Reib Law February 2019

REIB LAW

SHATTERPROOF NEWSLETTER

FEBRUARY 2019

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I remember how hard it was to work right before and right after Christmas. You still have family in town and you’re distracted. There are two huge benefits I see from giving everyone time off like this: One, your team comes back happier and more energetic. Two (if you’re being proactive with your business), you have everything finished before the end of the year. There’s no reason to come back those last few days unless you failed to get something done. If it sounds like a stretch for your business it might very well be. It won’t work for everyone — if you’re in the middle of a construction project, it’s probably not possible, and it might be more difficult for a larger company. I couldn’t have done it my first year in business, mostly because I didn’t have the nerve. The first time we tried it was scary. As a business lawyer I thought, “What are our clients going to think?” But I learned I was letting others control my time; I was letting everyone wait until the last week before the holidays to take care of everything that needed to be done. We’re human and we have a tendency to do that, but we have control over this situation, and if we communicate with our clients, we can set expectations ahead of time. If you can make it work, I think this strategy has far- reaching benefits for you and your team. It’s a much better investment to pay people to take a break and come back refreshed when they can give 100 percent to your mission. It boosts morale and makes you more productive in the long term. My team comes back happier and focused on what needs to get done. Here’s what I noticed this year: I missed my job. I was ready to come back. It was the first time I could remember feeling this way; I don’t think I’ve ever been gone long enough to miss it. I loved being with my family, and my son was home from school so we spent quality time together, which was great. At the end of the break, though, I was ready to come back to work and do what I do best. It’s the beginning of a new year. This is an opportunity for you to give a game-changing strategy a try. In fact, I challenge you to do it. If you want a few pointers along the way, give me a call.

YOUR 2019 GAME-CHANGING

STRATEGY BOOST MORALE AND PRODUCTIVITY WITH THIS CHANGE

Two years ago I changed the way I run my business. I used to take almost no time off, but for two years in a row now, our office has closed the day before Christmas Eve and doesn’t reopen until after the holidays. What allows me to do it? Planning ahead. It’s that simple — and that hard. Since I know we’ll be closed for that time frame, my team and I put everything into place ahead of time so clients’ needs are met and we’ve communicated to everyone that we’ll be unavailable. I would highly suggest establishing this as the norm at your company. Most business owners would benefit from this change. While it can feel like you’re losing time, in reality, you can give yourself a week when you plan ahead. It’s an added benefit to your employees that can make your business more profitable. Once you’ve put the systems in place it’s a breeze, and your whole team benefits. To do it successfully, you do have to do some heavy lifting up front.

–Scott

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THE REASON EMPLOYEES ARE QUITTING IN DROVES

The numbers paint a disheartening picture of the average workplace. If you’ve been a manager for a long time, it can be difficult to imagine how frustrated an undervalued member of your team can feel and how these feelings can spread throughout your organization, leaving all your employees discontent. It’s imperative to listen and respond to your employees’ concerns. It takes more than instituting an open- door policy and relaxing work requirements —

According to a survey conducted by Randstad, 60 percent of American employees either quit or strongly considered quitting their jobs last year. That’s a number that should terrify any business owner. However, instead of panicking, consider this record-breaking moment in U.S. employment history an invitation to take a long, hard look at your organization. Are members of your team waiting for the perfect moment to bail? And if so, why? It’s not because the majority of employees are ruthless careerists or disloyal money- grubbers. If we look at Mental Health America’s 2018 Workplace Health Survey, it mostly boils down to the fact that over half of American employees feel unappreciated, unsupported, and disrespected by management. In fact, 21 percent of respondents said that instead of being paid what they deserve, they’re nickel-and-dimed when raise season arrives, and 77 percent believed that instead of being lifted up for their accomplishments, employees were forced to toil away in the corner, feeling invisible. Sadly, scarcely more than 34 percent of respondents believed they could rely on the support of their managers and colleagues.

two characteristics of healthy workplaces, as rated by respondents. You need to commit resources to eliminating the problem. Start with the highest-level leaders of your business. Work with them on how to interact with the rest of your team in more human, empathetic, and responsive ways. Training and assessments are a good start, but you may also need to revamp the mentality and core values of your company.

In a world where finding a new job is easier than ever, managers cannot afford to ignore the needs of their employees. Evolve and acknowledge the emotions in your workplace or risk losing all that you’ve invested in your top performers.

DO YOU HAVE A PLAN? SECURING THE LEGAL SIDE OF YOUR BUSINESS

tough to think about some of these events, but once you’ve done the work, you can have peace of mind knowing your business will be in good hands. SUCCESSION PLAN Your succession plan may be part of your estate plan; it could also be a timeline for passing down your business to a family member. When the time comes, make it easy to transition your business to a person of your choosing. Don’t leave it in the hands of the state or a family member who may not be best equipped to tackle the job — put a plan in writing. ASSET PROTECTION For many businesses, it’s no longer if but when you’ll find yourself on either side of a lawsuit. Using legal tools and financial plans, your attorney can help you develop protections for your hard-earned assets. Do yourself some favors this year — make the legal side of your biz airtight. At Reib Law, we are here to help you do just that by creating a plan that aligns with your goals and values. Give us a call today, and find out what you can accomplish in the first quarter.

