[12 min] Building a Growth-Oriented Team with Leila Hormozi

0:0010 years ago, I made the decision to build my personal brand that was elevated, yet approachable, and reflected who I was, not just what I did. I created my website with ShowIt because it's true drag and drop freedom so you can easily build and update your site. Plus, their real human support team, game changer. Want to try it for yourself? Head to jasminestar.com forward slash show it for a 14-day free trial and first month free when you subscribe.

0:40Have you ever wondered what the big industry leaders did to attract team members who truly care about the business and treat it as their own in a good way? Hey there, I'm Whitney, content director for Jasmine Starr and Social Curator. And in this short espresso shot style of an episode, Jasmine and Layla Hermozzi dive right into hiring and leading a team of growth-oriented people. Let's listen. What we're hearing from a builder is that in order to build, you must do simple things and you must attract the right person. How do you know that somebody is hardwired for growth? How do you know that?

1:14I think if somebody's excited at a challenge. And so how do you assess that when somebody's applying? I present them with all the things that I want them to do. I don't hold it back. So I'd be like, this is what I need you to do. Okay. This is a impossible job. I need you to come in here. I need you to do all this. That's awful. And I need you to figure out how to build a team to do it in like three months. And they're like that sounds they're like salivating over it and i can tell because somebody they will their voice will raise they'll start talking high they'll be excited somebody who's not growth oriented and they tend to you know like get too uncomfortable like probably levels of anxiety at that kind of thought is like they'll be like oh well i mean like how long do you want me to run the thing and how long do you look they're looking for an end date versus the other person is like this is what i'm built for you know what i mean and it's like i think that some people you have to look at like, what do they value in themselves?

2:04You know what I mean? Like I look for people who value the fact that they can work really hard for long periods of time. And like they pride themselves upon that because that's what I do. Right. And so I know that I need people like that around me to help build this thing versus there's people that don't. They're like, I mean, I had a call with somebody and I was like, here's why I need you to do all these things. And it was somebody that wasn't Caleb. It was somebody else for that position. And they were like, well, like I have to be really frank. Like I'm like, I am done at five o 'clock. Like I can't like, and I was like, oh, I was like, dude, that's totally fine.

2:31But like, we can't work together. Like that is acceptable. Right. But not here. Right. And like, I make that super clear. I'm like, that's not like good luck finding a startup that does do that. Or at least you may find one, but I doubt they will grow. Right. And so it's like, at least if it's bootstrapped, right? VC money, it's a different thing. Like a bootstrapped startup business, like you need people like that. And oftentimes the most disgruntled employees and like the worst experiences come from the employer or like CEO, entrepreneur, not understanding what kind of people they need. and hiring button pushers and people that are there to clock in and clock out rather than people who are willing to bleed and die by the company.

3:07And then the employees not understanding the difference between a startup and a corporation. And so they apply for a startup thinking like, this is gonna be fun, I have more influence on it. Well, what's the cost of the fun and influence? The cost is that you've got to work your ass off. Now, in neither situation is any person being forced to do anything. This is an opt-in. You're not a prisoner to the company. So it's like some people say, oh, they made me work all day. I'm like, you took the job. If you're at a startup and you're like complaining about how much you're working, I'm like, then go work at a big corporation, but you don't have the freedom.

3:33So it's like, what's the cost of freedom? It's like most entrepreneurs will work all day to not have to work all day. And most of the people on the team will work a lot longer to not have the stringent rules and the red tape that big corporations bring. So there's always a cost. You know what I mean? And do you think that your content kind of like puts up the safeguards around, like you're attracting people who kind of subscribe to that philosophy? Or do you think that you do a lot of it like in the job applications, in onboarding, or is it like you're applying because you know - All of it is everywhere.

