Last week, in one of our morning meetings (we have a huddle every day), one of my team members shared that her sister’s boss said something that made us all cringe:

“Hire fast fire fast”.

As an entrepreneur who’s been around a lot of start-ups and fellow entrepreneurs, I’ve heard this phrase a lot. 

And I kind of hate it. 

No, I really hate it. 

“Fire Fast Hire Fast” – a recipe for a big bummer

I think it was Gary Vee (Vaynerchuk) who had heard this phrase most recently. He talks about hiring fast, firing faster, and promoting fast. (I like his mindset about a lot of things, but this idea isn’t a fit for me.)  I assume this hiring framework means you spend less time vetting candidates, throwing them into the fire to prove themselves, and once they do, they get promoted. 

Or fired. 

Traditional Hiring Creates a Dip in Revenue. Maybe hire fast, or traditional practices could work for some business owners, but I haven’t seen it in real life. 

The traditional hiring process relies on interviews, video requests, and job descriptions that are, I’m sorry, ridiculous. No one wants to hear how hip and cool you are (because if you really are, there’s no need to mention it).

Then – boom – you’re hired? Based on what? That they stuffed a peg (that’s you, you’re the peg) into a hole? Because your resume fits?

None of that builds trust. None of that builds rapport. And those two things create a reciprocal relationship between you, your team, and clients, too.

If you want people to work for you (heck – they’re representing YOU, after all) to be dedicated, you can’t force them into a square hole of a job description. It won’t work. They aren’t going to increase your bottom line, and that poor person is likely to get burned out quickly. 

When you’re building your business with the wrong people or without the right support in place, you’re doomed.

Oh, and by the way, hiring and firing fast really messes with a person’s livelihood, career, and finances. I don’t want to be that guy.

Hiring Is Hard (And It Stays Hard)

Hiring is one of the most uncomfortable parts of growing a business, and I don’t think we say that enough. You’re being asked to make a decision about someone’s role in your company and in your day-to-day life, based on a handful of conversations and a resume that only tells part of the story. 

When it works, it’s a relief. But when it doesn’t, it’s more than just a bad fit. It pulls you right back into the work you were trying to step out of, and it chips away at your energy in a way that’s hard to quantify but very real to feel.

The Problem with Rushing the Process

That’s why the common hiring fast system sounds good in theory, but creates more problems than it solves.

1. When you hire quickly, it’s usually coming from a place of urgency. 
2. You need help, you’re stretched thin, and you want relief. But urgency doesn’t lead to better decisions; it leads to faster ones. 
3. And then, a few months later, you’re having the hard conversation, unwinding the role, and stepping back in to cover the gaps. 
4. It becomes a loop: hire, hope, fix, repeat. Over time, that loop is exhausting, and it’s a major reason so many owners feel stuck in a cycle they can’t seem to break.

The Hidden Cost No One Talks About

1. What makes this even more challenging is that the real cost of a wrong hire isn’t just financial. 
2. It shows up in your focus, your patience, and your ability to think strategically. 
3. Instead of moving forward, you’re correcting, redoing, and checking in on things you should be able to trust. 
4. You spend more time managing than leading, and the business starts to feel heavier, even if it’s technically growing. 
5. That weight is where burnout starts to take hold, not because you’re working hard, but because the work isn’t being shared in the way it needs to be.

Rethinking How You Choose People

This is where I think small business owners have a real advantage, if they’re willing to use it. You don’t have to hire like a corporation. 

You don’t need to rely on rigid processes or try to find the “perfect” candidate on paper. In fact, some of the best people you could bring into your business are the ones who didn’t thrive in those environments. There are incredibly capable, thoughtful, driven individuals who have been boxed into roles that didn’t fit or managed in ways that limited how they could contribute. In a different setting, your setting, they show up completely differently.

Going All In on the Right Fit

Instead of rushing to fill a role, the better approach is to slow the process down just enough to really understand how someone works. 

1. Go with fewer interviews and more meaningful interaction.
2. Give people a chance to engage with real problems your business is facing. 
3. Let them see how you think and operate, and pay attention to how they respond. 

You’ll learn far more from a shared working session than you ever will from a polished answer to a predictable question. What you’re looking for isn’t just capability, it’s alignment, ownership, and a way of thinking that complements how you run your business.

Building a Team That Changes the Feel of the Business

When you get this right, your business starts to feel different. You’re not hovering over every detail or stepping in to fix things at the last minute. There’s a level of trust that allows you to focus on the areas where you’re most valuable, and the constant low-level stress begins to ease. The right people don’t just take work off your plate; they change your relationship with the work itself. That’s where you start to feel some of that energy come back.

A Better Way Forward

If you’ve been feeling stretched thin, it’s worth looking at your team through this lens. Not from a place of frustration, but from a place of design. Instead of asking how you can personally do less, ask how the business can be structured so you’re not carrying so much in the first place. The answer often comes down to who you bring in, how you bring them in, and whether you’re truly setting them and yourself up for a better way of working.

Your Homework – Actions to take to build or nurture your dream team

Set aside 30 minutes for this:

Step 1: List what’s draining you
Write down the 5 tasks or responsibilities that consistently pull your energy down. The ones you avoid, delay, or feel heavier after doing.

Step 2: Identify what only you should be doing
Circle the 2–3 things on that list (or outside it) that truly require you, your thinking, your relationships, your leadership. Everything else is a candidate for support.

Step 3: Spot the gap
For the remaining items, ask: Who would make this feel lighter? Not just “who can do this,” but who would take ownership of it in a way that gives you relief.

Step 4: Define the person, not the position
Write a short description of that person in plain language. How do they think? How do they communicate? What makes you trust them? Skip the job title, focus on the human.

Step 5: Take one step toward them this week
Reach out, start a conversation, invite someone into a working session, or share what you’re building. Don’t rush to hire. Start by finding alignment.

Let’s Talk About It

I’m curious what your experience has been lately when it comes to hiring. Are you finding it difficult to identify the right people, or feeling like you’ve had to redo roles more than you expected? Are you moving quickly and second-guessing later, or holding back because the stakes feel too high? Wherever you are in the process, it’s worth paying attention to, because the way you choose your people will either support the business you’re trying to build, or quietly work against it.

Hey you – you’ve got this!

-Mike

For more guidance around hiring, check out All In at your favorite bookseller.