Why is it that the Professional Stylists Have No Clue about Hair?

[mw138]

I've been reading many posts on this forum where people share their horror stories about stylists who jack up their hair for whatever reason. Then the question came to me.

Why is it that professional stylists have no clue how to take care of hair, but the people on this board, who are not licensed, have the best advice and tips for maintaining healthy hair?



What are your thoughts? Without all of you, I never would have gotten my hair to where it is today. THANK YOU!!!! :notworthy

 

[sunnydaze]

I think that stylist believe that if they really helped us acheive long, healthy hair then we would have no need for them anymore. Its actually the contrary.

So they'll let us go a while and then get scissor happy..claiming that they are just getting rid of the damage. Well many go to their stylist every week..so where is all this damage coming from.

Anyway, I rarely go to black stylists anymore anyway. Hispanic stylists tend to trim my hair better anyway.

 

[Iluvsmuhgrass]

It could be because of what they "learn" in cosmetology school. As with anything, it's a business.... most folks aren't interested in helping create and maintain an environment for healthy hair.... it's how they keep you coming back. Not all stylists are like that though. When casing a joint (got dang that sounds criminal ) I started paying attention to who walked into the salon, which stylist had customers with long healthy looking hair, how they treated their customers (listening skills, handling of hair, etc.), and their personality .

 

[Aveena]

Sylist ar caught between a rock and a hard place. So many people go to the salon so that their hair looks good. So many people don't even know about hair health and so don't discuss it with their stylist. If someone comes in with black hair and wants it bleached. AND they are willing to pay. The sylist will do it! With the disclaimer that you need to take care of your hair ok? BUT
Do they tell them EXACTLY what to do? I dunno. I don't go anymore cus I'd rather spend that money on products. I've learned sooooo much from this site.

 

[shunta]

I've been reading many posts on this forum where people share their horror stories about stylists who jack up their hair for whatever reason. Then the question came to me.

Why is it that professional stylists have no clue how to take care of hair, but the people on this board, who are not licensed, have the best advice and tips for maintaining healthy hair?



What are your thoughts? Without all of you, I never would have gotten my hair to where it is today. THANK YOU!!!! :notworthy

ITA with the bolded part.

 

[balisi]

Sylist ar caught between a rock and a hard place. So many people go to the salon so that their hair looks good. So many people don't even know about hair health and so don't discuss it with their stylist. If someone comes in with black hair and wants it bleached. AND they are willing to pay. The sylist will do it! With the disclaimer that you need to take care of your hair ok? BUT
Do they tell them EXACTLY what to do? I dunno. I don't go anymore cus I'd rather spend that money on products. I've learned sooooo much from this site.

SOME professional stylists have no clue, not ALL. I feel and understand the frustration that many of you ladies experience at the hands of your stylists. There aren't a whole lot of stylists I trust with my own hair. But please know that we are not all cut from the same cloth. For example, I give my clients information on how to care for their hair. I show them on their own hair how to do pincurls. I give them product and regimen recommendations. Whether they take my advice or not is entirely up to them.

I recently had a white customer with shoulder length hair that was very dry and frizzy, especially at the ends. It was her first time coming to me. She complained that she was having a hard time growing her hair past her shoulders. I advised her to keep her hair off her shoulders to keep the ends from rubbing against her coats, sweaters, etc. She had never thought of that before! It will be interesting to see if she took my advice. When it comes to cutting/trimming, I am very conservative and respect my clients' wishes, always. When it comes to my AA clients, I often don't even mention trimming, preferring to leave it up to them. If they want a trim, I let them know that I will trim their hair the way I trim my own, I keep them facing the mirror, and I keep my word. No one can accuse me of being scissor happy.

 

[blackmaven]

I was going to the hair salon every week. All I heard about every two weeks was my ends need to be clipped. Hmmm it would have perhaps been healthier if I did not have relaxer,blowdrying weekly and highlights in hair. I believe most of them know what the hell is going on they just get caught up in their scissor happiness. I have had some great haircuts done behind my back.

 

[Qetesh]

Honestly from my experience it’s not so much that they know nothing about hair, it is more they want to make our hair LOOK good. Sometimes having it LOOK good doesn’t mean its going to feel good, it’s really very damaging to it. Also stylists are not able to give the complete time and care it might take for you’re hair to truly benefit they are thinking of how many customers they can seat and get through which translates to how much money they will make. I personally find that I can take much better care of my hair than any stylist I have ever been to, chiefly because when I am styling my hair I make sure to be gentle not give myself to much heat pulling ext. I also put that extra bit of heat protectant and conditioner that they do not because they need to save on using too much product on all my hair. Stylists usually do not know your hair limits the way you should, every head is different and styling each person can very well require diff temperatures setting times ext. I have never spent enough money on a stylist for her to truly understand my hair, and I probably never will that be too much money. I honestly feel that spending money on products instead of paying someone else to pull my hair out is the reason my hair has gotten to nearly WL. And of course I wouldn’t be this far if it wasn’t the good advice from LHCF

 

[Soul♥Flower]

I think it's because they use the "one size fits all approach". Not everyone's hair can be handled the same way because EVERY person's hair is different. It's not just a black/white thing. My hair is very similar to my mom's hair and I can't do half the stuff she does to it. It would fall apart!

 

[mw138]

Bumping for more thoughts.

 

[MizAvalon]

Girl, that is the million dollar question!

Here's a thread that I started a long time ago on this very same topic. Lots of very interesting replies.

http://www.longhaircareforum.com/showthread.php?=48545

ETA:For some reason, the link isn't working so I will just bump the thread.

