How To Balance Work And Life As A Lash Artist

Keeping up with the latest trends in the industry is a full time job in itself, not to mention the day to day responsibilities in running a successful, sustainable business. Now add on maintaining your home, family and social life and you have what can seem to be an impossible load to balance. I am here to share with you that not only are you not alone in this but to give you actionable and impactful advice on maintaining your many passions so you are the one in control and not getting burnt out by the workload. 

Why Work-Life Balance Matters In Your Lash Business Plan

While “hustle-culture” is at peak popularity with the rise of entrepreneurship over the last few years, the truth is, pushing forward at maximum capacity is not sustainable long term. Learning to balance your priorities between your home and work life is important for many reasons from maintaining a healthy mental well-being, increasing your overall productivity across the board and even helps you enjoy your job more deeply.

Setting Boundaries Working In The Beauty Industry 

The first step to accomplishing a healthy work-life balance as a beauty business owner is to take a realistic look at your goals personally and professionally. Big dreams are essential to passion in your business of course, but it’s imperative to remember that without solid guidelines your time will be blurred between both worlds and burnout can creep up.

Setting firm boundaries like when and how you communicate with your clients will encourage them to view you as the authority in the relationship. Deciding on consistent responses to common questions and storing them in a document or note in your phone/email will make communication efforts streamlined and professional. 

Dedicated work attire is an underrated form of separation from your personal life. It can be easy and convenient to wear your daily street clothes to your business place as you are your own boss and have no entity requiring you to have a formal uniform. I urge you to set specific clothes to be for work, this will help you literally and figuratively “remove your work hat” when you get home and set a firm divide between your two worlds.

Lash Business Ideas: Time Management 

Once you have a grip on your bandwidth, the next step is to create a feasible schedule for yourself that will allow you to reach desired milestones without overwhelming you. Find a process that works best for you and your work style, here are a few examples:

Eisenhower Matrix

Great for those overwhelmed by to-do lists and need a clear framework to distinguish between what’s urgent/important and what can be postponed.

Time-Blocking

This method is useful for those who struggle with procrastination. Working on each task for a specific amount of time, removing pressure to complete the task.

Task Batching

Stick to similar tasks each time-interval. This method is great for those who prefer to focus deeply on one type of task at a time and helps to avoid distractions.

Try out different methods of time management for a few weeks each and you will eventually come to find one with which your personality type works best, allowing you to work at your own pace in a fashion that allows you to achieve maximum productivity.

How To Work In The Beauty Industry: Self-Care 

Prioritizing your physical and mental health is so important and also a very unique journey for each individual. Big goals can often lead to bigger sacrifices and many business owners tend to put their personal well-being on the back burner. This self-neglect can manifest over time as poor physical health, resentment for the job and even ends up causing severe emotional issues. To avoid these unfortunate outcomes, we recommend you make a point to set time in your day and weekly life to incorporate regular light exercise like walking or hiking, plan your meals to make sure you are eating a balanced diet and dedicate alone time to meditate or do breathing exercises.  

Scheduling things like a stroll outside on your break or a casual phone call with a family member or friend into your day will keep you grounded and excited to be your own boss. Unlike a traditional 9-5 work environment, as a lash business owner you are solely responsible for incorporating the necessary self-care moments into your routine. 

Lash Extension Business Tips: Leverage Technology

As a solo-artist you may not have the budget to hire support staff or a marketing agency to help you manage your administrative or advertising efforts just yet. That does not mean that these tasks are not essential to your success as a business owner, the importance of both are equally impactful at all stages of your career. One option is to take advantage of affordable digital software and smartphone applications to help you manage your schedule and content creation. 

Booking Software - Square, GlossGenius, Vagaro

Offer clients the convenience of managing their appointments online at any time. This not only saves time but also enhances client experience and helps manage the clients more efficiently, minimizing mix ups or oversights in scheduling.

Graphic Design Tools - Canva, CapCut, SnapSeed

These simplify the design and editing process of your content with user-friendly tools and templates, allowing for quick production of promotional content and client communications for social media and/or websites.

Virtual Chat-Bots - Instagram, ManyChat

Simplify client communication by using AI to provide instant responses to common inquiries, scheduling appointments, and handling basic customer service tasks. This frees up time for you to focus on more complex tasks.

How To Maintain Work Life Balance: Taking Care Of You And Your Lash Business!

Achieving a healthy work-life balance involves exploring different strategies and finding what best fits your unique lifestyle and needs. Remember that perfection isn't realistic, what matters most is adapting to your unique priorities as your business grows. Embrace flexibility and be kind to yourself as you find this balance, remembering that it’s a rollercoaster of a journey… It’s not meant to be linear. 

You’ve got this and we at PLA are here to help you along the way!

xoxo

Ashley Gonzalez