I know its been a few minutes...my bad for the delay'd blog. I had a lot of stuff on my plate the past few weeks. I'm good now though.
I was gonna talk about the transition from working with predominately men, at the first supreme clientele, to working with majority women with the new Supreme TEAM. Instead, i want to take a minute to let a new topic breathe because its something that I've noticed which plauges our community. Not just the barbering/salon community, but the African American community.
WE can be so damn messy, sloppy, inconsiderate and unsympathetic to others and it is a common disease that we really need to rid ourselves of.
In particular, i'm refering to Locker Room Privacy. U ask, what is that?
Well, most people who have played an organized sport, understand that what is said and what happens in the locker room...STAYS in the locker room. We all understand that every team will have its ups and downs...but the thing that keeps the team together and ultimately leads it to vicory is how it holds together and does not allow anything or or anyone outside to alter the ultimate TEAM goal. and the team goal is to be the best. Whether its being a world series champion, or the greatest salon....the goal is to be the best. and in order to do be the best, you have to have a TEAM concept, an identity and a compassion for each member on your team that says, "we can fight eachother, but i won't let anyone outside of our circle fight you or know that we fought". That's Locker Room Privacy.
If a TEAM discusses all of the dirty laundry that goes on in the locker room, it establishes lack of trust and it takes away all chemistry because each one is out for self. Something so simple as Locker Room Privacy can be one of those things that catapult a team into becomming a champion or keep them amongs the ranks or mediocricy. When you know that you can trust your teammates with your secrets, your dirty laundry, your indescretions and everything that makes you human...you feel like ,together you can accomplish anything. And let me tell you, we all have indescretions, secrets and dirty laundry. some with a greater degree than others, but we musn't judge.
So, to my point....in the salon, we see eachother more than we see our families, husbands, wives, kids and parents. we work so closely together and naturally we will talk to eachother. we will open up to eachother and discuss our dirty laundry, with the HOPE that our teammate will keep it disclosed like a Tenacious bulldog. one who never speaks...but understands.
so often in the salon, i hear dirty laundry that isn't meant for my ears. i hear, "don't tell so and so". or "keep this to yourself". hell, why didn't u keep it to yourself, why u expecting me too? then we talk about eachother to our other teammates and still act like we have each other's best interest in mind. its almost like the salon loves a great story. everyone wants to get in on the gossip and put his or her two cents in on what they think really happened or what should happen. and the thing is, we can tell eachother our secrets, but as the gatekeeper, we need to respect eachother as we'd like to be respected and keep it to ourselves, or at the very least ....STOP JUDGING. cuz we all have told someone something that we don't want the entire shop to know. we all want to feel like "my teammate has my back". but when we get to telling clients and friends what goes on in the salon, we break code, distroy team chemistry and the TEAM concept. now we become a group of hipocrytical individuals cliqued up secretly against one another. you'll have two people in one room who have formed an invisible "pinky swear" to tell what they know about everyone else, but not eachother. you'll have the few who will stab everyone in the back and act the most innocent and the naive few who still don't get it.
I encourage everyone to keep their personal lives PERSONAL...because the more that people know about you, the more they can hurt you. the less they know...the less they can talk about. i want people to understand that we do not have to be "messy", "petty", "sloppy"or loose lipped. we can support eachother by just being compassionate and honest. honest in the fact that we are not stabbing eachother in the back and smiling in eachother's faces.
The human factor is a muthafucka! you can plan for everything...u can market to the right customers, you can have the greatest products, you can have the best idea..but the human factor is the one thing that you cannot account for. people are still people, and that is the greatest hendrance or it can be the greatest element that leads to a championship.
I'll give you a perfect example: The 2004 pistons vs the lakers in the NBA finals.
The lakers had a team full of future hall of famers...and all stars. They were supposed to win and for the entire season and in the playoffs, they did that...but it was off of talent only. Kobe and Shaq were not getting along. they were airing dirty laundry. Kobe and Phil Jackson were talking about eachother and Malone and Payton were just there to ride the wave in one last hoorrah and retire.
