Nothing is quite as it used to be. We can all agree on that in one way or another. From technology to politics, from skin care to mental health, the rules are not just changing, they are constantly being rewritten. The same is true for how we see ourselves. Our self image is not fixed. It shifts with age, with influence, and with the simple fact that every day we are getting older.
Lately it feels like there have never been more conversations about aging. What it looks like, how it feels, and what people think is acceptable. Bravo to Gen X, Millennials, and Gen Z for keeping those conversations alive. Together we are reshaping what growing older can look like.
So what does this have to do with me? I spend my days behind the chair, and after more than twenty years of listening to thousands of clients, I can tell you this. We are doing things differently now. How we think about age, beauty, and self care has shifted. The old rules about hair length, gray coverage, makeup, and style are dissolving. People are more curious, more open to change, and more willing to define beauty for themselves.
I see it in my chair every week. Clients are embracing silver hair instead of rushing to cover it. Some are trying color for the first time in their fifties or sixties. Others are cutting their hair shorter after years of keeping it long because someone once told them that was “more feminine.” People are moving away from rules and toward self expression.
Texture is another place where things have shifted. For years we were taught to fight our natural waves and curls. Now I have more people asking how to work with what they have, rather than change it. It is exciting to help someone discover that their natural hair can be beautiful and easy to live with once it is cut and cared for the right way.
I also hear more honesty about aging. Clients are curious about what happens to hair over time, and how to keep it healthy as it changes. Thinning, dryness, and slower growth are real, but so is the joy of finding styles that work with the hair you have right now.
The best part is the sense of freedom. We no longer have to follow someone else’s timeline for when to stop experimenting or when to “tone it down.” Instead, there is this open conversation about owning who you are and feeling good in your own skin and your own hair.
Aging and self image are not things we solve. They keep moving with us. The conversations I hear every day remind me that beauty is not about chasing youth or following someone else’s rules. It is about feeling comfortable in your own skin and curious enough to keep exploring who you are becoming. Your hair can change with you. It can mark a new chapter, honor where you are, or simply help you feel good right now. That is what keeps me inspired behind the chair after all these years.
