(Part 2) Stories From Stylists Who Made Big, Scary Shifts

Hello, my friend. Welcome back to the Modern Hairstylist Podcast. In the last episode, we got to hear from my friends, Sydney and Shereen, all about some systems, career changes, and big scary shifts that they made in their own beauty business. And the reason for that was f- so you, my friend, listening to this, could hear about those stories and hopefully get inspired and remove a little bit of your fear, or at least give you some courage and the push that you need to implement some of those same changes if you've been thinking about doing so.

'Cause I get it, I understand, it can be really nerve-wracking to want to make these changes, 'cause what if our clients hate it? And what if people don't take you seriously? Or who am I to be doing these types of things? I get it.

We all have those little, uh, minions in our brains who are telling us all those stories, right? However, I'm here to tell you, and my friends are here to tell you, that it's completely possible for you to implement these systems and changes, and for you to be just fine and to even thrive at the same time. So, today, furthermore, we have my friends Katie and Zarina, who are gonna be coming in and spilling to you all the tea about their own changes and systems that they've implemented in their business, and I'm really looking forward to you hearing from them, 'cause they are both badass stylists who have implemented a whole lot of change and are thriving and doing really freaking well. So, get ready for this episode of the Modern Hairstylist Podcast.

Let's go. What's the tea, friend? My name's Hunter Donia, industry business educator for hairstylists, but my friends just call me Hunty. Whether it be growing your clientele, making more money, or automating and streamlining your systems, in the next 20 minutes or so, you'll be hearing realistic, actionable strategies to create a beautiful career for yourself behind the chair.

So, if you're ready to get into it, welcome to the Modern Hairstylist Podcast. My name is Katie Schoenrock. I'm from the Twin Cities in Minnesota. I have been in the hair industry since 2005.

Uh, I started taking cosmetology courses actually through, um, a college program while I was in high school. So, when I got outta high school, I actually was able to just finish up my courses, and I had graduated cosmetology school and started my career within nine months of graduating high school. Um, and I've been kind of in every realm of the hair industry. I went from a corporate salon to a small business salon to a booth rental, and now I'm in my own studio.

So, I've kinda seen everything in the hair industry. Yeah. Um, how long has it- how long have you been in the industry? Since 2005.

So, about 18 years now this month. Wow. Mm-hmm. Congratulations.

Thank you. That is so freaking cool. It's crazy. Do you feel ...

'Cause I had, you know, I went to vocational school, right? Mm-hmm. Do you feel, like, really grateful and privileged to have, like, gotten into the game, like, as early as you did- Oh. as much as I do?

Absolutely. Because number one, my high school paid for that, so I didn't have to take that outta my pocket. So, when I- Right. did go, end up going to a private school after, it cut my tuition.

So, I- Right. always encourage people, if they have the opportunity to do something like that. And it also gives you the idea if that's actually what you wanna do for a career. I mean, that's what really implemented that I wanted to do this.

I enjoyed it, I loved it, and I wanted to continue on. Yeah. Absolutely. I think that I got into ...

I, like, decided to go to my vocational school just because I was like, "This seems like something that I might enjoy." Like, "This might be cool." I didn't even think about, like, the career situation side of it. I was like, "School's annoying.

I hate this shit." "Let's, like, go do something fun for half of the day." And then I got in, and I was like, "Oh, my God. I love this shit."

Right. And, like, the fact that I'd be able to make a living doing this- Mm-hmm. was so fascinating to me. Yeah.

And so, you're right. Like, it really does ... It can help kids validate, like, what they wanna do and where they wanna go, whether it mean, it, that means, like, it validates that they don't wanna do cosmetology school or that they do. And how much, how much time and, uh, money do you save by being able to have that opportunity, right?

And so, it's a shame that there's not more vocational schools, and specifically cosmetology programs across the country, and that it's so stigmatized. But if you do have the opportunity, and if you're a parent listening to this too, like, let your child go to vocational school, please. Well, and this industry has changed so much even in the last three years with the pandemic. And you know, we're not looked at as just doing hair anymore.

We're looked at as- Right. a professional service. And even more than just a service. I mean, for a lot of people, we're therapists.

We're- Right. We're their therapy. They're coming in, you know, having a rough day, and we get to take their hair goal, flip that around, and see the look on their face of confidence when they see themselves- Right. and go, "Oh, yeah.

That's right. I am a badass. I can do this. I can take on the world."

So, just, you know, keep in mind that, you know, this world is changing, and things that used to be looked at as, like, you know, just jobs and not careers are taking a different path. And we're ... People like you, Hunter, uh, the educators of now are changing this industry for the better. And it's about damn time.

So, thank you- Yeah. for everything you do and all the amazing educators that we have now.Yeah, I agree. Big thank you to all the educators out there because like you said, like, things are changing and so now, we have the opportunity to, like, take advantage of those changes, right?

