Today is the last day of February 2012–Leap Day, in fact. And today is my last blog post after three years of doing the job. Thanks to all of you who’ve read my blogs, contemplated and commented. I’ve been rather busy in this month of February. My daughter, Nola Grace, who was due to be … Continue reading Leap Day–and Leaps of Faith
A client wants to come in who is allergic to everything. I mean everything. And as desperate as she is for a massage, she is willing to take a chance on hives in hopes of getting the pain out of her hip. First, we talk on the phone. What detergent do I use? What oil? … Continue reading Nutty Massage and Flaming Oils
“Identify a need and fill it.” That’s what my co-worker had told me when I asked him how to sell products at a spa. I had no idea what he meant. Here I was, needing answers and he was feeding me riddles like the Sphinx. I was perplexed and frustrated. [this part 4 of 4; … Continue reading How to Sell Without Selling Out – Part IV
Working at a spa, the management had challenged massage therapists to learn how to sell some products and services to clients – and I had not the foggiest idea how to do that. [this part 3 of 4; see beginning of the story here] Thus far I had suggested an essential oil to a client … Continue reading How to Sell Without Selling Out – Part III
So here I was, a lowly newbie massage therapist, trying in an honest fashion to learn how to sell things at my spa. The howling about sales was continuing among my fellow therapists, and the manager had set a “quota” of $100 a month for every massage therapist. We were told to stop whining and … Continue reading How to Sell Without Selling Out, Part II
When massage folks work in spas, an ugly reality crops up: spas depend on sales of retail products and extra services for income. They expect their employees/contractors to sell to clients, and to get “good” hours and “good” rooms. I, too, have worked in an environment where folks expect you to sell other things rather … Continue reading How to Sell Without Selling Out
I am not by nature a person who covets, or who spends a lot of time envying the fortunes of others. But lately, I admit, I have had insurance envy. And I look back to the days when I was a technical writer, an educational non-profit worker, an English professor, even a Starbuck’s barista, and … Continue reading Insurance Envy and Other Melancholy
We use our hands and arms all day, we massage therapists, so we should be taking the very best care of them, right? So when was the last time you iced? I can hear the reply: Oh, I don’t need to ice, I’m in great shape. Uh-huh. We are, in a way, baseball players, and … Continue reading Handy Tips
It is an interesting question. Should massage therapy become a college degree? It is a question that is being proffered by those who would like massage to become part of the medical care system, with regard to how little training massage therapists have in comparison to those in the medical field. Standing next to people … Continue reading Regarding the Future of Our Labor
I have been listening to clients for a few years now, and I am getting more impressed with the intake form as time goes on. I had a doozy the other day. Intake forms are important for good massages, giving the person some time to reflect and think about what they want from their sessions. … Continue reading Intakes, Histories and Human Nature