Getting out of the city that my storefront businesses are in can be challenging, especially so during the first few years of business. By this point I have a collection of apps and tools that keep me connected and organized even while I'm away. These make all the difference in the strength of my team and company culture. We love to work together and reach our goals- no matter where each team member is.
Here is a list of the tools and apps I used during my first day visiting Costa Rica AND managing my two tanning studios remotely.
Smart phone
Laptop
Slack
Trello
MileIQ
During my last few hours before leaving for the airport I was making my rounds through each tanning studio trying to get as much face time as possible with my team before I took off for approximately one month. It was mostly sending good wishes but it was also absorbing as much as possible of the live work space before trying to manage it remotely for some time. The main app we use for communication at the studios is Slack so I re-confirm with everyone that they can reach me there and it's like I won't be gone at all.
You can see in the sample below that we use Slack for day to day communication and tasks. We use it not only between the studios but myself and my business partner use it to communicate with the team. Communication on Slack is as effective remotely as it is in the same city so it works really well. Especially since we're no longer an owner/operator structure.
Aside from amping up my time spent on Slack, I have been working hard to get our Trello boards up to date so they accurately reflect the status of each location. We use Trello to keep track of supply orders and many other important tasks. See sample below. When we are out of an item we move it from the Supplies on Hand List, to the Supplies Low or Needed List. This way everyone is on the same page on what our stock is at. I needed to make sure the Trello boards were up to date so my business partner would be able to step in and help with supplies while I am away or so I can order online and have it delivered.
Slack and Trello are consistent companions in my life. We use them for all aspects of our business.
As I get closer to the airport I realize I'm not going to have Trello up to date in all aspects and will need my manager to help me complete this. My manager is always happy to help when he has extra time. Because we are in close contact through Slack it is easy for us to communicate during down time.
Getting into Costa Rica was super cool. We flew at 4:00pm out of YVR and got into SJO at 7:00am, this included a 5 hour layover in LAX. Aside from the long layover, which I used to book an airbnb for us, the only uncomfortable part was how cold the flight from LAX to SJO was. WOW COLD.
We arrived at our hotel at 9:00am and they graciously had a room ready for us. My mom settled in for a nap and I got to work on a pesky task I had left over from 2017. My last task remaining from 2017 was my December Mileage Logs. Shocking not shocking.
During a crazy work time in November I forgot to turn on my MileIQ App when I got a new phone. I downloaded it and all...but for some reason it wasn't on and I never bothered to check. This lead me to have to do my Mileage Logs by hand for the end of Nov. and ALL of December. A quick snippet on MileIQ- it tracks your drives on an app and you confirm them. SUPER EASY.
Luckily I was able to use a MileIQ excel template to draft up the log, also it is helpful that I'm not all that interesting and tend to do similar things day to day. I got the Mileage Log done and sent it over to my bizzy partner. Because my MileIQ was on since January, I verified those drives and also submitted the Mileage for January. GO ME GO!!
I put this sample here of MileIQ so people can see a bit of how it works. It really helps me spend time on things that matter with my businesses. There's no better reminder of how much MileIQ has helped until I have to do 1.5 months of drives by hand -.-
With 2017 finally wrapped up I can reward myself with some exploration. My mom wakes up and we hit the road to check out Teatro Nacional de Costa Rica or The National Theatre of Costa Rica. We ended up getting side tracked so I don't have a picture to post but google it if you want to see before we're back next week!
The walk was nice until it starting pouring rain! It was also cold! We had to duck inside to get some lunch.
After lunch we had to run back through puddles and water streaming down the streets. It was sorta cool, just a bit chilly.
We had another short nap, I chatted with my business partner and manager on Slack and then we ventured to the dining room in the hotel for dinner. The images below are from the restaurant in the hotel.
