Creating Systems That Work For You with LaToya Dixon Smith

⚠️ Note: This episode is from the Intentional Documentary® era. I’ve kept it in the public archive because LaToya’s reflections on motherhood, business systems, and human-first automation still hold powerful relevance, especially for creative service providers balancing growth, capacity, and connection.

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When you think 'business systems,' do you imagine something rigid, robotic, or impersonal?

In this conversation, LaToya Dixon Smith invites us to rethink that entirely.

With clarity, warmth, and lived experience, LaToya shares how systems can be a form of care — for your clients, your time, and yourself. She speaks to the emotional labor behind staying present in business while raising kids, the intentional design of client experiences, and how thoughtful systems can reclaim space in your day without sacrificing your humanity.

Whether you're fully booked or just finding your rhythm, this episode offers a grounded perspective on building structure that honors your season of life.

Topics Covered

• The purpose and limitations of CRMs like Dubsado and 17hats
• How LaToya facilitates “whiteboard sessions” to map workflows
• The difference between automating and over-automating
• Tools that support process-building (Trello, Loom, Planoly)
• How to assess the “warmth” of leads through inquiry forms
• Personalising automation with video, audio, and brand tone
• Managing business tasks alongside parenting a newborn and school-age child
• Her strategy for content creation: blending inspired action with batching
• The story behind her “iconic photo” submission — a quiet moment of motherhood, strength, and growth

Where LaToya Is Now:

Since this episode aired in 2019, LaToya has expanded her work in powerful ways. She’s now a trauma-informed boudoir photographer, certified sex doula, and erotic breathwork facilitator featured in ESSENCE, HBO, and the Huffington Post. Her work centers around helping women feel at home in their bodies again.

Connect with LaToya + access the archived episode resources here: → dangerouslygoodstories.com/intentional-documentary-podcast-archive