Teach what you wish to receive!

Teach what you wish to receive!

Had an awesome experience out in California this past weekend working with two different groups of hairdressers.
The focus of both days where hands on design classes.
Both groups were advanced and as a result had to go in with my "A Game"
Honestly it had me pretty nervous so throughout the week preparing for the trip I practiced alot!
At the end of day two one of the girls in the group said
"we are all so glad that we came today"
and went on to say that they had all called each other.
They had discussed whether it would be a waste of time.
They all laughed, and I was relieved to hear that they where pleasantly surprised.
The truth is, on both days the design that we did was way better than the ones that we had practiced..

After the weekend I was reflecting on exactly what it was that made the weekend so inspiring and successful.
I came to the conclusion that it was because my nervous anticipation had fueled me to take it to the next level, a new personal best!
Combine that with the fact that I felt responsible to teach the group something new and inspiring.
So far this week at the salon I have been living on the adrenaline from the weekend and giving my clients the benefit of the creative aftermath!
Stay With Me this is going somewhere!!

When was the last time that you where nervous doing a haircut or color?
If you have been doing this as long as I have that's probably been a long time!
Many of us come to work and "day in and day out" get into a comfort zone with the people that we service.
For many salon professionals this can lead us straight into a big rut!
Ever felt like that before? My guess is probably.. that's kinda how it works on planet earth!

I have touched on this same thing before:
http://ibeautifydotnet.blogspot.com/2010/05/hairdresser-burnout.html


I have taken notice that many of us seasoned professionals are greedy with our knowledge and skills!
Most are unwilling to share by going out to beauty schools and teaching a class or even just sharing a technique with some of our less experienced coworkers.
To not share your gift with others is a tragedy!
When we share or teach someone we get better at the very thing that we are teaching!
It also takes us out of our comfort zone and puts us on edge which in turn brings out our best.
And lets not forget ! you were learning once too, and your co-workers have probably introduced you to a thing or two...
so even you are:
"standing on the shoulders of giants" as they say..
So if your finding yourself in a rut or just looking for some inspiration?

Just remember this, teach that which you wish to receive!

ibeautify.net the stylist notebook

Hey Salon Owners!! Listen up!

Your stylist's want to work hard!!
Just ask them!

Every day I spend time brainstorming and consulting with Salon Professionals and Salon owners.
Much of that time, feels like a "He said - She said" therapy session!
Most of the time the stylist's and owners are simply complaining about each other.. The best (or worst) part is the complaints are exactly the same:

From the stylists:
"The Owner doesn't care"
"She is so negative"
"they don't motivate me"
"the owner is jealous because I'm busier than her"
"all she wants is to make money off of my hard work"
"The owner won't advertise"
" there is no training here"
and the one that always makes me laugh inside "If I leave this place would close!"

From the salon owner's it's something like this:
"The people that work here don't care"
"Their not motivated"
"They won't act like a team"
"they won't dress professional"
"I'm tired of training people and they just leave"
"They just want me to hand them business without working for it"
and of course... "I want them to care about this business as much as I do"

And the list for both could go on..

Unfortunately whenever asked if they have talked to the other about their concern's the answer is, most of the time.. you guessed it..... NO!

You see the whole thing is just a big misunderstanding!
The truth is most people generally want to do a good job.
Isn't that true? Think about it, when was the last time that heard someone say,

"when I start a career, I'm gonna do a terrible job".
Most of the time people are not aware (owners and employees) of what is truly expected of them.
So, we go on doing what we think we should and never know what the other is thinking.
Many times, by the time we find it's too late. So how do we avoid this?

"Go In Asking"
Start setting time aside to at least once a month to communicate with each member of your staff.
Rebuilding rapport and trust with your staff and beginning to open up lines of communication on issues that may be on their mind.
At the Gene Juarez Salon, the Management team has a motto "Go In Asking", meaning if you want to know if your staff has something on their mind...Just Ask!

What we permit we promote
Generate some clarity on expectations and goal setting.
People want to know what is expected of them.
This is especially important for newer professionals in our industry.
They need guidance on what skills to focus on and how long is should take them to achieve certain benchmarks.
If an employee or owner is unaware of an expectation that we have of them they will assume that what they are doing is OK.
We need to be clear about the guidelines and behavior's that are acceptable in our salon from the start, the longer that we let it go, the harder it is to reform.



Appreciate yourself and your staff for their individuality.

How do each persons unique strengths and weaknesses add to your salon culture.
Identify the opportunities you have to grow together and what could you be working on to better yourselves and the business.

