The “E-Myth Revisited,” by Michael Gerber, should be required reading for anyone starting a small business, especially a solo entrepreneur.

It was based on a single underlying principal:

“Systems run the business and people run the systems.”

And absolutely every frustration you experience in your business has a systemic solution. Even if you defined your problem as “the finding good people,” more than likely you need to tweak your hiring “system,” if you even have one!

In a recent blog post, “Finding Good People”, Mr. Gerber opines that for most entrepreneurs their hiring “system” consist of a sign that says “Help Wanted” or “Now Hiring.”

To narrow down your choices, and filter out the non performers from the performers, you need a weeding out system. One that puts the applicant, or freelancer, through some sort of qualifying process.

Let Them Weed Themselves Out…

“Give them a system that describes what you’re looking for, and an opportunity to demonstrate in advance that they have the minimum required skills to make you happy,” says Mr. Gerber.

This could be as simple as filling out a questionnaire, writing an essay or a shooting a video for them to make their pitch for why they would be a good addition to your team.

In the Seven Figure Code, a product by Mike Filsaime and Tom Beal, they related a process of elimination where the applicant had to shoot a video about Tom himself. The person who over delivered the most on this task got the job.

In the above referenced blog post, one of Gerber’s clients provided a stunning example of a recruiting system for his growing medical practice.

From the post:

“…Must enjoy following written procedures and have a passion for order. Please include with your reply your written system for preparing and consuming breakfast.”

He received several dozen responses, and considered only those that completely complied with his written instructions. Of those, one stood out. This was the candidate who’d sent an “Action Plan for Preparing and Consuming Morning Nourishment,” which described “how to determine a clean bowl,” schematics of his table setting, exacting cereal-to-milk proportions, a diagram showing the movement of the spoon to the mouth, and accompanying color pictures.

He’d found his office assistant.”

What sort of qualifying processes are YOU using for your hiring?

-Howard “imOutSourcerer” Tiano

Tags: guru, article submission, Internet, programming, Web design, elance, online, outsource, make Money online, outsourcing online