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5 Important Benefits of Quality Job Descriptions

5 Important Benefits of Quality Job Descriptions

5 Important Benefits of Quality Job Descriptions

Job description – the phrase itself just seems so “corporate-y,” right? You might feel like it’s a worn out old document or a big company practice that just doesn’t fit your small, creative business. But you’re underestimating it’s mighty power if you think this way!

I happen to love job descriptions – like L.O.V.E. them! 😍

Job descriptions can save you countless hours of precious time, loads of sanity and time spent questioning yourself, and can back you up in the future in cases of legal troubles. Job descriptions are all that and a bag of chips, my friend! #ilovethe90s

But the key here is that I love QUALITY job descriptions.

Quality Job Descriptions are Key

“Whadaya mean by ‘quality job descriptions,’ Ashley?” I mean that your job description needs to be full of the specific details of the job – and not just a bunch of fluff!

Don’t get me wrong, I’m all for making work fun and infusing our businesses with tons of personality, which is one of the reasons I love being my own boss! But that doesn’t mean we have to sacrifice quality for character.

Avoid The Fluff!

Let’s take a look at a few things I’ve read in actual job descriptions that have made me cringe (and that you should avoid at all costs!):

  • Must love cupcakes (or puppy snuggles, pizza, the color pink, etc.)

These things have absolutely nothing to do with the job you’re hiring for and could actually cause you to discriminate against highly qualified candidates (yikes!). Unless you’re hiring someone to work as a taste tester for a cupcake shop, leave these types of fluff statements out.

  • Able to help me with ALL THE THINGS

What exactly are ‘all the things?’ And how do you know when you’ve found the person who can do those things? Not only is this impossible to hire for, it’s also confusing and demeaning to applicants. Just don’t!

  • Needed: Social Media Guru (or Rockstar, Ninja, Genius, etc.)

These terms are fun to use in jest, but again, they don’t really explain anything. Have you ever thought about this? One person’s guru might be another person’s average employee. #thingsthatmakeyougohmmm When you’re specific about what you’re looking for, you’ll find the right person for the job. Flattery is not the way to go about finding them, though.

  • Must have a great personality – I can teach you the rest!

I agree that attitude is a big deal, but the person also needs to have at least some skills. Attitude is hard to gauge when someone’s on their best behavior (a.k.a. – in an interview with you). And do you really have time to “teach them the rest” since you’re hiring help? Probably not! Hire someone who’s better than you at the job you’re hiring for and then let them do it. 😉

 5 Important Benefits of Quality Job Descriptions

Now that we’ve gone over what *not* to include in your job description, let’s talk about what a QUALITY job description can do for you!

  1. Attract the Right Candidates

    When you include specific, detailed, and relevant information in your job description, you’ll attract better candidates who know what you expect of the person you hire for this position. They’ll be able to better understand whether or not they can meet those expectations and you’ll get a better pool of qualified candidates to consider!

  2. Ask the Right Questions

    A good quality job description will help you create interview questions that guide you to hire the right person for your team. If you’ve include something like “help me with all the things,” that will be hard to articulate into an interview question “So, Sarah, tell me about how you can help me do all the things.” What?! That’s completely unhelpful! (Need more help with asking the right questions? Check out this blog post that I wrote all about How to Interview with Confidence and Heart!)

  3. Set Clear Expectations

    Once you hire your new team member, you’ll be able to use the job description to go over the position, tasks, and responsibilities with your new team member and help them learn what’s expected of them in their new role. No more guessing or trying to figure it out as you go! Plus, they can use the job description as a guide for when they have questions or aren’t sure what to do next. Total win-win.

  4. Create Goals that Matter

    Creating a quality job description also allows you to help your team members set goals that matter and that are in alignment with the overall goals of your business. This will help your team feel connected to the business, see how they’re making significant contributions to your team, and have a clear understanding of how what they do really does matter.

  5. Hold Your Team Accountable

    When things get off the rails (and they will if you work with a team of people long enough), a job description can easily help you get your team back on track. No more, “don’t you remember that conversation we had 7 months ago?” Now you can simply refer back to the job description as a reminder and do it with confidence and heart! (Still get the heebie jeebies when you think about having those hard conversations with your team? Learn why it’s important to share tough love with your team and my favorite no-fail method in this two-part series here and here!)

