I had a mother bring her two boys in yesterday, one of which was hiding behind her (he was between 6-8 years old), requesting that I find a picture in one of the books and convince her son that he would look good in the haircut that I chose. She was a bit miffed when I refused. Why did I refuse??
A) The child was hiding behind his mother. Clearly AFRAID to get his hair cut (which was just sitting on his shoulders)
B) If chose a haircut, manage to convince him to cut his hair, and he doesn't like it, it's instantly MY fault.
C) Please stop foisting your parental responsibilities off onto total strangers.
I, initially, spoke to a lady about tea tree shampoo (fabulous stuff, by the way), then spoke to her about getting her hair cut, then potentially some color done...all in the space of less than 5 minutes. Not only did she come back about 20 minutes later for the haircut, she liked the fact that I was friendly, helpful, and HONEST with her. She's coming back in September, right before a family wedding, to get another haircut and color. Yay me!!
My last client of the day turned out to be someone who worked for me, years ago, in the Shoe Department. She was a very sweet girl, and I always liked her. Not only did I cut her hair the way she wanted it, I also taught her how to make frosting roses...how funny was that?!?!
How do I know how to make frosting roses?? My mother made cakes, for YEARS, as an extra income. Most of the time, we were banned from the kitchen, as it was tiny and my mom's fuse was pretty short. However, I used to love to watch her decorate the cakes and make roses from nothing...well, actually, starting with a mini marshmallow cut in half, stabbed onto a round, pointy tooth pick, then building your rose from there. She was so excited to try it!!
And how was your Monday??
Tuesday, July 26, 2011
Monday, July 25, 2011
The grass is always greener.....
Stephie has been complaining, a LOT lately, about the schedule. Unbeknownst to me, (until she friended me on FB and I read one of her posts) she's also wanting to transfer to the store where Lindsay went to. She's got a raging case of "the grass is always greener on the other side" (of the septic tank...).
We had our first salon meeting yesterday, which I think went pretty well. It didn't turn into a bitch session, which was nice. I briefly went over all the stuff we needed to go over...the new program coming out in August, for which we will have another salon meeting about, and some of the stuff Tammy went over when she was here last week. It all went over just fine, until I mentioned all the stuff with the scheduling. At each remark, I made a point of making eye contact with Stephie, and she couldn't maintain eye contact with me.
All I did say was this : The complaining about the schedule needs to stop. When you need specific time off, get it to me, in writing, so I don't forget it. The sooner you find out about things, the better. I can only schedule what the system gives me, so please stop thinking I'm genuinely creating these crappy schedules.
When Rita was complaining about the schedules, she came to me and asked me questions, to which I showed her, on the computer, what was available and how I scheduled it. Once I did that, her griping stopped. So, I will be doing the same with Stephie. If that doesn't shut her up, then I will speak to her, directly, and privately asking her to please stop. And to please stop posting things on FB without talking to me first when it's in reference to her job. Can you see me rolling my eyes??
We had our first salon meeting yesterday, which I think went pretty well. It didn't turn into a bitch session, which was nice. I briefly went over all the stuff we needed to go over...the new program coming out in August, for which we will have another salon meeting about, and some of the stuff Tammy went over when she was here last week. It all went over just fine, until I mentioned all the stuff with the scheduling. At each remark, I made a point of making eye contact with Stephie, and she couldn't maintain eye contact with me.
All I did say was this : The complaining about the schedule needs to stop. When you need specific time off, get it to me, in writing, so I don't forget it. The sooner you find out about things, the better. I can only schedule what the system gives me, so please stop thinking I'm genuinely creating these crappy schedules.
When Rita was complaining about the schedules, she came to me and asked me questions, to which I showed her, on the computer, what was available and how I scheduled it. Once I did that, her griping stopped. So, I will be doing the same with Stephie. If that doesn't shut her up, then I will speak to her, directly, and privately asking her to please stop. And to please stop posting things on FB without talking to me first when it's in reference to her job. Can you see me rolling my eyes??
Wednesday, July 20, 2011
The Meeting.....
