What I love about being a Personal Concierge
I have been a personal concierge for almost 18 years! Yes on February 1st it will be 18 years since I started my business, Lifestyle Elements, at the age of 23.
So much has changed since then! The software that is available (I did everything in Microsoft programs and you still had to purchase the discs!), smart phones (game changer!), social media (no Facebook!), much easier website design (I designed my first website in Dreamweaver if anyone remembers that program), and more!
Yet, the reason I love being a Personal Concierge hasn’t really changed.
So, what is it exactly that I love about being a Personal Concierge?
Ultimately, it is being that person people turn to when there is no one else to call. The support person who can say “leave it with me!” and seemingly make the impossible, possible.
- When furniture is due to arrive at their new house but they are still interstate.
- When their teenager has locked themselves out of the house and no one else is close by to take them the key.
- When family are due to arrive for a wake but the living area is currently a play room.
- When they need to go into quarantine but are getting off a plane and heading to the country, so have no way of shopping for supplies.
- When you can’t cross the border for a family wedding and need a personalised present bought and delivered, on the morning of the wedding!
- When they break their ankle and urgently need supplies from the chemist.
These are all real life examples of how we have helped our clients. The relief and amazement they feel when we say “yes!” we can help, and then actually nail the job! That is the best feeling. To know that you have really made a difference to someone’s life. As a personal concierge, some of the things may sound somewhat insignificant, but we know that without us, our clients would have been in a very tight spot.
Do I love being a Personal Concierge every day?
The short answer is no. There are many challenging days. The juggle of competing tasks and clients. The expectations of clients that have gone way above what is realistic. The times when we make mistakes, forget things, or run late. The knowledge that you may have helped sort out your client’s life, but your own life is in a frazzle.
That is why taking the time to remember why you started your business in the first place, and what it is you love about being a Personal Concierge, can make a real difference. It can perk you up, help you find your motivation, and refocus on the day. It can also help you highlight where you may have gone off path. Are you taking on jobs that don’t make you feel good about what you are doing? Are you working too long, getting yourself exhausted, and therefore no longer enjoy the jobs you previously loved?
So, I encourage you to reflect on:
- Why it is that you want to start a Personal Concierge business or,
- Why you started your Personal Concierge business in the first place and,
- Identify what it is that you love about being a Personal Concierge, so you can remember this on the tough days.
Abbie Allen is the founder of The Concierge Society, as well as Lifestyle Elements and le Porter. She started Lifestyle Elements in 2004 at the age of 23 and now operates internationally from her head office in Adelaide, South Australia. She was the 2014 Institute of Concierge and Lifestyle Managers Association Golden Key Award winner, as well as a finalist in the South Australia Telstra Business Women’s Awards in 2012. She works with her husband Tim, and they have three daughters. If you handed Abbie a brand new book, a glass of red wine and some chocolate, plus the time to enjoy it, you would have made her day! Have you joined our free private community? Click here now!