Oft02,
You're a newbie---it will come to you in time as you get better at this. It's not rocket science but you do get a 'feel' for it as you gain experience. Some people get their first unit and they can't imagine how it will ever work for them. It looks too dark/light or too curly. Once they
wash it and have it styled it looks completely different. And then they realize that they can 'work' with it and make the unit look different. It gets better over time.
Regards,
John