Schedule time out from behind the chair

(even if it's just 2 or 3 hours per week) to check in with your staff and give them your attention towards planning their growth and development
If we stay focused, as my pal Randy Kunkel says "Grow people for a living, and do hair for fun!!"

This blog brought to you by:

http://www.ibeautify.net

Sometimes, it takes two!

Have you ever had someone in your life who made the work you do seem to have a deeper purpose and meaning?
Isn't it safe to say that we have all been inspired by someone at one time or another?
For the past 10 years much of the inspiration that has really kept me most excieted has come from working with our future industry professionals!

Do you remember your first few years in the business?
How excited were you when you did your first haircut on your own?
Do you remember how nervous you were ?
Well I sure do....
However that feeling does not last forever and thank goodness for that !

Eventually we all develop our skill and self confidence.
Unfortunatly for alot of us, a routine can become a rut!
Well that's what happened to me, but just then "she" walked in!

Her name was Elizibeta Frangoni, and she applied to an open stylist assistant position I had in the local paper. She was not living here legally yet, but at the time I was overworked and really needed an extra set of hands.
The rest of the truth is that she had already been a hairdresser in Italy for some years, she and her husband Tony had just come over and where staying with some friends at the time.
Looking for new opportunity in a new land, Elizibeta spoke about three words of english but the way that girl could finish hair had no language barrier!

It was amazing how over the next few months we where able to mesh our style and could effectively service so many more people in a day.
With the two of us always focusing on the guest, customer service was off the charts!!
Feeding off each other, our creativity grew stronger than ever and as a result work was more fun than it had been in years.

The increse in income was not to complain about either, during that time Elizibeta was working on a cosmetology license in the states and getting better and better with her english.
After about eight months she was able to begin to work on clients for herself and by that time I had gotten so used to working with another person that I decided to go to the hairschool that I attended and begin to recruit my next partner!

Bringing someone in fresh out of school was a little different than working with Elizibeta, however it was equally as exciting.
To work with a person who is in the infancy of a career, watch them light up every day with the new and exciting things they were learning.
Additionally by getting a fresher perspective on things inspired me to try new things when working on my clients whose hair I had been doing for years.

It was awesome!

I was enjoying work even more than I ever had, but what happened next, I was really not expecting.
Over the next couple of years I continued to help new sylist's grow their careers never really thinking that I would soon have one of the most profitable salons in town.
Now the issue of recruiting new staff was nearly gone.
I had more resume's than I could handle!
We had grown a culture of self motivated stylists who kept the "good of the salon" at the forefront.

OK OK, I can hear some of you thinking.

"I'm already too busy to take time to train someone else"
or
"My clients will never let someone else work on them"

What i say to you is GET OVER IT !! :)
If you really believe no one else can do hair the way you can, then your name must be Vidal Sassoon!
Wait until you give your clients a chance to feel the customer service from two professionals at once.
Two people applying a color get's it done twice as efficiently!
Two people to brainstorm new ideas, and the list goes on!
The most important thing is you go from being a hairdresser to mentor.
Something happens when it's not just yourself that you are looking out for but the growth and development of others, word begins to spread.

A cause, set in motion.

For my business this was the best thing ever did.
If your stuck in a rut in your career, this may be the next step for you.
If you are already one of the those who has been responsible for training and growing our future leaders, we congratulate you!

Finally, If you are thinking of taking on a new associate here is an idea on how to find that potential new employee:

Go and volunteer to teach a class at a local hair school. It does'nt have to be long.. just an hour or so, and after the class there will always be a few interested applicants who will want to stay around and talk.

Once you have chosen a new associate, remember continuing their education is a marathon not a sprint.
Don't overwhelm yourself thinking you have to teach them everything in one day.
Begin with small stuff like

"these are the tool's we will need for setup of a color process"
and
"this is the way we greet our clients"

Then schedule one "class" per week or every other week.
It will not be long before your associate will be well trained in all that they need to be.
Don't forget to spend time teaching them client communication and sales skills.
They will need these vital skills if they are to be successful long term.
And most importantly Have Fun!!
The more fun you have while teaching, the happier your associate will be.

Good luck until next time!

Check out our web app and iPhone app to help stylists make more money behind the chair:
http://www.ibeautify.net

sharpen your saw

Heard a story once about a man sawing down a tree in the woods. He was sawing for a long time and not making much progress. Another man passing by says to him:

"Sir you seem to be working for a long time and not making much progress. Why don't you stop and sharpen your saw?"

The man sawing is insulted, he responds:

"Can you not see? I am too busy sawing you dummy!"

