Over the past two years, several beloved teachers and professionals from Cameo Beauty Academy have been interviewed for this blog.

This month, we’ve collected quotes from their interviews in a compilation of “best advice” to Cameo (and other) cosmetology students and practitioners. If you’re intimidated about breaking into the beauty industry and need some encouragement, look no further.

When you’re feeling under-confident . . .

“In the ten years I have been here, I’ve see some of the students overcome challenges I myself have never had to face. But they’ve done it with grace that I don’t think I could muster, and it’s amazing to see them do that.” – Kolleen Krizka

“These are young adults. They don’t want to be treated as children, they want to be treated as our equals . . . I think if you expect more from a student, and treat them as a person rather than just ‘your student’, then you’ll get more from them.” – Ms. Pat

“The experience I had at Cameo got me ready for anything that came my way. I left there very open-minded and not just expecting one thing. “ – Ben Mollin

When you’re unsure if you’ll ever find your passion . . .

“One of my former instructors is now my co-worker and colleague, and it’s fabulous getting to work beside someone I’ve admired and respected so much over the years. Cameo definitely shows you the potential of this business.” – Gina Paternostro

“The most unexpected thing about my job is how fun it is. I always knew I wanted to do hair, but I didn’t expect to be excited to go to work like I am.” – Laurie Cepkauskas

“I fell in love with doing hair! I never knew that you could love something that much. Doing hair isn’t just about a job. It changes you. I have a lot of friends who tell me, “This is what I do and this is who I am,” and it’s two separate things. I’ve found, in this profession, our job IS who we are. It’s in every aspect of our lives. I fell in love with it and I never wanted to let it go.” – Kolleen Krizka

When you’re losing focus . . .

“Dealing with some of the outside influences – those things limit their abilities because they’re so focused on the outside world. It’s really a challenge for the other teachers and me to kind of get them to temporarily forget about what’s happening outside and just focus on what or who is in their chair.” – Kolleen Krizka

“There was this video we watched once in Miss Pat’s class ... It was all really creative, avant-garde hairdressing tutorials. That was probably what sparked my own creative ways of doing things later on. Like, ‘Oh my God, there’s more to life than just doing roller sets and handing people ashtrays and filling up their coffee cups.’” – Ben Mollin

“At Cameo, you are considered an adult. Nobody there is going to call you to remind you to come to class; school is what you make it . . . Take it for what it is and live every day to the fullest because you learn so much so quickly. – Nikki Hath

"You can’t just ‘do hair’ and call yourself a stylist. You have to go out there and get the education you need to get the license to support it, and then work from there. There’s many different aspects of the job.” – Gina Paternostro

When you need to be reminded that being a beginner isn’t a bad thing . . .

“There are students who have no background, and I can relate to that. When I came to school, I had no background in any of it. All the students are pretty open-minded, but sometimes there is a struggle with people who have known about doing hair previously.” – Kolleen Krizka

“I’ll get clients with all sorts of discoloration, and that’s when you have to go back to your basics and really know your color chart. It’s important that that basic foundation is a solid one, because that’s essential knowledge that I use regularly, 11 years down the road now.” – Nikki Hath

“I am a firm, firm believer in finding a salon that offers or requires additional training. As much as Cameo teaches you, it’s one thing to be in school and then it’s another to actually be in that salon environment. So when I say ‘paying your dues,’ I mean sweeping and shampooing and observing and getting coffee, and doing those sorts of things. I’ve seen so many people in some salons say, “I’m too good for this, I’m not sweeping here, I’m gonna go somewhere else” and they end up at a low-cost, lower-end salon. But I also see people in my salon thriving because they paid their dues.” -- Laurie Cepkauskas

“Students have their own ideas about what looks good on whom, and it’s nice to watch the different approaches to each and every thing we put in front of them. There’s not a right way or a wrong way; they all find their own way, through me and through all the other teachers that are here for them.” – Ms. Pat

Be sure to read the rest of our interviews with Nikki, Ben, Kolleen, Ms. Pat, Laurie, and even more Cameo graduates and teachers, at cameobeautyacademy.com/blog. Cameo is also on Facebook and Twitter, so make sure to follow us for the latest updates, tuition discounts and more!