That was not a team. it was a compilation of individuals who thought that on talent alone, they would be champions. Then they met a TEAM...the gritty, hard nosed Detroit Pistons. They knew their limitations and capabilities. They knew they were not a high powered team,but they had eachother's backs and they said,"i'm not gonna let your man beat you tonight". They rotated, they jumped passed, they defended and they held onto the concept that if they played together...that nothing could defeat them. and they handed the lakers a 5 game sweep that shocked everyone...except themselves.
That is what i'm trying to get across the TEAM is that we can preach team all day. we can look great while we do it. but if we can't have eachother's backs...if we can't keep our secrets IN HOUSE....if we can't defend for one another we will never be a championship TEAM.
we need to keep our private lives private. but in the event that we cannot, we need to all understand Locker Room Privacy and NOT let anything come between us and our ultimate goal. lets not allow outsiders to see our dirty laundry. lets not tear eachother down by talking about eachother. let's not be distrustful. Let rise above the standard and not allow a cultural disease to exist in our locker room. When those news cameras come flashing for a post game interview, we need to all have positive interviews. we need to show the public that were are a team and that we lose together and win together. we all have bad days. we all have days where we will score 81 points. we all have secrets and we all want to know that my TEAM has my back.
Its starts from the coach...the leader and must be communicated and expected of each team member. this is the newspaper clipping...the bulletin board material that puts everyone on notice.
This is our locker room. Let's keep it sacred!
-Peace,
Ramont.
As always, your feeback is appreciated. Thanks for following The Supreme Experience.
Saturday, November 29, 2008
Wednesday, November 12, 2008
The Second Coming...The Building of the Supreme TEAM
If you've been following "The Supreme Experience", you've been able to envision the journey thus far, from how the idea materialized on through "The Mutany", where the dream almost died. Now, i bring you to present day Supreme Clientele with....THE SECOND COMING...The building of the Supreme TEAM.
If you recall, only the Tough Two survived the mutany, the devastating and abrupt departure of 4 of my crew at one time. I'll admit, for the first week after the mutany i was sick. Strate up sick to my stomach. I didn't want to show it, because i still had two people who looked to me for direction and stability. but on the inside...when i was at home, i was floored. there was no way i could have seen that coming. not like this. i know people eventually move on..but dayum. im thinking, who did i screw over to deserve this? was this karma or just business? i really didn't know what to do, i just knew that i couldn't quit. i'm just not built like that to be giving up. i always go back to a jay z verse when i need inspiration. he says, "i started from nothing, zero, ziltch. i made my money hustlin, i don't own @iggas shyt". im tellin you, that gets me pumped up even now. and even though i didn't hustle in his sense of the word, i can feel that line in my bones. then he has another line where he says, " I'll tighten up my belt before i ask for help". ARE YOU SERIOUS??? that's all i need to hear. that basically says i'm a self made man and i'll be damned if anybody else or any circumstance gets in my way. it took me a few days of self pitty and asking "why me" and going through all my piss n moan moments. but by the end of the week, i was like EFF THEM. i'm a beast! i'm a champion and more importantly, i believe in myself more than anyone's doubt. So now i'm back on my grind...and my head is back on the swivel. Yeah right...all that sounds good, but hell, rent still needed to get paid and i only had 2 people. SHYT...i wish it was that easy. LOL. So, now i'm really strugglin. i don't mean strugglin where u still get to go shoppin every now and then, i'm talkin bout strugglin where i'm like, "i guess these braces gone stay on an extra 6 months". oh what...you thought i kept em on that long cuz i wanted to? man, hell naw. i couldn't wait for them joints to come off. but anyway...
