I have a thing for Wonder Woman.

I want this dress.

I loved the show when I was a kid.  I have happy childhood memories of wearing my WW underoos, tying a towel around my neck and jumping around the living room with my brother, similarly dressed as superman or spider man.

In the past few years, I’ve received some great gifts: the adult sized underoos, a birthday cake, a travel mug (I use it daily, Melissa), socks, bracelets and a few other things. On especially rotten days, I’ve been known to wear the underoos along with a Chuck Norris tshirt to bed. I don’t have the science to back me up, but I think I wake up stronger. (And funnier.)

As the story goes, Wonder Woman is  “beautiful as Aphrodite, wise as Athena, swifter than Hermes, and stronger than Hercules.” In other words, she’s a myth. (Well, of course she is, it’s a STORY, Allissa.)

The problem is that when we (or maybe it’s just me, but I doubt it.) are faced with mountains of work and/or family obligations and/or social obligations, so often the response is to juggle, rearrange, put our heads down and plow through to complete tasks and meet the demands. Because that’s what wonder women do.

Well, I’m not Wonder Woman.

And (except for the Underoos) I’m not trying to be. I’m keeping my expectations high, but realistic. I want to give my massage clients the best massage that I can. I want to give my marketing clients the highest quality services I can.

I want to focus, so I can give you, my dear, refined, interested and interesting massage therapist reader the very best materials to help you build your business. So you can feel as giddy and happy as I do when I walk into my office every day.

In order to do that, I’m taking February off. Well, I’m not taking it ‘off’ so much as I’m going underground.  I’ve got some guest writers lined up, really smart people with different perspectives and ideas from mine, yay! I’ll be popping in on Facebook occasionally, ditto for Google+ and Twitter.

Here’s a sneak peek at what I’m working on for you

A series (that’s right, a series) of guides to help you write for your business. Blogging, email marketing, website copy, all of it. Useful, step-by-step, how-to guides to help you craft the words, in your own voice, to bring in new clients and strengthen relationships with your current clients. Written by someone who has been doing that for seven years, and is still doing that now. (Hey, that’s me!)

Worksheets, video, Google+ hangouts, small group webinars where you get individual and group guidance. The whole enchilada, baby.

If you’re not already on the email list, hop on over to the right and do it already. Subscribers will get extra-special updates throughout February (and you can pick up the Marketing with Personality ebook if you don’t have it yet.)

I’m also going to wrap up the Financial Integrity series over on the Massage Learning Network, if you haven’t watched Parts 1 & 2, you should catch up soon.

We’re gonna build some great things together, people.

Brace yourself, March is going to be fun.

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Looking to rent space?

At some point or another, you’ll probably find yourself looking at office space to rent. It can be a big, scary experience and totally overwhelming if you’re not prepared for it.

Bring this list, and use it. Go through it while you’re in the space. Yes, be a geek with a piece of paper and pen, checking off the list and making notes as you chat with the person showing you the space.

Before your visit, review the requirements for state establishment licensure, if applicable.  Bring a tape measure, and if you’re nervous, a trustworthy friend.

Drive by the location at different times of day and note the parking, local noise levels, activity of neighboring businesses.

Is the location near where your ideal clients are?
How does the place look from outside?
Is there adequate parking?
What’s the signage like and will you be able to put your own up?
Is the entrance well marked and obvious? Handicap assessable?
What kind of locks are on the main doors?

Who are the office neighbors, and what are their hours?
Are there shared spaces, common areas like waiting area or bathroom? Who exactly shares these spaces?
What is the distance from bathroom to treatment room?

What is the size of the treatment room, including ceiling height?

Take note of:
door lock
wall color
type of flooring
windows, doors, emergency exits that can’t be blocked
number of electrical outlets and their location

Where is thermostat located, do you have direct access, are there ‘shared zones’?
What design/decorating changes would you be allowed to make?

How long have current tenants been there?

Does rent include:
heat
air conditioning
electric
hot water
snow removal

If not included in the rent, what are the typical utility costs for the space?

Is it wired for internet/cable?

What are the terms of the lease?
Who handles repairs and maintenance emergencies? Are they available 24/7?

