I am writing this post as a follow-up to my last post. I was proud of my last post. I am passionate about what was shared. When I read it online after it went live I was immediately struck by not only how important the message is bit also by the importance of the exact same message delivered form a positive perspective.

Read on. Thank you for your continued support of me and these postings.

I was a first time client. I was a long time client. I saw things in the shop. I was your client. I am coming back.

I saw you sweeping. I saw you grab the broom after every client. I saw you sweep for the other cutters in the shop when you swept your chair. I saw you get most but not all of the hair. I saw that your sweeping was about more than cleaning the floor. I saw you treat sweeping as an act of respect for yourself and all your clients. I saw you act as though sweeping is an act of courtesy to your co-workers. You sweep every client. I am coming back. I will tell my friends.

I saw you ignore the phone. The phone rings all day. I understand that the sound of the ring is the sound of money. You did not jump for the phone. You let the guy who was not cutting answer the phone. You let the machine (voicemail) get it. The ringing phone begs to take your attention.  It seeks to break your concentration. You chose to send the message that the haircut you were doing, the client in your chair was the priority right now. You CHOSE not to answer. You made the right choice. When you did not have a choice you took a call. You kept it short. You got back to the haircut, but you apologized to the client before you got back to work. I saw you. I am I coming back. I am impressed. I appreciate you. You respect me.

I saw you show compassion and patience. I saw you lock the chair and hold the arm of an old man with a walker who was scared to climb into the chair for fear of losing his balance and falling. I saw you slow down your work and change your tone with that little boy who was a bit freaked out at the sights, sounds and smells of a “big boy” haircut in a barbershop. I saw you do that. I am coming back. I am referring my friends (and their kids and their Grandpa’s)

I saw you raised your price. I saw the change on the menu board.  I saw the new price in the service pamphlet.  I will not tell you I am happy about it, at least not for me. I am, however, happy for you. I appreciate your work. I respect your skills. I want a raise at work. I know you deserve one, too. I appreciate the fact that you did not apologize for the increase when I commented on it. I admire your confidence in the value you bring and the worth of your business. I am happy to pay the new price. You are worth it. I am coming back.

I am your client. I see everything. I hear everything. I am a consumer. I choose where I spend my money. I have influence over where my friends and family spend their money. Luck for you, I am on social media. I talk. I tell them what I saw.

Happy Clippering.

Ivan