Why Your First Nail Course Was Only the Beginning
Why Your First Nail Course Was Only the Beginning
Most of us started the same way.
We wanted to learn nails, but we didn't really know where it would lead.
Would it become a career? A little side income? Something we'd enjoy for six months and then never touch again?
So naturally, we tested the waters.
We looked for an affordable course. Something that didn't require a huge commitment. Maybe something we could complete quickly alongside work, children or everyday life.
And there is absolutely nothing wrong with that.
The problem starts when we expect that first course to have taught us everything we need to know.
You can't learn an entire profession in a couple of days
Nails can look deceptively simple from the outside.
Prep the nail. Apply the product. Build an apex. File it. Add colour.
Done.
Except once you start working on real clients, you quickly discover that ten different people can sit at your desk with ten completely different sets of nails.
One has thin, flexible nails.
Another has oily nail plates.
One has hooked nails.
Another has extremely flat nails.
One works behind a desk all day while another works with her hands.
And then we have BIAB.
BIAB has become incredibly popular. Clients walk into salons asking for BIAB because their friend has it, her nails grew beautifully with it, and now they want exactly the same thing.
So when you're looking for your first nail course, choosing BIAB training can feel like the obvious choice. It's what clients are asking for, so that's what you learn.
But BIAB is only one option.
Every enhancement system has its pros and cons. Soft gels, hard gels, acrylics and other systems behave differently, offer different levels of strength and flexibility and suit different types of clients.
Learning only BIAB teaches you how to work with BIAB.
It doesn't necessarily give you the wider product knowledge to understand when BIAB isn't the right choice at all.
Because BIAB isn't for everyone.
Suddenly, following the exact steps you were shown in your course doesn't always work.
Because learning how to apply a product when a educator is there, and practising at home alone is not the same.
Then came the combined courses
These have become incredibly popular.
Learn BIAB. Learn an e-file. Learn manicure techniques. Learn application and removal.
All in a weekend.
It sounds brilliant when you're starting out.
Why pay for several courses when one course promises to teach you everything?
But stop and think about how much information is actually being squeezed into those two days.
Using an e-file safely is a skill in itself.
Understanding natural nail preparation is a skill.
Product application is another.
Structure is another.
Then you've got filing, shaping, removal, troubleshooting, product knowledge, natural nail knowledge and everything else that comes with working on real clients.
You can be introduced to all of those things in two days.
Mastering them is a completely different story.
And there is another problem with trying to learn so much at once.
While you're on the course, everything might actually be going really well.
Your educator is standing next to you. They're correcting your hand position, telling you which file to pick up, showing you which e-file attachment to use, checking your pressure and stopping you when something isn't quite right.
You leave feeling like you've got it.
Then you get home.
Suddenly, nobody is standing next to you.
Something doesn't work quite the way it did during training. You can't remember which grit you were supposed to use. You're unsure which e-file attachment you need or why you were using it. The product isn't behaving the same way it did when your educator was beside you.
And all that information you absorbed over those couple of days suddenly becomes overwhelming.
So you start guessing.
You find a way that seems to work and repeat it.
And before you know it, you've created habits without even realising they're wrong.
Not because you weren't listening.
Not because you're bad at nails.
Simply because there was an enormous amount of information to understand, remember and put into practice in a very short space of time.
The certificate isn't the finish line
This is something I wish more new nail techs understood.
Passing your course means you've completed your training.
It doesn't mean you've finished learning.
Your first clients are where the real education starts.
You'll get nails that don't behave like your training hand.
You'll create a beautiful set that mysteriously doesn't last.
You'll struggle with a shape that looked easy when your educator demonstrated it.
You'll have one client who can wear exactly what you were taught and another who absolutely cannot.
That's when the questions start.
Why did that happen?
What should I change?
Is it my technique, my product or the nail I'm working on?
Those questions aren't proof that you're bad at nails.
They're the beginning of becoming a better nail technician.
Go back and fill the gaps
Once you've been working for a while, you start discovering where those gaps actually are.
Maybe your prep isn't as thorough as you thought.
Maybe you've never properly learnt structure.
Maybe your shaping needs work.
Maybe you're brilliant at applying BIAB, but you don't really understand why you're choosing that product in the first place.
Maybe you bought an e-file, watched a few videos and realised there is much more to using it safely and effectively than changing the direction button.
That's when additional education becomes far more valuable.
Because now you're not simply learning steps.
You're learning with experience behind you.
You know what questions to ask.
You know where you struggle.
And this is where I think the way you choose courses should change.
You don't need another course promising to teach you everything.
You need targeted education.
If your nail prep isn't working, take a nail prep course.
If you're struggling to build the correct shape and structure, focus on structure.
If your filing is taking forever, work specifically on filing.
If you don't understand your e-file properly, take dedicated e-file training.
Look at your own work and ask yourself:
What isn't working for me?
Then choose your next education around the answer.
Your first course gave you somewhere to start
It was never supposed to give you everything you'd need for the next ten years.
Think about almost any other profession.
Nobody expects to complete a couple of days of training and never need to learn anything again.
Nails shouldn't be treated differently.
Take the beginner course.
Test the waters.
Start practising.
Make mistakes.
Work on different nails.
And then pay attention to where you're struggling.
From that point onwards, your education should become targeted. Stop collecting courses simply because they teach the newest product or technique. Choose education that fixes a weakness in your actual work.
Because once you combine experience with the right knowledge, that's when your skills can absolutely skyrocket.
Want to fill some of those gaps?
This is exactly why I created Nailing It.
It’s my nearly 400-page nail manual covering the knowledge that can easily get missed, forgotten or rushed through during your initial training. From natural nails and preparation to product knowledge, structure, filing, troubleshooting and much more.
It’s there to be something you can keep coming back to as your skills grow - because sometimes you don’t need another huge course. You just need the right information in front of you when something doesn’t make sense.
Maya xx
