Latest / Salon Success Secrets — The podcast for salon owners who are done hustling harder and ready to break their revenue ceiling. / Cultivating Unbreakable Bonds: The Power of Connection, Truth, and Communication in the Salon Industry

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Cultivating Unbreakable Bonds: The Power of Connection, Truth, and Communication in the Salon Industry · Salon Success Secrets — The podcast for salon owners who are done hustling harder and ready to break their revenue ceiling.

• 0:35
  Speaker 1: Hello and welcome to today's episode.
• 0:37
  Speaker 1: We are excited to dive in deep to a matter that can help you in all areas of your life, from inside of the salon to inside of your personal relationships.
• 0:47
  Speaker 1: It's a tool that you can utilize to just strengthen everything around you.
• 0:54
  Speaker 2: That's right.
• 0:54
  Speaker 2: So today is all going to be about the importance of building strong relationships, like Lindsay was saying, not just for yourself, but for your team.
• 1:02
  Speaker 2: And we have a really cool concept we're going to introduce today called the relationship triangle, because we know, at the end of the day, we are in the hospitality business, we are in the, we are in the business of building relationships, and so, with that, there's three components that we're going to give you that will help support you in creating those strong relationships.
• 1:22
  Speaker 1: All right.
• 1:23
  Speaker 1: So you know, really that step one, the foundational part of any relationship, is really just understanding those personal interactions that you have.
• 1:34
  Speaker 1: So that first part is connection.
• 1:37
  Speaker 1: So connection, you know, really is just the heart of any relationship and you know connection is, you know, really being connected to yourself first and that can really help you have that first step in building those meaningful relationships with others.
• 1:58
  Speaker 1: So you know it's creating that authentic space where you can just become connected with yourself, with your guests, with your team.
• 2:09
  Speaker 1: You know, and like we mentioned earlier, this can also be utilized outside of the salon.
• 2:14
  Speaker 1: Today we're talking about it in the salon concept, you know, but if you think about your, you know, relationships with your children, or you know, maybe you have a partner or a loved one or family.
• 2:26
  Speaker 1: Having that genuine, authentic connection is that foundation to creating an amazing, strong relationship.
• 2:38
  Speaker 2: Yeah, so when you think about ways to create connection in the salon, there's so many different verticals to view this from.
• 2:43
  Speaker 2: I mean, one would be actually creating connection to new team members.
• 2:47
  Speaker 2: So you know, like, what are some ways to create connection?
• 2:50
  Speaker 2: One way would be on that first day of onboarding, like understanding what's important for them, understanding some important facts about them, understanding some important facts about them, you know, remembering things about things they've said in the interview, or you know, to be really present and actively listen to what are their wants and desires and joining your salon home.
• 3:10
  Speaker 2: So that would be one way to create connection to a new team member.
• 3:14
  Speaker 2: Another vertical of that would be creating connection with guests, and so like having that tool to teach your team of like hey, this is how we create connection, and really the most beautiful part about creating connection is just having that listening ear and really being able to duplicate what your guests are saying, and so I think that's a skill that is sometimes not natural for everyone.
• 3:37
  Speaker 2: But to really understand, like to be able to teach this to your team as well, as really what helps elevate the guest experience at the end of the day.
• 3:46
  Speaker 1: You know, I think that's a beautiful point that you brought up, because I think that when you are present and actively listening to what somebody is saying, and then I think when you acknowledge them, that is really a key component to building that strong connection inside of a relationship of any kind.
• 4:08
  Speaker 1: And so, you know, I think acknowledgement is one of the most underutilized tools in the world, not just in our industry but in the world.
• 4:16
  Speaker 1: But you know, there's a couple of different ways that you can acknowledge people.
• 4:20
  Speaker 1: One of them is by just greeting them, saying hello when you see somebody, when you see another being like hey, I see you, you matter.
• 4:29
  Speaker 1: And another way to acknowledge people is, you know, it ends the communication cycle and so when somebody tells you something, you acknowledge that you heard them by saying, okay, got it, I hear you, or thank you, whatever it might be, just really offering that acknowledgement and being present during the consultation with your guests so that you make sure that you extend that acknowledgement so that they know, okay, they did hear what I said.
• 4:57
  Speaker 1: Sometimes we'll repeat back what it is that we heard them say.
• 4:58
  Speaker 1: Extend that acknowledgement so that they know, okay, they did hear what I said.