There you have it! The 5 Important Benefits of Quality Job Descriptions. Whether you’re getting ready to hire for the first time or you have a team in place already, it’s never too late to get a quality job description in place! I work with clients all the time who want help creating this important tool for their business, so they can be better leaders.

If you need a job description for your business, you can grab the same template I use when I work with clients in the sproutHR Template Shop! Want a little more one-on-one help? Grab a free spot on my calendar today!

Happy Sprouting! 🌱

Ashley

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Why Your Unpaid Intern is Probably Illegal

Why your unpaid intern is probably illegal

Why Your Unpaid Intern is Probably Illegal

You’re working hard building your business and could really use some extra help. Although you’re doing well, you’re not making a fortune, so you don’t have a lot of extra cash for new business expenses.

As you’ve been scrolling around in Facebook Groups, you’ve seen a lot of other businesses talk about bringing on unpaid interns. You think to yourself, “That sounds exactly like what I need!“

You’re excited at the possibility of getting some much needed help in your business – without having to add any extra expenses.

It almost seems too good to be true…

Because it is.

Did you know that hiring unpaid interns might violate state and federal labor laws?

I get it. You’re strapped for time and cash. And the very idea of getting just a little bit of relief makes you want to jump for joy. Seeing other people get the help they need without spending a ton of money seems like a dream come true.

What you might not know is that most of the small businesses you see doing this are probably doing it illegally. And I bet that many of them don’t even know that what they’re doing is wrong.

Click here to schedule for your free 20-minute strategy call today!

Don’t believe everything you read online.

The great thing about the internet is how easy it is to share information.

The bad thing about the internet is how easy it is to share information.

We all know that we shouldn’t believe everything we read on the internet. Unfortunately, even the most savvy us fall into this trap now and again.

One of the things I love most about being in this online space is that people are very willing to share the behind-the-scenes of their businesses. They share struggles and victories, what hasn’t worked and what has. And I’ve seen this to be true with hiring a team, too – whether they’re hiring contractors, employees, or interns.

But you have to remember that most of these small business owners have been figuring things out as they go along. Just like you. They might not have any experience in hiring or even know that there are laws that govern how a business can hire.

Most businesses who have hired unpaid interns, have done so in order to avoid the costs of hiring an employee. They look at it as a way to get the work they need completed, without adding any more expenses. That’s what interns are for, right? Wrong.

Internships are designed to benefit the intern – not the business.

Internships in the for-profit, private sector are most often viewed as employment, which means that you’re required to pay your interns minimum wage and overtime.

Why? If the work that the intern is doing for your business is the same type of work you would hire an employee for and you’re directly benefiting from that work, then they’re classified as an employee under state and federal labor laws and you should be paying your intern.

The laws around hiring interns are very clear. These laws are governed by the U.S. Department of Labor’s (DOL) Wage and Hour Division. I know this can all sound pretty intimidating, so let me break it down for you in layman’s terms.

There are 6 criteria that you MUST meet in order to qualify to hire an unpaid intern:

  1. The internship should be similar to training that would be given in an educational environment (i.e. college), in addition to performing normal business tasks.
  2. The internship is for the benefit of the intern – not your business.
  3. The intern isn’t a replacement for hiring an employee and must work under close supervision of current team members.
  4. Your business gains no immediate advantage from the activities of the intern. The intern may actually disrupt or hamper your regular operations.
  5. The intern isn’t necessarily entitled to a job at the end of the internship.
  6. The employer and the intern understand that the intern is not entitled to wages for their time in the internship.

(Source: U.S. Department of Labor, Wage and Hour Division)

In order to hire an unpaid intern, your internship must meet ALL of the criteria listed above. If it does, then this means that an employment relationship does not exist under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) and the Act’s minimum wage and overtime rules do not apply to the intern.

Click here to schedule for your free 20-minute strategy call today!

Why your unpaid intern is probably illegalPhoto: Women of Color in Tech

Still feeling skeptical?

I promise I’m not making this up – I’m just sharing it with you, so you can hire legally and protect your small business. Read Fact Sheet #71 by the DOL’s Wage and Hour Division, which talks about Internship Programs Under the Fair Labor Standards Act.

The 6 Criteria outlined above, which are also included in Fact Sheet #71, are difficult to meet if the employer wants to avoid paying minimum wage and overtime. In addition, interns cannot waive their right to be paid. If you want to claim that your intern isn’t an employee under the FLSA, you must be able to prove that all criteria have been met. (Source: Society of Human Resource Management)

Play it safe!

