When is it Time to Grow Your Team – Intentional Hiring

By Amanda Wagner

There is a lot of talk about scaling your small business and growing your team, but how do you know when it is the right time? 

And even if you know it’s the right time, how do you do it well to avoid hiring mistakes?

There are three pieces to this post:

1. Five indicators that it is time for you to think about hiring a team member, freelancer, or contractor for your business.
2. A few things to remember when growing your team.
3. An exercise to help you figure out who to hire and how you can get your time and energy back.

PLUS: Enjoy an exclusive discount on Intentional Hiring, a five-module course that will guide you through thoughtful hiring without the pain, dread, and procrastination so that you can get back to focusing on your big-picture goals and growing your business!

Five indicators that it is time to bring someone on to your team:

1. YOU’RE NOT MOVING FORWARD: You’re doing all the things and yet you never seem to get to the end of your task list.

You’ve always done all the jobs, and maybe you’ve even made that part of your story: “I’m so strong and have worked so hard and I know all the elements of my business!” but you’re not making any progress. All the work you’re doing isn’t getting you ahead, it’s just helping you maintain the status quo, and it’s starting to get frustrating.

Time to get out of the hamster wheel!

2. YOU’RE STUCK IN THE DAY-TO-DAY: You haven’t been able to zoom out and think ‘big picture’ about your business, your goals, or your next steps.

When you first started your business, you probably ached for the day when you would have clients and customers and could confidently do all the day-to-day things required. You were eager to stop doing all the behind the scenes planning and wanted to hit the ground running and get some proof that what you’re doing works!

But it’s been a long time since you’ve been able to go back behind the scenes, and you’re ready to get dreamy, think bigger, and map out the next steps. You may even be craving some focused reflection time, the opportunity to pull out a worksheet, or time to read the business book that has been on your desk for months (maybe you’ll even do the exercises in the book!)

3. YOU’RE GROUCHY ABOUT YOUR WORK: You find yourself resenting tasks and the time they take up because:

1. you know someone else could do it more efficiently (or frankly, you just don’t like doing it!)
2. they are keeping you from working on the things you really want to build.
3. You’ve outgrown this task and your energy could be spent in other ways.

Face it: you’re bored. And you have a really good sense of what you’re best at and what you’ve taken on because you have to.

You’re craving an opportunity to try something new, attempt a different strategy, or rethink how you’ve always done things. You have loads of ideas, but no time or energy to execute. And let’s face it, there are some of those tasks that just bring you down (hello bookkeeping! Social media! Inbox management! Packaging!)

4. YOU DREAM OF TIME TO DREAM: The idea of a “business retreat” sounds like exactly what you need to grow your business, but stepping away feels impossible – so you’re stuck in the same spot.

You know everything and nobody else could do it your way, but at what cost? If you’re tired of feeling stuck and want to make changes, it may be time to bring in someone to help you figure out how to get unstuck.

Stepping away can give you the space to assess where you’re at, reflect on how far you’ve come, and plan for what you want next.

5. YOU WANT TO MAKE MORE MONEY. You’ve heard about the “zone of genius” – that magical place where you are doing what you are best at – and you know that if you spent more time in your area of expertise, you could make major moves. 

Growth can look like a lot of different things (scaling your product line, adding more services, growing your team), and as a business owner, growth takes intention, time, and planning.

When you’re delivering products to stores, answering every message on social media, greeting every customer who comes in the door, or schlepping packages to Canada Post, it’s hard to focus in on what you do best – think like an entrepreneur!

If you’re ready to have more space and time to do the big-picture work that only you can do for your business, it’s time to bring on support.

Luckily, this course on Intentional Hiring can help you through this step-by-step process, from outlining the type of role you are creating and creating a job posting, to writing a formal job description and building out micro-tests and interview questions to make sure you’re finding the right person.

Things to remember about hiring with intention: 

1. Hiring is a long game, and finding the right person demands that you are intentional about who you are hiring, what you are hiring for, and how to bring them on to your team. This is not about finding A person, it’s about finding the RIGHT person for the RIGHT role. 
2. When it comes time for gathering resumes and interviewing, it is essential that you give your candidates an opportunity to tell you what they can do AND show you what they can do. 
3. Be realistic. Anyone you bring on board, regardless of how amazing they are, won’t know how to do everything immediately (they can’t read your mind!) but they can ease some of the pressure and your job is to build a trusting relationship and communicate openly about expectations and job requirements.
4. Onboarding is essential and you have to account for this time. Having someone come in might not give you the immediate relief, depending on the role you are hiring for. But over time, and with clear expectations and the right person, you will be able to reallocate your time and energy.

Activity time:

If you know you need help, but you don’t know exactly what kind of person you are hiring for what position, try this:

For one week, make a note of all the things you do. (This is just for you, so it can be a note in your phone, scribbles on a piece of paper, or a fancy spreadsheet – it’s up to you!)

Track EVERYTHING as best you can, from making your breakfast and tidying the kitchen, and picking up the kids, to posting on social media, merchandising your display, creating signage for your product, and booking meetings in your calendar.

Once you have this data, reflect on which areas/tasks:

1. Drain you of energy
2. Make you grouchy or resentful
3. You’d like to never have to do again

These are the areas where you can start looking for immediate help.

This exercise is a great way to assess where you need immediate help and how much time and energy these tasks are taking up in your brain and in your calendar.

REMEMBER: Hiring someone doesn’t have to look like bringing a full-time team member on board immediately. There are options to hire contractors or freelancers for specific projects, hire part-time team members, a virtual assistant, and even getting help for personal tasks like housecleaning, dog walking, and cooking meals.

You’ve heard “hire slow, fire fast” and hiring slow looks like hiring with intention and avoiding missteps. If you’re ready to thoughtfully expand your team and ease the pressure on you, Intentional Hiring: A self-guided course from The Complement is for you.

Intentional Hiring is a five-module self-guided course for business owners and team leaders looking to grow their team and business without the pain, dread, and procrastination that usually accompanies the hiring process. Each module includes a video, strategic worksheets, and is designed to help you hire for ANY position.

By using this repeatable process, you will have clarity on what your team needs, why the skills/experience you are asking for is meaningful, gain confidence when choosing between candidates. PLUS, you’ll have access to two templates: one to post your job advertisement, and one to connect with the successful candidate and start the onboarding process and an interview bank with 40 questions to choose from. 

BONUS: Flagstaff County businesses save $200 on this course until the August 31, 2022. As soon as you purchase this course online, you will get immediate access to the course materials to download. Enter the code FLAGSTAFF to get your discount (and yes, this course counts as a business write-off for professional development!)

NOTE: Sharing is (usually) caring, but not when it comes to paid course content. This course is intended to be used by the business for which it is purchased. Please resist the urge to share this content beyond your team.