Meet Skye Gouge

We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Skye Gouge a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Skye, thank you so much for joining us today. There are so many topics we could discuss, but perhaps one of the most relevant is empathy because it’s at the core of great leadership and so we’d love to hear about how you developed your empathy?

Dogs are the reason I can empathize with humans. Decades ago I was another person, angry, scared, and very out of balance. I disliked humans in general, I was a Waiter for a long time and while I had a few great regulars over the years the mental beat down was very hard, and taking care of my family wasn’t happening at all anymore by the mid 2000s. I fell into the stuff grooming world by accident, because of the way I grew up I wasn’t phased by much and I started helping inform and teach the clients once I realized it wasn’t a normal thing to have knowledge on dog care. That in turn helped me understand sometimes people are just dealing with what’s in front of them and it’s not a personal thing, “They are doing the best they can!” My best friend would say.

Great, so let’s take a few minutes and cover your story. What should folks know about you and what you do?

I started grooming in 2010 through a traditional apprenticeship. I told him then I was going to do things different than others currently in the industry and he knew I would.
I work in a block scheduling so my clients are taken care of promptly instead of sitting and waiting. I’m very hands on with my clients and staff making sure to communicate constantly on any things we see. Just this past week I found a wound that a pet guardian didn’t no about, a thorn had been stuck in the dogs thigh fairly deep and luckily it was removed before getting infected.
We’ve been upping our color game as my apprentice Justin Williams has excelled my expectations and created some beautiful work.

Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?

1. Understanding repetitiveness doesn’t mean boring. It means polishing your style.

2. When you’re frustrated, your pup is frustrated so stop for a bit and love them for working with you

3. Boundaries are important, but don’t wall yourself off from opportunity.

Before we go, any advice you can share with people who are feeling overwhelmed?

When I’m overwhelmed I tell my friends I love and appreciate them, I post something on social media about the things I’m grateful for, I go play outside with my dog Mooshu.
When those things run out I’m lucky enough to have people to call and say I need help and they know I don’t want them to pick me up and carry me through the obstruction, I just need a light in the darkness.

Image Credits

Pups in order are Charlie, Mooshu, Maxx, Puperoni, and Obi Juan