Ten Employer-Employee Rules
for Successfully Running A Small Business
You've just been in a serious car accident. You've got massive internal
injuries and a broken jaw. You're going to be in the hospital at least a month.
Your jaw is wired shut so you can't use the phone. Will your business run easily
and well while you recover? Will your customers be served while you are gone?
If you've just experienced heart failure over this prospect, the following list
is for you. The information below, if put into practice, will reduce your stress,
increase your business' productivity, and give you the vacation you so richly
deserve. Here's the top ten things you can do to make your business run as
smoothly as possible.
1. Hire wisely.
Most businesses hire bodies for particular jobs rather than people to help
build a future. Your business is only as good as each individual employee's
contribution to its functioning. Therefore, look for the three i's when you
hire: intelligence, initiative, and integrity. For every position, from
receptionist to packing clerk, hire only the best you can find. Conversely,
if you have current employees who are not performing well, consider whether
they are a wise investment of your money.
2. Build a team, not your ego.
Many employers let their egos dominate their interactions with their employees.
Stop the pattern. Instead, trust your employees to do their jobs. Make each
employee feel that they are an invaluable member of the company team. Let each
employee know they are an integral part of the company's end product. Set the
example for positive interaction at all times between members of the team even
when ideas or performance must be corrected.
3. Reward well.
When you get good employees, reward them financially and emotionally. Be sure
their pay is at least at market rate. Take time often to acknowledge each employee's
contribution. The two biggest loyalty builders are two simple words-- thank you.
4. Be hands on.
Know each employee's job and how to do it. This not only gives you an automatic
reserve employee and trainer(yourself), but has an added bonus. If you show an
employee that you are willing to learn or have learned his/her job, you are
communicating that you believe their work has value. Every employee needs to
know that whether they are emptying trash cans, setting the presses, or selling
the large accounts, their work is worthwhile and valuable.
5. Make your employees versatile.
In a small company, every employee should know how to do at least two jobs,
particularly on the technical and service sides. For critical tasks, at least
three employees should know how to do each job. Thus, you always have an on-the-premises
reserve who can step in when needed.
6. Give away tasks, but not ultimate leadership.
What is it you do best? Are you the idea man, the best salesman in your company,
the organizer? Find your best talent and then delegate all other tasks to your
employees. Train them appropriately to do their job, let them know you have confidence
in their ability to perform well, and then let them do their jobs. Adding responsibility
with confidence will increase your employee's willingness to work and their
pride in the company's end result. At the same time, you must maintain ultimate
leadership. In any well run ship, the captain makes final decisions and you are
still the captain, albeit a benign one.
7. Communicate, communicate, communicate.
You must talk with your employees, solicit their suggestions, and positively
correct their mistakes. Conversely, you must create an atmosphere where employees
are willing and able to talk with you. The two best sources of information on
how your business is doing and how to improve it are your employees and your
customers. Pay attention to both.
8. Give your best and always and encourage the same in your employees.
Pride in the company and its product or service always begins at the top. If you
give a half effort or let a sloppily produced product go out the door to a client,
you are sending a message to your employees that you do not respect your clients
or your work. Your employees will adopt that view as well. If you set the example
of giving the extra effort, pitching in when needed,caring about your fellow
team members, working as a unit to be the best in your particular business, and
taking care of the bottom line, your employees worth having and keeping will
follow suit.
9. Encourage innovation and creation.
Give your employees a stake in the future. Once a month, have a meeting where
the employees make suggestions on how to improve your product, service, efficiency,
or bottom line. Give monetary rewards when the ideas produce increases to the
bottom line. Give positive encouragement for the process.
10. Have a second in command.
No general goes into battle without a major who can take over if he is felled
by a bullet. You are your business' general and must act accordingly. Find someone
you trust within your company who has the same goals, ideals, and a similar
business style. Train him/her appropriately. Let others know he/she has your
confidence and authority when you are gone. When that is done, leave on vacation
and test the theory out. If you have completed steps 1-9 above, your business will
run easily and well and you will have regained a healthy balance in your life.
Great qualities of entrepreneurs that cause problems
It's easy to criticize an entrepreneur, especially if you're married to one,
work for one or are coaching/consulting one. Entrepreneurs, like any pioneer,
have their own set of (always evolving) rules and strategies. Many entrepreneurs
are successful in spite of themselves. The key in working well, and enjoying,
entrepreneurs is to fully understand their weaknesses, because these are often
their biggest strengths, although YOU may not think so! Here is a list of weakness
and the strengths that they "are."