So, Tammy FINALLY came down yesterday. Rita had called her (which doesn't surprise me) numerous times, whining about how mean I am to her, about how I'm targeting her. And we had a meeting between the three of us to "settle" things.
Rita asked her questions. Like a 16 year old, she asked her questions "I don't know what I did to offend you, but it really seems like you're targeting me......the other girls use their cellphones, too" (insert snivelly voice here). I reiterated, asking Tammy to correct me if I was wrong, the company policy regarding cellphone usage. Which, by the way, is only supposed to be used when you are clocked out for your lunch break. Whether or not this problem has been solved, remains to be seen.....Stay tuned.
Tammy and I had a great conversation otherwise. She likes the work I'm doing, I just need to tweak my delivery when I'm feeling stressed. It's something I'm aware of, and I know I need to work on it. She likes me being manager because she doesn't hear from me unless there's a question/issue. And she reminded me that there's always a "problem child" in every salon...and Rita is it.
Rita asked her questions. Like a 16 year old, she asked her questions "I don't know what I did to offend you, but it really seems like you're targeting me......the other girls use their cellphones, too" (insert snivelly voice here). I reiterated, asking Tammy to correct me if I was wrong, the company policy regarding cellphone usage. Which, by the way, is only supposed to be used when you are clocked out for your lunch break. Whether or not this problem has been solved, remains to be seen.....Stay tuned.
Tammy and I had a great conversation otherwise. She likes the work I'm doing, I just need to tweak my delivery when I'm feeling stressed. It's something I'm aware of, and I know I need to work on it. She likes me being manager because she doesn't hear from me unless there's a question/issue. And she reminded me that there's always a "problem child" in every salon...and Rita is it.
Saturday, July 16, 2011
Observations
So, I actually got to do Stella's hair yesterday. Monday did NOT happen because we got busy and paying customers always come first. She was good about it.
So, I mixed my colors and got started. Did her base color first, making sure I got her regrowth covered. Then, I went in and customized her highlights, breaking up the big whoppers she had, making them more spread out and subtle, which is what she told me she wanted. Did I take pictures?? Heck no.
What did happen, when I got all done, was that, over all, she looked soooo much better when the color was finished. All that blonde just washed her out, in a big way. The dark hair color, which is a "natural" color for her (she's darker complected with clear brown eyes) is sooo much more flattering for her....perked her appearance right up! The best part, she was THRILLED with what I did. Which is what's most important.
What was amusing was that during the process, Rita piped up with the fact that she didn't understand some of what I was doing. When I asked her while I was working what it was she didn't understand, she brushed it off, stating she'd ask later. Her issue was why didn't I highlight her all the way to the root. My response was to keep the highlights looking as natural as possible. When "nature" highlights your hair, it isn't always to the root. It's down the hair shaft, to the ends. Truthfully, I don't think she understood why I did it that way.
Something I did notice about Stella and decision making. She's not very good at it. She had a LOT of blonde in her fringe area....enough that the color wasn't flattering to her complexion. I asked her, once I was done with the back of her hair and had moved around to the front, if she wanted me to eliminate some of the blonde. It took her FOREVER to finally say to me "well, what do you think??" And my reply was " I think the blonde is too much and that it washes you out." So, she let me eliminate some of the highlights in her fringe and front area. She's got plenty of highlights, and most of them are a nice pale blonde, which contrasts well with the dark hair. She now looks like a brunette with blonde highlights, rather than a blonde with dark lowlights. MISSION ACCOMPLISHED!
Rita, Rita, Rita....I'm not quite sure just what to do with her. She has a complete disregard for company policies that is impressive to watch. Stephie is getting that way, too, because they're just not busy enough. I HATE micromanaging adults....what winds up happening is that I'm the one who can spout the rules and they get titchy with me when I enforce them. I get that they're bored because they don't have constant clients in their chair. However, there's PLENTY to be done around the salon. I get they're tired of doing it. I'm tired of doing it, too. And, I'm tired of babysitting them. However, it's my job. So, they're all going to get items to count and on hand changes to put in the computer, so things can stay up to date. Don't tell me you're bored.
