The first person I hired (Joven) in 2006 was young and hungry.
The second person I hired (Paul) in 2006 was young and hungry.
The third person I hired (Kates) in 2006 was experienced.
The fourth (Jessica) and fifth (Paolo) were young and hungry.
Joven, Paul, Jessica, and Paolo still work for me today.
Kates left in 2008.
I know you want someone who is super experienced.
I know you don’t want to “waste your time” training someone.
I know hiring someone who has done [this] for 10 years is super appealing.
But it’s not always the best option.
Often (maybe usually?), I’d say your chances of success are higher if you hire young and hungry rather than experienced. There are too many reasons to go into why, let me just give an example
Sue sent this to me.
When I was starting out, I had very little money, and would rather have somebody to mould into what I want than somebody fighting my way of doing things – so I took on an 18 year-old as my social media manager and a 21-year-old as a book editor – neither had any experience at all of being a VA or the job. I just got this from the now 22 year-old who is doing her fourth year at university.
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Hi
I realized my one year anniversary of working with you was on Sunday. I just wanted to express my gratitude. You gave me this position despite the fact that I’m a full-time student with an incredibly busy workload. You’ve constantly shown me kindness despite any mistakes I’ve made and you have always allowed me to make time for my academic schedule even if it means I’ll be MIA for a week or more. You’ve supported me and even gave me the editor courses to help me improve.I know I’ve said this before but I’m truly thankful for everything you’ve done for me! People sometimes ask me what I’ll do after school and every time I imagine myself still doing this job. It’s become something I genuinely look forward to. I can’t really picture leaving a team and a mentor who’ve been this supportive and encouraging. I hope that the business continues to grow and succeed in all the ways you’ve been working so hard for. You deserve more recognition and ease as things move forward, and I truly believe the best is still ahead. Thank you again for trusting me, guiding me, and being so patient with me this past year. I’m really grateful to be here, and I’m looking forward to continuing to work with you for as long as I can.
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Young and hungry.
John
PS. Also notice how Sue has treated her people. Well done Sue!