How to become a better hairstylist using ‘Make Time’ by Jake Knapp and John Zeratsky
Make Time by Jake Knapp and John Zeratsky is a book that addresses redesigning your day in order to literally “make time” for the things that are important to you. As a hairstylist being behind the chair is normally our highest priority and it is A LOT of work. It can be difficult to disconnect from our role at the salon to find time to prioritize anything else. Whether it's the back end of the business like taxes and social media, or another hobby you'd like to take on entirely, it can be tough to navigate without leading yourself to burn out, or failing altogether. Make Time presents a system along with dozens of tips to find what is the 'highlight’ you want to focus on. The system then helps you figure out what works for you in regards to staying focused, recovering your energy, and staying motivated to complete the task. It allows you to pick and choose what works for your lifestyle in a sort of ‘trial and error’ format to tailor the approach to you specifically.
“Make Time” is focused on productivity in a more stereotypical office workplace setting so I found myself glossing over tips that I felt didn't pertain to being a hairdresser. After some reflection, I came to realize that being a great hairdresser requires more than a client sitting in our chair. We also need to relax and recover, run a small business, and stay passionate about our jobs. Outside of work we also need to try to find time for other hobbies and interests. I started to think about my own day-to-day and in following some of these tips I found more energy to do what I really want to do. I created more time for my business and hobbies, and I’ve started to feel more satisfaction and joy in every single day.
In this blog, I'm highlighting a few of the tips that stood out to me the most as it relates to being a hairstylist.
Just say no.
I came across this tip in another book, you can find my thoughts on it here. In tip #12 of this book, the authors Jake Knapp and John Zeratsky mention that most people tend to default to saying yes, but the best way to get out of low-priority obligations is to say no before even accepting them. For hairstylists, in order to create the kind of clientele you want, you need to say no to what doesn’t motivate you or make you excited. I really like the author's method of denying requests, by being “nice but honest”, to avoid deflecting and deferring requests indefinitely. This includes a method from the authors’ friend, Kristen Brillantes, called the “sour patch kid” method; give the sour response first (essentially just saying no) and then a sweet response that ends on a positive note. I think a great example as a stylist to a client would be the sour, “I don’t think I am a great fit for what you are looking for,” followed by the sweet “but I think X may be a better fit” where “X” is another stylist that you think would do a great job or specializes in the client’s request. Being tactful in your response will allow you to be selective while still being kind and courteous to the client.
Tactic Battle: Morning vs. Night
I personally enjoy getting the bulk of my work done in the morning, but a lot of my mornings are spent at the salon. I find I can focus the best earlier in the day and that my quality of work diminishes the later it gets. It's important to me to do a great job so on non-salon days I find that if I still behave as the morning person I tend to be, I am productive and can manage to get a lot of work done. Instead of sleeping in on my non-salon days, I can work on my business and bookkeeping or on my blog; scheduling my work around when I have the most focus.
Knapp and Zerasky both differ in regards to being a morning or night person and discuss the benefits of finding time before or after work to work on the highlight of your day. Figuring out requires being realistic about what suits your lifestyle (having kids, what time you work, external obligations, etc.) and finding time either in the morning or the afternoon to work on your priority. I found that if I adjusted my sleep schedule to go to bed earlier and wake up earlier, I could squeeze a few more hours in the day to read, write for my blog, or double check my salon schedule and respond to clients.
If you have children and life is hectic at home, carving out time late at night after everyone has gone to bed could benefit you greatly. This could limit what you’re able to get done and isn’t ideal if you have an early salon schedule.
Whether you’re an early bird or a night owl, finding the time that’s optimal for you to work on your highlights is what’s important. Carving out a time where you feel focused and engaged is key to successfully making time.
Go All In.
Every stylist in their career will experience burnout at some level. According to Mayo Clinic, Job burnout is a state of physical or emotional exhaustion that also involves a sense of reduced accomplishment and loss of personal identity. The authors of Make Time suggest a new approach to overcome burnout or avoid it altogether by jumping into a task “wholeheartedly”; throwing yourself completely and entirely into a project with enthusiasm and sincerity. Finding what makes you feel passionate about your highlight in the first place and prioritizing doing that. For a hairstylist that would be leaning into what you enjoy doing behind the chair. You will find the energy is already there when working on what you love and it takes you further than trying to rest and recover or by pivoting away from hair entirely. Burnout is a dangerous thing in the hair world but sometimes the answer is leaning back into what got you there to begin with.
