It's been said that courage is facing your fears and taking action anyway.

One of the most uncomfortable, stressful, and difficult roles that

a dance studio owner or business owner faces is having to 'fire' a

dance teacher or staff person.

Usually, and sharing from my own experience, the warning signs are

early that perhaps this person is not right. But as many of us do,

we try everything to give them more training, offer more coaching,

invite open communication, and the list goes on and on. And at

some point you realize that if you don't take action you and your

business will suffer.

One of the best ways to help muster up your courage is to see that

usually a hire that is not working out for you is that they are not

aligned with your vision and values.

Fire by definition is to dismiss from a job. To send away or

discharge. Being 'fired' has a negative connotation and it often

doesn't tell the whole story. It's our policy to never say fired,

instead we use the more positive term. Let go.

Let go by definition is to cease or discontinue employment.

Discontinue is a much more positive angle

on an often less than ideal situation. It takes the emotion out of

it and often creates an opportunity for something positive to occur.

For example, one studio owner shared recently that a teacher she

had hired was not working out because her behavior outside of the

classroom and with the other faculty was less than admirable. Her

concern was rightly focused on 'what would the parents say' since

this person was in fact a very talented dancer and teacher.

She was very worried about the fallout from parents who might leave

her studio if she were to let this teacher go mid-year.

What we suggested is that a possible that a short term financial

impact would be much easier to ride out than long term damage done

to the coveted great reputation in her community.

Parents talk. No matter what dance teachers and studio owners

do - a parent's number one concern is the safety, health and

well being of their child.

In this case the studio owner made the right choice -

although hard to do - to let this teacher go.

Also, if parents leave your studio because of your choice to let a

faculty or staff member who wasn't aligned with your vision and

values then ultimately that family was not the right fit for your

studio in the long run.

This week's tip: You can gracefully articulate to parents and

students in a courageous and powerful way that leaves no blaming,

pointing fingers, or gossip to run wild when and if you are faced

with having to let a teacher or staff person go.

Such as...

-- > This person was not aligned with our vision and values at our dance studio

-- > Our dance studio was not the right fit for this person

-- > We are restructuring our business to provide the best service

for our students and families

-- > Our team is committed to the highest standards of dance

training for our students

-- > I made the decision to let 'so-and-so' go because he/she was

not upholding the values and standards of our dance studio

Then immediately follow up with some information on what your

students and parents count on from you.

Such as: we're committed to open communication, a great year end

performance, timely responses to questions or concerns, ongoing

training and development for your faculty and staff, guest artists,

special events, community involvement, etc.

Often trusting your intuition - or your gut feeling - is the right

thing to do.

It takes courage and it takes practice. Stay focused on the

positive angle whenever possible. Rise above any negativity by

surrounding yourself with a team of people that believe in your

vision and values as a dance teacher, dance studio owner and

business owner.

Dance Teacher Magazine's January Issue " The Price Is Right"

"Is there a science to setting class fees? To help you decide

the right balance for your studio, Dance Teacher Magazine

approached several studio owners from around the country to

discover there is a method to the madness: rates, payment

schedules, methods of payment and more!"

Enjoy the full article by Jen Jones featuring Suzanne Blake

Gerety, Co-Founder of DanceStudioOwner.com and Vice President of

Kathy Blake Dance Studios.

http://dance-teacher.com/sections/teaching/669

How to Prevent Burnout: Part 1 of Studio Owners Who Do Too Much

Most studio owners take on too much, leaving no time for rest,

relaxation or even family. It's understandable to want to be in

full control of your business--after all, it's your livelihood and

something you are endlessly passionate about. If you do everything

at your studio, and find it difficult to hand over responsibility

to anyone else, then read on. This is for you..

http://www.dancestudioowner.com/public/109.cfm