The CEO Elite

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Three Signs Your Business is Ready to Take on Employees

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Small business owners often say to me, “I could really use someone else but I’m not sure I’m ready.” There are so many things to think about when hiring someone into your business, the first being, how do I know I really need someone else. Here are three signs that your business needs employees.

Intended Growth

The most important sign a business will need employees is that the business is actively looking to grow. A small, one person business may never need to take on an employee if growth and leverage are not in their goals. But, if growth is your goal then doing more with no more time means that you will have to start the process of evaluating how you can use another person (or people) to make you more money or save you time.

Turn Down Work

A clear sign a small business is ready to take on employees is when they have to turn down work because they are too busy. I have heard many small business owners complain that they cannot grow because they simply do not have enough time to do their current work let alone take on the extra work of training new people or handling more clients. They want growth, but they stop at actually doing the work to make the growth happen.

The Ownership Role

When a small business needs the CEO to step into their role full time, so that they can do the work that creates more business, the owner then needs to have someone else do the work they had previously been responsible for. This means they need to find other employees to take on their offloaded duties. Often small business owners feel they are the only ones that can do certain work a certain way and therefore cannot offload it to another, less experienced person. The challenge is, when a business is in growth mode and more growth is expected and wanted, the business owner will have to give up more of the work they did as a solopreneur so that they can make the company more money. After all, it does not make sense for a small company to pay the CEO to do work that they can get an employee to do at half the wage.

If more clients, sales, and growth is in your future, then more employees will be the key to accomplishing your goals.

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What Happens During Transition Determines Where You End Up (Good or Bad)

In the immortal lyrics of The Clash’s song Should I Stay or Should I Go,  “This indecision’s bugging me”.

One of the toughest things about business is the decision making. It often feels like one wrong decision and your ‘toast’, ‘the game is over’, ‘the fat lady is singing’. OK, too many metaphors, but I feel the looming outcome of a bad decision can stop many from making any decision at all.

If I go there will be Trouble – If I stay there will be Double

Recently, I have been in a transition.  I have made some decisions around my focus for the next 1 to 5 years. I used a tool from Warren Buffet described in a book I am reading [Daniel H. Pink: When: The Scientific Secrets of Perfect Timing] that took me through evaluating the 25 things I want to accomplish in the second half of my life and then narrowed it down to the top five priorities for now. Even with this type of clarity, it was still unclear to me what had to change to make these 5 core priorities my only focus. Do I give up everything I have built to put one of those five at the top of my list of five? Do I try to restart some of the programs I’ve let go of, to get back some of the successes I’ve had in the past that align with my top five? If I chose one of these, what happens with the choices I’ve already made? I really feel that if I go forward without clarity on the ‘what’ then I will be in trouble and if I don’t move forward soon I will equally be in trouble (or as the song says, “there will be double” [trouble]).

The Direction I Choose

One thing I have always had going for me is that my clarity comes from faith. Faith that the direction I choose, no matter what it is, will result in my future experience. “Well, dah!”, you might be thinking. The key here is that my future has always been where I want to be. Maybe because I am happy with a lot of different outcomes, or maybe because what I put my mind to I make happen. If the latter is the case then it doesn’t matter which choice is the right answer, it matters which one I choose. I can choose to follow a path, maybe one I described above or one I have not envisioned yet, or I can choose to not follow a path. By abstaining from choice I inadvertently make a choice that has the same consequences: I will end up going in the direction of my non-choice. 

The Business Key

Decision making is based on the knowledge and understanding of what choices are available. Making great decisions cannot be simply choosing from A or B if the choice turns out to be ‘E’ (not even C or D). If you have never invited the opportunity to explore ‘E’ then how will you get to the place where you make the best choice? I believe, from what I have experienced, we often rush to make a choice from options that do not adequately meet our needs. We can tell which of the two or three are better than the others, but we still feel challenged to make the call because unconsciously we know that none of the other three were the exact right choice.

So, over the past 3 weeks, I have been spending time looking for the exact right choice. I don’t usually take this long to make a decision. For me this feels like a failure, not making a decision. In fact, I would have made a decision already, if the opportunity had not disappeared at the time I was saying yes. This is likely because the universe knew it was not my option ‘E’, it was just better than the other options. Since then I have spoken with mentors, friends, peers, and spent time simply working on things that are my top five. From that has come an awakening to a new perspective on my business. For me, it was relatively sudden and came during meditation. For you, it may be subtle and repeated.

