In this week’s episode, we’re flipping the mic as I act as guest on my dear friend and client Mechelle Barras’ podcast, Mindset Great! 

If you’ve been a listener of Spa Marketing Made Easy for awhile, you’ve likely heard Mechelle’s story (and if not, be sure to go back and give it a listen – link below!), and I was honored when she asked to interview me on her podcast. 

And since we have so many new listeners who may not be as familiar with my entrepreneurial story, I hope this interview serves as a good introduction, and that you can walk away with a few nuggets of wisdom.

Because, as you’ll hear, one of my favorite business mantras is that “a rising tide lifts all boats,” and since I’ve certainly picked up countless lessons over the last eight years, I’m happy to be able to share them with you, my fellow CEO! 

In this episode, we discuss: 

• How I started my entrepreneurial journey and why I consider myself an “accidental entrepreneur”
• What support systems I’ve had and continue to put in place to be able to accomplish my personal and professional goals
• My approach to planning within my business and how my personal life serves as the driving force behind all my decisions
• Why I’m partnering with the Liberté Foundation to provide grants to women in the spa and beauty industry 

References Mentioned in Episode #281: My Entrepreneurial Journey – a Q&A with Mechelle Barras

• Subscribe to the Mindset Great podcast and learn more about Mechelle and her work on her website and connect with her via Instagram @Mechelle_Barras
•  Listen to my episode with Mechelle, “Episode 256: Mapping and Fulfilling Your Goals for Greatness with Mechelle Barras”
• Learn more about the Liberté Foundation grants for women in the beauty industry by clicking here
• To keep the conversation going, ask questions, and connect with other like-minded aestheticians building thriving careers, click here to join the free Spa Marketing Made Easy Podcast community. 

Episode Transcript

Team-building and development is by far one the most challenging hurdles a spa owner has to face as they grow. 

Whether you started as a solo practitioner, as many spa owners do, or you began with a team, refining your leadership skills is an ongoing journey. 

However, as my guest describes in this episode, there is typically that one pivotal point that shifts your whole trajectory. 

Here to join me on this episode of Spa Marketing Made Easy is Desarae Marhofer, a passionate aesthetician entrepreneur with 15+ years of specialized skincare experience, which includes owning and operating a full service esthetics studio as well as an aesthetician school. 

Together we talk about her journey from solo to team leader to studio + school owner and what lessons she’s learned along the way in becoming the best leader you can be for your business and your team. 

In this episode, we discuss: 

• When Desarae jumped from being a solo to having her first team member and how that was the turning point for momentous growth in her skincare studio
• How holding back on hiring team members created missed opportunities and how she navigated retention troubles as her business and team expanded 
• The critical mindset shifts Desarae needed to make as the leader of her business to help shift the culture of her team and get them onboard with her bigger vision
• Her tops tips for developing those leadership skills internally and externally

References Mentioned in Episode #242: Developing Into the Best Leader for Your Business and Your Team with Desarae Marhofer 

• Connect with Desarae’s skincare studio, Beautiful You Skincare Studio, on Facebook and Instagram
• Connect with Desarae’s aesthetics academy, Beautiful You Skincare Studio, on Facebook and Instagram
• Join the Uncommon Beauty Facebook group
• Read “The Compound Effect” by Darren Hardy
• To keep the conversation going, ask questions, and connect with other like-minded aestheticians building thriving careers, click here to join the free Spa Marketing Made Easy Podcast community. 

As a thank you for being a loyal listener to the Spa Marketing Made Easy podcast and for helping us to reach more aestheticians working on growing their businesses and creating a life they love, we have created a free resource portal just for you! 

It’s totally free to join, and for every 25 reviews we get on iTunes, we’ll add a new training video, PDF, tracker, or other high-value resource to help you grow your aesthetic business!

If you have yet to leave a review, click here to leave one on iTunes, and click here to access the free resources already unlocked! 

Episode Transcript

Think having an exit strategy only applies in corporate or for Silicon Valley start-ups? 

Think again! 

Even as a spa owner operating a small business, you need a game plan for what’s going to happen when you step away from the business, whether that be through reaching the traditional age of retirement or pivoting into purely the owner role without any of the operational work.

The beauty is that the future of your business is up to you, but the tough part is that if you want to see that future vision become a reality, you have to make a plan for it and start working toward it today, even if that end goal is still 10 years from now. 

In this episode of Spa Marketing Made Easy, I’ll be giving you some insight into how to think about your exit strategy and steps to take now to begin working towards it. 

In this episode, you’ll learn: 

• Why delegating and releasing yourself of the busy work in your business is the key to unlocking your time freedom
• What you can do to get busy work off your plate and a step-by-step walkthrough on how to delegate one of the biggest time-wasting tasks in your business
• How to determine your exit strategy and what needs to be factored into your plan 
• Why having an exit strategy is for every business owner, even if you never plan to sell 

References Mentioned in Episode #241: Focusing Your Efforts for Efficiency to Meet Your Exit Strategy

• Read the “The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People” by Stephen Covey
• Find a virtual assistant via 90 Day VA with Esther Inman

• To keep the conversation going, ask questions, and connect with other like-minded aestheticians building thriving careers, click here to join the free Spa Marketing Made Easy Podcast community. 

As a thank you for being a loyal listener to the Spa Marketing Made Easy podcast and for helping us to reach more aestheticians working on growing their businesses and creating a life they love, we have created a free resource portal just for you! 

It’s totally free to join, and for every 25 reviews we get on iTunes, we’ll add a new training video, PDF, tracker, or other high-value resource to help you grow your aesthetic business!

If you have yet to leave a review, click here to leave one on iTunes, and click here to access the free resources already unlocked! 

EPISODE TRANSCRIPT

While many spa owners and aestheticians differ in their niches, specialties, and goals for their career, if there’s one thing most of us have in common, it’s that we’re a big group of Type-A, high-achievers. 🙋🏻‍♀️

Now, I believe that largely boils down to the nature of aesthetics as a science and practice (you have to be someone that strives for results and can see the big picture as well as the minute details), but what often makes us outstanding aestheticians, doesn’t translate to other areas, particularly that of being focused CEOs. 

Yes, CEOs are almost always “high achievers,” yet the difference between the practitioner and the CEO is that a practitioner is typically stuck in the weeds due to a lack of planning or systems. 

Thus, those high-achieving tendencies actually leave us burning the candle on both ends, and eventually burning out. 

However, that doesn’t have to be your truth or reality, and as my guest on this episode of Spa Marketing Made Easy exemplifies – we can achieve a variety of big, audacious goals when we intentionally step into the role of leader and invite balance between our careers and home lives. 

So who is my Wonder Woman of a guest you ask? 

Introducing Dr. Gina Charles – she is the CEO of Serenity Aesthetics & Wellness, a boutique aesthetics practice in Philadelphia, as well as the co-founder of Ade & Gina Studios, a wedding makeup and photography studio she operates with her husband, as well as being a wife and mom to two young children.

Essentially, Dr. G is a prime example of what’s possible as a high-achieving woman. 

Tune in to hear her unique path to her career in aesthetics and what steps she takes to effectively and efficiently stay on top of her game. 

In this episode, we discuss:

•  How Dr. Gina got her start in the world of beauty business ownership while simultaneously completing medical school and how her two passions of medicine and makeup have fused together to create a truly purpose- and passion-driven company
• The key steps in her process to set and ensure that she’s successfully meeting her lofty goals for her life and businesses
• Dr. Gina’s top tips for calendar management and home-based systems so that she can be fully focused on family when not at work 
• Why leadership and delegation is such a critical piece to a high-achievers’ success and the mindset piece that keeps Dr. Gina ground through her journey to achieve new benchmarks

References Mentioned in Episode #240: Balancing Business and Family as a High Achiever with Dr. Gina Charles

•  Connect with Dr. Gina Charles via her personal brand website
• Connect with Dr. Gina’s Boutique Medical Aesthetics Practice, Serenity Aesthetics & Wellness located in Philadelphia, PA
• Follow @drginacharles on Instagram and on Facebook
• Follow @serenityaestheticsandwellness on Instagram and on Facebook
• To keep the conversation going, ask questions, and connect with other like-minded aestheticians building thriving careers, click here to join the free Spa Marketing Made Easy Podcast community.

As a thank you for being a loyal listener to the Spa Marketing Made Easy podcast and for helping us to reach more aestheticians working on growing their businesses and creating a life they love, we have created a free resource portal just for you! 

It’s totally free to join, and for every 25 reviews we get on iTunes, we’ll add a new training video, PDF, tracker, or other high-value resource to help you grow your aesthetic business!

If you have yet to leave a review, click here to leave one on iTunes, and click here to access the free resources already unlocked! 

Episode Transcript

00:00

You’re listening to the Spa Marketing Made Easy Podcast where we share simple, proven strategies just for spa industry professionals to help you get more clients in the door so that you can create a life you love. I’m your host, Daniela Woerner licensed aesthetician and spa marketing strategist. 

00:22

Hello my dears, Daniela here and welcome to the Spa Marketing Made Easy Podcast. Hey, have you marked your calendar for this Aesthetic Marketing Seminar online event. It’s happening September 20th and 21st. And you do not want to miss it. If you are a Growth Factor student, Spa Retail Rockstar student or Post with Purpose student you get a free ticket, nothing you need to do, we’ll be sending out information as it gets closer. But our AMS is known to be packed with actionable to-do’s and strategies that are working right now. To take your business to the next level, we never teach the same information twice, we focus on what is working now, what’s going on right now that you can do to take your business to the next level. Now if you’re not a student of ours and you’d like to attend, you can grab a ticket for only $97. And while all the material both days will be taught live and we encourage you to attend live, you will be getting the recording so you can go back and review the material as often as you’d like. Save the date now and more information will be coming very soon. That’s September 20th and 21st. 

01:35

Okay, so I have a really great interview for you today. Have you ever met someone who almost seems superhuman? Someone that you’re saying, Oh my gosh, how do they do it? Well, we all have we all have those people in our lives. And today’s guest is certainly a high performer. Her name is Dr. Gina Charles. I’ve been following her on Instagram for a while I love her messaging. I always feel uploaded, uplifted, uploaded from her post. She is a lover of systems. So of course, we are going to be best friends. Dr. G is a physician, she owns serenity and wellness medical spa in Philadelphia. She owns a photography and bridal makeup business with her husband. And she has two little kids like little like the same age as mine. So of course, I was like, Oh my gosh, how is this woman doing everything and looking beautiful and rested at the same time.

02:34

So I wanted to bring her on to share her story because I think obviously what she’s accomplished is very impressive. But I wanted to uncover the way that she thinks the actions that she takes both in her personal and professional life to accomplish these goals, right? Because being an entrepreneur, it can feel so overwhelming sometimes. And especially when you throw family and other responsibilities into the mix. So what are these individuals? What is she doing to accomplish these big goals? What is she doing differently? How is she thinking how she acting, what she’s spending her time doing? Those are the types of things that we chatted about in this interview. And of course, I was not surprised when she started telling me about the very clear systems and processes that she uses both in her personal and professional life. So let me just do a quick read of her bio, and then we’ll jump right into the interview. 

03:30

So Dr. Gina Charles also known as Dr. G is a Board Certified family physician, entrepreneur, skincare expert and fierce advocate for women’s health and wellness as a respected voice in the medical and beauty community educating diverse audiences. Dr. Gina serves as a mentor for women in STEM, particularly in the areas of health and beauty. She got her start in the beauty industry several years ago during medical school, where she would do bridal makeup as a side hustle as well as provide makeup services to breast cancer patients as a pick me up. Currently Dr. Gina is the CEO of Serenity Aesthetics and Wellness, a boutique esthetics practice in Philadelphia where she’s fused her love for beauty and medicine. Additionally she and her husband own and operate aid and Gina studios, a wedding makeup and photography studio They have two children ages five and one when it comes to entrepreneurship and life in general Dr. Gina believes in putting systems in place so the work is executed effectively. Okay, amen love that. Alright guys, so enjoy this interview. Be sure to follow Dr. G she’s got some awesome post on Instagram. And let me know if you have any questions just tag us over in the Spa Marketing Made Easy Facebook group. Alright, without further ado, let’s play that interview. 

04:51

All right, Dr. G. Dr. Gina Charles, so excited to have you here on the Spa Marketing Made Easy Podcast you have such an incredible story. I know that our listeners are just going to be wowed. And I love to have stories of other women who are doing big things, to show that it’s possible. Right? It’s you can have a great career, you can have a family, there’s ways to do it and ways to approach your life to get the things that you want. And and I’ve been following you on Instagram for I would say that you’ve been popping up in my feed for at least a year now. And I love your posts. I love your messaging. I love. I feel so aligned with the things that you’re saying I see the post. I’m like, Yes, that’s so. So I was so excited when you agreed to come on as a guest on the podcast.

05:48

Thank you for having me.

05:50

Yeah. So tell me, tell me a little bit of background of, you know, how did you get into? So you’re a physician? Did you always know that you wanted to do kind of the wellness route? Or did you want to get into family practice first? Like, how did you blend all of that?

06:11

Sure. So it’s actually interesting. When I was in medical school, well, actually, before medical school, I would assist a friend of mine in weddings. So I was in graduate school at the time, and she was doing bridal makeup, and I would just go and help her clean brushes and things like that just to make some extra cash during graduate school. And then I started learning how to do makeup application during that time. And then by the time I got to medical school, I started doing makeup on cancer patients as a pick me up, just to help boost their self esteem, because there have been studies that show that beauty care really do help with patient satisfaction, as well as outcomes. So I started doing it with cancer patients. And my husband, who is a professional photographer, wedding photographer, had a wedding and they need a makeup artist. So he’s there. Well, Gina, can you do the makeup for this bride? And I’m like, well, I’ve never done a bride’s makeup before. And I love a challenge. So I said, Yes, I’ll do it. So I did the bride’s makeup. And it was amazing. I got great reviews from her and her family. And from then I started doing makeup. On the side as a medical student working alongside my husband, and one of my friends in medical school. She said, You know what, in a couple years from now, I can see you having a med spa. And I said, What is that? I don’t know what that is. And she explained what a med spa was. And I said, Oh, God, that sounds so cool. And at the time, I didn’t really put too much thought into it at all. I knew that I wanted to go into family medicine, because I love the variety of Family Medicine as a family doctor, I’m able to see a variety of patients from the young ones to the older ones, I can do women’s health, and still have a great mix within my practice. So that’s why I went into family practice. And then it just so happens that several of my brides were asking for help with skin and getting their skin prepared for weddings. And I decided you know what, I need formal education. So I am a licensed physician, let me go and take the necessary coursework, I enrolled into several courses and aesthetics and skincare and business to really be able to provide my clients with optimal service. So they were able to get makeup, makeup application, they were able to get skincare, get started on a skincare regimen, get started with a treatment plan. And I was able to follow their journey for several months leading up to their wedding and even after their wedding. So that is how my love for beauty kind of transformed into this business where I was able to fuse the passions of medicine, makeup, beauty into one. So…

09:23

Do you realize what a unique skill set that is? I mean, because you have the the right like I’ve met I’ve worked with so many physicians over the past 15 years that I’ve been in this industry. And physicians tend to be incredibly skilled at a specific thing with quality care with their patient, right. But they’re typically not great business people. They’re typically not creative, right? So and they typically don’t know very much about skincare. Especially it’s like derms know how to solve the problem, they know how to treat the condition, but when it comes into understanding skincare ingredients and building regimens, they, they have to learn about it. And for you, you have this incredible like you have the the knowledge of and training of being a physician and understanding how the body works. But you also have the artistic side of understanding, you know, the makeup, the beauty, the aesthetic, so it is like this perfect, perfect mix, which is so, so interesting to me. I love that. I love that. 

10:39

Okay, so you have the you have a wellness center in Philadelphia, you have your photography business, you also have a five year old and a one year old. So tell me, you are clearly someone who knows how to get what they want. So how do you how do you set goals? How do you? How far in advance? Are you planning for things like when you were going to medical school? Was that only what was on your mind? or How are you saying like, I want this for myself? And here’s what I’m going to do to create it?

11:14

Right. So that’s actually a really good question. In order to effectively put all of these things into place that I’ve done over the years, I had to set goals. And I set daily goals, monthly goals and annual goals. And this is something that I continuously do. And the goals are typically something that is measurable. And oftentimes, I am going back and checking, have I done this? Have I done that? How can I improve? So when it comes to the family, same thing, I knew that I did not want to start a family during medical school because I really wanted to just focus on my studies. But during residency, we got married. And, you know, we decided to start a family then. So I had my daughter in my cheap year. And having children as you know, can be difficult with managing a business, I belong to businesses. So I’ve definitely had to put quite a few systems in place. And this year, especially after having my son, who’s now 13 months, put systems into place so that I can still provide attention to the children, my husband, and then business.

12:37

So when we’re talking and you know, this is my love language here as we’re getting into systems. But as we’re talking about being a present mom, because I see on your Instagram too, like you’re out, I just saw you like hiking up a waterfall like the whole thing. And you have to have systems for even for like, what’s for dinner? How are we going to do our grocery shopping? How are we going to do time management, like all of your systems for your personal life, but also for your professional life? And, and really understanding and I’m curious what your thought processes are how you do calendar management because I know so many of our listeners out there saying I have these goals, I have these dreams, I have no time because my kids, are because of my current job or whatever it is. There’s always like some level of excuse. But you hear that quote, like we all have the same number of hours in a day is Oprah. Right? And it is time is… yeah. So how do how do what’s the difference in the way that those women have built their dreams and follow their dreams? Right? Because they all everybody starts out as just a normal person. It’s choices that we make and how we choose to spend our time. And they’re still normal people, they just have managed they they have a talent and they’ve been able to capitalize on that talent. Every single person listening to this episode has a talent, right? It’s doesn’t mean that you have to be a movie star or a singer or whatever. It’s how are you going to capitalize on your talent manage your time to reach your specific dreams yours going to medical school having a family right like that’s a it’s a big piece and understanding thought process and and choices and maybe it’s an accountability question. I don’t know. What do you think?

14:35

So? It’s, it’s, um, definitely multifactorial. So the first thing is, when it comes to personal or business, you definitely want to start with taking inventory. Taking inventory of the things that you need to get done. So whether when it’s personal things that you need to get done at home, literally making a list when It’s professional in your business, making a list of all of the tasks that you have to do. Now, when you look at all of these tasks, you, you then want to prioritize Oh, well, what’s really important to me? What do I not? What do I not want to do? And you start to prioritize things, okay, so these few things are important to me. And I really want to get these done. These are important, but they’re time consuming. And I really don’t feel like doing that. And then you start to look at ways that you can delegate those tasks. So for me, food shopping, I know it’s important, but it’s not something that I really want to do, because it’s going to take one to two hours. So in our household, what we’ve done is, my husband will sometimes do the grocery shopping, or we’ll order everything online and do pick up. So we don’t necessarily have to spend one to two hours in the Supermarket and Costco. So the same thing in my business, I look at certain tasks that I need to get done. And see, well, for example, social social media. 

16:16

Social media is a huge part of marketing. Some people love to sit on Instagram, and Facebook and LinkedIn and Twitter, and respond and post etc. But if you have your business, and you have these little ones, you may not have time to spend on social media. And I have learned that because I’ve learned that when I spend so much time focusing on social media, that it’s taking time away from, you know, going on a trail with my children, or even sitting and watching Netflix. So something that I’ve done is delegate to a social media manager, someone who can post from the business for me, so that I could spend more time with the family. So when it comes to your love language systems, I think the number one thing is taking inventory and then delegating based on the inventory.

17:09

Now I was listening to a really interesting podcast, it was Rory Vaden, who was a guest on Lewis Howes podcast. He’s been I’ve heard him speak a couple of times. But he has a, he has talking about a new way of thinking. So you’re saying in the 50s, we started worrying about efficiency. And then in the 80s and 90s, Dr. Covey, Dr. Stephen Covey, the Seven Habits of Highly Effective People, he talks about importance and then prioritizing what’s urgent, what’s important and kind of listing out how we are productive and make our choices. And today he’s, he’s been studying Rory has been studying multimillionaires and billionaires who have accomplished great things and really trying to understand their thinking. And what he was saying is that these people that have accomplished such great levels of success, whether you’re a professional athlete, whether you’re a business owner, what you know, just in whatever your arena is, they’re thinking about, what can I do today, that’s going to give me more time tomorrow. So focusing on anytime that you can create a system for something, anytime that you can automate something. And I think the problem that so many people get stuck in is, it’s only gonna take me five minutes. So I’ll just do it myself. So have you ever had that struggle of, it’s only gonna take me five minutes? I’ll do it myself? Or how do you know like, cake, I’m going to, it’s going to probably take me some time to train my social media manager. But I know that that’s going to give me more return once I get them trained.

18:54

Yeah, so I definitely struggle with that initially in business. I thought that I could do everything myself. And as most solo entrepreneurs do, when starting a business, you think that you can do everything yourself, this is only going to take five minutes, this will take 10 minutes. But when you look at the list of tasks that we have to do, that five and 10 minutes, adds up to about 12 to 13 hours in the day. And after a while you find yourself burning out, and burning out within your business. And that’s something that we don’t want to do. Right? So I learned that earlier on and I said, You know what, I’m going to have to put something into place so that I’m not burning out in business, you know, when it comes to writing my blog posts or updating my website, do I necessarily want to do that all the time? No. So I have someone who can update the website who manages the website throughout the year. I have someone to do the email as a virtual assistant, who does the email listing on newsletters and things like that. So, again, looking at that list, I was able to delegate tasks to various people on my team. So that is not all falling on me, because I saw myself burning out in the beginning. And I said, you know, you’re going to fail at business, if you want to do everything yourself, and I am a type A personality. So initially, I wanted everything done my way I want it to be done, right. But the good thing about leadership is that you need to be able to choose the right person for the task, and be able to relinquish control, that is the only way that you are going to be able to scale your business and get to that CEO level where you’re more so thinking about the vision, as opposed to working in your business business, like a workhorse all the time.

20:56

I couldn’t agree more. 

20:58

And trust that person. You know, granted, it’s trial and error, you think you find the right person, and then you find that you have to make some adjustments. But over time, you know, you will be able to communicate your needs, your expectations, and work with that person.

21:16

For me, it was getting my team, if they can do it, 80% as good as I can. That was my initial measuring point. Now my team does everything way better than me. So it’s like you, they get you, yeah, you train them. And then they’re doing that task over and over and over again. And they become much better than you at doing that task. There’s things in my business today. Granted, we’re seven years in, but there’s things in my business today that I don’t even know how to do it, I could go and find a system of how to do it, but I wouldn’t know how to do it, because my team has ownership. And that is what I personally believe gives you the freedom that so many entrepreneurs are looking for, they think, Oh, I’m going to start my own company, I’m gonna have this freedom and flexibility and financial growth. And if you’re holding on to, I need to do everything myself, you’re trapping yourself in a little box of, you know, never having that time to go hike on waterfalls with your kids, or, you know, like, I know, my son’s 15 months, and going through the first year of a baby to begin with. And then during a pandemic, and you know, dealing with the social, like, how do we socialize our kid? And how do we make sure that they get the germs that they actually need without getting bad germs, because they’re building their immune system as well, right. So it’s like, there’s so many things, and run a business when the world is in this state, there’s to be able to, I was so grateful this past year that I am an entrepreneur, and that I do have a team. Because when my son needed me and my daughter during this, just, you know, whatever you want to call it time, I was able to go if my son was having a really hard day, I could say you know what, I’m not going to work today, I’m going to go downstairs, and I’m going to spend time with him because he needs me. And that is my top priority. And that’s something that in most jobs you can’t do. Right. So to be able to get to that space where you can create that for yourself. That for me is priceless. That’s more important than any amount of money I can make is having that true freedom, time freedom, that time freedom. And that lifestyle freedom, you know, is just so so important. I think that’s why I love systems so much is because I value that more than anything. 

23:53

So that’s also a great quality of a leader.

23:57

Is is what? passing, passing control to their team that says, oh, put systems in place. Yeah. So where do you find that two things? I’m really curious about where do you find inspiration for yourself? Like what inspires you? Are you are you scheduling time into your week to read books to you know, attend different trainings, like, spend time in nature, whatever, whatever it does that inspires you? How do you plan for that? And let’s just let’s ask that first. And then my next question is going to be how do you hold yourself accountable? Because it’s so easy as women, to put our kids to put our family to put our clients anybody in front of ourselves and what our goals are?

24:51

Yeah, so that’s actually a really good question. And it’s something that as a wife, a mother, a business person, physician, it’s a constant battle. Because on the weekends, I look at the week ahead, I look at my schedule, I look at my calendar, I’m really big on having my book with a calendar as well as my Google Calendar. And I look at that, to see what days I have nothing to do, I made sure that there’s one to two days in the week where there’s nothing. And that is when I actually have time to myself, if there’s something to do that day, I find that I end up doing more things that day. And I’m not able to do for myself. So for instance, maybe a Friday. And if I’m not in the office, if I’m not seeing patients at the time, and my schedule is blank, I’ll do things like go swimming, I started taking it, I took up swimming this year, so that I could learn how to swim. And if it’s not swimming, it’s just going outside, taking a walk around the block, you know, or going for a drive.

26:08

She like to do something physical. 

26:12

Yeah, being physical. I love dancing. Sometimes I come down here to my office at home and dance what my daughter wants to join me because she loves dancing as well. 

26:21

We have all kinds of dance parties at our house. 

26:25

Right, right. And it also burns them out a little bit so they can take a nap later. When it comes to reading books, I will tell you that I have not been able to read as many books as I would like. But I do listen to several audiobooks. And I listen to audiobooks on my drive. I’m a subscriber to to Audible, so I will listen to books on my drive. So that’s how I get a bit of books. And then in terms of in terms of reading articles, and things like that. I’m always reading articles, believe it or not 2am, 3am when I read the articles, when my son wakes up to nurse, so I’ll just be nursing and I’m reading, you know, just a random article on my phone at the time. 

27:22

Wow. 

27:23

So is he’s just waking up once in the night?

27:27

Yes, he wakes up once in the night. It’s around the top of that my daughter. So we are training her to wake up at night to use the bathroom. So it’s around the same time that she wakes up to use the bathroom. 

27:41

Wow.

27:42

It’s a little pop hour.

27:45

Good for you. I nursed until Luca, my son’s name is Luca, I nursed him until 13 months. And then I was like, Okay, I’m done. That’s all I can do. And the I mean, I know it’s so important. And I’m so supportive of women that can go longer than the year. But for me that was that was such a freedom to sleep through the night, through the whole night and not have to wake up to to nurse.

28:15

It’s I’m looking forward to that as well. I’m totally looking forward to that. My daughter went 26 months. I don’t know how long this one will go. But I am looking forward to sleeping a full night. It’s been 13 months.

28:30

But I love that that that’s the reality is like, because there’s so many people out there that’s like, Oh, you know, I can’t because of this, like, you went through medicine, medical school, you have two businesses, you’re still waking up in the middle of the night. Right? But you’re doing it you’re making it happen. So I guess what do you felt like you said, you go outside and take time for yourself? You’re listening to books on Audible. What do you feel like is your biggest driver? What? What is your? What keeps you going every single day? Is that the love of working with patients? Do you have kind of bigger goals that you’re wanting to accomplish for yourself? Are you trying to teach your kids to be the best version of themselves? Like what is it that motivates you every single day? To be a high achiever is just something you’re born with? Or my husband and I have this conversation quite a bit. Can you teach drive? Right? It’s where does it come from.

29:38

So I love seeing others happy. And I love seeing results. I’m really results driven. So and I’m a problem solver. So I think my drive comes from being able to make an impact in other’s lives. Whether I I’m getting up, and I’m going to see patients. And it’s like, Okay, well, I’m going to suture today I’m going to, you know, I’m going to cast today or something like that, or I’m going to improve this hyperpigmentation or these wrinkles. Today, I’m doing something to service someone else. And their outcomes is what drives me.

30:21

That’s beautiful. That’s beautiful. I, I have a feeling that there’s something special inside of you too, though, because it’s, it’s you are clearly a driven person, right? Like you don’t have multiple businesses, you don’t go through medical school without having that push or that drive. I wonder. Tell me about your self care. Because you have a lot of you know, you, you’re very passionate about women’s empowerment. That has to lead to a healthy self confidence. Do you believe that that believing that you can really helps you achieve those things? Yeah.

31:08

Yeah, I love that I do affirmations with my daughter every single night for her. 

31:08

Absolutely. The thing you you have to believe in yourself in order for you to achieve these things. And I start the day off with positive affirmations. And I learned this from one of my, from a mindset coach years ago when I did on mindset coaching. And initially I was, you know, I was like, Okay, well, I’m just saying these positive affirmations. But after a while, I owned those affirmations every day. And it was empowering me. So now I am on my drive, going into the office, going into the clinic, and I am affirming positivity into my life. So that when I’m when I walk in, I’m not crabby, I am smiling. You are going to get a great version of me because I started my day off. Granted, there are some days that I wake up and I’m just like, last night was terrible, these kids. You know, it can’t always be perfect, right. But positive affirmations have played a huge role in just giving me that empowerment. 

32:20

Yeah.

32:20

Yeah, yes, we have reasons for my daughter as well. It’s so interesting to hear her say her, say her affirmations at night with her little voice. But it’s definitely going to mean something when our daughters get older. And they have an interview for these jobs. You know, stand in front of boardrooms, etc. and give presentations to classmates. they’ll remember those nights and they will walk in there feeling affirmed. 

32:50

Yeah, so true. So in wrapping up. What advice do you have to business owners out there who have these big dreams? What if they’re feeling kind of overwhelmed, stressed? Or like maybe they can’t do it? What if you were ever in their shoes? Like what do you do? What advice do you have any? What are what’s an affirmation that you were that worked very well for you. 

33:19

Okay, so in terms of advice, I would say. One, take inventory of all of the tasks that need to get done in your business. Two, delegate those tasks, or prioritize and prioritize those tasks. Three, schedule the tasks to be done throughout the week, not all in one day, and save at least 30 minutes of your day where you are going to block off just for you. The 30 minutes is critical each day. It can be a nap, it can be listening to music, it can be taking a walk outside, that is going to help you to refuel. You cannot always be inundated in your work, emails, spreadsheets, marketing, and making plans for your business. You have to take a step back to refill your cup so to speak. And when it comes to affirmations, I am doing the best that I can and I honor where I am today.

34:40

I love that, I’m doing the best that I can and I honor where I’m at today. Because we’re all it’s it’s all a work in progress every single day.

34:52

Yeah, and I love it. Absolutely. A lot of times we look at others on social media, you know comparison is that the the thief of joy And a lot of times we look at other people in their businesses. And we’re like, oh, well, I’m not there yet, or, Oh, I should be doing this. No, you’re doing great right now. Enjoy where you are. So that is one affirmation that has really helped to center me so that I’m not comparing myself to everyone, and realizing that I am on this journey, and embracing where I am on the journey and knowing that I’m doing the best that I can right now.

35:26

I love that. I love that. So where can people follow you stay in touch with you? I mean, I know I love your Instagram. But is that the is that the best place?

35:38

Sure, so people can follow me at Dr. Gina Charles on Instagram. If you are into skincare and aesthetics, you can follow at Serenity Aesthetics and Wellness on Instagram and Facebook. And to get in contact with me you can find me at www.drginacharles.com.

35:58

Perfect and we’ll include all those links under the show under the show notes. As always, if you want to keep the conversation going, please head on over to the Spa Marketing Made Easy Facebook group and we’ll catch you on the next episode. 

36:12

As always, if you want to keep the conversation going, I want you to head on over to the Spa Marketing Made Easy Facebook group. The number one free resource out there for aestheticians focused on business building. We’ve got weekly marketing tips, a monthly goal setting and planning session, monthly aesthetician business book club, plus a community of thousands of estheticians committed to business building in the spa industry. I’ll see you there.

The concept of the “dream team” is one many of us know well and aim to assemble, but for any entrepreneur who’s ever set out to create their dream team, you know it is easier said than done.

In full transparency, it took me years to build what we at AddoAesthetics call “The Core Four,” so today, I wanted to get us all on the mic as we discuss the journey to getting where we are today and how we make it work. 

Hint: we talk heavy on the systems. 

As a fully remote team (in addition to The Core Four, there are 10+ additional freelancers and contractors on Team AddoAesthetics), systems have been critical for our growth and success since Day One when it was just me running the company from my kitchen table. 

As we’ve grown, Annie, Christy, and Danielle have built up and witnessed the backend evolution of the company and it’s systems, and in this episode, we’re giving you a peek behind the curtain so you can steal some of our insights and use them to reinforce your own systems-based business.  

In this episode, we discuss:

• Everyone’s key job responsibilities and how we’re structured within the AddoAesthetics organization chart to take ownership over certain focus areas in the company 
• What specific systems are critical for everyone’s individual roles and how these systems play into the overall picture and vision of the company
• Why systems are critical for being able to reach our quarterly and annual goals as well as move closer to the overall mission and vision
• How we each approach our roles from a systems-based perspective and structured framework plus how our core values predicate our individual and collective success 

References Mentioned in Episode #231: Creating the Core Four and the Systems that Allow Us to Grow

• Easily run payroll for your company with Gusto (affiliate link)
• Books referenced in this episode: Dare to Lead by Brené Brown, Clockwork by Mike Michalowicz, E-Myth by Michael E. Gerber, and Traction by Gino Wickman 
• Tools mentioned in this episode: Process Street (for SOPS), Monday.com and Asana (for project and task management)
• Take the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator via 16Personalities 
• To keep the conversation going, ask questions, and connect with other like-minded aestheticians building thriving careers, click here to join the free Spa Marketing Made Easy Podcast community. 

P.S. – Ready to scale your spa to the next level? Join us for the 5-Day Spa Business Bootcamp kicking off May 31 at 3 p.m. EST! Head here to learn more and register!

As a thank you for being a loyal listener to the Spa Marketing Made Easy podcast and for helping us to reach more aestheticians working on growing their businesses and creating a life they love, we have created a free resource portal just for you! 

It’s totally free to join, and for every 25 reviews we get on iTunes, we’ll add a new training video, PDF, tracker, or other high-value resource to help you grow your aesthetic business!

If you have yet to leave a review, click here to leave one on iTunes, and click here to access the free resources already unlocked! 

EPISODE TRANSCRIPT

00:00

Have you heard about the free Spa Business Bootcamp happening May 31st to June 4th in the Spa Marketing Made Easy Facebook group?

00:08

Each day, we’re going to take a deep dive into the four phases of the Growth Factor Framework, your sales process, your social media, your systems and your structure before wrapping up on the final day with how to scale this bootcamp is a must for spa owners who are truly looking to build a company and a brand not just create a job for themselves. Click the link in the show notes to get registered and I can’t wait to see you in the group. 

00:35

You’re listening to the Spa Marketing Made Easy Podcast where we share simple proven strategies just respond to street professionals to help you get more clients in the door so that you can create a life you love. I’m your host, Daniela Woerner, licensed aesthetician and spa marketing strategist.

00:58

Hello, my dears, Daniela here and welcome to the Spa Marketing Made Easy Podcast. Hey, let me ask you a question. Are you making money in your business every single day? And let me just go a little bit deeper with that, okay. If you don’t work, would your business still make money every day, that may be the biggest vulnerability that I see with solo aesthetician. And really, even with spas that are still developing their teams. And I know you may be thinking, I don’t want to manage people or it just may not align with your vision. 

01:35

But building a team does not have to mean building a team of providers. You don’t have to have other aestheticians or massage therapists, even if you are a solo, I believe that you still need a team of people around you to help you grow this business to help you manage multiple streams of revenue. Okay. 

01:59

So there’s marketing, there’s customer support, there’s project management, there’s social media, there’s admin and tech, right? So there’s all these important areas that need your attention for your company to grow. Now, I had my son in April of 2020. And I went on to take a four month maternity leave during a global pandemic, when all of the spas were shut down. And we actually ended up having it was our best year ever, we had some pretty massive growth from the year before. Think about that for a second that as a company, the leader, the owner of the company, was out for four months, during a global pandemic, we still had our biggest year, right? 

02:45

That’s what I want for you. That’s what I want you to create for yourself. And I know that that would not be possible without a team. It’s as simple as that. But team development is hard, right? knowing who to hire, how to train, how to manage, it is a real skill. It’s a learned skill. And I’m really grateful to have worked in some incredible companies prior to starting my own business because I learned so much in this area, right? So bits and pieces that I have taken with me to create my own leadership style. I just want to do a side note real quick. I know we talk about books all the time, but the “Five Dysfunctions of A Team”. I think it’s such a quick read, but it is such a great read for someone that’s learning how to manage their team. 

03:38

Okay, now we get a ton of questions in Growth Factor about team development, about leadership, who does what, so we thought it would be really fun to do an episode with our leadership team. I like to call them our Core Four. So it’s me, Annie, Danielle and Christy, right? We wanted to give you an idea or just to give you an idea. We currently have five employees and seven contractors that we work with on a regular basis. 

04:04

But you guys, it started with just me doing all the things. Okay, we are currently in year seven of our company. And I brought on a VA shortly after. I think it was it was at the end of year one I probably brought on the VA and then Danielle came on pretty much right after that. So Danielle has been with us. She’s been like six years now. I think were in year six. 

04:30

So we have grown each year, which has enabled us to hire and yes, we do have a lot of people on our team. But time wealth is something that is incredibly important to everyone here at Team Addo. So we are going to continue to grow so that we can all have this, you know freedom and flexibility that we desire. And you’ll see as we do this interview, knowing what your people want is incredibly important to you. Building a successful team. 

05:01

Okay, so in this episode, we’re talking about what each person in the Core Four does, what helps them to thrive in that role and kind of getting their two cents, which was really a neat perspective. 

05:14

We also give examples of what the role would be in a brick and mortar spa. So I really hope that this behind the scenes look at Team Addo helps. Feel free to tag us over in the Spa Marketing Made Easy Facebook group if you guys have any questions. But remember, a team is not just about providers, there’s so many other areas of your company that really need help and support. Because if you are doing it all, you are doing a disservice to your company, right? You’ve really got you cannot be the person that’s doing the treatments and handling marketing and being the visionary. And doing customer support, you will burn out, right and you will not your company will not grow as fast as it possibly could. Because you just don’t know one person can do all of those things. 

06:08

Alright, so lots of love to you guys. Let’s go ahead and play that interview. And again, be sure to tag us if you have any questions.

06:17

Alright guys, this is going to be a really cool behind the scenes interview with the core four on the Addo Aesthetics Team. We wanted to do this podcast episode because I get so many questions about how do I build my team? Who do I hire next? What do these people do? How do you find them? And it’s really important to note that when I first started, it was me, myself and I doing all the roles. And my first hire was a VA from the Philippines. So it started, you know, very small, I think Danielle was, when did we connect Danielle?

06:58

Like right after your VA like a month after.

07:01

Yeah, so Danielle has been with the she has been on the whole journey with us. And I I don’t think I can actually take credit for how awesome she is. That was pure luck. But we’ve been able to grow and develop year over year over year. So what I want to do in this interview in this episode is really give you some insight into who’s each person on the team, what is their role, what do they do, what systems are crucial, and how we interact with one another. 

07:34

So let’s just go through and just first like maybe each one of you guys will start with Christy, maybe Christy you can just introduce yourself and say like what your role is at the company. Then we’ll go to Annie and Danielle.

07:47

Right. I’m Christy. And I think my title is Client Success Manager.

07:53

I know we gave you…

07:57

It feels so fancy, like I’m so not fancy. Um, but I feel like I do a lot of different things like community management, accountability, and…

08:10

That’s right, watering plants, my specialty, the calendar, just a lot of different random things.

08:17

Very good. Annie?

08:20

But um, well, I feel like with me, it’s always been a little bit uncertain what is any doing, but I do have the title of Director of Operations, and also Project Manager. And yeah, creating SOPs, updating SOPs. And I would say just overall making sure that everyone knows what they need to do and when they need to do it. And yeah, just making sure everyone is clear on what’s happening and by when.

08:49

And Danielle,

08:51

I am I think my title is Content Director. I’m kind of in the same boat as Christy where I’m like, changed, but basically anything. Yeah, it’s evolved. But any piece of content, social media, podcast emails, any piece of content is something I’m typically writing or touching in some sort of way. And that’s my role all things content.

09:17

So when I look at each of you guys, like I see Christy, as really being the high touch person with our students she’s client facing, she’s handling all the little details to make sure that we are a very high touch company that each of our people feel loved and supported. All the small touches and then also keeping my life organized. That is a huge I mean, Christy always will be sending me reminders and even like sweet little messages on boxer like, Oh, you know, just just great things that really keeps the keeps us organized. Keeps all have us feeling loved and happy and appreciated. And Annie basically runs the company. So it should be Annieaesthetics.

10:12

But Annie, really like all of the, me as the visionary coming up with, here’s the idea. Here’s what I want to do. I have the idea, I have the direction, and Annie figures out how we’re going to make that happen, and how we’re going to who we’re going to assign what I’m and Danielle, you, you create the content, right? You create the content. And I think, something that you do as well, that is not really talked about, but you are brilliant with strategy and funnel mapping and really understanding offers, and where, yes, you’re creating content, but you, you really do have a marketing mind and a branding mind, which has been incredibly helpful. And so for, and I guess, you know, I kind of touched on the fact that me as the owner, as the CEO, I’m acting as the visionary, I’m really the face of the brand right now delivering the content. But what I’m doing behind the scenes is a lot of team development. You know, we’ve talked a lot about, okay, we have these fancy titles now, but like, my job is to take each person, develop them, find the direction that they want to go, this is what we do with our students. But this is also what we do in our team to a big degree, make sure that everybody’s happy. And find what they thrive in what they’re the best at. And make sure that we have a clear path for growth. 

11:46

Because I am a big believer in when you’re bringing on a team, you want to make sure that you get the right people and that when you do have those right people that you keep them happy, right, that’s a very important thing. And, and part of the way that you do that is by regularly checking in understanding what motivates them understanding what they want their life to look like, right? And that’s different for every single person. But I think that that if I have to say, one of my superpowers, I think is really being able to check in regularly, and create a space where everybody on the team can kind of carve out their path that works for their lifestyle.

12:34

Um, okay, so let’s jump into Christy, you as the Customer Success Manager, that’s your fancy title. What are the what are some of the things that you’re doing? What are some of the systems that make your life easier, so for anyone who would have customer support customer success, this would probably in a brick and mortar spa, this would likely be filled by someone who’s doing the front desk, what sort of things have really helped you what sort of systems have just been like game changers in your role.

13:13

So I would say, definitely starting out having really good SOPs. So we store all of our SOPs in Process St. And that’s something that Annie started and continues to update, I feel like it’s a full time job. But those in general, have been amazing, because I know, they’re, you know, very detailed and labeled. And I know if I get some questions relating to a specific program, I can go right to that SOP, I can copy and paste and then kind of fill in the details from there. So I would say that’s probably for someone in customer support. That’s probably the number one system that you really need to have in place. I think it would have been a lot harder to make it as I go. So so nice to just jump into the role and just have those. 

14:02

Yeah, and and what Christy is referring to for those of you that are in spa, so we have our frequently asked questions, right? So in customer support in a spa, you’re going to get a lot of the same questions. What are what’s this policy? What’s that policy? What’s the pre-care instructions? What’s the post-care instructions? Do you have this available, etc. And what’s your membership about so having templated emails in an easy to access place that and your customer support person can actually create these if you’re just bringing if you’re a solo and you’re just bringing somebody on for the first time. All you have to do is every email that you’re sending out as you’re transitioning this over you template that and you just say okay, now add this to our SOP portal you may be used Process St. , you may be using Google Drive, whatever it is, but making it as easy as possible that your front desk person can then just copy and paste the response. And just add one or two customized slides in there. 

15:18

Okay, Annie, so as Project Manager, and as someone who works with the visionary in the company, right. So the CEO role, a lot of times, I think one of the things that you do quite a bit for me, is, okay, yes, you think you like, I have all these ideas and think that we can do it in a quarter. And you’re like, let’s take it back a notch and see what we can actually do. Because there’s a big difference in having an idea. But then when you really break it down, to see Well, what needs to happen in that, that’s where, like, the magic of actually getting things done, happens, because you’re not putting so many things on the plate. So for you, what do you think are the most important systems and what has really allowed you to thrive in this role?

16:15

Well, to be honest, I feel there’s, there’s a couple of things that will really bring things together. For me, everything always starts with the owner, which is you and then you know, your great at, already coming in as a role model, who is already supporting and investing into systems, because it’s really hard if you’re coming into a company and you want to make a change, but if that’s not already supported by the owner, so in general, just as a company, and the owner always comes as a role model is having the mindset of creating systems, and having the mindset that, like always seeing which task, every task that is being repeated should in the end of very soon be created as an SOP. And then being automated, because that’s how it takes time. And it takes a little bit of an investment in the beginning to set those SOPs up. 

17:09

But they’re gonna pay off in the long run really, really quickly. And as long as the Project Manager and the Owner are having the same mindset, and the same vision that already helps big times. And besides that, I would say, my number one thing really is having a project management tool. I feel like I mean, we use Monday.com. But there’s also another tool out there, which is Asana, that’s even for free. It’s super intuitive, but it’s basically replacing the old school to do list. It’s everything that needs to be done, it needs to be written down. And it needs to be outlined every single step, which is what you just said, it’s, it’s so easy to have a vision in mind. And we usually have a tendency to always think we can get so much more done in a shorter period of time, or when we actually sit down and we we lay out the year, the quarter and the month. And we actually write on every single step with a deadline, we actually end up noticing, it’s definitely going to take a little bit more time. It’s all just a little bit. But that’s why it’s important to have that clarity with a project management tool.

18:24

Yeah, and I’m thinking for spas like if they are hosting an event or something, right. Like when we get back to that space where we can do in person events. It’s like, yeah, let’s have an evening of beauty. But you have to what is the offer going to be? What are you going to be doing live demos? Are you going to be connecting with the reps? How are you going to invite the people? How are you going to market the people, I mean, there’s a huge project management board that goes into creating a successful event. And, you know, we have that instagrammable quote, that’s like when you fail to plan you plan to fail. And planning an event can be the difference of 1000s and 1000s and 1000s of dollars. If you spend an hour or two mapping out what you actually need to do, you can have just an event that is like, Whoa, like knocks your socks off. But if you just put it together last minute. And that is the power of a Project Manager, a Project Manager is really making sure that every single thing that you do in your company is planned out and organized. You work as Project Manager, but you do also simultaneously work as Director of Operations and really just making sure that every single person on our team and I think now there’s 12 people, if I’m correct. So we’ve got this is our leadership team here. 

19:55

But I think we have 12 people combination of employees and contractors and Making sure that everybody has their what you’re calling spark a single point of contact, right? Yes. And so they have their direct report and they understand, like, every single person understand who’s responsible for what. And that is something that having a project management board, and also an org chart in your company can really, really help with.

20:26

Yeah. And Daniela, building on that, in general, as a company to be successful. And for projects or everything to get done is, it’s also having that clear understanding of which role is everyone playing, and which ones responsibilities everyone has, and making sure there’s no overlap, that there’s like clear ownership of every person, everyone knows what they need to do. And then also being integrity of what is the work that you’re committed, what are you’re asked to do, and then actually delivering the work because in the end, the whole company and as a team, projects and sustaining a spa, like you have so many members, and team members building something together. So the end, it’s really everyone needs to be crystal clear. What are they doing? What’s their contribution to the company? And then everyone will be delivering on that? Because, yeah, as you’re saying, it’s like everyone has a single person of contact, everyone has some sort of ownership of the task.

21:26

Yeah, that’s, I think that’s been extremely helpful. Because, you know, what I think is important, too, is like, you know, we’re sitting here talking about how every single person’s role has evolved. And in a growing business, that’s going to happen, you’re never going to have all your systems figured out, you’re never going to have your exact job description or your exact org chart, because you get it mapped out. And then as the business grows, as the demands change, as family situations change, right, like all of that kind of stuff contributes to what is required in that specific role. 

22:05

So you’ve got to be, there’s a another handful of instagrammable quotes today. There’s another one that says, Be like bamboo, strong and flexible. And so you’ve got to be strong as a company and understand, like what’s required, but you also have to have flexibility, because things will always be growing and changing.

22:28

Okay, Danielle, tell us about your systems, like what helps you thrive in this role? What systems what processes?

22:37

Well, I’m starting my system right now, you probably saw me taking notes. So systems are a really big piece for me, especially because when it comes to a lot of our marketing, I’m the point person that it starts with, with the exception of the podcast where you record first, but then everyone else, their job depends on me getting my job done. And they can’t do what they need to do if I’m behind and not on schedule, or unclear of what my role or responsibility or my task ownership is. So I would say for me, I, a lot of times start from a blank slate in terms of, I get to just create, and I love doing that. But the systems are super important for me to understand how what I’m creating actually ends up as a tangible result that ends up getting seen, distributed, and ultimately helping the company grow and create the impact that we seek to make and move forward with the vision that you’ve set in place. So for me, the systems are really about making sure that I’m in integrity with what we’re doing vision wise.

23:47

One thing that I want to point out to you that I think is really interesting, I was just thinking about this as you were talking when we bring people onto our team, we’re big on the “MBTI, Myers Briggs Type Indicator”, I think our Core Four, we are all “ESFJ or “ISFJ”. And that is we are naturally operators, and we are very systems based people. And that is something that can be good or bad, but the way that we operate our company, it’s funny that like because we are all so structured in the way that we like things in the way that we focus on systems, you’ll find that it works either really well to have the same personality type or to have a different personality type that can fill the gaps. 

24:38

And I think Annie and I are “ESFJ” and I think Christy and Danielle are “ISFJ”, Is that right? Yeah, yeah. Very cool. I am surrounded by ESFJs, ISFJs and INTJs. So, food for thought. 

24:54

Okay, so any advice from any of you guys before we wrap up for spa owners who are looking To build their dream team. Like, what were some of the things  about our company that really helped you thrive? That like, I know having the systems in place, but what is it that really made you feel like you could step into your role and have that ownership that we could translate for something that a spa owner could do as they’re bringing people into their business?

25:25

I can start. I just think, Daniela, as you mentioned, you are always checking in and making sure that we’re happy, or that if there are additional tests that we want to do or go in a different direction, I think that can relate to spa because there’s so many different roles that a person could fill, you know, different service or whatnot. But I think it’s important to always be checking in and asking if they are happy, you’re not afraid to say what type of support do you need? I feel like a lot of times, you just know that, but that may not come naturally to some people. So I think just being upfront and asking is a huge thing for someone in a leadership role. Just find out what your people need, and support them and let them know that they have a voice as well. I think that’s one thing that you allow us to do is that even though you are the founder, we all have a voice and we are all encouraged to use it.

26:16

Good. So checking in with your people. I think I’m glad you feel that you have a voice. But I think it is so important for us as leaders, a lot of times there’s a problem, and we want to hire somebody, and we just want them to fix it right. And really developing a team is like helping them to understand the vision and what their role is in that company, and how they’re like, helping that vision. So yeah, I think that’s great in any business. 

26:43

Annie, do you wanna go next?

26:44

Yeah, and like building on what Christy just said, I would say, for me, the biggest part is, I mean, this is our business, and we’re doing our work, but it’s something that you’re great at, and it’s something that’s incredibly important for me is feeling like we’re all humans and being treated as a human and, like receiving that trust and freedom. But trust in the work that I’m doing that I’m gonna do the work. 

27:08

There’s micromanagers, macromanagers, and everything, you know, everyone works differently but, especially for me, as a Project Manager, it’s great that I’m not like you’re not micromanaging. I, you’re very clear on the guidance. I always know what’s your vision, and what’s your guidance, and then you let me one with the freedom and the trust that you give me. And that makes it incredibly joyful and easy for me to do the work. And still no, I’m a human. And we’re all having fun. Like in the end, it’s supposed to be fun, as much as we’re working. But it still needs to be fun and joyful.

27:44

Yeah. And I think that, you know, one of my mentors from spa, Matt Toronto, he said, Hey, we’re not curing cancer here. And that’s something that’s really important to remember. And that was, you know, we were just talking before we recorded the podcast, and in full transparency, you guys, I am behind on a bunch of my tasks. I am the bottleneck in the business right now. 

28:08

But I’m behind, because some of our students are going through some struggle right now with personal stuff. And they just needed some extra support. And so that means that my podcast episode didn’t get recorded. And that means that, you know, some other little tasks that I was supposed to do, didn’t get done. 

28:29

But family, for us is a core value and family affects your business. And so for me, if some of our students are having personal family struggles, we’re going to support them 100% even if that means the podcast episode gets pushed back, right. And we do that for our students, we do that for our team, you know, Annie, last week, or the week before you like guys, I’m just not gonna be able to make the meeting. And for me, I was like, Alright, cool. 

29:01

Because I know that there is if you say, you can’t make the meeting, I know you can’t make the meeting. It’s not like we have integrity is such a core value of who we are. That if someone says like, I’m sick, I’m not feeling well, I need to take a nap. I need to whatever. It’s like, Alright, I know that if you have that freedom to know that, because I know also, if it were like a crucial deadline, you’d be like, I’m going to do the, whatever needs to be done. And then I’m going to take my nap or whatever, you know, and I think that because we’ve built the relationship and know like what is required, and give each other that trust and flexibility which takes time, right? That’s not something that’s going to happen overnight. But that I think has really helped in everybody’s happiness. And in everybody’s, like, letting this feel like it is work but it’s it’s It is fun, I think that you it’s something that you desire to do and still can be motivated to do which is, is really important. 

30:07

So in spa, how can you create that, you know, it’s an It is like, just get interested in your people get to know who they are, and care about them. One of the things that I look for when I’m hiring is do I actually like this person? They may be so talented. But if I don’t like who they are as a person, I’m not going to hire them. Because I’m spending so much of my time with them. And if they are, like, high anxiety, or something that just doesn’t work with my personality, it’s not gonna happen. It’s higher the smile, train the skill, getting the right people is so important. 

30:51

Okay, Danielle, you’re up next.

30:54

I would say my biggest like tip that I learned through, it’s been interesting, just being one of the first people on the team, I’ve really seen the full evolution of systems like from the beginning. And I would say my big tip would be like, it’s truly never too early to start with systems. Like even if you are a solo, you still have systems. And they’re just living inside your head, and you need to document them. Because I remember when I started with you, you did not hand off this big SOPs to me, there was no Process St. , there was no nothing. 

31:28

But you did have I remember, vaguely…it was a Google Doc. Well, it was a Google Doc checklist, basically, of like, here’s what I’m doing. Here’s what I’m expecting in terms of like kind of the end result and what I’m hoping you will achieve with your role. But there was also that thing of you said, Now it’s your turn to like, you come up with the better system. And I think that’s something where it’s like we talked about SOPs. And you mentioned earlier about how it’s never going to be done. It’s always evolving and growing and shifting as the company grows, but starting somewhere and then building that trust with your team, that when someone has ownership and responsibilities over a certain role or process or an area of the business, that you say, now it’s your turn to iterate on the system, make it better, make it your own, so that it works for you, but also like documenting it so that if someone ever needs to step into that they can do it. And that’s how essentially it grows. 

32:35

So my biggest thing is just don’t be afraid to like start systems, even if you’re not planning on hiring anytime soon, it will only make the hiring and growth process so much easier when it’s actually time for that if it is ever time for that, which I think most people listening, like do have that goal, eventually, but it’s just, it’s never too early. And even if you’re solo, like having those systems set in place, and having them even very loosely documented is going to set you lightyears ahead and also just leadership wise, like I don’t know if you’ve actually read the book, “Dare To Lead”. Was that a book? Okay. I was gonna say from the beginning…

33:14

Clarity is Kindness. That was? Yeah.

33:17

Yes, you’ve embodied that from the very beginning, like clarity is kindness. And when it comes to team growth, because I’ve always known, and actually I do remember, when I was first starting you, I think had me rewrite your bio, and I did not nail it. Like, I just didn’t get it the way you were envisioning. And I remember being like, I blew it like, this is so not good. But you’re just like, no, this just didn’t end up how I want. This is what I’m looking for going forward, if we’re ever going to, like do this again. No big deal. And now you kind of know my expectations for this…

33:55

I do. Well, I do because I just remember being like, Oh my gosh, I blew the opportunity. Like she’s not gonna like have me write anything else for her. Because it was like an early task. But it was that thing of you didn’t make me feel bad or like I did something wrong. You just said I’m you actually I think took ownership of it. He said I didn’t clearly communicate what it is I was looking for. And I should have done that to begin with. And I just remember that really stuck with me where it was that thing of you told me like, this wasn’t what I was looking for. But I also didn’t clearly communicate that with you worked that out. And it’s been, you know, we have not run into anything like that before. And it’s because that was handled with kindness and clarity. It wasn’t that thing of like, Oh, well, I’m not going to tell her what’s you know, and then, and then you continue to have issues. It’s just there’s always been that culture within Addo Aesthetics. Whether it’s me or anybody else where we always I feel like I can communicate with Christy or Annie or anybody else on the team and say hey, this is can you please do this, this is what I’m looking for. And it’s just that clarity, peace and doing it with kindness. And that saves you every time.

35:07

Yeah, and and I think for me something that’s really important, as the owner is letting go of your ego. A lot of times we feel like we’re really cool because we started a business. 

35:21

But my job is like, how can I hire people that are better than me that are smarter than me, that can fill in the gaps. And a lot of people get intimidated by people that like, Oh, they know more than me, or Oh, that I never want to be the big fish in the room. And that goes in like my mastermind groups that goes in my friends circle. But it also goes in my team, it’s like, I have zero issue, I’m thrilled that I have people that are better than me, in their areas of expertise. Because the minute you think, you know, everything is the minute that you’re going to fail miserably, right?

36:01

And each person has their area that they’re just so good at. And if you can let them carve that out and let them really thrive. And do it don’t I think what I’m taking away here that we’ve done well is like giving you the space to do things in the way that works best for you. But also as the owner being comfortable saying no, that’s not aligned with the vision, let’s work it out, right, because people will be more productive. People will be happier when they can do things in a way that it works for their brain. So I think that’s really important. 

36:39

All right, you guys, let’s go ahead and wrap up this episode. So I hope that this helped for all the spa owners out there that are wanting to expand their team. It really like I just want to say even if you are a solo, you know, we’re dealing now like I’ve had some solo aestheticians, they’re having challenges, right, and they’re having to step away from their businesses because of health issues, or family emergencies or whatever. 

37:05

If you don’t have a system in place, for when something like that happens, it can feel even more chaotic, right? Because you’re not able to fully focus on the situation at hand. Even if it’s something planned, like maybe you’re going on maternity or maybe you’re going on vacation, and you need someone a virtual assistant for somebody to come in and handle the basic day to days of your company while you’re gone. Having those systems in place can just really tremendously help. So I want to encourage you no matter what level of business you’re at, to really consider that. It will help. Now, I hope you enjoyed this episode. And if you want to keep the conversation going, please head on over to the Spa Marketing Made Easy Facebook group and tag us we’ll be happy to answer your questions. 

37:56

As always, if you want to keep the conversation going, I want you to head on over to the Spa Marketing Made Easy Facebook group. The number one free resource out there for aestheticians focused on business building. We’ve got weekly marketing tips, a monthly goal setting and planning session, monthly aesthetician business book club, plus a community of thousands of aestheticians committed to business building in the spa industry. I’ll see you there.

Self-doubt, fear of rejection, not-enough-ness. As entrepreneurs, especially women, these are feelings many of us have experienced at some point along our journey. 

Or perhaps they’re feelings you grapple with on a regular basis, and are without question, the biggest roadblocks to living your purpose and bringing your vision of success to life. 

With a mission to help other women transform from underestimated to unstoppable, my guest on this episode, Jamie Kern Lima, is sharing the backstory behind her new book, “Believe IT,” and how the stories and lessons inside will work to help you ignite your deepest belief in yourself so you can step into you full power and achieve your biggest dreams.  

While “author” is the newest accolade to Jamie’s name, she is most notably known for being a once-struggling waitress who turned her against-the-grain idea for a makeup and beauty brand into an international bestselling sensation called IT Cosmetics, which eventually sold for over a billion dollars to L’Oréal where Jamie became the first female CEO of a brand in L’Oréal’s 100+ year history. 

Purpose-driven and belief-filled woman, mom, entrepreneur, CEO, author, and all-around icon – I’m honored to have Jamie on the show and know you’ll receive so much from her wisdom and joy that she exudes in sharing a piece of her story on this episode. 

In this episode, we discuss:

• Tuning into your inner knowing and cultivating self-trust to guide you toward accomplishing your biggest goals and crafting your unique vision of success 
• Jamie’s story of why she wrote her new book, “Believe IT” and what readers will take away from her stories behind building one of the biggest beauty brands in the world and the woman she became in the process 
• How the changing media landscape makes it possible for anyone to grab the microphone, and Jamie’s insights on how wield it as a force for good 
• The power of your Why as a woman and an entrepreneur and steps for gaining greater clarity on your own Why

References Mentioned in Episode #211: Going from Underestimated to Unstoppable with Jamie Kern Lima 

• Learn more about Jamie’s story and get her book, “Believe IT,” on her website or wherever books are sold
• Get the free accompanying guide to Jamie’s book, “Believe IT” at believeit.com
• Connect with Jamie on Instagram @jamiekernlima and on Facebook
• To keep the conversation going, ask questions, and connect with other like-minded aestheticians building thriving careers, click here to join the free Spa Marketing Made Easy Podcast community. 

As a thank you for being a loyal listener to the Spa Marketing Made Easy podcast and for helping us to reach more aestheticians working on growing their businesses and creating a life they love, we have created a free resource portal just for you! 

It’s totally free to join, and for every 25 reviews we get on iTunes, we’ll add a new training video, PDF, tracker, or other high-value resource to help you grow your aesthetic business!

If you have yet to leave a review, click here to leave one on iTunes, and click here to access the free resources already unlocked! 

While we may be in the home stretch of the pandemic, its effects are without-a-doubt still being felt, especially for entrepreneurs who are also parents of school-aged children.

While this episode’s topic is one that deviates from our normal discussion here on the Spa Marketing Made Easy podcast, I think it’s a critical one to examine. 

This past year has really put into focus how vital it is to have support and connection in our lives, and as entrepreneurs and leaders, the balance between surviving through the pandemic while being a parent moonlighting as a school teacher, has been a tough one to navigate, which is why I wanted to bring Lemi-Ola Erinkitola on to the show. 

Lemi-Ola Erinkitola is the founder of The Critical Thinking Child where she has spent the past 15 years helping hundreds of busy moms and dads from all over the world uncover, optimize, and accelerate their child’s academic and gifted potential. 

In addition to her work within The Critical Thinking Child, Lemi-Ola is also an award-winning educator, parent coach, children’s author, and total nerd when it comes to spatial puzzles.

Her life’s work and passion is helping parents nurture their child’s learning potential in an engaging and joyful way so kids can fast track learning, discover their gifts and reclaim family time. 

Sounds like a dream, doesn’t it? 

Well, in this episode, Lemi-Ola showcases how this style of learning and educational enrichment doesn’t need to be as time-consuming as we think and that reaching out for support is one of the best ways to help ourselves as leaders and parents.

Even if you’re not yet a parent or don’t plan to be, I believe every leader can walk away with some great nuggets of wisdom from this episode around finding places to provide support, pivoting, and infusing joy and celebration into your work. 

In this episode, we discuss: 

• Lemi-Ola’s backstory behind founding The Critical Thinking Child as a mom and former parent working in Corporate America 
• Why access to learning and educational support for emerging students is critical for their development and key for helping parents keep their kids on a strong development track
• How Lemi-Ola has pivoted The Critical Thinking Child’s offerings throughout the pandemic to support working parents juggling home and virtual schooling
• Encouragement on asking for help and seeking support as parents, entrepreneurs, and leaders

References Mentioned in Episode #202: Finding Learning Support as a Parent in Leadership with Lemi-Ola of The Critical Thinking Child  

• Learn more about Lemi-Ola and her company, The Critical Thinking Child on their website 
• Get Lemi-Ola’s free guide, “The Ultimate Guide for a Successful School Year” 
• Connect with The Critical Thinking Child on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter
• Connect with Lemi-Ola Erinkitola on LinkedIn 
• To keep the conversation going, ask questions, and connect with other like-minded aestheticians building thriving careers, click here to join the free Spa Marketing Made Easy Podcast community. 

As a thank you for being a loyal listener to the Spa Marketing Made Easy podcast and for helping us to reach more aestheticians working on growing their businesses and creating a life they love, we have created a free resource portal just for you! 

It’s totally free to join, and for every 25 reviews we get on iTunes, we’ll add a new training video, PDF, tracker, or other high-value resource to help you grow your aesthetic business!

If you have yet to leave a review, click here to leave one on iTunes, and click here to access the free resources already unlocked! 

In light of all of the events in 2020 (the pandemic, increased support of the Black Lives Matter movement in the wake of the murder of George Floyd, economic crisis), and how they all weave and converge together, in celebration of Black History Month in 2021, I wanted to feature three Black business owners who have made a profound impact in their industries, in my business, and on my own entrepreneurial journey.  

While there is a vast amount of work to be done to break apart the forces of systemic racism and oppression, the array of events in 2020 will forever be a part of Black History, and to make the future brighter and more equitable, it’s crucial to continue supporting and sharing about Black-owned business. 

So without further adieu, here are three entrepreneurs I’m honored to know and learn from, and I think you should, too. 

In this episode, you’ll hear:

• Critical statistics surrounding Black women in the workforce and Black-owned businesses amidst the Covid-19 pandemic
• Why amplifying the voices of Black-owned businesses is key to creating a more equitable future and economic landscape 
• Highlights on three entrepreneurs and how their genius can help you become a better leader, business owner, and aesthetician 

References Mentioned in Episode #193: Celebrating Black-Owned Businesses You Need to Know

• Meet Kendra J. Lewis aka The Boss Architect and visit her website and connect with her on social 
• Listen to Episode #168 with Kendra – Getting Your Mind Right for Growth
• Learn more from JoElle via her website and connect with her on social 
• Listen to Episode #148 with JoElle – Developing the Critical Skill of Treating Multicultural Skin 
• Meet Njeru Nthigah and learn more about his work via his website and connect with him via Facebook
• Listen to Episode #088 with Njeru – How to Grow into the Leader Your Business Needs
• To keep the conversation going, ask questions, and connect with other like-minded aestheticians building thriving careers, click here to join the free Spa Marketing Made Easy Podcast community. 

As a thank you for being a loyal listener to the Spa Marketing Made Easy podcast and for helping us to reach more aestheticians working on growing their businesses and creating a life they love, we have created a free resource portal just for you! 

It’s totally free to join, and for every 25 reviews we get on iTunes, we’ll add a new training video, PDF, tracker, or other high-value resource to help you grow your aesthetic business!

If you have yet to leave a review, click here to leave one on iTunes, and click here to access the free resources already unlocked! 

Being a leader bears a lot of responsibility. 

Your team is counting on you to lead them to the bigger dream and vision. 

And even if you’re a solo aesthetician, you have to know how to be your own leader in order to grow, attract the kinds of clientele you seek, and scale should you have the desire to do so. 

But here’s the thing — if you’re not clear on your values, vision, and how to use your voice to lead, that vision is going to stay in the distance. 

Enter — Leslie D. Lyons. 

Leslie is the Founder of Bombshell Movement Studio in Chicago, host of the Beyond the Pole: Tales from the CEO podcast, and a sales and leadership coach for female entrepreneurs. 

With a background in corporate sales, youth ministry (yes, she’s a Christian and the owner of a pole studio!), and as a leader for studio owners throughout the U.S., Leslie has spent her life pouring into women emotionally and spiritually.

And now, more than ever, her dedication to helping entrepreneurial women lead with their heart and head is the exact type of leadership we need to see in the world. 

Tune in as we talk about defining your values, finding your voice, and being an authentic leader — Leslie’s energy is infectious and I know you’re going to leave this episode feeling empowered and encouraged because I certainly did! 

In this episode, we discuss: 

• Leslie’s journey to becoming a leadership coach and the common threads she’s found in her work with a wide variety of women in leadership roles 
• How women often let imposter syndrome stand in their way of what they really want and the difference between aspirational vs. innate values and the role they play in your leadership style 
• How Leslie uses the Enneagram personality assessment in her work to help her clients understand their natural tendencies in leadership 
• What it means to be a values-based leader and how your values and voice work together to rally your team and make you a magnet for your ideal clients and customers 

References Mentioned in Episode #190: Becoming a Values-Based Leader with Leslie D. Lyons

• Connect with Leslie and learn more about her work at www.lesliedlyons.com and connect with her on Instagram @lesliedlyons
• To keep the conversation going, ask questions, and connect with other like-minded aestheticians building thriving careers, click here to join the free Spa Marketing Made Easy Podcast community. 

As a thank you for being a loyal listener to the Spa Marketing Made Easy podcast and for helping us to reach more aestheticians working on growing their businesses and creating a life they love, we have created a free resource portal just for you! 

It’s totally free to join, and for every 25 reviews we get on iTunes, we’ll add a new training video, PDF, tracker, or other high-value resource to help you grow your aesthetic business!

If you have yet to leave a review, click here to leave one on iTunes, and click here to access the free resources already unlocked! 

Whew, friends, we made it! 

Well, nearly…as we come close to crossing the threshold into 2021, you might find yourself barreling toward the finish line ready to put this year in the rearview and race as far away as possible. 

I hear you and I get it. 

This past year was every adjective for “not normal” in the book, yet it’s also been a year filled with boundless opportunities and proof that when we need to rise up and be strong, the spa industry isn’t going down, and definitely not without a fight. 

From the very start of Quarter 2 when the pandemic began, I saw spa owners build out an ecommerce store overnight and craft all new offerings that expanded their audience from local to nationwide.

I saw some spa owners close their brick-and-mortar businesses, dive all-in on building a brand online, and begin utilizing their esthetic influence and expertise to start educating and consulting. 

I also went on a full 2-month maternity leave at the very beginning of the pandemic and saw once again the power of systems and processes in business, and how even in the shakiest of times, it’s those systems that keep the ground underneath your business steady. 

Yes, it was a year of tough times and tribulations, but I truly believe that if we approach reflecting on this year with the right mindset, 2020 be that pivotal point in our journey where we can look back at how much we’ve grown and accomplished and think, “that’s the year it all changed.”

I want to take a moment to reflect with you in this week’s podcast episode and to set the stage for a great year ahead. If you’re ready for a restart, first, we’ve got to plan for it, which is exactly what I’ll guide you through in this final episode of 2020. 

So sit back, pill up an earbud, and let’s close this year out with a bang and a plan! 

In this episode, I’ll guide you through: 

• Reflective questions to ask when assessing how you want the next year to look and feel
• Pinpointing areas of growth and development that you would like to focus on
• Structuring your calendar and your time to give you the space and bandwidth for reaching your goals 
• Getting clear on your goals so you have milestones to hit and benchmarks to reach that will help you indicate whether you’re on course or need to pivot 
• Putting the pieces together to form your marketing action plan that carries you through all of 2021

References Mentioned in Episode #179: Conducting a Yearly Review for Future Success

• To keep the conversation going, ask questions, and connect with other like-minded aestheticians building thriving careers, click here to join the free Spa Marketing Made Easy Podcast community. 

As a thank you for being a loyal listener to the Spa Marketing Made Easy podcast and for helping us to reach more aestheticians working on growing their businesses and creating a life they love, we have created a free resource portal just for you! 

It’s totally free to join, and for every 25 reviews we get on iTunes, we’ll add a new training video, PDF, tracker, or other high-value resource to help you grow your aesthetic business!

If you have yet to leave a review, click here to leave one on iTunes, and click here to access the free resources already unlocked!