Ep: 04 Why Airtable Beats ClickUp and Notion for Service Providers with Ashley Rose
“There are two types of business owners: the ones who base decisions on data and the ones who base decisions on vibes.”
Ashley Rose
Airtable Vs Clickup
I cannot tell you how many times I’ve heard service providers say, “I tried ClickUp… I tried Notion… and nothing ever stuck.” Same. I’ve been there. I’ve wasted more hours than I care to admit setting up pretty systems that looked great on day one and became graveyards by day three. That’s why I had to bring Ashley Rose onto the show. Ashley is the genius behind Systems Over Stress, and she’s built something in Airtable that finally works for brains like ours. It’s flexible, it’s visual, and it’s made for the way service providers actually operate, not for some idealized group coaching business we don’t even run.
Ashley and I dug into how Systems Over Stress is different, why it’s not just another rigid system, and why Airtable has been the only platform that’s stuck for me long term. Plus, she gave us a sneak peek at what’s coming next and teased a brand new offer launching in 2026 that you’ll definitely want to keep an eye on.
What You’ll Hear in This Episode
I’ll walk you through why Airtable finally clicked for me when other platforms didn’t.
Ashley breaks down how Systems Over Stress is actually tailored to one-on-one service providers.
We get into the neurodivergent-friendly design behind the system.
Ashley teases her 2026 offer and shares details about her upcoming webinar.
We talk about what to do if you think Airtable might be “too much” or “too templated” for your business.
Why Airtable Beats ClickUp and Notion for Service Providers
Here’s the thing… ClickUp and Notion were built with project management and team collaboration in mind. They’re fine if you’re running a huge team, but most service providers don’t need all that overhead. What we actually need is a way to connect our offers, clients, and delivery in one place. Airtable does that beautifully, and Systems Over Stress takes it even further with templates, automations, and workflows that are actually designed for us.
Ashley made such a good point in this episode: a lot of what makes Systems Over Stress powerful isn’t just the tech, it’s the language. She and her team literally rewrote the systems to fit the way service providers talk about our work. It’s not about “members” or “cohorts” or “course modules,” it’s about clients, retainers, deliverables, and timelines. That shift alone makes the whole thing feel instantly usable.
Systems That Work for Neurodivergent Brains
This is where Ashley and I really vibed. I’ve shared before how my brain likes to see things laid out visually, and Ashley designed Systems Over Stress for her own neurodivergent brain. It’s not overwhelming, it’s not overstuffed with features, and it doesn’t make you feel like you’re behind the second you log in. Instead, it gives you the clarity of knowing exactly what’s on your plate and how it connects to everything else.
For me, that’s been the game changer. Instead of fighting with my system, I actually use it. Every day. And that’s how you know something works.
What’s Coming Next for Systems Over Stress
Ashley teased a new offer that’s rolling out in 2026, and while she didn’t spill all the details, let’s just say it’s going to be right up the alley for service providers who want even more streamlined, stress-free systems. Plus, she’s hosting a free webinar on September 29th, 2025. If you’re listening before then, grab your spot at https://soldoutservices.com/ashley. If it’s after, don’t worry—you can head to https://systemsoverstress.co or DM one of us on Instagram to get pointed in the right direction.
Chapters
00:00 – Casual intro and launch talk
02:26 – Emylee’s Kansas City life and casual banter
03:25 – Clearing the air: group programs vs. services
07:21 – How Systems Over Stress is really a done-for-you service
09:10 – When Ashley started building her team
12:25 – Training team members on Ashley’s unique systems approach
15:44 – Why AI can’t replace real Airtable strategy
17:25 – Shifting SOS language to serve service providers
20:27 – New features for service providers (revision requests, Fillout forms)
21:42 – The power of productized services
22:48 – Why service providers need to track client results
24:15 – Reframing deliverables as measurable results
27:52 – Why HoneyBook and Dubsado don’t cut it for delivery
30:59 – Emylee’s lean tech stack after using Airtable
34:26 – Airtable’s flexibility and replacing other tools
35:47 – Serving more clients without more stress
36:26 – Automations that save Ashley from her own bottlenecks
38:14 – Using client feedback to generate 100+ testimonials
39:47 – Asking for mid-project feedback
42:04 – Filtering and handling client feedback with a team
44:32 – Emylee using the Content Hub to plan a year of launches
46:41 – Ashley teasing her 2026 offer
49:18 – Why SOS works for service providers but not e-commerce
50:37 – The 2026 sales hub + data-driven decisions
55:21 – Why strategists need clean data to do their job
57:06 – Running your business on data vs. vibes
58:18 – Ashley’s upcoming free masterclass details
01:00:56 – Where to connect with Ashley and final takeaways
Resources & Mentions
Ashley’s Free Webinar (happening September 26th, 2025)
About the Guest
Ashley Rose is the founder of Systems Over Stress, where she helps coaches and service providers move off spreadsheets and into streamlined, automated Airtable systems. As a neurodivergent entrepreneur, Ashley built her business by creating tools that worked with her brain, not against it—saving her time, protecting her client experience, and preventing burnout. Over the past three years, she’s supported hundreds of business owners in scaling sustainably with systems they can trust.
Connect with Ashley:
Interested in Being on the Show or Working with Emylee?
Are you a service provider with a bold perspective to share? Apply to be a guest.
Ready to transform your service into a productized, scalable offer? Apply for Sold Out Services.
If you’d like to see a library of all published episodes in a gallery with easy-to-find links to all listening platforms be sure to check out the Sell The Damn Service Episode Library.
