Originally published on LinkedIn, 13 February 2026.
The world feels heavy lately, doesn’t it? The noise is loud - Overwhelmingly loud.
VAT thresholds. Business rate increases. Pay rises. “Industry is dying.” Salons closing. High streets failing. Governments lying. False promises. People hurting.
It’s a lot.
And if you let it in, it becomes doom and gloom on repeat.
Lately… I’ve felt it.
That heaviness. It seeps in.
It seeps in at 10pm when you’re staring at your laptop trying to make sense of the numbers.
It seeps in when a quiet week hits. It seeps in when you scroll and see yet another “industry is struggling” post.
And suddenly you’re not just running a business… you’re carrying the weight of an entire narrative.
If you’ve felt that — I see you.
This year has been the year of the snake. And the snake is about shedding.
But shedding isn’t graceful. It’s uncomfortable. It’s letting go of pricing that once felt safe. Systems that once worked. Clients that no longer align. Old versions of ourselves that kept us protected but small.
Shedding feels exposed. It can make you question everything.
But it is not collapse. It is evolution!
And evolution rarely feels tidy in real time.
I don’t believe this has been a year of defeat. I believe it’s been a year of refinement. Tightening up. Getting braver. Reclaiming standards. Recognising where we’ve been undercharging, over-giving, over-apologising.
Learning how to run businesses, not just treatment rooms.
And I can feel something shifting.
The year of the horse is coming.
Momentum. Power. Forward motion. Courage in action.
But you can’t run freely if you’re still carrying old weight. That’s what this year has been about.
Preparation.
So please… if you need to hear this — turn down the noise.
Delete the apps that make you anxious. Mute the accounts that profit from fear. Stop absorbing opinions from people who don’t carry your payroll, your rent, your responsibility.
And yes — put the dickheads firmly in the dickhead bin if they’re making you feel small, shit, or less than in any way.
You are running a business. And what you’ve built matters.
Those little pockets of haven you create every single day? They matter. The confidence you restore. The safe space you provide. The laughter in your salon.
That is not small work.
If you feel like you’ve only got 10% left in the tank, that’s enough.
Enough to steady yourself. Enough to make one clear decision. Enough to protect your margins. Enough to choose bravery over fear.
You are not dramatic for finding this heavy. You are not weak for feeling the pressure.
You are a leader. And leadership can feel lonely sometimes.
But you are not alone.
We are resilient. We are creative. And we are far more powerful than the narrative being sold to us.
A confident salon is magnetic.
And confidence isn’t pretending everything is easy.
It’s saying:
This is hard… and I’m still here.
If you’re feeling what I’m feeling, this is just me reaching across the industry and saying —
I see you. I respect you. And we’ve got this.
With so much love,
Amy 🤍