• 5:00
  Speaker 1: You know, sometimes we'll repeat back.
• 5:04
  Speaker 1: You know what it is that we heard them say.
• 5:05
  Speaker 1: But just making sure that you acknowledge like thank you, or I heard you or I got it, you know, is just such a key component to creating that connection inside of our industry.
• 5:14
  Speaker 2: Yeah, I love that you said that.
• 5:15
  Speaker 2: It also reminds me of something that we've been talking about in our salon company too is like when you have a new educator and you know, when they're seeing guests and they start working with a training somebody that's in the training program our inner salon we call them a golden girl.
• 5:29
  Speaker 2: It's like you've got to be able to create connection between that guest and that golden girl, or else the guests kind of resist the experience a little bit.
• 5:38
  Speaker 2: So I'm sure you might've seen that before or, you know, had a fear of this before, and so like how can you create that connection between the guest, the educator and the trainee?
• 5:47
  Speaker 2: And so I think one of the most beautiful parts about that is like when you're having that consultation, you know the, the trainer, the trainee, not the trainer, sorry.
• 5:56
  Speaker 2: The trainee is going to stand right there with the educator, like they're going to be right face present with the guest so that they're not standing behind, because it'd be like going in for surgery and you're, you know you're, you're laying on the table, the doctor is getting ready to operate, and then you have this trainee in the back and they're way back there and the doctor's like oh, by the way, sue's going to take over now and the patient is probably going to be like what is happening, what is going on, and so you know I think that happens a lot of time in our salon companies too is thinking about.
• 6:27
  Speaker 2: We've got to be able to create that connection between the trainee and the guest so that the guest feels that security and they're really open to that person.
• 6:35
  Speaker 2: That's training, working with them as well.
• 6:38
  Speaker 1: Yes, I love that.
• 6:39
  Speaker 1: I think you know, um, I have a spiritual mentor of ours once said you know, disconnection is the number one cause of all malpractice suits.
• 6:51
  Speaker 1: And you know, whereas we hope nothing like that ever happens inside of our industry, what we do know is when we're able to stay connected to people and we're able to create that connection within people, you know, then then we can always come to some sort of a resolution.
• 7:05
  Speaker 1: So, whether it's like Jen said, like hey, creating that connection with a new trainee on your team, um, or if it's like hey, you get a bad review, um, a lot of times we'll just want to automatically disconnect from somebody because of what they're saying or doing.
• 7:21
  Speaker 1: But how we get through something or get to the other side or mitigate the worst possible scenario from happening is by remaining connected, and so connection is number know is number one on the list because, I mean, the other two are going to be important that we're talking about too, and I would say they're all equally important.
• 7:42
  Speaker 1: But connection is just something that when we have it at the forefront of our mind and we remember what our goal is at the end of the day, a lot of times connection helps us achieve that goal quicker, easier, faster.
• 7:59
  Speaker 2: Awesome.
• 7:59
  Speaker 2: And so the next part of the relationship triangle is going to be truth.
• 8:03
  Speaker 2: And so when we talk about truth, what we're referring to is that bond of a shared reality.
• 8:09
  Speaker 2: And so you know there's so many different verticals to look at when you're creating truth between your team, between the service providers and the guests, between hospitality and the guest.
• 8:20
  Speaker 2: And so when you have that shared reality, you know it just feels, it makes people feel like it resonates with both parties.
• 8:28
  Speaker 2: And so when you talk about shared reality, it's finding like that common ground, like maybe what's a common thing that they have that their, their personal values align, or maybe it's a goal that they have.
• 8:39
  Speaker 2: And so to really be able to, you know, ask questions, just even like what's the best part of your day sometimes can create that reality of understanding where someone's coming from and saying, oh yeah, that's great, that's been the best part of my day so far too.
• 8:54
  Speaker 2: And so when you create that shared reality, it just gets buy-in from everyone that you're speaking to.
• 9:00
  Speaker 2: And so when you have that buy-in, I think it makes the relationship so much stronger.
• 9:05
  Speaker 1: Yes, and you know I love that you said asking them about the best part of their day, because I think you know another thing inside of our industry is it's really easy to create that connection between you know somebody who's within 12 years of your age range, because you have a lot more in common.
• 9:22
  Speaker 1: But when it comes to creating that shared reality, a lot of times this can be a challenge for people inside of our industry if they're not within 12 years of somebody, because then they'll start to think well, their reality is they have grandkids and my reality is I have a grandma, you know, or whatever it might be.
