Duplicate Yourself with Systems: Lessons from My Podcast Appearance on Real Estate Untucked
I recently joined my friends Wayne Salmans and Brad Allen on their podcast, Real Estate Untucked. I had a great time talking with them about life and business and managed to tolerate their weird bromance dynamic, yet again.
Wayne and Brad are both deeply rooted in the real estate sales world—Brad runs a successful brokerage with several offices in South Carolina, and Wayne coaches, speaks, and runs masterminds largely focused on sales. I’m a “recovered” real estate agent myself, so we kicked things off by talking shop. But, true to form, I couldn’t wait to pivot the conversation from sales into my favorite topic: operations.
🎧 Listen to the episode here on Spotify.
🎧 Listen to the episode here on Apple.
Below are some of the points I hit during the conversation—with a bit more depth than we had time for on the recording.
You Can Duplicate Yourself with Systems
Every business owner has that moment of overwhelm where they think, “If only I could clone myself.”
The truth is: you can. Not literally, of course, but with systems and processes. Systems are just a way of getting what’s in your head onto paper so that other people can act, think, and deliver like you. That’s how you build consistency for your clients and sanity for yourself.
Too often, business owners resist systems because of ego. They believe clients need them personally, or that no one else can do things quite as well. But here’s the truth: if you’re the single point of failure in your business, you’re not serving your clients—or your team.
As I said on the podcast:
“Me being the single point of failure in this business is not a kindness to my clients and it's not a kindness to my team. If I get sick, if I get hit by a bus, and I’ve designed this so that my personal touch is what the entire business runs on…what is everybody supposed to do? It is a kindness to your clients and kindness to everyone on your team to have found a way to duplicate yourself with systems.”
And if you’re not operationally wired, that’s okay. Most visionaries aren’t. That’s where people like me come in.
Simple Systems You Can Put in Place Today
1. The Top Five List
Every day, write down the five most important things you need to do. Then do them before lunch.
“For years as an agent, and still today, I start my day by writing out the five things I’m going to get done. Calls I’ve been avoiding, that delayed report, a key meeting, getting to the gym, or just hitting inbox zero. If I knock out those five things before 1pm, my day is a success—even if the afternoon goes completely off the rails.”
This small habit protects your focus, your most valuable asset as a business owner.
2. The Shit List
Yes, you read that right. The Shit List is simply a running list of problems. Missed deadlines, mistakes in the field, dropped balls—write them down as they happen.
“It’s too much to ask your brain to identify everything that’s wrong, think of solutions, and execute all at once. Instead, just jot down the problems as they come. Later, when you have bandwidth, review the list. Look for patterns and ask: what system could I put in place so this never happens again?”
Review your Shit List weekly or bi-weekly. If you already have one, even better—bring it to me and I’ll help spot patterns and design fixes. Honestly, I dream about Shit Lists.
Culture = How We Do Things Around Here
Culture isn’t happy hours and bonuses—it’s clarity. People feel safe and successful at work when they know:
What’s expected of them
How to succeed
That mistakes won’t get them blindsided because processes are clear
As I tell clients:
“If you don’t have your team on the same page about values and how they translate into daily activities, you don’t have culture—you have chaos.”
And here’s a rule of thumb:
If you can’t put it on a page, your team isn’t on the same page.
Whenever I enter a company, I ask about a process (say, entering bids into software). Leaders usually assure me: “Oh, we’re good there. Everyone knows what to do.” But when I ask three different employees to show me the process, I almost always see three different approaches. That creates confusion, errors, and lost money.
The fix is simple: document what’s actually happening, reconcile it into one clear process, and roll it out. Suddenly, your team is truly on the same page.
Ready to Scale Without the Chaos?
Systems don’t just save time. They give you back your focus, protect your team, and create consistency for your clients.
If you’re ready to stop being the single point of failure and start scaling with confidence, let’s talk. Schedule a time to connect with me. I can’t wait to meet you.
