Thinking about writing your first business book? Before you dive in, there are crucial questions every aspiring author needs to ask. In this episode, I’m interviewed by Carrie Birmingham, a first-time author working on her upcoming book about co-founder conflict, who asked me all the tough questions about my journey writing “LEMONADE Plan.”

• Is the massive investment of time and energy actually worth it?
• What benefits exist beyond obvious book sales (spoiler: the money isn’t in the book!)
• How do you maximise the authority and business benefits once published?
• Should you tell people what you’re working on or keep it secret?
• How do you navigate the overwhelming publishing process?
• What mistakes should you avoid in your first book journey

• Why writing a book is really about 3 different audiences (and yourself is #1)
• The power of building a proofreader network early in the process
• How to use AI tools like Claude as your “first reader” and editor
• Why book writing feels solo but is actually a team sport
• The real timeline and investment required (it’s different than you think)
• How to overcome imposter syndrome and get your message out there

Whether you’re just considering your first book, halfway through writing, or ready to publish, this honest conversation reveals the realities, challenges, and unexpected benefits of becoming a first-time author.

Carrie specialises in helping co-founders navigate conflict and is addressing a critical gap in the market with her upcoming book - perfect example of finding your unique angle as an author.

Is your marketing creating real impact, or just random noise?Could implementing one system change your entire business trajectory?What if you've been building your marketing the wrong way around?

After 52 episodes exploring systematic business growth, host Gareth Everson and producer Rob Drummond reflect on the key insights from Season 1. Discover which episodes had the most impact, from building effective landing pages to overcoming the curse of expertise. Learn how the LEMONADE Plan framework evolved throughout the podcast journey and why working backwards from endorsements delivers better results than starting with lead generation.

Things we cover in this episode:

• Why the implementation order matters (EDOALEMN vs LEMONADE)
• The standout episodes that created the most listener impact
• How AI is transforming small business marketing capabilities
• The evolution from SystemsWise to Zest for Business
• A preview of Season 2 and the new HeyPip AI marketing tool

This season finale episode provides both a reflection on past insights and a roadmap for what's coming next in May 2025 with Season 2. Perfect for small business owners looking to transform flat results into predictable growth.

Timestamps:

00:00 Intro: SystemsWise Season 1 Wrap-Up Episode

01:36 Rob's Big Takeaway - Forks in the Road

02:44 The Landing Pages Series

07:17 All-In-One CRM: Your Best First Hire

08:24 Niching Your Small Business

10:44 The Problem Solver's Paradox: The Curse of Expertise

12:37 Gareth's Big Learning: Explaining Starting With The End In Mind

19:01 The Importance of Clarity in Business

21:57 The Five P's of Systems Implementation

24:24 Content Planning Strategies

27:59 The Role of AI in Business

34:27 The Evolving Role of AI in Copywriting

37:31 Introducing HeyPip: The AI Copywriting Assistant

40:46 The Importance of Momentum in Content Creation

43:01 Leveraging Past Content as Valuable Assets

45:40 Looking Ahead: The Future of the Podcast and AI Integration

➡️ Is your expertise becoming a prison rather than a pathway to growth?

➡️ Do you solve everyone's problems except your own business growth?

➡️ Are you trapped by your own brilliance?

Here's how "The Problem Solver's Paradox" might hold your business back. Transform your scattered solutions into systematic success without compromising the quality that makes you brilliant at what you do.

Things I cover in this episode:

• Why being excellent at solving problems can become a growth barrier
• How perfectionism turns expertise into an exhausting trap
• The critical choice between deep impact for few or broader impact for many
• Practical ways to make your expertise more systematic and scalable
• Finding the sweet spot between customisation and standardisation

Timestamps:

00:00 Introduction to the Problem Solver's Paradox

02:05 Understanding the Expertise Trap

04:22 Serve Fewer Clients More Or More Clients More Scalably?

07:23 Conclusion and Wrap-Up

My book, LEMONADE Plan, will be released on Monday, February 24th. You are invited to the Online Launch Party; you can RSVP here. 

You did excellent work. Your client was thrilled. But that glowing review they promised? Nowhere to be found. If this sounds painfully familiar, this episode is for you.

Reviews are your silent salesforce - they build trust and credibility while you sleep. Yet most businesses leave this powerful tool to chance.