The other thing that happens is that I'll get notes attached to my station, with clients requesting time with me. I still haven't figured out why they cannot tell the client themselves that we don't book appointments, so this is when I come in, if you want me right away, you have to come in just before I start my shift and wait for me. If the salon is busy, I'm supposed to take the next person in line, regardless of how many requests I have. This is a rule I dislike, intensely. If I have clients waiting for me, I should be able to take them and leave the new(er) clients for the girls that don't have a client base. I would really like to talk to Tammy about this, whenever she finally shows up in the salon.
And how was your week???
So, I mixed my colors and got started. Did her base color first, making sure I got her regrowth covered. Then, I went in and customized her highlights, breaking up the big whoppers she had, making them more spread out and subtle, which is what she told me she wanted. Did I take pictures?? Heck no.
What did happen, when I got all done, was that, over all, she looked soooo much better when the color was finished. All that blonde just washed her out, in a big way. The dark hair color, which is a "natural" color for her (she's darker complected with clear brown eyes) is sooo much more flattering for her....perked her appearance right up! The best part, she was THRILLED with what I did. Which is what's most important.
What was amusing was that during the process, Rita piped up with the fact that she didn't understand some of what I was doing. When I asked her while I was working what it was she didn't understand, she brushed it off, stating she'd ask later. Her issue was why didn't I highlight her all the way to the root. My response was to keep the highlights looking as natural as possible. When "nature" highlights your hair, it isn't always to the root. It's down the hair shaft, to the ends. Truthfully, I don't think she understood why I did it that way.
Something I did notice about Stella and decision making. She's not very good at it. She had a LOT of blonde in her fringe area....enough that the color wasn't flattering to her complexion. I asked her, once I was done with the back of her hair and had moved around to the front, if she wanted me to eliminate some of the blonde. It took her FOREVER to finally say to me "well, what do you think??" And my reply was " I think the blonde is too much and that it washes you out." So, she let me eliminate some of the highlights in her fringe and front area. She's got plenty of highlights, and most of them are a nice pale blonde, which contrasts well with the dark hair. She now looks like a brunette with blonde highlights, rather than a blonde with dark lowlights. MISSION ACCOMPLISHED!
Rita, Rita, Rita....I'm not quite sure just what to do with her. She has a complete disregard for company policies that is impressive to watch. Stephie is getting that way, too, because they're just not busy enough. I HATE micromanaging adults....what winds up happening is that I'm the one who can spout the rules and they get titchy with me when I enforce them. I get that they're bored because they don't have constant clients in their chair. However, there's PLENTY to be done around the salon. I get they're tired of doing it. I'm tired of doing it, too. And, I'm tired of babysitting them. However, it's my job. So, they're all going to get items to count and on hand changes to put in the computer, so things can stay up to date. Don't tell me you're bored.
The other thing that happens is that I'll get notes attached to my station, with clients requesting time with me. I still haven't figured out why they cannot tell the client themselves that we don't book appointments, so this is when I come in, if you want me right away, you have to come in just before I start my shift and wait for me. If the salon is busy, I'm supposed to take the next person in line, regardless of how many requests I have. This is a rule I dislike, intensely. If I have clients waiting for me, I should be able to take them and leave the new(er) clients for the girls that don't have a client base. I would really like to talk to Tammy about this, whenever she finally shows up in the salon.
And how was your week???
Monday, July 11, 2011
Color Correction
So, today is the day Stella gets her hair fixed. I've got the formulas (and there are multiple formulas, trust me) all written down and ready to go. It's going to be a long, tedious process, as all color corrections will be.
What happened: Stella showed Rita a picture of what she wanted done. Stella is quite soft spoken (she has a speech impediment), so, I can just about guarantee that Rita didn't actually HEAR what Stella was saying. What Stella liked about the picture was the chunky highlights that were spaced far apart. What Rita did was not that. AT ALL.