Post-visit thoughts:

Who showed you the space? Were they nice? Was it the person who you’ll be dealing with regularly if you choose this space and how do you feel about that?

How much work is involved in making the place functional for you?

Have you looked for space in the past? What am I missing?

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In March I’ll reach my seven year anniversary of graduating from massage school. I started my business the very next day and last week I officially announced that I’m no longer taking new clients. (We’ll discuss the ins and outs of that another time)

In a nutshell, here’s how I did it:

I knew I wanted massage to be my full time job, so I treated it that way from Day 1. If I didn’t have clients scheduled, I still went to the office as if I had a full schedule, and I used that time to learn about marketing.

I hustled at chair massage, working oodles of Friday nights massaging women who get together to scrapbook.

I asked for help from my family to take the load off at home. I let them help me.

I sent thank you notes to new clients.

I sent thank you notes to regular clients, at least annually.

I never settled for an empty appointment book. In the beginning, I would woo friends in with a discount, or offer complimentary massage to great referral partners.

I embraced new marketing methods, like websites, email, and social media when they became available. I got excited about change, not pissy about it.

I started out small, renting a tiny room and a sliver of desk space in a local chiropractic office and kept my expenses low.

I treated every client like royalty. 

I asked for help from my mentor to guide me though difficult situations. I let him help me.

I kept my day job, part time in a local pharmacy. It was great for connecting with potential clients, and keeping me sane, and putting a cushion in my savings account.

I quit my day job. Too many of us slack on Plan A because we have a Plan B. Losing that safety net made me hustle even harder.

I considered my ideal clients and adjusted my schedule to make their convenience my priority.

I listened to my business-owner clients, and read every book they recommended.

I asked for help from my colleagues when I struggled to treat a tough pathology or client. I let them help me.

When I started to feel stifled in my tiny rented room, I moved out into my own office space.

I learned new techniques regularly and advertised that to my clients.

I got active in my local massage community to keep me abreast of new ideas and to keep me passionate about the industry.

I taught a community massage class, to practice my speaking and educating skills.

I asked for help from my friends, to warn me when I overwork. I let them help me.

I set goals.

I rewarded myself when I reached goals, usually with new beautiful artwork for the office or a great massage tool or product.

I got lots and lots of massage. It greatly improved my techniques and allowed me to meet my colleagues.

I rested. A few times a year, two days on a couch watching movies is a great way to recharge (for me).

That’s my nutshell. It’s a great place to be right now.

What’s worked for you?

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As we learned in Part 1, Why Use Twitter, Twitter is a real-time information system network. You can connect with all sorts of people: experts, authors, massage peeps just like you, etc. You name it, you can find it on Twitter.

In a fantastic twist of great user friendly service, the good people of Twitter have created a great beginner resource for twitter here.  I suggest you stroll through the menu and start with Twitter 101: How should I get started using Twitter?  And once you’ve got the hang of it, there’s a great Twitter for Business guide, too.

If you’re not familiar with Twitter, you’ve got some homework to do before the rest of this makes sense. If you are familiar with Twitter, this post is for you!

Please Do

Know why you’re there. Are you looking to connect with clients, friends, leaders in your industry? Do you just want to follow comedians and retweet jokes? These are all perfectly legit uses, but those choices should govern your behavior, who you follow (because many will follow you back) and what you share.

Use a Twitter handle that’s easy to recognize, and is consistent with your presence on other platforms. (Unless you’re using twitter just to retweet off-color jokes and talk about your ceramic clown collection. Then hide under a wacky pseudonym and don’t follow any clients or colleagues. Please.)

Have a good avatar, a clear headshot or your business logo.

Share information that is useful and interesting to your followers.

When you share information, be sure to give credit to the originator of the information. It’s just nice, and you’ll likely make a new friend!

Have a sense of humor, enjoy the conversation, and be outgoing.

Keep it to 140 characters or less. If you have to put out multiple tweets to get a point across, you’re in the wrong platform, you want Facebook or Google +. Twitter is about microblogging: communicating your message in 140 characters. This can be tricky at first, but it gets easier with time and practice, trust me. I am certain that I’m a better writer because of Twitter. It’s forced me to create crisp, concise thoughts that can be easily understood. (Think we can’t communicate ideas, feelings, in 140 characters or less? Go here sometime.)

