Blog Spot - To Lose Patience is to Lose the Battle. By Gary Latham

The other morning in an attempt to fill the silence as I waited for my morning coffee, I asked the manager of the shop if the latest round of covid had much effect on his business and staff sick days. The answer wasn’t the one I expected, while short, his answer was much more big picture.

“Staff have changed since covid” he said shaking his head in frustration. After a pause to reset he said, “But, I’m not complaining”, he said fighting to harness his last remaining drop of positivity. I know just what he meant and how he felt, as I’m sure many salon owners and managers out there understand it crystal clear.

It’s in the second half of his answer however that the real gold can be found. It reminds me of the 90’s Australian cricket team that set out for elusive success in India. “To lose patience is to lose the battle”, was their mantra as they fought searing temperatures, a totally foreign diet and unfriendly pitches. Wise words for all be they staff, managers or owners in this post-lockdown period.

At times the new world seems like a different country and a new culture permeates the workforce. For the first time in decades interest rates and inflation are rising putting people under financial pressures unseen before. Pressure does funny things to people and financial pressure is one of the most powerful.

While many are struggling their feeds are full of people blessed with the gift of easy success and shiny lives. Why should they bust a gut at work when success is a picture that breaks the internet. Lockdowns, working from home and flexible hours are being held onto by workers as a right… I could have sat with the café manager for hours whining about staff and the roll call of negative changes that the covid storm has brought but “to lose patience is to lose the battle.”

I recently was asked by a salon owner in South Australia about mental health and dealing with it. While professional help is usually my first recommendation, I’ve been put through a life lesson over the past six months. While Parkinson’s is mainly seen as a motor function disease it has its cognitive components high on its list of nasties. Following the initial boomtime after my operation I have been searching for an even mood.

The past six months have been really tough to deal with for all with the complexities of the new work cultures but for me it’s been a real minefield. Without the support of my beautiful partners Jayne and Phil I could have spiralled to much darker depths. When you have an aliment that is invisible to the eye it takes a true friend to spot it and a special one to act. It is time though to remind myself “to lose patience is to lose the battle.”

Staff have always been a challenge, but it is what I do, what I’ve always done, what I take most pride and satisfaction in and suffer the most heartfelt disappointments. My intentions have always been to develop staff into better hairdressers and more importantly better human beings. Judging by my staff I think I have scored a big pass mark.

For those that I have failed, I’m sorry if the advice has been too direct to accept or if a joke has missed its mark. My motives have always been in your best interest. It would be very easy to blame the faults of others for their failures or lose my patience over the shortfalls of a fledgling generation, after all, experience is a priceless commodity. But that would be losing my patience and hence losing the battle.