Employee Management

“Today I will do what other's won't, so tomorrow I will do what others can't.”― Jerry Rice No more heroics. (I admit, in full disclosure, that I like heroics and that I'm not always right.) Hustle & grind culture. It amuses me when I see non-gym-attending people wearing Nike shirts with phrases such as, "I'm always on my grind." or "24/7 Hustle." Clearly, someone making shirts is on a hustle because those people got hustled into buying shirts for a cause they don't believe in. The hustle culture is the "Only losers sleep" "No days off" mentality that you can work your way to success. I actually…

Speed bumps sap your team's energy. "Energy Roadblocks & Speed Bumps" - Energy Growth Part 2 of 3 "We've been over this and over this and over this." "How many times do we have to have this same discussion?" "That's not something we talk about." Speed bumps. Energy is not tied directly to the number of things you need to do but instead fluctuates based on the rewards of doing the tasks. Completing a project generates energy. Achieving a goal creates energy. Making solid progress and seeing the results of your work all create energy. Repeating decisions, arguing, misdirection, interruptions, starting and stopping all suck energy; these are all speed…

Hiring is tricky business, especially in this economy, so why not make it easier on you and easier for good people to apply? Hey gang, You might be thinking - "I'm in the thick of things and can't possibly soak up another idea!" I totally get it, but if you don't think about these to crucial items, you'll be working harder for less all season long. Plus, this might be my last webinar for awhile - eventually, even Maize Quest has to do some outdoor work to get open :-) You have to work on #1 - recruiting employees, and you have to…

"Keep Hiring" Hey Friends, No matter how many employees and trainees you have on your roster, you don't have enough. Things are going to come up - schedule conflicts, incompetent hires you thought would work out, that crazy busy weekend that happened after that rainy weekend, it all adds up to subtract from your roster. You need to keep hiring. This time of year gets hectic, though it should never come as a surprise. We are in the middle of wine events, farm market, pick-your-own orchards, the corn maze is open every weekend, tours are starting... you know how it is, hectic. Being short-staffed is…