The Multifaceted Barber: Your Personal Path to Success

Barbering isn’t even highlighted as a respectable craft; hairstylists maybe, but not barbers. Traditionally, they run an in-and-out type of business that more so supports hygiene and quick maintenance cuts.

I got into this industry not because I was passionate about hair or that I dreamed of this career path growing up. Many others switch over from corporate industries, it runs in their family, they're fresh out of high school and just want to try it out, or they're simply random like me.

It's common for people to think being a barber is less reputable than being a hairstylist. If you ask the general public, they will say it's because color services are more expensive compared to most barbers who charge an average of $20-40 per cut. Now, you’d have to cut like hell to make a really good living, but it’s possible.

Let's consider this structure because in our industry today, we can approach it in multiple ways.

Let’s just say we want to make $10,000 a month and let's not include tips. This is a solid goal for anyone starting out and really getting into it as a single person's income. Sometimes it’s just easier to lay out as a chart so you can think about how to grow yourself and set some goals.

If you charge $20, you’ll have to do 500 cuts (5 days a week, you’d have to average 100 cuts a day).

If you charge $40, you’ll have to do 250 cuts (5 days a week, you’d have to average 50 cuts a day).

If you charge $50, you’ll have to do 200 cuts (5 days a week, you’d have to average 40 cuts a day).

If you charge $80, you’ll have to do 125 cuts (5 days a week, you’d have to average 25 cuts a day).

If you charge $100, you’ll have to do 100 cuts (5 days a week, you’d have to average 20 cuts a day).

If you charge $150, you’ll have to do 67 cuts (5 days a week, you’d have to average 13 cuts a day).

If you charge $200, you’ll have to do 50 cuts (5 days a week, you’d have to average 10 cuts a day).

If you charge $250, you’ll have to do 40 cuts (5 days a week, you’d have to average 8 cuts a day).

If you charge $300, you’ll have to do 33 cuts (5 days a week, you’d have to average about 6 cuts a day).

If you charge $350, you’ll have to do 29 cuts (5 days a week, you’d have to average about 5-6 cuts a day).

That is quite the hefty schedule. The route you want to take depends on you and what value you’ve built for people to believe in. These prices are definitely more for big cities in the USA, but that doesn’t mean it’s impossible.

I became a barber because it was a way to be creative, or so I thought. Being a barber, hairstylist, photographer, videographer, animator, or graphic designer are roles I thought would confer the title of “creative.” The further I got into it, however, I realized that these are just titles on a resume, because creatives are actually problem solvers within different industries. I was a full-bred barber before anything else, and what I learned to do with that skill translated to new things I was learning and figuring out. Through that process, I built skills in communication, presenting, filmmaking, editing, and building a product brand— a variety of social media-related jobs, not because these were things I studied in school or had dreams of achieving. These are simply things I did every day to solve problems, and I got good at it to the point where I got hired for it.

As a barber, we do that with every single new client who walks in; you’ve never cut their hair before, you just know your own processes, you know what things should look like, and you are trying to analyze what you've got in front of you and how to get there with the best results based on your experiences.

Through this industry, I’ve learned 3 very valuable lessons:

1. It doesn’t matter how many hours you put in to be looked at as an expert because if your work sucks, people won’t listen.

2. The work gets mundane and you have to get good at reinventing yourself or people will not care about what you say. People love relevance at the end of the day and they simply love people that other people also love.

3. Great work and great images and videos are the bare minimum of entry these days. You will not stand out unless you can go beyond that for those who are over-achievers like me.

Why am I like this? Because I’ve been dropped from brands, let go at jobs, because I was replaceable. I secure my position by skill stacking. Some things are taxing to do for sure, but I keep the bigger picture in my mind. I know what it feels like to lose and be overlooked and that’s absolutely in my control for the most part to make sure when it comes down to it, I’m a hard person to replace because of the value I bring to the tables I get to be a part of.

If you want to be chosen and sought after, you must make people care. You need to be passionate about what you produce and dedicate time to engaging the right audience. Everyone reading this has achieved something in their lives they are proud of. If you can effectively communicate and share these accomplishments with others who resonate with your journey, you can truly excel. However, no matter how skilled you are or how much potential you possess, if you don't broadcast your talents to the world—especially through social media—your greatness may remain unseen. We live in a world that thrives on social connections; it’s startling when creatives fail to leverage such a powerful tool. This digital age offers unparalleled opportunities to build an online presence, share ideas, build community, and connect with an audience that cares. Neglecting social media can significantly limit your reach and influence. I've personally experienced rejections because I wasn't "big enough" for certain opportunities. While it's disheartening, it motivates me to grow and improve. Remember, everyone starts from zero. We all have unique goals and details that matter in our paths. Embrace this journey, and use every tool at your disposal to showcase your skills and passions to the world.

The way I’ve built my social media presence mirrors how I've developed my skills in barbering: steady, incremental progress over time. What truly sets us apart is our approach to our crafts and how we express our unique perspectives. Each of us brings something different to the table. It’s these differences in thought and care that not only define our uniqueness but also enhance how we connect and communicate with others. By showcasing our individuality in how we present and share information, we create a diverse array of creativity that resonates with a wider audience. This personalization is the key to building a meaningful and influential presence, both in the barber shop and online.

So, if you haven’t started thinking about what type of path you want to pursue in barbering, social media, content creation, or anything else you find value or curiosity in, now’s the time to start. To envision your life a certain way is the first step into belief which encourages actionable steps towards the direction you want to go towards.

In some ways, if that means to push yourself to do a fade each day, to create a daily reel, to take a photo of yourself or clients and post it to your page, to make a video sharing a technique you recently have enjoyed, all those things are personal to us and the key I’m trying to get at here is that if you chip away at things you want to do, but haven’t pushed yourself to do yet…this is going to build better habits in being more productive and inching your way towards your goals.

There’s plenty of people who DM me that social is something they want to be better in because they also want to be educators. Well, in order to be considered in today's market, what you present online is the thing that will get you at least through the door for the initial consideration.

It’s one of the most challenging things I’ve ever done for myself, but it’s given me the most fulfilling feeling today. I’ve worked enough jobs in my life in different things and I know work all too well that doesn’t inspire me. With a vision and will to follow my dreams in an area I find interest in, I naturally was willing to work harder, work through challenges and break through the early fears and get to a place where uncertainty and growth were more visible to see. We grow in places we haven’t been before.

Lists are important to me because I jot down everything I think about. We have a million thoughts per second so I get it all out on pages to help me free up my thoughts when they feel like they spark an interest.

Everything you are doing now, you can do even better. Barbering is a customizable lifestyle each and everyone can create. I am a product of my environment and everything I share here with you. I speak it from personal experience because it’s been the thing that keeps me passionate, it provides me with the grit I need to continue forward, to the point that failure to me …is just a small hurdle to get through when before a hurdle would be paralyzing.

So, what type of barber do you want to become? It’s multi-dimensional. It doesn’t look the same for everyone. This newsletter is to open up your mindset to believe more than what’s been told to you. We are in a beautiful fast-growing industry and you gotta be open-minded to see things in multiple perspectives. Whether you are a level 1 or level 10, there’s always better ways to do everything that we do.

Take this week to really think about where you want to go next and really envision yourself as “that person doing that thing” and plan actionable steps to get there. What would someone “in that space” be doing and feeling?

Have a good week!

Sof!