At some point every Entrepreneur will need more hands and decisions will be made about hiring help! There are, after all, only so many hours in a day and so many things one person can do. And the best advice is that you should turn over the parts of the business that you are not good at to someone who is.
Decisions About Hiring are Fraught
Any hiring decision is fraught with a myriad of decisions, but for a small business, the first hire carries the most angst. Just as there were many considerations about partners and investors in the business, the selection of the first employee needs as much thought. Think carefully about whether you really want to hire family or close friends. Are you able to become both family and boss? Can you both compartmentalize the friendship or family from the business? Can you afford to have two family members take the risk of a new business or are you better served by the family member working in another industry?
Take time to train people
For the entrepreneur there are some fundamental things that must be acknowledged. First, the employee will require a lot of your time right up front. In order to be useful, the new hire must be trained. It will definitely slow down the overall operations for a while. However, failing to take whatever time is necessary to fully train the new person will prove disastrous for the business. Second, your employee will never have the same excitement, energy or investment in the business that you have. You have a life mission. They have a job.
With that said, there are preliminary steps you must take to legally hire someone.
Required Legal Steps
You MUST have an Employer Identification Number (EIN) from the IRS. The EIN is a business equivalent to a social security number. Check out IRS.Gov for information.
Some businesses have special or specific regulations for employers/employees. The Federal regulation can be found at Department of Labor (DOL.Gov). The State of Tennessee also has regulations for businesses. They can be found at (https://www.tn.gov/workforce/employees/labor-laws.html)
Some industries have specific safety requirements for eyewear, other Personal Protective Equipment (PPEs) or for posters that must be on the walls regarding such things as handwashing.