A recent study by Pitango found the most common work-related gripe going is our colleagues bad eating habits. Here are 7 others you may be able to relate to.
#1. She’s a train-wreck
There are some girls who show up to work with a pristine uniform, clean shoes and hair done just so (ok, that might be you). But then, there is the girl who is always ten minutes late; is often running to the dry-cleaners to find a uniform she might have left there three weeks ago; and is constantly asking you for bobby pins and hair ties.
What to do: We know, you want to sit her down and give her a piece of your mind. But don’t; she really just needs some guidance from someone (looking at you again) who has their, umm, stuff together.
#2. She likes smelly food
Yep, your work mate had a craving for Mongolian lamb at the Chinese restaurant down the road, then to help it all digest, she’s sipping on kombucha, meaning your salon kitchen has some vaguely off-putting odours emanating from it for the rest of the day.
What to do: Wax lyric about the health benefits and general deliciousness of the avocado salad at the café next door. (And suggest she take a load off and eat in.)
#3. She’s a hoarder
We are living in an age of excess. Even the most minimalist among us, has so much stuff we barely know what to do with it all. If you have a colleague who is buying up big every lunch break and using your salon as the delivery address for her (many) online purchases, her hoarding habits might be getting out of hand.
What to do: Did you know that “stuffocation” is a real modern issue? Yes, with so many purchasing options out there, the temptation to flex the plastic has reached epidemic proportions. As long as it’s not affecting you or your salon team, what a person does with her money, is really her business, not yours. But if you think her spending is getting out of hand, you might want to take her out for lunch (somewhere away from the shops) and let her know that you’re there if she wants to talk about her collecting compulsions.
#4. She’s a red hot mess..
She might look put together, but actually, when you get to know her, you realise that she is about as neat as a possum trapped in a kitchen (i.e. not very). She leaves wet towels lying about, she chucks wax strips at the bin then misses, she loses receipts at reception… And let’s not even talk about what she has done to the microwave.
What to do: Don’t lose your cool (yep, hard). What you should do instead is set down guidelines. Go through how things should be done with your whole team. Give your colleagues jobs and make them accountable for their assigned roles. Putting up the odd notice (“How to wash your hands!”, “Put used wax strips in the bin!”, “Towels go here!”) may feel as though you’re stating the obvious but you’ll be surprised how it prompts the messier among us into action.
#5. She’s always borrowing your stuff
It’s just the odd dollar here, the share of your favourite morning muffin there, the odd boz of the hand cream every now and then. It’s nothing, but it gets on your nerves.
What to do: Make light of it. People who ask for things constantly, tend to keep asking until they find the limit. So give your limits, but make it fun. Saying something (preferably with an audience) such as “You owe me a drink after work with all the money you owe me” or “what do you do with your bobby pins? Eat them?!”, or “you’re a beauty professional, you should have hand cream in that bag of yours!” should give her the hint.
#6. She’s a bit, well, grubby
She doesn’t smell exactly but there is something just sort of unclean about her. Her hair is always a bit blah; her makeup bag is so tatty and grubby it looks like it might have been passed down from her great grandmother; her nails are un-kept. For some reason, you just don’t want to get too close.
What to do: If she is a beauty professional working with clients, whatever you do, you need to do it fast; grubbiness of any sort can spread bacteria and other germs. The truth is, some people just haven’t been taught properly so talk to your salon staff members about the importance of cleanliness. Show them how to keep the salon hygienic, and while you’re at it talk about the simple ways (think regular hand washing; and doing a seasonal makeup bag overhaul) to keep their personal hygiene in check.
#7. She’s always late
Bus broke down? Lost her wallet? The dog ate her, um… uniform? The excuses for her lateness are getting more and more complex and you’ve had enough of covering for her tardiness.
What to do: It’s difficult to run a smooth business when you have a staff member running late all the time. You could take the hard line by sitting her down and giving her a review of her problems with punctuality. But if you have the staff numbers to be flexible, and the girl really just cannot get out of bed early, suggest she takes the late shifts. Perhaps she comes in an hour later and closes up for the early birds. (That, or buy her a really loud alarm clock.)