i still had a great facility, a great idea and a great concept, but i was so new to the game, i didn't know how to get more people. i didn't know if i needed to advertise, go to schools or what. i knew one thing, i wasn't about to start stealing people. that was out of the question. i hate that crap. aint no way i'm goin into someone else's salon or barbershop, tryna steal employees. that's some low down isht and i don't care if its commonly done. i'm never doing it. cuz if i can steal you from someone else, i'll never trust you with my dream. if you are unhappy and want to come over...that's another thing. that's the american way. we are all free agents in this business. The great thing i had on my side was the Tough Two. Mike and Felicia. They were both consistent, they both had clientele and they both were happy where they were. So that was the blueprint to building the Supreme Team. The ideas was to build a team around them as the centerpieces. Like any good management does, you build around your star player(s) and compliment them to become well balanced. I had no clue how i was gonna do it, but i knew what i wanted to do. The GEM...Felicia was so crucial at this phase cuz she knows every body. and i dont mean like she knows a handful of people and may be able to answer a question or two. naw, i'm talkin bout, she can put a hit out on somebody. she knows every damn body in austin. i'd never needed to used that ace in the hole, but now its crunch time. so i asked her to put the word out and see if she knew some quality peole who were looking for a change...not just any change, but a movement! yeah, i was real cocky, talkin bout a movement and i was stuck in reverse my damn self. but i believed and i wasn't about to comprimise.
At the same time i was asking Fe about the word on the street, Alanna's stylist was tellin her how unhappy she was. Ok, so i had a link to to one stylist...and i'm waitin on word from the grapevine. BAM! Fe tells me that she knows of a salon about to close and they are all lookin to go somewhere. so now, i got phone calls to make and interviews to have. that's all i needed. once i get atchu, its a wrap. So, after a few phone calls, a few interviews and a lot of being at the right place at the right time, I WAS BACK IN BUSINESS! i hired 4 stylist at one time. Alanna's stylist and her friend and 2 of the ladies Fe talked about closing the salon. So now, Supreme Cleintele was undergoing a makeover of tremendous proportions. I started off with 4 barbers and 2 stylist. Now i have 2 barbers and 4 stylists. HUGE difference. I had no clue how big the difference would later become. but hey...i had money coming in and i had some talented stylist coming on board. that's what i needed. some people with clientele, names that people knew and reputations that held weight. NOW i went from an unknown salon to a well k nown salon with one move! Fe did her damn job!
Oh, you know what...i forgot about De-bo. De-bo came over the same day that Crispus, Brutus and crew were leaving. in fact, Crispus got De-bo to come over....then of course he bailed. So, i had De-bo, Mike and Fe...all barbers.
So, within one month, i had lost 4 and gained 5. who's laughin now potna! I'm Baaaaack. Not only am i back, but i'm stronger than ever because i offer more services..better quality AND the luxury of word of mouth is on my side. The business is still in a helluva hole and i'm still broke as a joke...but now there's a greater sence of TEAM in the salon. Everybody lookin at everbody else like, "damn...there's some talent in here". and that's what it was. we had some strate up talent on our roster! don't get me wrong... there was definately a transition to be made. hell, u got an owner, who still dont' know shyt...but knows what he don't want. you got two people who just survived the mutany, wondering how much would change...and you have 5 new people who are looking for something better. its a huge challenge to bring on 5 new people at one time. but i knew i could do it, i had to do it. i was gettin a crash MBA degree on the streets within a few months. and the success of the business was dependent upon how well i applied the lessons i just learned. people want a leader. they want to feel apart of something moving and they want to feel like they are the reason that its moving. well dammit, i'm a leaddog...that's what i do. so that's what i did.
I got a TEAM now....we aren't perfect..but we are a TEAM. now we got something to build on. So, with the talent in the shop and the quality services walking out of the shop....we buzzing again. people talkin about Supreme Clientele again.
Its funny how i gained so much by losing. That first week after the mutany, i was distraught...wondering if i really knew what the hell i was doing. and now i realize that you don't know if know what you are doing until you are tested. when things are going easy, we all can be business owners and trailblazers. but when thing go wrong...when you team leaves you in the huddle staring at the defense with no play to run, you find out what you are made of. You see where the cream starts to rise. The foundation of the Supreme TEAM had been established. Mike, Felicia, Carl, Missy, Shonda, Bettina and Cynthia. Now we're cookin with grease!
Remember on Menace to Society, when cake stomped old boy? When dude came back strate dumpin at the end, Cane said, "i knew i would have to see him again one day. but damn....i didn't know he would come back like this".
As always, thanks for following my journey. I want to know what you think.
