Oxymoron of the week: stupid hairdresser

I was in cutting class today and i got to thinking. How did hairstylists ever get the rap of being airheads? Any GOOD hairdresser has to know at least basic, if not advanced understanding of:

1. Geometry: The only haircutting technique that doesn't involve geometry? Two words for ya... SUPER CUTS. Get my drift?

2. Chemistry: Color molecules, Protein bonds, Chemical reactions. Do you know why dimethicone is used in so many hair products? I do. Please don't allow anyone that can't explain how the color works come near your head with a bottle. Trust me, you will be sorry.

3. Pharmacology: Yes, you got that right. Meds effect your head, not just your body.

4. Bone structure: Ever wonder how we make your fat face look so wonderful? Or why that one patch of hair on the top of your head sticks out more than anywhere else?

5: Dermatology: We need to know skin as well as hair. Imagine if you had an allergic reaction to a chemical? If I could only tell you how many times I have diagnosed skin disorders for people and recommended that they seek help from a doctor.

So, next time you get a good haircut please think about what the person behind the chair knows about their business. In European societies hairdressers are as highly respected doctors, plus they make a lot more money than their U.S. equivalents.

So, the moral of this rant: Be nice to a hairstylist, today!

by Lauren

More skills your good hairdresser is likely to pick up in their careers:

1. Chit Chat - If you think it's easy, day after day, to make nice nice talk with people you don't know and aren't likely ever to see again, you've obviously never done it. A hairdresser's ability to talk to people in a comfortable and easy way without creeping them out is one of the most important parts of the job. What a hairdresser does is, for most people, a fairly intimate thing. Keeping the customer relaxed and in high spirits while doing something they may not let their best friend or signifigant other do is a skill to be admired.
2. Dermatology/Bone Structure 2 - Something that cobweb neglected to mention. Hairdressers are some of the first people to discover growths on the skull. Things like menengial cysts, cancerous growths, etc.. can be life threatening if not caught in time. A hairdresser is often the first person to spot such a thing, as they are the only people who pay a great deal of attention to that area of your body.
3. Eidetic Memory - For those folks lucky enough to frequent a hairdresser, they will probably agree that the good ones always remember everything. The only truly good relationship I had with a hairdresser lasted for about four years, but she remembered such things as: What topics I was interested in, my job, my birthday, friends, family. She was amazing. Likewise, she knew what topics to shy away from (religion, my father). This, tied in with Chit Chat, is what keeps people returning to the same stylist over and over again.