Managers often have the heaviest workload in the salon, especially if they are also running their own column of clients. Liz McKeon, Salon Business Expert and Founder of The International Salon Business School, shares top management tips to help manage your time and fast-track your business to a better bottom line.
Because the demands of being a manager can ebb and flow, it's especially important for managers to be aware of how they manage their time. Those who've recently been promoted to management may find themselves struggling with their new responsibilities.
1. Plan - take time to make time
Time spent planning is not time wasted. A little time spent in understanding what needs to be done and planning how to achieve it will have a massive return on investment. Training and coaching staff can seem like an interruption to other work, but it will pay off in the long run.
Don't plan for every moment of your day - leave time for dealing with unexpected tasks and for adapting to interruptions and changing priorities.
2. Make lists
Making lists is vital to planning your day based on workload and priorities. These may be to-do lists or ongoing lists that are constantly revisited and updated.
3. Communicate
Effective communication is often one of the first things to go when a manager is struggling to manage their own time. Rather than taking the time to listen, understand, and explain, their minds are on their workload, and misunderstandings occur. Management relies so heavily on communication that you must regularly check that you are taking the time to communicate effectively with your team.
4. Take breaks
It is tempting to skip your breaks when you have a heavy workload, but doing so may cause your concentration to suffer later in the day and make you less efficient.
Also, taking breaks is especially important for managers as they need to set an example for other staff. Otherwise, taking a break might imply a lack of commitment.
5. Manage your emails
A salon manager's inbox is usually busy with emails that need answering. Set aside a certain amount of time each day to reply to all emails and social media activity.
6. Prepare to delegate
Just because you can do it doesn't mean you should. If you're under pressure, consider what tasks you can delegate, including those you enjoy.
7. Delegate
Effective delegation empowers your staff to work independently and confidently. Staff not given responsibility will be more needy and require more of your precious time. Ensuring everyone has the training and resources to do their jobs will make life easier.
8. Keep up appearances
If all else fails, make sure you appear to your team to be on top of your time management, even if you're not. It is so important that employees feel they can approach you for help and guidance. If you give the impression of being too busy to be approached, you avoid being made aware of important issues. You will need to adjust your mindset to ensure you deal with interruptions in a flexible, open manner.
9. Know how to deal with interruptions
The temptation is usually to react and try and deal with all issues immediately - but the disturbance to your working day may not be worth it. If you find interruptions frustrating, consider a time-sensitive open/shut door policy - so people can come to you with issues only during certain times. Teach yourself conversation 'closers' - polite ways of firmly ending a conversation that threatens to drag on.
10. Know what to do if it gets too much
A bit of pressure is a great motivator - especially when you know you can get everything done by just organizing yourself a bit more and working that much harder. In the long term, if your workload is so much that you just can't manage your time, then you must take whatever steps are needed to correct this, or you run the danger of burnout.
Learn more about guest author Liz McKeon - Salon Business Expert and Founder of The International Salon Business School
