Managing a sustainable work-life balance can be difficult when you’re an entrepreneur or own your own business. Today we’re here to share with you, our beauty professionals, how you can take time off when you’re your own boss so that you can avoid burnout.
Let Your Clients Know When You’ll Be Gone
As a hairstylist, massage therapist, or whatever your speciality, you work closely with people each day. Your schedule directly affects their schedules. So naturally, letting your clients know that you will be taking time off is the first thing you should do when you’re taking time off. Prepare well. You can email your clients the dates and/or times that you will not be available so they know and can mark it on their calendars too. If you have regularly-scheduled clients, like a weekly massage or a monthly brow wax, make sure they know that you won’t be available for their regular appointment, and they’ll need to reschedule to a time that you are available.
If you’d like, you can also put on your website or your salon’s website the day(s) that you will be out so that your clients don’t see that as an available date to schedule, or block out your calendar so that you clients can’t schedule during your day(s) off. In the case of an emergency, you could leave your email address at the bottom so that they can get in touch with someone at the salon while you’re away. You can adapt this bit of advice depending on how many clients you have and how many regular appointments you typically have.
Schedule Days Off In Advance
This may seem obvious, but we recommend scheduling your days off well in advance. This is so you have enough time to plan your time away from work and also to let your clients know, as discussed above. This is also important so that you can let your employees know as well. For example, if you own a salon, you’ll need to let all your working employees know when you’re out so that they can shoulder the work together while you’re gone.
Of course, scheduling time off for personal or family vacations is essential, but it’s also not a bad idea to schedule random days off so that you can avoid burnout as much as possible. Maybe for you this looks like a day off once a month, or perhaps once every couple of months. It is completely up to you how often you should take a day off. You could even make this day a self-care day. Take advantage of this day. Try as hard as you can to not think about or do too much work. Don’t be afraid to take a day off so that you can relax from your business’ day-to-day operations. Taking days off here and there will help you in the long run so that you don’t get burned out.
Disconnect During Your Time Off
Taking the time off and letting your clients know is just the beginning of your time off. When it’s your day off, take the day off! Turn off your work notifications on your phone and/or your computer. Resist the urge to check your email or think about what could be going on at the salon. This is your own time to disconnect and take a break.
If need be, have one designated day during your vacation to reconnect with your employees to see how things are going. Have them share any highlights or problems they may have encountered while you’ve been away. This can help you rest assured that everything is okay, and if it’s not, this provides you the opportunity to offer guidance and feedback. Then get back to your vacation.
Understand That You Have Earned This Time Off
Taking a break from doing what you love professionally is not a bad thing. You work hard and you deserve a break every once in a while. Afterall, we’re human, and at some point we need to hit the reset button. Taking a much needed break or vacation can help refresh your mind so that you can come back to work with renewed energy. You don’t need to feel guilty for stepping away from your salon and your clients for a short period of time. Recognize your needs and enjoy your vacation.
In short, we know that taking time off from your business can be tough sometimes. Let your clients know the dates that you won’t be available, schedule your time off in advance, detach from work during your time off, and understand that you deserve it. We hope that these simple tips will help you enjoy your vacation and time away from your beauty business.
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