If you want to grow, you have to let go!

When you’re a new business owner, it’s exciting when things start moving! There’s so much to do, learn, try, scrap, and try again, as you figure out your offerings and where your customers are! You are the wearer of all hats, from R&D, creative, project management, accounting, product development and more, and one of the big challenges can be, when to know it’s time to hire people.

Keep in mind that in order to grow, you have to let go…let go of trying to control everything. 

Yes, you wear a lot of hats, but you’re not necessarily a specialists in each of the areas. Your job is to have the vision and figure out how to thrive and be successful, but if you stay stuck “doing” the work, you will miss out on the opportunities to actually direct your growth.

Take a look at these Top 5 Questions before you decide to hire, and depending on how you answer, it may be time!

1. Is my company currently fulfilling its purpose?

The first thing to consider is making sure you are clear on your company’s purpose and exactly who you serve. If you are not fulfilling that purpose and meeting your customer’s needs because you are so busy, it may be time to hire.

2. Are your customers unhappy or leaving?

The cost of finding new clients to replace those who leave is far more than a solid customer service and retention strategy. If you’re losing clients, you’re losing your biggest assets. It’s much better to find a way to keep them happy and grow their business than having to start over, not to mention the damage that can be done to your reputation by unhappy customers.

3. Am I, or are my employees, overwhelmed?

Am I having a hard time keeping up? Is my being in the weeds all the time serving the company purpose and my customers? What can I gain from hiring help? Is it sanity, time to focus on the big picture, efficiency, productivity, revenue and happy clients?

4. What is it costing me not to hire help?

Sometimes it’s fear that keeps us in the “doing” and busy work. It could be because we’re afraid to let go and trust another person to do it right, or fear of the time it might take to hire and train someone new. Ask yourself, am I able to focus on the big picture or is my workload keeping me safe from playing big? If you answer yes, I would ask you look at what is behind the fear, and what the costs are of staying stuck in the “doing” vs. driving the business?

5. What do the numbers say?

Run your revenue projections based on hiring someone. Be sure to ask, if I hire someone will it help me to me to stay focused on what I do best? What will I gain? Initially, it may mean just breaking even, but having a plan and knowing how long it will be until your increased productivity means increased results, will help you know if you’re ready to invest in your growth.