To sum it all up, if you’re hiring an intern and you’re a small, for-profit, privately-owned business, then you should very likely be paying your intern. With this comes the additional financial responsibilities of hiring an employee, which includes paying income taxes, social security, medicare, and more.

If you’ve been considering hiring an unpaid intern in your small business, make sure you understand the laws before you do! You don’t want to end up facing the penalties for violating stated and federal labor laws.

Need some help figuring all of this out and keeping your business safe? I’m a duel-certified HR Professional with over a decade of experience. I’ve been a trusted HR advisor in a Fortune 25 company, relying on my knowledge and experience with employment law. When you work with me, you can rest assured that you’ll be getting the right information for your business!

Click here to schedule for your free 20-minute strategy call today!

Disclaimer: This article has been written for informational purposes for small businesses located within the United States. I am not an attorney and am not providing legal advice or counsel. The information shared within this article has been sourced from U.S. Government sites which govern wage and hours laws for citizens of this country, as well as professional Human Resources associations. The information in this article was written in May 2017.

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10 Reasons Why You Really Do Need an Employee Handbook

10 Reasons Why You Really Do Need an Employee Handbook

Note: An employee handbook should ONLY be given to true employees of your company. It should never be shared with Independent Contractors. This may constitute an employer/employee relationship with them, which could end up causing you a good deal of legal grief.

10 Reasons Why You Really Do Need an Employee Handbook

Employee handbooks are an important part of a growing team. Today, I’m sharing 10 reasons why you really do need an employee handbook.

I know what you’re thinking:

  • Employee handbooks are for the corporate world!
  • They’re stuffy, full of legal jargon and technical terms, and they don’t really mesh with my company vibe.
  • I don’t want my team members to feel like they’re being suffocated with policies and rules.
  • Do I really need employee handbook with such a small team? It seems kind of silly!

I’ve also heard you say things like:

I…

  • want to create a good company culture!
  • want to encourage team and personal development.
  • don’t know how to hold my team accountable.
  • thought I made (insert policy/guideline) really clear when I hired them! Why is this an issue?
  • no clue how to handle (insert employee issue, such as attendance, behavioral problems, etc.) I have going on right now!

You can potentially limit or totally avoid many of these issues through the use of an employee handbook. And when something does come up, you’ll be prepared to handle it confidently and consistently.

Click here to schedule your free 20-minute strategy call today!

A Simple, But Powerful Business Tool

When used correctly, an employee handbook will help you develop an intentional culture, enhance communication, establish expectations with your team, and hold them accountable to those expectations.

Think of the tools you already use in your business:

  • Project Management: Asana, Trello, 17 Hats
  • Accounting: QuickBooks, Wave Apps, FreshBooks
  • Social Media Scheduling: Later, Buffer, Planoly

An employee handbook is simply another powerful tool to help you streamline your processes, create efficiencies, and protect your business!

What is an Employee Handbook?

An employee handbook is a tool to help you communicate with your team members how they can best work with your company. It’s designed to speak directly to them. It should be written in a clear, straightforward manner, that’s easy to navigate and reference. Your employee handbook can be a physical document or it can be electronic (just make sure to lock down the permissions, so that your team members can’t make changes!). In either format, you should always have your team members sign off that they have received, read, and understand the employee handbook – and have them sign off again when you update it, too!

You should cover basic policies and employment-related procedures in your handbook. It’s not meant to be an all-encompassing document, otherwise, it would be 1,000 pages long – yikes! Your handbook should cover the basics that anyone might have a question about when being hired for a new job.

And if these aren’t enough reasons to add one to your business today, keep reading below for 10 reasons why you really do need an employee handbook!

Click here to schedule your free 20-minute strategy call today!

10 Reasons Why You Really Do Need an Employee Handbook

1 – Introduce employees to your culture, mission/purpose, and core values

An employee handbook is a wonderful way for you to make a great first impression. When done correctly, it helps introduce your new team members to your company. It should reflect the culture and personality of your company. Use it to share your company history (including why you started the business!), your mission or purpose, and your core values. Set the stage for kind of great company your new team member has joined!

2 – Set expectations for your employees

This is one of your best opportunities to set expectations with your new team members. Expectations for time and attendance, customer service, appropriate/inappropriate behavior, and yes, even disciplinary procedures should all be included in your employee handbook – even if you just have one team member. Set the expectations clearly up front and you can avoid potential issues later on or at least have a chance to handle them more easily.

