Below is a transcribed version of The Nail Hub Podcast, Episode 87: Hurrican Heartbreak. To listen, click here, or click here to download on iTunes.

Welcome to the Nail Hub Podcast powered by Nails Magazine, where you'll find all the business advice, motivation and nail industry information you need to be a successful nail professional. I am Elizabeth Morris, and thank you for joining me today. We have had some of the craziest weather in this country lately, and I wanted to dedicate this episode to all the people that were affected by the hurricanes that have come through Florida and Texas, both Harvey and Irma and Jose. Hopefully, it doesn't do as much damage, but the hurricanes in the Southeast United States have done a number on a bunch of people's homes and especially all of those nail techs that are our colleagues in this industry. A lot of people lost their salons. They lost all of their products, all of their belongings. We were actually directly affected as well. Hurricane Irma came right over Fort Lauderdale and affected our fulfillment center that we have there. So, it's just crazy to see how much damage storms like that can cause, and it just is heartbreaking to see the effect that it has on family and friends. Especially, like I said, all of the nail techs that we hold so near and dear in our hearts.  

So, I wanted to say that we are thinking of you, and I also wanted to really suggest that for those of you that do have the ability, if you would like to donate, we have donated to the Red Cross. That's a great place to donate to for these types of acts of God. It just helps to provide food, shelter for people that have lost everything, and there's also a bunch of stuff happening on Facebook, some Gofundmes and things like that for people that really need to start over. People are still looking for donations on products, so if you have any extra products, gel polish, acrylic, hard gel, anything like that that you could spare, there are a lot of nail techs looking for product like that. So if you can, I really encourage you to reach out to your fellow nail techs and see if there is any way that you can provide something that might help someone get back on their feet. I know that it's a lot to ask, but, like I said, these hurricanes have really done a number on people, and if there's one thing that we can do, it's support each other in this industry. And I think that's one of the best things about being a nail technician is how we rely upon each other and how we really take care of one another when things don't go our way.   So, anyway, just wanted to say to all those people that have been affected by the hurricane, I am so sorry that happened to you and, you know, stay strong, things will come back, and we just need to keep moving forward. So, I know that has been detrimental to a lot of people and was very scary for us as well.

I wanted to also talk about some upcoming events. The nearest one that's coming up is the Best Lil' Nail Show Texas, or, sorry, Vegas. Sorry, sorry, Texas is the one that happens in Houston in the spring, and Vegas is the newest show that is being added to the Best Lil' Nail Show, you know, arena, I guess you could say. So, Best Lil' Nail Show Vegas is happening October 28 through the 30th. I will be teaching on Saturday which is October 28th. I'll be teaching on Saturday at 9 AM. I'm doing a business class. So Athena from Nail Talk radio, who has put on these amazing shows, she started with the one in Houston first, and now she has added Vegas. And she's got some great sponsors like Famous Names and some other people that are helping her make this huge.

So I'm really looking forward to being a part of it. I'm also going to be doing some coverage for Nails magazine at some of the classes, so it'll be awesome to report back on what this event is like, especially if you guys can't make it. But I really encourage you to check it out. So, go to bestnailshowtx.com, and there is a Best Lil' Nail Show Vegas 2017 link at the top. And if you click on that, you'll see the Vegas event, and you'll see all of the details. It's being held at the M Resort Spa and Casino in Vegas, so you can stay at the hotel. They have a discounted rate for people that are coming to the event, and the event is being held there as well. So you can do everything in one place. It's gonna have everything from an amazing day of classes to two days of actual trade show time. Awesome people are coming to do booths and everything, and, like I said, I will be teaching on Saturday morning. I'm doing a business class, so I've got a 90-minute business class I will be providing. And you can buy tickets to the event and also buy tickets to the classes all on bestnailshowtx.com.  