Rita wound up attempting to put the red color that was in the picture (which Stella didn't want, yet didn't stop Rita from doing it) in Stella's hair. The front of Stella's hair is WHITE. The back of her hair is grey. She's roughly 85% grey/white...and there was no accommodation made for this. We didn't have the correct lightening product (order hadn't come in), so, instead of waiting, they plow right on ahead, using what we had. Which was Kaliedocolors. A 10 minute highlighting system which uses heat to attempt to accomplish what it says it can, give highlights with an automatic toner in it to get rid of any brass that shows up. Since Rita was using it as actual lightener, she didn't take into consideration that she would need to turn up the volume (use 40 vol developer instead of the 10 or 20 volume the product calls for). So, what Stella got was some seriously WARM looking highlights. Which, next to the cool brown color that's already in her hair....YUCK.
So, to accommodate for the white in her hair: All formulas involving deposit of actual color MUST have "N" in it. Period. You have to put back what is no longer there in order for the color you actually want to "take". Stella talked to me, in depth, over the course of a couple of different days, the color she'd had in her hair before she came to work with us. They'd used Goldwell color, which is known to be a muddier color line. The formula for her dark was 6NN & 7G. NN for covering her grey/white, and the G to make it a more natural looking brown, because the NN is really dull in color. And their levels are off from everyone else's. 6NN &7G (which makes 6.5NNG) in anybody else's line would have been entirely too light for Stella's hair, as she's a naturally dark person, and her hair used to be a level 3. (1 being jet black, 10 being pale blonde, 3 is pretty darn dark). So, my formula is quite a bit different.
Her ends that are dark will be covered by Color Sync extra coverage 5NW, to take the place of the 6NN & 7G. Her regrowth will be 6MM & 5N Socolor, to match. This formula will also go over the actual red that was put into her hair. It will still be a tad warm when it fades, but no where near as bad as it is right now. She also wants a lot of her previous highlights covered up. This formula will also do that (just the Color Sync one, though), and when it fades, it will still be in the brown family. I may actually take pictures of this one!!
What happened: Stella showed Rita a picture of what she wanted done. Stella is quite soft spoken (she has a speech impediment), so, I can just about guarantee that Rita didn't actually HEAR what Stella was saying. What Stella liked about the picture was the chunky highlights that were spaced far apart. What Rita did was not that. AT ALL.
Rita wound up attempting to put the red color that was in the picture (which Stella didn't want, yet didn't stop Rita from doing it) in Stella's hair. The front of Stella's hair is WHITE. The back of her hair is grey. She's roughly 85% grey/white...and there was no accommodation made for this. We didn't have the correct lightening product (order hadn't come in), so, instead of waiting, they plow right on ahead, using what we had. Which was Kaliedocolors. A 10 minute highlighting system which uses heat to attempt to accomplish what it says it can, give highlights with an automatic toner in it to get rid of any brass that shows up. Since Rita was using it as actual lightener, she didn't take into consideration that she would need to turn up the volume (use 40 vol developer instead of the 10 or 20 volume the product calls for). So, what Stella got was some seriously WARM looking highlights. Which, next to the cool brown color that's already in her hair....YUCK.
So, to accommodate for the white in her hair: All formulas involving deposit of actual color MUST have "N" in it. Period. You have to put back what is no longer there in order for the color you actually want to "take". Stella talked to me, in depth, over the course of a couple of different days, the color she'd had in her hair before she came to work with us. They'd used Goldwell color, which is known to be a muddier color line. The formula for her dark was 6NN & 7G. NN for covering her grey/white, and the G to make it a more natural looking brown, because the NN is really dull in color. And their levels are off from everyone else's. 6NN &7G (which makes 6.5NNG) in anybody else's line would have been entirely too light for Stella's hair, as she's a naturally dark person, and her hair used to be a level 3. (1 being jet black, 10 being pale blonde, 3 is pretty darn dark). So, my formula is quite a bit different.
Her ends that are dark will be covered by Color Sync extra coverage 5NW, to take the place of the 6NN & 7G. Her regrowth will be 6MM & 5N Socolor, to match. This formula will also go over the actual red that was put into her hair. It will still be a tad warm when it fades, but no where near as bad as it is right now. She also wants a lot of her previous highlights covered up. This formula will also do that (just the Color Sync one, though), and when it fades, it will still be in the brown family. I may actually take pictures of this one!!
