Bar Rescue's Jon Taffer to Entrepreneurs: Firing People Is Part of Your Job 'Everyone has people working for them that shouldn't be. Free them from their own failure.'
By Jason Fell
Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.
As a business owner, you're like a coach and your employees are your team members. You start your strongest players and bench the others who aren't playing well. Entrepreneurs can't be afraid to call the difficult shots, says Bar Rescue host and service-industry authority Jon Taffer. As much as you want to be growing and hiring, you also need to realize when someone on your team isn't pulling his or her weight and needs to be let go.
Firing a person can even be liberating, Taffer says, in that you're "giving them their future." The same goes for employees you've known or worked with for a long/ time. Entrepreneurs shouldn't be willing to risk the success of their business based on a friendship or personal connection.
"Everyone has people working for them that shouldn't be. Free them from their own failure," Taffer says. "Let them go find a job where they will be successful and you go find an employee who will be successful."
When it comes to hiring right, Taffer suggests bringing on people who show a natural ability and drive to success. A bad or even blasé attitude shouldn't cut it.
"If you think you can make someone who is likable who's not, you're crazy," Taffer says. "If you think you can someone energetic who's not, you're even crazier. Teach them how to work in your business but hire people who will make you successful."
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