‘It’s Not About You’: How to Fire Someone Effectively, According to Kevin O’Leary

Kevin O’Leary says that firing someone is the most challenging aspect of leadership. Luckily the “Shark Tank” star and multimillionaire entrepreneur has some tips for firing effectively.

In a social media clip posted to Instagram on Thursday, O’Leary outlined how he thinks about firing someone and how he goes through with it. The clip appears to be a repost of O’Leary’s remarks at the iCONIC: Seattle conference in April 2016.

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First, O’Leary said that the moment to fire someone is when you realize they aren’t right for the job. Delaying the firing isn’t fair to them.

“It’s not about you,” O’Leary said. “It’s not fair to them and to the people they are working with and the team that they’re part of.”

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When the firing is taking place, the most important element is explaining why it is happening to the person.

“I do that myself,” O’Leary said. “It’s the hardest thing to do.”

This part is necessary though, O’Leary explained, because otherwise, the person won’t learn anything from it.

After the termination, O’Leary makes sure that the affected employee gets a “fantastic package,” counseling, and everything they need to find another job — as long as the job isn’t with his company.

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Despite the mixed emotions that come with letting an employee go, O’Leary says firing is a necessary part of leadership. If you can’t make cuts to your team, “you’re the wrong leader” for the organization, he said in the video.

O’Leary was fired once, too. As a teenager, he worked at a mall scooping ice cream. He refused to scrape gum off of the floor, stating that it wasn’t part of his job description, and was fired for it.

O’Leary credits that moment as the start of his entrepreneurial journey — on that day, he swore he would never work for anyone else.

“That was the beginning of my journey,” he said in an interview that aired in 2013.

Related: How Kevin O’Leary Overcame 6 Formative Failures