So that is gonna be so cool. I'm really excited about it. The show in Houston I have done two years in a row now, and now that we're adding the Vegas show in October, I think it's gonna be fabulous. And, of course, Vegas is go big or go home, so I think this is gonna be an awesome event that you don't wanna miss. And it's got everything from a focus on education to, also, the ability to get products at the same time. And I do like these smaller events. I love the big trade shows. As I've said many times, Premiere Orlando is my favorite show. It is ginormous, and I think these smaller shows are my other favorites, like HRTE, Best Lil' Nail Show. I mean, these are the type of shows that you go to, and they have a small environment. You're able to actually meet people, talk to people, get education, have, you know, networking opportunities, really interact with people on a more personal level. And I think as artists and as nail technicians, we really crave that personal level of relationship with people and that intimacy. And I think these smaller events are a great place to get that type of support. So, anyway, I will be there. I hope you will too, and make sure that you follow Best Lil' Nail Show on social media as well and on Facebook you can follow all of the events. I know Jaden and Athena have been posting about this a lot.   

So, anyway, I wanted to also talk about something that's coming up not until next year but, again, something that I think is gonna be really cool. And, actually, this is my first time going to this event, so, there is the nail cruise, called Nail Those Profits at Sea. I've never been on a nail cruise, and I'm actually really excited, because everyone I have talked to says the nail cruises are awesome. Because you get to be on a boat. You get to go on vacation, and you get to take nail classes, business classes provided by yours truly. And what better way to hang out with your fellow nail techs than being on a beautiful cruise ship and go on vacation for a week? I think that's gonna be so fun. So, Nail Those Profits at Sea is also an event that's being put on by Nail Talk Radio, and its setting sail February 2018. It's February 3rd through the 10th, and it's going from LA to the Mexican Riviera. I am so pumped about this. There are awesome teachers coming. I, of course, am going to be there, but there's a whole bunch of educators coming. Athena will be there. Braden, of course, will be there. Holly Shippers will be there. Tracy and Amy from Profiles Nails will be there. Amy Becker is gonna be there, and it's gonna be... Maisie Dunbar too, I almost forgot about Maisie.  

So, I think that's gonna be so fun. There's more educators coming than that. Those are the ones I can remember off the top of my head, but, again, nail cruise, awesome, and we as nail techs don't do a good job of actually taking time for ourselves. And I think that this type of event, since it's only a week, not only can you on vacation, you can bring your hubby if you want to. But you can also get some education and some playtime with other nail technicians and learn some awesome skills. And I think February is an excellent time to do something like this, because for those of you that live in cold weather places, I don't, I live in Arizona, but even so, in February, it's one of those months where you're just like, "Oh my gosh. I'm so sick of winter time. I'm over it. The holidays are over. I no longer want snow on the ground. Get me out of here." And I think a nail cruise sounds amazing, so, again, hope you can come to that. And if you can't come next year, definitely save up for 2019. Athena has been doing this every single year, same time of year, and if you have a whole year to plan ahead, you're easily able to put money aside to be able to come and really take full advantage of what this offers. So, again, so excited about this.  

And then I also wanted to give you guys kind of an update on some of the stuff that I've got coming up. So, I recently taught a social media class up in Vancouver. I was at an Akzentz event which was really, really fun, and I was very grateful to be awarded gold status as an educator with Akzentz. Regardless of what company you like to work with, I mean, honestly, I've talked about this before, about being a nail educator. And I wanted to quickly touch on it which is just because someone's a nail educator for certain company doesn't mean you have to be too and also doesn't mean that we have to be rivalrous between companies either. I really enjoy networking with educators from all different companies. I had the pleasure of taking a class from Julijana Ružić, and it was amazing. And there was also an educator named Bettina Martin who came, and both of them are BrillBird educators, amazing skills. I took a four-day boot camp with them in Vegas about three weeks ago, and I cannot tell you how much I learned. It was just amazing, and I am an Akzentz educator, but I also really value the skill sets that come out of educators from other companies, and just being exposed to other information I think is really important to stay well-balanced and to work on my personal skill set.  

