Contrary to popular belief, as the owner of the salon/spa, you are not free to do as you please.

Why? Because you are the one responsible for the growth, performance, financial wellbeing/profitability, and culture of your company.

You are responsible for the performance and well-being of each and every employee.

The day you start or acquire a salon/spa, you are the one in charge — but you’re definitely NOT the boss.

Your true boss is the “company” itself. It doesn’t matter if your company is legally incorporated (which all businesses should be), a sole proprietorship or partnership, the company is your boss. You answer to the company.

As the owner/leader, you’re the one on watch for as long as you retain ownership.

• If things go great on your watch, your boss is happy.


• If things go sideways, your boss is not happy.


• If things go bad, your boss will become your worst nightmare. Why? Because you allowed things to go bad on your watch.

1. Your true boss speaks to you: I don’t know about you, but after 27+ years of owning Strategies, I’ve learned to listen to everything it says to me. It may not be in words, but a company definitely speaks. It lets you know when it’s happy and proud, and it lets you know when it’s not well and in distress. You can only listen to your company when you’re paying attention.


2. Your true boss refuses to be ignored: Ignore your company and it will find a way to stress the hell out of you. It demands constant attention. If you avoid your leadership and owner responsibilities to the point where its very survival is in jeopardy, it will remind you that you risk losing everything you personally guaranteed too.


3. Your true boss expects you to pay relentless attention to its financial health: For a company, profitability and cash flow means life. Cash reserves means security. Your true boss doesn’t care if you “hate numbers.” It only cares that you’re paying attention to what the numbers and financial reports are telling you.


4. Your true boss expects you to keep all employees on the same page: When employees are not on the same page, it’s a symptom of a leadership and system breakdown that will only deteriorate. Your true boss will not tolerate breakdowns in communication. Your true boss expects you to deliver whatever level of communication the company needs to assure that all employees are in sync with respect to systems, goals, expectations, etc..


5. Your true boss expects you to live the values of the company: Your true boss will not tolerate a “do as I say — not as I do” leader. Any breach in values by the owner/leader is a deadly blow to the company’s culture. The true boss will make life miserable for an owner/leader that compromises company values by creating employee turnover and performance issues.


6. Your true boss expects you to create, and nurture, a transparent and team-based culture: Great cultures are a reflection of leadership. Toxic cultures are also a reflection of leadership. The true boss only rewards a leader/owner that creates a culture that supports the vision of the company. That reward comes in the form of respect, loyalty and admiration as much as it does financial reward.


7. Your true boss expects you to make tough decisions: Too many salon/spa owners delay or avoid making the tough decisions that the company, and the true boss, needs to ensure its wellbeing and survival. The true boss expects decisions to be well conceived and executed in a timely manner. The more urgent the tough decision, the sooner it needs to be made. The true boss will ratchet up your stress level until the tough decision is made.


8. Your true boss expects to find a solution for any and all problems: Problems only get worse the longer they are allowed to persist. The true boss doesn’t expect the owner/leader to have all the solutions, but it absolutely expects the owner/leader to expeditiously do whatever it takes to find, understand, and implement solutions to problems.


9. Your true boss does not care if certain responsibilities make you uncomfortable: Ownership/leadership is about overcoming challenges and getting things done. As far as the true boss is concerned, if it needs to be done — get it done.


10. You true boss doesn’t accept any excuse for not doing your job: As an owner/leader, you regard excuses as just that, an excuse. Late is late. Attitude is attitude. Non-performance is non-performance. The true boss expects results — not excuses. The more owner/leader excuses add up, the more the true boss reminds you that your job, and your company, is on the line.