Not just- not just, like, you know, change with the changes, but also take advantage of the opportunities. Like, a simple example is, I keep saying this recently because I'm teaching a lot about marketing recently, a lot of people will, like hairstylists specifically, will take social media and be like, "Oh my God, I hate that this is a part of our job now." Like, they're like, "Oh my God. I, like, hate that this is something that I have to do."

And, like, don't get me wrong, like, I'm not necessarily thrilled that this is, like, it feels like an obligation for me either. You know? Like, I don't think anybody necessarily, like, loves the fact that they have to take advantage of- of social media. But the thing is, is like, we're thinking about it way too much of- as an obligation instead of an opportunity, right?

Yeah. I don't know if you kinda agree and, like, how you use- how you've used it in your own business, but, like, this is, like, we've never had this opportunity- Right. to- to reach as many people as we've ever had before to target specific human beings and services and get more of those specific people into our chair than we ever had before. Mm-hmm.

And so, I think that it's exciting that we're in this era where we can take advantage of the changes and make differences in the way that we do business that we have never had access to or even thought about doing ever before, right? Would you agree? I agree completely. Like, when I first started my career 18 years ago, we had to walk around and hand out our business cards.

Right. You left them at a restaurant, you left them with peop- I mean, it was literally, like, you had to go seek people out and you almost felt like a salesperson trying to get people in the door. Right. Whereas now, you can just be yourself, post something funny or, you know, it doesn't even have to be hair-related.

And people go, "Hey, I relate to that person and I wanna be in their chair." Like- Right. the power of social media, even if you're not, you know, taking five hours to do a Reel, is absolutely incredible. And I've- I've noticed personally when I do simple, easy, quick, don't re-record, those are the ones that actually make way more impact than the ones I take my time to do and sit and think out- Yeah.

and, like, you know, make myself redo over and over 'cause I'm a perfectionist. Yep. And those ones never get any views or likes or anything. So, like, just be your authentic self, you throw it out there, and people will find you.

So yes, we need to take advantage of these tools- Yeah. that we've been given. I love that. Thank you so much for sharing those tips because I completely have had the same experience.

Like, the shit that I'm just like, "Well, let me just throw something out there." All of a sudden, it, like, blows up- Yeah. and I'm like, "What the hell is this?" Right?

Thank you for sharing that. I think it's a great thing for people to hear, especially when it's people who are out there who are, like, timid about going about social media, right? Speaking of changes, along- alongside changes, right? Mm-hmm.

Not just in, like, how we take advantage of marketing ourselves, but also in the way that we work and the way that we actually run our businesses behind the chair, right? I know that you have gone through a couple of fair- fairly large shifts in the past, like, two and a half years, right? Yeah. So tell me, like, what made you- what made you want to make changes for yourself and your own business?

Like, what made it seem like, "Oh, damn. Like, there is, like, opportunities for me to change things around possibly, and I'm seeing things work for- for me, like, this way right now and maybe I want to change"? What made you think that you want to change? That's a good question.

You know, when the pandemic hit in March of 2020, you know, I was very complacent with where I was. You know, I started my studio, but I had rented for eight years, and so when I moved over to my studio, I- I, yes, I made a name for my salon, but I was still kind of working things not really as a business, but just more as a hairdresser behind the chair. And so, when the pandemic hit and I had no job for the first time in, you know, 20 years, it gave me the opportunity to really look into my business. And I found this really cool app called Clubhouse, and through Clubhouse, I met this really amazing human that I just could not stop following named Hunter Don't Ya, and I was literally so obsessed that my boyfriend, like, Hunter's a- a name in our house that's spoken of all the time now.

And after listening to Hunter, this young hairstylist with all these amazing ideas, talking about how we need to be more professional and not just hairstylists and that there's things we can do behind the chair, especially as studio owners when we're CEO, CFO, CMO, COO, everything, that you can do that automates things to be able to have more time at home, that, like, absolutely blew my mind. I had been in the industry for 15, 16 years at that point, and the things that you were saying, I had never heard from an educator before. I had never gotten more education on the business end of how to run my business as a, you know, sol-entrepreneur, I guess, or a solopreneur. And so implementing these changes have literally changed my life, my business, my family.

I mean, it has blown me away. And my clients, too. They have noticed such a big shift in how my business is running, and they're so proud of me and encouraging that it's been absolutely incredible. So we can- we can definitely go in depth on each individual thing that I've done that has really- Yeah.

kind of blown...... uh, me away, and- Yeah. uh, the first thing that I did was I removed double booking. That was kind of forced on us when we came back from, from the pandemic and the lockdown.

Hmm. We were no longer allowed to double book. But what I realized after coming back and not double booking is how much my body was- Hmm. ha- you know, happy with me.