Sunday, July 10, 2011
Thank God, I'm nosy....
So, my on-going self-training continues. We receive a book (an entire package, really) every two months (ish) with everything in it that we're supposed to cover (topics), what is the featured service this month, what's marked down, etc. I did not know what was in this book until I started actually going through the whole thing. So, now we have sale merchandise. It's very exciting.
I've also discovered paperwork that's supposed (I presume, anyway) to be filled out each day, week, month, including losses or gains. Again, thank GOD I worked for that other box retailer where I had to log all that stuff, all the time. It's enough to cross your eyes....
Rita came in yesterday with blue eye shadow all over her face. Apparently, the small lesson that Tina gave her A) didn't sink in, or B) she wants someone to feel sorry for her and take the initiative to help her out without having to ask. Sigh.....
After this week, we'll be back down to 4 stylists. It should be interesting how that goes down until we get another stylist. On the up side, we'll all be busier than we've been because there just won't be enough people to spread the clients around with. However, we also don't have enough clients to keep 5 stylists busy, so this should be good. The only time we made commission was when there were 4 of us on the floor.
Stella asked me to do her color before she leaves. She wants the hot mess that Rita did to her hair fixed. Should be interesting, to say the least. I forgot, in choosing the colors yesterday, to create a permanent color to match the demi for her regrowth. That's okay....I'll take care of that today and add that to her color card so I have it. Hers will be a busy color. The back is fairly simple: take care of her regrowth, refresh the ends to make sure the color matches. The top will be something else. Essentially, it's a color correction, as Rita didn't listen to what Stella told her back when they did her hair the last time. The picture Stella chose had some block style highlighting, which is what she liked. What Rita honed in on was that she liked the picture. Which had bleach highlights (what she wanted), brown lowlights (also what she wanted) and red-violet lowlights (which she didn't want, but it's what she got).
So, I've started planning, in my head, how I'm going to go about highlighting and lowlighting the top of Stella's head. Since I haven't really pawed through her hair, I don't have a good, working knowledge of what happened in her hair. Luckily, she's got a good 1/2 inch of regrowth going on, so I've got room to work. I also remember when this whole thing happened, and Rita talked to me about it, I had told her you'll probably have to foil the entire top of her head to get the mess straightened out. I distinctly recall watching her eyes glaze over.
I wish there was a way to get her to understand that there's no quick and easy way to solve problems or to create what someone is looking for with one application of color. Color interests her, but not enough to get her to explore that particular world. And, I don't think I'll be able to get her there. There's just too much in her background, as far as how she chooses to learn things, to overcome. I haven't completely given up, but, it's getting close.
I've also discovered paperwork that's supposed (I presume, anyway) to be filled out each day, week, month, including losses or gains. Again, thank GOD I worked for that other box retailer where I had to log all that stuff, all the time. It's enough to cross your eyes....
Rita came in yesterday with blue eye shadow all over her face. Apparently, the small lesson that Tina gave her A) didn't sink in, or B) she wants someone to feel sorry for her and take the initiative to help her out without having to ask. Sigh.....
After this week, we'll be back down to 4 stylists. It should be interesting how that goes down until we get another stylist. On the up side, we'll all be busier than we've been because there just won't be enough people to spread the clients around with. However, we also don't have enough clients to keep 5 stylists busy, so this should be good. The only time we made commission was when there were 4 of us on the floor.
Stella asked me to do her color before she leaves. She wants the hot mess that Rita did to her hair fixed. Should be interesting, to say the least. I forgot, in choosing the colors yesterday, to create a permanent color to match the demi for her regrowth. That's okay....I'll take care of that today and add that to her color card so I have it. Hers will be a busy color. The back is fairly simple: take care of her regrowth, refresh the ends to make sure the color matches. The top will be something else. Essentially, it's a color correction, as Rita didn't listen to what Stella told her back when they did her hair the last time. The picture Stella chose had some block style highlighting, which is what she liked. What Rita honed in on was that she liked the picture. Which had bleach highlights (what she wanted), brown lowlights (also what she wanted) and red-violet lowlights (which she didn't want, but it's what she got).
