How Often Should The Boss Be In The Office?

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In This Episode

This is one of those questions that circles around an owner’s mind quite often.  Not only how often should I be in the office but for how long?  Should the boss be the first in and last to leave?  Or should the boss only show up whenever it’s convenient?  Or somewhere in between?  How about as little as possible?  The short answer is, it depends!

We know that may sound like a cop out, but it really depends where your business is at when it comes to answering the question of how often should you be in the office.  For instance, if your company is relatively new or you are new to owning the business, it’s best to be there more often than not.  If instead, you’re in the middle of a transition plan to turn over the reigns to the next generation, then you should probably work on making yourself more scarce when it comes to your time in the office.

One of the dirty secrets of running a small business is that most of your team has no idea what the owner does.  If you don’t believe us, take a quick poll of your staff to see if they can list your primary duties or provide a coherent response to the question, “do you know what the boss does all day?”  You might be surprised at the responses and clueless looks you get back from your team.

A couple of other things we discussed during the show include:

  • Getting in touch with your power as the owner;
  • Testing your team;
  • Educating employees about how business works; and
  • Plan Direct Control (your 3-word job description as an owner).

People, Companies and Resources We Mentioned in the Show

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