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July 30, 2007

What They Don't Teach You In Massage School

If you read my previous post, you can see where one topic (flexibility in the treatment room) segued into another topic (communicating with the client). Some of the issues I talk about may be taught in your massage school while others only come from years of practice in the field. Hopefully, the lessons that I've learned while working with real clients are useful to you, both the massage consumer and practitioner.

When I went to massage school, we had a class called Professional Development. We covered such topics as tax returns, developing a business plan, and marketing our massage practice. Our instructor shared with us anecdotes about raising the public's perception about massage therapy and taking every opportunity to sell your practice no matter the setting. She said, "carry your business cards everywhere you go. Every person you meet could be a potential client." And she was, and still is, right. Some great books about managing a massage practice are available such as Minding Her Own Business: The Self-Employed Woman's Essential Guide to Taxes and Financial Records by Jan Zobel and Business Mastery : A Guide for Creating a Fulfilling, Thriving Business and Keeping It Successful by Cherie Sohnen-Moe

What they didn't teach me in massage school was how to interact with those clients once I got them in my door. It would have been very helpful if we had learned something about common scenarios that arise in many practices. Issues over gift certificate such as sales, refund policies and late redemptions arise again and again among my peers. Having future therapists examine their views about money and the worthiness of massage will help them price their work accordingly and navigate tricky scenarios such as free giveaways and reduced price negotiations.

Communication in the practice room is crucial to the bread and butter of massage business. This was probably my strongest area of communicating when I got out of massage school. However, I am discovering that some of my peers may not be that comfortable about communicating with their clients while the massage is in progress. Many of my suggestions for in-session communication can be found in the last paragraph of my previous post Don't Be A Slave To Protocol.

Late clients and missed appointments are a huge issue in not only massage therapy, but also spa settings, doctor's offices, dentist's offices, hair styling salons and probably many other professions. How should these be handled? Again, examining issues surrounding self-respect, and client respect is important for clarifying what is acceptable behavior for both parties. Suggestions for solutions to offset chronically tardy or delinquent appointments with role-playing would help prospective therapists immensely in managing their practice and their appointment book.

I cannot emphasize enough the importance of role-playing among students and peers alike when it comes to solving problems and enforcing boundaries in a massage practice. In a giving profession like massage therapy, it is often hard for a therapist to say "no" or disappoint a client by enforcing boundaries. Practicing reactions to common problems not only gives the therapist ideas about how to handle situations, but gives the therapist confidence to react appropriately not awkwardly to a given situation. Awkward and uncomfortable reactions to boundary issues makes the therapist seem weak and uncertain which can open the door for boundary violations: the responsibility for maintaining and defining boundaries always belongs to the therapist.

tags: massage massagetherapy wellness massage therapy bodywork health massage ethics massage practice building

Posted by linda at July 30, 2007 7:48 AM