Did you know that 15% of your SEO ranking depends on reviews? Yet most small businesses miss the costly gap between client delight and capturing those reviews. In this episode, I'll show you:

Whether you're looking to boost your Google Reviews, LinkedIn Recommendations, or Trustpilot ratings, these practical steps will help you transform random praise into systematic success.

Resources and full episode notes:

#SystemsWise #SmallBusiness #CustomerReviews #LEMONADEPlan

How do businesses without marketing expertise generate leads that convert? This episode explains a simple system for finding, nurturing, and converting leads when your business gets paid for a skill other than marketing.

In this episode, you'll discover:

1️⃣ A practical approach to lead generation that doesn't require marketing expertise

2️⃣ How to nurture leads naturally without constant content creation

3️⃣ Why most sales meetings fail (and how to fix this)

4️⃣ The crucial mistake most businesses make when onboarding new clients

Drawing from the LEMONADE Plan framework, learn how four key processes - Leads, Education, Meetings, and New Client onboarding - work together to create predictable growth.

It's perfect for service providers, consultants, coaches, and practitioners whose expertise lies outside marketing and sales.

🎯 Key Timestamps:

00:29 - Introduction

04:32 - Why most lead generation advice doesn't work for non-marketing experts

07:39 - Finding leads when marketing isn't your strength

11:05 - The three approaches to nurturing leads

19:58 - Making sales meetings more effective

23:21 - The critical onboarding mistake most businesses make

Resources mentioned:

Get episode resources at https://getsystemswise.com/ep50

LEMONADE Plan book: https://lemonadeplan.com/book

Connect with Gareth:

LinkedIn: https://askgareth.com

What if everything you've been taught about growing your business is in the wrong order?

Most business owners start by chasing leads, but what if that's why they stay stuck? Discover why starting with the end in mind - your ideal reviews and client outcomes - transforms everything that comes before.

If you're ready to move beyond theory, this episode reveals the practical steps successful service businesses use to turn scattered excellence into systematic success.

What you'll learn:

Learn the practical framework for transforming random business activities into predictable profits. Part two of our journey from scattered systems to systematic success, with implementation steps you can start today.

Is your business stuck chasing leads without seeing sustainable growth? Wondering why marketing feels harder than it should? Are you tired of "gurus" claiming more leads will solve everything?

In this episode, discover why most small business marketing advice has it backwards. Learn how working from your desired outcomes creates more predictable success than endlessly chasing new leads. Understand why systematic delivery excellence matters more than constant lead generation.

Covered in this episode:

Join Gareth as he challenges conventional growth wisdom and shows how working backwards from your perfect review creates more sustainable success than working forward from endless lead generation.

Listen now to discover why systematic success starts with excellence, not endless marketing.

Episode notes can be found at https://getsystemswise.com/ep48

Teaser Episode 2 for the LEMONADE Plan book release

Are your marketing efforts only connecting with the tiny fraction of prospects ready to buy today? Most businesses focus entirely on the 2% ready to purchase, missing the other 98% of their potential market. And they don't even realise they're doing it. 🤯

This episode is part 2 of our special series introducing the LEMONADE Plan book, sharing proven systems helping small businesses achieve predictable profits and systematic endorsements.

Topics I cover in this episode:

• Why most businesses only reach 2% of their market
• How misaligned content pushes away potential buyers
• The untapped opportunity in follow-up marketing
• Creating systematic nurture paths
• Building trust with the other 98%

In the forthcoming launch of the LEMONADE Plan book, you'll discover how to transform scattered marketing into systematic success that reaches your full market potential through the stories of four small business owners - a business coach, physiotherapist, heating engineer, and a virtual assistant. It's an entertaining and light-hearted way to pinpoint where your sales and marketing might lose some of its fizz.

Is your marketing more random than strategic?

Are you spinning your wheels without real business growth?

Do you know why most small businesses struggle to convert leads?

On this episode, I introduce the forthcoming release of the LEMONADE Plan book and why I've written it.

The tl;dr is that I want to help more small businesses learn how to turn their marketing from scattered tactics to a purposeful, profit-generating strategy.

What I cover in this episode:

• Why copycat marketing fails businesses
• The hidden costs of random marketing tactics
• How strategy alone isn't enough for business growth
• Combining marketing, sales, and systems thinking
• The two critical markers of business success

You can access the resources for this episode at https://getsystemswise.com/ep46