Be yourself. An appropriate, professional, fun version of yourself.

Interact. Converse. Engage. Play.

Thank people for retweeting you and following you.

If you’re managing multiple Twitter accounts and/or Facebook accounts use a tool like Hootsuite or Tweetdeck. It allows you to share content to specific platforms with the best formatting for that platform.

Please Don’t

Auto DM new followers with a sales pitch. It’s insulting, sales-y and gross. Example, I started following a major massage company, and they Auto DM’d me about their new product that I should want to buy. Ick.

Likewise, don’t Auto DM new followers with a request to follow you on Facebook. I’m here on Twitter because I want to be on Twitter. Meet me where I’m at, I’m not traveling to you.

Tweet while drinking or otherwise not in your clear, deliberate mind. Trust me.

Be an automaton. This is still human interaction, just through the web. People want to interact with people. Not robots.

(okay, go get a beverage, because I saved the most intense points for last.)

Please Don’t link your accounts so that your Facebook posts appear as tweets.

More often than not, the post is well over 140 characters and translates into a tweet that is truncated. I created an example (instead of publicly calling someone out on this. See, I’m not a total jerk).

On it’s surface this isn’t an awful tweet, and really, it’s one of the more attractive examples of linking. This may not seem like a big deal, but it is in Twitter Land. The links to Facebook don’t work well on mobile. Clicking on that link will open a browser, not the mobile app, and I’ll be forced to log in to Facebook. It’s a pain in the rear. Experienced Twitter users quickly learn to ignore links with ‘fb’ in the address.  We simply don’t click on them, and we start ignoring the person constantly tweeting them.

But if this were a good tweet, it would be short and concise, it would tag the NCBTMB’s Twitter account and use a hashtag in front of massage so it would appear in searches, etc. Check this out:

It’s the same message, but with clickable links to the person (or brand) we’re talking about and a link to the topic, too.

Sometimes, Facebook posts just don’t translate well. If there’s a picture posted, we don’t see it on Twitter the same way you do on Facebook, so often the headline that we do see doesn’t make sense. You’ve lost me. I’ll never hear what you’re saying.

Also, you are losing the opportunity to incorporate Twitter’s most useful (and fun!) features into your tweets. Twitter uses @tags and hashtags (#) to identify people and topics. You don’t get those clickable in-tweet links when you’re just funneling updates from Facebook

Please Don’t link your accounts so that your tweets appear as Facebook posts.

This method is not as awful, but I still don’t love it.

The nice part is that, because the post originates in Twitter, it will be 140 characters or less. What’s yucky is, the tweet may be full of @ and #, and that’s garbage* to people on Facebook. It doesn’t make sense in that forum, and people ignore it. But if you leave out the @ and #, you’re not using Twitter fully. Bummer.

Also, you are losing the opportunity to incorporate Facebook’s most useful (and fun!) features into your posts. (If this sounds familiar, thanks for paying attention) Facebook has expanded the update fields to allow for over 63,000 characters. You can be more descriptive, you can tag pages and profiles, you can attach pictures that are seen on the wall at the same time as it’s headline.

An aside:

I understand it may be ‘easier’ to just link accounts and leave it be. But networking and community, and building relationships, is not always about what’s easier for you. It would also be easy to skip the proofreading of your brochure. It would be easier to not give a client a knee bolster, or a warm pillow under the neck. You’re better than that. Also there are tools to make it easy to properly manage multiple accounts and platforms. Check out Hootsuite and Tweetdeck.

So there it is.

Are some people pulling off techniques I have in the “Don’t” list? Sure.

Are we all using Twitter in our own way? Yes.

Regarding Comments to this post, here is my Wish List:

I would love to know how you use Twitter to connect with colleagues, clients, Richard Branson, Samantha Bee, marketers, whoever YOUR community is.

Or I would love to know why you aren’t using Twitter, what’s stopping you?

*phrasing courtesy of Teresa Deak, 

**For more reading on the evils of linking posts across platforms see here and here

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“What is it?”    ”I don’t get it.”    ”I don’t know anyone on there.”

