Everyone has all done it – looking into the mirror and suddenly fixating on their acne, wrinkles, rosacea, or melasma. Every time someone puts on makeup or does their hair, that’s the first place the eyes wander. It begins to become a bother. Luckily, aestheticians have access to great products and treatments, so they start working with products and doing treatments while hiding behind makeup. Practitioners and clients know their skin problems are there and still see it no matter the treatments, products, or makeup applied. What is being done? They are focusing their attention on the negative aspects. How many of you have clients that tell you how horrible or awful their skin looks? How many of you listen to your clients talk about what is wrong with their skin? They come to you for a solution, and you are able to provide that through great products and treatments. 

MINDSET

Minds are powerful and many aestheticians are also entrepreneurs who read books about the power of mindset. Why is this not being applied to skin? This quote from Robin Sharma, comes to mind, “What you focus on grows, what you think about expands, and what you dwell upon determines your destiny.” How can skin care professionals apply this to facial clients?

SHIFTING THE FOCUS

Now is the time to shift your mindset about skin and teach clients to do the same. Think about acne clients – they fixate on the problem and get frustrated when skin care professionals can’t clear them up. While working in treatment rooms and sending them home with the best homecare routines, try teaching clients to focus on what they can control. Teach acne clients to find what they love about their skin. For example, a client with thick, beautiful eyebrows that are naturally shaped and don’t need much maintenance, or a client with beautiful lips or beautiful eyes that need very little makeup – teach clients to love the features they have and help them shift the focus away from their skin problems and more on the parts they love.

Many aestheticians and their clients are mothers. What example are they teaching their daughters? When people focus on the negative parts of skin, they are teaching their daughters to do the same. Clients are coming to spas because they want to improve their skin and feel good about themselves. Teach them to love their skin for what it is and not to fixate on the bad; by doing this, they are a positive role model to their kids. While the aesthetics industry is built on outer beauty, it is important to embrace biology and accept imperfections.

Celebrities have flawless skin that never ages, and it’s teaching clients to believe wrinkles or skin problems are unusual or bad. This is good for aestheticians because they will have more clients, but this unnatural view of celebrities causes clients to feel frustrated with their own skin. 

Today, I challenge you to shift your mindset about the way you view your skin. How are you showing up for yourself? How are you showing up for your clients? Aestheticians need to set the example and educate clients to focus on the good instead of the problems. Empower yourself to be better and to teach clients to do the same. 

Samantha Dench is a 16-year licensed aesthetician, owner of Skin Deep, author, and speaker. Dench’s passion stems beyond treating the skin to include internal health to achieve healthy skin for clients by finding the root of the problem. She loves to educate groups of women and share her knowledge and passion of skin. Dench loves to share her book to help women take control of their skin. She is a single mom of three and loves to cook, bake, and find creative ways to find healthy alternatives to her favorite dishes.