I wasn't- Yes. hurting when I went home at night. My feet weren't aching, my arms weren't killing me, and I wasn't, like, so brain fogged because I had seen so many people in a day. I didn't get a break, I didn't get lunch, I probably didn't drink enough water.

So by the time I got home you couldn't ta- Like, there was one time that I actually attempted to eat my dinner with the remote control 'cause I was that, like, "Bloo." I- Yeah. Yeah. My boyfriend looked at me and he's like, "What are you doing?"

I don't really know what I'm doing. So by taking out that double booking... And then the other thing that I did with taking out the double booking is I removed services that didn't really bring me joy anymore. I don't love perms, so I eliminated that.

I, I used to do so many things. Um, I no longer take individual haircuts anymore. I do have my existing client haircuts, but now I only take color services with haircuts. You know, getting rid of the things that didn't make me happy makes me so much happier at the end of the day.

And when I go home, I enjoy time with my family now. I enjoy the time with my partner. I didn't get that before because I was so overwhelmed and burnt out that when I went home I was not helpful. I was, you know, in a fog.

Just changed so much when I, when I took those two things out of my books. I really felt a sense of relief. Yeah. And I hadn't felt that in a very, very long time.

Were you nervous to, to take those things out of your book? Absolutely. Um, with the double booking, my biggest thing was, am I gonna make the same amount of money? Because I was putting 10 people in a day, and now I only take maybe two to three, if it's color services.

So that's a huge change. So yeah, that was kind of a big, like, "What am I gonna do?" But that's kind of where one of my other things comes in, is where I switched to my session pricing. Mm-hmm.

So I took all of my services, I figured out how much time each of 'em would take, and I used that to create sessions based on the amount of time people would be in my chair. And the sessions have everything included in them. So it's got the, you know, the partial haircut treatment, my full with the haircut and treatment, and then I have, like, the transform, your big, huge service with the... You know.

But everything's all inclusive. My clients know what they're paying, for one. You know, they don't have to sit and calculate, "Oh, the color's this, the haircut's this, the toner is this. How much am I paying today?"

They know when they walk in my door what they are paying for their service, give or take extra color and whatnot. That's the only thing that would, you know, charge a little extra for is timing and product. But otherwise, you know, they're so grateful now that they know exactly what they're doing. They don't have to pick a bunch of things when they go on my booking.

There's literally five options. They pick from one of those. Super easy. Super amazing for new guests.

They just, they're blown away by that. And then what I was able to do is do a slight price increase, um, once I- Yeah. put my sessions together, and that's what created that income from the double booking. So with that, I was able to implement it, and, um, you know, I was super nervous, but honestly, it only made things so much easier on my end, from my reports and taxes- Yeah.

to me being comfortable being able to say no to clients, being at home more- Yeah. um, and just simplifying everything. I mean, it really made a huge difference. I'm glad to hear that.

And so, you know, we were super nervous about that, right? Oh, yeah. And I'm a firm believer in, like, you know, the fear's not gonna go away, so you have to do it scared. What do you think gave you the courage?

Although you were nervous, right? Yeah. Like, what do you think gave you the courage to, like, actually be like, "What's up clients? This is how things are gonna be moving forward"?

The courage came from the community, from my pre-visit pathway to freedom. Um, your course brought this community together, of stylists who are literally just uplifting each other and encouraging each other and keeping each other accountable, but in a positive way. I've never had any negativity in your groups. Everybody has been so welcoming and so forward to help.

It has made such a big impact, not only for my business, but just, like, me as a person in wanting to be that positive for other people and turning around and being that push to get them to do what they need to do. And I mean, you're right. Fear is literally, like, you have to just jump in sometimes, and it's never gonna go away. And if you always say, "Oh, well, I'm gonna wait for this time," it's never gonna be the right time.

Yeah. You just have to do it- Right. and know that you need to lean on your community to help you through it. And- Yeah.

this community has been absolutely incredible. I mean, I feel like I've made some absolutely amazing friends in this community, and you guys have done so much for me with my business, and even personal. I mean, when I lost my dog, it was you guys that were encouraging me to, you know, take some time off and to grieve, but, but to keep going and keep pushing on, and it's okay. And having some sort of a community like that...

You know, when they say it takes a village, it doesn't just take a village to raise a child, it takes a village to hold accountable and just to live life. Yeah. Life is hard. So to be able to, to fall back and have someone to lean on is just huge.

So thank you for creating such an amazing community, Hunter. Yeah, no, I'm so glad that you've been able to, uh, take that from the community because you truly give so much to the community as well too. And I just appreciate you being a part of it so much, more than you'll ever know. So thank you for sharing that.

I really appreciate it. And so what are some other shifts that you made in your business when we sort of, maybe went through PvP, or when we decided that systems were, were a part of what, you wanted that to be a part of how you operated your business? Right. So one of the other biggest shifts that I made, which as someone in a studio was such...

