My First Contract

I signed my first contract today and I am pleased! I have also employed one member of staff and am sifting through the 48 others who have applied for positions in my company.
One thing has surprised me: People seem not to know how to complete CV's correctly, to complete an application form, I am shocked. The education system here seems split between the haves and the have nots.

A few of them submitted CV's and when I asked them to complete the detailed application form suddenly referees who were either friends or relatives suddenly didn't appear on the form.
So many people said they were 'obedient' or 'docile' - honestly, I'm not making it up! How sad that they see those traits as being positive in the job market. But we seem to be breeding clones who just do as they are told, which is necessary to an extent, but...
I don't want people like that around me. Some staff members will have far more skills, experience and abilities in certain areas than I have and I want employees to feel that they can contribute to and benefit from sharing knowledge as the business grows. I cannot pay a great deal of money to start but equally I refuse to pay people the minimum wage. Not really great for business but how can I feel good about paying people peanuts and expecting them to work and feed themselves and their families?

Anyway, it is early days. My marketing strategy is progressing well and although I have kept my expenditure to a minimum things seem to be going tickety-boo. So far.

My only real problem now is lack of sleep. It is affecting me more than I realised. I awoke this morning after only 4 hours sleep and lay prone on the bed thinking,  'I cannot physically move'. It took me over an hour to be able to muster the strength to release myself from the duvet and then stand - with my eyes closed throughout. All the while repeatedly muttering 'This is crazy!' It's this business.

I promise myself at least 7 hours of quality sleep each night now. Mmmm....