After all my efforts to clean up my razor, a couple of weeks ago, this week, I cut my chin while shaving. Right in the middle, at the “mental protuberance” (i.e.  bump of bone at front of jaw)… and, yeah, I’d say the cut was, pretty much, mental… I had been in a hurry, eager to launch the day, running a bit behind schedule, so I slapped on the “this color does not occur in nature”  green gel I use to lubricate my face, grasped my weeks old triple-blade razor, and  with fast, ‘let’s get this over with’ strokes, sliced stubble.  Right cheek…. Left cheek…. Upper lip…. Chin up, stretch the neck… under the jaw and then, with a too-hard-pressed down stroke, I snagged a chunk of chin.

Words said and facial tissue applied, there was naught to do but wait for the bleeding to stop so I could put on my shirt and get out the door.

Feeling a surge of kill-some-time curiosity,  I pulled out my phone and, after a few taps, began reading “Shaving Tips from Moroccan Street Shavers” (no, I’m not kidding, it’s here) which recommends patient pre-shave application of moist heat, a full three minutes of lathering up with shaving brush and a high fat-content shaving paste, short razor strokes first with the grain and then against, pushing the skin toward the razor rather than stretching it away, and post-shaving application of antiseptic and moisturizer, and concludes with:

“If you can’t devote at least 15 minutes of your time to shaving, I recommend postponing the job until you can. Shaving should be approached as a small ceremony; do so and gradually this mandatory, boring, and time-consuming activity will evolve into an empowering and pleasant moment.”

Sounds, too, like great approach to pre-meeting planning so we reduce the chances we get ‘nicked so we bleed” during our client conversations!

Nick Miller  trains banks and bankers to help small businesses thrive by guiding them to good financial practices and leveraging the full range of their banks’ capabilities. He is President of Clarity Advantage based in Concord, MA. Additional articles on Clarity’s web site.