3:58We are so, we repeat. My favorite thing is when it comes to the end, I'm like, what questions do you have about the job? Where are you lacking clarity? And they're like, honestly, I get it. They're like, I've watched all your content. I've watched all of Alex's content. I went through the whole process and like everyone is very congruent. They all say the same things. And what they all repeat is they tell me this. They're like, you guys all talk about the values. They're like, you guys talk about the values in every interview and you all say them multiple times. Competitive greatness, sincere candor, unimpeachable character.

4:25Competitive greatness is the biggest filter because competitive greatness is the love of a hard challenge. And that's what I want on this team. That's what we need to accomplish our goals. Now, does that mean that I've created a hostile work environment where people are being pushed to work too long? If the people that I hire like that kind of work, the answer is no. If I hire the wrong people, then yes, they'll feel that way. So... Okay. So can I read something on that note? Yeah. Okay. So when you talk about attracting the right people and if I created a hostile work environment, it's not whether or not that was in fact the case.

4:57It was whether or not you hired the right person. I think so. It's all about expectations. Okay, so I'm going to read something. What most people don't know about Layla is how generous she is with her team and how much she cares. She constantly finds a way to show kindness to others and it's just a part of who she is. For example, my husband took a job recently and he's going to be traveling on the road. I'd post on Instagram how my kids were having a hard time. Next thing I know, I had donuts at my doorstep to cheer my kids. If someone is sick, she sends them soup. If someone is celebrating anniversary, street, she sends them a gift card for dinner.

5:25She randomly sends people thoughtful gifts. She doesn't have to do this, but it's who she is. She genuinely cares about others. She's truly an amazing human and I'm thankful every day of being on her team. That was from Yasmin. Yeah. Yeah. And so for those of you who are not familiar, I've been familiar because I watched videos and how you accidentally missed a meeting and you had scheduled your own meeting and you went on stories and be like, I'm so sorry I missed a meeting. It's because Yasmeen didn't schedule it for me. That's why I don't schedule it. So when I reach out to you on Instagram, I'm like, I'm doing Vegas.

5:59Can we do this podcast review? You're like, talk to Yasmeen. And so I got the ins and I asked her a question. She's like, I don't normally answer like this, but I said, I really want to showcase a different side of how you approach people and how you build teams. And so there was a time when you had launched, gym launch, and you guys are going through COVID. And in one of your videos, you talked about the time that you told your team that for a period of time that everyone had to work nights and weekends to ensure your customers and your company got through it. What was that process like asking the team to do that?

6:30And then how did you feel as a leader? I think I was really lucky because I had read a book by Ben Horowitz, The Hard Thing About Hard Things. And he talked about, essentially, you have to let your team know when things are tough. You have to be transparent. And it's not that, hiding it does no good for them. And I've never been a hider. I probably, I try to appear very composed to people. I think anyone on social media can probably see that because I've practiced enough with my company. But he talked about like, we have to be in it together. And the only way, if you read about companies that can come out of a hard time, the only way that they're able to do it is like complete transparency and then complete honesty.

7:08And so I told them where we were at financially, I always in every company share all the financials. So I was like, you see the financials. Wait a minute. Okay. Whoa, whoa. Okay. How much of the financials? Like how detailed are the finances? So anyone in a leadership position, they get the full P &L, all the itemized breakdowns. The rest of the company gets the high level, like revenue, profit, loss, that kind of stuff. Got it. Only reason I don't for the whole company is it is I did at one point, and it's very hard for people to understand if they're not educated on how to read one. And so it just causes a little more confusion.

7:37Thank you for that clarity. That was great. Yeah. Pretty cool. The hard thing about hard things. Yeah, the hard thing about hard things. And I asked myself, what kind of company do we want to be? How could we use this as an opportunity to be a stronger company on the other side? and I'm like the only way and if you look I'll give you an example right people that go to war together like comrades in arms come out and like they are closer and they stay connected for the rest of their lives because they went through something hard together right and I thought to myself like that's like kind of how it feels right now with this like it's like our industry is hit harder than it's us and restaurants and but I was like this team can come out stronger on the other side I was like so I want that for us here's what this looks like like we all have to work nights and weekends.

