Happy Hosting-- what are your tips?

[Laura2592]

Hosting can be very stressful and cause all sorts of worry and angst. As a bit of a control freak in my normal life, I have had to ease back on certain tendencies to make hosting an enjoyable experience for myself. Its easy to get overwhelmed and imagine all the "what ifs"- you can drive yourself a little nuts! I would love to hear what others do to keep themselves happy and positive, even when in difficult or potentially rough circumstances. There are some experts on this right here in the forum!

For me, I have to start from a place of belief and trust. Cynical by nature, this can be hard to do. But I have learned that I am much happier if I start out taking people at their word. The vast majority of the time my guests are truthful. 

I have also  had to train myself not to expect a problem because a guest reminds me of one that I had issues with before. Everyone is different. I found that I was getting antsy when we got a reservation that reminded me of one that we had had issues with, or gotten a low review from, and I was bracing myself and stressing out before it even happened.  Common sense prevails of course-- if a guest wants to bring a ton of people to our small home for example, we p encourage them to find a reservation that works better elsewhere. 

Know that reviews aren't always fair or accurate. This was particularly hard when we had just started out and got a "3" on location from a guest because he wanted a romantic romp in the yard and was angry that he didn't have enough privacy for that. Its hard to make everyone happy all the time, so just realize you won't and do your best.

Give yourself enough time to set up. We block off two days and modify as we go. We both work long hours and live 30 mins away from our listing so we really try to cushion as much as we can. Do we make as much money as we could? Probably not. But because we check out the place between every single reservation we value our time as much as those extra dollars.

What are your tips for happy hosting?

[Mike-And-Helen0]

@Laura2592 top 3

Be confident

Manage expectations

Have empathy

[John1080]

@Laura2592, The number one thing I have learned is that one must repeat, repeat, repeat policies, and expectations in numerous places. On the listing, in a pre-approval message, pre-arrival message and in the unit itself. 

[Laura2592]

Thanks for reviving this thread  @Mike-And-Helen0  and @John1080...I'm losing my faith a bit with a payout issue and I truly appreciate the positive vibes.  I could use a redirect t ol the good things about hosting so I  value your responses:)

[Yadira22]

@Laura2592 

Happy holidays! 

i am sorry you are going through such stressful times- I hope it gets sorted soon. 

For me it’s about managing their expectations as much as it is my own. Like you, I am cynical by nature but this is helping push back these barriers in me- as most people are in fact decent and honest! There’s a saying- be trusting but not foolish! 

It helps to also know when you need a break- we house share in one of our properties and truthfully we are so grateful but in exchange our privacy is compromised a bit and there are days when we just want to be free- even if it means cooking in short shorts and a tank top! So... remember money is important but your peace and mental, physical and emotional health is infinitely more so! So give yourself those breaks- it’s ok to snooze your listing for a week and just be. 

final tip- outsource or Standardise as much as possible! Fill in the house manual and tell people to read this upon booking and during as to cut back any issues/concerns. Make it obvious and no offence to any guest but as « idiot proof » as possible as common sense really is not too common. 

sending so much love your way! You got this 💪🏼 🙂