The Latest from Kristy-Lee

Hello and welcome to Episode 320 of The People Powered Business Podcast.

You've hired someone. Finally. After the job ads, the interviews, the back and forth, they said yes and they're starting Monday. The hard part is over, right?

Wrong. Almost half of every person you hire won't make it through their first twelve months. Not because they were the wrong person. Because nobody set them up to succeed.

I can't quite believe I've barely touched this topic in 320 episodes, because the first 90 days is the most important period of time in determining whether a hire works out, and most small business owners have no plan for it beyond "here's your login and good luck."

We treat onboarding like a box to tick when it's actually the foundation of the entire working relationship.

In this episode I'm pulling back the curtain on what actually happens in most small businesses during those first 90 days, why it quietly sets new hires up to fail, and what a proper 90-day plan looks like when you'...

You’ve got team members ticking tasks off, but every time something goes wrong there’s an excuse, a reason, or someone else to blame.

They are turning up and going through the motions (just), but there is no care, no passion, no motivation and no accountability when a mistake is made or something goes wrong.

Over time, this erodes your trust in them. It creates frustration for you and your best team members and leaves you feeling like you just can’t rely on them.

You’re not dealing with someone who isn’t capable of their job. What you’re really dealing with is a lack of accountability, and until you can change that, the issues will continue.

What’s really going on when your team won’t take ownership?

When your team member defaults to excuses, defensiveness or blame, they are operating in a space known as ‘below the line’.

When they take responsibility, own outcomes and focus on solutions, they are operating from ‘above the line’.

The difference isn’t skill, it’s mindset, beha...

Hello and welcome to Episode 319 of the People Powered Business Podcast.

Got someone on your team who just is not cutting it, but every time you think about dealing with it, you put it off for another day? Maybe you are hoping they will sort themselves out, maybe you are gathering more “evidence”, or maybe you are trying not to rock the boat. Either way, the issue rarely fixes itself, and the longer it drags on, the messier it gets.

I keep seeing this with small business owners, and I get why. Managing underperformance is one of the hardest parts of leading a team, especially when your team is small, the person plays a big role, or there is a personal relationship involved. It is easy to avoid the conversation, overthink it, or soften things so much that nothing actually changes. But when we handle employee underperformance badly, we usually make it worse for everyone involved, including the rest of the team.

In this episode, I unpack why so many business owners struggle to manage a...

Four in five Australian employees are disengaged at work. Put simply that means that the majority of Australian employees aren’t performing at their best, nor are they motivated to do great work. The biggest contributor to this statistic? The way employees feel about their boss, and the leadership skills on display.

In small businesses, this often shows up as owners trying to keep the peace, avoid conflict and be liked by their team. The result is unclear expectations, inconsistent standards and a team that underperforms.

When being nice becomes the priority, strong and consistent leadership is sacrificed, and the teams performance declines.

What being “nice” is really costing you

Being a nice boss becomes a problem when it replaces clarity, accountability and honest communication.

When you prioritise being liked, you avoid difficult conversations, soften feedback or let issues slide. That leads to confusion about what you expect and are willing to tolerate, inconsiste...

Hello and welcome to Episode 318 of the People Powered Business Podcast.

Do you have someone on your team right now where something just feels... off? Maybe you knew when you hired them, maybe it crept up on you slowly — but either way, you're still holding on. And if that's you, this episode is going to hit close to home.

This is one of my most listened-to episodes and I'm bringing it back because I keep seeing this play out in businesses every single week. The hiring market has shifted since I first recorded this, but the problem hasn't changed one bit. Business owners are still holding onto the wrong people for too long — and it's the rest of the team that quietly pays the price.

In this episode I walk you through exactly what a wrong hire looks like in the early stages (because when you're in the weeds it can be surprisingly hard to see), the real reasons we keep people around even when we know we shouldn't, and the three ways holding onto the wrong person erodes your team's mor...

Micromanagement is one of the most common leadership traps for business owners.

Many leaders fall into it without even realising. Others know they do it but feel stuck in the cycle, unsure how to stop. It often starts with good intentions. You care about your business. You want things done properly. You want your clients to receive the best possible outcome.

But somewhere along the way, that attention to detail turns into something else.

And when it does, it can quietly undermine your team, your culture and even your profitability.

Let’s break down what micromanagement really looks like, why it happens and how to shift out of it.

What Micromanagement Actually Is

Micromanagement is typically defined as a leadership style where a manager closely observes or controls the work of their team to an excessive or unnecessary degree.

It’s not the same as being hands-on or caring about quality. Those things are healthy.

Micromanagement happens when leaders insert themselves into every...

Hello and welcome to Episode 317 of The People Powered Business Podcast.

In this episode, we are tackling one of the most confusing and high-risk areas for business owners right now, the difference between employees and contractors.

I’m joined by Jeanette Jifkins from Onyx Legal, and together we unpack why this isn’t as simple as choosing what you want to call someone. We explore how recent Fair Work changes, alongside ATO requirements, have made this space more complex than ever, and why getting it wrong can have serious financial and legal consequences for your business.

We dive into the legal perspective on what truly separates an employee from a contractor, including the critical role of control, the “whole of relationship” test, and what courts actually look for when making a determination.

Throughout the conversation, we share practical examples, common mistakes business owners make, and how contractor relationships can easily drift into employment without you even realising....

When team performance drops, most business owners naturally look to the team for answers.

Maybe someone isn’t pulling their weight. Maybe standards have slipped. Maybe motivation feels low or results aren’t where they should be.

It’s easy to assume the problem sits with the employee. But what if that’s not?

What if your team’s performance is actually reflecting how you are showing up as a leader?

This idea can feel uncomfortable at first. But the truth is, leadership plays a much bigger role in team performance than many business owners realise. And the good news is that leadership is not something you’re either born with or not.

Leadership is a skill that can be learned and strengthened over time.  Let’s explore three key ways leadership directly shapes the performance of your team.

Performance Problems Often Start with a Clarity Problem

One of the most common causes of underperformance in teams is a lack of clarity.

Many business owners assume their expec...

Hello and welcome to Episode 316 of The People Powered Business Podcast.

In this episode, we are diving into how to write a script for any tricky team conversation, whether it’s performance-related, awkward, or just something that’s been sitting on your to-do list for far too long. I walk through why these conversations are often avoided and how that avoidance is actually costing your business more than you might realise, from disengaged employees through to missed performance opportunities. I also unpack why this isn’t a “them” problem, it’s an “us” problem, and how our hesitation as leaders is often the very thing holding our teams back.

I also take you through a practical, step-by-step framework to help you confidently prepare for and navigate these conversations. From getting crystal clear on the real issue, to preparing for objections, to structuring your conversation in a way that leads to clarity and action, this episode gives you a repeatable approach you can use anytime. If ...

If you’re running a business and leading a team, there’s a good chance there’s a conversation you know you need to have.

You’ve thought about it. Rehearsed it in your head. Maybe even scheduled the meeting once or twice. But somehow the moment passes and the conversation never happens.

It gets pushed to next week. Then next month.

The truth is most business owners avoid difficult conversations at some point. It’s incredibly common. But the reasons we give ourselves for avoiding them are rarely the real reasons.

You might tell yourself it’s not a big deal. Or that the timing isn’t right. Or that the employee will sort it out on their own.

But underneath those surface excuses, there are usually deeper factors at play. And until you recognise them, it’s very hard to change the pattern.

Let’s break down the four most common reasons business owners avoid tough conversations with their team.

1. Fear of the Fallout

One of the biggest reasons leaders delay difficult...