2018 is winding down and the busy holiday season waits just a few weeks down the road. This is an ideal time to take a look back at the year and take stock of the progress you’ve made within your craft. Or, maybe your retrospection will show that it’s time to dig into education and break through a wall standing between you and the success you dream of.
To set yourself in motion, ask yourself these questions:
- How did I invest in my career and myself this year? – Education? Upgrading the tools of the trade? Business or personal coaching/mentoring?
- What changes did I make in my business?
- What changes did I make to how I technically work with hair?
- What are my greatest strengths within my career?
- What is my greatest opportunity for improvement?
After answering these questions, you will hopefully have a crystal-clear vision of the past year and what needs to happen as you enter into 2019. Some of you may also notice that even though you invested time, money and energy into education, you did not see an actual shift in your work or the success of your business. This is not rare to see, because education without a plan for following through causes no real change. The change doesn't usually happen in the class because you’re in discovery mode. The change happens when you begin to practice those discoveries in the real world.
To make the most out of your future investments in education, here are a few things we know will help:
- Get Focused – The mind can only focus on one thought at a time, so allow it to do so by getting clear on the one or two things that will make the biggest impact on your career and target those elements first.
- Have a Plan – Look at the year ahead and plan out time and budget for education.
- Commit to Follow Up – We know that every day after a class, your likelihood of remembering the information and being able to implement what you learned decreases by half. So, you must make commitments to yourself (or better yet, an accountability partner within your salon) on how you will continue to study the content and work it into your methods.
- Bite Size Chunk – Even if a class is focused on a single topic, you will most likely come away with multiple elements you want to implement. You can’t change everything at once, so just make bite size changes slowly and wait till a change becomes more routine before trying to add another bite.
- Keep Score – Give yourself benchmarks to achieve so you can monitor your progress. Ask, “How will I know when I’ve achieved my goal?”
- Celebrate Your Victories – Nothing is better motivation for continued progress than acknowledgement of your current success.
Evolving your career is not a simple task, and we see people frustrated too often because they feel they’re doing the right things but not seeing the fruits of their labor. Follow these suggestions and you will see the momentum build.
Now, it’s time to take action… grab a glass of your favorite beverage and something to jot down your thoughts. Utilize the peacefulness of the fall to reflect and create fresh vision before the high paced holiday season sets in. And by the way, if you need an accountability partner, we’re great listeners.
Aspire for more!
Sam
[Image: Courtesy of Sam Villa]