 

[SagaGirl]

I think this question can be applied to all professions. I think it’s all about why the individual is in the profession. There are different motivating factors for why people go into a profession. Someone might do what he or she does because they have a true passion for what they do or they want a steady paycheck, a quick commute, because a family member does the job, because the hours are convenient.....

I have worked in finance and saw people who don't understand how to calculate anything and don't ever care to know or understand what it is that they do and how it fits in with the world. I have also mused over why I don't like the majority of doctors. I have concluded that too many people enter their professions for either the wrong reason or their approach to what they do is not in agreement to my standards.

Someone might become a doctor because it's a respected profession with a steady paycheck but after med school they don't care to learn anything new. They just do the tests that the insurance companies would pay for and push that latest drugs the pharmaceutical companies are pushing. They don't keep up with new studies, research alternative treatments, join associations, etc.... These are the same doctors that tell you that "your symptoms are in your head" or that they have "never heard such a thing" and write you off. If this doctor had a passion for HEALING then he would do what it took to find out what was wrong with his patient for both the cause and the symptoms. He would do some research and speak to colleagues but certainly not write off the patient.

As for the stylist question, even if you were to exclude those who don't have a passion for hair, you still have to wonder “ Was this person trained properly?” This person may be passionate about hair but HAIR may not be their true calling. "What is it about hair that they are passionate about?" "What is their approach and philosophy about hair?" Is it the latest styles, the style for the big event, which requires an artistic touch, and for members of this board, Healthy Hair? Once you eliminate all those factors, you will find that there are only a small percentage of stylists that you approve of.

 

[balisi]

I think this question can be applied to all professions. I think it’s all about why the individual is in the profession. There are different motivating factors for why people go into a profession. Someone might do what he or she does because they have a true passion for what they do or they want a steady paycheck, a quick commute, because a family member does the job, because the hours are convenient.....

As for the stylist question, even if you were to exclude those who don't have a passion for hair, you still have to wonder “ Was this person trained properly?” This person may be passionate about hair but HAIR may not be their true calling. "What is it about hair that they are passionate about?" "What is their approach and philosophy about hair?" Is it the latest styles, the style for the big event, which requires an artistic touch, and for members of this board, Healthy Hair? Once you eliminate all those factors, you will find that there are only a small percentage of stylists that you approve of.

I definitely agree with this.

 

[CoCoGirl821]

I agree with everyone. My main reason for not going to a stylist is that I can do everything myself, with the exception of trimming (and there are very few I can trust with my trimming). But I dont need help applying to much heat and BAD CHEAP products to my hair. I can do tha ton my own and for FREE. I hate when people advise you to go to a stylist if you are experiancing breakage or shedding. FOR WHAT!?! Its not like they are gonna do anything different. Most likely they are gonna try and cut all your hair off. I can curl my own hair, sometimes better than the stylist, so I choose to stay at home for hair care.

 

[mw138]

Thanks for all of the responses!

 

[Bunny77]

I agree with everyone. My main reason for not going to a stylist is that I can do everything myself, with the exception of trimming (and there are very few I can trust with my trimming). But I dont need help applying to much heat and BAD CHEAP products to my hair. I can do tha ton my own and for FREE. I hate when people advise you to go to a stylist if you are experiancing breakage or shedding. FOR WHAT!?! Its not like they are gonna do anything different. Most likely they are gonna try and cut all your hair off. I can curl my own hair, sometimes better than the stylist, so I choose to stay at home for hair care.

You know, that's a good point. Why do many stylists use the most cheapity-cheap products? The products in my home are way better... I washed and conditioned my mom's hair once with my stuff and her hair felt softer than I've ever felt it post-salon visit.

Now her stylist is good and keeps her hair healthy, so I'm not criticizing her. But her conditioners are wack!

The few times I go to a salon, I go to an expensive one because at least I know they'll have the good shampoos, conditioners and styling products and not the stuff I can get down the street at the Korean BSS.

Oh yeah... in terms of shedding/breakage... you can fix that at home! Just get a good deep conditioner, put a hot towel on your head and wait 30 minutes and voila! That's more than a lot of stylists will do!!!!

 

[isioma85]

Honestly from my experience it’s not so much that they know nothing about hair, it is more they want to make our hair LOOK good. Sometimes having it LOOK good doesn’t mean its going to feel good, it’s really very damaging to it.

You hit the nail on the head.

Anyone that goes to a salon or stylist, expects to come out looking like a million dollars. And the stylist is aware of this expectation, that after the process you want to look in that mirror and see your hair looking aesthetically good. So they fill that need, but with minimal attention to the health of your strands.

For example, if there's a kink that refuses to lay down, they will press the heck out of it with more and more and more heat until it does and it's looking silky. You come out and everybody says how lovely your hair looks, then a week later that spot is shedding like a shaggy dog.

There've been days that I've got done with my hair and looked at it in the mirror, looked at a hair magazine, looked back in the mirror and felt like erplexed. It never looked salon perfect! But the few times I did go to the salon, and saw the way my hair came out, I knew it was the end result of my own months of care that I was seeing.

 

[peacelove]

This is why I was so happy to find my current stylist. She is really into the condition and health of hair, NEVER overprocessing (they never relax bone straight), and using good products and hair tools. She even started workshops for her clients to teach them the methods they use in the store. It is hard to find good stylists that really are educated on hair, but thank God there are some out there.

 

[The Girl]

I think just like the drug companies, it pays better to treat the problem instead of curing it. They probably feel you wont come back if you have long healthy hair...

 

[Aquamarie]

I think that they know. They must know if they are doing it as a profession, however, I think they really could care less about a clients hair. At least some of them seem to just care about the $$$ and not about actually helping a sister out. It's strange to me because they would make more money if they would just do it right because the proof is in the pudding.
I've had my own disaster story and it still frustrates me.