Keep comments clean. Stay tuned for "The Grand Opening" and "The Learning Curve...working with all these damn women".
If you recall, only the Tough Two survived the mutany, the devastating and abrupt departure of 4 of my crew at one time. I'll admit, for the first week after the mutany i was sick. Strate up sick to my stomach. I didn't want to show it, because i still had two people who looked to me for direction and stability. but on the inside...when i was at home, i was floored. there was no way i could have seen that coming. not like this. i know people eventually move on..but dayum. im thinking, who did i screw over to deserve this? was this karma or just business? i really didn't know what to do, i just knew that i couldn't quit. i'm just not built like that to be giving up. i always go back to a jay z verse when i need inspiration. he says, "i started from nothing, zero, ziltch. i made my money hustlin, i don't own @iggas shyt". im tellin you, that gets me pumped up even now. and even though i didn't hustle in his sense of the word, i can feel that line in my bones. then he has another line where he says, " I'll tighten up my belt before i ask for help". ARE YOU SERIOUS??? that's all i need to hear. that basically says i'm a self made man and i'll be damned if anybody else or any circumstance gets in my way. it took me a few days of self pitty and asking "why me" and going through all my piss n moan moments. but by the end of the week, i was like EFF THEM. i'm a beast! i'm a champion and more importantly, i believe in myself more than anyone's doubt. So now i'm back on my grind...and my head is back on the swivel. Yeah right...all that sounds good, but hell, rent still needed to get paid and i only had 2 people. SHYT...i wish it was that easy. LOL. So, now i'm really strugglin. i don't mean strugglin where u still get to go shoppin every now and then, i'm talkin bout strugglin where i'm like, "i guess these braces gone stay on an extra 6 months". oh what...you thought i kept em on that long cuz i wanted to? man, hell naw. i couldn't wait for them joints to come off. but anyway...
i still had a great facility, a great idea and a great concept, but i was so new to the game, i didn't know how to get more people. i didn't know if i needed to advertise, go to schools or what. i knew one thing, i wasn't about to start stealing people. that was out of the question. i hate that crap. aint no way i'm goin into someone else's salon or barbershop, tryna steal employees. that's some low down isht and i don't care if its commonly done. i'm never doing it. cuz if i can steal you from someone else, i'll never trust you with my dream. if you are unhappy and want to come over...that's another thing. that's the american way. we are all free agents in this business. The great thing i had on my side was the Tough Two. Mike and Felicia. They were both consistent, they both had clientele and they both were happy where they were. So that was the blueprint to building the Supreme Team. The ideas was to build a team around them as the centerpieces. Like any good management does, you build around your star player(s) and compliment them to become well balanced. I had no clue how i was gonna do it, but i knew what i wanted to do. The GEM...Felicia was so crucial at this phase cuz she knows every body. and i dont mean like she knows a handful of people and may be able to answer a question or two. naw, i'm talkin bout, she can put a hit out on somebody. she knows every damn body in austin. i'd never needed to used that ace in the hole, but now its crunch time. so i asked her to put the word out and see if she knew some quality peole who were looking for a change...not just any change, but a movement! yeah, i was real cocky, talkin bout a movement and i was stuck in reverse my damn self. but i believed and i wasn't about to comprimise.
At the same time i was asking Fe about the word on the street, Alanna's stylist was tellin her how unhappy she was. Ok, so i had a link to to one stylist...and i'm waitin on word from the grapevine. BAM! Fe tells me that she knows of a salon about to close and they are all lookin to go somewhere. so now, i got phone calls to make and interviews to have. that's all i needed. once i get atchu, its a wrap. So, after a few phone calls, a few interviews and a lot of being at the right place at the right time, I WAS BACK IN BUSINESS! i hired 4 stylist at one time. Alanna's stylist and her friend and 2 of the ladies Fe talked about closing the salon. So now, Supreme Cleintele was undergoing a makeover of tremendous proportions. I started off with 4 barbers and 2 stylist. Now i have 2 barbers and 4 stylists. HUGE difference. I had no clue how big the difference would later become. but hey...i had money coming in and i had some talented stylist coming on board. that's what i needed. some people with clientele, names that people knew and reputations that held weight. NOW i went from an unknown salon to a well k nown salon with one move! Fe did her damn job!
