This week I got a message from a parent to tell me her daughter was told by her school guidance counsellor that she is too good to work in the hair and beauty industry and this just got me angry, I mean really really angry.

Who has the right to step on anyones dream? Least of all a person with such influence over the young, as a guidance counsellor. 

All of the successful people in the world have one thing in common!! And that is they had a teacher who made a massive impact in their lives. If you listen to the talk between Oprah and Viola Davis on Netflix they both speak about, that one teacher who took the time to help them achieve their dreams. Every successful entrepreneur will tell you a similar story. So for me to hear a negative story like this!! I just have to step in and clarify.  Working in the Hair and Beauty Industry is no different to being a Doctor, a Pilot, a Psychologist, we are all apprentices. We all have to learn the skills and tools to carry out our jobs. We have to be taught by our peers, we have to learn how to do the practical stuff plus we have to learn how to deal with our clients.  As a hair and beauty specialist you need to have an understanding of skin, it's biology and pathology.  We need to learn how to prevent cross contamination. We have to learn health and safety. We have to learn how to communicate effectively. We have to learn about the chemistry around the chemicals we use. It is by no means an easy task and not a profession to be sniffed at by somebody who isn't educated enough to know of its' complexities.

When a young girl embarks on her education and entry into the hair and beauty industry there is always a sense from others around her that she is taking the easy option, she may even think it herself as that's what has been engrained in us from an early age. I have often heard sure she can drop out of school and become a hairdresser or a beautician, I've bet some of you have even said these words yourself.  What I am here to tell you is IT'S NOT EASY WORKING IN THE HAIR AND BEAUTY INDUSTRY.

All too often I listen to my students complain that it's overwhelming having to learn different diseases and latin words for contraindications. Then on top of that they need to learn communication skills, health and safety, science, and go and get work experience in their field.

What I am also going to tell you is, working in the Hair and Beauty Industry is one of the most lucrative industries in the world!! Sure Kylie Jenner has become the worlds first female Billionaire at the age of 21 from working in the Hair and Beauty Industry, Charlotte Tilbury is a multimillionaire from starting out as a makeup artist. Only this week our very own Aimee Connolly Launched her flagship store on Grafton street a far cry from working on the Urban Decay Makeup Counter in House of Fraser while she put herself through college. This industry is up there with the big boys the big tech and Pharma companies. I challenge any Guidance Counsellor to come have a chat with me so I can explain the endless possibilities open to anyone who wants a career in this industry.

This is why I teach girls the practical skills in hair and beauty plus the business tools, my mission is to give them skills so that they can work when they want and earn as much as they want.  I am not saying everyone needs to work in the Hair and Beauty Industry I am saying you can learn the skills as way to forge a path and do whatever it is that you want to do. Go and be an astronaut if that's what you want, but if you need a way of making money to pay your college fees maybe do a short course in brows, lashes, nails, or hair extensions as a way of making enough money so that you can earn while you learn. And then when the day comes that you decide to settle down and have a family and you don't want to go back to your corporate roll you can always fall back on the skill that paid your way through college and work while your kids are at school and earning the amount of money you want to earn on the time schedule that works for you.  And then go back to see that guidance counsellor and show her you followed your own dreams and you are living Your Best Life.

If you want to know how to Nail It in the hair and beauty industry just go follow @sarahnayloracademy on whatever social platforms you enjoy xx

Sarah xx