And I imagine probably in a salon this would be such a huge game-changer too, um, was implementing a client application, a new client application. Um, I call it a new guest digital consultation. But what it does is when a client goes on my website, instead of messaging me directly and asking me, "Oh, when can I get in? What's your hours?

How do you do this?" they go through and they fill out a client application where they, I get their name, their number, their email, but it also gives me a little intel into their hair. How many times do you have a new client come into your chair and you're like, "This is not what I was expecting, and now I have to go in the back and figure out what the heck I'm gonna do"? Or as a s- as a solo, you know, being a solo, you just turn around and you're like, "Uh, I don't have anyone to ask a question to," or, like, "I didn't know they were gonna show up with hair like this.

This is not what I was expecting." And so this client application puts these questions in place that you want. So, like, I put on there, "What's your hair goals? What have you previously done with your hair?"

I want two years hair experience 'cause I wanna know in the last two years, have you box colored? Have you been going to a salon? Like, what do you have issues with? Do you have dry scalp?

Do you have... You know, these things just get me prepared for being able to know how to service this client to the best of my ability, or to not service this client if they're someone that I don't feel is the right fit for me. So it's not only just to get the information and to be able to put these people wherever, it's also to be able to decide, am I the right stylist for this person? Because if you're not gonna have joy in doing that person's hair, then you're not the best person for that client.

It's not fair to them. It's not fair to you. So doing these client applications gives me the ability to get a little intel into what they're looking for, what their hair goals are. You know, one of the questions I've asked too is, "Are you allergic to hair color, or have you had a reaction to hair color?

Yeah. Right. That's a huge one. I have 'em put in a picture of their hair so I can actually physically see what their hair looks like.

And then from that application, it sends me an email, and all I have to do, this is like the most amazing thing ever, all I have to do is click one button and it sends them my booking link with the exact session that they're to book. So, like, they can't mess up. Like, it sends them which session, or it sends them a wonderfully nice denial email with suggestions of other salons to go to. So none of this is mean to the client.

It's not disrespectful. It's so easy. It's so nice. I've even had clients that I have denied reach out and just say, "Thank you so much for the suggestions on where to go."

Yep. So they take it so well that, you know, it's so easy on my end. I mean, all these things that you've had us do to help, like, automate things have just been such a game-chang- I mean, your program in general has changed my business, and I've, until I met you, it just was never a thought in my mind that I could do the things that I'm doing. Yeah.

And the way that you walk us through the technology too, like, you don't just give us this and go, "Okay, here, do this." Like, you actually sit and walk us through the technology. For those of us that have been in the industry for 18 plus years and think we're really good at tech but we're not- ... Hunter helps you actually go through and be good at that.

I can't say enough good things about what you've done for this industry and what your classes have done for this industry. And this is not me being, just because I'm on here, like, I talk about Hunter to my, my clients know Hunter. My clients know- ... PvP and MSM.

Like, they do. They're like, "Have you had any of your group meetups yet lately?" That's so cute. And now with the, we implemented the accountability pods, and they're like, "Have you had your meetings yet?"

They know I'm the admins- Aw. and they're like, "Did you do your stuff?" That is so freaking cute. I love that.

Yeah, they love it, and I love it too. Oh, well, I'm so glad that you also shared too that, like, the verbiage and the language of things is so important. And, like, I love that you said this allows me to make it so I'm doing my due diligence of telling this person, "I am not the right fit for you." Right?

So, like, we say application, and it sounds like we're being all, like, snotty and like, oh, like, we're only doing things that, like, we wanna do and, like, that's that, right? But in reality, like, yes, sure, it's making sure that we're protecting our own joy, sanity, and profit behind the chair because, you know, if you have people in your chair who you don't serve well, they're not gonna stick with you in the long run and, and in the long term and through the price increases and all the good things. But what we're also doing is making it so that way we're...... we're still making an impact in people's lives in our local communities by not being the ones to serve them, right?

Like, just because this person isn't going to be paying me doesn't mean that I don't want them to be happy. Like, I want them to go and find another stylist who is going to be a better fit for them. And what this application does, or this new d- new guest digital consultation, and the way that we have the automation set up specifically, where you don't have to write out your own denial email, right? Or worry about, like, the awkwardness of that conversation over the phone, is you can literally click that button and you know, like just a click of a button will take the pressure off of you...

Mm-hmm. and like make that happen for you and let that person know, in a very professional and nice way, "I just don't believe that this is going to be good for either of us, especially- specifically for you. And I would love for you to find the person of your dreams, and I just don't feel like I'm going to be that person." You know what I mean?

Well, and how amazing to be able to support another artist in our industry and send them some business too. Yes. Like, I love networking with other businesses, whether it's stylists or any- you know, anybody in any industry. I just love supporting small businesses and local people and I'm happy...