Can you imagine saying that about a roomful of potential clients? “I don’t know anyone there.” That’s exactly why you go to new environments full of potential clients (aka onsite massage jobs), to meet people.

Or how about a roomful of people with successful massage businesses and serious marketing skills? If you’re in the same business, trying to get some more clients, couldn’t you benefit from listening in on some conversations, maybe asking a few questions? Wouldn’t you want to have a beverage and hang out with those people? If you’ve ever wanted a mentor, or to be a fly on the wall, or to just make new connections from the comfort of your own recliner (hello, all you introverts!), Twitter is your chance.

Just to be clear: If you’ve got a successful practice and all the clients you want, this post probably isn’t for you. Likewise if you’re making an educated decision to NOT participate in this particular social media venue. I respect that. (I don’t do much on LinkedIn. I learned it, I see how it could be valuable, but I just don’t like it. It doesn’t speak to me. But since Michael schooled me on LinkedIn, I don’t knock people who use it and I don’t make ignorant comments about its usefulness or purpose.)

Also, this is not a Twitter tutorial.  This is the WHY of Twitter. (As I see it.) Tutorials are coming in Part 2 over the next week. I’ll include a discussion about linking Twitter and Facebook posts, (which was actually the debate that started this whole topic).

What is it?

It’s a real-time information network.

What kind of information? Any kind you want. You choose who you want to hear/read. You choose what information you want to pass along. You choose who to talk to.

I think the best way to explain is to give examples here. Right this very second, I’m opening my Twitter and looking at all the tweets on my Massage Therapy list, (I also have a Marketing list and an Autism list. But I can choose if I want to read everything in one stream or separately by the lists I’ve created. More on that later.)

There’s a link from @Lippincott about back surgery. That’s useful info for my clients and me.

Boulder College of Massage Therapy, @bcmt, linked to an article in the @abmp journal featuring one of their instructors. (And it’s an article about retaining clients, pretty useful stuff.)

Craniosacral therapist @katherineriggs posted a paper.li newsletter with all sorts of great articles, culled from Twitter, in fact.

I can get great information about my other 2 loves, marketing and children with autism spectrum disorders quickly and easily, too.

And in answer to  your impending question: Yes, it can be overwhelming. Information overload is certainly an issue. So here’s what I do when I get over-excited about everything I want to read and learn. I STOP READING THE TWITTER STREAM. I simply choose to not take in anymore information.

It’s a conversation.

And conversations lead to relationships, virtual mentorships, new clients, knowledge, etc.

Through Twitter, I met Paola Bassanese (@paolaenergya) a massage therapist and marketing guru in London. She’s been so kind about sharing my blog with her audience, and I’ve learned about yoga, spa therapies and nutrition from her. AND I have a friend moving to London this year, so I already know I’ll be buying gift certificates from her. Sweet. Oh, and she just won a big award. Rock on, Paola.

I have been setting up a new business in my Quickbooks for Mac. I ran into a snag and tweeted at @Quickbooks and my bank, @allybank. They both responded!

and

and @allybank even checked me out and read my blog!

And my all-time favorite Twitter conversation is this one. Justin lives in Indianapolis. I don’t remember how or why I started following him, but this happened (just click on the image to make it bigger and readable):

So, yes. You CAN get clients from Twitter.

You can also build relationships with your current clients and other locals. Check out Steph Lasch’s brilliant move with her business’s twitter:

But it’s so much more than that. It’s a virtual room full of people, most wearing name tags that specify what they do. And guess what, they all want to talk with YOU.

Join in!

Ready to dangle your feet? Check out Twitter basics here.

Ready to play? Sunday nights at 10PM EST, Kelli Wise hosts a live chat on twitter. Here are details and instructions for that.

Need some ideas on who to follow? Check out my massage list here.

Find Part 2 of the Twitter series here.

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It’s just after dark on January 1. I’ve been wanting to write since I woke up this morning, but other tasks called for my attention all day. There was a last minute trip to the grocery store, the making of salad and Monkey Bread, preparing for guests. There was a New Year’s Brunch today, and I was involved. It was an assembly of things I don’t really enjoy, preparing food, being social, making small talk and such. But we push ourselves to do things for the people we love, right? And this was one of those times. Not surprisingly, I made it through just fine. Also not surprising, it was even fun.