So, I've started planning, in my head, how I'm going to go about highlighting and lowlighting the top of Stella's head. Since I haven't really pawed through her hair, I don't have a good, working knowledge of what happened in her hair. Luckily, she's got a good 1/2 inch of regrowth going on, so I've got room to work. I also remember when this whole thing happened, and Rita talked to me about it, I had told her you'll probably have to foil the entire top of her head to get the mess straightened out. I distinctly recall watching her eyes glaze over.
I wish there was a way to get her to understand that there's no quick and easy way to solve problems or to create what someone is looking for with one application of color. Color interests her, but not enough to get her to explore that particular world. And, I don't think I'll be able to get her there. There's just too much in her background, as far as how she chooses to learn things, to overcome. I haven't completely given up, but, it's getting close.
Tuesday, July 5, 2011
It's my "weekend"
You can definitely tell it's my "weekend" off. The moment I clock out at work, on my last day prior to two consecutive days off, my body starts to shut down. I become quite exhausted and "cruise" on auto pilot until I managed to crawl in bed, quite some time after I get home from work.
I walked in the door, yesterday, to Katie and a barrage of "let's go do this" stuff...hadn't even put down my bag or kicked my shoes off. I finally looked her in the eye and said "remember the conversation we had the other day about how I need a few minutes to adjust from all the noise??" "Yeah??" "I'd like those now, please." and I walked into my bedroom to change my clothes.
The quiet lasted approximately 10 minutes, at best.
I get she's bored & lonely hanging out all by herself at home. Really. I GET IT. What she doesn't get is the fact that I spend my day talking, and that I have to be "on" for everyone. By the time I'm done with the day, I want SILENCE. Never happens though. Sigh......
Katie starts her "job" today...she's a junior counselor at our day camp. It's a volunteer job (READ: non-paying due to her age), but it will be good for her. She'll be outside and active 6+ hours a day, 5 days a week, for the next 6 weeks. WOO HOO!!!
And, now...work.
Rita took what I said to heart for approximately two days, maybe three. And only on certain things. Can you see me rolling my eyes?? I get she's ADHD...poster child, in fact. So, I guess, she needs a note to remind her what she is to be working on. Tina helped her with her makeup one day and she looked FABULOUS. But, back to the crappy old way she was doing her makeup ever since. She did really well with her clothing (at least her tops) for three days, then, she's wearing both top and pants that have bleach marks on them....her own doing, since she flings color everywhere.
Then, there's the damn cell phone. It was in her pocket, AGAIN, yesterday. "Oops..I forgot to take it out". Uh-huh...I've also discovered that she truly is ignorant. She reads absolutely NOTHING, so her education is very limited, and not just her work related education. There are words she does NOT know, has never heard of, because she doesn't read anything. It's just like working with a kid. Stella isn't much better. Neither of them knew what the word "continuity" meant. No lie. Neither of them could picture the word in their heads to see the word "continue" within the word. This is what I get for presuming that people are exposed to the same things that I am, or have been.
She also has taken my comments (directly from the policy manual) about conflict of interest LITERALLY. Tina also has a part time job working at a beauty distributor that is open to the public, so she'll make comments once in a while about it. Not a big deal, really, and clearly, Becky didn't think it was an issue, so I've let that one ride. Not Rita. With her, conflict is conflict. For someone who operates within the perimeters of "grey areas", this is the one she chooses to be "black and white" about.
And how was your week??
I walked in the door, yesterday, to Katie and a barrage of "let's go do this" stuff...hadn't even put down my bag or kicked my shoes off. I finally looked her in the eye and said "remember the conversation we had the other day about how I need a few minutes to adjust from all the noise??" "Yeah??" "I'd like those now, please." and I walked into my bedroom to change my clothes.
The quiet lasted approximately 10 minutes, at best.
