That staff member needs to go.
You know the one.
Some readers might be thinking this right now: “I love every team member, and they’re all performing at an elite level. I evaluate them regularly, and my team is rock solid.”
If that’s you, congratulations! When all your horses are pulling in one direction, your business grows faster and your clients get better results.
For the rest of you, I’ll say it again:
That underperforming, moody, inattentive, dead-weight staff member needs to go.
I can tell you with confidence to fire a weak staff member because Chris Cooper told me to do it, too.
Here’s the scenario: I knew I had a problem on my team. My coach was clearly disengaged and disinterested. I sensed it, and I started hearing stuff from my clients, too.
They were cautious when they said things like this: “Um, you know, he’s really great—like such an amazing coach with a ton of knowledge—but he kinda doesn’t have the same energy of the other coaches.”
Here’s the translation: “He sucks. He’s inattentive, and I hate coming to his classes. I’m thinking about quitting the gym.”
I knew I had a problem from my own observations. And I knew I had a problem because clients were going out of their way to tell me about it.
But I didn’t fire the coach because I dreaded the confrontation and the fallout.
This was shameful entrepreneurial behavior: I let one person damage the thing that paid my mortage, and I let him make the client experience worse for about 170 people.
The memory still stings, but I don’t beat myself up over it: Many great business owners struggle with HR issues.
In fact, I once spoke to the head of a multi-million-dollar company that navigated endlessly complex government restrictions to create amazing, essential, valuable things. Guess what he hated most about his business?
It wasn’t government bureaucrats with their endless rolls of red tape.
It was dealing with HR problems.
The Solutions
Left to my own devices, I probably would have let the staff member wander listlessly about the business and continue damaging it.
I didn’t want to deal with the coach, and I was creating excuses:
- “He’ll come around.”
- “Maybe I’m being too hard on him.”
- “He’s not that bad.”
I bet you’ve said stuff like that, too. Some of you might be saying it right now.
When I ran the problem by an experienced business mentor, I got an objective, emotion-free evaluation: “He needs to go—ASAP.”
We also got a plan to get rid of the coach.
The most important thing: We got messages like this from our mentor:
- “Did you execute our plan and fire him yet?”
- “Remember that this person is damaging your retention.”
- “The only way out is through, and everything is going to be fine.”
- “Do it tomorrow at 9 a.m.”
- “Call me if you need to talk!”
Get Help!
That’s my story.
Going back to your situation, you know that brutal, burned-out staff member needs to go.
Maybe you don’t know how to pull the pin, and you’re nervous about doing it alone.
I get it. Staffing is hard and being CEO is lonely.
But you don’t have to take this step alone.
An experienced mentor can help you get through this and improve every other aspect of your business, too.
A mentor will help you set goals, they’ll help you create a plan to accomplish them, and they’ll provide accountability so you take action daily.
If you’re struggling right now and could really use some backup, take an hour to talk about mentorship: Book a call.