• 9:42
  Speaker 1: You know, this is where a lot of people can create disconnection because they're not looking to create that shared reality.
• 9:47
  Speaker 1: But at the end of the day, it doesn't matter if you're, you know, 85 or 15, there's still so much shared reality that we can create.
• 9:57
  Speaker 1: You know, because, like, hey, it brings me joy to have a cup of coffee in the morning, and it might bring somebody joy who's 15 or 85 to have a cup of coffee in the morning, and it might bring somebody joy who's 15 or 85 to have a cup of coffee in the morning, and so there's so many things that you can create that shared reality with somebody and so helping your team, especially if they're younger or newer into the industry, understand like hey, how do we create that shared reality with somebody?
• 10:21
  Speaker 1: Because it is one of the most important parts of the relation triangle, you know, it's such an opportunity to really help them build those stronger connections.
• 10:32
  Speaker 1: And you know, even at the front desk, like that's a great place to you know, create some shared reality.
• 10:38
  Speaker 1: Like how do we do that with every person on our team, with every guest that enters into our space?
• 10:44
  Speaker 2: Yeah, I love that.
• 10:45
  Speaker 2: You said that and it's like we like to look at it and view it from.
• 10:47
  Speaker 2: The definition of team is a great team is a group of people with a common reality.
• 10:52
  Speaker 2: So if everyone is there, they understand that.
• 10:55
  Speaker 2: The reality is, the mission is this you know, we're all playing that same game.
• 11:00
  Speaker 2: That's a shared reality.
• 11:00
  Speaker 2: That's when the guests are going to feel the difference.
• 11:03
  Speaker 2: They're going to feel those points of difference that are like hey, I don't know what it is about, salon ABC or whatever salon it is, but when I go there, I feel so much better.
• 11:11
  Speaker 2: I feel so much, you know, more inspired, more beautiful, and so it's really being able to your team all playing that same game, all having that shared reality of what your guest experience looks like too.
• 11:22
  Speaker 2: That really creates an incredible relationship.
• 11:25
  Speaker 1: Yes, Cause you know you can also.
• 11:27
  Speaker 1: Then it helps you as the leader of the team to be able to see, like hey, if there's somebody who's not enrolled in that same shared reality, you know, if they're just what's in it.
• 11:38
  Speaker 1: For me, in every situation, it's a great coaching tool.
• 11:41
  Speaker 1: Or it's just great to recognize, like hey, it might be time to part ways with this individual, because we are on a mission to create a shared reality with everyone who enters into our space, and so just recognizing those you know nonverbal cues, so that you can really be able to to just respond accordingly, is huge when it comes to, you know, the bond of that shared reality.
• 12:07
  Speaker 2: Yeah, so we've talked about the two points of connection and truth, and so the last point of the relationship triangle is going to be communication.
• 12:15
  Speaker 2: And you know, the one important factor of these two is like when one of these is out of balance, it actually starts impacting the other two as well.
• 12:23
  Speaker 2: So if your communication is not strong, it actually can impact, you know, your shared reality or your truth or your connection.
• 12:27
  Speaker 2: It actually can impact your shared reality or your truth or your connection, and so when you're able to elevate one of these, the rest of them elevate as well.
• 12:35
  Speaker 2: So I think that's something else to digest and view.
• 12:38
  Speaker 2: But communication we know that everybody has a different communication style and usually when there's an upset between two people, it's because the communication, there's not a shared reality.
• 12:48
  Speaker 2: In the communication Either nothing was said or too much was said, or because people can communicate either verbally or non-verbally.
• 12:58
  Speaker 2: We all know what some non-verbal cues can be in communication.
• 12:59
  Speaker 2: And so to really understand, at the end of the day to, you know, there's love and there's fear.
• 13:03
  Speaker 2: To communicate from a place of love really helps to build a relationship, you know, and to understand how people like to be communicated to.
• 13:11
  Speaker 2: There's many different styles of communication.
• 13:14
  Speaker 2: You know and there's also many of you have probably taken the different love languages of how people like to be communicated to, and so it's always a huge opportunity when you bring a new team member on your team, to really understand their love language so that you can communicate with them efficiently, effectively right out of the gate.
