Thinking about feet!

This may for any newbies out there seem a very odd point of conversation - however for a Bed and Breakfast owner there is only one thing more important than your feet and thats your back!

so point 1 look after your feet, wear sensible shoes at least some of the time and if you get corns etc then make sure you take the time to go to the choropodist and have them seen to. Believe me you will thank him/her for it.

2 - remember you only get 1 back! dont shake out duvets in an extended position as this is the absolute worst thing you can do. Also what does me in is hanging over the dishwasher!

Waiter Rant by Steve Dublanica - Book Review

Bought this as a bit of light reading packaged as a behind the scenes look at being a waiter in New York. To be frank its what it is, simply a bit of light reading with a tiny bit of kiss and tell thrown in. Perhaps I am cynical as have done my years in the trenches as a waitress during my uni years surrounded by drunk conventioneers who think the wait staff come as part of the package. If you have ever read Hotel Babylon it is written in a similar style though set over a period of time from when the author is made redundant and becomes a waiter to manage and never leaves.

So all in all a light read but in my opinion not a gripping page turner.

Looking after No1!

You may initially think this is your customers which to a certain extent is true however what is as important and quite often over looked is you have to look after yourself! - I hear gasps of horror in the back ground but a grouchy tired innkeeper is no good to their customers. Now before you start running your bed and breakfast you may go to bed at 11pm every day that is up to you - but don't fool yourself that this will carry on once you are started. This will sound obvious but if you are tired then GO TO BED! I am usually in bed by 9.30 and have been in bed at 8pm before now, eat your veg and take your vitamins as when you work for yourself there is very little chance of a day off for illness. As I am writing this I am on day 14 of having a cold with 4 days of being quite ill and the rest trying to shake off a stubborn cough! Guests will expect their beds to be made and breakfast to be served no matter what.

Also if you have what is known as a Season make sure before and after you schedule at least 2 days of down time where you just sleep and rest both mentally and physically. Try no matter where your B&B is to have the occasional night off, go out to dinner, go to the cinema or have a day trip!

All this will probably seem like common sense but when you hit the ground running and it is very tempting especially with a huge mortgage to just keep on plugging - which I am not advising against however with careful planning ie next week I have 12 rooms arriving Sunday for 4 nights - once they have arrived on the Sunday I pretty much have my evenings free. If you have a busy season can you put on a 3 night minimum? If you have particularly busy event can there be a 2/3 night minimum?

Also it is very easy - (and believe me I get roped into it)- to allow late check in's, I won't advise not doing this at all but there are ways round this ie coming for a wedding? check in, in advance ie early check in is better than late, lock boxes and instructions? door locks that operate with a combination that could be texted with instructions to the guest? Ive had more than one guest roll up at 3am - "oh should I have called?" you think? and believe me its hard to smile at them during breakfast! Or the ones that do call "Ill be there about midnight, is that ok?" So though its not always possible try and limit those late check in's with explicit check in and check out times on yours and your partners web sites.

And last but not least - don't be afraid of having an afternoon nap!

Book Review - How to be a Hotel Receptionist by Matt Shiells-Jones

I saw this book advertised in The Caterer Magazine and for £3 figured it is worth a whirl. For a Bed and Breakfast owner the poem introduction is hilarious and what we deal with every day, the other most useful section is complaint handling which I also found informative and useful. I am going to quote the intro section for you hear as I laughed out loud as I used to be a receptionist in a large hotel and dealt with situations like this on a daily basis -

"I have advanced degrees in Accounting, Public Relations, Marketing, Business, Computer Science, Civil Engineering, and Swahili. I can also read minds.

Of course I have the reservation that you booked six years ago even through you don't have the confirmation number and you think it was made under a name that starts with "S".

It is completely my fault that the blizzard shut down the airport and you have to sleep in a warm king-sized bed while 5000 of your co-travellers are sleeping in benches at the airport, I am sorry.
It is not a problem for me to give you seven connecting, non-smoking, poolside suites with two king size beds in each, four rollaways, 3 cribs, and yes I can install a wet bar. I know it is my fault that we do not have a helicopter landing pad.

I am a Front Desk Agent. I am expected to speak all languages fluently. It is obvious to me that when you booked your reservation for Friday on the weekend we're sold out that you really meant Saturday. My company has entrusted me with all financial information and decisions, and yes, I am lying to you when I say we have no more rooms available. It is not a problem for me to quickly construct several more guest rooms. THIS time I will not forget the helicopter landing pad. And it is my fault that everyone wanted to stay here. I should have known you were coming, after all, you stay at our brand of hotel all the time, 300 nights a year, and this is only the first time you've ever been to our city.

I am a front desk agent. I am quite capable of checking three people in, two people out, taking five reservations, answering 15 incoming calls, delivering 6 bath towels to room 625, plunging the toilet in room 101, and restocking the supply of pool towels, all at the same time. Yes, I will be glad to call the van driver and tell him to drive over all the cars stuck in traffic because you've been waiting at the airport for 15 minutes and you've got jet lag.

I am a front desk agent, an operator, a bellhop, houseman, guest service representative, housekeeper, sales coordinator, information specialist, entertainment critic, restaurateur, stock broker, referee, janitor, computer technician, plumber, ice-breaker, postman, babysitter,dispatcher, laundry cleaner, lifeguard, electrician, ambassador, personal fitness trainer, fax expert, human jukebox, domestic abuse councillor, and verbal punching bag. Yes I know room 112 is not answering their phone. And of course I have their travel itinerary so I know exactly where they went when they left here 9 hours ago, and what their mobile phone number is.

I always know where to find the best vegetarian-kosher-Mongolian-barbecue restaurants. I know exactly what to see and do in this city in fifteen minutes without spending any money and without getting caught in traffic. I take personal blame for airline food, traffic jams, rental car flat tires, and the nation's economy.

I realise that you meant to book your reservation here. People often confuse us with the Galaxy Delight Motel, Antarctica. Of course I can "fit you in" and yes, you may have the special £1 rate because you are affiliated with the Hoboken Accounting and Bagel Club.

I am expected to smile, empathise, sympathise, console, condole, upsell, downsell (and know when to do which), perform, sing, dance, fix the printer, and tell your friends that you're here. And I know exactly where 613 Possum Trot Lane is in the Way Our There subdivision that they just built last week.

After all, I AM a Front Desk Agent!