Client in a German barbershop: “I need to cut off ONLY the tips —just ONE cm.”
Barber: “Only one cm? Sure. Look, here’s the 1 cm. Looks good?”
Client: Yeah.
Barber goes straight to cut everything BUT one cm of hair.
That client…
was me. ????
Besides the bad moment of having my hair cut in the total opposite that i wanted it, it made me wonder.
“Was I not being clear enough?”
Ranting about this with a German friend he said something that made absolute sense only then:
“Well, in a German barbershop, guys go and ask to get their hair cut off to that measure you say. It never goes the other way around.”
????
Here’s what happened
When the barber heard “One cm”, he stopped listening.
Went straight to autopilot to cut hair as everybody.
He was trying to be efficient. Hell, he did go too efficient. (My hair is witness of it. ????)
He focused on what he heard and understood and how to deliver it ASAP, instead of making sure that was the thing his client wanted.
And you know one more thing?
That happens A LOT in consulting.
Instead of asking more questions, it’s just going into F-18 mode and do the thing —without making sure that is what your client wants.
Have you been in a situation like this?
PS.- Hair’s growing. All good. 🙂