A Vibe

The hair salon I go to has a vibe. There’s just no denying it. You can feel it the moment you walk in the door. The owners are sisters. The employees who work there, and their clientele, are a special lot. I can’t help but wonder how this even happens? I mean, it’s a big salon. How does a place get a vibe so palpable that even the slow kids in the back (raising my hand here) can feel it? There are a lot of customers. How do you gather a large number of just the right employees and the right customers together under the same roof and end up creating such a vibe?

I’m only there every eight to nine weeks, yet it’s like I’ve only been gone a few minutes each time I return. The people there are positive, supportive and real. And I’m not talking about just the people who work there. Hell, they probably have to be nice or there wouldn’t be any paying clients. I’m including all of the people who are in and out of the place. There’s the local man who hasn’t had an easy life. He might come in quietly and listen, or sit on the bench and read. He doesn’t seem to have much, but the sisters make sure he has warm boots and a jacket for the winter months. 

There’s the daughter of the lady who styles beautiful clothing displays at the salon. The daughter’s been planning her sweet sixteen birthday party for months, putting in her requests for the best celebration ever. She asked her mom for a throne for her party. I learned about her request last time I was there. We all laughed. “Can you imagine? A throne?”, we all said. We laughed and rolled our eyes. Today I learned her mom is going to make it happen. Not because it’s easy, not because there’s a limitless budget, but because the people there are amazing people. They make things happen. Even if it’s hard.

The clientele and staff are open and supportive. It’s like a community with estrogen that links everyone together. Maybe it’s the sharing of the trials and tribulation of being female, like one big support group? But then I think of the man who comes in to sit and read, or the man that came in today while I was there. He didn’t have an appointment, but someone said they’d be able to fit him in, he’d just have to wait a bit. No problem. Five minutes into his wait, he was already joining the conversation. So it’s not just the female connection that makes the place work. 
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I think what makes it work is the owners. The sisters. They’re friendly, gritty, energetic, passionate and real. We all know life is not a bowl of cherries, but evidently they check their negativity at the door, and it sets the tone for the place. They learn about their customers. They treat them with respect and encouragement. They find the common threads that link us all together as humans and they pull those threads through and weave them into a community. Their mom came in today while I was there. She is like her daughters, vibrant and friendly. She had obviously taught them well, because at the end of a day, a place doesn’t just have a vibe. It’s created, nurtured and solidified. There’s something we can all learn from that. If you work with the public, or heck, even just interact with the public, be your best. Help create the right vibe.