I always watch for the reaction when I say, “I’m a massage therapist.” Sometimes the declaration is met with an eyebrow raise or a barely-perceptible flinch. Sometimes it’s met with an, “Oh, I love my massage therapist!” I’m finding more and more of the latter nowadays, and I’m so grateful for that.

In a few conversations, I got to be an ambassador for massage. I talked to an Occupational Therapist working in geriatrics. I gave a great referral to a man with a chronic vocal cord spasm issue. I’m hooking up a new friend from Boston with a Shiatsu practitioner.

And it all came naturally, with little of the social anxiety and stress I normally feel at these kinds of things. Yes, I still wanted to crawl into bed and nap for hours when the last guest left.  Progress, not perfection. But the baby steps are significant and I think it’s really important to note them.

A year ago I wouldn’t have pictured myself here, pleased and happy after a social event with new people. I didn’t think I would ever feel comfortable and able to speak in an educated way about massage, without fumbling the thoughts and shying away. But here I am. It happened.

Anything is possible.

Whatever you think can’t happen, maybe it can. Whatever you think you’re not capable of, maybe you are. Perhaps change will occur without fanfare, as it did for me today. I hope to be more cognizant of the gentle baby steps that lead to these quiet successes. They are victories, really.

I hope 2012 is full of gentle steps and quiet victories for you, too.

With all my heart I wish you the Happiest New Year. Thanks for starting it with me.

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We ran a contest, to win this awesome CD, a Massage Therapy Foundation fundraiser. It pained me to choose a winner, so I’m happy to bring you the runners-up, one by one, for your enjoyment.

Special thanks to Maria Candelaria Solis for this giggle:

Of course I have had many funny things happened throughout the years I have been a massage therapist.

One in particular happened about 4 years ago.  I had acquired this business woman as a client a few months prior.  Everytime she came in for an appointment she was dressed in a business suit and high heel shoes.  This particular evening she came in, I greeted her, talked to her about what we were going to accomplish during the massage session.  I left the room to give her the privacy to get ready for her massage.

When I came in she was underneath the sheet.  I uncovered her upper back and proceeded to start working.  After I was finished with her back, I covered the area and then went to uncover one of her legs.  Imagine my surprise when I uncovered her leg still wearing the high heel shoe.  She was still wearing her pair of shoes as she was relaxing on the massage table receiving a massage.  It was all I could do to keep from laughing at the situation.

She is still a client, always comes dressed in a business suit and spiked heels but she removes them when she gets on the table.

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We ran a contest, to win this awesome CD, a Massage Therapy Foundation fundraiser. It pained me to choose a winner, so I’m happy to bring you the runners-up, one by one, for your enjoyment.

Special thanks to Nicole Smith  for this batch of silliness:

Not sure if this is funny or gross.  Not funny at the time now after a several years I can laugh about it.

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We ran a contest, to win this awesome CD, a Massage Therapy Foundation fundraiser. It pained me to choose a winner, so I’m happy to bring you the runners-up, one by one, for your enjoyment.

Special thanks to Eleanor Dukes for this nugget of funny:

So I was working at a Spa last year and I was seeing a prenatal client her whole pregnancy. We were down to every 2 weeks sessions. She said she wanted some more time on her feet because they hurt. Of course I saved the best for last, I on covered her feet and started to work. Then I looked at the clock and saw that I had just about 15 mins left so I decide to sit on my stool.

I bent my knees and pushed my butt back to sit….the darn thing was not there! I THUMPed on the floor, hit my head on the wall and up in the air went my feet. I was on my back! when I looked up in the semi dark room the stool was at the other end of the darn table. My oil bottle fell out my holster and the top came off, all of it poured out. My very pregnant client said in a clam voice,

Client: did you fall? 

Me: Yes I am fine

Client giggling: how’d you do that? don’t get up yet make sure you are not hurt, do you me want to call someone? that sounded pretty hard. Take a minute if you need to. 

Me: Jumping up quickly in fear that my RN pregnant client may feel the need to take care of me. Um no I’m fine. Continues massage, end massage. Apologies for my clumsiness. Client re-books and leaves giggling. 