3 – Educate employees on what they can expect from you and your company

Leadership is a two-way street. You should be setting expectations for your team members, but you should also be sharing what they can expect from you and your company. Use your employee handbook to share important topics like payday, training, ongoing support, performance reviews, and more!

4 – Ensure clear and consistent communication with all employees

No more forgetting what you told each team member and no more room for ambiguity! One of the biggest reasons employees file suit against their employers is due to discriminatory practices. You might think, “I’d never discriminate against anyone!” And your intentions might be good and pure. However, it’s easy to do when you have no clear way to communicate policies, procedures, and expectations with your entire team. A handbook is a guide for your whole team and can also provide protection for you and your company in the case of a disgruntled employee (see #8 below).

5 – Compliance with federal and state legal requirements

There are certain legal obligations that you have as an employer. And there are certain laws that you must communicate with your employees. Yes, even if you have just one employee. An employee handbook – whether in hardcopy or an online version – is your opportunity to maintain compliance by sharing this information with your team.

Click here to schedule your free 20-minute strategy call today!

6 – Communicate important company policies

Have you ever started a new job and had a million questions running through your mind like, “What should I do if I/my child become sick?” and “How do I request time off?” or “Do I even get time off?” Sure you did, we all do! An employee handbook can provide you with a place to house all of the answers to these questions. And it also helps you provide clear and consistent answers to those questions with each team member (see #4 above).

7 – Highlight any benefits or special perks you offer

Another great reason to have an employee handbook is so you can share the benefits and special perks you offer to your team members. Required benefits you have to provide (yes, there may be benefits you’re legally required to provide) or extra perks you’ve added (like that fun retreat you take your team on each year!) should be included. This is your chance to highlight the good stuff that will encourage engagement and loyalty – and make your team members feel really great to work for you.

8 – Provide valuable legal coverage in the case of a disgruntled employee

A handbook is one of the best ways to protect your company from employee complaints and lawsuits. If you clearly and consistently communicate via your handbook, and you have all of your team members sign off on it, then you have the protection of this document on your side (as long as you implement and follow the policies you’ve outlined). Make sure you’re covered with a solid handbook!

Word of Caution: In most states, employee handbooks are viewed as legally binding agreements or contracts. Wording is very important when creating a handbook and could lead to more harm than good. Make sure to have your employee handbook reviewed by and HR Professional or Attorney.

9 – Guides employees on how to handle various situations

Most employee handbooks provide some guidance on how team members should handle problems they might face at work. What is the policy on sexual harassment (from fellow team members or customers)? Who should they report concerns about drug or alcohol abuse to – and will their report be anonymous? Most employers cover these types of situations through an Open Door Policy, encouraging their employees to report issues anonymously to them and without fear of retaliation.

10 – It will make your life easier!

No more trying to remember what your policies are or what you told one employee versus another about how vacation works. An employee handbook houses all of this important information about the way you do business and manage your workforce. It empowers your team by putting the answers right in their hands. When they don’t have to look up the answers for themselves, they’re not running to you every time they have a question. Saving everyone time and frustration.

There you have it – 10 reasons why you really do need an employee handbook! If you don’t have an employee handbook, but you have a team (or your team is growing soon), I’d love to help you create one for your unique business. Simply click the link below to schedule your free 20-minute strategy call with me to discuss your employee handbook needs today.

Heck yeah, I need an employee handbook now!

Happy Sprouting! 🌱

Ashley

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3 Ways Diversity Makes Your Business More Awesome

3 Ways Diversity Makes Your Business More Awesome

3 Ways Diversity Makes Your Business More Awesome

“Diversity is greater than the color of our skin or our gender. Diversity is also about the cultures and communities we were raised within, the ways in which our minds work, the strengths we embody, and the skills we have learned. It’s about our past experiences and our beliefs that have been formed through our unique histories. And that’s why diversity is important in business and in life.” Ashley Cox, sproutHR 

Getting Unstuck

Have you ever worked on a project and gotten stuck trying to figure out one part? You kept working and working, but could never quite unravel the mystery of the project.

Feeling frustrated, you thought you had looked at the project from all different angles. Getting discouraged, you tried every idea you could think of under the sun – even the ridiculous ones. You may have even found yourself aggravated with the whole project.

But you just couldn’t seem to figure it out.

And then someone else came along and recommended a solution that worked in mere seconds.

Why is that?

