Episode 2: How Small Changes Can Create A Better You and Better Business Practices for 2020
New year, new you? Not exactly. Lori Wilson is upfront about it: she's not a fan of New Year's resolutions. Her last one — a Whole30 diet attempted with Vonda and Ellie LaFever — ended with Vonda refusing to give up her glass of wine, Lori mourning her bananas, and Lori's husband losing 15 pounds while she lost one (which came back the next day). The lesson the hosts pull from that failed diet is the real theme of this episode: resolutions run on discipline, discipline runs out, and lasting change comes from small, sustainable shifts instead — with a little grace and a few rewards built in.
Get organized now — Valentine's Day is coming
January is organization month everywhere (just look at the container aisle at Target), but for flower shops it's urgent: Valentine's Day is weeks away. Vonda's advice is to have your flowers ordered and containers lined up now, because an organized run-up makes the whole holiday easier. One specific tip on seasonal help: don't hire in January. Cash flow is too tight to carry extra staff before you need them — most shops don't really need seasonal hands until the first part of February.
Lori's organization tool of choice is a free Google Calendar used for time blocking: color-coded chunks for when you'll check email, work on the schedule, or tackle a project. Vonda adds the practical reality of shop life — a customer or a funeral consultation will blow up your 8-to-10 block — but that's the beauty of a digital calendar: drag the block to 2-to-4 and get it done anyway. And when the whole team shares a calendar, you get built-in accountability: everyone sees what's scheduled, which cuts confusion and double work.
Accountability and approachability
Beyond the calendar, the hosts recommend having someone in your corner — a staff member, a mentor, maybe a business coach — who will text you a simple "did you get that done today?" during your forgetful busy seasons. Lori also encourages forming a genuine bond with your employees (or your boss, if you're the employee). Not summer parties every weekend — approachability. She points to a leadership book by Colin Powell and his open-door approach: employees should feel they can walk in with a concern or an idea, knowing it will be respected even if it isn't used. As Vonda puts it, everyone needs to know their expectations — you never succeed if you don't know what's expected of you, and unclear expectations are behind most employee problems.
Sleep and movement are business tools
You cannot run a shop on four hours of sleep, no matter what the hustle culture says. Vonda needs her eight hours; Lori uses the iPhone bedtime feature to learn how much sleep she actually needs and when to wind down. Foggy owners make more mistakes — and mistakes cost money.
The companion habit is physical activity — not necessarily full-on cardio, just movement. Designers naturally get steps between the bench and the cooler, but owners stuck at a desk need nudges: an Apple Watch or Fitbit that buzzes when you've been stationary too long, breathing exercises, a walk around the block. Lori even suggests keeping a yoga mat behind the counter for anyone who needs a stretch — Vonda pictures a customer walking in mid-pose, but Lori says post it to Facebook and call it marketing.
Practice problem-solving — and spot your next manager
Vonda reframes shop problems as "situations": look at them differently and a solution usually appears, whether it's a substitution or a scheduling snag. But the richer idea here is about your employees. Drawing on a leadership course, Lori shares a simple test: the next time an employee knocks on your door with a problem — say, a customer who ordered a dozen roses and got eight — don't hand them the answer. Ask, "What do you think we should do?" Some will already have a solution thought out; those are your future managers. Others will say "I don't know, that's why I came to you" — often the same people who bring you ten problems a day.
The hard part, Vonda notes, is that many owners don't want to relinquish control — and Lori pushes back that it's usually fear, not ego: if it isn't done right, I could lose everything. Start small. You don't delegate a crashed cooler the day before Valentine's Day, but you can absolutely let an employee work through a customer complaint.
Key takeaways
- Skip sweeping resolutions; pick one small change and work on it this week — stacking too many at once fails.
- Organize for Valentine's Day now, but wait until early February to bring on seasonal help.
- Use a shared, color-coded calendar for time blocking — and drag blocks forward instead of abandoning them.
- Protect your sleep and build movement into your day; a foggy owner is an expensive owner.
- When an employee brings you a problem, ask "what do you think we should do?" — it reveals your future leaders.
Sponsored by:
Flower Clique
Flower Clique Prep School
Real Life Retail Florist