Create rhythms that support your team and protect your energy.
You’ve made the hire and set them up with a solid onboarding experience. Now what?
For small business owners managing without an HR team, the day-to-day leadership is where things get real. You’re balancing business needs, relationships, and your own burnout levels—all while trying to be a “good boss.” Happily, you don’t need complex systems to lead well. What you do need is consistency, care, and clear expectations. With a few simple habits and tools, you can build a culture of trust, communication, and accountability—even in a tiny team.
Step 1: Set a Cadence for Check-Ins
Regular check-ins are your #1 leadership tool. They don’t need to be long—but they need to be consistent. Start with weekly or biweekly 1:1s and adjust based on your team’s needs. Even 20 minutes can go a long way.
Use a simple structure like:
- Wins or progress updates
- Challenges or roadblocks
- Support needed from you
- Any feedback or questions
This creates space for real conversation—not just task updates.
Tip: Create a shared doc to keep running notes. It will keep both of you accountable and create clarity over time.
Step 2: Be Clear About How You Work
As a small business leader, you probably have a lot in your head. Your team doesn’t know what’s obvious to you unless you name it.
Clarify:
- Preferred tools and communication styles (Slack? Text? Email?)
- Working hours and response time expectations
- How decisions get made
- What to do when something goes wrong
When people know what to expect, they can show up with more confidence and reduce misunderstandings.
Step 3: Build Relationships (Not Just Reporting Structures)
You’re likely leading a team that works closely together. That means relationships matter.
Take time to get to know your team as people. Ask:
- What helps you do your best work?
- How do you like to receive feedback?
- Anything you want me to know about how you work or communicate?
These questions help you lead more inclusively, and they avoid one-size-fits-all approaches.
Inclusive tip: Normalize flexibility where you can. Supporting different work styles doesn’t mean lowering expectations—it means setting people up to meet them in ways that work for them.
Step 4: Give and Receive Feedback Early and Often
You don’t need to wait for something to go wrong or a formal review to give feedback. In fact, giving frequent, small feedback helps prevent bigger issues down the line.
Try the SBI model:
- Situation – When/where it happened
- Behavior – What the person did
- Impact – The effect it had
“In this morning’s meeting (Situation), you gave clear updates and stayed on track (Behavior), which helped the whole team stay focused (Impact). Thanks!”
Praise in public when possible. Deliver constructive feedback privately, calmly, and with the intent to support—not criticize.
And just as importantly: invite feedback back.
Ask your team:
- “Is there anything I could be doing differently to support you?”
- “How’s communication been feeling?”
- “What would you change if you were in my shoes?”
Be ready to model a healthy response. When someone shares feedback with you—especially something tough—pause, thank them for their honesty, and let them know you’ll reflect on it.
Inclusive tip: When leaders can receive feedback with accountability and humility, it sets the tone for the whole team. You don’t have to have the perfect response—just a thoughtful one.
Step 5: Protect Your Own Energy, Too
As a leader, it’s important to set sustainable boundaries for yourself so that you can protect your time and model healthy work habits for your team.
- Block time for deep work or rest
- Delegate when you can (including small tasks)
- Be transparent when you need space or are at capacity
- Model work-life boundaries you want your team to respect
Remember: if you’re always available and overwhelmed, your team learns that’s the expectation. Leading with care means caring for yourself, too.
You Don’t Need HR to Lead with Impact
You don’t need layers of management or a performance-tracking tool to be a great leader. You just need:
- Clear rhythms of communication
- Thoughtful, human-centered practices
- A little structure to support fairness and connection
When you lead with consistency and care, your team knows what to expect—and how they belong.
Up Next: Part 4 – Feedback and Growth on a Budget
We’ll cover how to create growth opportunities, support learning, and handle performance conversations—even when time or resources are limited.
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