Pianotech

  • 1.  Scheduling experiment which works

    Registered Piano Technician
    Posted 01-22-2018 12:11
    Hi all,

    I wanted to share with you an experiment which my husband proposed.  Last year he recommended that I try a schedule of working 6 weeks and then taking a week off - and repeat.  So I pulled out the calendar and wrote it in for the year.

    I went from barely 1 week to 8 weeks vacation.  My clients were simply told that I was booked for the week and nobody had a problem with it.  I let some of my friends cover any scheduled appointments which couldn't be moved.  The week off was a time for my body to relax and recuperate.  I found that my income never suffered.

    So a new year and I'm doing the new schedule again.  Just came off of my 1st week vacation and loved it.

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    Ruth Van Dine
    Warwick RI
    401-921-2456
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  • 2.  RE: Scheduling experiment which works

    Registered Piano Technician
    Posted 01-22-2018 12:19
    Ruth 

    That's a great idea.  I play racquetball three days a week. On Monday, Wednesday, and Friday my schedule is "booked" from 11 - 1. Once in a great while I will schedule an appointment during that time, but for the most part, I'm just not available. I was also able to take a total of 8 weeks of vacation last year, and made more money than ever. 

    Whether it's one week every eight weeks, 6 hours a week, or three weeks once a year, we need time to recuperate, physically and mentally.

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    Willem "Wim" Blees, RPT
    Mililani, HI 96789
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  • 3.  RE: Scheduling experiment which works

    Posted 01-22-2018 18:27
    Way to go! 😏😁 Definitely food for thought.

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    "That Tuning Guy"
    Scott Kerns
    www.thattuningguy.com
    Tunic OnlyPure, TuneLab & Easy Piano Tuner user
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  • 4.  RE: Scheduling experiment which works

    Registered Piano Technician
    Posted 01-22-2018 19:59
    Thanks for sharing Ruth and I'm glad it is working well for your. 
    I have initiated something similar in a smaller scale - scheduled days off. A day off means doing nothing. No honey-do's - nothing, with emphasis on quiet time. I tend to get a bit cranky not having time off coupled with quiet time. So far it has worked. 
    Again thanks for sharing and I know you will enjoy that time off. It's good for everyone.

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    -Phil Bondi
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  • 5.  RE: Scheduling experiment which works

    Posted 01-22-2018 20:58
    Sounds like a wonderful idea! 

    We definitely need time off. Being hunched over and crunched over pianos doesn't do my body good, and I feel it more as I'm getting older.

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    John Formsma, RPT
    New Albany MS
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  • 6.  RE: Scheduling experiment which works

    Registered Piano Technician
    Posted 01-22-2018 22:19
    I like this idea a lot, Ruth. I just set up my calendar to reflect this idea. Now let's see if I can actually allow myself to pull it off. 
    Thanks!

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    Geoff Sykes, RPT
    Los Angeles CA
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  • 7.  RE: Scheduling experiment which works

    Posted 01-23-2018 07:55
    Time off...right.   I leave days not scheduled for shop work which at the moment are Mondays and Fridays, this gives me a long weekend. Scheduling outside jobs are for T, W, Th. But I always seem to shoehorn something in on shop days.

    Holidays are for people who work for someone else.

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    Regards,

    Jon Page
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  • 8.  RE: Scheduling experiment which works

    Registered Piano Technician
    Posted 07-24-2019 00:39
    Ruth --

    Just wanted to let you know that I was inspired by your post on 1/22/18. I immediately did the exact same thing in my schedule. Six weeks on, one week off. I was amazed at the results. My working days got a bit busier in that I no longer had as many slow days, (the result of scheduling around that week off), and my income actually grew for that year. Moving forward, I was so pleased with the results that this year I programmed it into my calendar for five weeks on and one week off. I'm about as busy as last year and my income has dropped insignificantly. At 70, I consider that a worthwhile compromise, and my body is extremely grateful. For me, the experiment has proven to be a success. Thanks for this wonderful idea.

    Edit: I want to add that the reduction in work load this year is not due to people deciding not to schedule. It is because this year just happens to be running slower than last year. (It happens to all of us.) I think by year's end it will all be about the same. 

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    Geoff Sykes, RPT
    Los Angeles CA
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  • 9.  RE: Scheduling experiment which works

    Posted 07-24-2019 09:18
    That's great to hear Geoff! I haven't been that purposeful about it but I have been trying to give myself more time off. I hate Monday mornings so I've been giving myself those off once in a while. And just scheduling a day off (other than Sat. & Sun.). Usually the work will still be there.

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    "That Tuning Guy"
    Scott Kerns
    www.thattuningguy.com
    Tunic OnlyPure, TuneLab & PianoMeter user
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  • 10.  RE: Scheduling experiment which works

    Registered Piano Technician
    Posted 07-25-2019 06:37
    It was surprising simple and gives me a whole new outlook to my work.  Glad it's working for you.

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    Ruth Van Dine
    Warwick RI
    401-480-7761
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