Oh, you know what...i forgot about De-bo. De-bo came over the same day that Crispus, Brutus and crew were leaving. in fact, Crispus got De-bo to come over....then of course he bailed. So, i had De-bo, Mike and Fe...all barbers.
So, within one month, i had lost 4 and gained 5. who's laughin now potna! I'm Baaaaack. Not only am i back, but i'm stronger than ever because i offer more services..better quality AND the luxury of word of mouth is on my side. The business is still in a helluva hole and i'm still broke as a joke...but now there's a greater sence of TEAM in the salon. Everybody lookin at everbody else like, "damn...there's some talent in here". and that's what it was. we had some strate up talent on our roster! don't get me wrong... there was definately a transition to be made. hell, u got an owner, who still dont' know shyt...but knows what he don't want. you got two people who just survived the mutany, wondering how much would change...and you have 5 new people who are looking for something better. its a huge challenge to bring on 5 new people at one time. but i knew i could do it, i had to do it. i was gettin a crash MBA degree on the streets within a few months. and the success of the business was dependent upon how well i applied the lessons i just learned. people want a leader. they want to feel apart of something moving and they want to feel like they are the reason that its moving. well dammit, i'm a leaddog...that's what i do. so that's what i did.
I got a TEAM now....we aren't perfect..but we are a TEAM. now we got something to build on. So, with the talent in the shop and the quality services walking out of the shop....we buzzing again. people talkin about Supreme Clientele again.
Its funny how i gained so much by losing. That first week after the mutany, i was distraught...wondering if i really knew what the hell i was doing. and now i realize that you don't know if know what you are doing until you are tested. when things are going easy, we all can be business owners and trailblazers. but when thing go wrong...when you team leaves you in the huddle staring at the defense with no play to run, you find out what you are made of. You see where the cream starts to rise. The foundation of the Supreme TEAM had been established. Mike, Felicia, Carl, Missy, Shonda, Bettina and Cynthia. Now we're cookin with grease!
Remember on Menace to Society, when cake stomped old boy? When dude came back strate dumpin at the end, Cane said, "i knew i would have to see him again one day. but damn....i didn't know he would come back like this".
As always, thanks for following my journey. I want to know what you think.
Keep comments clean. Stay tuned for "The Grand Opening" and "The Learning Curve...working with all these damn women".
Wednesday, November 5, 2008
"YES WE CAN"
Before i give you "The Second Coming...the building of The Supreme TEAM", i have to take a moment to pay homage and give reverance to Barack Obama. I would be remist if i didn't let this historic moment BREATH a little bit. As i sat in my living room last night, i watched the coverage on CNN. Now, deep down inside, i/we expected Barack to win. He was clearly the best candidate. In my heart, i wanted him to win...i hoped that he'd win, but honestly i was prepared for some isht to go down. We've seen it so many times where African Americans end up on short end...the political end...the racial end of the stick. Time and time again. So as much i prayed for it and expected it....i couldn't allow myself to really absorb the moment because i was afraid and preparing for something to go wrong. And then it happened. the CNN anchor said, "President Elect Barack Obama". My body froze for a second. I starred at the screen as it read what he had just said. in bold letters, "PRESIDENT ELECT - BARACK OBAMA". i was overcome with such pride...such joy, admiration, love and respect that all i could do was cry. a few tears ran down my face and i just let them run. Not only did he win...but he won in such a fashion that it wasn't even close. He won with dignity and strategy and intellect and remaining steadfast to his ideals and never changing regardless of the weather. HE WON! i wasn't mentally prepared for him to win, although i thought i was. Its almost like wanting that dirt bike with the mag wheels..the tricked out bike that costs way more than your parents have...and actually seeing it on christmas. yeah, u wanted it, you hoped for it...but you prepared not to have it. and when u got it....its like WOW.....YES WE CAN!! And many non-afrian americans will say that we are excited just because he's black. NO...we are excited because he was clearly the best candidate. he was clearly what america needed. We are excited because his victory represents so many things to our race and to the african american male. he represents the hope that we CAN accomplish anything if we work hard toward it. he represents the dismissal of all excuses. now when young black boys write on their paper, "i want to be president" NO ONE WILL LAUGH! No one will suggest that he pick up a basketball or learn to spit fire in the booth. When young black boys stand up and pledge allegiance to the flag, they will feel INCLUSIVE, instead of IN SPITE OF. His victory says that we no longer have to try to be like any other race. we can be ourselves and be great. our black men don't have to try to sound white anymore. because the highest ranking officer in the land sounds black. his voice is deep. its commanding. its intellegent and its sincere. We don't have to be afraid to be who we are. No, Barack isn't responsible for uplifting our race. No, not at all. We are responsible for using him as a catalyst to uplift ourselves and say, Yes We Can!
