There aren’t many things that beat that feeling of hiring your first employee. It’s confirmation all your hard work has paid off, that you have built up more business than you can handle alone and that heartwarming feeling that you are giving someone else a livelihood.

Basically, hiring an employee is a massive deal. But apart from this moment proving your business has an epic amount of merit attached, there’s also a whole lot of responsibility for you to shoulder.

The tradeoff is worth it though because the most fundamental way it changes your business is diversity and bandwidth. Your business will have another dedicated person to push it forward, but faster.

To get the most out of this scenario here is some advice that will help you when hiring your first employee:

The Sooner The Better

We know it feels risky, but we recommend you hire someone the moment your workload increases, the second you can afford and right after you have spoken to an employment lawyer. Yes, it might be tight at first, but that extra bit of va-va-voom in terms of creativity, innovation, and commitment is well worth it. What could have once taken weeks will be done in days, and your to-do list will be sliced in half.

Look At Their Potential

We’re not saying you should disregard their track-record entirely. We’re saying you should focus more on their potential because that’s what matters more to you. Essentially, you want to keep an eye out for someone that’s passionate about your industry, someone that’s onboard with your causes and missions and someone who is going to compliment your skills and weaknesses. It will be a steep learning curve, but one of your responsibilities is to unlock their potential and build on their passion.

Hold An Innovative Interview

Let’s be honest for a moment: more and more people know exactly how to answer most standard interview questions in a box-ticking way. They know what will make you smile and nod your head and that’s because it’s so easy to BS. That’s why it is a much better idea to have all your candidates complete a task for you, something that will require a dollop of aptitude. If you are looking for a salesperson, have them sell you something. If you want a content marketer, have them design a strategy for a make-believe project. It will really help you sort out those worth considering and those that deserve a, “thanks, but no thanks!”

Have An Onboarding Process

If you want to save yourself a major migraine, you’ll want to come up with a semi-detailed onboarding process. Schedule in some conversations with them, put together some different ways in which you can immerse them in your company culture, tell them about your history and your mission, and make them feel like a part of your brand and not just an employee. That will help you and them hit this new chapter running, and see you reap the benefits faster than you thought possible.

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