With Father’s Day fast approaching, let’s join one of Vagaro’s Social Media Managers, Michelle Dabu, as she sits down with John Mosley, world-renowned celebrity barber and self-acclaimed Popular Nobody, to discuss the importance of being an active father for your family, and why a work-life balance is so crucial to your business’s & family’s wellbeing.
Q: Hey, John! Thanks for chatting with us today. You’re a celebrity barber, NAHA award winner, Vagaro business coach, and most importantly, a father. So, to kick things off, why don’t you tell us a bit about your family!
I have a great, great family. They’re an amazing support group. I love being a father. You know, I think so many of us men might shy away from fatherhood because we're trying to constantly build and work on ourselves or our business, but this is one of those things where, as a father, you know, your children and family are your future. I'm blessed with the opportunity to work hard and to be able provide for my family. Between my biological and step-children, I’m able to show my son an example of how to act as and be a gentleman. For my daughters, I get to show them traits they should look for their future spouse.
Q: As we celebrate Father's Day this year, we'd love to hear how your experience as a dad has influenced your approach to running your business.
It’s different each day, you know? As parents, we battle the Internet, we battle external and internal pressure, we battle all the different influences that now come with the world. And, while we’re doing that, we're still trying to consistently grow our business. I think the biggest thing is, as parents, we have to stay learning.
Parenting isn’t a book you find on the shelf. It's an everyday learning experience.
I know this is a Father's Day thing, but being a business owner and a father is really about sacrifice. There’s times where we have to sacrifice some things. While coming up in this industry as a father, having open communications with my children was most important to me. Helping them understand what their dad is out here doing, and why it should be important to them was huge. They've seen and been a part of the struggles, every battle I fought. They saw what it took for me to get to the seat that I'm sitting in now. My kids have been part of that journey every step of the way.
Q: What are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced within your career?
The industry’s gotten more open in current times, but being African American is definitely one of them. As I was making a name for myself as a barber, I had to learn how to be great at every hair texture, every technique, every cutting style, everything; before I could even get any type of credit of as a professional.
It felt like I was working, working, working, but still didn’t have a seat at the table. My ideas were at the table, sure, but they were brought there by somebody else, you know? It wasn't necessarily my voice and my presence in those conversations.
Not getting caught up in the hype is another challenge I’d have to struggle with, too. People might say, “OMG, you’re Popular Nobody!” and I’m like, “No, man, I'm human. I'm a father.” You know what I mean? I'm just me, and I’ll always be me. It’s hard, though, and anyone that blows up in their industry can struggle with getting lost in the hype—losing who you are.
Q: How do you balance work and family life?
Something I like to do is put my phone on Do Not Disturb when I get home. It’s like, “If you miss me, you miss me.” It could be whatever, no matter how important, but allowing myself to choose when to respond and what to respond to is a big thing for me.
When it comes to my kids, you know, my son and I have a great routine for his football training. When its summertime, I try to adjust my work schedule around his camps and stuff like that so I can help with travel or taking him to practice. Then, at one point, my daughter needed a model for her esthetician stuff at work. I was like, “I'm there for you!”, you know? I want to be involved with my kids’ lives. Without hesitation.
I think sometimes as a business owner, it’s easy to get caught in up work and forget about the house. We forget about our children or our partners—our home. I want to be like one of my clients who once said he’ll never be an absent father, ever. They, your kids, want their dad, you know what I mean? So, I think we have to celebrate ourselves as businessmen when we're growing our businesses, yes, but more importantly, celebrate our children and our families above all.
Q: What support systems or resources have been essential for you in juggling being an entrepreneur and father?
My wife. My wife is definitely my support system. She holds the house down when I'm crazy on the road. She handles the dentist and doctor's appointments, the kids, the house, she does it all. We’re in constant communication about things like that, too, which is really important to me. Tying back to the top of this conversation, something that’s helped a lot was helping my kids understand what daddy is up to and what I’m doing, and how it helped get us to where we’re at.
Q: How’s Vagaro helped you manage your business?
Vagaro’s helped me in a lot of unique ways. Whether it was so people could find and book me at shows or conventions when they wanted a cut, or using it to give business coaching live classes, Vagaro’s able to help with whatever special project or task I have. It’s flexible, you know? The Vagaro Marketplace is huge, too. Clients being able to locate me off the marketplace when they’re looking for a barber is great. Most importantly, though, you get to monitor and see your metrics. Vagaro lets you analyze your numbers and see how or where you're spending money that might be more effectively used somewhere else.
Q: What’s a piece of advice you would give to fathers in business or fathers who might be struggling to find a work life balance?
For all the fathers out there, you know, as men, just be present, be present. Coming up in this business or industry, we can get caught up in the money, thinking that's what our family wants or needs from us. But, what I really found my family needed was time. T-I-M-E. We can spend so much time trying to make money but never working with our children or being present in their life and supporting what they have going on. Work is going to be there, but when you get old and you're asking them to change your diapers, they’re the ones who’re going to take care of you, not your business!
So, if I can encourage you to do anything, just show up, be a present father in your kid’s life, and never be afraid to lean on them for advice when you need it.
John, thank you for taking the time to not just sit down and chat with us, but also lend father’s around the globe some much-needed encouragement and advice. Be sure to give a John a shout if you’re ever In town for a cut, or are looking for some expert business advice and mentoring.
Ready to elevate your operations with a business management or booking software that can flex, scale, and grow with your barbershop? Consider a 30-day complimentary trial with Vagaro and make it happen, we back your success at every step.
