Leading and growing a salon/spa is anything but an exact science. Even the best laid plans are not immune to setbacks and inconveniences.

Setbacks are easy to understand, and they are going to happen. Employees will come and go. Cash flow challenges will occur. Things will breakdown. Good ideas will go bad.

Inconveniences are best described as “annoyances,” like employees being late for work or not following protocols.

Inconveniences trip you up.
Setbacks can knock you down.

• Self-flogging doesn’t fix the problem: When something goes wrong in your business, it’s easy to take it personally and beat yourself up. My advice to owners is to skip the self-flogging, clear your head, and get to work on the solution. But you’re going to do it anyway, so make it quick. The sooner you get it over with, the sooner you can implement solutions.


• Just own it: Pointing the finger of blame at everyone and everything else is a waste of time. Even if an employee messed up big time, it happened on your watch. Yes, you may have to have a fierce conversation or, if the infraction crossed the line, fire someone. But in the end, you’re the leader. The sooner you own it, the faster you can move on to fixing it.


• The clock is ticking: Setbacks have a nasty habit of evolving into a crisis if not addressed and fixed expeditiously. The moment you realize a setback has occurred, it should trigger your mental clock. You have a problem and it needs to be addressed. Engaging your mental clock gets you focused on finding and implementing solutions. The absolute worst thing any owner can do is hope the setback will go away or fix itself. It won’t. It will only become a bigger problem.


• Determine viable options: There is truth to the adage that every problem has a solution. It’s your responsibility to isolate the best options and decide on the best solution. Too often, owners pick the solution that is least abrasive, meaning that it won’t rock the boat too much. The problem with taking the easier, less abrasive, solution is that they rarely have the horsepower to thoroughly fix the problem. My recommendation is to pick that one solution that makes your palms sweat and your heart beat a little faster. It may not be the most popular, but if it has the necessary ingredients to thoroughly fix the problem and keep it from reoccurring, do it.


• Plan the fix: Every solution has elements and steps to be followed. You don’t need to write a book, just a thorough outline with the steps, responsibilities and timelines. Remember, chances are good that the setback that occurred was the result of inadequate planning.


• Communicate why/what/how/who/when: Hey, everyone probably knows about the setback. What employees need to know is that you have a solution and plan to fix it. Leadership is about delivering and maintaining clarity. Never short change the why/what/how/who/when process. Clarity overcomes uncertainty and dispels all those wrong conclusions that employees easily conjure up.


• Do it: Hit the launch and stay the course. Update frequently. Make adjustments as necessary. Get the fix across the finish line. If you don’t, the failure of the fix can trigger another setback.

• The simple secret: Inconveniences are like thunderstorms interrupting a picnic, getting a flat tire that makes you late for a meeting, or an employee not in dress code. Life happens. Things break. People don’t pay attention or make bad choices. Inconveniences don’t have your name written on them. Got it?


• Wasting energy on what you can’t control: You can’t control the weather, how many red lights you get on the way to a meeting, or a thousand other little things that chip away at your disposition and wellbeing. You can’t do anything about most inconveniences other than adjust and adapt. Got it?


• Things you can and should control: When employees are late, show up out of dress code, miss huddle or hide out in the back room, it’s a symptom of a flawed or missing system, inadequate training or oversight, or contamination in your culture. You can allow these inconveniences to drive you crazy, or you can recognize them as flaws in your company that need to be addressed.