Diversity.

Why Diversity is Important in Business

Over the years, I’ve found that many hiring managers rate candidates who are “just like they are” more favorably. The candidates they’re most drawn to often have similar personalities, backgrounds, and life or work experiences.

You’ve heard the old saying, “birds of a feather flock together,” right? Well, it rings true in hiring a team. There’s a sense of familiarity with a candidate who’s like you – or who you perceive is like you. And making that choice feels like a safe bet.

Hiring managers have told me things like:

  • “We had so much in common! I could have talked to him all day.”
  • “I really liked her. Did you know we were in the same sorority?!“
  • “Man, what a great candidate. He’s just like me!!” (Insert eye roll.)

Yikes! These are not the kind of comments you want to hear after an interview.

People with similar personalities, backgrounds, cultures, and experiences tend to think the same way, act the same way, and see the world through the same lens.

It’s this “sameness” that helps to perpetuate stereotypes. It closes us off from learning new ways of thinking and experiencing the world, limits our abilities to do more, and stunts our growth.

Diversity is more than just gender or skin color, though. Diversity is also about the:

  • cultures and communities we were raised within,
  • way in which our minds work,
  • strengths we embody, and
  • skills we have learned.

Diversity is about how our past experiences have shaped our beliefs through our unique histories.

Today, I’m going to share just three of the many ways that diversity will make your business even more awesome!

Are you ready to grow your team with confidence and heart, but are having trouble figuring out where to start?

Click here to grab your free worksheet: Who to Hire 1st & How Much to Budget!!

3 Ways Diversity Makes Your Business More Awesome

  1. A diverse team helps you expand your perspective.

    Our experiences form our beliefs about the world around us. Those beliefs are what helps us see things from different perspectives. Our experiences and beliefs are influenced by many factors – gender, age, culture, ethnic background, socioeconomic status, home environment, how we were raised, who raised us, and much more.

    When you hire a team of people from different backgrounds, you gain the collective of their experiences. You have the opportunity to solve problems more creatively, develop products and services that are more appealing, and collaborate on projects that are more robust.

    According to a study on diversity in the workplace by McKinsey & Company, gender diverse teams financially outperform their non-gender diverse industry peers by 15%. The study also found that racially and ethnically diverse teams financially outperform non-diverse industry peers by 35%.

  2. A diverse team bolsters creativity and innovation.

    Studies show diversity within a team greatly increases that team’s levels of creativity and innovation. Companies that embrace and celebrate diversity outperform non-diverse teams time and time again.

    “In fact, working on diverse teams produces better outcomes precisely because it’s harder,” reads an article from the Harvard Business Review.

    Harder? I don’t want my team to feel like it’s hard work! Let me explain…

    When you work with a team of people who are alike and process information in a similar manner, it feels easy to reach decisions together. The team feels like it’s making progress quickly, when in reality their progress may be stunted.

    As soon as someone joins the team who is different – whether by ethnicity, gender, experience, etc. – it becomes more challenging. Assumptions are questioned, different opinions are shared, and people are pushed outside of their comfort zones.

    It’s this very situation that makes the team better. Their group-think is crushed and they’re challenged to process information differently, look at problems from a new view point, and develop more innovative ideas, products, and services.

  3. A diverse team helps you serve more clients, better.

    The most authentic way to get to know, understand, and serve a wide variety of clients is to hire people who accurately represent those clients and whom the clients will be able to relate to and connect with more easily.

    “A team with a member who shares a client’s ethnicity is 152% likelier than another team to understand that client,” reveals this article by the Harvard Business Review.

    That’s a pretty staggering statistic, especially in a world where we’re always trying to find new ways to connect with our clients.

    People typically like to shop with companies who understand them. If you’re trying to appeal to an ethnic group, socioeconomic class, culture, etc. but you don’t understand that group to their core, then you’re likely going to miss the mark. Having a diverse team in place, however, will help you reach more clients, more genuinely.

Embrace and Celebrate Diversity

Diversity is important in business and in life. Diversity expands our minds, fosters creativity and innovation, and helps us serve more clients, better.

An article published on Forbes online, reads in part, “Successful companies are not the ones that build a business, then look at diversity as a nice-to-have attribute. Truly successful and innovative companies are those that build diverse teams when they are just starting out in their own apartment or their folks’ garage. Diversity is a mentality, not just strategic imperative.”

