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Have you ever had a bad haircut? I’m sure we’ve all had them. As for me, I’m like TLC’s Duggarts, I’m on my fifth and counting.

The thing my husband always says after I get back from another disappointing hairdo is, “I don’t get it. You tell them exactly what you want and they never do it the way you want.”

“Hmm,” I thought. There’s a bit of wisdom in there somewhere.

The more I pondered, the more I saw that there was a similarity between bad haircuts and bad business.

When I go into a new salon, I’m super excited. I believe this may be the best haircut yet. The hairstylist and I will either be great friends or will be quiet so I can just sit there, get my hair shampooed and take a nap. I even bring my infamous computer printout of my dream hairstyle: Carrie Bradshaw’s layered do ala Season 6 (after Burger, before Petrovsky.)

And then somewhere between the introductory chatter and a blow dry, I get everything but the haircut I wanted.

The same hairstyle done five ways and all bad. And then I realized.

It’s just like writing biz! A client can interview 10 potential writers, for example, and they all have totally different styles, some good, some bad. It’s all about the fit.

As for me, I went in thinking I’d get a cool, chic modern cut and got a rocker do instead. A great style, but for a completely different personality.

So what could I have done?

Be brave and say, “Um. Excuse me, but I don’t think this is exactly what I was hoping for. Do you think you could cut a little less up here and more on the sides there?”

Of course, I’d never want to tell a hairstylist how to do their job, but like the writing business I’ve learned it is a lot better to be clear.

• Be clear about what your expectations are. This prevents miscommunication and a disappointing outcome.
• Be clear about exactly what type of writing style they are looking for and what you can deliver.
• Be clear about how much they will pay you and when and what that rate includes (e.g. two rounds of editing, etc.)

Here’s the thing. It takes a little bit of courage to speak up. The whole time I was sitting in the stylist’s chair when his insanely hot blow dryer was burning my scalp, I was wincing not screaming. It’s hard to tell someone, “Hey this isn’t working! This isn’t a good fit!”

But here’s what I learned, it’s better to be honest about what you can and can’t do at the beginning. And much better to speak up when you feel like things are not working. Trust me, you’ll be saving yourself time, money and inevitably a bad business to be upfront from the start. Not to mention avoiding any burned scalps or bridges later.