Of all the things I care about when running a business, productivity is right at the top of the list, second only to cash flow.
The two are closely linked. If the cash is flowing, profit can usually be found through productivity. Doing more with less. Running lean. Removing friction. Automating everything that doesn’t need a human brain involved. That’s the game.
Alex and I have said for a long time that Comus has been built to be as lean as possible. One of our ongoing experiments is seeing what level of turnover we can achieve with just the two of us. Based on how the platform is structured, that number could get quite silly, quite quickly.
We’ll see.
Nerdy games aside, there are a handful of things I now consider essential in any business I’m involved in. Non-negotiable. If you’re not doing these, you’re either leaving money on the table or burning time for no good reason.
Automate Cash Collection or Don’t Bother
First and most importantly: cash flow and productivity in one hit.
Xero recurring invoices with GoCardless direct debits. Set it up once and forget it exists.
If a client is on a retainer, you set the invoice lines, client details, and recurrence, then move on with your life. The invoice goes out automatically and the money is collected automatically. No chasing. No awkward emails. No “just circling back”.
It’s great for monthly retainers, but it’s amazing for annual software renewals, the kind that are easy to forget and a complete faff to invoice manually. Some of these might only be £20 a year. If you’re doing that manually, there is no profit in it at all. You’ve already lost money before you’ve sent the invoice.
Automate it and suddenly it’s pure margin.
Kill Scheduling Emails Dead
Calendly is another gem.
The free version gives you one calendar, which is more than enough for most people. It removes the endless back-and-forth of “Are you free Tuesday?” followed by “No, how about Thursday?” followed by silence.
What used to be four emails over six hours becomes a two-second job that the client completes in their own time. You send the link. They pick a slot. The meeting appears in your calendar. Done.
No admin. No thinking. No friction.
Pick Up the Phone
My favourite productivity tool is almost embarrassingly simple: a phone call.
Why send six emails back and forth when you can thrash it out in a three-minute call? It’s faster, clearer, and far less likely to descend into misunderstanding or passive-aggressive wording.
Email is still the primary communication tool, obviously. But I actively like talking to clients and collaborators. It puts some humanity back into the process. It builds trust. It reminds everyone involved that they’re dealing with an actual person, not just an inbox.
It’s better for everyone.
Video Calls Are Awful
Video calls, however, are fucking awful.
Regular “check-in” meetings are a productivity killer, and video calls somehow manage to be less personal than a phone conversation while demanding more effort from everyone involved. You’re stuck staring at your own face, pretending to be engaged, while half the time could have been handled in a short call.
The only time video calls are genuinely useful is for screen sharing: when you need to show someone something specific. Outside of that, they’re mostly theatre.
Cut them aggressively.
Productivity isn’t about hustle or working longer hours. It’s about removing nonsense, automating the boring stuff, and choosing the fastest path to a clear outcome.
Get that right, keep the cash flowing, and everything else gets a lot easier.
