Solo estheticians - Your business is growing and you are thinking about hiring someone to pick up the overflow.

Maybe you’re excited about this next step or maybe it’s coming from a place of overwhelmed and feeling overworked.  Regardless of your motivation it’s important that you understand the realities of hiring before jumping in. The last thing I want for you is to get yourself into a position where you have spent a lot of time recruiting, hiring and training only to realize that this was not what you expected it to be.

When you hire a new team member it is a big decision, both financially and time-wise. There is a lot on the line when it comes to building a team and I don't want you to rush into hiring without having all the information!

So I have one BIG question for you…

Do you really NEED to hire spa staff?

You may be getting ahead of yourself, which can lead to a lot of frustration and expense.

Let’s break it down. 

1. How busy is your spa?

   Often in the spa industry owners make hiring decisions based on how busy they feel rather than what is the reality. If you look at your productivity reports on your booking system - have been for booked at 80% consistently for several months? If you are, then yes, it might be a good time to hire.

   If not, your perception of “busy” doesn’t have the data to back up the need to hire.

2. How much time do you have for a new staff member?

   New staff need on-boarding, training, and ongoing coaching. When you have a team you must ask yourself “how am I going to manage and support this team?'“

   Are you setting aside time before you hire to prepare for a new team member by documenting your protocols and policies into a team handbook and operations manual?

   Will you make time in your schedule for ongoing training for a team member so they can take on more responsibilities and services?

3. Do you need to be in the treatment room for spa cash flow?

   If you are 100% dependant on your current revenues to pay yourself & your spa operations, and there’s not wiggle room for being cash-strapped, you’ll need to rethink the spa’s earning potential of adding a new staff member.

   Hiring is a long-term growth strategy and is an expense, especially for the first year as your new team member builds their clientele. You will need to take more time out of the treatment room to support their growth. But can you afford that?

4. Do you really want to have a spa team?

   This is a very valid question and one you must ask yourself. Do you really want to manage people?

   If being in the treatment room and working with clients is what fills you up and managing people is not your thing that is okay but you also have to be okay with reaching the plateau of how much work you can take on.

When you’re considering hiring a team you need to be very thoughtful about what that means for you in terms of life/work balance and your passion and purpose. If you can ask yourself these questions and spend some time with them thoughtfully, you can mitigate a lot of potential bumps in the road. And most importantly make a decision based on what is right for you.

Whether you want to hire a team or stay solo I am here to help!