Many of us get so busy, that we sometimes forget to stop and ask ourselves if what we are doing is working for us.
Is it still inspiring us?
Are we getting the results from our actions that we set out to get?
Do our habits make sense or are they leading us into a rut?

Today a busy salon professional can service well over 1200 clients a year and never take time to "stop and sharpen their saw".
Industry shows can be fun, inspiring and can be a great way to expose yourself to whats out there.
Once we get a taste for the type of "sharpening" that is right for us we can take the next step and attend an intensive workshop.
Workshops can range from one day to a week or more.
You can also attend an advanced academy that put on by anyone from Vidal Sassoon to Martin Parsons! With all that is available to us in this industry today Burnout should not be an option. Even if you are a veteran in this trade, it can sometimes be tempting to say "been there, done that". However, when I hear people say that it makes me feel sorry for their clients and the people who they work with!!
So, this is your challenge!!
Find ten classes or retreats that you would like to attend. Research them. Then narrow them down to at least 2 that you are willing to attend over the next 14 months. Next mark the time out of your salon and BUY A TICKET!! Preferably something you have to travel to!! Mark Twain said " Travel is fatal to ignorance, bigotry, and self centerdness." Get out of town!! Get out of your comfort zone!! And kiss that RUT Good-by!!

Here are a few suggestions on where to start. This should get a Pandora's box opened for ya!!

Martin Parsons seminars
Trevor Sorbie
Vidal Sassoon Academy
TiGI Academy
Redken Exchange NYC
Scott Cole and Melissa Yamaguchi
Irvine Rusk
Michael Della Penna
Chris Baran
Sam Villa
Carmondy Harmon
Michael Cole
Geno Stampora
Frank Gambuzza
Behind the Chair
Susie Fields Carter
Eric Fisher
NAHA
The Salon Association
Dom and Teri Gardino
Boho Artistic team
Scott Bentley and the B-Concept artistic team
British Hairdresser of the year
Wolrd hair Congress
Noah Hatton
Albe Mulcahy

And to help manage your new-found success on the business side check out the iBeautify.net stylist notebook
Organization and planning built for hairdressers by hairdressers.
www.ibeautify.net

I'm an Artist, not a salesperson!

When you ask Rockstar James Hetfield of Metallica if he has "sold out"

He will answer: "YES! we sell out every show"

This is the attitude I would love to see more stylists have..

yes we are artists, we have sharpened our technical skills,

we can highlight, color, cut and shatter a bob with our eyes closed.

But why is it we clam up when trying to sell a bottle of conditioner?

Its very important to educate your client wile styling their hair. Show them what to use tell them why it works, and

finally teach them how to use it.

Here is an example:

During your client consultation you learned that your client "Susie" has fine hair and wants more fullness and shine.

The education starts at the Shampoo bowl:

"Susie, I'm going to use a body building shampoo & conditioner.

This will give you a clean shine and won't weight your hair down.

So just lay back and relax..... doesn't this conditioner smell wonderful ?

......mmmmmm......

Quick simple and to the point, you don't need to list every ingredient.

So now you are ready to style:

Okay Susie, I'm going to use ( your fav product or fine hair ) This will support the roots to give you the boost you are looking

for. Show them how to use it, you spritz it in the roots and as you are working it in.. hand it to them, let them look at the bottle, touch it, smell it.

Next, while blowdrying give them a little lesson, show them how to hold the brush, how to section their hair, how to position the blow dryer etc.

Give your client the confidence to do their hair at home, and you will be surprised how many times you hear: "wow no stylist has ever showed me how to do that before".

When you finish up:

Always walk your guest to the check out, put at least 3 of the products you used on Susie's hair right on the counter.

"Susie here are the tools I've used in your hair to give you the body your looking for. What would you like to start with today? "

I promise... if you teach them ........... they will buy!!

And to help manage your new-found success on the business side check out the iBeautify.net stylist notebook
Organization and planning built for hairdressers by hairdressers.
www.ibeautify.net

Inspiration is the driving force!

Looking back on some of our earlier blogs we realize much we have written is geared towards helping salon professionals make more money.

But when you get to the bottom of it, we will only do what we are inspired to do.
Most of us agree that we feel the most success when we are inspired by our actions, not necessarily the rewards. The rewards seem to come from purposeful actions and as a principle, every action has an equal and opposite reaction.

Also, most of our greatest actions are caused from either of two driving forces:

Inspiration or desperation.

While writing one of our previous blogs:

(http://ibeautifydotnet.blogspot.com/2010/06/bit-of-hair-history.html)

I couldn't help but remember some some of the really great times in my career.
Some really inspiring times.