I get she's bored & lonely hanging out all by herself at home. Really. I GET IT. What she doesn't get is the fact that I spend my day talking, and that I have to be "on" for everyone. By the time I'm done with the day, I want SILENCE. Never happens though. Sigh......
Katie starts her "job" today...she's a junior counselor at our day camp. It's a volunteer job (READ: non-paying due to her age), but it will be good for her. She'll be outside and active 6+ hours a day, 5 days a week, for the next 6 weeks. WOO HOO!!!
And, now...work.
Rita took what I said to heart for approximately two days, maybe three. And only on certain things. Can you see me rolling my eyes?? I get she's ADHD...poster child, in fact. So, I guess, she needs a note to remind her what she is to be working on. Tina helped her with her makeup one day and she looked FABULOUS. But, back to the crappy old way she was doing her makeup ever since. She did really well with her clothing (at least her tops) for three days, then, she's wearing both top and pants that have bleach marks on them....her own doing, since she flings color everywhere.
Then, there's the damn cell phone. It was in her pocket, AGAIN, yesterday. "Oops..I forgot to take it out". Uh-huh...I've also discovered that she truly is ignorant. She reads absolutely NOTHING, so her education is very limited, and not just her work related education. There are words she does NOT know, has never heard of, because she doesn't read anything. It's just like working with a kid. Stella isn't much better. Neither of them knew what the word "continuity" meant. No lie. Neither of them could picture the word in their heads to see the word "continue" within the word. This is what I get for presuming that people are exposed to the same things that I am, or have been.
She also has taken my comments (directly from the policy manual) about conflict of interest LITERALLY. Tina also has a part time job working at a beauty distributor that is open to the public, so she'll make comments once in a while about it. Not a big deal, really, and clearly, Becky didn't think it was an issue, so I've let that one ride. Not Rita. With her, conflict is conflict. For someone who operates within the perimeters of "grey areas", this is the one she chooses to be "black and white" about.
And how was your week??
Saturday, July 2, 2011
I did it....
So, Rita and Stella finally pushed me over the edge the other day. I came in, on my day off, mind you, with a pan of birthday brownies for Tina (who turned 21). Rita and Stella started in on me the moment I walked in the door. Stella has given her notice (no great loss, really, other than the need to replace her), and Rita has decided to completely nitpick my job. Every time I come in when I'm not scheduled, she's got the manager's manual out, looking for ways to trip me up. Hasn't happened yet. I'm not perfect, and don't pretend to be. Just knock it off, really.
Anyway....I got with Walmart management to borrow some space from them (as we have no private space for conversations like this) so I could have a "sit down" with her. Made her trot along side me all the way out back. (not a nice person. At 5'2 1/2", I tower over Rita's 4'11"...not to mention the fact she's got at least 100 lbs on me). We sat down, I gave her what she's done for numbers so far (not bad, considering we have nothing to go by), and then, I let her have it. I didn't yell. I didn't cuss. I laid it all out for her.
Some of what I touched on, she had no idea, or very little idea that what she was doing was wrong. For example, soliciting a customer to come to her home so she could pierce their ear, as we don't offer that service. Had Tammy been there and witnessed that, she would have been fired, ON THE SPOT. Her cell phone usage. I had asked her if she'd actually read our policy manual. "I've been going through it". So, I read passages from it. Specifically, about cell phone usage. She is to leave her cell phone in her purse. It is to be OFF. The only time she can use her cell phone is when she is clocked out for a lunch break, PERIOD. Whether or not she's obeying this one remains to be seen. I'll trip her up...it's a matter of time.
Her dress code. How I addressed it is this: If you look the part, the clients will come. If you want the clients that actually tip and tip well, you can't come in to work looking like you got dressed with whatever was laying on the floor. It's great you've got clients already, but, they're all your friends. Who don't necessarily tip. Something to consider. So, your hair is done, your face is done, and your clothing improves. Period. She was there yesterday, dressed nicer than I've seen her, EVER, with her makeup DONE. (Tina helped with this. She looked MUCH better than what she usually does).
