
What a 4am haircut taught me about hackathons - theamydance
http://news.mlh.io/what-a-4-a-m-haircut-taught-me-about-hackathons-06-30-2015
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boser
Read this article hoping for some insights about hackathon culture.

Actually, its just an excuse to promote a friend's app followed by some vague
platitudes about tech/innovation. Yawn.

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busterarm
So who is willing to risk their barber's license offering this service...?

There's a reason we require licensing of that profession...

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8_hours_ago
I was curious so I looked up the regulations for California[1]. A barber
license requires a 2-year full-time apprenticeship, classroom instruction, a
written test, and a practical test. In my opinion, those requirements are way
too stringent for someone who is just going to be cutting my hair. I've had
family members cut my hair and I still have all of my ears.

What are the legitimate reasons for the current license requirements? Are
there any, or is this a law that is a relic of a past which did have reasons
for it? It seems like the market could solve the issue of under performing
barbers.

[1]:
[http://www.barbercosmo.ca.gov/applicants/index.shtml](http://www.barbercosmo.ca.gov/applicants/index.shtml)

EDIT: From reading this page, it looks like the service described in the
article is illegal because in-home services are only available for "anyone
whose illness or other physical or mental incapacitation prevents them from
visiting a licensed salon or barbershop". And, of course, it still requires a
licensed barber.

[http://www.barbercosmo.ca.gov/consumers/inhome_srv_factsheet...](http://www.barbercosmo.ca.gov/consumers/inhome_srv_factsheet.shtml)

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DanBC
The requirements reassure the public that the person cutting hair isn't an
idiot who's just bought some cheap clippers. They've cut hair - hundreds of
hours worth of hair cutting - and they know how to sterilize the equipment.
And if you're going to have chemical hair treatments you're not going to be
maimed by someone who doesn't know how to use the chemicals.

I agree that 1,500 hours does sound a bit long though.

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bendykstra
You could probably get an idea of how inflated that requirement is by looking
at what percentage of the 1,500 hours is spent on issues relating to safety
and hair cutting. Browsing the syllabi of barber schools, I see subjects like
career networking, public speaking and small business management.

You could also compare states. In New York, the requirement is set by the
school and I found one school that requires 288 hours.

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infinitone
Uber for X services thrive on high retention something which is low for hair
cuts. How often do people get them? Also, hair styling can be subjective
making it hard to quantitatively define quality- which makes it hard to scale.

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dragonwriter
> Uber for X services thrive on high retention something which is low for hair
> cuts.

I think, more specifically, they thrive on high _repetition_ rate, high
_platform_ retention, and high commoditization (or, equivalently, low
_provider_ retention.)

Hair cutting/styling, AFAICT, has fairly low repetition rate for most users,
and low commoditization / high _provider_ retention (and that's even _more_
true among the segment of the population which _does_ have a high repetition
rate), and so the utility of the market _platform_ seems pretty low for most
users and providers.

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kurtalee
"What I love most about hackathons is that failure is everywhere. When you’re
not afraid to fail, you’re not afraid to push your limits, and that’s an
attitude everyone can benefit from."

Truth!

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jonmarkgo
Yeah, one of my favorite things about them is that they're a risk-free
creative environment when compared to school or work. It lets people get
outside their comfort zones more.

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RainforestCx
I would absolutely use this, and kind of realize in this moment that I've been
waiting for this kind of service for quite some time...

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jusben1369
As I read this I couldn't help but think of PG's essay on Growth. "The
constraints that limit ordinary companies also protect them. That's the
tradeoff. If you start a barbershop, you only have to compete with other local
barbers."

He might have to rewrite that paragraph if this goes big!

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mymum_is_a_nun
Y'all watch Barbershop the movie? It's great.

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dsheynin
I would totally use this

