When I was new to doing massage therapy, I had a habit of getting lost. Lost in the neck, lost on the back, lost in the space-time continuum. I’d glance up at my clock and see that I had spent 40 minutes massaging the back and I had 20 minutes to do the rest of … Continue reading Massage and the Full Sixty…
Sometimes a client just appears looking for a massage. Literally a walk-in. What can a therapist do to turn a lookie-loo into a booking? These potential clients may be trying to size up you and your spa. Offer a quick tour. If they like you and your spa, but are reluctant to make an appointment, … Continue reading Wrangling the Walk-In Massage Client
People who give massages hopefully like receiving massages. I know I do. When my therapist friends are out of town or otherwise engaged, I have a few places I will slip into to try their hands. I found one therapist purely by chance who really knows how to do meridian and nerve-based massages, something my … Continue reading Massage Hygiene and the Return Visit
Once upon a time, there was a quiet little massage room which had the most interesting people pop in for treatments, people who said the darndest things… Therapist: What is our goal today? Client: I’d like to have the right side of my body removed. Therapist: That would make you a leftist. Sure you want … Continue reading Massage Funnies
There is a time in every massage when the therapist begins to rub the posterior neck. For many of our computer-burdened clients, it presents an opportunity to relieve the congestion of technology. The head is supported by these many muscles, embedded with many layers, often adhesed, and near the source of many functions from sleep … Continue reading Massage with the Eyes in Your Fingers
Here’s my shortlist for what a good massage therapist needs to know: Talk to the client first, not during a session. Get enough information to know what the client seeks, whether they want a complete massage or spot work, and if they have medical conditions that should not be massaged. This communication takes only a … Continue reading The Good Massage Therapist
On a massage therapist’s first day at work, the training starts with how to say hello to a client. Easy? Oh heavens. I have had massage trainees stare at the floor. Roll eyes in a complete circle looking everywhere but at the client. Worst, a brief nanosecond of eye contact followed by staring over the … Continue reading Real Practice for Real Massage
Massage therapists are not known for their left-brain skills. It’s hard to keep track of money, supplies, and clients and still use the powers of intuition and touch to help people. Or is it? There are some relatively simple and low-tech ways to keep track of things so you can keep up with your bills … Continue reading Running Your Massage Practice
Massage therapists like to think we help people deal with stress, injuries and fatigue. But how do we know we help? Massage is, after all one-on-one. We are stars or idiots one hour at a time, and we often don’t take much credit for our clients’ successes or failures. Is a massage therapist a facilitator … Continue reading Massage to Measures
It is a new world for the massage therapist, just as it is for many other personal services industries. App companies are going whole hog into personal service. Rides, house-cleaning, errands, baby-sitters, pet-sitters, and yes, massage therapists. Where is it heading? For a big thumping collision as we struggle to define ourselves, our employers and … Continue reading Plans, Practice and Control