How to Hire a Great Team – Part 1
I always say, “Isolation is the enemy of wealth.” And to tell you the truth – it took me a long time to really learn this lesson myself. You see for years I resisted hiring new team members.
There were two main blocks. One, I was afraid to hire and train someone given that the person may leave. Two, I thought I needed to understand the role and tasks that person would do before I hired her. And because that never really became clear – I didn’t get to the hiring.
I know many of you struggle with similar issues – how do you think about bringing someone new on? And what do you do about the fact that you aren’t always sure what tasks will be on that person’s plate?
We are looking to bring on three full time staff members at Revenue Breakthrough and here are some of the best lessons I’ve learned:
- Hire fast and fire quickly. You can’t determine how it will work in your head. You just can’t. People will surprise you and they will disappoint you. But you’ve got to get started to determine that.
- Fill the container. Whether a person stays or goes – you will learn so much about that role. Once you understand how someone fits into your company and the role they play – you’ll understand the container they are trying to fill.Once you understand the container, filling it with the next person is so much easier.
- Roles + Personality Characteristics are important. Understand the role and the personality characteristics you want for your company. Someone can have an awesome personality but not do the job well. Or someone can do the job beautifully but not have a terrible attitude. Neither will work for you. Keep searching until you find someone who fits the personality and the role.
- Work with people you like. Do the “if I got stuck in an airport, would I want to hang out with this person test”. If the answer is no, then don’t hire her. After all, you’ll probably talk more to this person then most of your friends!
Remember, you deserve to have support. So don’t wait until you figure it all out to get it. Here’s to you delegating and having more free time!
Leave me a comment below and let me know how you pick out the best people on your team and what you thought of this article.
