By: Christina Nguyen
As a business owner, no matter how amped up you are to get your brand to the stars, the fire of enthusiasm alone won’t keep your dreams burning in the long run. Keeping a business alive depends on a lot more than just burning ambition. It requires careful planning, working with the right people, having the right resources -- but most importantly, using all the above in the right manner.
What’s “right” is going to look different for every business, but what’s “wrong” often stretches across various industries. Here are some common mistakes business leaders often make that put in a dent in any operation:
Overworking yourself and/or your staff.
One of the forces that gets a business off the ground is raw willpower and grit. You’ve probably watched tons of videos about how your favorite CEOs wake up at 4 am, run on a treadmill for an hour or two, chug coffee, then grind and hustle all day until midnight. While their hustles may be admirable from afar, overworking can take a toll on you. Years of research has shown that overworking can lead to higher chances of heart problems, strokes, diabetes, and even early death.
If it’s in the budget, hire some new team members to take off some of the hats on your head. It might be a tough farewell to the roles you’re so used to fulfilling, but it’ll give you more room to breathe and focus on other things you really don’t want anyone else doing, such as more innovative and creative tasks that you're proud to call your brainchildren.
Not connecting to your staff as human beings.
Even if you manage to fill the right positions to properly structure your business, no building lasts long without constant maintenance. Treating employees like they’re merely cogs in a machine, isn’t exactly going to make them stick around.
While it's easy to get caught up in the day-to-day work, actually getting to know your employees as people makes them feel appreciated, which seriously helps with employee retention. After all, they’re spending just as much time around you as they are with their own friends and families (sometimes more!), so why make a good chunk of their lives dreary? On the business side, getting to know your employees on a deeper level and uncover some of their insights may give your operations the boost you were looking for.
Not providing enough feedback to your team.
One crucial part of communicating with your team isn’t just to know their lives beyond their work, but to ensure you’re all on the same page in the office. If you’re pretty irked by the weird jokes your sales director makes with prospects, talk to them before they cost you the client of your dreams. Even if that team member’s been around since day one, you need to have the difficult conversations to keep everyone aligned with your vision.
On the other hand, don’t forget to give positive feedback when deserved.
Hiring people way too quickly.
If you thought “whoops, that’s me” upon reading #1, we’ll remind you to don’t rush your hiring process as you work to clear your plate. If you can afford to draw out the recruitment process for any position, do it. You might be delaying some projects and spending more on HR, but hiring the wrong person could be financially costly if they don’t work out. Even worse, it’ll cost a ton of emotions as you figure out how to put out the fire.
So if that promising interviewee makes a few offhand comments that quell an uneasy gut feeling, don’t ignore it in favor of their polished resume. Those comments might translate to downright toxic behavior later.
Not carefully defining the company culture.
Have you ever embarked on a journey to “find yourself?” It’s essential to do the same for your company. Even if you have a clear brand statement, you have to consider your internal company culture as part of your company’s identity. It may not be visible to the public, but it should be well-known internally. Your company's culture is a defining factor in how everyone interacts with one another and ultimately the whole mood of being at work.
Not having a solid company culture is one factor that easily leads to #4 above. The weaker your identity is, the harder it is to judge whether a candidate will fit in with your team or not.
What are some mistakes you’ve seen business leaders make? Let us know in the comments below so we can prevent our readers from repeating those same mistakes.
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About Stingray Advisory Group LLC: Stingray Advisory Group LLC is based in Grand Rapids, Michigan and is a proud member of Local First and the West Michigan Hispanic Chamber of Commerce. We help small businesses grow by providing guidance in financial planning, website development, marketing, and more.
Email us at info@stingrayadvisorygroup.com to schedule a consultation. Follow us today on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram for more helpful tips!
