As I have been working closely with a good friend, client and barber of mine, I started discovering things that we have in common as men, as entrepreneurs and as friends.   Human beings are constantly searching for happiness, reaching for the next level of success and striving for perfection.  I wanted to briefly touch on these three things in this post that are related to the Latin words “Magnum Opus”.  Now, Magnum Opus was not just the name of Mad Max’s primary vehicle, it is also Latin for “a large and important work of art, music, or literature, especially one regarded as the most important work of an artist or writer” – thanks Wikipedia.  Humans, as the creative beings that we are, strive for perfection in the work that we put out, whether it be the blurriest fade, the best web design layout, a perfect, jaw-dropping dance performance, architecture or virtually any other craft or piece of art that you can imagine.

As Elvis, “Mr. Kingdom Barbers” (@kingdom_barbers on IG), and I put this brief video together for his website kingdombarbers.com, we both wanted to display our talents in our own crafts.

Deepak Chopra describes happiness in two words, “divine discontent”.  I take that to mean that we will never, and should never, be completely satisfied with where we are at in life, otherwise we would be completely bliss-ed out 100% of the time. In making this video, although we were “working”, we enjoyed it, we were happy.  We know it is not perfection, we know that it will not appeal to EVERYONE, we know that it wont grab everyone’s interest.  This video may feel perfect for one person the first time they watch it; two hours, two weeks, or two years from now, it will be boring, simple and old news.  Perfection isn’t the point of this video.  The point is to capture a moment, to tell a story, to let your clients know what they might be able to experience when they step foot into your barbershop.

The production value of this video is not that of a BMW or Mercedes commercial, we get that.  There is no voice over.  You will never hear Gang Starr rapping these epic hip hop lyrics in a Ferrari promotional video, at least not one that was produced by Ferrari.  In choosing this song, I thought about the culture of the Barbershop industry, how it has grown and its current culture.  While, hip hop could potentially scare certain clients away, we want to be honest, while staying authentic to the experience that you might have when you walk through those doors.

Being the son of a well-accomplished barber who owned shops in Florida and New York City and inspired family to open shops in Miami, I have seen what it takes to be successful in appealing to the masses. Humility, authenticity, quality service and selflessness are the characteristics that come to mind when thinking of what Elvis and my father have in common as people and what they have created.

If you haven’t met Mr. Kingdom Barbers, it is because you have never walked through the humble doorway of his barbershop, you never heard him gratuitously speak to teach and motivate new students at a tech college, or you have never been to a barber battle where he has been a judge or simply supported his barbershop family members.  He is better because he encourages others to be better and tries ferociously to lift others up.

If you have been in one of my sales courses or heard me talk about them, you may have heard me say “Repetition is the mother of Mastery.”  Figure out what you love, keep doing it over and over, continue to get better, continue to stretch yourself.  You will discover your own Magnum Opus.

Thank you for reading.