I’ve always been a huge fan of anything that helps raise the bar in our industry—which is why I especially enjoyed Winn Claybaugh’s Masters October audio program (mastersaudioclub.com) featuring Harry Wood, a leading stylist and educator at Van Michael Salons in Atlanta and creator of the Six Figure Hairdresser brand. Here are some of the key takeaways from Claybaugh’s interview with Wood about setting goals and elevating your experience.
Be your own ongoing project. Rather than thinking,“I’m really happy with everything right now, and I’m not gonna keep growing,” it’s imperative to reinvent yourself over and over again. “Continue to alter the things that you do—elevate services, change them up—and continue to elevate yourself by taking more classes and learning more,” Wood says.
Harry Woods’ Six Figure Hairdresser can help beauty pros build a rewarding career and achieve their financial dreams.
Commit to a transformation. Clarify your intention, execute it and then work on mastery. “Figure out what it’s going to take to get you excited to get up and go to work in the morning,” Wood says. “If you look at your job as being a place where you’re going to cut bobs every day, then you are going to have a different mindset than if you look at it like I’m going to go and make someone feel like the person that they see themselves as.”
Be a goal-setter. Set long- and short-term goals that feel ambitious but are not impossible to achieve. Case in point: Wood says you should be asking questions such as, what am
Be an entrepreneur. Beauty pros need to stop blaming salon owners for not being busy. “Hairdressers were aware when they entered this industry they were in a commission-based business and would need to get out, hustle and bring something to the table,” Wood says. “My message to the industry is this: It is not the salon owners’ job to make you busy. It’s their job to provide a house for you. It’s your job to make you busy.”
Be a success. Stylists who want to be successful need to show up, be positive and be the first to volunteer. “Those three things will make you a leader,” Wood says. “I don’t believe people quit companies; I think employees quit people that they stop feeling a connection with. Empathy is key.”
Valid points, indeed! ✂ —Kelley Donahue, editor in chief, [email protected]
photography: Courtesy of Harry Woods