I have always considered myself a perpetual student … always learning (and occasionally relearning). The only thing I love more than learning is sharing what I learned. I am a firm believer that sharing helps you learn and remember the lessons from your mistakes even better.
Now, I’ve been in business since leaving the US Navy, after 3 years of service, at the age of 23, and I have learned quite a few lessons along the way. Some of these lessons were learned on my own, in the school of hard knocks, while others came from many of my bosses along the way. Can’t really say which was the most valuable as I received great value from both.
Here are 15 lessons that I attribute to great bosses along the way:
A journey of a thousand miles … starts with one step. Action is what counts, so take action, even if it’s not significant, this will get the ball rolling. Just do it, as Nike likes to say.
Always put your people first … they are your business.
Be a talent hound … put priority on finding the best people. Some people are a helluva lot better than other people.
Don’t fear failure … just be good at learning from everything around you, especially mistakes (yours and others).
Help comes … where you least expect it. So, network. Talk to anyone and everyone, tell them about your business when they ask what you do, and soon you’ll be connected to lots of people.
Be a change agent … anticipate and embrace change. You can either build a windmill or a shelter, but my recommendation is the windmill approach, hands down.
Solving a problem or filling a gap … is the only way to true market value. Be a good observer. Look at the current players and their services, interview a few customers and identify a problem or issue with the current product and service. Then, solve it.
KISS … Keep it simple, stupid. No matter what you do, nothing beats simple. Staying simple makes you far more efficient.
Make listening a true core competence … it is the key to any communication.
For true learners, failure doesn’t exist … it is learning from mistakes that matter most. Not everything you do is going to be a success so, learn to learn from mistakes.
Learn when to say ‘No’ … enough said!
Always have a plan B … not everything you plan would work out the way you planned. Be prepared for contingencies.
Planning skills … are valuable to success. Always know where you are headed and how you plan to get there.
Luck favors … the decisive. It is always a great practice to get out and make luck work for you. The best way to do it is through hard work and decisive moves.
There’s a big difference between giving up … and changing directions. Be savvy and realize if something is not working, you need to change the direction.
If you want to build teamwork skills, it starts with having the best people. Creating a talent advantage begins with smart hiring. That said, it never ceases to amaze me at the number of businesses who put little energy and time into mining for talent. Smart leaders do more than just hire teamwork skills and smart people – they have a smart hiring process and/or methodology.
Put simply; talent matters. The problem is that very few people actually possess the talent to identify talent.
Identifying and recruiting talent requires much more than screening a resume and having a set of standard interviewing questions to guide you.
There are issues of values, vision, culture, context etc. that need to be creatively and intuitively addressed in the hiring process.
Before we continue, let me ask you a question.
What hiring action works best in your business? We would love to hear what it was. Would you do us a favor and post it in the comments section below? It would be greatly appreciated by us and our readers.
In today’s post we’ll share our philosophy on the best way to ensure that you hire tier-one talent. We believe one of the best uses of time is to make sure that we make the best hiring decisions possible.
We use the following hiring process attributes when advising our clients:
Teamwork skills … know what you are looking for
If you can’t specifically define what you are looking for, you have little chance of finding it! This definition is both in terms of the job description and the profile of the individual most likely to be successful in that role.
If you can’t define what you’re looking for, you shouldn’t be looking.
Know what you are selling
You are looking for the best talent, correct? This means you are in competition, so it is essential that you are able to put your best foot forward and be able to market your strengths.
Examples of what good talent will be looking for are continuous learning, ability to grow and develop their strengths, etc. Be able to give your examples of these in a soft, non-selling manner.
Take your time
There is wisdom in the expression “hire slow and fire fast.” Don’t panic and end-up making a regrettable hire out of perceived desperation. Give yourself plenty of runways.
You’ll be much better off taking your time and making a good hire rather than using the ready, fire, aim methodology and end-up terming the new hire before they eclipse their probationary period.
Teamwork skills important … always be in Talent Search Mode
This applies even if you are not yet ready to hire. Never let your organization be put behind the talent 8-ball, as great talent is rarely available on a moment’s notice.
Some of the best hires we’ve made over the years were executives that we spent months, and in some cases, years developing relationships with.
Culture-Based Hiring
Culture matters … a lot more than you may believe. You can either spend time finding employees who share your organization’s values or deal with the brain damage of managing conflicts that arise due to opposing values.
Ignore culture in the hiring process and all other hiring initiatives will be diminished, if not lost altogether.
Look to hire leaders.
Teamwork skills important … hire Leaders
When our clients’ companies complain about a lack of leadership, or how difficult it is to identify leaders, our question is simply this:
Why didn’t you hire a leader, to begin with? It is simple … the development of an existing leader is faster, easier, and more effective than creating a new leader.
Related material: 10 Leadership Competencies You Should Not Live Without
Pay for Talent
Talent has an uncanny way of attracting more talent. Know that you are paying more, but if it is the right hire, you will be paid in many ways you are not even considering.
To put it bluntly, you get what you pay for. Real talent produces real results and is worth the investment. You cannot afford not to invest in talent.
Constantly Upgrade
You can hire the best talent in the world, but remember that “best” is a subjective evaluation largely measured within the context of a snapshot in time. Obsolescence can take root in anyone if growth and development are not focus points.
Development needs to occur at every echelon of the workforce – the top, middle, and bottom performance tiers.
Hiring is a blend of art and science. The reality is that those organizations that identify, recruit, deploy, develop and retain the best talent will be the companies who thrive in the marketplace.
Never be done with your hiring and building your team, life is a continuous learning experience for you and the team. Team building and talent development take work and a consistent process, but you will be pleasantly surprised the impact it will make on your business and service.
Do you have a hiring or team building experience to share?
Need some help in capturing more improvements for your staff’s leadership, teamwork, and collaboration? Creative ideas in running or facilitating a team or leadership workshop?
Call today for a FREE consultation or a FREE quote. Learn about some options to scope your job.
Call Mike at 607-725-8240.
All you get is what you bring to the fight. And that fight gets better every day you learn and apply new ideas.
When things are not what you want them to be, what’s most important is your next step. Call today.
Test. Learn. Improve. Repeat.
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Mike Schoultz is the founder of Digital Spark Marketing, a digital marketing and customer service agency. With 40 years of business experience, he blogs on topics that relate to improving the performance of your business. Find them on G+, Twitter, and LinkedIn.
Digital Spark Marketing will stretch your thinking and your ability to adapt to change. We also provide some fun and inspiration along the way. Call us for a free quote today. You will be amazed at how reasonable we will be.
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