Michael pulled down his sunglasses, squinted his eyes and looked at me. And said something I will never forget.

"Nick I learned this the hard way but the secret comes down to this.

Rich people have B players work for them. But super rich people? They have A players work for them. "

I then asked well what do you define as an A player. He said an a player is smarter than you on their core function. They say to you I got this and do whatever it takes to get the job done. They don’t work 9-5 they work like an intrapreneur. They’re obsess and passionate about what they do and how they do it. A B player clocks out 5PM. Doesn’t respond to emails after that. Cracks open a beer and says maybe I will get that promotion if I stick here long enough. An A Player doesn’t ask they just do. An A Player brings in new ideas and they tap their network for other players. It becomes a self fluffing prophecy when you have players because they keep you from hiring B players.

I realized that I had a team full of B players and that was my problem.

Over the next few ways I brainstormed in my office on how to find A players and the types of hires that could bring real value and help us grow.

Then it had an epiphany and realized the people that were that could help me are people who have already done this job before. Not just the skillset but in my industry.

Then I realized that the smartest people in my space were people that had worked at my competitors' companies that were bigger than mine.

They had already made the mistakes, they already had learned the key lessons that would help me turn decades into days.

This helped me create a framework for recruiting these A players into my organization and became the catalyst for growth over the next few years.

Here is the framework that I used that you can use for your own business.

Step 1: Identify the Role you want to hire for. What skills and experience should they have.

Step 2: You should then write out a detailed job description for yourself so you can send it to recruits so they can see exactly what you’re looking for.

Step 3: Build Your Dream 20

Your dream 20 are the companies that are super successful in your space. These are companies that sell a similar product or service to your dream customers

Now as you build out your list I think it’s important that these companies are bigger than you

Now these could be your direct competitors meaning they sell the same product or service as you or these could be indirect competitors

You can use the filter settings in LinkedIn and find people who used to work at your competitors

This is a goldmine of talent because they are no longer working at your competitors company

You want to turn decades into days by learning from their experience and mistakes

You can build your dream 20 in LinkedIn Sales Navigator.

Step 4: Level Up The Role

Look for a role that is one level below at a bigger company for your smaller company

As you’re growing your business these people can be easier to recruit because a lot of people feel like they've hit a cap for growth in their company and they feel like they aren’t making as big of an impact as they could be somewhere else

It doesn't mean you can go after the same role at a direct of indirect competitor it just means it can be less expensive and easier to persuade them to leave their competitor For example if I was looking for a COO i might look at the VP of Operations or Director of Operations

Human nature loves buying into status so it’s very strategic why i”m able to sell them onto a bigger job opportunity in an industry they understand and feel like they contribute into So you can either do this two ways. One is you can look for people one level lower at a direct or indirect competitor or you can create a job title one level higher than their at For example going after the COO and saying you’re looking for a President or you’re going after a VP of IT and you’re creating a CIO role.

Step 5: Send a Personalized Note To Connect

You want to show them The next step is reaching out and showing them you’ve done your research

You do this by clicking on their profile from your list and sending them a personalized note to connect

Most people don’t do this and is the main reason why they can never connect with people on LinkedIn

As the book How To Win Friends and influence people says people love compliments so I like to give people a genuine compliment in the personalized note to connect with them

So for example Very impressed with your background in the enterprise software space. I saw you used to work at SAP. I’m looking for a VP Of Sales. Would love to connect and chat. Cheers Nick You want to have a short and sweet message.

Step 6: Set Up A Call

You want to set up a call with them and get a sense of their skillset, experience, and ask them what they did for your competitor. See if you think they’d be culture fit.

Also if they aren’t interested or can’t join they probably know tons of other good hires that they can make intros for you. So no matter what these calls are productive.

Step 7: Test Before You HIre

Start them out as a contractor or having them do a consulting project to see how they work with your team initially then you can prepare of a more long term arrangement#4 Always ask and check with references.

Step 8: Check References

Sometimes people interview well but then you learn they have a personality that can create conflict. This is why checking references is super important.

So hopefully you found this helpful. I just handed you the blueprint to recruit and hire a players for your team.

This will save you tons of time and money and if you want to learn more about this strategy I recently wrote a new book called the Boostrapped CEO’s Survival Guide that goes deeper into these strategies.

You can free instant access by clicking the link below to get free instant access. ">

Are you looking to build a dream team so you can scale your business?

Have you ever felt frustrated because you just don’t want the growth of your business to be fully reliant on you?

I get it. I’ve felt the same way.

Back in 2018, I found myself in Delray, Florida, trying to figure out what do. My business was getting traction but I was working 20 hours a day and felt overworked, overwhelmed, and overextended.

I went to get advice from my mentor Michael.

Miahcael had built a B2B company that manufactured furniture and sold into big retailers like Lowe’s, Walmart, HomeDepot and the company had been generating over $400M in revenue from selling electric fireplaces and had sold the company for hundreds of millions.

