How exciting you are taking that next step, you are building your “Dream Team”! You have realized as an entrepreneur you can not do it all by yourself, the island mentality is not working for you for growth.
For some of you it is about not knowing what to delegate to your “Dream Team” and for some it is determining what to give them. Then in some cases you are not sure how to work with the team.
This time I want to address the “HOW” to work with your Dream Team.
A couple of things to keep in mind when working with your team:
- They are not your employees: most of them have multiple clients and they are managing their own business. Recently I heard a client tell their team member when to open email and when not to, demanding they cater to them when they demand. Unless you are paying for that team member to be at your request during those times it is not acceptable to expect them to be at their email/desk/phone for you. If you want someone there for you say from 9-5 then you need to pay them to be there those hours.
- Treat them with respect: I heard another VA’s story that their client would email and chew them out (4 times) then Skype and yell some more then turn around and call repeating everything again. They told their VA they were stupid and had no value, all over something the VA did as instructed to do by the client. Yes, you heard that right the client made the error and attacked the VA for it. Think about how you communicate with your team, would you want them to talk to you the way you are talking to them?
- Technology breaks! Oh too many times I hear clients get upset with their Dream Team because something goes wrong with their website, shopping cart or other technology. It is not their fault, work with your team to find out what happened and work through the issues.
- Plan ahead: It is like the old saying, “Lack of planning on your part does not constitute an emergency on mine”. Be aware of what is coming up on your calendar, plan ahead and communicate.
- Communication: The Game of Communication! Be clear about your needs and deadlines, your team members are not mind-readers. If the project is due by a certain date then communicate the date needed. Look ahead on your calendar and plan for upcoming tasks for the next week. If it is a tech item like a sales page you might want to give your tech team a few weeks to knock it out, test it and be sure you are ready to go. Most errors happen when your team is rushed.
A Dream Team is only as strong as their leader!
Are you a leader? Do you set the example for the team?
If you need help building your Dream Team or putting procedures into place, reach out to me for a complementary 30 minute conversation on how to set up a stellar Dream Team to help you go to the next level!
Please share your experiences with your team or questions on working with them below and I will respond.
