Season 1 - Episode 5 : Work Smart AND Hard
Have you ever heard someone say “I don’t work hard, I work smart.” What a load of crap. Everybody tries to work smart - that’s a given. What you need to understand is that to get a business off the ground you’re gonna have to do both. You need to work smart and hard by putting in big time hours and doing the tasks that nobody else wants (or can) do to make your company happen.
Background Story
Working smart and hard starts with you. Founders need to be the ones that take on new tasks and figure them out, and create processes around them. If you don’t create systems and processes, your people will flounder. In contrast to you, employees both thrive in and require systems; employees aren’t jack of all trades like you. They can then follow those processes that give them guiderails to efficiency. It took us a while to figure this out.
Outline
Founders need to be trailblazers.
Shield you Staff.
Founders are the business continuity, particularly in the early days.
Busted Myth
Myth: You only need to work smart. Yeah, not gonna happen bud. The effort has to match the quality of the work.
Secondary myth: only you need to work hard or smart. Nope - the whole team needs to make it happen.
Learnings
Founders are the trailblazers
Founders need to be the ones that take on new tasks and figure them out, and create processes around them.
Employees can then follow those processes, but only once the founders have figured them out.
The reality is that founders need to be the best employees.. You can't hire someone to create your next killer product. That's going to come from founders.
Shield your staff
Kick your staff out at 5pm. They didn't sign up for working around the clock, they aren't owners. Let them live their lives, otherwise they'll resent you.
When it really matters, you stay late.
If all hell is breaking loose, ask for help from your staff. But treat it like a "get out of jail free" card that is never to be used.
Founders flatten the bumps in the road
The really important work, whether that be new code or sales engagements, need to be managed by the founders.
In a small company, employees come and go, but the founders should be there to stay. They are the “transition plan" for your key technology and they need to understand it like the back of their hand. This helps you not repeat work, and in short, work both smart and hard.
Summary
You’re going to need to work smart and hard
Create systems for your staff to be able to do the same.
Founders take on the biggies so that there’s no dependence on a staff member.