Esthetics Savy Career Advice

     A long time ago, when I took my first class in Human Resources, I had an astute female professor who must have been in her mid 70's at the time. The nature of this first class was an introductory overview of the field, but what I came away with from this class was far more valuable.
      Most of her tips transcend across most careers, but I find that many of her tips are invaluable to the esthetics field. Mostly because many schools don't prepare students for the real working environments of esthetics. At times it can be cut throat and in favor of the employer.
        Esthetics is a wonderful field, but the fact is not all employers are that wonderful. There are some great employers out there, but estheticians need to be prudent about managing their careers.
The number one thing my professor told us, and this is an important one, is TO SAVE AT LEAST 2 MONTH's SALARY--OK, you are probably gasping for air as many of us did back then--her purpose was to give you leverage as an employee, if you are totally broke and have exploding debt then it will be much harder to play hard ball with your employer. You can't demand what you want or deserve of your employer if you are in a rough financial position. Her point was to save so you have a cushion to prevent you from putting up with unethical employers. If you don't, you are at their will and cannot walk away until you find another position. I know, it sounds absurd to save this amount of money, but if you are young and live at home for a while, the amount you would have spent in rent money can go right into a financial nest egg for you. If you don't have that option, start off slowly by saving a little bit each month, cut out that cup of coffee or fast food lunch for a while until you get a little nest egg.
      Another tip she gave all of us is to keep networking and never think because you have a job that you shouldn't keep your foot into other businesses. Become friends with other employees of area spas or salons--do professional lunches with them. Don't ever bad mouth your current place of employment, but keep your options open with these influential relationships. Another way to network and meet industry people is to take continuing ed classes and keep in contact with some of the people you meet there. It is far easier to transcend into a new job through your network of contacts than it is to blindly send your resume to strangers.
     Finally, education and accomplishments is one of your greatest job security tactics. Again, this can cross career paths, but in esthetics it is extremely important to stay abreast of current trends. Take classes, fill your wall with certificates and make sure your employer knows that you are willing to take these courses on your own. Show motivation by signing up for classes without a push from your employer. Don't forget to update your resume with these new achievements so your resume is ready to print and send should you need to change jobs.