There is one thing that has been on my mind quite a bit over the last six months and I’ve been waiting for the right time to engage with you on it. It’s a subject that weighs heavily on me, and I’m pretty sure weighs even more heavily on you.

Do you remember watching Sesame Street when we were growing up? They had this segment with a little ditty that started like this, ”One of these things is not like the others. One of these things just doesn’t belong.”

Unless you’re a solopreneur, or a very rare exception, there’s a good chance that there is someone on your team that doesn’t belong.

One Of These Things

You know exactly who I’m talking about. The bigger problem is that everyone else on your team knows exactly who I’m talking about and they’re waiting for you to do something about it. Every month that passes by without you doing something to remedy the situation serves to erode your team’s trust in your leadership.

You know they need to go. Yet you hesitate.

There are a lot of reasons. Some of them are financial. Some of them are mental or emotional. Maybe you can’t imagine how you’re going to get along without them. Maybe you’re just not sure how you’re going to replace them. Maybe they’re related to you and you’re wondering how Thanksgiving is going to look after that.

Many of the reasons you delay have a measure of validity. On the other hand, I’d like you to consider what it’s costing you to hold back.

What’s It Really Costing?

Here’s a quick exercise. Add up:

• the time you spend trying to figure out what to do
• the time other people are spending talking about the problem or wondering when you’re going to do something about it
• the time you spend listening to other people complain about the problem
• the time others spend working around or compensating for the problems with this person
• the lost hours (productivity) that’s arising from the erosion of your team’s trust in you

Now take your salary, or an average salary for all involved, add on the all the fringe benefits costs, including payroll taxes, and calculate the hourly rate. Then multiply that hourly rate times the total number of hours that you came up with above.

Next, add the cost of replacing other good employees who have left or will leave because of this person.

What’s the total? The number is astronomical and will only get much larger. And that’s only the financial cost.

In addition to all that, I want you to consider the mental and emotional energy you are expending on this problem. Is it really worth it? Is it really a smart business decision to hold on to this person?

Close To Home

I know that family businesses are especially hard hit by this dilemma. In those cases it’s not just the factors I mentioned above, it’s the real damage that can be caused to family relationships. One thing I would ask you to consider is whether the relationship you have with this family member is authentic or is it fabricated because you’re not being honest about your feelings toward them.

Some of my clients have had to deal with these very issues. There’s no sugar coating it. It is unpleasant at the very least and indescribably painful at it’s worst. But leaning into and dealing with it is the best thing for everyone involved. Everyone.

Let me encourage you not to delay any longer. Make the decision, create your plan, and take the first step. It won’t be fun, but you’ll back on this years from now and be glad you did it.