Do you feel like you have entered a “Deal with the Devil?” if so, this episode is for you!
I like to share with you all the mistakes I’ve made and this is designed for those who are at the top of the food chain in their company.
You made a deal with the devil.
I’m a faith-based guy, so just tongue in cheek here, but there are times in business where you partner short-term with someone you normally wouldn’t. Sometimes it’s for profit, sometimes a quick profit. Sometimes it’s because you’re just in a pinch and they’re the only person you can get. I talk about this as being the mercenary. This is the mercenary that you hire, but I want to give you the downside of that.
I’ve been able to manage these type of people short-term, but that’s what I want to stress: short-term. You don’t get comfortable with a mercenary. This is not an employee. This is a contractor. They’re typically not an employee because they’re not loyal enough to stay with you, but this is the person that you use for a very finite task.
I compare it to being like a hitman. This is their only assignment. It’s a job, but make no mistake: they’re not loyal. Not at all. They’ll smile at you. They’ll make you think, “Hey, when’s the next job? What can I do for you next?” It’s completely transactional.
This would be like…you’ve fallen in love with the stripper. It’s not reality, gentlemen! And ladies, this is the person that you want to fall in love with, but you know you shouldn’t!
Stick with what you want to be your 99%. 99% Of your staff needs to people you trust and you believe in. If not, you have people who end up being culture killers. If you keep them around too long, they will infect whoever you have.
I did that lesson on mercenaries and described how I’ve made money off of them, but I wanted to come back with a lesson to kind of give you a warning. It’s kind of like when you see commercials the medications you can take now that help you with whatever issue you have, and then it goes on to describe how the sideeffects are that you grow horns on your back, you start seeing sideways, and you’ll grow tumors. But if the problem is significant, you might risk the many sideeffects.
Again, what we’re talking about today is how to manage mercenaries because you are making a deal with the devil, and I’m telling you don’t fall in love, don’t get married. Use them for that finite task only. Your team needs to know that you’re using them for that finite task. Everybody needs to be on the same page.
