Yesterday, I published a write-up on how I notebook. A friend asked me to get into some detail on my notebooking approach and I took the opportunity to cement some practices I've been working on building for myself.
Now I get to cement that cementing ;)
- Keep doing: what is working and should I continue at current speed?
- Less of: what do I want less of in my next week?
- More of: Can I get more and what of?
- Stop doing: what’s not working and needs to be dropped?
- Start doing: what new things should I take on?
Keep Doing
This energy/momentum I've stirred up coming into this new year is something I absolutely want to keep going. I am feeling the energy of a balanced and full life. I got purpose, I have drive, I am mindfully gaining ground going to the gym and eating better, I have friends near and far I'm connecting further with, I love what I'm doing and I'm getting better about sharing what's working with others. I have a vibe going with someone and I want that to keep going as it is. I want to keep feeling like a complete person living a full and sustainable life.
Less Of
The more new skills I learn within a given timeframe, the less skill confidence I'm going to have within that timeframe for any of the new skills. I need to beat myself up less about making mistakes in safe learning spaces. No one is as hard on me as I am about making mistakes. I could be a little kinder to myself because more mistakes will happen. Hopefully I will grow my skills to recover from such mistakes as well.
More Of
This next week, I need to be using and relying on my notebook and the processes I'm committing to doing for myself. I need a bit more regular sleep and I need, as a result of that, to hit the gym a little more to help burn off the excess energy I'm collecting and give it a useful place to go.
Stop Doing
I need to stop allowing my focus to drift when I'm doing haircuts. I need to be doing section-by-section, cross check as I go when it's not a bald cut, and follow a given process to get the desired effect when cutting hair. I must not just jump to the thing I think I should do. I should ask before making a next move especially on new types of cuts.
Start Doing
A new thing I'm going to start incorporating to increase being present for clients is to incorporate taking notes after each haircut and to clear my head before taking someone new in the chair.
I made a real bad boo boo trying to do a taper cut, which was brand new to me. Because of my inexperience it may have been unavoidable, but one thing I know I could do better is to be more present and mindful about not just jumping from section to section, not pushing forward so fast when I feel stuck... in a strictly learning context, the urge to push through is really the signal that I should ask for further direction until I have the confidence to know, based on a number of experiences that inform that confidence.
