Level up…
When MB started, it was just our fearless leader, Amy. She took her unique skill set, found a gap in the market & established herself as a knowledgeable professional. After years of hard work, she came to a fork in the road: should she maintain her workload & stay where she was, or take a risk & grow? If you've been following our journey (and we know you have!), you know she the big brave choice to leap forward! Personally, I'm so glad she did!
Taking that next big step is even scarier than starting your business to begin with. It represents risking your progress, and trusting your "baby" to the unknown. Suddenly, all the knowledge & procedures that only lived in your head have to be communicated to others, & you have to figure out how to make sure everyone is trained to provide the same level of customer service that you take so much pride in. Here are some things we have done to streamline this process, and some hard lessons we have learned along the way.
Get it on paper
A step by step procedure manual on day-to-day tasks is so important. Your new employees will know exactly what is expected of them, & will have a place to refer back to when they have questions. This frees up a lot of time for you to keep doing your work instead of fielding the same question a million times.
Get a system for communicating tasks
There's no right answer here. For some workflows, software that allows to you assign tasks & pass them through stages works best. Others find that a simple email with a category tags for searchability makes more sense. It's all about understanding your particular personality set & industry.
Communicate, communicate, communicate
As with any relationship, checking-in is key. Be honest about what's working and what's not, what you need & what you expect. You'll find that you develop a rapport that makes everyone more productive.
The flip side of the coin...
Remember, that while it can be incredibly rewarding to take the next step and get bigger, there's absolutely no shame in being happy where you are. If you love what you are doing, you are already much more successful than most!
