This past season, my business grew exponentially from 2017; and by the fall, I was starting to demonstrate signs of fatigue. My husband suggested (actually, insisted) that I book some time off for "me-time". So although, I was still in-season, I took a money-maker weekend to attend to myself. Two of my fellow September-born girlfriends joined me for a weekend of massages, late night fireside drinks, long talks, long forested walks, excellent food and hydro-therapy at a world-class, luxury spa-resort in Ontario. I came back refreshed to complete the end of season. Next year, I plan to take regular down-time. It's easy to get too caught up in the wheel, and forget oneself and our balance of work-life. We have to remember that the service we provide to others is only as good, as we ourselves look and feel.
Our life revolves around the B&B, and because this is the beginning of our third year, we are finally getting bookings in the winter months. If we wanted to take time off, we would do one of two things. 1) we would hire someone to stay, greet the guests, cook the breakfast and take payment, prior to the guests stay; or 2) book off a block on sites like BBCanada and Airbnb so no one could book when we were away. I would not say that no one was there because that might be a signal to thieves that the place was empty. To find people to do this would be easy as we live in a rural community and there would be many people who would want to do this. We have a good idea of when off-season is, so if we were going to take a vacation, we would plan it then.
Business from Lake Geneva, WI
Answered on Jan 18th, 2019
I have been an innkeeper for 33 years. No burnout. I offer early arrival of noon to all of my arrivals. Most of my guests try to arrive early. Thus, once the guests are in, I am able to run an errand or visit a friend either at the inn or their home. I'm in a rural area but a very busy downtown 2 blocks away. I'm able to be in the gardens or one of the patio areas relaxing by gardening ,yet present for my guests if they need me.
I have to stay busy so for a change of pace and mental focus I volunteer, serving on the Board of the county chamber of commerce, volunteer as a rescue dog transporter, work as a costumed worker and history interpreter at an 18th century village, plus a couple other occasional volunteer activities. In the summer I love to work on landscaping.
You need to find the rhythm of you area. Don't be afraid to close down on the two quietest days or at least 1 day a week to have for your self. We found there are certain times in the year that are busy from sun up to sun down but then we have our slow time and we get to be the traveler or do a project to make the property better. At first it is crazy and then you get your feet under you and it becomes easier. Hang in there.
We have only been in business less than two years and have done extensive renovations and landscaping since we moved in, along with taking a steady increase of guests. We also have a cottage property that we rent out to many guests during the summer and winter seasons so we are sometimes running in both directions. All of this keeps us quite busy but we enjoy creating beauty and comfortable surroundings for all of our guests, so it doesn't feel like work to us and we still have time to relax in between guests. We block off dates for our cottage time as well so I think we have a nice balance that works for us.
Business from Stratford, ON
Answered on Jan 18th, 2019
At our Bed and Breakfast we started blocking off one day a week, Monday night, when the Theatre was dark, as our day off. Now we block off Sunday and Monday nights before the season starts, plus any other days we wish to have off, like a long weekend here and there. It has not affected our business to any significant degree, as the Stratford Festival typically has performances Tuesday through Saturday. If a repeat customer calls to book a blocked off room for more than a one-night stay, if we haven't made specific plans ourselves, we unblock all the rooms for that day. This happens occasionally, but not often.
Hi Shirley, I am closed in the winter, which is pretty much the only time I can get rested. In season, I try to give myself two hours in the middle of the day, after breakfast, before check ins, when I have housekeepers. I either nap or run errands on my motorcycle. How about you?
We've decided the last few years to block off a week to go away. The lost income is well worth our mental health we have found. And we go away -even if it is a camping trip, or an airbhb within a days drive. A staycation does not work for me as a little task ends up a whole day lost. I've experienced burn out and this is the best remedy. The hardest thing is saying no to bookings
Shirley: That is difficult for sure, because we have a big old home (1825) that requires constant maintenance and update. We need every penny we make, so just "closing" is always a problem. I didn't close for a very long time - we have owned our B&B for 12 1/2 years. But, I suffered burnout and impatience. We finally decided to take a week for ourselves in November when we slow down, and yes, we shut down. We owe it to ourselves to stay healthy and take a break. Is it enough? No. But it is something. Having a B&B is truly a lifestyle change. Daily, if we have something special we want to do, I just take the phone with me to catch calls of possible folks looking for accommodations. Sometimes, I do not do that either, because they can leave us a message if they truly want to stay here. It is truly a balancing act, and you have to find what works for you. I had to have my cousin and daughter take over for me on a peak weekend when our son was married in Pittsburgh, PA. We were gone 4 days. Everything went well, except for one family from Singapore who took total advantage of the situation and had my cousin's daughter babysitting while they relaxed in their room. They checked out 3 hours late, and when I tried to charge them for the babysitting and late check-out, they were outraged. I learn from every new experience. Good luck, and take a break. You deserve it!