• 13:40
  Speaker 1: Yeah, I love that and really just also being aware of how many stories we can create in our own minds when the truth is usually we could just ask a question or two and get it resolved and not have that question.
• 13:51
  Speaker 1: So I know this happens a lot for newer stylists on the team.
• 13:56
  Speaker 1: When they're going to blow dry.
• 13:58
  Speaker 1: They're blow drying the hair and they're like, oh, she hates it.
• 14:00
  Speaker 1: Oh, that face, that's just telling me she hates it.
• 14:04
  Speaker 1: I knew it.
• 14:05
  Speaker 1: You start creating all of these stories in your mind but the truth is like, you know, the wet hair touched her face a couple of times and so it made her wince or whatever it was that happened.
• 14:16
  Speaker 1: But if you took that opportunity to communicate, like hey Jen, how are you doing, you know to see, and they'd be like, oh fine, you know, and perk right back up again, then that could stop you from creating those stories in your mind.
• 14:31
  Speaker 1: You know, same thing goes like when we get towards the end and we're doing a big reveal.
• 14:37
  Speaker 1: You know, just communicating with the guests, like how do you feel, what's your favorite part of the look?
• 14:42
  Speaker 1: You know, just asking some questions that can positively frame that experience so that you can stay in communication can really close loops, because that's where a lot of times people start to not communicate with their guest and they start being very introspective and judging their work and thinking of all these things that they could have, should have, maybe, would have done.
• 15:04
  Speaker 1: But the truth is like we're all learning and growing and evolving and when you keep that line of communication open with the guest, it really encourages feedback and so feedback in multiple ways so you can get feedback instantly.
• 15:22
  Speaker 1: You can also encourage some feedback in the future from them via social media or whatever it might be, but it really does just help keep those lines of communication open.
• 15:34
  Speaker 2: Yeah, I love that you said that and also, too, an opportunity to look at would be like, if you do have an educator that's working with a trainee and a guest, to make sure that that trainee is communicating with the guest as well, like you know.
• 15:46
  Speaker 2: Let them be part of that consultation, maybe have a script or a list of questions that they can ask as well, because I think you know a lot of times if you've had the feedback of, well, I only want you to do my hair, and I think it's just because we haven't built that relationship triangle with the guest and the trainee, and so to let them be part of that experience can really change and elevate the game.
• 16:09
  Speaker 1: Yes, and so so far we have gone through the relationship triangle, which consists of creating that connection, creating truth, which is the bond of that shared reality, and then communication.
• 16:25
  Speaker 1: And so when we put all three of these together, it really creates a powerful structure in any relationship.
• 16:33
  Speaker 1: And at the end of the day, in the salon and spa industry, we are in that relationship building business.
• 16:42
  Speaker 1: It's truly everything that we do is about building relationships.
• 16:46
  Speaker 1: And so if you look at one of those parts, if there's ever an upset between you and a guest or you and somebody on the team looking to see, hey, what area was it?
• 16:58
  Speaker 1: You know, are we not connected?
• 17:00
  Speaker 1: Do we not share the same truth or reality, or do we not?
• 17:05
  Speaker 1: Have we not been communicating effectively?
• 17:07
  Speaker 1: And so when you look at one of those three areas, like Jen mentioned earlier, when you fix the one part that seems to be the most broken or interrupted, really it makes the other two stronger as well.
• 17:21
  Speaker 1: And this is a great thing to view of how can we work on this relationship triangle with every single guest, with every single team member, so that we really can become a strong powerhouse that produces amazing results.
• 17:36
  Speaker 1: And people know, hey, when I visit Salon ABC.
• 17:38
  Speaker 1: Things are just totally different here.
• 17:41
  Speaker 2: Yeah, and so we hope you loved this podcast.
• 17:45
  Speaker 2: We'd love some feedback.
• 17:47
  Speaker 2: You can always catch us on Instagram at the PhD program, or Facebook.
• 17:52
  Speaker 2: I share this with a friend because this goes beyond the salon industry as well.
• 17:57
  Speaker 2: Like this is a tool that you can utilize in your personal life that will help you and so many verticals, just to give you that gift of awareness of how, if you want to make a relationship stronger, just like Lindsay said, what is the missing component?
• 18:09
  Speaker 2: Is it the communication, the connection or the truth?
• 18:12
  Speaker 2: And when you have those tools, you're able to really truly create a life by design.
• 18:17
  Speaker 2: Thanks for tuning in.