Recently I was meeting with a client and asked him, “How is Linda doing?”

First, a bit of background. My client hired Linda through a government program whose mission is to help people who are on some type of government assistance find a full-time job. Over the years, my client has hired a number of team members through this program, with mixed results.

A couple of years ago, he hired Linda to serve as a receptionist and general office helper in his company’s retail location. She fit in well with the other 20 team members and was perfect for the position. As time went on and she observed the other team members, she thought maybe she would like to join the in-store sales team. One day, she asked the owner if that was a possibility. Before committing, he spoke with the other sales team members (in my opinion, this is a best practice and a brilliant move). They were more than happy to have her join the team, and offered to mentor her. Linda had never held a position like this and it was a little bumpy at the beginning, but her coworkers offered her direct, actionable feedback (another best practice) that she took to heart and implemented.

The answer to my question was that she’s doing “Great.” Me being me, I then asked, “What was her total compensation last year?” To which my client said, “Let me look it up.” When he got to the information, he exclaimed, “Wow! She made over $70,000 and is the second-highest-paid salesperson.”

This is why Doescher Advisors does what it does. I want to advise owners like this, who help people like Linda. I could say a lot more, but I think you get it.