Why delegating is good for your business

Delegating. It sounds so simple.  You’re too busy, you ask somebody else to do some of the work you are doing, and now you are less busy and everything is getting done.  But delegation is much more than that.  Delegation is business management: it is an important part of business decision-making and is necessary for…

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Your org chart shouldn’t look like an octopus

“Make an organizational chart?” He asked me. “But that’s so 20th century, do businesses still do that?” Only the good ones.  The problem was never organizational charts: the problem was always bad organizational charts. And in small businesses, org charts are even harder, because so many people fill multiple roles. Pretty soon they look like…

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Would you recommend working for you?

Even better: would you want to work for you? I want you to be very careful when you answer this question, and make sure you are thinking of your business as it really is, not as you want it to be. Your employees work in the reality that exists today, tomorrow, and every day. Not…

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Why you should stop having performance reviews

The annual performance review.  Every employee’s favorite moment of their favorite day. They prepare for it, they celebrate it, they wait all year or all quarter for this fun, exciting, stimulating moment— Clearly: I am joking.  Nobody likes performance reviews, neither employees nor employers.  So let’s stop doing them.  Let’s have Stay Interviews instead.  What…

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The most important line in your job descriptions

There’s one sentence in your job description that matters the most.  If you were only allowed to share one line from your job description, this would be the line to share.  It’s the line that tells people what to do. And it goes like this: “The purpose of this role is…” A job adds value…

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Stop punishing your best employees (😕yes you are)

Much like children or grandchildren: of course, you don’t have a favorite employee.  You support them all equally and appreciate each one for their individual skills and talents.  Now that we have established that, let’s look at how you are punishing your favorite employees.  Who is your best employee There is somebody who is always…

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Hire the right person the first time

Hiring is difficult.  It’s complicated, and confusing, and will take a long time.  Here’s one way to simplify your hiring: start with essential skills.  What are essential skills?  Essential skills are the skills you need for the job but don’t have time to teach.  You can teach somebody how to use a hammer to hang…

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You only need two things to meet your goals ✌️

Motivation and support.  When you have the motivation to do the thing, and the support to get it done, you have the perfect formula.  Motivation means willingness, but it is more than that. Motivation is also the excitement of doing the thing, it means looking forward to it and being a reliable party.  Support means…

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How to be a good leader: (hint: know when you should follow 😉)

One way in which people demonstrate leadership is by knowing when to be followers.  This was a lesson I picked up recently from listening to the McKay Interview podcast episode with Dr. Cynthia Cherrey and Professor Mike Hardy.   (If you want to both feel and be smarter, spend some time with The McKay Interview).  A…

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An introduction to company culture

It’s not really a “thing”, it’s more of a concept. An abstract we can talk about but not physically build. Right? No that’s not right. Culture is when we put ping pong tables in the office and offer beer on tap and relaxation pods. Right? Is it when I let all my employees work from…

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