I recently saw a friend’s post asking people to participate in a group challenge posting gratitude posts for the month of September. It got me thinking about what I am grateful for. Of course I am grateful for my family and friends. I think we tend to always think in that direction when asked what we are grateful for, but we don’t always give thanks or recognition to the professional part of our lives. At least I don’t always move that way. Not because I don’t have a lot to be thankful for professionally, but because I guess I have always felt that I am supposed to only talk about gratitude in a personal sense.
Sounds funny even as I type it because I have had an amazing career so far, and it wasn’t just because of perseverance and elbow grease. I have so many supportive and amazing people who have worked with me, given me advice, and often seen my potential before I ever did. I would not be where I am if not for them.
The beauty industry has some, often strange, connotations. People can sometimes give the impression that the industry is full of vain, self-centered people. We do makeup, paint nails, peel, plump, and pluck our way through the world. So we must be superficial since we work on the superficial, right? We must be that made for television version of ourselves, pushing each other out of our own way grasping for the next face, the next bottle, the next sale…right?
I could tell you those stories, but I think I’ll save them for my scripted reality show.
The truth is that I have definitely encountered people in this industry who do represent that pop culture image of being in the beauty industry. They probably exist in every industry. But I have encountered many more amazing, uplifting individuals than I can count. Truly inspiring and hard working people who support and lift each other up. In fact, the friend’s post I mentioned early, well she’s one of them. One of the very best people I ever worked with. She was even my manager at one point, and one of the best I have ever had.
I could list many names, from the director who barely knew me but saw something in me, making me a program director leading me to my love of curriculum development, to the people I worked with at a non-profit who suggested I apply for a national volunteer position leading me to working with fellow educators from across the country. I hold every single one of them close to my heart.
My point is that it is easy to say that you worked hard for your career. Yes, you worked for it. But what about showing a little gratitude for all those people that pushed you and gave you advice along the way? Have you thanked them?
I leave you with this request, tell them. They might not even know how they have impacted you, and you may lead them to thank those that have inspired them.
And that is how we spread gratitude.
Until next time,
Audrey
#theskinteach 