Episode Transcript
[00:00:00] In this episode, you'll learn how the first 90 days with a foster child revealed the exact framework for onboarding and keeping your highest performing employees and why ignoring it quietly strangles business growth. Welcome to why your Business isn't Growing and how to Fix It, a podcast for business owners who want practical people powered ways to grow your business without burning out. Hey, I'm Brendan Rogers. Today's episode is deeply personal for me.
[00:00:27] Back in April 2022, a little girl came into our world and changed it forever.
[00:00:32] We received a call from our foster care agency about a baby who was born addicted to drugs and was in the neonatal intensive care unit, NICU for short in Sydney.
[00:00:43] I remember it like yesterday. It was a Tuesday and we're in a parking lot in West Gosford.
[00:00:49] By Thursday we're on our way to Sydney to meet her and start the journey of caring for Baby Sky.
[00:00:55] We spent the next few days back and forth from the hospital until we were able to bring her home.
[00:01:00] Baby sky was just two and a half weeks old.
[00:01:03] We left the NICU with a dosage schedule, a bag of syringes and a bottle of morphine which was her pain relief as she was withdrawing from drugs.
[00:01:12] We'd never done this before and were basically told that missing a morphine dose meant her nervous system would light up like a pinball machine. We never missed a dose, but we saw the effects of drug withdrawal on a helpless baby and it's not something I would wish for anyone to see. The shaking and high pitched cry is something that I'll never forget.
[00:01:33] For the first month, Tracy and I ran life on a hospital grade timetable. Alarms at 2am, 8am, 2pm and 8pm for medication feeding sometimes fell in line with medication alarms but often not.
[00:01:48] Feed, dose, cuddle, repeat. Our only KPI keep Sky feeling safe, secure and regulated. Heartbeat steady, crying soothed. Nothing else mattered. In month two the medication frequency stayed the same but the dosage slowly reduced.
[00:02:08] Sky's tremor started ease. Her eyes began to track us around the room.
[00:02:12] We shifted from survival nurses to curious coaches, strengthening our connection, playing gentle and soothing music and seeing her progress as little wins in the journey. Check ins were weekly with the pediatrician and we watched her cues and adjusted. By month three the medication frequency was reducing as well as the dosage.
[00:02:33] Sky could self soothe and was starting to smile.
[00:02:36] Despite a rough start, her overall development journey was on track.
[00:02:41] Our job had changed. We were still dosing but spending more time cheering her every interaction fortnightly, pediatrician check ins, lots of play and tummy time and celebratory selfies whenever she did anything remotely cute, which was really often.
[00:02:56] Fast forward to her first birthday. Medication's long gone, chubby cheeks are in, she has beautiful blue eyes and a laugh that could floor you all because the first 90 days weren't left to chance. They were engineered for attachment and neuroscience backs it up. Child psych expert Dr. Bruce Perry calls it the regulate, relate, reason cycle. Safety first, connection second and challenge third. Safety first or regulate is about reducing cortisol before you introduce complexity, connection second or relate. It's shared smiles and consistent presence and challenge third reason. Only then can growth thrive. Now here's the bridge to growing your business. A drug exposed baby can't regulate on day three and a brand new hire can't smash KPIs in week one. First of all they need high dosage support which looks like daily leadership touch points and remove any friction to their success.
[00:03:55] Then they need to stabilize and monitor, meet with them twice weekly, give guided autonomy and get some quick wins.
[00:04:02] And then it's about taper and empower. Implement your weekly one on one process, stretch projects and public praise. Attachment isn't a soft fuzzy extra, it's a neurochemical prerequisite for performance.
[00:04:16] Do it right and Gallup data shows new hires become one and a half times more productive and 47% less likely to quit inside a year. Ignore it and you'll spend double replacing a high performer and stall the business growth you're chasing. Back to sky for a minute. Fast forward three years. She's joined a beautiful family with her mummy, daddy and two older brothers who all love her dearly. And Tracy and I got to attend her christening and adoption ceremony. One of the proudest days of our life. Let's connect Sky's journey straight onto your next hire. Keeping with the attachment theme, let's call it the 90 day workplace attachment cycle. Days 1 to 30 which is the safety period the leader needs to make sure they've got a one page performance agreement which shows what success looks like for the new hire. Plus have a 5 to 10 minute micro check in every single day. This means the employee will know the rules going forward and the win for the business. Well the amount of time to productivity is reduced because questions never pile up. Days 31 to 60 is about connection.
[00:05:21] The leader needs to learn their story, learn the new hire's story and share yours. Pair up on a quick winnable project. This helps the employee to feel like they belong and the win for the business. Well collaboration and collaboration sparks fresh ideas and ideas Feed Business Growth Days 61 to 90 this is the challenge time the leader should hand them a real customer problem or a business improvement opportunity with guardrails and shift to weekly coaching. This leaves the employee feeling like they're trusted and the win for the business. Well, innovation and autonomy and these are the rocket fuel for growing your business.
[00:06:00] Right after this episode, I want you to add the following steps to your onboarding process. Firstly, do a daily 5 to 10 minute check in for the first 30 days, have twice weekly progress chats from day 31 to 60 and implement weekly performance 101s from day 61 to 90 and ongoing. Get this done now. Future you and your future star employee will thank you for it. Small improvements every day. That's how serious growth happens. Guard that 90 day window and staff engagement skyrockets, turnover plummets and business growth finally accelerates. I'm Brendan Rogers and this is why your business isn't growing and how to fix it.
[00:06:41] If today's episode hit home, follow the podcast and share it with another leader who's hungry to grow their business without burning out. Until next time, grow yourself. Grow your business.