Growth doesn’t always begin with adding more services, products, or hours in the treatment room. Often, growth begins with subtraction.
It begins with releasing old beliefs that no longer support who you are becoming as an esthetician—or as a human quite frankly. It begins with unlearning the stories you were handed by beauty culture, by schooling, traditional spa models, or by mentors who built their businesses in a different era. It begins with taking an look at what is no longer true for you.
This is the heart of The Unlearning Series. Below, we explore four beliefs that commonly limit estheticians—not because they’re wrong, but because they’re outdated. When you let these beliefs go, you make space for a business that’s more aligned, more sustainable, and more profitable.
1: “My menu needs to appeal to everyone.”
Many estheticians begin their careers with a menu designed to be as broad and inclusive as possible. Facials for aging, acne, brightening, hydration, relaxation… body treatments, waxing, lashes, brows. The thinking is simple: If I appeal to everyone, I’ll stay booked.
But something unexpected happens when you try to serve everyone—you dilute your identity, and you don't even realize it until you start to niche down.
A menu that tries to be everything:
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Makes your brand harder to understand
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Attracts clients who aren’t aligned with your strengths
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Leads to inconsistent results or burnout because you're performing services you hate
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Requires constant energy due to training and restocking
And maybe most importantly, it keeps you from standing out.
A strong esthetics business is not built on a wide menu. It’s built on a clear point of view.
Your services don’t need to appeal to everyone—they need to appeal to the clients who will value you the most.
When you narrow your menu your marketing becomes effortless, retention increases, clients know exactly what to expect, and you become known as the go-to expert in something specific.
All of this to say: a smaller, more focused menu doesn’t limit your growth—it amplifies it.
2: “Product knowledge must sound complicated.”
We were trained with clinical terms, and while that education matters, the industry often teaches professionals that sounding complex is what proves expertise.
But clients don’t need big words and complexity. They need clarity.
Complicated language may feel impressive, but in practice it often overwhelms clients, and creates a barrier.
Clients don’t follow what they don’t understand. And if your explanations are confusing, they fill in the gaps with TikTok advice, Instagram infographics, or whatever their friend swears by.
Your job isn’t to sound smart. Your job is to help them understand their skin.
Expertise shows up in your ability to translate—not in your ability to lecture.
When you use clear, simple language your clients will feel empowered, more likely to follow homecare advice, and will trust your recommendations because they understand them.
Simple is not unprofessional. Simple is generous.
3: “More appointments = more success.”
There is a deeply ingrained belief in service-based industries that busyness equals value. A fully booked calendar becomes the goal. Back-to-back clients from morning to evening become the norm.
But this definition of success comes with a cost, and for many estheticians, “busy” often means physical exhaustion, burnout, lower-quality service, and less space for creativity and strategy.
When you release the idea that you need to be booked solid:
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You begin to value revenue per client, not just volume
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You build pricing that supports your life, not just your schedule
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You create healthier boundaries
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You deliver more thoughtful, present care
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You grow with longevity in mind
More time doesn’t mean less success. More time often creates success.
4: “I can’t raise my prices until I’m fully booked.”
This belief keeps estheticians undercharging for years, myself incuded. Many wait for a full calendar or a long waitlist before allowing themselves to raise their prices. They wait for external validation to justify their worth.
When you tie your rates to how full your books are you delay financial stability. You'll also attract clients who are price-driven instead of value-driven.
I promise when you adjust your rates you'll attract a client base that respects your expertise and will pay your prices, you'll build a business that funds your life and you'll create space that allows you to work less and enjoy life more.
Growth is often portrayed as a process of accumulation—more skills, more services, more marketing, more effort. But in reality, the estheticians who build sustainable, meaningful businesses often grow by doing the opposite. They simplify, and remove what no longer supports them.
I want to be clear that unlearning isn’t about abandoning what you know. It’s about clearing space for what’s next—new strategies, new clients, new levels of confidence, new possibilities in your business.
Wishing you an amazing 2026!
Sarah Kh