The day you started was the best day to address the legal aspects of your business, but the next- best time is today. It’s vital to start working on the legal aspects of

your business and life right away. Do you have an estate plan in place? Do you have a transition plan for your business? Is your business structured in such a way that, if a liability event were to happen, your assets would be at risk? If any of these questions left you scrambling, don’t panic. The start of the year is the ideal time to get some of these plans in place. Instead of waiting until the third quarter to think about them, let’s start working on these tasks in the first quarter to get them resolved this year. Here are three aspects to consider. ESTATE PLAN Have a plan in place for your loved ones. We may ask you some tough questions to help you establish an estate plan that encompasses all your assets. We need to know as much as possible to help you create the best plan. I know it can be

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WHAT I LEARNED ABOUT LEADERSHIP FROM WORKING WITH MY BEST FRIEND

ADOPTING A CLOSED-DOOR POLICY

It was the wake-up call I needed. When I’m involved in every aspect of my business, it’s no fun for anyone. I started closing my office door from time to time to create a physical reminder that I needed to focus on the tasks only I could do. I’ve learned to shut my door and trust my team to do their job. If I’ve done my job, they should be able to carry out their tasks without me hanging over their shoulders. Being a leader is about finding the right balance between jumping in when your team truly needs your support and trusting your team to get the job done. Most of the time, it’s the latter. They are going to be fine without you because you’ve hired skilled, competent people. Your business is going to be better off because you can focus on the long-term vision and support your team in carrying it out. By the way, my friend still works for me from time to time, mostly on a consulting basis. Thank goodness he had the guts to be honest with me. His honesty strengthened our friendship, and it definitely made me a better leader.

I know that if I don’t close the door to my office, it’s hard for me to stay in my lane. I hear a team member talking to a client, and I’m all too happy to jump in and "help out" with every last detail of the conversation. Can you relate?

As small business owners, we often want to jump into the kitchen as soon as we see our sous chef preparing the ingredients differently than we would. But as long as you have the right ingredients, the recipe should come out the same way every time. If you implement the right systems, your team should be able to effectively carry out all assigned tasks and replicate desirable outcomes. It took a conversation with one of my best friends to bring this home to me. I hired him in the early days of my business, and when he was ready to walk out and quit because of me jumping into every situation, I realized I needed to change. This was the advantage of working with someone who knew me so well — he could tell me honestly that my intervening was a problem.

TIRAMISU

INGREDIENTS

• 24 packaged ladyfingers • 1/2 cup bittersweet chocolate shavings, for garnish

• 6 egg yolks • 3 tablespoons sugar

• 1 pound mascarpone cheese • 1 1/2 cups strong espresso, cooled • 2 teaspoons dark rum

DIRECTIONS

5 PROVEN STRATEGIES TO SHATTERPROOF YOUR BUSINESS. Fact: 1 in 3 businesses have been hit with a lawsuit or threatened with a lawsuit over the past three years. This book lays out five proven strategies that, when implemented properly, will absolutely protect you and your hard-earned assets from any would-be legal action. Visit scottreib.com to order your copy today!

1. In a large mixing bowl, use a whisk to beat together egg yolks and sugar until thick and pale, about 5 minutes. 2. Add mascarpone cheese and beat until smooth. 3. Fold in 1 tablespoon of espresso. 4. In a small, shallow dish, combine remaining espresso with rum. Dip each ladyfinger into mixture for 5 seconds. Place soaked ladyfingers at the bottom of a walled baking dish. 5. Spread half of the mascarpone mixture on top of the first layer of ladyfingers. Top with another layer of ladyfingers and another layer of mascarpone. 6. Cover and refrigerate 2–8 hours. 7. Remove from fridge, sprinkle with chocolate shavings, and serve.

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An Investment in Your Team INSIDE THIS ISSUE 1 2 2 3 3 4 Three First-Quarter Tasks to Tackle What’s Your Leadership Style? Tiramisu Why Do We Need A Leap Year?

Why Employees Are Quitting in Droves

WHY DO WE NEED A LEAP YEAR? THE CALCULATIONS THAT LEAVE US IN NEED OF AN EXTRA DAY

However, the Julian Calendar wasn’t perfect, because 0.2421 of a day can’t be rounded to a multiple of five, so it caused the calendar to have an extra 11 minutes every four years. Pope Gregory XIII fixed the problem in 1582 by creating the Gregorian Calendar. Now, a leap year occurs every four years except for the years that are evenly divisible by 100 and not 400. For instance, 1800 and 1900 were not leap years because they were divisible by 100. which leaves approximately 187,000 people in the U.S. and 4 million people around the world celebrating their birthdays on Feb. 28 or March 1. People born on a Leap Day are faced with dilemmas such as which date they should receive their driver’s license. Although it varies from state to state, most consider March 1 the appropriate day for leap-year 16-year- olds — who are celebrating their fourth “official” birthday — to receive their license. With all the changes the calendar has undergone, it still isn’t quite perfect. Experts say that in about 10,000 years, it will need to be changed yet again. A LEAP DAY BIRTHDAY The odds of being born on Feb. 29 are about 1 in 1,500,

Every four years, February gains an extra day at the end of the month. But what does this contribute to the year as a whole? You might be surprised by what this one day does for us! The 365 days in each year represent the time it takes for the Earth to circle the sun. However, the orbit actually takes nearly a quarter of a day longer than that. The additional 0.2421 of a day might not seem like it would make a significant impact, but after a few decades, it adds up. To ensure the calendar and seasons stay on the right timeline, the leap day was created. THE START OF THE LEAP YEAR The Egyptians were the first to officially calculate how many days it takes to orbit the sun, revealing the need for a leap year. Europeans at the time used a calendar that followed a lunar model, which needed an entire month added to retain consistency. The leap year wasn’t introduced into Europe until the reign of Julius Caesar. With the help of astronomer Sosigenes, Caesar created the Julian Calendar, which included 12 months and 365 days, with a single day added every fourth year.

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