Why Technique Alone Isn’t Enough. How Hair Shapes Youthfulness and Social Presence
“High skill = high customer satisfaction.”
When I first started my career as a hairdresser, I believed that too.
If my cutting improved, people would be happy.
If the precision of my perms improved, people would be impressed.
And yes—those things aren’t wrong.
But at a certain point, I started to realize something.
No matter how much I polished my technique, satisfaction didn’t rise as proportionally as it used to.
This isn’t laziness, and it isn’t arrogance.
If anything, I think it’s a kind of “healthy wall.”
Technique Has “Diminishing Returns”
In economics, there’s a concept called diminishing marginal returns (Diminishing Marginal Returns).
Simply put,
- 40 → 60: anyone can tell the difference
- 60 → 80: you can clearly feel the improvement
- 80 → 95: for most people, the difference is hard to tell
That’s the situation.
Hairdressing technique works in exactly the same way.
Up to a certain level, improving technique directly increases customer satisfaction.
But once you pass the “professional pass line” (around 80 points),
the differences beyond that become “subtle details only pros can notice.”
This isn’t just personal feeling—it’s structural.
Once You Pass the “Threshold Quality,” Customers Stop Distinguishing
In service engineering, quality that affects customer satisfaction is said to have a
“threshold (Threshold Quality).”
- Below the threshold: dissatisfaction
- Above the threshold: satisfaction
- Differences above the threshold: difficult to perceive
If we translate that into hairdressing:
Once your technique is above 80 points, you’re already in the “satisfaction zone.”
In other words,
the difference between a “95-point cut” and an “85-point cut”
often isn’t a deciding factor for most customers.
That’s why
even if you keep improving your technique, satisfaction can hit a ceiling.
This phenomenon happens.
The Discomfort I Felt in Tokyo and London
I’ve gained a lot of experience in Tokyo and in London.
I’ve worked with tens of thousands of clients, across different races, cultures, and values.
Cuts, color, perms, straightening.
Technically speaking, there’s almost nothing that truly “troubles” me.
And yet, at some point, I began to feel it clearly.
Even if I kept pushing technique alone further,
customer satisfaction wouldn’t dramatically increase.
If anything, what strongly influences satisfaction is
something entirely different.
People Care Less About “Hairstyles” and More About “How They Look”
What customers truly care about is:
- Do I look younger?
- Do I avoid looking older?
- Does it match my social position?
- Do I look like myself?
That’s it.
More than the hairstyle itself,
they’re looking at “how they will be evaluated through their hair.”
Work, family, school, age, position.
Depending on the environment someone is in,
what’s considered an “appropriate appearance” changes.
If you ignore that and only say,
“I think it suits you” or “It’s trendy,”
satisfaction won’t rise.
What Raises Satisfaction Isn’t Technique—It’s “Understanding”
What I value most now is:
- the customer’s lifestyle background
- daily behavior and values
- complexes and concerns about hair
- how they want to express themselves through hair
It’s the depth of understanding.
Hair isn’t just a part of the body.
It’s reliably connected to someone’s life and position.
That’s why
Technique × Consultation × Compatibility
This balance
greatly affects satisfaction.
Approaches Beyond Technique Raise Satisfaction
There’s one more major change.
That is,
I started incorporating perspectives beyond hairdressing.
- blood flow
- the autonomic nervous system
- scalp condition
- health-based ways of thinking
It’s what you could call a “therapeutic/medical perspective.”
I’m still in the middle of learning, but
by incorporating this approach,
- gray hair
- thinning hair
- hair firmness and bounce
I’ve been able to make more persuasive proposals about these issues.
In fact,
I’ve been hearing more comments like,
“That made sense from a perspective I hadn’t considered before.”
80-Point Technique × A Deeper Way of Engaging
What I don’t want you to misunderstand is this:
this is not saying “technique doesn’t matter.”
Technique above 80 points is a non-negotiable requirement.
And on top of that:
- mindset
- stance
- how you face the customer
- a health-based perspective on the body
When these elements combine,
satisfaction reliably rises to the next level.
Personally, that’s where I feel the strongest traction right now.
Toward a Job That Raises Satisfaction Beyond Hair
When hair is in shape:
- confidence increases
- it becomes easier to be in front of people
- work goes more smoothly
- your mood becomes more positive
That doesn’t happen through technique alone.
Understanding, health, compatibility, trust.
Only when those are included
does it become “a job that raises satisfaction through hair.”
That’s what I’m aiming for now.
I’ll keep carefully building the value that lies beyond technique.
