That picture up there? That is me after I got my hair done this week. Pretty, right? I think so too!

So my hair started thinning out right smack dab in the middle of my head a couple of years back. Ahem…. excuse me the proper term is “diffusing” not thinning. I tried every homeopathic remedy online that I could find. However, no luck. The last couple of summers I wore my hair natural where I would just wash it and comb it back. It really looked bad. I do not feel my best when my hair is like that. But I wanted to give my hair a break.

I really tried not to get depressed about my hair but it just kept getting thinner and thinner until I really could see my scalp. My mother had fine thin hair so I just figured it was genetic.

I have gone to the same hairdresser for about 18 years or so. We cannot really remember when we came into each other’s lives. However, with school and all that, I was only going for my haircuts once every four months or so. In the interim, Ms. Glo, as we all affectionately refer to her, has studied trichology. Big word, huh? Ok, the dictionary defines it as “the branch of medical and cosmetic study and practice concerned with the hair and scalp.” Think of a dermatologist for the scalp but not a doctor.

Well, she got to fussing at me about my hair care and insisted on me coming in more regularly.

That was about 5 or 6 months ago and I am here to tell you, my hair is resurrected!! She started out with using a camera on my scalp. It is like a probe with a camera on the end and she showed me on the screen how my scalp was not supporting new hair growth. She taught me basic things like not putting my hair in a tight ponytail and using pin curls to keep my hair styled instead of heat. She used specialized scalp masks that she concocted for my own unique issue. I had a bad patch of eczema on the back of my scalp and she used essential oils on it and poof! What had been there for over a year was gone!

I love my hairdresser for what she has done for my hair but I love her even more for who she is. She is an amazing human being. She is such a leader. I remember when I first met her, she rented a shop in a strip mall. Then she rented a house that she converted to a salon and then she finally bought a house on a main drag in Lawrenceville, Georgia. She renovated this house, fought with the city about its requirements and was forced to create a parking lot in the back of this house! She has maintained her business for years with no significant issues. All her customers love her.

Ms. Glo used to be a marketer in corporate America. She got bored with that and wanted to do hair which was just a hobby for her. She got her license and here is the thing, she is an avid learner so she continues to self-improve and learn new skills.

She always attracted high-powered corporate women because Ms. Glo runs her calendar as if she were still in corporate America. I can literally get in and out of her chair in an hour if I have to. If you know anything about Black hair care, you know that this is a miracle. No waiting around and no talking mess in this hair shop.

Whenever I want to talk about everyday leadership, I use Ms. Glo as an example that everyone can relate to in business. She has never lacked for clients and I have never heard her complain about a lack of resources. Here are just three things that she highlights.

She is a planner: She started doing hair while she held a full-time job and this was her part time gig. She planned how she could quit her job and do hair full time. I have seen her plan to move locations and keep clients informed. I have seen her buy a property for her business. I have seen her plan the renovations at her shop. She will tell you, “in three months, I am replacing the ceiling fans” and voila! In three months, there will be new fans. She saves and budgets and talks about it. The effect of this is that she normalizes savings and budgeting to her entire community. She is not the type of person that brags about how much she spent doing something, like going on a fancy vacation or something. No. Instead, she will tell you today, what she is saving for next year. She talks about her conversations with her accountant and what they are planning for next quarter. This is normal conversation at this salon. You walk away from just going to get your hair done to seeing how money management should look in a small business environment.

She is a learner: When Ms. Glo studied the science of trichology she recognized that she needed to focus on a new dimension to her business. She needed to educate people. She did not want to only fix scalp problems, she wanted women to get ahead of issues with their scalp and prevent issues from coming up. She realized that she needed to start using social media to educate the public about black hair care. She did not care for social media but she overcame her inertia around it and began posting at least three times a day. She would post pictures, nutrition information and hair care tips. She embraced social media as a marketing and educational tool. But first, she sought support. She worked with marketers to help her. Now, she does workshops. A big deal!

She responds to her client’s needs: As I told you, I have been going to Ms. Glo for about 18 years. Over the years, she noticed that when her clients had children, their hair went through drama. She figured out what was going on and created a whole protocol for pregnant women. Then she noticed that many clients were having health related issues: autoimmune disorders, surgeries, diabetes and high blood pressure. She researched it and saw the impact these diseases were having on the hair and created and discovered protocols to help her clients keep healthy hair. That is how she ended up in trichology school. That was how I ended up with most of my hair growing back. Menopause was killing off my hair follicles. Ms. Glo grew my hair back. And it will continue to grow if I do what she tells me. Every year, she has an annual party at a hotel and announces what changes will occur in the saloon in the following year.

The final kicker is this: She lives what she preaches. She ain’t no hypocrite. She stopped relaxing her hair. She stopped coloring her hair. She changed her diet. She is always at the gym. She lives out what she preaches to her clients and she works on overcoming the obstacles first and then she can more effectively reach out to others. And she is a faithful woman of God. You will get an “Amen” and a “Praise the Lord” in this salon but without the flakiness.

She is the Real MVP and the G.O.A.T.

I love my Ms. Glo.

Why the shout out? This is a huge deliverable towards me. My hair is about 70% of its original thickness up from about 40% when she started treating my scalp. It will take time but it makes me happy that there is a solution and I am working my solution but it takes someone teaching me to help me get there. She is my teacher.

As a person, forget that she is my hairdresser, when I am down, she is one of my go-to people to lift me up. Her consistency literally brings life to me. She brings life to hair but also to the souls of her clients.

The lesson here is this: Leaders resurrect. They bring things to life with constant and new learnings. They bring relief to people’s lives. They are masters of their skill. They get results. They bring people along for the ride.

What are you resurrecting in your leadership?

So here is the deal. Find your own person that takes her business seriously or go support Ms. Glo here in GA and tell her I sent you. Make sure each person you spend your precious dollars with exemplifies the excellence you want in your own life.

You can find Mrs. Gloria Fort online at http://www.hairnmotion.net/

Her phone number is  (770) 237-3669 and she is located at 337 North Clayton St. Lawrenceville, GA 30046

Follow her on Facebook at: https://www.facebook.com/msglohair/

Follow her on Instagram at: https://www.instagram.com/trichocare/

Here is to pretty AND healthy hair!