Right. to refer someone to another stylist in the area. I've had other stylists... Yeah.

refer people to me too. So... And another thing I wanted to touch on too, Hunter, you brought this up, that the no pressure, we've, we've talked about this too. I have ADHD as well and I, you know, squirrel.

So what this has done is also prepared me and helped me to keep my boundaries in place, um, because I'm a people pleaser and I say yes to everything. And what this has done is allowed me to say no to people that I would normally have said yes to just because it was face-to-face or I didn't have anything set up to nicely respond and say, "No, I don't want to see you." But now I have the, the stuff in place, the systems in place to do this and I don't feel like I'm, you know, being mean to so- you know? I don't feel like I'm hurting someone's feelings or being rude.

I just feel like I'm sticking to my boundaries and it really does make them feel like I'm taking their best interest into heart because I don't feel... Yes. like I'm the best fit for them. Th- that is the right way to do boundaries in a business.

And this is the only way I've held my boundaries, honestly. Period. I mean, well, that's the thing because like, here's the thing. We can either go like super far this way or super far the other way, which is the one way is like we're going to be boundaried as fuck, but then what's en- going to end up happening is, is we might ostracize people from our businesses.

We might make them feel like shit, we might make a bad reputation for ourselves, get bad reviews, et cetera, et cetera, right? And then like tank our businesses. We go the opp- opposite way, we are freaking people pleasers. We say yes to everything.

We take care of everybody. We do- we flex- we're super flexible and then... Mm-hmm. we get burnt out, our business actually ends up failing that way too...

Yes. by the way, in the long run. Absolutely. Right?

Or we go to the middle and we take the best of both worlds and we professionally set boundaries in which we understand and we have set up to serve ourselves, but also serve the client at the same time. Yeah. And so I'm so glad that you have taken what my hope was with that, with my course and my systems. Like, that is what my whole point is, is like let's not, let's not lose professionalism as we're also trying to take care of ourselves.

I think it's kind of like my, I'm like on the cusp of, of like millennial and Gen Z. Like Gen Z's super boundaried, like, "I don't give a fuck. Like, leave me alone," situation. Yeah.

And then, you know, and like... Aww. and like, and then, yeah. And then with millennials, it's like we- we val- a little bit of generations before Gen Z, we- we value more professionalism.

We value customer service. We value experiences. Mm-hmm. And I think that I'm on the cusp where like I really understand both sides of like taking care of yourself, getting away from hustle culture, but also still making sure that you have a sustainable business model that is serving your community.

And so, again, I'm just so glad that you have been able to take that and make it your own and put it into your own business in your own beautiful way. And big shout out to you, Katie, because you fucking put in the work and when you put in the work, you do not half-ass it and you make such beautiful things happen for yourself, and you should be so proud of yourself for all that you've accomplished in these 18 years up until this point because it's just been so beautiful to see, uh, see your growth and your journey. Since implementing your systems, I've had a lot of new eyes on me. Uh, this past year, I won the 2022 Best Hair Stylist in the Twin Cities.

I've been interviewed in magazines now. So what you've done and what we've done in this community has really leveled up the professionalism in our industry. And that's why I said earlier, people like you, our educators now are really leveling up so that we're looked at as a professional industry and not just, "Oh, you do hair." You know?

Right. Because we don't just do hair. Mm-hmm. We do hair and we are pretty badass at doing hair, but- We're business owners.

And yes. We are business owners. I used to like, as a suite owner, in the very beginning, I used to feel a little impostory and like a little like, like self-cringey when I used to say, like when I used to be like, "I am a CEO," but like genuinely, that's like what you are. I remember, I remember opening up my business bank account and they were asking me like what my title was and I said, "I'm a CEO," and I like cringed a little bit saying it.

And the, uh, the person who was working and like setting up the account with me was like, "I'm so glad that you said that because we don't allow like the, the term owner or the term like stylist or something like that." It was like it, it would have to be like CEO or something similar, like president, something like that, right? Mm-hmm. And like that's, like on paper, that is what you are.

Yeah. Right? Like that is literally what you are, so fucking own it... Yup.

and act like it too. Mm-hmm. Because when you act like it, you can truly make your dreams come true just like you have, Katie. So I am just so-...

appreciative and grateful for you, my friend, for having you in this community, for spending your time to come into this podcast interview with me. I really, really appreciate it. If there was anything that you would like to share with somebody who is sitting here and they're scared about implementing shifts into their business, whether it be changing the session pricing, implementing an automated client booking flow, stopping double booking, go- maybe even going into their own suite. You know, we all go through these, all these scary shifts, right?

Absolutely. What would you share with that person? Yeah, I think my biggest, uh, piece of advice would just be to remember your why. Like, remember why you got into this industry and what it is about this industry that made you feel that pull, and that it's okay to ask for help.

