Dawn Kelly
As you know, being a business owner has its rewards and its challenges. If you’ve been in business longer than a few months, you’ve likely experienced both. Often the freedoms of owning a business override the dissatisfaction, but if you find that the negatives are wearing on you, don’t get discouraged. The earlier you recognize the most common challenges of business ownership, the more likely you’ll be able to take them in stride.
Hiring
Especially since the pandemic, hiring long-lasting employees has been rather frustrating and difficult. Hiring is one of the biggest decisions you’ll make as a business owner and it will color all areas of your business. The first challenge for you likely is to determine when the best time is for you to hire employee(s).
Your next task is to hire the right person (people) for the task. This is very important becasue you don’t want to have to re-fill positions or to regret your choice(s).
Help for you to make good decisions for hiring well
Consider not using social media to collect your applicants. Although Facebook offers the opportunity to post jobs and to have applicants connect with you on its platform, often, these applicants and “bites” to your job openings are hollow. Unfortunately, few employers have had good success with filling positions using this avenue. However, don’t discount Facebook or other social media platforms completely. They are good (and free) resources for you to post your employment opportunities and can get a lot of traction from shares. Be sure to include how to apply and if there is specific information about the opening, to have it linked in your post.
Linkedin is probably your best social media platform option for connecting directly with applicants for positions. This platform is a plus over Facebook not just because most people use the services to look for employment, but also because most users have their job descriptions and history documented well in their profiles. Additionally, you can post employment opportunities on Linkedin and those who apply using the platform are more likely to respond and to be more career-minded in doing so (simply because Linkedin is a professionals-minded network.
Another key factor in filling your open positions is to know what you need and want in the position and in the person filling it. Recognize the job’s challenges and its requirements. Be logical about understanding what’s required of the position and whether the candidate has what it takes.
Make and Enjoy Time For Yourself and Your Family
It’s often exciting and very time-consuming owning a business because it’s your passion and holds a big piece of your heart. It’s also easy to dream about all of the possibilities for expansion and ways to improve your products and services, and how you’re going to make it happen. These thoughts and intentions can sometimes keep you up at night and distracted when you’re off the job.
Being a solopreneur and being a business owner is much different than working for someone else. Many small business owners neglect themselves and their loved ones because they are singularly focused on achieving success and also because they often multi-task and their plates are full.
Ways to help you make time outside of work
Keeping a balance is very important and helps us to do our best not just at work and in our business, but so that we pay attention to our well-being, our health, and to those that we love and value. This time not only helps us to create memories with our family and friends, but it also helps us to recharge and to have a fresh perspective on the job.
Turn off the computer, disconnect yourself from your cell phone and enjoy the weekend and nights (or mornings) off from work. If you can’t spend the weekends with yourself and your family away from the workplace, determine when you can and steer clear of job-related interruptions. Intentionally set aside time for yourself to enjoy a hobby, to sleep in, and clear your calendar to spend this time away from work just as if it was one of the most important meetings of your business’ vitality. Those you value and love need to know that they are special and dear to you. You need to be able to express this to them just as much as they need to know it (and have the opportunity to show you they love you too.)
Stay In Touch With Your Industry and Tech
When you work for someone else, you likely have a manager giving you ideas for professional growth. Your company may pay for you to attend valuable conferences or training sessions each year. They may purchase association and chamber memberships for you.
However, when you are the business owner, there’s no one telling you what to stay on top of or what skills to develop in order to stay competitive. It’s all your responsibility to decide that for yourself (and your staff) and find ways to accomplish this with your already full schedule.
Options for continued education and professional development:
As you may know, there are plenty of online options of programs and courses that are available in many different professional fields. Services such as Lynda and Udemy are worth looking into. The Avilla Chamber can also help you find resources that will help you in finding good educational opportunities.
If you use social media, follow people on Twitter and join groups on Linkedin and Facebook that pertain to your industry.
You can skim over the social media feeds during your coffee break (yes! you DO need to schedule yourself break times!) once or twice a week.
You’ve made an important step in becoming a business owner, another big step in putting the parts and pieces together to make it all work and become a success. Once you are able to put these three obstacles that all business owners can relate to in perspective, your business and off-the-clock life will be much more prosperous and enjoyable.