Greetings, and I wish it was under different circumstances. I hope you will take 2 minutes to read this, and reap the benefits of some nuggets provided below…
To say these are unprecedented times would be an understatement.After 35 years in this industry, I have never experienced this kind of situation, and I am sure the same is true for most of us, especially in respect to becoming familiar with terms like “social distancing” and “corona-lockdown.” However, as I walked through the grocery store Sunday (my only outing of the weekend, wearing rubber gloves) I considered that the half-full aisles are a common occurrence in many parts of the world, nothing new. Here in America, our norm is an abundance of goods and services, and access to those goods and services, at all times. We live in a country that is built to support speed and commerce; as someone who travels a lot, I am always struck by how easy and efficient it is to transact almost anything here, whether making copies and presentation materials in an hour, renting a car, getting a pedicure at 10pm, or even withdrawing cash from an ATM that is on every corner. Change is difficult for most humans, and as leaders we need to be prepared to be strong for our families and colleagues.
I suspect that in the next few weeks/months, we are going to learn new appreciation for many of the advantages we have taken for granted. I am hopeful that our spa/salon/wellness/fitness clients will feel the same, and will have a renewed focus on maintaining their personal wellness which will lead them back in droves to our temporarily shuttered businesses. This is such a massively difficult time for our hands-on small businesses, and I am so sad for all of those who are losing so much.

Obviously, we cannot give facials virtually, but we can stay connected with our clients, and should attempt to do so. We are so extremely fortunate to have the internet and all of the social media channels at our fingertips to aide in this. Personally, I am finding myself on Instagram and Facebook much more than usual, and there is a lot of optimism and support to be found there between your fellow humans and business professionals. In the last week, I have taken online yoga and fitness classes, listened to guided meditations, and even taken a bread-baking class! Many businesses are reaching out in new and creative ways.
Particularly for spa and wellness business managers, I wanted to share just a few of the recent and upcoming online resources I have come across in the last week, and which you may find relevant and helpful:

• You’re not in this alone: register and join myself and several other industry veterans for a FREE webinar discussion sponsored by Mindbody Online on Thursday March 26,12:30 EDT. Additionally, MBO has created an impressive collection of articles and advice for beauty/wellness/fitness businesses, accessible to anyone.
• The Green Spa Network is offering a free wellness businesscommunity webinar TODAY March 24 at 3pm EDT
• The SBA page on COVID-19 business guidance and loan resources
• The Global Wellness Institute’s new Positively Well page, with links to global health resources as well as articles on optimism and living well, including this article from leadership expert and GWI board member Renee Moorefield of Wisdom Works
• Salon consultant Steven Gomez has this group of helpful COVID-19-related business support tools
• Medical spas should read this article posted on LinkedIn by attorney Sara Shikhman
• CNBC shared this story of how small business owners are helping their employees
• For our crucial resource partners, this article from Global Cosmetic Industry outlines the results of an ICMAD membership survey on what they, and in turn their spa clients, can expect in the next weeks

Remember also that our online academy is ready and waiting for you; if you or a member of your team has been hoping to sharpen your management skills, we are putting our industry-leading Spa Directors Management Intensive on sale for the next four weeks. Regularly priced at $995, we will offer it at $495 until April 15, 2020.While it takes most students eight to twelve weeks to complete the curriculum, with additional time on your hands that can be greatly shortened!