Hiring agents of change.

Do you have problems in your building that demand your attention, but you are procrastinating for some reason? For every problem you don't begin attending today you should plan on spending at least triple the amount of time on over the next three or four months. You might as well open up your calendar and block out the days--days you could have made much better use of. Obviously if the problem could be easily solved you wouldn't procrastinate, so the question becomes where do you find the solution?

You cannot solve each and every problem alone. So go to your staff. They have buried within them the solution to many of your problems. Yes, breaking the inertia to get your employees to be their own change agents can seem impossible, but at the very least don't make matters worse by hiring vacation replacements that do not measure up to the highest possible standards.

Hiring missteps are most often caused by time constraints and the "they are only here for the summer" mindset. While you may not get the work experience you are looking for every time, a superior attitude in a candidate can often be more important and negate other "deficiencies."

Look for candidates who are naturally blessed with a positive outlook and have the personality to want to serve. Choosing extroverts over introverts will often combat the "too shy" syndrome introverted employees have when dealing with your building's occupants, visitors or delivery people. And by hiring proactive extroverts, you may very well find the solution to your building problems. The solutions will come from the employees who have the makings of being change agents with fresh and bold ideas. But first you have to hire them.

Now go back to your calendar and wherever there were XXs for unsolved problems replace them with YVs. Your Vacation.

Hiring right equals time you earned to relax.

MARGIE RUSSELL

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

NYARM