It’s not just enough to talk about diversity. And diversity isn’t something that you “just do.” Now is the time to truly embrace, celebrate, and integrate diversity into your small business.

Happy Sprouting! 🌱

Ashley

Are you ready to grow your team with confidence and heart, but are having trouble figuring out where to start? Click here to grab your free worksheet: Who to Hire 1st & How Much to Budget!!

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Taking Over Instagram with One Woman Shop

Taking Over Instagram with One Woman Shop

Taking Over Instagram with One Woman Shop

Earlier this week, I took over the WORLD!! Er…Instagram. Well, the One Woman Shop Instagram account to be exact. Same thing, right?!

I had the pleasure of carrying the #onewomanshopbaton. What’s that, you ask? It’s a fun and interactive way to connect with a fellow business owner’s audience. It’s kind of like guest posting, but you take over their Instagram feed instead. Cool, right?!

One Woman Shop (OWS) is part resource, part community, and all heart. The ladies behind OWS, Cristina, Founder, and Sara, Content Editor and Co-Conspirator, are dedicated to helping female solopreneurs build the businesses they want and deserve, while offering up a healthy dose of inspiration and a kick in the pants!

They summarize their biz best, “Because going it alone doesn’t have to be lonely.”

Will You Take Over Our Instagram?

When Christina and Sara first asked me if I’d like to “carry the baton,” as they called it, I was a bit nervous and immediately had a 1,000 questions (like I do). But they had it all under control! They provided a quick and easy reference guide with all the details of the takeover and made sure all my questions were answered.

The takeover was pretty simple. I was asked to post about 6 – 10 images randomly throughout the day about what it’s like to live and work as a solo, female business owner. Easy peasy, mac-n-cheesy, right?! So I agreed, chose a date, and anxiously awaited my turn!

In case you didn’t catch me live on the One Woman Shop this past week, I decided to share my day with you here, along with some of the results from my takeover!

The Highlights

I was worried at first that no one would care about what I had to share throughout the day, let alone engage with my posts. But boy was I blown away! Here’s a quick breakdown of the day.

I received:

  • 652 💚’s
  • 43 🗯’s

Holy cow, that’s a whole lotta love, y’all!!

I was blown away by the response I received and the genuine conversations I had with new Insta-friends all day long. I even had several people join me as new followers over on my own business page. Yay for new friends!!

Pre-Takeover Jitters

I was a bit nervous that I couldn’t keep up with the posts for the day. I have a hard enough time posting to my own Instagram feed once per day (can I get an amen?!). And they asked me to post 6 – 10 times? In one day?!? Yikes!

But, I had made the commitment and I was going to follow through on it…even if it Insta-killed me.

To prepare for my day-o-sharing, I planned out what I wanted to talk about in advance. I made sure to take my photos in the moment throughout the day though, so I was still representing a real-life, behind-the-scenes look at my daily life and business.

Takeover Day

As all good takeovers begin, one must properly introduce oneself. So the day began with a little introduction from yours truly!

Hey there, I’m Ashley Cox, the HR Partner for Creatives at sproutHR, and I’m thrilled to carrying the #onewomanshopbaton today!! 🙌🏻🎉 I look forward to sharing a little peek behind the curtain of my solo business and to get to know you all a little better. ☺ . Let’s get this party started with a quick intro! I’m a duel-certified HR Pro with over 10 years of corporate Leadership and HR experience. I now help creative entrepreneurs hire, train, and lead their thriving teams, all with confidence and heart. 💚 I love making the scary and overwhelming parts of growing and leading your team, simple, actionable, and fun! . I currently live in Northeast TN (no, not Nashville) with my sweet husband, Mike, and our quirky and energetic Border Collie-Hound mix, Myla!! We love going on adventures, traveling, and working on fun DIY projects at home. 🌎🛠 . Fun Fact: When I was a little girl, I was obsessed with commercial jingles. I wrote my own jingles and thought that’s what I wanted to do when I grew up! 😆 To this day, I still make up songs about everyday life and like to tease my poor husband that I’m creating the soundtrack to our life! 😉😂 . Now tell me what you do and something fun about yourself in the comments!! ⤵️ . Photo by @sprout_hr. 🌱

A post shared by One Woman Shop (@onewomanshop) on

Then, I introduced the OWS followers to my sweet and quirky pup, Myla, who loves to help me read in the mornings! 😍

