The hidden waste that's holding your business back

Have you ever felt like you're constantly busy but not actually moving forward in your business?

It was 2022, and I did something simple. I opened my wardrobe and started pulling things out. Old clothes I'd accumulated over years, pieces that no longer served me. I've never really thought too much about fashion, but I knew I needed a cleanse.

It wasn't just about clearing space. It was a ritual. A release. For clarity. For alignment. For growth. My word for the year was "simplify", and this felt like the perfect place to start.

Funny how something as mundane as decluttering your drawers can spark a deeper shift in your energy, your business, your whole direction.

It's something I come back to often in my work. Because spaciousness is choice, and it's a business strategy.

1. You have to declutter before you can build a plan

We are obsessed with "doing more". In this space, we forget the quiet power of doing less, of creating space first.

Before I teach anything about lean management or operational efficiency in the Flow in Business Accelerator, we always begin with space. Not spreadsheets. Not planning. Space.

Because when you slow down and declutter your desk, your diary, your digital noise, you begin to see clearly. What's working? What's not? What's essential?

And more importantly, what's waste.

My business is called "Essential Shift" for a reason.

This is the foundation of lean management: a powerful business philosophy that focuses on doing less, better. At its heart? Identifying and eliminating waste so you can create more value for your customers whilst using fewer resources.

And yes, even in businesses like yours, the principles apply.

2. The 7 wastes you didn't know were blocking your growth

In lean methodology, these are called the 7 Muda (Japanese for "waste"), and they're surprisingly present in most businesses, especially creative or service-led ones.

Let's uncover them together:

Overproduction: Creating more content, products, or ideas than needed. Ever written a 40-page offer guide no one downloaded?

Waiting: Delays in approvals, content, tech, or team processes. Like waiting on that one email before launching and stalling your momentum?

Transportation: Unnecessary handoffs or information being passed inefficiently. Too many tools, too many folders, too many steps.

Overprocessing: Making things more complex than necessary. Think onboarding processes with seven steps when three would do.

Inventory: Stockpiling ideas, drafts, or digital clutter. That Google Drive of unused freebies and course outlines? Yes, that counts.

Motion: Excessive movement or switching between tools and tasks. Changing platforms every quarter? Guilty.

Defects: Errors or rework caused by lack of clarity or rushed delivery. Rewriting content, fixing tech mistakes, re-doing client work.

Here's a sobering statistic: The average entrepreneur spends 68.1% of their time working "in" their business, tackling day-to-day tasks and putting out fires, and only 31.9% of their time working "on" their business with long-term goals and strategic planning.

3. How to streamline your processes

This is not about becoming a robot or stripping the heart from your business. Quite the opposite.

It's about creating space so your brilliance can actually shine through.

Here's a gentle exercise to get started:

Decluttering ritual

Pick three to five of these and spend five to ten minutes on each:

Clear your desk or workspace 

Unsubscribe from email lists that drain you

Delete apps you haven't used in three or more months 

Clean out your calendar (what really needs to stay?) 

Review your current offers, where is there too much? Let go of digital clutter (old downloads, client docs, etc.)

You'll be amazed how different your energy feels when the noise quietens. This is more than tidying. It's an energetic alignment.

4. The power of simplicity in action

That wardrobe clear-out? It didn't just help me dress better. I actually hired a stylist to help me choose some new looks, a few statement pieces I could use again and again. This made for lighter work. Every time I had an event, I knew what to do.

So I:

Decluttered 

Made space for new 

Got expert help 

Didn't overcomplicate the process moving forward 

Saved myself so much time and energy

Whether it's clothes or processes or offers or beliefs, decluttering is the first, essential act of sustainable growth.

This is what we explore deeply in the Flow in Business Accelerator, using lean principles to create more spacious, aligned businesses.

5. Creating space for what matters

Ask yourself: "What would become possible if I removed just three things that drain my energy each week?"

The magic isn't in doing more. It's in the conscious choosing of what stays and what goes.

Final thoughts

You don't need more. You need less, but better.

When we create space in our businesses, we create space for what truly matters: deeper client connections, innovative solutions, and sustainable growth that aligns with our values.

Remember: sometimes the most powerful business strategy is knowing what to remove, not what to add.

Let's make space for what matters.