I'm going to tell you now, the more I know, the less comfortable I feel. People sometimes see me as a source of confidence with a high level of aesthetic experience. But I'm going to be honest here—when we have a customized training with advanced practitioners, I wrestle with imposter syndrome. I think, Oh my God, these people are traveling, leaving their businesses and families behind to learn from me and my team. I just want to deliver my best. I want it to be so valuable for them. And to this day, I still find myself questioning whether I’m saying the right thing or if I’m truly helping our attendees.
When practitioners—many of whom are already talented and skilled in their own right—choose to invest their time and trust in our training, I sometimes catch myself wondering, I hope I meet their expectations. Imposter syndrome doesn’t discriminate, but I know I deserve to be here. I have worked hard and continue to work hard on myself and our team. I do expect excellence—and what I mean by that is not perfection but learning from mistakes, admitting them, and sharing those experiences to help and guide others. This is where my teaching is based: sharing my pitfalls in injecting and in business.
For me, it’s not about doubting my injecting abilities, because I have the daily affirmations of my patients who are so pleased with their results. Trust me, they wouldn’t bullshit me. I’m honest with them, and they’re honest with me. Instead, it’s the quiet, nagging thoughts that maybe someone will leave one of our courses unhappy—and that would absolutely crush me. It’s the same as when a patient leaves unhappy despite giving it your absolute best.
I founded The Confidence Lab 14 years ago. It has been brick and mortar for the past four years with only one complaint. Let me tell you about it. The practitioners were local to Chicago and new to injecting. The educator, Lamija—and by golly, she is absolutely brilliant—did not allow one of the practitioners to inject higher-risk areas because they did not have the skill or knowledge. The next day, their office manager called me very upset, saying we had not met their expectations and they were expecting A, B, and C. I politely explained that safety is paramount for us, for them, for the patient, and for the aesthetic community at large. I happily refunded their training dollars. I ended the phone call by saying that we are neighbors and one day we may need each other. Sure enough, about five months later, a patient came to us who had seen one of their practitioners. The practitioner disregarded a complication, and the patient sought help elsewhere—that was us. Ironically, the patient was sitting in our chair yesterday at this advanced training. What a small frickin' world! This patient shared her experience, taught the class, and it was another great learning opportunity. Just be nice to one another.
In the aesthetics world, where we all doubt ourselves and think we have to be perfect it’s easy to feel like there’s always someone more qualified, more articulate, or more accomplished. Social media can feeds this negative thought. God help me, I swear my kids will not get phones until they are 30 years old to save them from all of this! But social media is total bullshit people! I wish I could shout out on social media about the frickin' phonies out there who many of you probably aspire to be, as I did - until you find out the truth serum. Let me tell you something—you can not deliver results that are digitally enhanced with software, apps, professional makeup applied with precision with q-tips, pink Vaseline for that perfect lip gloss, and special lighting blinding patients to look good. THe list goes on!
So, what keeps me grounded? When I’m faced with moments of self-doubt—and believe me, it’s often—I remind myself why I started in aesthetics: to give women (especially my favorite—single mothers) back their confidence so they can go on to make better choices and live more happy lives and I love to feel I had a small part in that. And in our trainings, it’s not just about technical skills. They’re about building a community with a moral compass where we can light up pieces of the country with the same core values: to do the right thing by our patients, our team, and our peers, and to elevate aesthetics together. Its not about getting rich fast and screwing people over. Remember your reputation is everything and everyone talks.
And what we want to be left with is natural results—that goes without saying. In our courses, we teach what you can do with less, not more. People are always astounded and it makes me feel all warm inside. That I was able to give them at least that and hopefully more. On thing I always ask is "did we meet your expectations" Im always waiting on baited breath for the answer so I can rest easy at night.
Thank you to everyone that chooses to spend your valuable time with us. We put the work in because we care.
Thank you
Rana
IG: natturally_rana