Interested in starting your own entrepreneurial journey in business development but unsure what to expect? Then read up on our interview with Jamie Van Cuyk, owner of Growing Your Team, located in St Petersburg, FL, USA.
What's your business, and who are your customers?
My business is Growing Your Team. At Growing Your Team, small business owners hire us to help them through the hiring process. Our typical customer is a business that is adding a new position to their organization and wants help defining the role, learning to excel in each step of the hiring process so they can do it confidently, or is seeking to save time by delegating the majority of the hiring process to a recruiter that is focused on finding the right person for them and not just putting a butt in a seat.
Tell us about yourself
After a brief attempt at creating another company that I quickly learned I hated, I started this business. After stopping that venture, I wasn't ready to go back to corporate, so I started exploring new ideas. I attended multiple events where I spoke with small business owners and shared business struggles. One theme kept coming up in these conversations - most small business owners never hired before doing so within their own business. If they had hired employees before, it was with the backing of a large corporate company, and they felt lost doing it on their own. They wanted support but finding hiring support and education for very small businesses was hard.
Seeing people has always been my core motivator, and I had a lot of hiring expertise to share. I decided to fill the gap and help small businesses overcome their hiring challenges.
Every day, I'm motivated by the fact that I get to help make connections between employees and employers. People spend a lot of time working, and to help find the perfect fit for both sides that leaves employees happy and helps business scale motivates me beyond anything else I have ever done career-wise.
What's your biggest accomplishment as a business owner?
Being able to hire my own employees is one of my biggest accomplishments. It took a while to feel successful, and now I get to share the success I have built with great team members.
What's one of the hardest things that come with being a business owner?
Wearing all the hats until you can delegate is one of the hardest things about being a business owner. You can't hire an entire staff at once, which means while you're building up the team, you have to own tasks that might not be your strengths. I love working with clients so much that I often find myself putting off other important tasks so I can make more time for my clients. As a result, it can feel like I'm always playing catchup in other areas. What pushes me through is knowing that I can continue to grow my team so I can focus on the right areas and not everything within the business.
What are the top tips you'd give to anyone looking to start, run and grow a business today?
- It takes time to become successful. Don't give up!
- It's okay to pivot and redefine your business or target audience until you find the best fit for you.
- Invest in help from others. Whether it's consultants, coaches, contractors, or employees, get the help you need. You cannot do it all on your own, and you do not have all the answers. Investing in the right support will pay off big time!
Where can people find you and your business?
Website: https://growingyourteam.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/GrowingYourTeam/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/growingyourteam/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jamievancuyk/
If you like what you've read here and have your own story as a solo or small business entrepreneur that you'd like to share, then please answer these interview questions. We'd love to feature your journey on these pages.
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