I agree that stylists have no idea what the reality is of actually being an owner !
All the worry but not always much more money.
Anytime staff need holidays, maternity, sick leave, bereavement leave or have to leave in an emergency we need to cover or sort it out , you NEVER switch off, you are responsible for everything that you do AND what THEY do , if they have an off day it's us that get slagged off and pay for it and our reputation that's ruined not theirs.
I still love my job but after 20 years of c&@p I have fallen out of love with being an owner.
Don't get me started on social media , a great tool when the goings good but yes if anything doesn't go to plan people are straight on there with half truths about their experience all gained to get massive sympathy and attention for themselves and they couldn't give a stuff if it closes you down.
I would say if you see anything on social media running you down that you should respond professionally at all times in defence of yourself so you can show that you take your job seriously but be very careful what you say in case it can be used against you.
EVERY salon has these clients and yes it is very stressful.
Also though people forget and move on to the next topic quite quickly too so sometimes if it's something mild it's just best to ignore.
I saw a fb thread once from a local salon that defended themselves but not very professionally ended in a back and fore slanging match with all the friends joining in, didn't really show the business in a good light although the girl involved was a local girl known for doing this.
Sometimes it's best not to draw anymore attention to it if it can't be shut down quickly.
With Charity collections yes it's hard as you can't give to every single one, probably best to just say that you have designated charities that you support and so you are not able to support anymore at this time, it's hard because it's always in front of clients.
We are lucky in that we don't get too many so I tend to give very small amounts to each one but we have also had bogus ones around and so I never want to commit to too much to ones that walk in off the street.