Five People Every Woman Should Know
Hairstylist
Your hairstylist is not only the one that makes you look and feel beautiful, they're also your underpaid therapist.
Over the years, you will not only tell this stylist about the latest celebrity you'd like your look to emulate. You'll also tell them the intimate details of your life, job, relationships, family and friends. So, you need someone you can trust with all of that.
Rosina Luca, a stylist and the marketing director at Avalon Salon in the Hyde Park plaza, says, "Words of advice when looking for a stylist: [look for] friendliness, communication and education."
The education piece is important. Find out how often they're educated about hair styles, client relations and given motivation as an employee. For example, Avalon provides weekly education for their stylists. This gives them the opportunity to bring outside experts in to teach cutting edge trends, share experiences, learn from each other and be motivated to do the best job possible for you as a client.
As in any relationship, communication is key to getting what you want. That holds true for your stylist, too. "We can offer suggestions and ask questions, but if you're not specific, you will not get what you want," says Luca. "Pictures help as long as you take into consideration your own hair type (i.e., curly, straight, long, short, etc.)."
When looking for a stylist, Luca says, word of mouth is always a great place to start, so ask friends. "Or, if you see someone with a great style, ask them," says Luca. "People love compliments!"
Business Mentor
To be mentored or not to be mentored, that is the question. "This one is a no-brainer. Denying the need for a mentor says you know it all," says Kay Fittes, founder of Strategies for Women’s Growth. "No one knows it all."
Fittes provides the following information about what a mentor can do for you and how to find the right one for you and where you want to take your career.
What can a mentor do for you?
- Be your role model
- Give you warnings and insights about the culture and politics of your workplace
- Push you to take well chosen next risks and steer your career path
- Be your advocate and supporter in upper circles of the organization
- Give you insights and feedback about your strengths, weaknesses and behavior
How do you choose?
- Choose a couple of mentors, female and male
- Another woman understands struggles in the workplace and work/home issues that a man has never encountered
- A man may be able to give you entrée into “the club” that no woman has yet achieved in your workplace
- Choose someone you respect and has similar values
- Choose someone in the “inner circle”
- Choose someone with whom you are comfortable
- Choose someone willing to take the time
- Choose someone that will give you candid, yet diplomatic, feedback
Mechanic
As a cute, well-dressed woman, you turn heads when you walk into any room. But when you walk into an auto body shop, you turn heads and the mechanics often peg a big bullseye on yours.
Oh, you just came in for an oil change? But did you know that you need to buy a new timing belt, transmission, muffler and left wiper blade? Well, according to Biff-the-mechanic-that-you've-never-seen-before-in-your-life, you do. But take your car to the family-friend mechanic, and it turns out, all you really need is an oil change, and maybe a new left wiper.
If only we all had that family-friend mechanic! No better time to start than now to start finding one. Finding a mechanic is like choosing any other small business. Look for quality, value and service. Here are nine steps, provided by www.ehow.com, to finding the right mechanic for you:
Step One
Ask trusted friends for recommendations.
Step Two
Talk to people who have cars similar to yours if you are new to an area.
Step Three
Make sure the mechanic you've chosen services your type of car. Look around the shop and see what kinds of cars are being worked on.
Step Four
Call the Better Business Bureau to check whether the shop has any complaints on file.
Step Five
Check whether the shop is accredited by the American Automobile Association (AAA).
Step Six
Ask whether the shop's mechanics are certified by the National Institute for Automotive Service Excellence (ASE).
Step Seven
Check the warranty on the repair work before leaving the car at the shop. Six months is great; 90 days is good; 30 days is a little suspect. Find out whether the warranty covers both parts and labor.
Step Eight
Ask for a full explanation of what is going to be done to the car.
Step Nine
Find out what the shop's hours are. Will it be open when you get off work? Is the shop near the Metro bus route? Will you get a loaner while your car is being worked on?
Keep in mind, don't wait until your car needs major repairs or a tow to find a good mechanic. Bring your car into the shop for small stuff like oil changes and brake checks to get a feel for the place and develop a relationship.
Also, don't choose a shop based solely on price. The least expensive repair shop might not be the best place to go. At the same time, the most expensive shop (usually the dealership) may not give you the best service or quality.
Life Partner
The term "Life Partner" can be interpreted in many ways. Essentially, a life partner is a friend on steriods… not literally on steroids, though. That could be dangerous! A life partner is a person that takes friendship to a whole new level, and that can mean many things: Someone, such a sibling or parent, that's been around – a partner, per se – for all, or the majority, of your life; Your spouse; The equivalent to a marital partner in the gay community; A commonlaw marriage partner; Your God; Or even a friend that understands you on another, almost spiritual, level, that has been around for years, and will be there for many years to come.
As a human, especially a female human, your genetic makeup yearns for a deep relationship. The one you tell your most intimate details. The one that knows the song in your heart and sings it back to you when your memory fails. The one that holds you with both hands when your world isn't just bad, or really bad, but when it comes crashing down. Usually, we only come across one person in our entire lifetime that can carry that kind of weight for you. When you do, make them your life partner.
Friend
We all have good friends. The entourage of sorority sisters that you convene with at reunions, the group of gals from the office, etc. That's not what we're talking about here. We're talking about the one you'd ask to be your bridesmaid if you were getting married tomorrow. The one you call at 4 a.m. without a second thought if something's bothering you. The person you'd use your one phone call on if you somehow found yourself in jail (if they weren't sitting in the cell with you).
This person is different than your life partner. This person is the one that knows everything about your relationship with your life partner, good and bad. This person is actually a key ingredient to your relationship with your life partner because you vent to this friend, spend time apart from your life partner with this friend and share tips on how to spice up the relationship with this friend.
William Penn once said, "A true friend unbosoms freely, advises justly, assists readily, adventures boldly, takes all patiently, defends courageously and continues a friend unchangeably."
Read that quote, every word of it, carefully. And that is what you should look for in your one true friend. Oh, and don't forget to be all of those things back to your friend.
