Twenty six! Twenty six employees came… and went. They didn’t quit. I let them go. Most quietly, some not so quietly, but they left.

It took some time as I hired, fired, gleaned, and screened until eventually I assembled a crew that could think, plan, and work without constant direction from me.

Now, I am not so naïve as to expect that employees can or should be entirely self-directing; neither can they nor should they function in complete independence. Depending on the competence and confidence of an associate in any particular position, the degree of your engagement as a leader/manager will vary. The farther the employee down the scale, the more participation will be required from you.

Employees and associates, depending on their experience, education, confidence, and competence, will rank somewhere on the following scale:

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