Wake up before you caffeinate.
Iced coffee first thing in the morning is a quintessential part of the hairstylist diet. What you may not realize is that consuming a coffee first thing in the morning may lead to your downfall as you hit the notorious mid-day slump. In Tip #70, Knapp and Zeratsky encourage thinking about your caffeine consumption at a scientific level in order to stay awake and alert all day.
They suggest starting your morning caffeine-free until you are ready to start working. This is because caffeine molecules will block Adenosine receptors (adenosine is one of the chemicals responsible for regulating and maintaining sleep) but first thing in the morning your receptors are not attaching to any adenosine yet and therefore you don't need the caffeine quite yet.
Likewise they suggest not consuming any coffee after a certain time as the half-life (the length of time it takes for the amount of a substance to be reduced by half of the starting dose) of caffeine is about 5-6 hours and you will no longer want those caffeine molecules to be active when you are ready to go to sleep. Their suggestion is the perfect window of about 9am to 3pm.
It is such a drag to have to continue to power through a work day at the salon while you hit that midday groggy feeling or how sluggish you can get whenever you have a gap in your schedule. By following this tip you may be able to optimize that caffeine intake and keep yourself alert and active the entire day, or possibly maintain enough energy to focus on highlights before or after work and prevent yourself from running on empty. There's also the added benefit of not showing up late to your first appointment with a starbucks coffee in your hand, you know who you are.
I find starting my morning coffee consumption around 9:30 is great for me; my day has already started and I don’t feel sluggish yet and the caffeine will then sustain me for several more hours into the workday. I also find that after the caffeine is worn off I go back to a regular, sustained energy level and haven’t had to rely on the coffee to keep my energy high for an extended period. Another suggestion is if you end up having a larger gap in your schedule, to have a caffeinated beverage about 20 minutes before the next appointment as it gives the caffeine time to activate and then you will push yourself past the start up of having to get back into ‘work-mode’.
Don’t jet lag yourself.
In another effort to be more alert and focused at work or to sustain enough energy for anything else, it is important to have a consistent and adequate sleep schedule. Once again Kristen Brillantes provides some insight on the importance of this when it comes to a busy schedule. We know how tempting it can be to want to sleep in as long as possible on your days off of the salon to try and catch up on rest, but Brillantes stresses that sleeping beyond your regular schedule gives you a sort of jet lagged feeling and will upset the ability for you to wake up on your regular schedule. Staying on your sleep schedule will allow you to stay consistent when you recover and chip away incrementally at what she calls “sleep debt” (the amount of sleep you feel like you need to catch up on, in a perspective of being in a deficit), as opposed to trying to catch up in larger installments and disrupt your internal clock. Staying consistent on sleep will help you sustain energy and allow you to be more present behind the chair, or open you up to enough energy to follow through on any other ‘highlights’ you may have.
My final take away from the book that I believe will resonate with hairstylists,, is a quote from Howard Thurman, an author, Theologian, and civil rights leader.
“Do not ask yourself what the world needs. Ask yourself what makes you come alive, and then go do that. Because what the world needs is people who have come alive.”
The use of this quote was odd to me at first as Thurman is speaking to oppressed people in the face of persecution that transcends the issues of the everyday entrepreneur, but I think it can still send a positive message to anyone. There are a million hairstylists out there, and every single one has a unique eye and passion for their craft. Therefore, I am an advocate for making your business exactly what you want it to be. Stop convincing yourself you need to be the best at everything and take on clients that drain you or offerings that stifle your creativity. While it is important to gain as much experience as you possibly can, you will eventually need to find what makes you feel sustained and motivated to continue your business and offer clients the best possible service. Doing what makes you come alive will increase your value as a hairstylist and the work will show.
I hope you found some insight from these tips. Choosing to make time has given me the opportunity to not only show up to work each and every day, but has also allowed me to pursue other passions (like this blog) and also tighten up and focus on other aspects of my business that are pushed aside while I am focusing on a great client service. You can purchase this book here if you feel like trying out the make time method for yourself or you can check out their website for additional tips and resources that you may find useful.