Here’s how to thicken your franchising skin

Owning a franchise isn’t for the faint of heart, but that’s okay! You’re tough. You can roll with the punches. But being in charge of a franchise can take the skin of a rhinoceros to pull off correctly. Take a look below on some of the tips on how to turn your epidermis to leather-like levels.

Ask your franchisor for advice

One upset customer isn’t the first that your franchise has had to cope with, and it won’t be the last. If your specific franchise hasn’t already outlined a protocol to deal with this, call them up and ask for their advice. What would they do if they were in your shoes? Ideally, you’d make this call before Mr. Nightmare customer darkens your threshold and have scripts ready for a variety of situations.

Use your personal life as practice

Using your personal life to practice not taking insults personally will come in very handy when you work in a franchise. The next time someone says something negative to (or about) you, immediately distract yourself with something positive. Then, think later about the negative feedback. Is it still bothering you? The chances are good that, because you weren’t stewing about it, you were able to focus quickly on more important things. This is a key skill you’ll need in a franchise.

Equate time with money

Sometimes, we don’t want to let a customer “win” an argument because it feels like a loss of face – and control. All we want to do is make them see our side of the story, that we are right and they are wrong. However, all that arguing is wasted time that could be spent on other executive tasks. If you equate those executive tasks with more money, just remind yourself how much you could be saving by arguing less and compromising more.