What a week! I completed my first three chapters of the Milady Barbering Manual, aced those tests, learned and cleared 4-, 5- and 9- part hair sectioning and developed enough skill to adequately curl from a 9-part section. Figuring out the manual (as in hand) maneuvering to keep hair tight on those rollers without making a mess of the hair I'm working with and the next set of hair to roll... is a whole new way of thinking and problem solving.
On Wednesday, five of my classmates had to take their shaving tests. There are, like, 14 different sections of the face when it comes to a straight razor shave, and each section has a specific way you position the razor to shave. There are a bunch of other rules, but the point is that as intense a reaction you might have to the idea of shaving yourself with a straight razor, imagine the scrutiny of being tested to shave others with a straight razor. Only one of my classmates passed the test on Wednesday, and I was her fill-in client.
That this test didn't go well for most of the people taking it impacted the whole of the shop on Wednesday. Having only been in school a week and a half, but with two decades of org dynamics experience with training, specifically... Wednesday gave me a lot to think about in terms of how important it is, no matter where you sit in an organization or a community or any public/civil dynamic... how important it is that one does their part to set the shared table for the feast you want to have.
The Shared Table
There are certainly a lot of personal interactions I have in which friends and family clearly see how lazy I am. Family and close friends are always a little surprised to see me at work, in my zone, because as many colleagues and customers know, I'm very intentional about the client/customer experience – from how we engage at the outset to how I approach closing out service delivery and follow-ups. I'm not even talking about barbering so much as I am consulting, but since the service is barbering, then let me give you an example of a shared table.
Hot, steamed towels are critical for doing a straight-razor shave. Shaves requires two hot towels, minimum, and a cold towel. Every barber doing a shave is responsible for making sure they have hot towels. This can translate in a barbershop setting in a few different ways. Often this means that everyone is doing their own thing, rolling up and soaking towels, placing them in a steam locker and waiting for them to warm up. When my classmate put what was supposed to be a hot towel on my face, and it was cold... I was pretty certain my face would be all torn up. That it wasn't is a great credit to my classmate/barber. But she was the only one who passed the test that day.
By simply getting ahead of things and putting a bank of a few towels to get things started for client service, barbers can "pay it foward" with their towel servicing rather than always playing catch up. Such practice would've made Wednesday morning go a lot smoother.
Thursday, I asked to get my training on doing towel service so I could make sure that when it comes time for my shave test in a few months, this isn't a fumble I need to force on myself.
Celebrating Longevity
On Saturday evening, my go-to barbers, The Belmont Barbershop, celebrated 20 years. Showing up at their anniversary party at Village Tap, I was so happy to connect with Josh, the owner and my original barber there; as well as all the barbers at the shop now and their sister shop in Indiana. Those guys inspired me for years about thinking about barbering, and this year helped me figure out the strategy and logic behind this major life/career pivot. I was so happy to celebrate with them.
Next?
I assume from doing rollers the next step is stuff related to perms. All new experiences working with my fingers and hands. I'm excited to grow these new skills.