At lunch the therapist in the room next door said she was walking by and heard a bang on the wall and then a thump. She called the manager because she thought I had the huge male client, he made a pass at me and I knocked him to the floor. They had one person stand outside the door for 10 mins while they checked the schedule to see who I was seeing. When they saw it was the pregnant clients they got worried cause they thought she rolled off the table.

I was very confident that the stool was at the end of the table, because I had 2 in the room all day. We had a front desk trainee and she wanted a stool to roll back and forth so she took the extra one in my room. 

Everyone had a big laugh cause I am not a skinny minny, I am pleasantly plump with a rump. They figured I had enough cushioning to soften the landing. Of course I had to do a reenactment for the other MTs cause they have never heard of falling in a session. 

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No doubt if you’re on Facebook, you’ve seen the current meme going around about not being allowed to say, “Merry Christmas” and having to say “Happy Holidays” instead. As is often the case, it’s an outdated, not-really-truthful sentiment that gets people all riled up.

As far as I can trace, it comes from some news a few years back about how Target removed the word “Christmas” from their advertising (briefly) and maybe the story about a few merchants who gave employees rules about appropriate holiday greetings. (But that’s not really what this post is about, so let’s not get caught up in that.)

When I first saw the cheesy status update, I posted on my Facebook Page:

Not everyone is Christian. Keep that in mind when choosing your holiday cards, greetings and email subject headings. Be thoughtful, not prideful or fanatical, and make the choices that are right for your business & your audience.

Some really great comments and questions arose. Is Happy Holidays okay? But what holiday are we talking about? Some groups don’t even celebrate the New Year on January 1. Is Peace on Earth okay? Sure, that’s great on cards and such, but weird to say as a verbal greeting.

It’s not really about the Christmas greetings, so let’s move past that. But that conversation made me think more about how people often include references to religion in their marketing.

It’s been lingering in the back of my head for quite some time. I’ve seen it in website bios and welcome messages. Things like, “I thank God for my wonderful clients and community.” I’ve seen people list Christian, Believer, Follower of Christ, etc, in their Twitter profiles that are used for business. Ditto for Facebook and Google+, both in profiles and on pages.

I’m a big fan of using personality in your marketing. Cleary, since I wrote an ebook about it. And I think that one’s religion and activity within a group can certainly be considered part of one’s personality. But we need to be sure that the inclusion of god and religious references is mindful and carefully considered. 

Why? Because not everyone is your religion. And religion is a touchy subject often woven with extreme emotion. Putting a reference to god on your site may steer away an otherwise really ideal client. That might be okay with you, but be mindful that it could happen.

I went into a local locksmith shop last year to have some keys made. The same owner has been there since I was a kid, and he’s always had the 10 Commandments displayed in the front window. I’m not a fan of that, but I like to frequent local businesses (and I was having breakfast next door) so I went in. While I waited for the keys to be made, I realized that a very extremist Christian radio program was playing, loudly. There were several pamphlets on the counter with religious messages. There was a rather graphic pamphlet regarding a political reproductive health care topic. I was really uncomfortable, and if he didn’t already have my keys in his hand I would have left immediately.

I will never go back there. I will wait in line for an hour at Home Depot to have keys made. And that’s okay. It’s his business and if that’s the message he wants to put out that’s none of my concern, I’ll go elsewhere.

Yes, that’s a dramatic example, but consumer choices happen like that all the time. In choosing between two great websites for local MT’s, a potential client may choose someone else if a religious reference appears on your site. Conversely, a client may choose you because of that reference.

You must know your audience. You must consider the thoughts of potential clients. You must decide how inclusive and exclusive you wish to be in every area of your marketing, and the realities of sustaining your business with the choices you make. That includes your website copy, paper brochures, greeting cards and even the words you choose when speaking with people.

I worked in retail pharmacy for many years, in a very diverse neighborhood. We always said, “Have a nice holiday.” We did that all the time, around December holidays, spring holidays, even for arbor day and flag day. The customers loved it. I like finding reasons to celebrate every day, anyhow.

Consider your word choices carefully, or don’t. Just know that every aspect of your marketing is a choice about who you want to draw in and who you want to push away.

