As we approach the new year, it is time to thinkabout New Year's resolutions...once again. We have all madepersonal New Year's resolutions in the past...

"This is the year I will stop smoking."

"This year, I will eat healthier."

"I will commit to an exercise routine."

"I promise to invest more in my retirement fund."

"This year, I will give more to charity."

"I resolve to be a kinder person."

"This is the year that I will learn to control mytemper."

Sound familiar? We've all made numerous resolutions to improveour personal health and happiness, but what about New Year'sresolutions to improve the livelihood of your self-storagefacility?

No matter if you are an owner or an on-site manager, now isthe time to take a few minutes, grab a pencil and piece of paper,and write down some thoughts about how you will improve yourfacility, work habits or personal business growth for the newyear. Just keep in mind that you need to be flexible; work toachieve your goals, but don't be discouraged if you can't keep allof your New Year's resolutions.

Resolutions for Owners

If you haven't already sat down with your on-site manager anddesigned your annual budget, now is the time to thinkabout it and make sure your manager has some input on the budget.Try not to set goals that are so lofty they could never achievethem, but be reasonable and flexible. Without a road map, how canyou know where you are going, or when you have arrived at yourdestination?

Plan your 1998 audit and inspection schedule. Try to go toyour site at least once a month to inspect the books and thephysical plant of your facility. Take that time to communicatewith your manager and discuss your goals and their achievements.If you don't have the time or expertise to conduct an audit andinspection, contact an outside company and schedule your auditswith them.

On another front: This could be the year that you decide toinvest in the training and certification of your on-site manager,another worthy resolution. By certifying your manager, you cangive him self-worth that you might never be able to replace witha dollar figure. Perhaps the knowledge he will acquire will makeyour operations more professional, and from a legal aspect, itcould keep you out of hot water when it comes to lien sales,collection techniques or customer service.

Maybe you need to communicate with your on-site managers morefrequently, offering them a pat on the back for a job well done.Or perhaps you should visit more often as a means to motivatethem, letting them know what job responsibilities they completewell, as well as those that might require some improvement.

Give your managers the tools to run the office efficiently: Apleasant working environment makes a happy, productive manager.

On the other hand, maybe 1998 is the year that you seriouslyconsider replacing your manager if he is not producing the incomethat you expect. Is your manager going against the grain,refusing to abide by your standards? Have you given him plenty oftraining opportunities to learn the appropriate systems andfunctions for carrying out procedures? Does he have a badattitude? If you answer "yes" to any of the above,don't let another year pass you by without making a managementchange.

Perhaps you should also resolve to attend seminars and exposto brush up on your ownership/management skills, learn about whatother operators do, what works, what doesn't, etc. Coming up inFebruary, as every year, is the Inside Self-Storage Expo, whichis tagged as the biggest annual self-storage show. (If you haveattended the expos in the past, perhaps this year's resolutioncould be to actually attend the variousseminars-----instead of spending most of your time at the slotmachines or gaming tables!)

Another brilliant idea: Send your managers to an expo, so thatthey can mingle with peers, vendors and experts in the storageindustry. If they learn only one or two new sales, marketing ormanagement techniques, then it will be money well spent. Even ifyou cannot afford to send several managers, consider sending onekey person who can take notes and share valuable information withthe rest of your employees upon his return.

Maintenance might also be in your game plan for 1998. Thismight be the year that you replace your roofs, install thatelectronic gate, upgrade the software and hardware in youroffice, or remodel the office or manager's apartment. If so, haveyour manager gather bids for these services, so that you can makean informed decision when choosing the contractor or softwareprogram.

Make sure your manager always has the tools to do hismaintenance job effectively at your facility. List maintenanceduties that need to be addressed daily, weekly and monthly, andinclude them in your manager's responsibilities. And, as always,train him as to the proper methods for completing these tasks.

Some Resolution Ideas for Managers

Is 1998 the year that you want to make changes in youremployment or self-storage education? If you feel that you needmore training, then sit down with your owner and discuss youroptions. Will your owner be amenable to sending you through amanager certification program? How about the possibility ofattending trade shows, conventions or other various managerseminars?

No one is too old or too experienced to learn something or tobetter themselves. By investing in your self-storage education,you could make yourself more valuable to the facility's owner andits outcome.

How are your sales skills and your telephone techniques? Howabout your customer-service or maintenance skills? Could you dobetter, or will you do better in 1998? What training orincentives do you need to do so? Discuss these with the owner.

Is this the year to design a more effective marketing plan foryour site? Has there been more competition in 1997, making youfeel slightly inadequate? How can you position your facility sothat it attracts more attention, more tenants? Perhaps you needto re-evaluate your skills and improve upon your marketing ortelephone techniques. In addition, think about redesigning yourYellow Pages ads, brochures and direct-mail pieces. Maybe a newlook with more punch will bring in more business.

What about maintenance of the facility? Now is the time to sitdown with the owner, gather bids for planned improvements, anddesign a maintenance program that will save the owner money inthe long run and make your facility the best that it can be.

Summing It Up

Just remember: Not all New Year's Resolutions will be kept.That is just a fact of life. However, with some perseverance anda long-range business plan, you can achieve some of thoseresolutions and have a prosperous 1998­both professionally andpersonally.

Best of luck to you. Let's make 1998 the best year yet in theself-storage industry.

Pam Alton is the owner of Mini-Management, one of theindustry's largest nationwide manager services, based in SantaBarbara, Calif. Mini-Management also offers policy and proceduresmanuals, sales and marketing training manuals, inspections andaudits, consulting services, telephone shopping and trainingseminars. For more information, call (800) 646-4648.