While the beauty industry may not statistically represent a major sector of small to medium businesses in Australia, one thing is certain – women predominantly drive it. We do not have exact statistics that specifically relate to our professional services, but from our own research there are over 10,800 registered businesses in Australia dedicated to spa and beauty therapy. This sector alone provides employment to over 165,000 individuals who are employed full-time time, part-time on a casual basis, or operate as independent contractors. You may think these figures modest, but the professional beauty industry is estimated to be responsible for in excess of $300 million in consumer spending in Australia.
Despite challenging economic times, most recent government and industry surveys indicate a small, consistent but slow growth in spas and salons. While numerous small businesses have not been able to maintain resilience during the economic downturn and have closed their doors, others are gaining momentum and re-defining their identity. The key strategy of survivors is the recognition that consumer perception of beauty services is no longer seen as a luxury, but as a means of increasing health and wellbeing, as well as appearance. This has required businesses to re-examine their services and qualifications.
At a recent APAN New Horizons Conference and Expo in Canberra, attendees looked at international trends on the growing sector of “beauty from within” and the impact this will have in redefining aesthetics. The Federal Department of Employment, Workplace Relations and Small Business indicated in one report the outlook for the salon component is for steady and continued growth. It identified the reasons were the result of increased professionalism, wider marketing awareness and acceptability of services. The industry’s enhanced pubic image is also assisted by the emergence of more sophisticated technologies and anti-ageing treatments available through spas and medi-spas, as well as salons and clinics offering high-quality anti-ageing and wellness services. This together with an ageing population is expected to lead to a continued increase in demand.
As much as I would like to address the issue of industry reform through higher education I will leave this topic for another time, as it is an article in its own right. What I would like to discuss here is the role of external influences that affect our growth and progress on a personal and professional level. One key factor that contributes to business success is a willingness to remain open to new ideas and recognise the significant value and importance of influence and support from others, such as mentors and coaches.
Only 12 years ago business coaches were introduced as a “service” to the professional beauty industry. Initially they were scoffed at, salon owners saying “How can anyone else tell me how to run my business? What do they know about beauty?” Within three to four years this situation turned around as testimonials emerged that confirmed how salons were transforming their businesses with the aid and assistance of experienced business coaches such as Caroline Nelson, Gita McKennan and Faye Murray. The concept of working with someone who can offer you tools, support and direction is now recognised as one of the most importing elements to a business’s survival. In fact, very few salons that have seriously invested in external mentoring or coaching have failed. Why is this so?
Mentors
Looking back at my career I have had several mentors along the way. Most of them were men, fewer were women. These individuals played a critical role in my success. They helped shape my personal philosophy and formulate my desire to involve myself not just in a job, but in making a difference in other people’s lives. My first mentor was a senior manager in an Australian Post Office. For some reason he took a personal interest in the growth and development of younger people and fortunately I happened to be one of them.
He taught me how to “think big” and see the whole picture. This gave me a good foundation on how to position my thoughts based on values and viewpoints to make wise decisions. Mentor relationships are about helping you gain clarity in your life through the wisdom of experience and knowledge of influential people. These individuals can help you get your career or business in focus by advising you through the maze of options and giving you a nudge to make the changes needed. From a mentor you will learn to take advantage of unexpected opportunities which may not be in your business plan. They are someone with whom you can do “reality testing” to determine whether an idea is a good one or whether there were elements you were not aware of in helping you make the right choice. Good judgement comes from experience and good experience often comes from bad judgement. You can reach success more securely through the wisdom and experience of others and avoid many pitfalls.
In the final analysis, mentoring in general and specifically as it involves women, does not easily lend itself to definition. The relationship is formal and impersonal, yet constructive and of great use. The most valuable thing a mentor does is help you grasp the difference between what’s really important and what only seems so. The word for this would be perspective. Women by nature are nurturers and value not only how they think about things but also how they feel about them. Whatever decisions or strategies they engage in they need to know both their head and their heart are working harmoniously together. You can give them protocols and procedures to perform, but if they don’t believe in them or cannot understand their purpose, they will not perform well. I believe women have the same potential and capacity for greatness and success as men. However, women are more complex than men; they can be easily sidetracked and this has more to do with a lack of alignment between the tasks they have to perform and the conviction of their heart than ineptness in ability. Ignite a woman’s heart and purpose with passion and align it with factual knowledge and information and she is unstoppable. Here are four key areas to consider:
1. Obey your intuition. Cool, calculating, rational thought is characteristic of men in business, but women add an important new dimension – a well-honed facility called intuition. Women pick up details often overlooked by men. Intuition is an important asset in wise decision-making – use it.
2. Dress and present yourself appropriately. While God loves you as you are, people judge you on how you present. Review your appearance, ensuring your non-verbal communication is in line and consistent with what you are communicating to clients and staff.
3. Use lessons learnt to develop a protégé. Because of a woman’s capacity to nurture, she is well-suited to develop leaders through mentoring. Since mentoring is the involvement of one person in the welfare of another, so the potentialities of others are developed to their optimum; the special, creative care of a woman can hasten the process. Trainers and nurturers need to also expose themselves to be mentored. This will ensure they are also on the receiving end so they don’t get burnt out. Furthermore, one of the best ways to reinforce something you have learnt or have benefited from is to use it or communicate it to others. By building others in the same way you have been built, you are creating a dynamic team and forging strong and meaningful relationships with all those you come in contact with.
4. Don’t compete with others. Rather than measure yourself against others, a mentor would advise you to compete against your own best self. That way you can measure your growth and progress and protect yourself against the dangers of jealousy.
Coaching
So how does business coaching differ from mentoring? Business coaches are about strategy and organisation. They teach you the “how”, while a mentor will help you understand “why”. A business coach helps you with an action plan and helps you develop certain skills and strategies that can turn your business around. They have a task to perform; conducting a business needs analysis then developing a plan to help you reach specific goals. While some areas of coaching and mentoring may cross over, they require very different skill sets:
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Mentoring is about inspiration and fuelling your desire to take something on and complete it.
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Coaching is about application – understanding what needs to happen and finding the way to do it.
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Mentoring is about defining who you are.
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Coaching is about defining what you do.
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Mentoring helps to bring clarity to where you need to go.
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Coaching gives you the roadmap on how to get there.
So why do you need both? Having a mentor will help you gain momentum and resilience – “stickability” if you like. It will give you the fuel for the mileage to get where you want to be. Without these attributes business coaching alone will not work. While mentoring helps you gain clarity and focus, without the right strategies provided by coaching, you will not achieve your goals. Perhaps what we need most to survive in any financial climate is the support of others; individuals who help us identify missed opportunities and reinforce the purpose and value of drawing from the strength of experts available within our professional community.
By Tina Viney, APAN.
Contact: www.apanetwork.com, email info@apanetwork.com or ph: 07 5593 0360.