He's shown us that anything is possible. For those who will wait for Obama to cut their taxes, or to give them a stimulus check or to put on a black glove to keep it real.....they will be waiting a long time and will probably be sadly mistaken. But for those who understand what his victory means...they will uplift themselves. Our generation has not had a leader....a true leader to look up to and identify with. a movement to get behind and push. Now we have that in our generation where they said we were hopeless. Our greatest champion is a proud, Godfearing African American Man, husband and father. THAT IS WHAT HIS VICTORY REPRESENTS. He told the world that his best friend and rock was Michelle Obama!! WOW. and the beauty of Michelle Obama is that she aint stick skinny. she don't have blond weave, she don't have huge boobs or a donkey butt. She's a real black woman in every since of the word. She embodies the spirits of Betty Shabazz ,Coretta Scott King and Myrlie Evers.
I was so impressed at how he addressed the public after he won. He didn't take credit for the victory. He gave the victory to the poeple of America. and he told the voters who he hadn't convinced yet, "i'll be your president too". He never mentioned being the first Black President of the United States. His speach was one of, if not the most powerful collection of thoughts i can recall hearing. I was so proud to be a black man. I was so proud to be doing what i was supposed to be doing. I was proud that someone who looks like me and had experienced some of the things that i've experienced...someone who didn't grow up rich, but had to struggle as many of us did....was standing there as the new...the first and the only Head Negro In Charge!
YES WE CAN!!!
The photos attached is a haircut by Ram, a member of the Supreme Team.
Ram used Brandon (model) in a hairshow and his theme was CHANGE!
Happy Birthday Brandon!! (Yezzir)
He's shown us that anything is possible. For those who will wait for Obama to cut their taxes, or to give them a stimulus check or to put on a black glove to keep it real.....they will be waiting a long time and will probably be sadly mistaken. But for those who understand what his victory means...they will uplift themselves. Our generation has not had a leader....a true leader to look up to and identify with. a movement to get behind and push. Now we have that in our generation where they said we were hopeless. Our greatest champion is a proud, Godfearing African American Man, husband and father. THAT IS WHAT HIS VICTORY REPRESENTS. He told the world that his best friend and rock was Michelle Obama!! WOW. and the beauty of Michelle Obama is that she aint stick skinny. she don't have blond weave, she don't have huge boobs or a donkey butt. She's a real black woman in every since of the word. She embodies the spirits of Betty Shabazz ,Coretta Scott King and Myrlie Evers.
I was so impressed at how he addressed the public after he won. He didn't take credit for the victory. He gave the victory to the poeple of America. and he told the voters who he hadn't convinced yet, "i'll be your president too". He never mentioned being the first Black President of the United States. His speach was one of, if not the most powerful collection of thoughts i can recall hearing. I was so proud to be a black man. I was so proud to be doing what i was supposed to be doing. I was proud that someone who looks like me and had experienced some of the things that i've experienced...someone who didn't grow up rich, but had to struggle as many of us did....was standing there as the new...the first and the only Head Negro In Charge!
YES WE CAN!!!
The photos attached is a haircut by Ram, a member of the Supreme Team.
Ram used Brandon (model) in a hairshow and his theme was CHANGE!
Happy Birthday Brandon!! (Yezzir)
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