The mindset I want you to have with hiring employees is 1+1 = 3. I know this may sound odd but stay with me.
Some common statements we often hear about labor issues, regardless of industry or region:
- There is no good labor around here.
- Why get an employee, I will just have to redo the work anyway.
- I can’t afford an employee.
Here is the hard truth, there is good labor out there! You just haven’t created the culture to attract and keep them yet. There is a cost (time and money) to finding, training, and keeping employees. It may seem overwhelming, but these issues and tasks are within your control and are not dictated by purely outside influences.
It all starts with a mindset shift, from thinking that employees are a business cost to realizing that employees are an investment. An investment in time, money, and production synergies. Have you ever noticed how much faster a job gets completed with two people?
It works with any blue collar trade, but let’s pick on excavation. If one person is in the excavator and one in the skidsteer, more dirt can be moved faster. Even more than 2 times faster. Let me explain, if there is only one person and two machines, something is always idle. There’s the time lost to just physically walking from machine to machine which kills progress, kills billable hours, which delays jobs, etc. This is an example of one person + one person = the work of three people. The value the employee generates will exceed the cost of their salary.
Now let’s take those common statements from earlier and rearrange them in a mindset of employees are an investment:
- I need to work on my leadership skills and be a better boss.
- I need to work on my delegating and stop micro-managing.
- I need to create a profitable business, I can’t afford to not have an employee.
Most ranchers don’t get into ranching because they love managing people. However, people management is the biggest breakthrough many people experience when they lean into running the ranch like a business. Time, our most precious commodity, is freed up which allows you to have clearer headspace to think creatively and strategically. That strategic thinking will result in higher value work for your whole team, rather than just being reactive and putting out fires. If you are looking to improve your management and communication skills, with or without employees, I highly suggest starting by checking out our YouTube channel with many insightful videos on the topic like this one:
And when you are ready to really expand your knowledge and skill set on ranch management (which includes people management) get yourself enrolled in one of our upcoming Ranching for Profit schools.
