Newbie - Looking to the Future! Help!!

[Moby]

Hello All! I’m another Newbie to the site… And I CANNOT believe it! It’s FANTASTIC! :biggrin: I’ve already learned so much and I haven’t even started yet!

Anyway! I talk loads, so please bear with me! A lot to say and a lot of questions! I swear! I will try never to make a post as long as this one again!!

I’m 21 (Turned 21 Monday Yey! Happy Birthday to me! :biggrin: ) And at the moment in full-time employment as a Sales Admin girl. I do enjoy my job and am doing very well but feel I’m being taken advantage of – they want me to do TWO jobs for the same money as it’s all “experience” for me! Well they can shove that up their beehive!

So what path could I take? I don’t want to be sitting behind the desk for the rest of my life where my heart’s not in it! I want to do something that I love! NAILS!

I’ve been thinking about doing nails for about 2/3 years now… And I have to admit… I got hooked on nails after I went to one of these NSS salons with my friend! And YES! I thought it was the NORM! I luckily only had a Manicure done but It took my friend 4 hours to soak off whatever they put on! (But still she picked at it!) And her natural nails underneath were completely ruined – but we thought that’s what was supposed to happen! She had them done again a couple of months later

Well I’ve finally decided that I still really REALLY want to go into nails – and learnt what nails are really all about from this site (Thankyou all!) And have planned out my life for the next 2 years!

I first decided to take a course with the Carlton Institue in Windsor, and thought – hold your ponies girl! Research about it first! I got very mixed reviews here and I thought, do I want to risk it? Then decided on Creative! Closest academy to me was Burnham/Maidenhead so I went there that afternoon! (Was last week) The lady there was very helpful, took my details and said a prospectus would come for me soon… That was Thursday / Friday I think? Been twiddling my thumbs and eagerly awaiting my prospectus... and it hasn't come I rang Creative Head office today… They never got my details! Wasn’t the happiest bumbleybee but maybe the Lady was busy, well no harm done! Hope to get it soon! And go there for my foundation course! Anyone else been trained at the Maidenhead Academy??

I’m all saved up and ready to go! Hoping to be booked in for the course next month after I’ve read through everything (and if they have space for me!)

I’m planning to stick to my current job for personal savings and income for the following up courses after the foundation… I already planned to leave my Admin job between Feb 2007 – Aug 2007. So I’m hoping that I would be trained up and practised enough (and re-cooped some finances in part-time work) and finally go out there and go mobile! (Or maybe rent a space) Plus I may have little Leepschin (a new puppy) in my life when I quit! So my life will be committed to him and nails! Luckily, I have support from my family (Sister’s mainly – Mama is looking down her nose at it… but she doesn’t mind what I do) and my friends and boyfriend.

So 1 to 1 and a half years from now… I’m hoping to be qualified and ready! I’m very picky about things like this! I like my things to look good! (I do hobby crafts atm – knitting toys and making things from clay) so I would want my nails looking top-notch like my animals do!

Opinions please! Apart from being boringly long-winded and telling you about my future which you don’t care about!

Question time! … Finally

1. – Is about a year / over a year enough time and practice to get myself going in the real world?? I’m in no rush to have full books with every day packed out – I want it to probably start out as nice part-time work that I’ll enjoy and love!

2. – I know of 4 NSS salons in the local highstreet – charging around £22 - £25 for a full set - Any mobile lady’s / men out there?? I’m in slough – next door to windsor. How are you finding it??

3. – I’ve heard a lot of money obviously comes from infills and I’m worried that a lot of the people who may come to me (thinking positively!) may want one-off nails for occasions – e.g. weddings. Does anyone else find that?? What advice do you give to these people? Should they have them done still and then have them safely removed?

4. – I told people at work that I may want to go into Beauty (generalised) and they looked at me as if I was DUMB. Got a big negative impression! Was asked ‘why would you want to go into something like that and waste your brains??’ Has anyone else got this from people?? Waste my brains! Personally – I think if someone loves doing something – it is NEVER a waste of bloomin’ brains! Was a bit gob smacked personally – which usually doesn’t happen!

5. – Do any of you think I’m just too young for this?? I’m committed and ready to go but I am curious on people’s opinions…

Finally – at the end! I have enough time (?), support and finances for this venture (already thinking about advertising and promotions etc) but I’m still scared!! :o :sad: :Scared: It's all well and good being encouraged by friends and family who know NOTHING about this industry so I really want help from you all who know it and love it!! I'm scared I'm scared!What if it doesn’t work out for me and I do a rubbish job or it just goes down the pan and I can’t compete or if.. or if… or if anything!!!! :sad:

I’m so sorry to have gone on! Everyone’s seems so nice here so I’m hoping that me rambling on in my first post hasn’t put you off newbies!


Any help! (Even, shockingly, a reply&#8230 is most gladly appreciated!

 

[K Louise]

iam sorry i do not have any advice for you as iam only starting out myself i just wanted to say that your plan for the future sounds great i havnt really planed and basically took one of the first courses that looked good didnt even hear about creative until after i paid for my course so iam really worried.
Its great to see that you have really thought about what you want to do and i can see you making a great sucess out of yourself (pat on the back for you)
Dont worry what other people think and say if nails are truely in your heart then do them, i started to train to be a hairdresser a few years ago i was nearly qualified had about a month left i had all these plans and then my other halfs dad kept telling me what a rubbish job it was and basically only thick people did it, there is actually alot involved in hairdressing but everytime i see him he was telling me it was not a job so eventually i gave it up, i regret it and am to ashamed to go back in it i should not have listened to him and just done what my heart told me to do. Dont make the same mistake, do what you want to do.
Nail techs have a bad rep people see them as bimbos but god are they wrong the geeks on this site are so clever and some of the stuff they can do oh my god have the seen the pictures all i can say is WOW.
Dont listen to negative remarks they know nothing.
By the way WELCOME (sorry):Love:

 

[Envy]

Welcome to the site Moby,

You are definatly not too young to start. We have Master technicians in NZ that are the same age as you (one has been doing nails nearly 5 years...)

Can't say too much about the market in your area, but over here there is plenty of work available - and most techs find within about a year of their foundation training they are earning a nice healthy income

You are definatly not wasting your brains here, in all honesty the general public have a negative approach because they don't understand it themselves. To be a professional in this industry you need to be fairly smart indeed! you'll find in your foundation that there is SO much more to it than you would have ever thought possible!!

Like all good things, it takes time, work away slowly (the part time job is a great idea) and build your clientele through friends/family. Business cards are about the best investment initially. Then when the money starts coming in, then spend on advertising

Hope that helps, we're all here to help

 

[Moby]

Aww! Thanks you two! I feel so much happier now! Thought there would be a few more people in my area to reply though!

I got the prospectus today too! I've had a good look through it and am deciding on the foundation L&P course in February!! So happy! Going to talk to my boss for the days off and try and persuade someone to come with me for the last 3 days! So looking forward to this!! Will hopefully have it booked and sorted by Monday! Yey!

Thanks again! I'm sure to ask alot more questions soon enough!! :biggrin: