When to Hire Your First Employee: What to Outsource First to Grow Your Small Business | #264

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Are you trying to do everything in your business yourself?

One of the biggest mistakes new entrepreneurs make is waiting too long to hire help. While wearing every hat might seem like the most affordable option, it can actually slow your business growth and lead to burnout.

In this episode of the Second Act Success Podcast, business coach Shannon Russell shares how to know when it's time to hire your first employee, what tasks to outsource first, and how bringing in the right support can help you scale your business faster.

Whether you're just starting a business, growing your small business, or navigating your second act career, this episode will help you confidently build a team without feeling overwhelmed.

In this episode, you'll learn:

•  How to know when it's time to hire help 
•  The difference between hiring employees and outsourcing freelancers 
•  What business tasks to outsource first 
•  How virtual assistants can save you time 
•  When to hire a bookkeeper, web designer, or marketing expert 
•  Where to find freelancers and contractors 
•  Tips for interviewing, onboarding, and managing your first hire 
•  How outsourcing can help you avoid burnout and grow your business 

If you're ready to stop doing everything yourself and start leading your business like a CEO, this episode is for you.

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Transcript

Transcription:

Second Act Success Podcast

Season 1 – When to Hire Your First Employee: What to Outsource First to Grow Your Small Business

Episode - #264

Host: Shannon Russell

Transcription (*created by Descript and may not be perfectly accurate)

 [00:00:00] 

Hey there. Welcome back I am your host Shannon Russell. 

This episode is a game changer for entrepreneurs 

because we're about to discuss how to hire an outsource effectively so that you can grow your business. 

Why is hiring an outsourcing important when you're launching a business? Well, as a business owner, your time is one of the most valuable assets you have. And at first you can think that you can handle every aspect of your business because it's your baby. But soon you'll realize that by handling every aspect of your business, you are actually losing out on profits. 

Let me explain. So at first you might think you can do it all where all of the hats I did that when I launched my first business as well. It took me quite some time before I made my first hire. I was doing everything and you know what I was also doing, I was getting close to burning myself out. So when you handle [00:01:00] everything, you're actually not handling anything. 

Well, at first you might think you can do marketing customer service, accounting, fulfilling your orders, but as your business grows, trying to do it all is going to hold you back. So outsourcing and hiring can actually help you focus on what you do best. Remember when we discussed the you map assessment and how you can really think about your strengths and your skills and what you enjoy doing your values, your personality. Those are all things That you should be spending time on like growing your business and leading it to success. 

By outsourcing you can actually grow your business faster because you'll bring in the right people to handle tasks that are outside of your expertise. The roles that you'll be hiring for are things that those people are experts in this way. You are not too consumed with all of the aspects of the business. You are in charge. 

You are the business owner. You are the [00:02:00] boss. But now by hiring. Bring a team. Or at least outsourcing some tasks, you are freeing yourself up to focus on strategic decisions. Really the bigger picture of being an entrepreneur. 

Another reason hiring and outsourcing is crucial is because hiring doesn't necessarily mean you're hiring full time employees. With large salaries, many businesses, especially the small ones can start by outsourcing different projects, different tasks to freelancers or contractors. You might even go on different websites like Fiverr and hire people to do specific projects for you. 

The key is really knowing when to outsource and what to outsource. All right, so we know why it's important, but how do we know when is the right time to make a hire or outsource some work? Here are a few signs. That it might be time for you to get help. Number one is you're just feeling [00:03:00] overwhelmed and you'll know that feeling. You just have to admit it to yourself. If you find that you're working long hours. Struggling to keep up with the tasks. Falling behind neglecting other areas of your business and your personal life. 

It might be time to consider bringing someone on if you think about it, your business will eventually suffer. If you become stretched too thin over the long haul. 

another sign. It might be time to hire someone is if you're doing tasks that are outside of your expertise. So if you are working on different areas that are not within your strengths, You might be doing those things wrong. Maybe it's bookkeeping, social media, graphic design. 

Yes. You can try to learn and do those things to the best of your ability. But wouldn't you rather spend a little bit of money to have someone who has that expertise. Do those things and do them the right way so that you're not spending more time learning how to do these [00:04:00] tasks and maybe getting those done, not as well. 

Another sign is that there's consistent work that needs your attention. As the boss, you will always have specific things that need your eye, right? 

 When you're seeing that there's a consistent workload in areas like customer service, maybe order fulfillment. Administrative tasks, whatever it is, if you're seeing that, there's just more and more of a workload in that area, that might be an area to hire someone, even if it's a virtual assistant. Someone to tackle those tasks so they don't keep piling up. 

Another sign is that you're missing out on growth opportunities. 

If you have your head in the weeds, working on the admin or the social media, you're not spending those hours out there making these business partnerships or talking to customers or perfecting your products or services. So don't spend time, day to day on tasks that aren't [00:05:00] going to grow your business. 

There's always that saying that a lot of us use that is 

spend time on your business, not in your business. Okay, so maybe you've seen the light you're ready to hire. What do you outsource first?

Number one is administrative work, a virtual assistant. So when you can hire online or get a recommendation . Or go onto websites like Fiverr. You can hire a VA who can handle all the admin tasks, and that can be anything from managing your calendar, replying to emails, booking appointments, just overseeing things that maybe are falling through the cracks and that person can work as a VA virtually anywhere. Or you can hire an assistant who is an in-person assistant to you. That can work online or be in person with you, but that person is going to pick up some of that slack and be your right hand person for the time being.

Another potential hire would be someone to handle [00:06:00] marketing and social media, because that is how your business grows. 

 Someone who can run the ad campaigns. Take time commenting and replying and posting online. That could be a great person, whether it is someone who knows social media or a social media manager, or even someone who works at a marketing agency. 

That is definitely an important piece to your puzzle. 

Speaker 3: If this episode has you thinking about starting a business or growing the one that you already have, I offer free second ACT strategy calls. This is where we map out what makes sense for your business and your life. You can book yours now at second act success.co/strategy, or grab the link in the show notes below.

Now let's get back to the show.

Another important role that you might consider outsourcing is the bookkeeping and accounting. I can tell you. I had an issue with my accountant. I got rid of my accountant and then I started doing my own books and wow. [00:07:00] After a few months, I realized that I just wasn't confident. And how I was doing them and I needed to hire once again. 

So if you are sure that you are doing something, maybe half-assed and not a hundred percent to your liking, then that might be a time to outsource someone who can keep track of your books. Make sure your accounts are in order because your financials are really essential to your success. So in my opinion, that is best left to the experts. 

Another area to potentially outsource is your website, design and development. 

So if you don't have a website yet, that's a great. Person to hire and have that be a pro who can make your website really stand out and he taught you how to maintain it. 

outsourcing to a web developer, ensures that the website runs professionally looks professionally and truly functions for your customers and clients. You want them to be able to come to your website, [00:08:00] specifically, know what you offer and to be able to navigate around in a really clear and confident way. 

Another idea is content creation. 

And that can mean social media, but it can also mean everything else. Like blog posts, video editing, graphic designs, creating anything that is creative, that explains what you offer and who you are. So content creation is an excellent way to get your brand out, to get your offerings out into the world. So you want to spend time on content creation. 

And again, if that's not your strong suit, then hire someone who can handle it. Or maybe that's something that a marketing team or a marketing agency can do, but you want to make sure that you're spending time in that area. and if it's not your strong suit, find somebody who loves it. 

Okay. So you know what you might need to hire for. How do you find the right help? Finding the right person to help you is important. But it starts with you knowing exactly [00:09:00] what you need. 

So before you start your search. Clearly define the role or the tasks that you need help with. Write a detailed job description. Or project scope. This will help you attract the right candidates. 