You can always ask for help. Whether you're CEO, uh, employee, whatever, you a- you can ask for help. And trust yourself. A lot of us, I think, double, double, um, guess ourself or we doubt ourselves or, you know.

So trust yourself and lean into the communities that you have, you know, whether it's Hunter's class or any other classes you're taking. Like, lean into that community and if that community isn't doing anything to help you, then maybe take a look around and see if there's another community 'cause we're all here and we're willing to help you and we're willing to support you and push you and whatever you need. So make sure that you're surrounding yourself with positive people within this industry. I love that advice.

So freaking good, Katie. Thank you so much for being on here. I really appreciate you, my friend. So Katie, if somebody is listening and they're super inspired by you and they want to get more inspiration from you and see all of the beautiful badass things that you do, where can they go and find you on the socials?

Yeah. On, um, all social media, on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, TikTok, I'm under Boss Lady Salon. Um... Okay, cool.

And yeah, come and find me, and I'll follow you back. Perfect. Let's give some support to each other. I love that.

Thank you so much, Katie, for being on here. So much love to you. Have a good rest of your day. My name is Zarina.

I am located in the Greenville, South Carolina area, and I work in a salon/spa in the Simpsonville area. Um, I'm actually the only hairstylist in my location. I'm a- Uh-huh. booth renter, but I rent a, like a salon room suite type situation.

Mm. I've been in the industry for, it'll be nine years this August, and I love what I do. I actually have a medical background. Okay.

And I shifted into the beauty industry. I didn't know that. Absolutely, yeah. I was a medical assistant, and I was actually going to school for nursing.

Oh, wow. And when I was about to apply for the nursing program, I just felt like, "I don't wanna do this." Like I was doing it for all the wrong reasons, and I- Mm. literally sat down in the business office of my college and I went through all of the majors and I saw cosmetology and I was like, "I'm gonna do that."

Very cool. And I always loved, like, hair and makeup and stuff like that, but I never really thought about it as a career. Right. So once I entered the cosmetology program, I just, I loved it, and I've been doing it ever since.

Very freaking cool. And n- not to mention, you, you are in the right profession because- ... your work is badass. I love getting to see- Thank you.

all your put out on the Instagram. Zarina, tell us a little bit about the big shifts and changes that you made in your own business. Specifically, I know that you've gone through PvP, and that you have made some big shifts that were tough for you in the beginning, right? Definitely.

Like, that you had to, like, work through and really, uh, take some time to sit with and fully perfect, right? So- Yes. tell me a little bit about that journey, and you can start with whatever, however you wanna start with. Okay.

So the biggest shift for me was going from an à la carte menu to a sessions-based menu. That was probably the hardest part of PvP for me. Yep. Um, but since I've, you know, transferred over to that, um, sessions menu, everything has been, like, super clean, super streamlined.

It makes, like, checking out super easy. Um, the clients know what to expect from every session. It, it's, like, self-explanatory, so it just makes everything better. Yeah.

Well, you- And I, I actually feel like I can charge a little bit more too because of the experience that they get now, and I'm able to do what I need to do for each client in that session instead of having to kinda, like, upsell stuff. Right. It makes it a lot more easier. Yeah, you can just do your damn job.

You know? Absolutely. Like, people are coming in and they're expecting this result, right? And it's like- Absolutely.

there are specific things that you have to do to get them to that result. And so- Yes. I love that that change is empowering you, right? Yeah.

To just do the damn thing and get them from A to Z- Yes. without any bullshitting, you know? Yes, yes. Yes.

It, it gives me that control. I love that. So let me- Mm-hmm. ask you this.

Specifically with changing the session pricing, s- session packages, did you have any nervousness around rolling it out to your clients? Absolutely. At first, it was a lot difficult because I was so used to doing everything individually. Mm.

And, and at first, it was kinda hard for my clients to shift because they didn't understand that, you know, everything that you need is included in this package. But once I explained that, um, and took the tips that you gave us with doing the video and everything to send out to the guests, that helped tremendously. And would you say that your, all of your clients that you have now are mostly on board and they, like, get it at this point? Oh, they love it.

They love it. Oh, that's great. Oh, I'm so glad to hear that. They love the forms.

They love the, the streamline of it.It's just amazing. That's great. And so you said forms, right?

I did. So, I know that you, I know that you have gone fully into utilizing the power of digital forms in your business, right? Yes, yes. So, what does that look like for you?

So, I do the day-of-arrival form. Okay. Um, I have all of my guests fill that out so I can customize their experience when they come in here and make it very personal and one-on-one. That's what I love about having my own space too- Yes.

is that I'm able to have that one-on-one connection, and then just having that form kinda takes it up a notch because everything's already laid out for them. Whatever they pick for music or snacks or even treatments and things like that, it's just all right there in that form. And then do you use forms also for, like, client intake and, like, information and consultation stuff as well too? Yes, I do.