And so I think...you know, I wanted to say this just because if you hear me mentioning, you know, I'm a teacher for this, or I work with that, or whatever it is, I like to share my experiences because I hope that it really tells you truthfully what it is like to be an educator and to be in the position that I'm in. And I hope that by sharing that experience it really gives you not only a clear view but also maybe inspires you to find the right fit for you. And, again, I don't like really soliciting to people and saying, "Oh, you should totally join my team." But I do like sharing my experiences so that you can, again, choose what's right for you, and I do think that being an educator is an awesome opportunity. As I have talked about before, it isn't all fun and games. It is a lot of hard work, but if you have the mindset for that, and if you have the right personality for it, it's definitely one of most rewarding experiences ever.   

So I had the pleasure of going up to the summit for all of the Akzentz educators, and I taught about social media. And I haven't done anything on the podcast about social media in a while so next episode I'm gonna be going through a little bit about my presentation. It's stuff that I've taught before, so it's not like it's top-secret, but I wanted to maybe update you guys on some social media stuff so that you guys can think about that when it comes your business. And it was just a fun experience to be able to teach that topic to the fellow distributors and educators and all of the colleagues that were there. So, very, very fun, but you can expect some more social media stuff coming from me soon, and I am still teaching all over the place. This year is kind of winding down for me. I'm trying to take a breather, mainly because I've just been traveling so much this year almost every single two weeks, maybe even more frequent than that. I have been traveling, and it's just a lot to be away from home that much.  

So this year I'm gonna wind down. Next year, what you can expect from me, I mean, I know it's only September, but I think it's important to kind of look ahead. And I'm really, really excited about the fact that the Nail Hub podcast is now powered by NAILS Magazine, and I've got some awesome projects going on that I really next year wanna focus on content. I know I might've mentioned this before, but you probably won't see me at a lot of these bigger events next year. I'm really going to be taking a step back from traveling, because I feel like every time I travel, people get to see me in person, but the content doesn't, you know, come through. And it's very difficult to do podcasts, and videos, and tutorials and business lessons when I'm on the road. and I really want 2019, sorry, 2018, rather, to be a focus on providing the most amazing content I can muster. And I think if I can dedicate myself to that, it will really make me feel like I gave it a shot in doing it 110%.  

When I started the Nail Hub, I was working as a nail tech at the same time I was a salon owner. You know, then I became an educator and a distributor, and I've been traveling so much. And it's just I feel like I've never gotten a chance to just sit down and really just focus on amazing content and really work in my studio, and so that's what I'm gonna be focusing on for next year. So you guys can expect some awesome stuff from me. I've got more interviews coming, and I've got a very special guest that I am going to be bringing on the podcast. I just need to get myself together and get it all organized, but I'm very excited about that.

So, without further ado, just wanted to give you guys these updates, and, like I mentioned in the beginning, if you do have the capacity to donate, even if it's $5, $10 to the Red Cross, or if you wanna donate some product that you don't use anymore to a nail tech in need, I really encourage you to do it. The hurricanes, like I said, have just been so brutal to so many people, and it's just so heartbreaking to see people having to start from scratch. And unfortunately, in places like Texas and Florida where they are prone to floods and hurricanes, insurance doesn't always cover everything. And there is federal aid, but, again, it only goes so far. So if we can reach out and help our fellow nail techs and friends and family members and even people that we don't know, if we can help them get back on their feet, I think that's what we should do, even just being patriotic and really helping our fellow Americans.   

So, hope you guys are able to at least do something for a friend in need and reach out, give people motivational messages. and just if we can come together, it really does help people. It just, you know, sometimes people get down and out when things like this happen, and it's really important to be there for one another. All right? So I hope everything is well with all of you, and I will be in touch soon with the next episode with some awesome social media stuff and also some great interviews to come. All right?

Thanks, guys. Bye. This is Elizabeth Morris signing out from the Nail Hub. This podcast is sponsored by Nails Magazine, the professional nail industry's leading publication. Have a suggestion, question or concern? Send me an email at liz@thenailhub.com, and don't forget to follow me on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter @TheNailHub, and check out The Nail Hub YouTube channel for more episodes and tutorials. Want customized business consulting, access to classes, amazing products and more? Visit thenailhub.com and check out all the wonderful things we provide. Our goal is to help you reach your ultimate potential. Thanks for listening, and I'll catch you in the next episode.

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