And then you can use freelance platforms. You can use indeed Upwork, Fiverr, freelancer.com. There are a ton of those websites out there. So you can post on those websites. Make sure you list, your rates when you want this role hired by, and then you can actually have people apply you can see reviews, you can look at their past work and even their rates from other people who have hired them. Also always ask for recommendations. I ask around in your circle, ask around in Facebook groups that you're in LinkedIn groups ask around to other business owners that, you know, It's always great to go through word of mouth, to hire people like a virtual assistant or a bookkeeper. A trusted referral really gives you that peace [00:10:00] of mind when you are investing money into someone to help you grow your business.

Of course, then once you get these applicants conduct your interviews and don't be afraid to do it via phone or via zoom, you don't necessarily have to meet that person in person. 

It's totally up to you and how you feel comfortable, but make sure that you have a conversation with them. You ask all of the questions, you ask them about their work ethic, their communication style, and then ultimately you can decide if they are the right fit for you.

You can also start them out on a trial basis, give them a small project to work on. 

 Once you see their work and you test those waters, then you can commit and give them a contract. 

The last piece of this is to check references and read reviews, make sure you know who you're hiring and do a thorough background check. 

Once you hire this person, whether it's full-time or part-time or freelance or contract, [00:11:00] make sure you clearly explain. What you are hiring them for and how the position will be laid out. 

Is it virtual? Is it freelance? Is it full-time? What are their tasks, the deadlines you need, what are their tasks? What kind of tools or software will they be working in? What are their hours? How will they get paid? All of that should be clearly laid out in instructions for this new hire. 

Make sure you set up a regular check-ins. 

So whether they're virtual or working right alongside of you, make sure you have a weekly or biweekly meetings, especially in the beginning, these check-ins are really important to make sure that your communication is set up in the way that you want it. 

You want to make sure that the money you're paying is being put to good use, that this person is serving you by really doing the work that you need to be done. So it's okay to form that relationship. Make sure you're on the right page. Make sure you have your vision clearly laid out to them. And make [00:12:00] sure that they know exactly what you're expecting from them. Have that feedback, have that conversation back and forth. 

And of course be patient as they learn about your business as they grow. And as they get comfortable, you can provide that constructive feedback. You can teach them or train them with what you need to, but ultimately they are going to be there to support you. For as long as you need. 

Last thing I want to talk about when it comes to outsourcing and hiring Is the idea of not waiting too long to do this. I was that business owner, like I said, I waited way too long to bring people on. And why did I do that? I did that because I was afraid to spend money on hiring someone if I could do it myself. 

But ultimately I wasn't growing the business because I was out running the business.

And so the truth is by hiring early, you can bring people on who you can share your vision with, who can help you grow the business. And then once you get them [00:13:00] set up and running, you can focus on that strategic growth. 

And what you really have a strength in doing to bring your business to the next level. All right. As we wrap it up, as, you know, business grows and you want to have that support in place. And do it in a way that you're feeling comfortable. So think about it, go over the different things that we talked about in this episode, and you will know when you're ready and when you're ready, you'll know how to find these people, how to get their job descriptions, outlined, and ready to go and hire with confidence rather than feeling that overwhelm. I hope you found these insights helpful and that you feel a little more empowered to bring people onto your team. Show them what you've developed, what you've. built and let people in, let people help you grow your business and scale it the way you want. If you enjoyed this. episode, please do me a favor and leave us a review or share the series with a friend who can [00:14:00] also use this advice. It really means so much. 

Speaker 4: Thank you for joining me for another episode of the second Act Success podcast. If this episode has you thinking about starting a business or growing the one that you already have, I offer free second ACT strategy calls. This is where we map out what makes sense for your business and your life. You can book yours now at second act success.co/strategy, or grab the link in the show notes below.

As always, thank you for being here. Until next time, I'm your host Shannon Russell wishing you the best day ahead as you plan your second act. I'll see you on the next episode.