Deciding to Either Manage Tough or Hire Smart

One of the wisest things you can do is hire people who are better than you. This can be frightening because they could outshine you. But it’s no longer all about you. Are you secure enough with yourself to do this? A decision every entrepreneur needs to make is whether to manage tough or hire smart. For a Christian, this choice seems obvious, but fear and control issues can subconsciously cloud our judgment.

Managing tough limits business growth to your own personal capacity, while hiring smart and delegating effectively creates freedom and opportunity.

By hiring the right people, you can lead more and manage less. Does that sound appealing?

One entrepreneur studied the Bible to answer the question, “Who am I in Christ?” He came away with a much-improved self-image and more confidence. Another CEO had a breakthrough by surrounding himself with peers who saw his strengths more clearly and encouraged him.

If fear is a challenge for you, and you can’t get past it, you’re destined for a business career filled with managing tough, enduring high turnover, and living with a lack of joy and paralyzing insecurity. Instead, use your God-given abilities and hire people who match your values, fit your culture and have complementary natural talents and abilities. Work within your strengths and staff to your weaknesses—you, your family, your team members and the whole company will enjoy the benefits!

Recognizing and Eliminating the Isolation Factor

One entrepreneur summed up the feeling of many, “The people who are safe (like my Bible study group) can’t help me grow my business. The people who can help me grow my business (and have mixed motives) aren’t safe.” Most entrepreneurs relate to the saying: “It’s lonely at the top.” We’re responsible for leading the company to short- and long-term success, and for making decisions that will affect people’s ability to provide for their families. We’re typically operating in uncharted waters and wondering how to avoid the next big threat or exploit the next opportunity. There aren’t many people who can relate to what we’re facing.

Isolation breeds fear, insecurity and distrust, which can result in poor decisions, negative thinking and low team morale. Being isolated in business can also result in negative emotions spilling over into our family lives, so they end up paying a high price too. Without a doubt, isolation can derail our lives, our leadership and our businesses.

Many entrepreneurs have discovered developed safe relationships with successful Christian peers, and regularly building into each other’s lives and businesses is an effective way to eliminate isolation. When the isolation in a leader’s life dissipates, they'll have more confidence and a broader base of resources, which results in wiser decisions, better relationships and greater progress toward goals.

“Plans fail for lack of counsel, but with many advisors they succeed” (Proverbs 15:22).