Sometimes we have to ride the wave of confusion and do the work to uncover the options that are not clear at first. If you feel like none of your options will result in an exceptional outcome than you too are likely trying to make a decision without all the information. Go find your option ‘E’.

Postscript

If you were wondering what my ‘awakening’ was, it was that; My business is not the business to grow & sell, it is the business that helps others get to a salable business. My business is me. Focusing on me in my business has never been my goal, but it shows up, over and over. I have had people say, “I want more of you”, “I was hoping to work directly with you”, “are you the one that does this work”, etc. The universe has been trying to tell me this for years and I keep working on building a corporation I can sell wondering why I can create millions of dollars for my clients’ corporations but not for my own. Hmmm, now I see it. Option ‘E’ choice made – Focus on ‘Me’ and my personal service as the product.

 

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Problematic Employees Stop Change and Growth

 

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Running a business is way more than just doing the work. What happens when someone in your business is not doing their work? I have had several clients at a place in their business where they are growing, but employees in their business are not growing with them. It is weird to start seeing these employees become more entitled and embedded in the way work “was done” in the past. They have an argument and excuse why their old way is better. One of the funniest statements from this type of employee is when they say their work is so complicated that it requires extra work on their part to meet the requirements. Work that someone else cannot do. If someone’s job is so complicated that no one else can do it, it cannot change, or it takes too long, then either they are unwilling to change, they are incompetent, or there really is a problem with your business systems.

For my clients, it was all three. No one else could do the work because the person had made it so complicated it was not efficient or functional. They were also unwilling to change because it meant giving up control. This resulted in broken systems in their business. The options? Option 1– Fire them or Option 2– get them on board.

If you want to get them onboard and ensure they are really part of the new team you need to allow them to take control of the change in their job.

  • Give them the new work and ask them to implement it.
  • Give them a deadline.
  • Stay on top of their progress. Don’t wait until the deadline to check-in, do it every day.
  • Have them explain what they are doing, what the issues are, and what is working well.
  • Give them a teammate to work with that must also understand the changes and be able to take over.
  • Give them credit for what they accomplish.
  • Don’t accept excuses unless they come with a workaround that fits with the company’s growth plan.
  • If they don’t make progress, you always have Option 1.

Great employees are not people that do complicated work that no one else can do, they are great people that take pride in the work they do because they know it makes a difference to the business and their own lives. Problematic employees cost your business in numerous ways. Don’t spend too much time with a problematic employee that is unwilling to change.

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Be A People Person – Even When You Aren’t

A “people person” is liked by other people, has great communications skills, makes great leaders, and attracts people that are similar to them. If you aren’t a “people person” whom and what are you attracting and how does that affect your business?

“The greatest thing about business is the people. The worst thing about business is the people.” ~Unknown

I have been told this and I have shared it numerous times when I or my clients are challenged with the interaction of employees, clients, suppliers, contractors, and freelancers. Like everything in life, there is a Yin/Yang relationship with other people. Even the people we love the most we are not always in love with. So why do we think that we should always love the people we bring into our business and why do we not allow ourselves time to revisit our own role in our relationships before making decisions?

I believe there are many things you can do to create amazing relationships in your business. Here are three key rules you can apply to your business relationship that will help you manage conflict and reduce lost time and money associated with that.

1) Don’t hold on to bad people.

The old rule, “hire slow and fire fast” applies here. Spend time assessing whether people are the right fit for your business relationship. Evaluate them with respect to your core business values, your vision and your mission statement. These are important tools to use when making decisions about your business relationships. If the person does not fit your values then don’t hire them. If you have already hired them and find out they are not the right fit, fire them. If you have made it past the trial time on the job, and they don’t fit, fire them with reason (do this legally) and give them the benefits they deserve. The longer you have a toxic person in your business the longer they will affect your core business values and eventually your bottom line.

