4 minute read
BLOG SPOT - RYAN POOLE
UNDERSTANDING THE DECLINE IN EDUCATION PARTICIPATION.
In the time that I have been involved in barbering, the one core belief that I’ve stuck with is that education is everything. The undertaking of a three-year-long apprenticeship is an impressive ordeal that should be celebrated for those who stick it out; however, why do some barbers think that it stops with a Cert 3 in barbering?
Maybe I have a bias, working alongside some heavy-hitting educators in our industry, but I will always maintain that seeking out further education is a big part of why I continue to love what I do. Being able to improve my skill set and being able to apply new ideas to my cutting has stopped me from having a creative burnout. I think a big part of that is also my peers who put in the time to craft amazing classes and share their wisdom. We have been fortunate enough to have workshops organised by industry leaders both nationally and internationally.
In the past two years, I’ve been fortunate enough to attend 12 workshops ranging from American Crew ACED courses, teaching their fundamentals on hair cutting to workshops run by Jordan Tabakman and Tori Gill focusing on editorial work in hair. This year I got to check out both days of the Josh OP workshop at Barber Expo and Sofie Pok at Hair Fest, some global megastars in our space. There have been so many opportunities for fellow barbers to take on some excellent education that I have been able to apply my cutting in the shop and in my editorial work.
Why is it, when we have access to all of these incredible classes to improve our craft that we are finding to hit the numbers to justify holding the class in the first place? We have seen over the past two years that dates for education tours have had to be cancelled because of the lack of attendance. Are barbers stuck in the mindset that once we’re qualified, we’ve mastered it all? Well…not necessarily. While I do believe that a minority of barbers might think that way, I think there are a few factors that can be considered:
You could say “Well I attended YouTube University so why go out of my way to pay someone?” which I get. YouTube has been an amazing tool for barbers to pick up tips and tricks. Furthermore, the rise of online masterclasses has prevailed a lot more during COVID-isolation time. I think that they are fantastic investments into your skill set but I also believe that I retain information better with hands-on experiences and I would wager that most barbers are in that same field of thinking. We’re an industry that is based on interacting and ‘doing’
Consider the cost of living currently, is through the roof. Existence in general is ridiculously expensive so it can be hard to justify putting a few hundred dollars into a day of learning something when you believe the return on investment isn’t there (and on top of that it’s on your day off). It has understandably been a tough few years for employees and employers alike to keep their heads afloat and putting income towards something that isn’t bills or wages can be a tough pill to swallow.
Finally, I think that individually, each barber has their sense of style and what they enjoy focusing on. Barbers are very set in their ways; once they craft a niche, they very rarely stray from that path. On the other hand, hairdressers are getting stuck into barber courses. From my recent experiences, hairdressers love attending barber events and workshops. It will always help their skill set improve because they know that they also have male clientele to look after.
Times are changing, barbershops are changing, we are starting to see more androgynous haircuts with female and nonbinary clients, and I think that barbers need to be more open to expanding their skill set to get with the times.
It’s easy to get comfortable with what we already know. Staying committed to ongoing education can keep our skills relevant to current fashion trends. I think that exploring your options and seeing what’s out there with outside education is worth the time to avoid that creative burnout in a job that can at times feel so repetitive. Talk to your shop owner or managers and let them know that it’s in the shop’s best interest for you to check out a workshop or an industry event. It’s certainly in yours.
