You get good at something by practicing it over and over. For greatness, you have to acknowledge your limits and look for opportunities to press further.

Sometimes you try to press those limits and things don’t work out how you planned. Mistakes can be embarrassing or painful but they also serve to help you understand new ways of doing things and improve your skills. Most often, those mistakes occur when we’re not fully present in the moment. Allowing distraction can cause you to loose focus on your objective.

Take hairstyling for example. I’m both a stylist and colorist. It’s crucial for me to gather as much information as possible when designing a look for a client. And like a cut, color can also enhance or distract from features and even personality. Either part can make or break a relationship with a client. Whenever I properly consult with a new client, I can expect great results.

One time recently though, it didn’t turn out that way.

A new client called me for an appointment. She said a friend of hers recommended me and she wanted to try a new stylist. She requested both color and a cut. Since cuts are fairly accessible, I can easily do the consult at the time of appointment. Color is trickier though because it requires formulation.

Instead of booking time for a full consultation, I took her info over the phone. She described her hair as strawberry blond. Knowing there are many shades of strawberry blond, I began to visualize some color combinations and range of level and tone. In my mind, I was going to do some retouch work on her new growth and offer some dimension if necessary.

When the client later came in for her appointment, I was caught off guard by how far off my conception of the project was. To state it bluntly, I was blindsided. I was now looking at fire red hair with golden pieces throughout. There was block coloring done in the front that framed out her face in a pale gold.

Most of my clientèle gets multi-faceted color that emphasizes wearability. Here, I was clearly out of practice with avant color. Although the former is my preference, the latter serves to push me and my ability as an all around colorist.

For that reason, my color application was not all that well planned out and took me twice the amount of time as usual. And then I over processed the fringe and left it off-toned to boot! Oopsie! Not what I was hoping for.

The client had a good attitude about it and we decided to let the color settle in. That’s sometimes a good idea because an off-tone can fade to a good one and visa versa… hair color is tricky like that. Even though she was understanding, I opted to comp the entire service.

The lesson here is to not let yourself get too comfortable with only a few techniques. You’ll be more well rounded if you practice the techniques that you’re not as comfortable with as well.

I like to think the universe arranged for me to understand an important lesson. And, I get it. Sometimes you just gotta be honest with yourself about your abilities.