YOU always have a choice

I have always loved getting my hair cut. Even as a child, despite the fact that sometimes it ended with me running home and crying because my hair looked aweful. Haircuts were always a very exciting event. As a teenager, I loved change and I would impulsively want my hair changed often and often felt the impulse on a Sunday when most salons were closed. If I had an idea in my head there was no waiting a day or two, it had to be done imediately!

So, I often found myself in the local chain salon waiting area after putting my name in, waiting to see who I ended up with. I would sit there and watch all the stylists working, estimating who looked like they were going to be done first and how many people there were ahead of me. I found that there was always one stylist who I would pray to God I would get. She was very different from the others and it was obvious to me then. Everytime I saw her, her hair always looked like she had left the house feeling really good about how it turned out. Her makeup was always on to perfection. What you could see of her outfit under the aweful smock they had to wear (which she some how managed to make look “cool”) always looked fashionable. And she always met your eyes with a smile. She was pleasant to look at and pleasant to be around. And something about the way she looked made me feel like she would also do a great job styling me. The thing I noticed about the other stylists there was that they didn’t smile at you the way she did and they didn’t inspire me to want to look my best because they didnt look theirs.

I wanted to share this story with both salon guests and stylists because YOU (whoever “you” are) always have a choice. My hope for stylists is that you make the choice to start your day for YOU. Give yourself the time you need and deserve to make yourself happy and beautiful because in order to make others happy you need to be happy and it’s our job as stylists to inspire change, inspire beauty, and inspire being.

My hope for salon guests is this: honor YOU and check the hands that you’re about to place YOUrself in. Ask yourself these questions:

• Do you feel inspired?
  
• Do you feel safe?
  
• Does the person in front of you look like they care about how they put theirself together today?
  
• Do you feel heard?
  
• Do you feel special?

If your answer is yes to all of these questions, Peeeerfect! If your answer is no, make the choice that honors YOU. Thank the stylist for their time and tell them that you have some thinking to do. Because just like a bad romantic relationship, there is a stylist out there who is behind the chair for ALL the right reasons and so excited to meet you and take you on a fantastic journey of all different versions of beauty enhancing styles!

To Stylists: The world is YOUR salon.

To Salon Guests: The salon is YOUR world :)