I have to be brutally honest about my morning routine y’all. That sucker has been flipped upside down. 🙃 I used to be a full-time solopreneur, but recently started a part-time position with a local business accelerator organization (which is a good thing!). However, my once easy-going mornings are now spent getting ready to go to work outside the home. 🏃🏻‍♀️👜 . I’m still trying to figure out exactly what my morning routine looks like, but I try to at least include some gratitude journaling and then read a chapter in a biz book to get my morning started…and of course, coffee! 🤓📝☕️ . Right now, I'm reading @elizabeth_gilbert_writer's @motivation_bigmagic – and it's truly inspiring!! And as you can see, Myla loves to read with me! 😉🐶💚 . What do you do in the mornings to get your day started off on the right foot? . Photo by @sprout_hr. #onewomanshopbaton

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Next, I shared a little bit more of a vulnerable post about having a part-time job in addition to my business. I got so much love and encouragement on this post. Full heart! (Side note, I totally high-five that little monkey every time I send a newsletter! Do you?)

As I mentioned earlier, I recently took a part-time position with a local small business accelerator organization, @accelnow. So part of my day-to-day is spending time working with them now! 👩🏻‍💻 . I’ve been working with them for about 2.5 weeks and I’m handling their media – social, print, TV, radio, etc. – and helping them connect to even more entrepreneurs in our area, which is one of my favorite things to do!! 🙌🏻 . I had been thinking about getting a part-time job when they contacted me about this job. I wanted to earn some steady income while I continue to build and grow sproutHR. And y'know what – that's 💯% fine!! If you’re working to get your business started or generating a steady income, let me just encourage you right now. 💚 It is never, ever, ever a bad thing to work another job in order to earn some steady income while you’re building your dream. 💭 . I’m proud to have the opportunity to work for this organization that’s helped me in my own entrepreneurial journey and I’m just as excited as ever to grow my own business at the same time!! 🎉 . Do you also work another job in addition to running your own small business? What’s your best advice for managing both? ❓ . Photo by @sprout_hr. #onewomanshopbaton

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My next post was all about my love for educating others! This particular day, I was presenting a workshop on “How to Know When to Grow Your Team.”

One of my favorite parts of any job I’ve ever had, including my business now, is being able to share my knowledge and expertise with others through training sessions. 👩🏻‍🏫 . Today, I’m conducting a local Lunch & Learn workshop all about “How to Know When to Grow Your Team!” . My clients often tell me that they just don’t know where to start. That they’re overwhelmed with all the information out there. And that they’re scared they’re going to make the wrong decision. . These are all things that I help my clients work through in my people strategy sessions, so they can move forward in the hiring process with confidence and heart! . What do you love to help your clients with most? ❓❓❓ . Photo by @sprout_hr. #onewomanshopbaton

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My most “hearted” photo of the day came next, which featured my beautiful DIY turquoise colored desk and workspace! It’s hard not to have all the heart eyes when walking into this space each day. 😍

After I wrap up at my part-time job, I head back home to work on @sprout_hr. My office is located in a spare room in our house, which I feel very fortunate to have. Here's a shot of my desk…and in case you haven't noticed by now, teal/turquoise is my favorite color! 😍 . I know this photo looks staged, but I promise it's not. I can't stand a messy desk and I get distracted when there are too many papers or piles going on, so I keep it clean and organized. #nerdalert 🤓 . Right now, I’m thrilled to be working on my first course!! Although I’ve spent many years developing courses for corporate settings, this is the first time I’ve created an online course for the creative world. This course will be designed to help creatives hire their first team member with confidence and heart!! 💚 . Are you working on a big project right now that we should know about? And I’d love to know what questions you have about hiring a team! Share below and I’ll answer what I can in the comments. ⬇️ . Photo by @sprout_hr. #onewomanshopbaton

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I then shared a screenshot of a virtual co-working date with my dear friends and fellow entrepreneurs, Brogan Micallef, content creation strategist extraordinaire, and Kathryn Hofer, scheduling, time management, and systems genius.

