Special thanks go to Will and Patricia Strunk and Saundra Brown, who over the years have never once edited, censored, or directed my words and have never given me anything but encouragement and gratitude. I will continue to write from my heart as a skin therapist in the hope that some of my wild ramblings will resonate with many of you who feel as I do, that we have the greatest profession in the World and that we can change that world with our bare hands.
It is a true pleasure for me to look back at the almost 12 years that I have been writing this column for DERMASCOPE Magazine. You have all been gracious enough to welcome me into your minds, hearts, and businesses over those years, and take the time to read my viewpoints and humble answers to your always-interesting questions. I thank you for the support and encouragement and for always making me proud to be a part of our 'tribe'.
Steve Jobs recently gave a commencement address at his alma mater entitled 'Stay Foolish. Stay Hungry' and they are words I have always lived by. I think it is a great skill to always stay somewhat naive, always looking for answers, always seeking new information, skills, discourse, and knowledge. It is masterful to stay keen, edgy, somewhat dissatisfied and always ready to march over that next hill ahead. The time has come for me to take on new challenges, get hungry, be uncomfortable, and also find 'productive discomfort' in my work. There is no satisfaction in continuing to do what we are already skilled and comfortable with. At least not for me! I long to be uncomfortable, to learn new things, take on new opportunities and generally light a few blazing fires!
Because I am fully involved with my twin companies of The International Dermal Institute and Dermalogica, and they continue to fulfill and challenge my ambition, I have so many new ideas for classes, concepts, treatments and products! I have learned over the years that there is no such thing in life as 'balance', at least for a working mother of two small girls, and that we should rather seek 'resilience' to deal with the stress our lives bring. In that vein, I will continue to juggle my life as the working mother of two small daughters with my passion for skin therapy and use my energy for both to bring you all new visions for our industry together.
Let's now look forward to what I might [also humbly] challenge you to do. I want you to always stay foolish and stay hungry with me. Never take yourself too seriously, but take your work very seriously indeed. So many of those in our profession think themselves very great indeed and are overly satisfied with their skills and contribution to growth. We all need a healthy dose of discomfort to keep us curious and inquisitive and always looking for a newer way, a better way and a more creative way to do our work.
Come on! We need great skin therapists to take back our industry and prevent it from being hijacked by the health care arena that seeks revenue streams and has no interest in raising the bar of the skin therapist and our training. We need writers to contribute to our trade magazines and share their information with their colleagues. We need web-loggers to bring our community into cyberspace and connect with our youngest therapists of the next generation and claim the industry as their own! We need great teachers who understand that techniques are just tools that teachers use until the real 'teacher' shows up and they are able to be truly authentic and vulnerable with their students. We need great ideas to fuel our techniques and product development and create tools that therapists relate to and need in their work that will expand the results we can achieve. We need skin therapists who embrace the power of their touch and are ready to use it to change the world!
Come on! I am going to race over the next hill - are you coming with me?

Jane Wurwand established The International Dermal Institute, a postgraduate skin and body care training center, in 1983. Jane teaches her innovative education and product philosophies throughout the world. Under Jane's continuing direction, The International Dermal Institute is the research and development center for the Dermalogica professional skin care line, introduced in the U.S. in 1986 and currently distributed worldwide. Jane can be contacted through The Dermal Group at 310-352-4784, or by e-mail at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..