5 Things No One Tells You In Beauty College

Beauty college prepares you with all the skills you need to be a successful beauty therapist. But it doesn’t prepare you for this…

Every job has its little surprises, be it the mind-numbing task your boss conveniently forgot to mention in the job interview, or some personality-challenged co-workers; your studies can only prepare you for so much. And beauty college is no different. Here are five things your course won’t cover about being a beauty therapist…

1. Weird things won’t bother you

Everyone thinks the worst part about being a beauty therapist is dealing with toenails, lady parts and back hair. But actually, once you’ve seen a few, you really won’t be bothered by them. It’s the next thing that’ll be a much bigger deal…

2. You won’t love all your clients

Matter of fact, you’ll downright want to strangle some of them. Whether it’s ignoring your instructions before a treatment (what part of ‘Please take off all of your jewellery’ didn’t they understand?), being generally unlikeable (showing up to a massage after taking a run…really?!) or complaining about your service, there will always be clients you’ll wish you never had to see. ever. again.

3. Sometimes you’ll feel invisible

Being a beauty therapist is one of the most fun and most rewarding jobs you can have, but no one warns you it can also make you invisible. Take clients barely acknowledging your efforts when they fly out of a facial without so much as a glance in your direction, or talking on their phones throughout their entire treatment (that’s okay lady, I’m just a manicure-giving-robot, no need to acknowledge my presence or act like I’m an actual human being). Thankfully, more often than not, you’ll experience the complete opposite…

4. You’ll know more about most people than their own husbands and wives

One of the most enjoyable and unexpected aspects of being a beauty therapist is how much you get to learn about your clients. Perhaps it’s because once they relax into their treatments, they often forget the ‘therapist’ in your job title is preceded by ‘beauty’ and reveal more than they’d tell their own partners. You’ll consider yourself part beauty therapist, part Dr. Phil.

5. A pair of tweezers can make you feel like a magician

Nothing you learn in beauty college quite prepares you for the incredible high you’ll get from seeing a client walk away after you’ve turned their bushy mono-brow into beautifully lifted arches or taken ten years off their face by introducing them to the right products. No one else, besides your colleagues, will really get it, but that’s okay, you’re not in this gig for the praise and glory, just to save the world, one mono-brow at a time.

Have your say: What is the one thing that you weren’t prepared for when you first became a professional beauty therapist?