Your attendance. I get that you don't drive, so you're relying on others to get you where you need to go. However. 8:45 means 8:45. You can get here at 8:40, 8:41, 8:42, 8:43, 8:44, or 8:45. NOT 8:52, 8:53, 8:57, 8:59. This includes stopping at Dunkin' Donuts before you go into the salon.
The only thing Rita started to argue with me about was the cell phone usage. And I shot her down, immediately. She agreed. I was surprised, really, because I figured she'd put up one helluva fight. I also touched on the fact that it's MY job, as manager, to fix and help with haircuts. Not hers. This is one thing that I'm going to have to keep harping on, as she steps in on Stella's haircuts, quite regularly. I'll cure that ailment, yet!!
Stella, on the other hand, has been both very nice, and very snotty, usually in the same sentence. Thankfully, she'll be leaving, SOON. Truly, she's dragging the whole place down, and that needs to stop. While hairdressing may be what she's always wanted to do, she certainly doesn't show it. She's not methodical, she's just slow. When she gets a haircut that she has no clue about, she doesn't always ask for help, she'll just try to muddle through. There is truly no talent there, either natural or man-made. What a waste of money for her to have gone to school. So, now, I'm off on the search to find a new hairdresser!!
Anyway....I got with Walmart management to borrow some space from them (as we have no private space for conversations like this) so I could have a "sit down" with her. Made her trot along side me all the way out back. (not a nice person. At 5'2 1/2", I tower over Rita's 4'11"...not to mention the fact she's got at least 100 lbs on me). We sat down, I gave her what she's done for numbers so far (not bad, considering we have nothing to go by), and then, I let her have it. I didn't yell. I didn't cuss. I laid it all out for her.
Some of what I touched on, she had no idea, or very little idea that what she was doing was wrong. For example, soliciting a customer to come to her home so she could pierce their ear, as we don't offer that service. Had Tammy been there and witnessed that, she would have been fired, ON THE SPOT. Her cell phone usage. I had asked her if she'd actually read our policy manual. "I've been going through it". So, I read passages from it. Specifically, about cell phone usage. She is to leave her cell phone in her purse. It is to be OFF. The only time she can use her cell phone is when she is clocked out for a lunch break, PERIOD. Whether or not she's obeying this one remains to be seen. I'll trip her up...it's a matter of time.
Her dress code. How I addressed it is this: If you look the part, the clients will come. If you want the clients that actually tip and tip well, you can't come in to work looking like you got dressed with whatever was laying on the floor. It's great you've got clients already, but, they're all your friends. Who don't necessarily tip. Something to consider. So, your hair is done, your face is done, and your clothing improves. Period. She was there yesterday, dressed nicer than I've seen her, EVER, with her makeup DONE. (Tina helped with this. She looked MUCH better than what she usually does).
Your attendance. I get that you don't drive, so you're relying on others to get you where you need to go. However. 8:45 means 8:45. You can get here at 8:40, 8:41, 8:42, 8:43, 8:44, or 8:45. NOT 8:52, 8:53, 8:57, 8:59. This includes stopping at Dunkin' Donuts before you go into the salon.
The only thing Rita started to argue with me about was the cell phone usage. And I shot her down, immediately. She agreed. I was surprised, really, because I figured she'd put up one helluva fight. I also touched on the fact that it's MY job, as manager, to fix and help with haircuts. Not hers. This is one thing that I'm going to have to keep harping on, as she steps in on Stella's haircuts, quite regularly. I'll cure that ailment, yet!!
Stella, on the other hand, has been both very nice, and very snotty, usually in the same sentence. Thankfully, she'll be leaving, SOON. Truly, she's dragging the whole place down, and that needs to stop. While hairdressing may be what she's always wanted to do, she certainly doesn't show it. She's not methodical, she's just slow. When she gets a haircut that she has no clue about, she doesn't always ask for help, she'll just try to muddle through. There is truly no talent there, either natural or man-made. What a waste of money for her to have gone to school. So, now, I'm off on the search to find a new hairdresser!!
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