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Are You Listening With Love?
As beauty professionals, you have the opportunity change how people feel on the inside through your kindness, attention and skill. To do that, you have to lean into your listening skills. Our Wellness Blogger Mary Wilson suggests tips for stepping up your listening game.
by Mary Wilson,
February 12, 2025
3 min to read
As beauty professionals we have the profound ability not only to touch people's heads, faces and nails, we also touch their hearts. We have the power to help people look good on the outside, while we impact how they feel on the inside with our kindness, attention and skill.
Since we live in a fast-paced world at our fingertips’ existence, distractions and interruptions seem to be the norm. Often, when we are conversing with others, we are thinking about a similar experience and a story we want to share. Or, even worse, we are looking around (or down at our phones) to see what else might be happening that is more interesting than the person who is talking to us! Sound or feel familiar?
Statistics show that loneliness affects more than 1/3 of American adults and many are seeking opportunities to be seen and heard. One of the most difficult and blessed gifts we can offer others is the ability to listen with an open heart. Do you practice listening with love and understanding?
In this month of love, are you ready to step up your listening game?
It starts with our intention and openness. It is easy to get started, when each client sits in your chair take a deep breathe and ground yourself in the moment and give them your ear and open your heart at the same time.
Listening with an open heart, means choosing to listen without judgement, seeking to understand where someone is coming from and offer support, share knowledge and provide great service.
TIPS for improving your listening skills:
Don’t interrupt. Let your person speak entirely, only interjecting with questions to get more information and/or clarity.
Repeat back what the person shared with you, then confirm that this was indeed what they were trying to convey.
Offer non-verbal cues such as nodding, smiling and eye contact.
Pay attention to non-verbal language such as facial expressions and body movements.
Don’t rehearse your response while the person is talking!
Monitor your own emotions while listening, be empathetic, not sympathetic. Offer understanding without taking on the emotions of the person sharing with you.
These tips work for clients, friends and family alike. Great listening is a practice, much like yoga, meditation and breathing, and with practice you can develop more meaningful connections.
Happy Valentine’s Day and every day finding love, joy and fulfillment.
About the Author: Mary Wilson has been a beauty industry pro for 40 years and has contributed in many arenas including marketing, sales, education, communication and presentation skills. She has always believed the very best way to find success is to create beauty and to share your talents with your trusted clients while maintaining your own physical and emotional health. In addition to being a beauty industry leader, Mary has been a certified yoga teacher for the past 11 years and leads wellness retreats and teaches yoga, breath work and energy healing.
Catch Mary in action! She will be teaching a flow yoga class as part of SALON TODAY's Data-Driven Salon Summit, April 27-28 in Scottsdale. CLICK HERE for more information about Data-Driven.
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