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Answers (1-10)
This past season, my business grew exponentially from 2017; and by the fall, I was starting to demonstrate signs of fatigue. My husband suggested (actually, insisted) that I book some time off for "me-time". So although, I was still in-season, I took a money-maker weekend to attend to myself. Two of my fellow September-born girlfriends joined me for a weekend of massages, late night fireside drinks, long talks, long forested walks, excellent food and hydro-therapy at a world-class, luxury spa-resort in Ontario. I came back refreshed to complete the end of season. Next year, I plan to take regular down-time. It's easy to get too caught up in the wheel, and forget oneself and our balance of work-life. We have to remember that the service we provide to others is only as good, as we ourselves look and feel.
Our life revolves around the B&B, and because this is the beginning of our third year, we are finally getting bookings in the winter months. If we wanted to take time off, we would do one of two things. 1) we would hire someone to stay, greet the guests, cook the breakfast and take payment, prior to the guests stay; or 2) book off a block on sites like BBCanada and Airbnb so no one could book when we were away. I would not say that no one was there because that might be a signal to thieves that the place was empty. To find people to do this would be easy as we live in a rural community and there would be many people who would want to do this. We have a good idea of when off-season is, so if we were going to take a vacation, we would plan it then.
I have been an innkeeper for 33 years. No burnout. I offer early arrival of noon to all of my arrivals. Most of my guests try to arrive early. Thus, once the guests are in, I am able to run an errand or visit a friend either at the inn or their home. I'm in a rural area but a very busy downtown 2 blocks away. I'm able to be in the gardens or one of the patio areas relaxing by gardening ,yet present for my guests if they need me.
I have to stay busy so for a change of pace and mental focus I volunteer, serving on the Board of the county chamber of commerce, volunteer as a rescue dog transporter, work as a costumed worker and history interpreter at an 18th century village, plus a couple other occasional volunteer activities. In the summer I love to work on landscaping.
You need to find the rhythm of you area. Don't be afraid to close down on the two quietest days or at least 1 day a week to have for your self. We found there are certain times in the year that are busy from sun up to sun down but then we have our slow time and we get to be the traveler or do a project to make the property better. At first it is crazy and then you get your feet under you and it becomes easier. Hang in there.
We have only been in business less than two years and have done extensive renovations and landscaping since we moved in, along with taking a steady increase of guests. We also have a cottage property that we rent out to many guests during the summer and winter seasons so we are sometimes running in both directions. All of this keeps us quite busy but we enjoy creating beauty and comfortable surroundings for all of our guests, so it doesn't feel like work to us and we still have time to relax in between guests. We block off dates for our cottage time as well so I think we have a nice balance that works for us.
At our Bed and Breakfast we started blocking off one day a week, Monday night, when the Theatre was dark, as our day off. Now we block off Sunday and Monday nights before the season starts, plus any other days we wish to have off, like a long weekend here and there. It has not affected our business to any significant degree, as the Stratford Festival typically has performances Tuesday through Saturday. If a repeat customer calls to book a blocked off room for more than a one-night stay, if we haven't made specific plans ourselves, we unblock all the rooms for that day. This happens occasionally, but not often.
Hi Shirley, I am closed in the winter, which is pretty much the only time I can get rested. In season, I try to give myself two hours in the middle of the day, after breakfast, before check ins, when I have housekeepers. I either nap or run errands on my motorcycle. How about you?
We've decided the last few years to block off a week to go away. The lost income is well worth our mental health we have found. And we go away -even if it is a camping trip, or an airbhb within a days drive. A staycation does not work for me as a little task ends up a whole day lost. I've experienced burn out and this is the best remedy. The hardest thing is saying no to bookings
Shirley: That is difficult for sure, because we have a big old home (1825) that requires constant maintenance and update. We need every penny we make, so just "closing" is always a problem. I didn't close for a very long time - we have owned our B&B for 12 1/2 years. But, I suffered burnout and impatience. We finally decided to take a week for ourselves in November when we slow down, and yes, we shut down. We owe it to ourselves to stay healthy and take a break. Is it enough? No. But it is something. Having a B&B is truly a lifestyle change. Daily, if we have something special we want to do, I just take the phone with me to catch calls of possible folks looking for accommodations. Sometimes, I do not do that either, because they can leave us a message if they truly want to stay here. It is truly a balancing act, and you have to find what works for you. I had to have my cousin and daughter take over for me on a peak weekend when our son was married in Pittsburgh, PA. We were gone 4 days. Everything went well, except for one family from Singapore who took total advantage of the situation and had my cousin's daughter babysitting while they relaxed in their room. They checked out 3 hours late, and when I tried to charge them for the babysitting and late check-out, they were outraged. I learn from every new experience. Good luck, and take a break. You deserve it!