Business and the entrepreneurial spirit have existed since time immemorial.
The use of beauty and cosmetics products dates back to 4000 BC, which is amazing, considering the fact that the first prototype of banking was only established 2000 years later! The first well-established hairdresser assisting a customer base dates back to Paris in 1658 and evidence of massage therapy has been found in The Tomb of Akmanthor, dating back to 2330 BC.
This amazing industry of ours is well established. There will always be a customer demand, and it will still be many, many years before our skills can be replaced by any machine or robot.
While our history may be cast in stone, our future still remains a mystery, and pushing ourselves and our team towards a better future, may leave us feeling anxious and uncertain of the direction we need to take.
When looking for guidance, simplification and self-motivation, let’s take a look at some of the basic advice given to us by some of the greatest minds and achievers.
Compliance
“It takes less time to do things right than to explain why you did it wrong” – Henry Woodsworth Longfellow
Businesses, especially in South Africa, must meet various compliance steps. From Bargaining council compliance, to Compliance with the National Minimum Wage Act, businesses can be pen to severe amounts of risk, if they are not compliant.
Each of the legal structures that govern business compliance possess inspectors, who have the legal right and duty to inspect your business at any given time. Contact your EOHCB rep for guidance on salon and spa compliance, and we will gladly assist in preventing any possible future risk with regards to legal compliance.
Delegate
“No person will make a great business who wants to do it all himself or get all the credit” – Andrew Carnegie
Many new and experienced business owners struggle with delegation, and this massively hinders employee growth and as well as salon growth. Even the greatest individuals in the world worked with a team, or group of individuals to create that which they envisioned.
Don’t be afraid to delegate tasks and challenges to your team, give them space, opportunity and tools to succeed, and trust that they will either be successful, or that they will learn.
Tolerance
“The responsibility of tolerance lies with those who have the wider vision” – Mary Anne Evans
One of the first steps taken to assist new managers in their roles, is to assist them in developing their own tolerance level. Tolerance is merely patience with boundaries, and in these circumstances, successful managers will develop clear and well-communicated boundaries.
The easiest examples of these are Health and Safety and Lateness, both with levels that you are willing to tolerate, and others that will absolutely not be accepted.
Understand that which you will not tolerate within your business-setting, and communicate those boundaries clearly with your team.
Consistency
“It’s not what we do once in a while that shapes our lives. It’s what we do consistently.” – Tony Robbins
Consistency holds two different focuses in this regard.
Firstly, apply your productivity and efficiency habits continuously and without fail. Find what works, and do it, and when anything gets in your way fix it, and then get back into the grind.
Secondly, ensure that any disciplinary processes are enacted equally and consistently with all of your staff. Lenience with one employee will require you to be lenient with another, depending on the circumstance.
Assessment and Feedback
“Praise by name, criticize by category” - Warren Buffett
It’s near impossible to have a genuinely clear perception of yourself. Each individual measure according to their own knowledge-base, as well as their own preferences. Therefore, it is reasonable for you to communicate your expectations and appreciation to your staff. How we do this is a whole different skill that must be learned.
Warren Buffet simplified it perfectly. Positive feedback should be given directly and publicly. Give that team member direct appreciation and validation that what they did, or have done, was according to the needs of the business and the needs of the salon.
On the alternative, negative feedback should be handled with care and diplomacy. Buffet suggests that criticism should not be direct, but should be on much more of a blanket approach. For example, instead of tell your apprentice that they made a stupid error, tell them that most apprentices make this error, but then go on further to communicate your requirements, such as, ‘Most apprentices make that mistake, but in this salon, we only make that mistake once.’
Details Matter
“If you don’t understand the details of your business you are going to fail” – Jeff Bezos
Often times, business owners will want to avoid the unnecessary details. This would be the same as going to your accountant and saying that you’re going to buy a new car, regardless of his or her suggestions.
The details of your business are your responsibility. You are not responsible for Kim Kardashian’s suggestions on prison reform, so that information is not necessary. What is necessary is whether your staff are stealing from each other, or whether your clients are asking the receptionist for other client’s personal details.
Know the important facts. Use these facts to make better decisions. These better decisions will develop a better future, for yourself and for your staff.
Responsibility
“Being responsible is an enormous privilege” – Barack Obama
Responsibility is the cornerstone of personal development. As you grow, you will gain more responsibility, and this is not a negative thing.
Having responsibility means that you are relied upon and that people have placed trust in you.
If you are stressed, and concerned, and overwhelmed, and you are not lying in the fetal position shivering on the salon floor, you’re doing perfectly fine and you will get through the good times and the bad.
The Employer’s Organisation for Hairdressing, Cosmetology and Beauty assists salons, spas and industry related business owners with labour and legal compliance. Contact your local EOHCB representative for assistance and guidance in the important decisions that you need to make, to ensure a better future for yourself, your team and your salon.
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