Debbie Wiseman
“When I was first considering the Management course, the only thing holding me back was wondering whether I'd have enough time to complete it, and whether it would be the right tool to help train my two managers.
But we made it work. We followed Antony’s advice and committed to one module or a few lessons each week, depending on what’s going on in everyone’s lives. It’s the three of us, plus my husband, who joins in too. It’s been great having someone outside the industry looking in.
We each work through the modules independently, then meet on Zoom the following week to discuss what we learned. It’s made a huge difference to my life in the salon and their appreciation of actually how much I do.
Having the course online is an advantage because you can just pick it up, work through it whenever it suits. Occasionally, I need to rethink something, and so I revisit a part of the course just because I'm having a difficult time or whatever, to see – What did Antony say?
I’m in the later stages of my career now. I’ve got severe arthritis in my hands, and as much as I don’t want to stop hairdressing, I really have to limit how much hairdressing I do. The plan is for my two managers to eventually take over the salon.
One thing the course has highlighted, which I'm really thankful for, is that running a salon isn’t always fun. Every business has constant problems and challenges. And being a stylist is a completely different skill set from being a manager. That’s something I really want the girls to understand.
The biggest challenge I had was expecting everything to run exactly the same when I wasn’t there. Now that my managers are doing the management course, they're taking more responsibility to make sure the rest of the team is doing what’s required.
We involve the team, too. I always say: don’t put anything in place unless the whole team’s on board. When everyone agrees, it’s easier to get consistency in standards. Sometimes, there are grey areas, and we all appreciate that, but now, with the managers doing the course, they’re dealing with things all the time, and they realise that they’ve got to deal with them because they're noticing the difference.
As a new manager, it can be hard because you want to keep friends; it's going from being friends to being the manager, that can be difficult for everyone. So what I'm saying to them is, deal with things now, while I’m here to back you up, rather than when I’m no longer here. I think it's them getting the respect of being managers, because they have to deal with problems as they happen. They’re building respect, confidence, and leadership.
For me, the biggest reminder from the course was about taking ownership. I’ve learned I have to deal with things because I'll hold my hands up, I sometimes don't like confrontation, and I know it doesn't have to be shouting, It can be speaking, but as the manager or owner, you have to deal with it; you have to take ownership. And that's the biggest thing that I've learned.
I absolutely love the group coaching calls. I love the fact that I can watch and take notes. They’re so helpful and beneficial. You realise you’re not alone, you're not the only one having problems. Basically, everyone has them in a salon. Antony always has relevant suggestions because he knows the industry, because he’s dealt with so many salons, all over the world, that he can always give an example or a suggestion about what might work.
Another good thing about the group coaching calls is that I always feel comfortable asking questions, whether I email them in or not. I have asked a couple of questions, which have been addressed in group coaching and have helped tremendously. I’ve really been given some great ideas. I love the podcast feed of the course so that I can reinforce the information while I'm driving in my car, and I love all the templates.
To me, what makes Antony’s courses, books and Antony so valuable is that he’s so in tune with the salon industry. And I know that all these business coaches say, what applies to one business, you can apply to the whole lot. But I actually don't see that that works the same way. It never ever works as well because they can't identify in the same way. I'm not saying all businesses don't have the same problems because I know they do, but to be able to identify with somebody who knows exactly what we're talking about makes a huge difference.
The management course has been a great investment without a doubt. It's absolutely made so much difference. I feel motivated. It's funny because before I took this course, I was thinking about leaving, and now we've been doing this course, and I'm thinking, you know what, I don't actually know if I want to leave anymore. I might just stay and enjoy managing and not doing hairdressing.
You know, I just think that being the age that I am, it's really great to have such enthusiasm. And without doing the course, I really don't think I would have that because I was getting a little bit weary. But now I've done the course and it's just given me a total, total buzz.
And there aren't many people that you get in their 60s who feel like that. Usually they're thinking, oh no, I'm sick of work – I want to retire. And I'm thinking, oh no, I don't think I do!
So do the course. Don't worry about time. Don't worry about the cost. It's worth every single penny.
