When kids play baseball, they don't waste time organizing teams. They start with what they have available to them: "Timmy, you take second base. I'll pitch. Sherry, you're up." With huge holes in their lineup, they play as if each side were still fielding 9 players.
Hit into the outfield? No problem....Timmy will eventually get there. Pop fly? Open sky for the pitcher. Strike? The batter picks up her own ball, and throws it back to the pitcher. They simply make do with what they have.
The only gaping void appears when Sharon hits a double. She gets on base; her little brother, Aaron, hits a single. With runners on the corners, Sharon should be up again...but she's stuck on third plate.
"Ghost runner on third!" she yells, and trots back to the batter's box.
While the 'Ghost Runner' can't be found in any official softball rulebook, its presence and rules of behaviour are widely understood among kids. The ghost runner doesn't steal bases. When the batter hits a single, the ghost runner advances by one base. A home run, with a ghost runner on second, means two points for the batter. Simple.
When starting a gym, one of the most important things you can do is to clearly delineate the different jobs required to make your business successful. Breaking down responsibility under job decriptions is immensely helpful in the long run, as more staff are added and areas of responsibility are negotiated at hire. In our Affiliate, some of the job descriptions include:
- CEO
- Personal Trainer
- CrossFit Coach
- Cleaner / Janitor
- Equipment Maintenance and Repairperson
- Bookkeeper
- Case Manager
- Tutor
- Social Media
- Writer
- Editor
- General Manager
- Specialty Coach (contractor)
- Gym Staff
- Photographer
- Ignite NeuroMotive Coach
- Ignite NeuroMotive Therapist
- Ignite Curriculum Writer
- Ignite Director of Education
- Ignite Case Manager
- Webmaster
Yes, those are all jobs with their own unique list of tasks to be done. Some bleed into another, and my own name appears in several of the boxes.
Why write the descriptions if you're going to fill them - some for now, some forever? Simple: the Ghost Runner. The position is there, clearly spelled out, for when you find the right person.
In a not-uncommon example, one CrossFit Coach will request more hours. You'll present them with three options: Cleaner (here's a job description!,) Gym staff (here's a job description!,) or Social Media (here's a job description!) This means a clear outline of duties and responsibilities, with no overlap, no wasted time, and no gaps.
If you've said one of these:
"Well, Chastity is supposed to do the cleaning....but I didn't tell her to wash the windows, so I do them."
"Michael is supposed to close the batch every night, and take a picture of our whiteboard, but sometimes he forgets to do one or the other. Neither are in his contract, so I can't really hold him to it."
"When we started this business, I was supposed to do the coaching, and my partner was supposed to do the business stuff....but they're never around, and I'm here all the time!"
...then you need job descriptions for your staff. It's much easier to write these in BEFORE they're hired, and ask them to live up to the expectations (clear and manageable) than just hope that they do a good job.
Our other goal: get you outta there. When reviewing life goals and answering The Big Question, most Affiliates tell me that "time" is a high priority, but in short supply. With prewritten job tasks, it's easy to plug the right person into the right job when they come along, without wasting any time or being unclear about expectations.
One more thing: don't put anyone's name in any task box right away. You're writing descriptions for people to fill, according to tasks that need doing. You're NOT trying to piece together jobs to best fit your staff or partners. They're human; they'll adapt, and do better work with less guessing.
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