Jumping For Joy By David Watts

It would be fair to say that the past two years have been traumatic for us as salon owners. Living with uncertainty, restrictions, lockdowns and added financial pressures has been simply, awful. It has been a heavy toll for our families, children, teams, clients and the entire community too.

Depending on where we are in the country it has been a different experience, but still traumatic regardless. It is something we were not prepared for and certainly do not want to experience again… Now we have acknowledged this, it is time to look to the future!

The last couple of weeks have had me in JUMPING FOR JOY at the prospect of an awesome Christmas trade and an amazing 2022. This feeling has grown so much that it is now a personal mission of mine to make sure that my salon, my clients salons and now YOUR salon are going to absolutely thrive and be amazing places to be.

Personally, I spend a lot of time on mindset and how to turn what is happening around me into a positive message. Without a doubt, it is a choice you must make every time you are given a new piece of information to process. This is good news for you though, as every time you must make a CHOICE you can CONTROL whether you take the negative or the positive response. Choosing the positive is a game changer for you, it is a GIFT that will change everything around you for the better.

Learning to make this choice is about taking ownership of your life, accepting that other people have an impact on things, but this is ALL ABOUT YOU. With life returning to normal, you now have all the power. This is exciting, as what happens in your life and in your salon is a going to be a direct reflection of the choices you make today and everyday moving forward.

Now is the ideal time to ask yourself some questions, really delve deep into what you want your salon to be. My number one question when talking to salon owners, is if their salon is their happy place? It is an extremely powerful thing to ask yourself, because if you are not happy at the salon, your team won’t be, and neither will your clients.

You can choose to make your salon HAPPY! It is time to bring back the fun and excitement that having your hair done was always about. Every salon has its own vibe, and you need to keep yours unique, but I want you to jump on board with me and make sure every day is about joy, fun and happiness. This alone will be a major factor for your mindset being more positive which your brain needs to make sure you thrive.

Okay, now you are going to be more conscious of happiness it is time to add the next piece of the puzzle, being authentic. Yes, take the mask off and let the true you shine through again. Perhaps you have hidden you away, been so caught up in being a version of you that someone else wanted to see, that stops today. Living authentically will make you feel more comfortable, calmer and the clarity that being honest with yourself provides is NEXT LEVEL when it comes to hitting goals.

Next on the list is a confronting one, you need to be clear on your values. Getting comfortable with being uncomfortable changed my life and discovering my core values was an activity that pushed me a lot. In my opinion, it is impossible to live honestly and authentically without understanding more about what makes you tick.

One thing people mess up too often when looking at values is creating a list, they think looks good, promise me you won’t fall into that trap. You do not want something you can put on your wall and ignore or gloat to your Instagram followers about, this is not a feel-good activity. Knowing your values is about helping you to live a true life. When you know your values and live by them you will find making positive choices so much easier, in fact you will find life in general is better.

If you have not done a values exercise before, move it to the top of your to do list. There are plenty of free options online, I have one too, shoot me a DM and I can send it to you.

With the above locked away, your mission then is to be in control. I had a massive smirk as I wrote that, because this where life gets in the way. All the good work you do on happiness, choice, authenticity and values will be tested and it is essential you control how you respond in every situation. You must control what you can and let everything else go.

There is a list a mile long of the things you can control, and those you can’t too. A great exercise is to make a list, draw a line down a page and write on either side the things you can and can’t. To get you started, my top 5 things that you can control are:

1. How you behave.

2. How much effort you give.

3. Your focus on self-care.

4. Who you spend time with.

5. How you react to things.

Owning a salon makes you a busy person, if you are spending time on things that you have zero control over, you are wasting time and energy, you need to preserve these precious gifts for things that matter. If you are focussed on all the magic you can create, good things will happen. Your drive will increase because YOU are in control of things that matter, and on everything else, it will be what it will be. You will have control then too; you will choose how you respond to the situation.

Right, I am going to spring something massive on you, all the above is about Emotional Intelligence. If you can master this, you are far more likely to achieve success in your salon and in life. As hairdressers you are generally great at improving your technical skills, if you take one thing from this article, I want you prioritise improving your emotional intelligence skills too. You need to fall in love with learning about yourself as much as your craft.

Finally, do not beat yourself up if you are reading this and have recognised that you have some work to do in these areas, that was the point. Take each day as it comes, improve things slowly and purposefully. Nobody ever gets it right every time, we need to practice continuously. Give yourself permission to bugger it up and learn from every single mistake.

It is up to you now to be positive, create a happy salon environment, make good choices, take personal responsibility, get clear on your values, master being in control, become more emotionally aware and learn lessons every day. We are on this journey together; the hair and beauty community are awesome. Pay attention Australia, our industry is back, bigger and better than ever!

David XoX

A salon owner and support coach on Team Chrissy – The ZING Project. David has a diverse background in sales, marketing and operations and is passionate about improving the professionalism of the industry.

Contact David via email davidsc@zingcoach.com.au or DM on Instagram @davidwatts_zing