Are you so bogged down in the daily detail of your business that you can’t breathe some days? Do you find yourself looking at the clock at the end of the day and wondering what you’ve accomplished?
Of course you have! We all have – and that’s your first clue when it comes to making the decision to hire some team members.
That’s also when the self-talk kicks in – ‘how can I hire someone when I barely have any revenue?”. Right? Isn’t that what you’re thinking right now? I know. I’ve been there.
But if you’re going to make any headway at all, there comes a time when you’ve got to bite the bullet and hire that first team member. I can tell you, from experience, that when you do make that first hire, it changes everything. And I mean everything! It changes your mindset, your energy, your focus and most especially your drive to generate revenue. You’ve got people to pay now!
To grow your business, here are some of the support/team members you need to recruit. Now, I’m not saying run out and do all this hiring all at the same time. But, right out of the gate, you’ve got to start with:
1) A book-keeper. Now, unless that IS your business, then you have no business doing your books yourself. None. Talk about spending hours and hours trying to figure things out. Are you kidding me? That’s just plain stupid. Get a book-keeper and do it now.
2) An assistant. I hired a virtual assistant within weeks of having hired my marketing coach (and yes, you should have a coach, too – that goes without saying! – Don’t have one? Check out my website and let’s talk about how I can support you, then.) I had no clients in the beginning – I hired my coach who told me to get help right away. I promised myself I would do everything she told me – and so I did. I hired a Virtual Assistant for 5 hours a month. That doesn’t sound like much but think about it. What amount of revenue could you generate in 5 hours now that you have a bit of time freed up to focus and make sales calls? Or use that time for a paid speaking engagement?
3) Next comes an accountant. It is really important to have your books in order, to know your numbers, to be getting regular reports – cash flow, projections etc. – and to be on top of your taxes. That will really tell the story of how you are doing in business.
4) Additional support. For me, I then made a commitment to hire a housekeeper (2 hours, every other week – YOU can do that too!), a lawn maintenance fellow/snow removal, a travel agent (I am NOT spending time surfing the net trying to find good travel deals! Hire an expert – that’s what they do best.) and a personal assistant. It just happened that my house-keeper loves to run errands. She makes more money and saves me a lot of time.
5) Business support. As you grow your business, you are going to want to contract with a web designer, a graphic artist, a copywriter and perhaps even a branding specialist. These are all considerations that need attention.
If you are serious about growing your business and being of service in your area of expertise, then you MUST have a plan for adding team members. They are not an ‘expense’ – they are an investment in your future. And hire to where you are ‘growing’, not to where you currently are in your business. That’s a big mistake many entrepreneurs make – and it ends up COSTING them money in the end.
We all have a gift, a talent, an area of expertise. We cannot do it ALL. No one can. What makes you think you can? So, shift your thinking – get serious about your business – be thinking about making money, making sales, making a profit – and adding to your team in a strategic way.
This is not only solid business advice but it is also a strategy for your own personal health and well-being. Having team members who handle all those other areas of business for you actually relieves the tension and stress that many of you feel on a daily basis.
One of the many reasons I love having so many team members is that they ‘have my back’. They care about my business and they care about me and my clients. You’ve got to recruit wisely. And having a great team is the best stress relief that exists. Trust me – I know!
Who will you hire next and what benefit will that be to you and your business?
Please share your thoughts!