As I mentioned earlier, I’m working a part-time job in addition to running @sprout_hr Which means that I have to be super organized and strategic in everything I do now. ✅✅✅ . I work a few hours every day after I finish my part-time gig, and I’m off all day on Fridays, which I dedicate to sprout. 🌱 . Client work is my highest priority. This could mean I’m working on anything from a people strategy call to creating a hiring compliance review, writing an employee handbook to coaching a client through a challenging situation with a team member, and everything in between. All the things I love to help my clients with! 💚 . Aside from client work, I also have to make sure I carve out time to stay on top of my content (blogging, social media, course creation, planning/strategizing for my biz, setting goals, etc.). 📈 . I try to work on at least one of these tasks each day. But, my favorite way to create content is by having virtual co-working dates with fellow creatives! Because it's ALL about accountability, y'all!! 🙌🏻🙌🏻 . During virtual co-working dates, we hop on Skype or Zoom, set our intentions, and then work for 60-90 minutes writing out our content or working on something in our business. It’s the most productive 60-90 minutes of my week!! Seriously. 💃🏻 . In this photo, I'm having a virtual co-working date with two of my fellow #onewomanshop ladies, @broganmicallef and @katmhofer. Although this photo was from our March #powersheets planning sesh, we have another one coming up this Thursday. 👩🏻📝 . And the best part? You don't even have to live in the same country to do these!! I'm in the U.S., Brogan's in Australia, and Kathryn's in Canada. 🌎🌍🌏 . Have you ever had a virtual co-working date before or would you like to give it a try? Tell us in the comments below!! ⤵️ . Also, my awesome friend, @abbymherman, Content Strategist/Coach extraordinaire, is hosting a virtual co-working program to help you get your business ready for summer called Race to Summer Break!! If you want loads of accountability, and learn how to get your content, your team and your business ready to take some time off this summer, join us at bit.ly/RaceToSummer!! 🏖🏃🏻‍♀

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I also showed a little behind-the-scenes of the spring gardening project my husband, Mike, and I have going on. I chatted a bit about the importance of making time for the things we enjoy doing, aside from work, and creating a life you love!

My favorite time of the day is when my hubby comes home from work! 😍👫 . We love cooking dinner together every night (unless one of us has a late meeting!). Afterwards, we enjoy working on DIY projects (like refinishing old furniture), planning our next travel adventure, or (right now) planning for and preparing our spring garden! 🛠🌎🌤 . Here's a shot of our newly relocated and expanded garden bed that we're working on. We'll be planting potatoes, tomatoes 🍅 , cucumbers (my fave!) 🥒, green leaf lettuce 🥗, carrots 🥕 , squash, peppers 🌶, thyme, basil (for fresh pesto, of course!) and mint this year!! ☀️💦 . And I’d totally be lying if I didn’t say we love to binge on Netflix shows, too. 😆 . I fully believe that it's up to each of us to create the life we want to live. And making time for the things we love doing is so important! 💚 . I’d love to know your favorite non-work activities and Netflix binge shows in the comments!! . Photo by @sprout_hr. #onewomanshopbaton

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I ended the day by sharing my nighttime routine and another sweet photo of my pup Myla snuggling with me in bed!

Well friends, it's been a blast hanging out with you today and carrying the #onewomanshopbaton!! 🙇🏻‍♀️ Thank you for the chance to share a little #BTS of my #onewomanshop and for all the great convo we've had today. I look forward to following and getting to know many of you in the future!! . If you'd like to follow me for expert HR tips, advice, and resources to help you grow your business from doing it all on your own to leading a team, I'd love to have you follow me over @sprout_hr!! 🌱 . For my last post of the day, I'm sharing our nighttime ritual. 😴 We love to end our day around 10pm by snuggling up in the bed and reading (and of course my hubby did *not* want to be in this photo 😂)!! You'll always find me with at least 2 or 3 books going at the same time. In the morning, I like reading business or self-development books to motivate and inspire me. At night, I enjoy reading fictional books to unwind, relax, and get lost in another world. I just started reading @johngrishamauthor's book, The King of Torts. It's an older book of his that I somehow missed; I'm a huge JG fan. I truly love to read just about anything I can get my hands on though, from mystery to drama to classic literature. The classic @wutheringheights is one of my very favorites and @diana.gabaldon's #outlanderseries is hands down my favorite series!! 📚 What do you love to read? . Goodnight to you all and happy sprouting, friends!! 🌱🌱🌱 . Photo by @sprout_hr.

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Final Thoughts

At the end of the day, this was an incredible experience! I enjoyed sharing some of the little less known sides of my business and life and connecting with new people in genuine ways.

Did you love my experience and want the chance to carry the #onewomanshopbaton, too?! Simply click the image below to get started today. Make sure to let me know when your turn is up so I can follow along and encourage you throughout the day!!

Happy Sprouting! 🌱

Ashley