womanthismonth.com | SEPTEMBER 2026 BEAUTY 81 The Uber Lesson Every Manager Should Learn Imagine booking an Uber to take you to the airport. Perhaps you do not have a car, do not know the best route or simply want an experienced driver to get you safely to your destination. You trust the driver because this is their job and you expect them to know what they are doing. Now imagine spending the entire journey giving instructions: “Turn left. Take this road. Slow down. Stop here.” Then, halfway through the trip, you tell the driver to move aside because you are going to drive instead. You hired someone to do a job, but never actually allowed them to do it. It sounds ridiculous, yet this is exactly what many business owners do with their teams. They recruit people because they need support, experience or skills they do not have themselves, then immediately take control of every decision. Employees are told: “Ask me before doing anything”, “Come to me if there is a problem” or “I will handle it.” Most owners do this with good intentions. They care about their business, want to maintain quality and naturally want to avoid mistakes. However, over time, this approach creates another problem. The team stops thinking independently. Employees become reluctant to take initiative because they learn that the safest option is always to ask the owner. Eventually, the owner becomes frustrated and wonders why everything still depends on them. The answer is simple: the team was never given the opportunity to take responsibility. Leadership is not about having every answer. It is about developing people who are capable of finding answers themselves. When you hire someone, do not simply give them a list of tasks. Explain clearly what results you expect them to achieve and what their responsibilities are. Then ask an important question: “What do you need from me to succeed?” That simple change can transform the relationship. Instead of creating an employee who brings every problem to you, you begin developing someone who can think independently, take ownership and grow within the business. A leader’s role is to provide direction, training, support and feedback, not to control every step. Of course, employees need guidance and mistakes will happen. Delegating responsibility does not mean abandoning standards. It means giving people enough structure, knowledge and trust to make decisions within those standards. A salon cannot grow if the owner is the only person capable of making decisions. If every client issue, staff question or operational problem requires the owner’s involvement, growth will always be limited by how much one person can handle. The goal of leadership is not to make yourself indispensable. It is to build a team that understands the vision, knows its responsibilities and can keep the business moving forward, even when you are not in the driver’s seat. Every month, we invite readers to pose their own questions for Badia to answer in her next column. Make sure to ask your own by emailing [email protected] A k Badia Your Monthly Guide to Salon and Spa Success ? How long should I give a new employee before deciding if they are the right fit? Do not judge too quickly. A three-month probation period gives both sides time to adjust. Before making a decision, ask yourself whether you clearly explained the role and expectations, provided proper training and gave regular feedback. Review progress throughout the probation period, not only at the end. Should I solve my team’s problems or let them find the solution? Do not become the answer to every question. When someone brings you a problem, ask: “What do you think we should do?” This develops confidence and decision-making skills. Your role is to coach their thinking, not to think for them. What is the biggest sign that my business depends too much on me? Ask yourself: “If I take one week off, can my business continue smoothly?” If every decision, problem and question comes back to you, the business depends on you rather than its systems. Strong leaders build teams that understand the vision and know how to take responsibility.
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy Mjk0MTkxMQ==