Do You Need to Hire an Employee?

You are swamped. You are 2 days behind on your emails at work. You have a presentation in 3 days that you haven’t even started. Client meetings that you haven’t prepared for. Your nanny just called in sick and you are scrambling to find coverage. Things are falling through the cracks. You are fahreekin out!

What’s wrong with this picture?

You’re going to get burned and need to hire an employee, that’s what. You probably have a virtual assistant. Maybe two. You even may farm out some work to independent contractors. But still you’re swamped and you want to play an even a bigger game in 2012 as an entrepreneur.

Many of you know my favorite quote. “More of the same equals more of the same.”

Looking to stir up the pot a little? You need to delegate even more than you are right now. Some boots on the ground help. Someone in your office, dedicated to you who can take some work off your plate. Someone who can live, eat and breathe your business to support you.

When you finally do hire an employee, it can be scary. It puts you on the hook to produce enough money in sales to pay for your employee, leaving you with that feeling of “Holy sh*t!”

But in 2012, step up and do it. Make a commitment to really invest in your business and hire an employee. Make the decision to stop wearing all the hats and constantly being stressed out with not enough time in the day.

It’s sometimes hard to see beyond the fact that it’s a major expense to have someone besides you on your payroll. But what is the real risk here? The real risk is not taking action, deciding to do everything yourself because you can do it the best. But do you love doing every little thing in your business? Or are there things that drag you down? Those are the sort of things you hire an employee for.

You will also have to invest time and energy into training new employees and make sure they are a good fit. I suggest that you consider using the Kolbe A index (www.kolbe.com) to help you hire the right person.

You also need to create an Operations Manual so your new employees know the systems and processes of your business. Don’t believe in systems? Do yourself a big favor and read “E-Myth Revisited: Why Most Small Businesses Don’t Work and What to Do About It.”

There is no such thing as a self-made millionaire. Did Frank Sinatra move his own pianos?

Hire an employee and make 2012 about creating an environment that supports you so you can be the best in your business.