Inspiration – we find it in the obvious places, but more often than not in the most obscure places. My purpose in writing this column each month is to inspire you to do many things. The first of which would be to read and enjoy the magazine and the second is to provoke you to learn more. It is my hope that several times a year (if not every month) you will find at least one bit of information; whether it is the theme from a feature article, a treatment from one of the spas featured in Great Treatments, or an ingredient listed in one of the products in Highlights or Worth A Look that will inspire you to go beyond the page and learn more.
If you have heard it once, you have heard it a million times: Knowledge is power. I am such a firm believer in this statement and I strongly encourage each of you to empower yourself by researching and learning as much as possible on whatever topic(s) you are passionate. That, of course, is the easy part. The hard part is giving time to the topic(s) you are less passionate about, but that are equally as important to your success. Balance.
How many times have you talked to your clients about balance in their lives? Quite frequently, I imagine, because balance is key to beautiful, healthy skin. But how good are you at walking the walk in regards to your business practices? We too are guilty of imbalance. So often the editorial theme is focused on treatments or specific skin care issues, such as, sun care or exfoliation and only once or maybe twice a year do we focus on the business aspect. While business may not be the fun and exciting side of what you do, it is certainly critical because despite how skilled you are in the treatment room if you do not practice good business habits there will not be many clients to give treatments.
Even if you are an employee of an establishment and you are not responsible for the business, you would still benefit from exploring and educating yourself on various aspects that are considered business practices. For instance marketing, who better to market your services than yourself? Besides if you actively market your services, you are in turn promoting your company and during a time of economic challenges, you bringing business to the establishment is a win-win situation. Same is true if you cross-promote with other practitioners. Again, you are supporting the business and that is good business for you!
Aside from product, ingredient, treatment, and business knowledge there are regulations and legislation. This is a whole other area of knowledge that is of vital importance for each and every practitioner. I cannot stress how important it is to get involved in your association. The laws are being changed constantly with little to no notification. The information is, at best, hard to find and harder still to understand if and when you do stumble across something. I am sure you are familiar with the issue that almost took place in Hawaii, although it seems to be on hold for now. If you read Tina Zillmann’s letter on the next page you will learn about a change to the laws in Texas. Each month, I try to go through the various states and look for updates, or upcoming meetings for rule changes. And every month I want to pull my hair out because it is such a tedious and fruitless effort.
Apathy is not your friend, sitting back and expecting your elected officials to represent you and your best interest is far from a good plan. So, I implore you to get involved, be informed, and speak out! There is a role for everyone, whether it is sending out e-mails to increase interest, doing research that can be published, or getting on a stage and being a speaker. Every task counts and every task is important, because one cannot happen without the other. It is a lot to do, I understand. The key is, Balance!
Have a great month!
Saundra