1. Can't Focus, lots of ideas, runs in circles.
If the entrepreneur could focus, they'd be a bookkeeper (no offense to bookkeepers;
I was a CPA for years). The enterpreneur's currrency is ideas, often a flood of
ideas. This is good. Encourage MORE ideas, don't try to pin them down. When they
feel your support in challenging them to come up with more and BETTER ideas, the
flow is restored and they'll find the one to really NATURALLY focus on. Really.
The reason they can't focus is that they haven't yet flushed out all of the
half-baked ones.
2. Not good with details.
Why should they be. Sure, it would great if they would focus on details, and in
fact, many entrepreneurial-types fail or have lots of stress (think ValuJet's
CEO), specifically because they won't or cannot sweat the details. But given
many won't deal with details well, suggest they give up even trying. Sure, this
may create a mess, but challenge the entrepreneur to solve the mess as if the
mess was a new business! That'll get 'em thinking! (Entrepreneurs are like kids;
it's good to divert them.)
3. Feel odd, different, alone, strange.
Entrepreneurs are simply wired differently and they SHOULD feel this way,
because it's TRUE and there is nothing wrong with it at all. In fact, if you can
help the entrepreneur to relish their unique, contrary, leading edge ways, you'll
help them feel better about themselves (their different-ness), which will
increase the flow of ideas and success. Educate the entrepreneur to understand
not just themselves as individuals but to understand about the species called
Homo entrepreneurs.
4. Good at starting business, bad at running them.
This is very true of many entrepreneurs, but you know, many entrepreneurs think
that they have an obligation to run their businesses and become a great manager.
90% will never be great managers; they shouldn't even try -- too much stress on
everyone! The solution: Help the entrepreneur to set a "sell date" right now, so
they know they're getting out and when! This relieves some of the pressure and
also forces the enterpreneur to create a sell-able company vs one that is just
a monument to their ego (and I mean this lovingly). It's essential that you and
the entrepreneur get that there's no reason an entrepreneur can't start and sell
25 businesses. Selling is not failure; it's good business and lets the entrepreneur
play instead of being saddled with responsibilities and accountabilities that they
just don't want, but feel that they should have. Help the entrepreneur to "get"
that they'd really rather NOT run their business and that they prefer to start
new ones. This will turn a perceived weakness into a profitable strength.
5. Chaos reigns in the company.
This is fairly common, for several reasons. First, the entrepreneur LIKES chaos
and is unlikely to attract or be able to hire a manager that is cross-platform:
able to both manage the people/operations and ALSO be able to put up with the
personality or constant flow of ideas and changes that the entrepreneur is likely
to have. A solution is to design the company so that it can afford the chaos and
the financial stress that chaos usually bring. A second solution is to educate
the entrepreneur and staff that chaos CAN be good business and not to worry about
it. Another solution is to ask the entrepreneur to solve the chaos problem by
thinking of it as a foundering business that the entrepreneur has purchased.
His/her job; Turn it into a profit center! This will get the juices flowing.
Another solution is to help the entrepreneur to create fully automated and
foolproof systems, usually managed by outside contractors or vendors who are not
IN the business day to day. This works well, because it forces the employees/owner
to use the systems, which are mostly computer based. Boys will be boys and it's
better to save them from themselves sometimes! Systems to this. Remember: Creation
IS messy! It shouldn't have to be, but often is.
6. They fail. And fail again.
This one's tricky if you look at the failing business as a problem or as a
reflection on the entrepreneur's ability and strengths. In this case, their
weaknesses were bigger than their strengths and the business failed. But, just
like a kid has to fall a couple of times when learning to ride a bike, so do
entrepreneurs fail as they learn how to be successful. Remember, it's the SPARK
that the entrepreneur has that is the REAL source of profitability. It's just
that there is often a learning curve as the entrepreneur learns to compensate
for his/her weaknesses by delegating, outsourcing, maturing, and learning new
skills. The Spark usually wins in the end. Note: Just like you can't really
tell much to an adolescent because "they know it all," you often can't tell
much to an entrepreneur because they DO know it all! Don't try to parent the
entrepreneur; you'll lose. Just love them and be there when they fail. That
helps them learn faster.
7. They exaggerate and are too optimistic.
This is good! Encourage the entrepreneur to exaggerate as much they want to.