8:19Not because anyone's lacking, but because we all feed Gym Launch. It's not just me and Alex feeding Gym Launch. It's every one of us putting in the effort to feed this company right now. It's too small or it's too big for it to just be a few people or the leaders working their asses off. It needs to be the whole team. And so I explained that to them. I explained these are different circumstances, different times. We're in wartime. We're not in peacetime. So here's what wartime looks like. Here's the difference between wartime and peacetime. And I explained to them that and that I got from the book, A Hard Thing About Hard Things.

8:46I broke down. here's all the things we're going to do differently. Here's the new expectations I have of everyone on the team. But I promise you, if we get through this, everyone will be compensated for it. And that's what we did do. It's like the one thing that I didn't skimp out on was making sure that the people that stood it out, that stood it out, stood it out, that stood it out with us and really committed themselves, which was mostly everybody, we made sure that they were paid well. They were compensated for it. That we, again, go above and beyond sending gifts, doing things like investing in them, giving them bonuses.

9:18I speak a lot about the hard stuff, but I care deeply about everyone on my team. And I care deeply about people. And the only reason that I hold people to high standards and I am hard on people is because I care about them. Because if you really care about somebody and you want them to be as good as you are, do you expect to do that, putting them in different circumstances? No, they have to go through the same hardships you've gone through to become the kind of person. So if somebody joins my team and says, I want to be good at business like you and Alex, they're not going to get that way with me protecting them.

9:48Right. You know what I mean? Yeah. A hundred percent. So are you doing this in person? Are you guys doing it? And it's probably in zoom, right? Like we're back in big zoom. Okay. Yeah. And what's going on? What are the faces? What are the vibes? Like, how do you feel? Like you press end meeting and then where's your head at? Like, what's the story there? I got feedback on the meeting. So they were hyped. They were like, okay and that's because they're the right people for the team like i knew i was like we have the right people you know what i mean like they get it grow or die is one of our core times there like you don't attract people that are like like like tiptoeing around work like a lot of other stuff going like grow or die is like people are fully invested they're super bought into the mission and we had a great culture and so they were all like i got you i would go to war for you guys i would do i mean like they were so supportive and like the reason that company is where it is now which is like growing and thriving and doing so well is because of that.

10:42Like I am a thousand percent positive because everyone's really like stepped up. So you had said most of the people made it through the pandemic and bought the benefits. There was a subsect of people who did not. Was there a common theme of the people who just were just like, I think I'm good? Yeah, and you know, I respect them for it. There were some people that left because their priority was not work. It was their family and they were prioritizing. And that's where seasons of life are very interesting. So someone can be very growth oriented, but it might be that all their growth is going into a different area of their life.

11:13And that is totally understandable. Totally get it. And there are sometimes some roles in companies that are small startups that are fitted for people like in that area of their life where they're like, I can't fully, but like I'll check in and do an awesome job, but like I'm out at four or five. And I think anyone that was in that phase was like, hey, I've got small kids at home. I've got to do that. And I was like, totally respect that. Like I get it. We just need extra. Okay. So we're at that point and we talk about being real and authentic and you got feedback on the team meeting. So after the feedback on the team meeting, you close the Zoom and then where's your head at?

11:47I think I felt relief. I tend to always think that I'm, okay, like Alex knows this, like I'm pretty insecure in the sense of like, I do all the things, but like, I'm like, oh, they probably think I'm awful. They probably think I'm a terrible CEO. Like my mind totally goes there. And then seeing the Slack being like blowing up with like, let's do this, let's go. We're going to crush everybody, eat all our competitors. I was like, it's just like relieving to feel like you have that kind of support. You know what I mean? Whoa, welcome back. We hope you enjoyed this episode and apply one thing that you've learned in your business.

12:19Thanks for listening to the Jasmine Star Show.

12:36Thank you.