I know what your top 3 challenges are!
I often start my management seminars by saying, “If you’re a salon owner, or manager I know what your top 3 challenges are!”
At number 3 is staff, number 2 is staff and number 1 is staff!
It might be finding staff, or keeping staff or staff productivity or motivating staff, training staff or staff loyalty… but inevitably it’s about your people.
If you are like me…
When you opened your salon you probably underestimated the role of ‘management’. When you opened your salon ‘management’ became your job, but like me you probably thought, “How hard can it be?’ I’ll just employ good people, motivated people, loyal and honest hardworking people, people who share the same work ethic and values that I do, and then they won’t need managing.”
How’s that approach working so far? If it is congratulations! But for most people that approach won't work.
People need managing!
Your staff are not like you, they don’t have the same values, the same determination, the same work ethic or the same commitment, investment and risk that you have in the business.
People need managing! And if you don’t manage them you will not get the best out of them and in most cases they will not grow to become the people that they are capable of becoming and your business will not reach its potential.
‘Management’ is not a dirty word!
Management is not a negative, quite the opposite, it should be positive. Management is not about being a tyrant, a bully, or a dictator. Management is about getting results through other people without having to do it all yourself.
To do that you need structure, systems, good communication skills and the willingness and determination to be proactive in dealing with situations.
Conflict and confrontation.
Sometimes in the role of manager, you will have to deal with people situations that will involve conflict and confrontation, I don’t know anyone that enjoys that part of the management role but it goes with the territory of being a manager.
As a manager, sometimes people will disappoint you, and you will have to call them on ‘their stuff’, whether that is productivity related ‘stuff’ or behavioural related ‘stuff’. Hopefully you will always get a positive outcome, but realistically we both know that for a variety of reasons sometimes you won’t.
But the key thing is, that as the manager, if you don’t ‘call people on their stuff’ then you are ‘permitting it’ and if you permit it, you are promoting it and the very culture of your business and the results you get from your team will reflect it.
I believe that most people want to do a good job, the problem is often that they don’t know ‘what a good job is’, good management is about letting people know what a good job is and developing them and the business as a result.
I have a written a series of books aimed at developing your business, and you as a manager if you don’t already have them you can get them from the books page on this website.
Thanks for watching.
Have a great week!
