It is my considered opinion that the Hairstylist is the most influential person in any community. When the public goes to a hairstylist, something happens to them. They feel safe, they relax. The hairstylist knows what their skin is like under the make-up: they know their age; they don't have to keep up any kind of pretense. People tell a hairstylist things they wouldn't dare confess to a priest and they are open about matters they'd try to conceal from a doctor. When people place their secret lives in the hairstylist's hands. The hairstylist gains an authority few other people attain. I have heard the hairstylist quoted with complete conviction on art, literature, politics, economics, childcare and morals. I tell you that a clever, thoughtful, ambitions hairstylist wields a power beyond the comprehension most people.

John Steinbeck