It was in the 80's that the hair competition scene was really booming.
The hair competition scene is still alive and well in many different facets such as Contessa awards, NAHA, British hairdresser of the year and Hair World to name a few and the work even now continues to evolve and the Artistry is out of this world.

Coming of hairdressing school around mid 1992, my older brother Dean had just come back from competing in hair shows all over the world. After one competition in Budapest Hungry around 1987 or 1988, he decided to stay in Italy and work at salons in Bologna and Modena. When he finally came back to the states Dean started to work with a guy named Omar Sassin (a hair "world champion").

Back then I was still in high school and loved to hang out with them after school and watch hours of practicing on models and maniquens. At the time it seemed like the only thing that mattered was doing hair. It was what we ate, breathed, talked, and slept! As it does, high school flew by. Not long after that found we ourselves working in what I remember as the ultimate power salon.

Still very active in the compettion scene, Dean opened Salon Salvatore Christian. Hairdressers trained in London, Italy and educators from Lanza, TIGI, Sorbie, and Loreal, All in the same room.

It was Awesome.

Our Business was going through the roof! The primary focus was on our clients and our craft. The hard work was spent getting better! The easy stuff was marketing ourselves.
At that time it was a norm to be doing 2 or three perms a day. Hair was still big and fun, and we loved every minute of it!

When your excited it's easy!

Though in the very beginning I was just building a clientele it seemed obvious that the most successful hairdressers where the ones who went to the most classes.
One of the most memorable of all was my visit to the ladies hair compettion world champion Brothers Constantinou salon located in the castle arcade in Cardiff wales.
Still family run today by Anna Constantinou. At the time I was there to assist Michael Della Penna. Michael is the only United States team member who has ever won both the Mens styling and ladies styling world championships.

The trianing was like more intense than i had ever seen. For 8 hours each day dozens of models would keep showing up and sit through hours of cutting and blow-drying. Afterward we would head out to the arcade. Then on to Queen street, where we would stay out all night. Back then the fashion seemed decades ahead of the states. (and it was). From that trip forward I visited Europe 12 more times, I remember thirsting for the latest euro fashion! Our clients seemed to love trying it on and we loved bringing it to them! In those years it was about creating beauty, and it still is............

So find some inspiration out there!

It will drive your success like you cannot imagine!

And to help manage your new-found success on the business side check out the iBeautify.net stylist notebook
Organization and planning built for hairdressers by hairdressers.
www.ibeautify.net

software for the hair industry

Take a look at the software products for hair industry out there and you will notice a few things:

complexity
these software packages have dozens of features that do all sorts of things, and sure, somewhere somebody uses
all of those features. But ask yourself, what features do you NEED ? which ones do you use everyday ?

I think you will find you need a lot less to stay productive then all these software packages are providing.

Here is the thing about software vendors..they try to put every possible feature they can squeeze into a product
so that its not "missing" anything, so a potential customer will not ever say "well it does not do this or that"

cost
guess what ?

all those features cost money!
they cost money to develop
they cost money to test
they cost money to support

guess who pays for these costs ? their customers of course...
oh..and the ones that use only 10% of the software features ? they still pay 100% of the cost.

end-user

have you priced some of these packages lately ?
well I have, and its really unbelievable.

thousands of dollars initial cost and hundreds of dollars per year ongoing maintenance/support/subscription costs

who do they think is buying this stuff ?
Big-shop owners that's who..

who are they all ignoring ?
The booth-renter.. the "single-chair business owner" that's who.
They can't afford thousands of dollars for software, so they generally get by using paper books
and a calculator.
They miss out on the productivity benefits of technology because the software vendors have priced this group right out of the market.


The bottom line ?

Really take a look at software products before you buy:

Make sure you understand ALL of the costs involved !
Make sure you understand the costs for support. When you have a problem is it a per incident charge ? or a yearly support contract ?
Most times you are ONLY eligible for new version upgrades if you keep your software under continuous ( and sometimes expensive ) support.

Do you really need that feature ?
Or can you get by without it ? Sometimes the add-on modules they are trying to sell you "adds-on" a bunch of cost, with not a lot of benefit.

Test Drive !
I researched nearly 100 software products for our industry, and I found some that had absolutely no way to try-out their software !
Would you buy a car without test-driving it ? or without even looking inside ?
If you can't trial the software with a fully working version, you wont know if its going to work for you.
If the company does not offer it, and will not make an exception, move on.


Well now, the shameless plug!
We think we have built a great easy-to-use product aimed specifically at the booth-renter
to help them get productive and stay productive.

We also think we have it at a pretty good price point too!
Check us out http://www.ibeautify.net ( and yeah, we have a 60-day free trial )