Hairbrained – Categorize Your Education To Optimize Your Business by Beauty Expert, Gina Rivera

Okay, so I know you have heard me say it before and I can pretty much guarantee that this won’t be the last time that you hear me touting this message. Education is important.  Now that may sound simple, but in this industry it’s more than simple, it’s crucial if you want to grow your business and remain engaged in beauty.

Keeping up with new trends can sometimes be challenging. It takes time and it takes effort. Fortunately, it’s become much easier to be educated than it used to be. With the ability to access a vast amount of information in literally seconds via the internet, there’s really no excuse to be out of the professional loop. One of the reasons that I have been able to grow a national brand is because I take the time to update myself on what’s coming down the pipeline and what’s trending in the business.

I understand it can be overwhelming. I realize that there is so much information available that sometimes it’s difficult to know how to stay on top of the changes. Because of this, I had to develop a way to manage education for myself and for my team. I have accomplished this by developing three ways to categorize my information as follows: technology, techniques, and products.

When I refer to technology, I am speaking about the latest in tools. For example, I am a huge advocate of my professional Tools by Gina line with infrared technology. that has been created to heat the hair from the inside. This is a technology that heats the hair from the inside out, evenly and safely. It leaves moisture in the hair which results in the hair being healthy, shiny, and having a ton of volume. It doesn’t damage your hair like your conventional hot tools that pull the moisture out of the hair leaving the hair dry, frizzy, dull and, in some cases, damaged. Good thing that I kept current or I would have never known about this. Plain and simple, Tools by Gina is smart technology for the hair. What a benefit for your clients and your business!

New techniques are always coming out. It seems like just yesterday the ombre’ and beach waves were the hottest style on the market. For me, this meant that learning the current technique for creating the looks became a hot education item for me. There are also always new versions of classic styles such as the pony tail, the bob and others. Do your research. You may come up with your own variation just from educating yourself. Most important, try to keep up with the styles.

Finally, mainstream products are rapidly changing. The beauty business is a competitive market place and this drives the products to become better and better on a regular basis. Don’t stay stuck in using the same products you were using ten years ago. Find out what’s popular and find out why. Then, try it out and see if it’s a good fit for any of your clients.

I don’t care how long you have been in the industry. It may be 50 years or one year; you may consider yourself the Best of the Best, and you just might be. However, we are never too seasoned to learn new things. We must be humble and open to education. I have been around the business my entire life. I have spent hours behind the chair during the past 25 years. Yet, there have been times where I have learned something new from someone that has been in the industry for just a short time.

A long time ago someone said to me, “When you think you know it all and you have learned everything you possibly can, it’s time to find a new career”.  That’s a powerful statement!  What they were really saying to me is that when you stop learning, you can become complacent, bored, and unmotivated. Your career quickly becomes just “work”.  It becomes such a routine, you become robotic, and are just going through the motions in order to get through the day.  This is NO FUN and it’s definitely not how I plan to spend my life.

I recommend that you swallow your pride and get out there. Take classes and find your passion again.  Look and learn classes, hands on classes, product classes, they’re all great.  Read books and magazines. There is an abundance of education available to any Salon Professional that really wants to access it.

Remember, there is nothing better and more exciting than going back to your salon or suite with a new technique that you can offer to one of your clients. They will appreciate this, too.  New ideas keep us fresh, stimulated and motivated.  And don’t forget, education also contributes to generating a great attitudes which is instrumental to your long term success!