I do the, uh, new-guest application, the intake forms. Uh, every form that you have gave us- ... I have implemented, okay? I love that.

And so how do you feel like that helps you? Like, does that help with, like, communication, or does it help to just keep things more organized? Like, what do you... how do you feel like it works for you in your business?

It helps keep things organized. It helps me to get to know people a little bit better before they enter my space. It helps me to be able to kinda, like, assess and s- and pick and choose who I want in my space before, you know, I have... Before, you know, it was just random people booking, and I'm like, "Oh, Lord, what's gonna happen today?"

Right, right, right. But now it's like I know what I'm going into and I don't really have that, that kind of fear that I had before when just people would book and you're like, "Oh, I don't know what's gonna happen today, and hopefully it goes well." Right. So it just works everything out.

Oh, that's fantastic. I freaking love that. Also, I know that you have had a, we call it over here, like, a limited booking range for a while, right? Yes, yes.

So, could you explain to us, like, what that is and what that looks like for you? For me, I do... So, on the first of every month, my schedule opens for the following month. So, like, for example, April 1st, my May schedule will open.

And the w- I've been doing it like that for quite some time, even before I did PBP, because, like you said earlier, that I'm very family-oriented. Mm-hmm. So I kinda work my schedule around, like, my family activities and things like that. So that helps me a ton.

So I don't have to open my schedule and then, like, "Oh, wait, I have this going on, so I'm gonna have to move clients around." I kinda, like, do all of that stuff before I even open up my schedule to my clients. I think that this really freaks people out, especially with clients who are, like, who are, like, "Oh, well, I need to know what my schedule is, like, a year in advance," right? Right.

So, what do we... What would you say to that person? I feel like when you do the limited booking, it kinda gives your clients an excitement- Hmm. an anticipation, because on the first of the month, they're like, "I know I gotta get on at this time."

Right. "I know, I know you book up quick." So once they get that appointment in there, they're like, "Yes, I'm set." And so I kinda feel like you have to kinda guide your clients in a way of how you want your business to run.

Yes. Instead of, like, having your clients run your business in a way. Period. 100%.

So it makes it so much easier to have that control and, like, "Look, this is when the schedule opens. This is what you need to do to get booked." If you have... But I always leave, um, a way for them to contact me or get on a wait list or something like that, so if they have any trouble, go ahead and put yourself on the wait list, let me look on my end to see what I can do.

Right. And that settles any kinda confusion or anything like that. Yeah. Well, I think that, that...

I'm so glad that you said that, because I think that's a big misconception that people have, is like, "Okay, well, then I'm just gonna do this and then our clients are SOL," you know? Right, right. No, like, we're still supporting them- Absolutely. through this, through this process, but it, what we're doing is, is we're streamlining it as much as possible so we don't always have to be the ones who are doing all this work, right?

Absolutely. And it's kinda like thinking about it as if you have children. Mm. You know, you wanna help them along the way, but you want them to be independent as well.

Like, "I don't want you to always depend on me." Right. "But I'm here if you need me." Yes.

That's how I go about it- Ugh, such a freaking- ... in my business. good metaphor. I'm obsessed with that.

That is amazing. I love that, Serena. Let me also ask you this. What do you think attributed to the courage or, like, what was the push that you created for yourself to make it so you said, "Goodbye, nursing.

I'm gonna go into the beauty industry"? What do you th-... Like, was that, like, a nerve-racking thing for you? Because I know it's, like, not the traditional route.

It's not, like, the traditional celebrated route. Yeah. Right? Yeah.

What, like, made it so you were like, "I don't care what anybody says." Hmm. "I'm gonna go freaking do this." Wow, that's a great question.

So I, I have a family of nurses. Mm. And so my aunt was really pushing me to be a nurse. Right.

She wanted me to basically follow in her footsteps. And it was something that I always wanted to do. Like, if you woulda asked me as a child what I wanted to do when I grew up, it was either gonna be Mariah Carey's background singer- ... or a nurse.

I love that. Yeah. And so nursing, of course, is more attainable, so- ... I went that route.

But yeah, I went into the medical field, and I actually worked in the medical field for about two, three years. Wow. I, I was a medical assistant, and then I went back for nursing, and that's when I had this moment where, "If I'm supposed to be a nurse, it shouldn't be this hard," you know? Yeah, yeah.

It was really hard for me in nursing school. Just doing my prereqs was...... I was barely making it. So, like, when I got to the point where it was like, "Okay, it's time to sign up for the program," like, "Are you sure you want to do this?"

Right, right. And when I had that moment, and I was thinking, like, everything that it takes to be a nurse, like, all the time it takes, you don't really have a control of your schedule or what specialty you wanna do. And I had young kids at the time. Right.

