The Best, First Step to Building a Great Team

As I talk with leaders across the world- I hear an echo in their words when we discuss the topic of hiring.

It's as if the very thought of hiring raises stress, brings about anxiety, and leads many to placing blame or making excuses or running circles around why hiring has become such a topic of frustration.

The amazing thing about hiring is it can be one of the most exciting elements of leading your business. Recruiting and hiring is not unlike taking part in putting together a detailed puzzle or joining a group of friends in an escape room.

The act of recruiting and hiring people for your organization is simply a riddle you are trying to solve. And riddles make leadership an adventure that brings about opportunity for designing a really exciting life.

The problem with discussing the topic of hiring is most of the frustration many hiring leaders feel stems from a lack of clarity, direction, and strategy. Most hiring leaders know one thing: they need people to do a job.

But the art of hiring is MUCH more than paying someone to do a job.

People have passions and thoughts and ideas and dreams and interests and skills and talents and experience and education and wishes and desires.......you get it- after all- you're human as well!

And all of the human elements are the very elements most are ignoring when they should be the very elements that help us design strategy for recruiting and hiring the best people for any specific organization.

And these elements are what make recruiting and hiring incredibly fun. But let's start with simplicity.

I am going to give you a cheat code to recruiting and hiring the right people for your team.

I call this cheat code creating your Perfect Team Member Persona.

Similar to what marketing companies do to help clients identify their perfect client, shopper, or audience- creating your Perfect Team Member Persona allows you to identify your perfect teammate.

Work through these questions to begin shaping your Perfect Team Member Persona.

Here's where you begin:

Identify WHO you want on your team

What type of personality do they have?

What presence do they carry?

How is their energy?

How do they communicate with others?

What type of ambition do they have?

Are they people who take initiative?

How do they move about their everyday lives?

What attributes do they possess that would make them an asset to your team?

What types of hobbies does this person have?

What do they do for fun and where do they hang out in their spare time?

What piqued your interest in them?

What do they value?

These questions help guide you on the WHO. And notice- we aren't identifying skills, talents, experience or education here. We are simply diving into the depth of their humanity. Explore who someone is as a person and this will lead you to why you may need them on your team.

Have fun with this creating your Perfect Team Member Persona! Gather your leadership team and begin design your avatar. Add to this list of questions. Make it a game and listen to those around you.

Recruiting, hiring and expanding your team should be something that excites everyone. After all- people are the lifeblood of any organization. And you want the right people at the right time in the right positions to build a team that sustains success and makes a difference in the world.