Hire Slow.  Fire Fast.

Most of my clients have human resource issues of one kind or another.  Here are seven tips to think about regarding personnel:

1. Encourage new ideas from staff.  Your people are smart.  And they want to be recognized for it.  But you have to be open to innovative concepts, and you should reward them appropriately.
2. Insist that salespeople do more listening than talking.  And while listening, teach them to be highly observant.  Customers give signals.  People on the sales floor must be able to pick up on them.
3. Conduct multiple interviews before hiring.  The more times you see someone, the more comfortable they become.  When they get more comfortable with you, they’ll let their guard down.
4. Know where your business is going.  The best people want to work for a firm that is going somewhere and for owners who want to grow their business.  If you have no vision, your people will know it.
5. Terminate people who don’t fit.  It’s amazing what happens to the morale of a team when an irritant is removed.  It’s like a breath of fresh air.  Hire slow.  Fire fast.  The best time to fire is before you hire.
6. Recruit constantly.  Your best asset is your best people.  Keep your eyes open for amazing personnel.  They’re all around you.  And make sure that a few of your staff agree on your recruits.
7. Stop fretting about Millennials.  They aren’t entitled.  They just don’t want to work the way their parents toiled with the hopes of building loyalty with a firm for benefits down the road.  They want to work normal hours and have a balanced life.  I’d like that, too, even if it took me 30+ years to achieve it!

Blind Spots

Everyone has “blind spots,” those areas in our lives where we need improvement, but just can’t see it.  That’s why we all need people around us who have the freedom to tell us the truth, even if at times we don’t want to hear it.

Do you have those close to you who care enough to tell you when you’re blowing it, when you’re heading in the wrong direction, and when you’re about to make a big mistake?  I hope you do, because we all need this.  None of us sees clearly all the time, and that’s why we need to give people the permission to challenge us, advise us, and level with us when we need it.

You also need to be that kind of person to your best friends.  After all, if you can’t be candid with the people you are closest to, who will you be honest with?

Here are a few Business & Life Tips to think about…..

Business Tips:

• Trust is the cornerstone of every relationship, every business, every product, and every service. Trust enhances everything.
• My editor once told me that I can “write better than that.” You can do better at what you’re doing right now, too. So just do it.
• Delegate to others what they can do as well or nearly as well as you. This gives you more time to do what only you can do.

Life Tips:

• You should have someone you can depend on, someone who has your back, someone you can trust. One plus one equals three.
• The people we spend time with influence our thoughts, values, ambitions, and dreams. Be careful with the company you keep.
• Humility is not thinking less of yourself than you should. It’s not denying your strengths; it’s acknowledging your weaknesses.

Tags: Advice, Business, Business Tips, Change, Crisis Management, Developing Leaders, Integrity, Knowledge, Leadership Excellence, Leadership Skills, Life Tips, Motivation, People Leaders, Personal Development, Philosophy, Reputation, Responsibility, Success, The Mind of a Leader