We need to talk…
Our team has been doing a lot of recent focusing on the subject of self care. As animal caregivers and workers in the customer service industry, we often find ourselves putting our own needs at the bottom of our “to do” lists. We spend our days working to maintain certain levels of patience and positive energy for the sake of our four and two legged clients. This is not always easy as many pets are not perfect little statues and many clients have expectations that can’t always be met. We are very good at accommodating others and making room in our schedules even if it means we have to cut into our personal time to come to work early or stay late. We’re always adding on “just one more appointment” because a customer pleads with us to get their pet in asap and before we know it we’re working 10-12 hour days. We have a laundry list of things that need to be done each day besides our regular grooming services. Phone calls have to be made, cleaning has to be done, and there is the ever present pressure to be sure we are booking enough appointments to make enough money. Taking time off is not something we’re able to do lightly. We don’t get paid sick or vacation time. And if we do need to take a day off there is the stress of having to reschedule clients..somehow finding a way to squeeze them into another time amidst an already full schedule, creating more long days for our tired minds and bodies. A few years into this career and most of us are exhausted and not looking forward to more of the same.
We love you and your dogs, we do!! And we want to give them everything we have!! We realize, though, that we can not succeed at this unless we take care of ourselves first!
So we’ve been having discussions about how to build our confidence so we feel good about and value ourselves, how to work a little less to avoid burnout, and how important it is to put our own needs first. This has brought us to the decision that we need to make some changes and get serious about some policies.
Self care looks different for everyone so each of us will be working on making whatever changes feel right to us as far as scheduling and availability, especially as we go forward with taking new clients soon. One of the polices we feel we need to crack down on is our cancellation policy.
We will be editing it to a 50% service charge across the board for any and all missed appointments without 24 hours notice. We’ve been pretty lax on missed cancellations and no shows until now but we need to remind ourselves how important our time is and we have to put a value on that! We totally understand that life happens! We absolutely won’t hold that against you but we do ask that you understand and respect the financial effect missed appointments have on us and our need to crack down on this policy.
Another policy we will be bringing into the picture is a new client deposit! Going forward, all new clients will be required to pay a 50% deposit for their first appointment as a display of their commitment to becoming a member of the Pawmasté family. This deposit will then be put towards the cost of their first visit.
That’s all for now, but we’ll always do our best to communicate with you as we move forward on our self care journey!
In the meantime, here are some ways you can help us remember how important we are…
**Tell us! Love your groomer? Let her know! Tell us if you’re happy with a haircut or with the special care we give your pet. We will NEVER get tired of hearing it!
**Leave a review on our Facebook or Google page! Telling the world how awesome you think we are is a huge confidence boost!
**Respect our time. Don’t complain about our cancellation fee, try to be on time for your appointments, don’t give us the responsibility of reminding you of your appointment (we have our own lives to keep track of-you can always opt in to our automated text/email reminders), understand how busy our days are and don’t rush us!
**Respect our knowledge. We have done and continue to do tons of learning in our field. Trust us. Don’t expect miracles. Don’t ask us for the impossible. Allow us to put your pets comfort first! Don’t be upset with us if we have to shave mats or if we can’t do the perfect haircut on your wiggly pet.
** Remember that we are human! We will get sick. We need vacations. We will have bad days and days where we’re not our best selves. Be compassionate. Be real with us and let us be real with you
**Tipping is, of course, always appreciated (cash is our favorite) but never expected. We know times are tight. Your praise and respect goes a long way too 🥰