I give my cover designer
and my editor
a year end bonus.
If I do well,
I believe,
as part of my team,
they should do well also.
The challenge is…
the revenue from
the writing business
fluctuates
…greatly.
Last year was a good year.
This year hasn’t been
as good a year.
How do I manage that?
I waited for a few good years
before I started paying bonuses.
I set that money aside
so I could use it,
if I needed it,
for future bonuses.
I started with bonuses
I could easily pay.
Again, I set a little extra aside
every year
in case my revenue
dramatically dropped.
I don’t increase this amount
until I have experienced
two or more years
of being able
to easily distribute
the increased bonus.
Most people believe
they will receive,
at the minimum,
the same bonus
as they had received
the previous year.
Many people will COUNT
on that happening.
They will have already allocated
those funds
to paying their bills.
You do NOT want
to decrease bonuses.
EVER.
It will cause hardship
and it will create uncertainty
around your business’ financial situation.
If a disaster strikes
and you do have to decrease
or eliminate
bonuses,
give your employees/partners
as much notice as possible
about this.
Be conservative
with the bonuses
but definitely consider
sharing some of the wealth.
Success is better
enjoyed
with others.