This is a reverse way to get them to tell the truth. It works. Exaggeration and
pipe dreaming are as important to the entrepreneur as faith and believing are to
Christians and other religions. It just comes along with the lifestyle. It's part
and parcel. It's hard to have one without the other. Entrepreneurs are so out in
front of the rest of us that they NEED to exaggerate how well things are going,
in order to keep the faith -- hey it's lonely out in front (or in left field,
depending on how savvy the entrepreneur is!). Exaggeration, pipe dreaming and
denial are the tools and comforts of the trade of entrepreneur ism. Sure, many
entrepreneurs grow through this, but don't try to take away their blankie until
they're ready. They need it.
8. Always at the edge financially.
This one's a toughie, because of the "unnecessary" stress it can cause to the
entrepreneur, the business, employees, families. What I've sought to do is to
educate the entrepreneur who is always at the edge that there is an emotional
dilemma that they are trying to heal, via their business. The psychological
source of this "always at the edge" may be an addiction to adrenaline, the
pleasure/high of "pulling it off" at the last minute, of the high that victory
brings, the need to be better than everyone else/compensate and even the inability
to establish a reserve of cash and time so that they function without this stress.
In my own case, I pushed so hard that I was always just barely making it, even
though sales kept growing significantly. When I learned that this was because
of self esteem (technically, a "havingness level" problem (meaning that I couldn't
let myself "have" what I was earning)), I was able to make a couple of minor changes
and establish such a healthy reserve that I am set for life (and can play with
projects such as these Top Ten Lists!) The traps the entrepreneur will fall into
is to increase their lifestyle just as quickly as their company grows. Mistake.
But, back to why being at the edge financially is a such a strength. It's because
the entrepreneur has proven, time and time again, that they are resourceful, can
survive and bounce back from adversity. This is GREAT! Now, direct the entrepreneur
to direct this energy into creating a healthy savings account instead of leveraging
so much, and you'll have a successful entrepreneur.
9. Family of the entrepreneur, suffers.
Another toughie. You didn't just marry a man/woman or a businessman/woman. You
married an ENTREPRENEUR! And he/she didn't come with instructions, warning labels
or antidotes. Oops! If entrepreneurial genes were find-able in the DNA, they'd
be considered a strong, strong drug. Reality aside, it's best that you develop
your own strong interests and let your husband/wife do their own thing. You'll
always be #2 (well, maybe # 1 and half). You can have a great marriage if you
get this.
10. Sales dip.
Sales dip because the entrepreneur has turned over some or all of the sales
function to others. Take this as an invitation for the entrepreneur to get back
to selling, where they usually shine.
How To Motivate Your Employee
Supervising people involves more than telling them what to do. Effective
supervision involves motivation from within the individual, not by externals.
- Treat them as individuals, not merely as necessary cogs in a wheel.
Remember their personal problems, find appropriate times to ask how they
or their families are, how the big event went, whether the plumbing
problem got fixed.
- Acknowledge their contributions. Let them be confident that when you pass
their suggestions and contributions up the chain of command you will
acknowledge the members of your team as the source.
- Back them up. When things go wrong, the buck stops at your desk. Do not
deal with problems by telling your superiors how awful your supervisees
are. Tell how you will go about preventing a reoccurrence.
- Take time for them. When a supervisee comes to you, stop what you are
doing, make eye contact. If you can't be interrupted, immediately set
up a later time when you will be able to pay full attention to them.
Otherwise people may feel that they are bothersome to you, and you may
someday find yourself wondering why no one tells you what is happening
in your own department.
- Let them know that you see their potential and encourage their growth.
Encourage learning. Help them to take on extra responsibility, but be
available to offer support when they are in unfamiliar territory.
- Explain why. Provide the information that will give both purpose to their
activities and understanding of your requirements. Providing information
only on a need-to-know basis may work for the CIA, but it does not build teams.
- Don't micro-manage. Let them know the plans and the goals, that you trust
them to do their best, and then let them have the freedom to make at least
some of the decisions as to how to do what is needed. Morale and creativity
nosedive when the flow of work is interrupted by a supervisor checking on
progress every two minutes.
- Let them work to their strengths. We all like to feel good about our work.
If we can do something that we do well, we will feel proud. If you believe
supervisees need to strengthen areas of weakness, have them work on these,
too, but not exclusively.
- Praise in public, correct in private. NOTHING undermines morale as effectively
as public humiliation.
- Set reasonable boundaries, and empower your supervisees to set theirs.
Once set, respect them. This is not a challenge to your power, it is their
right as human beings.
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