five cards cover most of it:
- This week: orders, appointments, deliveries
- Waiting on: suppliers, customers, the accountant, with "since when"
- Contacts: the people you call most, with numbers
- How we do things: short step lists for tasks that come back
- Ideas: improvements you don't want to forget
Everything in sight. On one board.
Tasks, notes, photos and plans as cards on one calm board. No charge today. Cancel anytime.
Start 7 days freeOr see all templates →Why write down "how we do things"?
Because the day you're ill, on holiday or just busy, someone else can follow it.
Keep each one short: five to eight steps, one line each.
It also helps you. A routine you don't have to remember is a routine you don't get wrong.
How do I stop losing track of who I'm waiting on?
One card, one line per item: what, who, since when.
How do I handle everything arriving through different channels?
You can't control where things come in. You can control where they go. Whatever comes in, chat, email or phone, gets one line on the board. Then you deal with it from there, not from five inboxes.
Can my team or partner use it too?
Yes. Share the board, or one part of it. Everyone sees the same week and the same list of waiting items. People you invite to a PAPEPPE board don't pay anything.
The full board
Your small business setup
Screenshot this:
- This week: orders, appointments, deliveries
- Waiting on: what, who, since when
- Contacts you call most
- Short step lists for tasks that come back
- Everything that comes in gets one line on the board
This week, write down one task you always do the same way. Five steps. That's your first routine.
Questions
How do I organise a small business?
Keep this week, waiting on, contacts, step lists for recurring tasks and ideas on one board, instead of in your head and inboxes.
Why should I write down my business routines?
So someone else can take over when you are busy or away, and so you do not get routine tasks wrong.
How do I keep track of suppliers and customers I am waiting on?
Keep one list with what, who and since when, check it every morning and nudge anything older than three days.
How do I deal with messages from many channels?
Give everything that comes in one line on the board, and work from there instead of from several inboxes.
Can my team use the same board?
Yes. Share the board or part of it. People you invite to a PAPEPPE board do not pay anything.
Try it on your own board.
No charge today. Cancel anytime.
Start 7 days free