 2) Don’t make decisions when you are angry

“When dealing with people, remember you are not dealing with creatures of logic, but with creatures of emotion.” – Dale Carnegie

This applies to you as well. We all have moments (well maybe not the Dali Lama – who knows?) when our emotions get the better of us and we become angry at something or someone. Anger is a defensive emotion from our more primitive days, that helps us protect ourselves from danger. If we are angry we can protect our clan and our belonging from others that are from outside our circle. When we get angry at people that are inside our circle of connections, we are trying to teach them to fall-in-line and support the group.

The challenge with this thinking is, our anger can come from our own mistakes, can come from a feeling of betrayal, or from a situation that is unexpected, amongst other things. When we become angry our primitive brain stops asking the “thinking brain” what to do and then acts on its own. Do you really want people in your business making decisions without thinking? No, of course you don’t, so you have to ensure you also are not doing this.

3) Don’t get defensive

Being defensive is the act of immediately going to an excuse as to why something is the way it is, why you chose a specific path or made a specific decision. You may have the perfect solution, but if someone else has an issue with it, the best way to defuse the emotions and get to a solution is to first listen to their complaint, acknowledge that you have heard and understood it and then offer to talk it over with them. I look for ways to say, ‘yes’ to their request for a change, that will also support the best outcomes for the business and the people in it. Sometimes that is simply offering to sincerely listen and evaluate the situation with a willingness to make a change if needed. This means that if the other person is correct I would have to find a way to implement their perspective. If you are not skilled at conflict resolution then get someone who is to help you. I have found, in the past, that when I was sure my point of view was correct and someone else’s was wrong, that the two points were often focused on the same endpoint with two different ways to get there. That made saying yes much easier. I would never have been able to get to the resolution without first listening and evaluating their perspective and needs.

As the owner of the business, you have to model what you want others to do in your business. If you want employees that treat others, including your clients, with respect, then you had better not be ranting about another person or situation that made you angry, spouting off excuses to defend the decisions you have made. If you want to have great relationships in your business you have to learn what it takes to be a “people person”.

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Abundance Is NOT a Destination

If you think you can “get to abundance” by using the tools, teachings, and tricks of the gurus, profits, and spiritual guides you have learned from over the years, you will be wrong. Abundance is not a destination. Without abundance, you cannot have abundance.

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Without abundance, you cannot have abundance.

This morning while meditating, at my girlfriends home in San Diego California, I was going through my list of things I was grateful for. As a Canadian that had just left the temperatures of a cold spring (zero degrees Celsius) for the warmth of California, I was truly grateful. But, as I spent more time thinking about the gift of having the opportunity to actually make the trip, I was struck by the idea that I was not moving towards abundance, or trying to reach an abundant life, but that I had abundance and I was taking advantage of it.

You might be thinking, “well that is all good for you, you can afford to travel.” Well here’s my dirty little secret. I help my clients make millions of dollars more than I make for myself. I have 4 kids at home (all teens and older), a commitment to the college for teaching, a husband that is tied to a job, and many payments that make it difficult to allocate money to travel, for business or personal use. It wasn’t that long ago that I had to work hard not to appear desperate when I was showing up at networking meetings or on my sales calls. I needed the work and “being” abundant was not even something I understood.

Abundance is not the things we wear on the outside, it is the feeling we have on the inside. Abundance is not a thing you can pay for, collect, own, or gift to someone else. You cannot give away abundance any easier than you can purchase it.

So if abundance is not a place you can plan on getting to, nor an item you can own, what it is? It is a mindset of gratitude and a state of being that you must master. Abundance is the ability to be grateful for the food on the table, a roof over your head, clothes for your kids, and a way to pay your bills. It is also the ability to appreciate the gift of friendship, a sunrise, a great meal, the best things about your marriage, and love that fills your life. It is purpose and service and accomplishment and fulfillment. Being abundant is about having both the things that you can and cannot purchase.

To become abundant you must first feel abundant. The only way to feel abundant is to be truly grateful for the things you currently have, no matter how minimal you initially feel that is. When you feel abundant you change and you show up differently for your sales calls, networking, in your client meetings, with your friends, and any place you are. Abundance is who you are not where you are. Don’t wait to take advantage of what you already have. Be abundant now and attract more to your life.

Sound too ‘hokey’? Try gratitude every day for a month, be actively focused on your work, and then let me know if you are attracting more to your business and your life.