So I wanted to be a part of their life. So I was thinking about, "I, I want something where I can be more flexible, I want something that I enjoy doing, where it won't feel like work." And I literally had, like, a come to Jesus moment with myself and I said, "You know what? I don't care what my family thinks."

Yeah. "You know, this is my life. You know, I'm gonna do it." And I was like, "If anything goes wrong, I can always go back to school.

It's no problem." Right. That's the thing. Yeah.

I love that. Good for you for making that shift. And I just, and I wanted you to share that story because it's, it's like any big, scary, uncomfortable decision in your life. Definitely.

Right? Definitely. Like, it, like, "What do I really want," right? Yes.

And, and what you want, it doesn't matter what anybody else thinks. Anybody else. Absolutely. Right?

Absolutely. So I love that you followed, like, what your gut was telling you. Yeah. And you followed what you wanted for your own life.

That is so freaking cool. Definitely. And I will say, it's not easy. No.

Um, all the time, when, when things are going b- you know, slow in my business, I'm like, "Man, I really sh- maybe I should go back to school," you know? Right. But then it's like, something will happen to confirm that I'm on the right track. Like, it's hard not to give up on yourself.

You know, being a business owner is not easy. No. So y- I'm always saying that being an entrepreneur is not for the weary, you know? Mm-hmm.

No, ma'am. You're in 100%. But if you set up the work, if you do the work, if you set things up- If you do the work. as much as you can.

Absolutely. You do the work. Yeah. Absolutely.

And good things will happen for you. I love it, Zarina. Before we sign off of here, you have spilled so much great tea already. Would you, if there was somebody listening to this and they were nervous to make any big shift in their life, I don't even care what it is, whether it's they don't wanna go to college anymore and they want to go into cosmetology school, they don't wanna be an employee in a salon anymore, they wanna go into a suite or just be independent by themselves, they don't want to emotionally discount anymore, they want to, uh, do online booking only and stop pre-booking, or limit their schedule, right?

Yeah. What would you say to that person? Any time that I'm making a big decision, I always get me a notepad, a pen, and I do a pros and cons list. Yes.

That's the first thing that I do, and I write out the pros and I'll write out the cons. And then I just have, like, look at that list and think about, "Is this gonna be beneficial to me, or do the cons outweigh the pros?" Right. Most of the time, the pros always outweigh the cons.

Totally, totally. And so that's kinda like your own confirmation. I love that. And, like, it takes all the swirling chaos and thoughts out of your brain.

Yeah. And it puts it down on paper. Yes. And it puts it down on paper, yes.

I love that. That is amazing, Zarina. Thank you so much. I am, I am so blessed to have you as a part of our community.

I think what you contribute to the community and how you take the information and you apply it and you work your ass off to make it happen for yourself- Yeah. is just so inspiring, and I appreciate you being a part of the community so much, and I appreciate you spending this time with us today on the Modern Hairstylist podcast. Thank you so much. And it was a honor to be here.

So, Zarina, if s- a stylist was li- listening to this right now and they wanted to check out your badass work and get inspired by you and connect with you on the socials, where could they go find you? IG, you can find me at textures_and_tones. Perfect. Um, Facebook is Textures and Tones by Zarina.

Perfect. I love it. Yeah. Awesome.

Beautiful. Well, make sure to go check out Zarina. She's absolutely amazing, and somebody definitely to watch out for and to take inspiration from. Zarina, again, thank you so much for being on the Modern Hairstylist podcast.

I appreciate you. All right, my friend. I hope that you enjoyed hearing from our good friends, Zarina and Katie. Super inspiring, right?

It's amazing to hear how many things that they've been able to shift around to build their business around their life, right? That's what they're doing here. That's what hundreds of our students in Pre-Vista Pathway have done. Eh, they have chosen to build a business around their life and not build their life around their business.

I think that life is way too short, and I've had to learn this lesson the hard way, and maybe you listening to this right now are guilty of it, and I know that we all can be, especially in the beauty industry as service providers, of living to work and not working to live. You know? So I'm going to encourage you, my friend, this is your sign. Today is the day that you start to work on creating systems, fundamentals, and foundations in your business that allow you to truly reap the benefits of all the hard work that you put in, and to spend more time with yourself, your family, and your friends, and walk into your career and your job with joy and not dreading your entire day that you're walking into, okay?

Now, if you are interested in getting some mentorship and you wanna implement some of these systems, but you're nervous that you aren't going to do it in the most optimal way possible, or you wanna make sure that you do it the right way the first time, then that's exactly what I teach my students to do in Pre-Vista Pathway, and you can join the wait list for Pre-VI- Pre-Vista Pathway at hunterdoniut.com/waitlist, and I'll be happy to walk you through this journey and give you the push and accountability that you need, my friend. So, so much love. Thank you so much for tuning in to this episode.

Peace out, girl scout. Bye bye.

End of transcript. © 2023 Hunter Donia LLC.