Have some 'me' time and let staff flourish

Getting away from your own pub for a day off or a break is not the easiest of things to do. Who do you leave to run the pub? Can you trust them? Will they do as good a job as you?

Fortunately, when I took my first tenancy in 1986, I was still single, so there was no option, I had to employ staff. If you employ staff you have to train them and get them to do what you want done, willingly and well. Once you have bitten that bullet intelligently, it isn't long before you realise that, like your staff, you need time off if you are to perform well.

At various times when I have started new projects and they have needed that mega-commitment that comes with running your own business, I have thrown myself into it 110%, but there comes a point when you are no longer being as effective as you know you can be. Whether it's a day, a week, or a two-week holiday, you need 'me' time.

If you plan for it, approach it logically

and delegate to staff effectively, you may be surprised at how well they will look after the business while you are away. With just a little bit of down time, you will be able to look at your business with new eyes because you aren't immersed in it and you will have time to look at other successful businesses and see what ideas you can pinch — and there is nothing wrong with adapting someone else's good ideas.

I like the British Institute of Innkeeping's (BII's) magazine for the top tips section, not all the ideas would work for me, but some do. You may also find some members of staff grow and perform certain tasks you never realised they could, and often better than you.

I have heard that some landlords only realised how well their staff could cope when an emergency forced it upon them. Surely it's better when you can plan to be away and identify and delegate all the many tasks that need to be done.

Oh, and if you are one of the lucky ones who pays rent, has a BDM and

no RPI [clause], don't forget to mention this to him at your next review, so the cost of your cover for five weeks and three days can be included in the P&L, before you arrive at the divisible balance.

Gerry Price is licensee of the Inn at West End​