Why Your Employees Suck

How do you tell a group of obese people, all of whom are in denial, that they need to lose weight?  Seriously, how does that conversation start?  “You guys really should stop snacking before bed…Maybe hit the treadmill a few times a week.”? I can already hear the excuses flying back at me when I imagine myself standing there in front of the hefty crowd. “It’s genetic.” or “It’s a thyroid issue!” It seems futile to try and offer advice to someone who is not even aware that they need said advice, am I right? This article is just that.  It is unsolicited and probably unwanted advice regardless of the fact that it is true.

I’m just going to go ahead and say it, there is a 96% chance that YOU are the reason your employees suck.  YOU are the reason you cannot find reliable help.  YOU are the reason people continuously let you down and screw you over.

Whew…that felt good.  Let me continue now that 50% of you stopped reading. The small business graveyard is built upon mounds of shattered dreams and unmet expectations, and many of those final business killers were rooted in some type of employee-related issue. Too much turnover, unreliable staff, poor work quality, not being able to find good candidates, and it goes on and on.  There are many things that can go wrong when you try to grow your business and expand into the realm having employees, and all of them start and end with you. Would you like three real-life ways to greatly reduce these problems in your small business?  “Well yes I would, Josh.  Thank you.” you say.  “My pleasure”, I say.

Step 1:  Be a Headhunter

Fortune 500 companies recruit their top staff, so why don’t you?  There is talent all around you, in your home town so go get it!  The local hardware store, restaurant, or gas stations have plenty of hungry people looking for a shot and the good ones are easy to spot.  Remember to hire for their personality and teach them the skills.  Pass out recruitment business cards to anyone you think may be a good fit and continuously interview people, even when you’re not hiring.  Doing this will help you build a rolodex of solid, hand picked candidates.

Step 2:  Be a Leader

Your job is not to manage or babysit, rather your job is to inspire and lead the people around you.  If I asked 10 people if they are a good leader, probably 8 people would say yes.  The problem is that only 2 of them are actually good leaders because they have a misconception of how it should work.  Take my super short litmus test to see if your a good leader:

Step 3:  Be a Systems Expert

I remember one of my first big employee pains came when a key guy left our business unexpectedly.  He had committed to a full season and then broke his word.  We were in a world of hurt because only he knew how to do a variety of important things in our business.  You need to prepare your business to weather these types of storms and this is accomplished through system building.  If an employee drops the ball it should be a speed-bump, not a total derail.  At the end of my time with my company (before I sold) we had a solid 5-day training program and a rolodex full of pre-qualified future employee leads.  When we had to transition staff or grow, we could have a fully-trained replacement in the field within one week. What is holding you back from putting things like this in your business?  Let me know.

P.S.  Learn how to create a “Referral Waterfall” inside your business by getting my FREE PDF teaching you the 4 simple steps.  Just text “EPICBUSINESS” to 44222 (works in USA only)