I’ve now groomed 15 dogs and can’t believe how much I’ve learnt and how quickly I’ve progressed. I had no experience whatsoever of grooming but had always wanted to be involved with animals and grooming was something I had considered for a while but never did anything about it. I took the step when I was left some money and my partner encouraged me to take the plunge. I have to say the encouragement I received from British School of Grooming has been great and on days when I’ve found it challenging the tutors have been with me encouraging me and also reminding me of the ‘competence framework’ which they introduced to me on the first day explaining that each challenge is new and I would feel out of my comfort zone but would with time get through these challenges and achieve which is what I’m doing.
The ‘competence framework’ was interesting as they were basically explaining how we all learn and the stages of learning we all go through for each task that’s new. It was explained in a way that placed me at ease as they were basically saying ‘we know how you feel’ and ‘you are going to make some mistakes but that’s ok’, we’ve been in the same place as you’.
This approach is very new to me as most of my learning has been in environments where making mistakes is frowned upon and met with such disapproval that it effected my confidence and self-esteem. This process has been the opposite I have grown in confidence and feel like I can become a really good groomer with lots of hard work and a little time. I can’t thank the staff enough for the support they have given me. I haven’t finished the course yet but have started grooming dogs at home which has gone down really well and the feedback has been amazing.
Another aspect of the course I really enjoyed was the ‘marketing presentation’ which was delivered and has since been sent to me to keep. The importance of social media was emphasised and how to use it to grow my new business. There were also some good business ideas which I will put into practice. One of the things discussed was getting your customers to sign up to a direct debit and booking dogs back in for grooming before they leave the salon, simple you might think but very smart thinking.