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For many of us, it was a complete surprise to learn upon graduation from aesthetics school that we were not adequately trained to compete in the rapidly-changing world of aesthetics. We discovered that we were entering our new careers without the competitive edge. To make matters worse, we found that the field of aesthetics was under increasing attack by the medical profession… and for good reason. Under-trained aestheticians are making mistakes and people are having bad experiences, sometimes even resulting in injuries. In the age of “Extreme Makeover,” feeling good about ourselves has become a lot more complicated.
Aesthetics has come a long way in the U.S. since licensed professionals had to spell ‘aesthetics’ for those who asked ‘what do you do?’ Clients know what aesthetic services are now, and many have placed them firmly into their lifestyle must-haves. Due to this populartity, aesthetic schools are filled with students excited to join our profession, and committed aestheticians graduate with the fundamentals for practicing basic skin care. But is this basic education enough? Our services and our businesses have become more complex and many believe require higher levels of education for the safety of our clients and to just stay in business.
Only a generation ago, children were to be seen and not heard. Now, young people who might have been dismissed as “kids” back in the 20th century are proving to be the most powerful segment of American society in terms of establishing and driving brand dominance in the consumer marketplace. Rather than viewing consumers under the age of 21 as simply future-tense buyers, the fact is that national purchasing trends across the board in fashion, beauty, food and lifestyle choices are shaped largely by teens and ‘tweens. Fierce brand loyalties to a specific label form younger and younger, as children are barraged with marketing messages from infancy, and often acquire personal income well before high school.
Selling spa products is like exercise: you know it's good for you and you feel better when you've really got it going. Ah, but when you fall off of the routine it can be hard to get back in the selling groove. Sometimes, it simply takes a short-term challenge that is fun and achievable to get back on track. Committing to do local 5K walk or run can magically provide the push you need to get you to the gym. Likewise, committing to an achievable goal can get you out of your retail rut and on to improving the health of your business.
The cell is the basic unit of life. Healthy cells make up healthy tissue and healthy tissue contributes to healthy skin. At one time, it was believed that aging was an infallible process of life, but recent studies indicate that aging and cellular function are closely related. Aging manifests on a myriad of levels from single cell to whole animal. Human cells are eukaryotic cells, which mean that they contain a nucleus and membrane bound organelles. The nucleus is the epicenter of the cell because it maintains the DNA, the genetic code for the organism.
Have you ever considered the possibility that we all have been aging our client’s skin over the last decade with the many traumatizing treatments we provide? Would you believe me if I told you that the current mainstream approach to anti-aging skin care is not working? I’m sure you have wondered why it is so hard to get lasting results for most of our clients. Get ready for a paradigm shift in the way we approach these skin conditions. Skin care professionals spend most of the time putting the skin in a compromised position in order to achieve “results” which are often marginal, temporary improvements in the epidermis.
Sooner or later it happens. We look into the mirror and see our mothers looking back at us. We start to see the subtle, or not so subtle, changes that are happening to our faces and our bodies; and we are not quite ready for what we see. The crow’s feet have crept in, and there are fine lines and wrinkles that were not there before. Our once soft and smooth skin is no longer. It isn’t because we haven’t taken care of our skin and our bodies, because we have. It’s the age thing starting to take hold.
The skin is the largest, most complex, immune organ that challenges the practicing aesthetician today. Due to its interface function between the body and the environment, the skin is chronically exposed to both endogenous and environmental pro-oxidant agents, leading to premature aging and impaired cellular function.
Compelling evidence of premature aging suggests that oxidative stress is the major cause involved in the damage of the skin’s cellular constituents i.e.; keratinocytes, melanocytes, Langerhans, Merkle, mast, fibroblasts, etc. and their DNA, cell membrane lipids, and proteins.
If I had to identify one large knowledge gap in the skin care industry, I think it’s in the area of retail sales. Yes, there is a wealth of product knowledge training available, but very little in the way of customer psychology and sales technique. Knowing what to recommend is not the same as knowing how to sell. Aestheticians are in a tough bind because of this shortfall. On the one hand, it’s probable that no one has ever taught you how to sell products, and yet on the other hand there is an expectation that you’re supposed sell a lot—whatever that is.
Since the beginning of civilization, humans have been continually searching for the cleanest, best tasting water with the most health benefits. In fact, the quest for pure, sweet tasting water has been going on for longer than the quest for the Holy Grail! Today, the popularity of water is evidenced by the well being of the bottled water industry, creating a convenient way to get the health and good taste of waters from around the globe.