The economy is picking up.  I know that, because on a regular basis, I hear from other small business owners they are looking for help; part-time employees, interns, a sales person, or maybe a full time associate.  The conversations always start the same way… I am looking for someone, who do you know?

In a recent blog post, Seth Godin talks about how Francis Ford Coppola and Al Pacino knew each other for years before they filmed the Godfather.  He suggests you should always have a list, always be cultivating relationships incase you need someone.

At Roundpeg we have growth plans this year.  I hope to hire two people by the end of the year. But I am not waiting till I need someone to begin looking around and talking to people. I have interns,  former employees and networking associates on my radar.  And I routinely collect resumes, just in case.

What about you?  Do you have a list?

Hiring good employees is time consuming, and if you are also working against a critical deadline for a client the pressure is on to hire someone, anyone.   In those cases, you may not may the best hiring decision.  So, even if you don’t think you will need anyone soon, start looking around.  Meet people, collect resumes, just in case.  As Seth said:

The worst time to go looking is when you need one, badly.