Are you ready?
You are probably ready when you are regularly turning work away, when admin is eating the hours that earn money, and when you can cover the salary for at least six months from expected revenue, not hope.
Write the role around outcomes
List the work you want off your plate for the next year, group it, and describe the role by what it should achieve: 'reply to every enquiry within four working hours' is clearer than 'customer service'.
- Decide employee versus contractor — the law in most places looks at control and dependency, not the label.
- Set the pay range from local market data before you meet anyone.
- Write down what success looks like at 30, 60 and 90 days.
Paperwork and payroll basics
Typical first-hire steps include registering as an employer with your tax authority, setting up payroll, arranging any required workers' compensation or employer insurance, checking the person's right to work, and issuing a written contract. Keep copies of everything.
Interview for the work, not the chat
Give every candidate the same short, paid or time-boxed task that resembles the real job. Ask each the same questions. Take references. A structured process is fairer and predicts performance far better than gut feel.
The first 90 days
Prepare a written first-week plan, introduce them to your customers and suppliers, document how you do things as you hand them over, and hold a short weekly check-in. Most first hires that fail do so because the owner never let go of the work.