Dear entrepreneurs. I know one of the major struggles we face is finding (and then keeping) the right talents.
I also feel the pinch myself but I have had many entrepreneurs call me for help.
Some even ask me to please tell them my secrets for putting together my team.
Truth is, some of us who complain about finding the right talents don’t know how to keep things in proper perspective.
Even when we complain about talents, we really don’t want to give ourselves some discomfort to deal with the issue.
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We just like to complain about it or prefer the old habit.
Now, let me share with you a personal experience.
Recently, I needed to hire a talent for one of our companies.
I needed him because I wanted to break out of certain level of performance and match up our client-onboarding rate.
Now, it was tough because he wasn’t living in Lagos (he was based in Port Harcourt) and resources were slim for me.
I could easily have sat down and complained about the costs of poaching him while still nursing the widening wound of low performance.
But then, here’s what I did.
I closed my eyes and took a risk!
I moved him from Port Harcourt, brought him to Lagos, paid for a new apartment for him, and then gave him some extra bucks upfront to get him started.
(By the way, when I hire a new talent into any og our companies, I pay you certain amount upfront before you even resume).
Now, I didn’t have money, I simply forego my salary and JUST DID IT.
Today, the results have completely offset the costs of bringing him to Lagos.
Guys, I know you may say my reality is different from yours, which is absolutely true.
But the fundamental principle here remains the same.
Sometimes as entrepreneurs we focus so much on COSTS that we ignore the offsetting power of PERFORMANCE and LEVERAGE.
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If you spend extra N50,000, for example, and you get in the right talent and he or she delivers N500,000 level of performance, would it be an issue?
Sure, it wouldn’t.
But we cry, complain, and mourn over paying the extra N50,000 that we lose sight of the N500,000.
As entrepreneurs, we must learn to put our money where our mouth is.
If it requires that you cut down your pay or go without salary for 2 or 3 or 6 months to have the money to get in the right talent, PLEASE DO IT!
That’s why you are an entrepreneur.
Do it; you won’t die!
Written by Chinonso Ogbogu