Have a wonderful National Noodle Ring Day, or if you’re getting to this late, perhaps National Violin Day.

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The contest

I asked for your hilarious massage stories.

The prize

This fabulous CD of massage music created by massage therapists, to raise funds for the Massage Therapy Foundation.

The winner

I giggled over stories about cats who tug at draping, clients who leave their shoes on, gas (so much gas), and rolling stools that disappear.

But Sarah Cafiero’s story had me laughing out loud every time I read it.

Eleven years ago, I was working prone on a long limbed client. I removed the bolster as most of us do, by gently sweeping under the ankle and lifting, and moving the bolster out. It went quite smoothly, and the client flipped. Once she and the sheet were both settled, I grabbed the bolster and did what most therapists do and leaned over, reached under the clients legs to lift them so I could place the bolster under the knees, and my very, very helpful and well intentioned client decided to help me. She lifted her knees up so fast, and so hard that she kneed me directly in the larynx. She hit me so hard that I gagged for 10 straight minutes, and never, ever, ever again tried to lift a client’s legs. Ever. Never, ever, ever again.

The end.

She wins.

You’ll get to read the rest of the stories over the next few weeks, sprinkled over the holidays like fake snow on your pink flamingo lawn ornament. My gift to you.

PS- Sarah has a blog that is truly awesome, but not for the faint of heart.

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-or- A story about Michael Reynolds, me, and why you should join the Massage Learning Network 

Just over 2 years ago I realized that whenever my local MT friends had questions, they would call me.

“Is it safe to work the ankles on this 39 week pregnant client?” ”Will you proof-read this letter to my clients?” ”How should I advertise this sale to my clients?”

If I couldn’t answer the question immediately, I usually knew where to look and who to call (Greg). I became the local ringleader, and by then I was well involved in massage continuing education here in Massachusetts.

I was meeting educators and fielding calls and emails from educators who wanted to teach here. Some were awesome, some came off like pushy used car salesmen. Some were well prepared and could roll with last minute crisis, some were demanding and lazy. Many were kind and generous with their knowledge, others were proprietary and nasty. There were brilliant people who behaved normally and other teachers who behaved like kings and divas.

I was knee-deep in all this learning when I started to envision a virtual network of educators marked with generosity, high integrity and real accessibility to the regular little massage therapist like me. And fun. It needed to be happy and fun and exciting and NOT boring! That’s why I started Writing a Blue Streak. That’s when I got active on Facebook. That’s when I found all of you. Thankfully, some mutual friends connected me with Michael Reynolds, some wacky techy massage guy from Indiana. I read his stuff and learned so much so very quickly. He read mine. We became fast virtual friends.

A few months later I actually got to meet the guy, and I’m pretty sure from the very first conversation, we knew we would be best friends. We were all animated and gesticulating and anyone who tried to join us quickly gave up and walked away.

Here are some quick facts you should know about Michael

• It takes him three tries to find a sushi place that’s open in Minneapolis,  two tries to find a pancake place that’s open in Indianapolis, and he’s a good sport about walking around Portland to help me find food late at night, (but the damn Denny’s was closed early so that was a bummer.)
• He cares. He wants everyone to succeed, he wants to help people do so and he’ll bust his ass to make that happen. In every situation, he leads with the giving hand.
• He has won our continuing argument about humility several times, but is too kind to rub my nose in it.

So when Michael popped out this genius idea for an interactive online learning center for massage therapists and asked me if I was interested, I could hardly say, “Heck to the yes!” fast enough. Michael was creating the very network of educators I had been dreaming about. Awesome.

What is this online contraption he’s built? What does it do?

Ladies and gentlemen, I give you The Massage Learning Network.  It’s an easy, one-step joining process. (We won’t ask you for any maiden names or high school mascots. You won’t start getting annoying emails. That’s not how we roll.) Oh, it’s free.

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I’ve tended to avoid public discussion about elections within the AMTA.  Partly because I’m still getting used to being sort-of a public figure and I don’t want my sometimes stupid opinions to be the basis for anyone else’s voting. Partly because I find it all tedious, exhausting and like the majority of members of the AMTA, I just don’t care enough to dive into all of it. What? Did she just say that? Yes. