E is for effort…and more.

Hello, faithful followers if there are any of you left!  I will apologize quickly for being away so long.  No excuses except those we always use and I will try not to let it happen again.  My Mom has arrived from Michigan for the winter-apparently in the nick of time!  I hope those of you with the day off are enjoying it completely and doing something not work related.

I get more and more excited about once again having my own inn.  The small business association provides some good examples of inn-specific business plans and I have been reading some of those.  So I am about ready to start on my own outline.  I have joined the Professional Association if Innkeepers International for the second time around as an aspiring member, and reading information and connecting with other innkeepers in the forums feels like reconnecting with an old friend.  While I know I have a lot of hard work ahead of me, I am feeling very committed and know I will get through the tougher aspects of re-inning.

Regarding E!  Well, the amount of Effort needed to have a successful inn requires a lot of Energy.  One of the reasons I have ruled out smaller b&b’s is that I have already done that and feel like my energies would be better spent marketing, chatting with guests and managing, rather than making beds and doing laundry all day, plus everything else.  One area I do want to remain active in from previous experience is breakfast!  Keeping up energy levels also requires some work.  I do yoga and eat well, and also eat my healthy chocolate cookie every day.  It really gets me through long days, keeps my mood even, and helps me sleep better.  Please see my links if you are interested in chocolate that tastes good and is loaded with antioxidants, omega3′s and probiotics.  If you are going to eat chocolate, there’s no harm in having it be good for you!

Expenses-okay, who even wants to hear that word this time of year!  I will keep it short so we can quit thinking about it quickly.  Budgeting for expenses is one of the most important things an owner will do concerning the day to day running of the inn.  Otherwise it is so easy for money to fly out the door even more quickly than it will anyway.  When looking at an existing inn to purchase, you will find out when doing your due diligence if expenses are in line for that specific inn.  In general, the more luxurious the rooms, the more it costs to run them.  It really can be sticker shock and that is why it is important to have a grasp on these sorts of issues going in-there is no getting around the issues of expenses and the need to have a handle on them. It’s Elemental!

E also covers Employees.  This will be a growing edge for me.  I always had good luck with the housekeepers I had previously, so I’m hopeful I will be able to make the leap to a larger staff.  Along with all the paperwork sort of issues that go with having employees, there seems to be a good amount of intuition needed to keep everything running smoothly.  The paperwork is just something to do, so I will focus learning more about the human relations part of management.

So….E is not the most exciting letter so far.  But that is how the inn business is;  often crucial and sometimes tedious work to provide a wonderful guest experience.

Hopefully you are all enjoying the holiday season.  We are progressing here.  Tree is on the patio waiting to come in and get decorated.  Outside lights are out of storage and will be on the trees soon.  And even though we are committed to a one-gift  Christmas, shopping and secret hiding places abound!

Be well.  F and luxuries like Feather comforters are next-something I’m sure many of you are enjoying right now!

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