Maybe it's not a fit...

Weird signs a new employee might not be a great fit for your startup:

1) They say, "That's not my job!"

This is a startup: If you put your hand up to do something, it's your job.

Of course, finding a lane and coordinating with team members so you're not doing double work is important. And no master engineer enjoys doing data entry.

But working with a startup means taking on a multi-hat, no-job-too-big-or-too-small attitude.

Would it be faster, better, AND cheaper to hire someone else to do it? Okay, let's hire someone else.

But if we're under the wire and the thing just needs to get done,

Then sorry Mr. PhD - you own a car and aren't busy right now so you're our driver this month.

2) They "know what to do because" they "did it for Google"

"I bring Fortune 500-level expertise to startups to help them blast past the competition!"

...is not actually a thing.

I don't care how many books you've read on how startups work

Or how many companies you've invested in;

Until you've had to build a marketing strategy with no money, no customer data, and no brand

Then you have no idea what you're up against.

Any employee going from big business to startup is going to have a huge learning curve

And anyone in that category who doesn't anticipate that gap will have a dangerous overconfidence in their current capabilities.

3) They just delivered a beautiful 50-page strategic plan

This is a startup - we don't have time for a 50-page plan.

Do you know how many customer conversations you COULD be having in all that time it took to create a beautiful 50-page plan?

Yes, planning is very important,

But not when it comes at the expense of data gathering.

Starting smart means building the plan as you go along.

Set a long-term vision and some quarterly goals

But then plan to change as you learn.

You'll need to. Often.

If a new employee isn't riding at that speed, they're probably wasting time.

Do any of these apply to someone you just hired?

If so, it might be time for a serious conversation...

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