Maggie Rants [and Raves]

10 Minutes or Bust

by Maggie Franklin | January 29, 2015 | Bookmark +

The problem with being busy is that I’m busy. Busy means I have appointments stacked up against each other, with very little white space between clients in my appointment book. FYI: “White space” means the background color of the schedule is showing. Which is another issue altogether. My clients are used to seeing my schedule on the computer behind me, so for those who don’t have standing appointments and want me to book their next appointment two weeks from the one we just finished, they see little glimpses of white between the pinks and greens and purples I’ve chosen for my color coded services and then they’re all like, “What about that spot right there, Maggie?”

I have to patiently explain that that spot represents a 15-minute block of time. Sometimes half an hour. I am not telling them that the next opening is six weeks out just to mess with their heads.

Grrrr.

Lately, I have been sending a lot of people home as soon as they walk through my door.

Why?

Because they are showing up 15 minutes late!

Grrrr again.

I give everyone 10 minutes. If I know I can reasonably allow it, I’ll give them 15. Since the beginning of the year, I have had a maddening number of people calling or texting me at the very moment they should be walking through my salon door to tell me they are just leaving the place they are coming from. I reply that they have 10 (or 15) minutes or they’ll just have to turn around. Sometimes they make it, sometimes they don’t.

What gets on my nerves is how often someone walks in just after I’ve sent them the “It’s been 10 minutes and now you’re SOL” text/call and they stare at me like they can’t believe I’m actually telling them they can’t get their nails done. Then they hem and haw for a moment and then give me some reason they were late.

It doesn’t matter why you were late! I am really sorry that your dad died, that your husband fell off a ladder, that aliens landed in the street in front of you and blocked your way. Whatever happened, I’m sorry. But when you think “What the heck? It’s only 15 minutes,” I’m thinking, “Yeah, and you were too late at 10. Fifteen is a QUARTER of your appointment time!”

The least they could do is call or text me to let me know they are going to be late. Not look at me like a deer in headlights when I tell them I tried to get ahold of them to let them know there was no point in showing up.

Then it leaves me with 45 minutes to sit here and look like I’m not busy at all. That’s a weird feeling — like I’m so busy I can’t do it if you’re late, but since you were too late for me to do it, now I’m not busy.

Grrrr.

 

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