FIVE KINDS OF STRESS STYLISTS CARRY

I used to think I was just tired

Turns out there's more than one kind of stress behind the chair, and most of us carry a few of them at the same time. Some are loud and right in front of you. Others run quietly in the background all day.

Here are five I see most often.

1. Too busy

Booked solid. No real lunch, no breaks, and your feet and shoulders are done by the end of the day. People tell you it's a good problem to have, and it is. It's also exhausting. You want to say yes to everyone, and you can't, and saying no feels awful.

2. Not busy enough

Gaps in the book. You check the schedule again and again and do the math on the month in your head. That worry follows you even on the days you're busy. It's the opposite of the first one, and it can wear you down just as much.

3. A skill you don't feel sure about

Clients are asking for something and you aren't confident saying yes. So you say yes sometimes and no other times, and you don't have a steady answer. For a lot of us that's gray blending right now. Every time it comes up, you feel a little behind.

4. Carrying clients home

Someone tells you something hard in your chair. Or you replay a color result in your head that night. The day ends at six and your mind keeps working. Most of us feel this one and never say it out loud.

5. Comparing yourself to everyone online

You scroll and see full books, perfect photos, and stylists who seem further along than you. It's easy to forget you're looking at their best day. Meanwhile you're looking at your whole week.

Busy and not busy enough are opposites, and plenty of us swing between the two. Naming which ones you're carrying is a good place to start.

That's what my mini course, Stress Behind the Chair, is for. It's four short videos, with written lessons with action steps and journal prompts under each one, and an End of Day Reset you can use at the salon. It's $9. Enrollment opens October 15 and closes October 31.