Michael was the type of mentor that would never BS you. He’d tell you how it was even if hurt your feelings but his insights were always pure gold.

One afternoon, we sat outside, overlooking the water from a boardroom-like table in his backyard.

I was struggling with scaling my company and desperately needed to figure out how I could stop doing everything myself.

I looked over to Michael and said Michael, "What's the secret to growth?" How can I scale this company without it having to be reliant on my 24 hours a day. Hoping for a magical solution.

Michael pulled down his sunglasses, squinted his eyes and looked at me. And said something I will never forget.

"Nick I learned this the hard way but the secret comes down to this.

Rich people have B players work for them. But super rich people? They have A players work for them. "

I then asked well what do you define as an A player. He said an a player is smarter than you on their core function. They say to you I got this and do whatever it takes to get the job done. They don’t work 9-5 they work like an intrapreneur. They’re obsess and passionate about what they do and how they do it. A B player clocks out 5PM. Doesn’t respond to emails after that. Cracks open a beer and says maybe I will get that promotion if I stick here long enough. An A Player doesn’t ask they just do. An A Player brings in new ideas and they tap their network for other players. It becomes a self fluffing prophecy when you have players because they keep you from hiring B players.

I realized that I had a team full of B players and that was my problem.

Over the next few ways I brainstormed in my office on how to find A players and the types of hires that could bring real value and help us grow.

Then it had an epiphany and realized the people that were that could help me are people who have already done this job before. Not just the skillset but in my industry.

Then I realized that the smartest people in my space were people that had worked at my competitors' companies that were bigger than mine.

They had already made the mistakes, they already had learned the key lessons that would help me turn decades into days.

This helped me create a framework for recruiting these A players into my organization and became the catalyst for growth over the next few years.

Here is the framework that I used that you can use for your own business.

Step 1: Identify the Role you want to hire for. What skills and experience should they have.

Step 2: You should then write out a detailed job description for yourself so you can send it to recruits so they can see exactly what you’re looking for.

Step 3: Build Your Dream 20

Your dream 20 are the companies that are super successful in your space. These are companies that sell a similar product or service to your dream customers

Now as you build out your list I think it’s important that these companies are bigger than you

Now these could be your direct competitors meaning they sell the same product or service as you or these could be indirect competitors

You can use the filter settings in LinkedIn and find people who used to work at your competitors

This is a goldmine of talent because they are no longer working at your competitors company

You want to turn decades into days by learning from their experience and mistakes

You can build your dream 20 in LinkedIn Sales Navigator.

Step 4: Level Up The Role

Look for a role that is one level below at a bigger company for your smaller company

As you’re growing your business these people can be easier to recruit because a lot of people feel like they've hit a cap for growth in their company and they feel like they aren’t making as big of an impact as they could be somewhere else

It doesn't mean you can go after the same role at a direct of indirect competitor it just means it can be less expensive and easier to persuade them to leave their competitor For example if I was looking for a COO i might look at the VP of Operations or Director of Operations

Human nature loves buying into status so it’s very strategic why i”m able to sell them onto a bigger job opportunity in an industry they understand and feel like they contribute into So you can either do this two ways. One is you can look for people one level lower at a direct or indirect competitor or you can create a job title one level higher than their at For example going after the COO and saying you’re looking for a President or you’re going after a VP of IT and you’re creating a CIO role.

Step 5: Send a Personalized Note To Connect

You want to show them The next step is reaching out and showing them you’ve done your research

You do this by clicking on their profile from your list and sending them a personalized note to connect

Most people don’t do this and is the main reason why they can never connect with people on LinkedIn

As the book How To Win Friends and influence people says people love compliments so I like to give people a genuine compliment in the personalized note to connect with them

So for example Very impressed with your background in the enterprise software space. I saw you used to work at SAP. I’m looking for a VP Of Sales. Would love to connect and chat. Cheers Nick You want to have a short and sweet message.

Step 6: Set Up A Call

You want to set up a call with them and get a sense of their skillset, experience, and ask them what they did for your competitor. See if you think they’d be culture fit.

Also if they aren’t interested or can’t join they probably know tons of other good hires that they can make intros for you. So no matter what these calls are productive.

Step 7: Test Before You HIre

Start them out as a contractor or having them do a consulting project to see how they work with your team initially then you can prepare of a more long term arrangement#4 Always ask and check with references.

Step 8: Check References

Sometimes people interview well but then you learn they have a personality that can create conflict. This is why checking references is super important.

So hopefully you found this helpful. I just handed you the blueprint to recruit and hire a players for your team.

This will save you tons of time and money and if you want to learn more about this strategy I recently wrote a new book called the Boostrapped CEO’s Survival Guide that goes deeper into these strategies.

You can free instant access by clicking the link below to get free instant access.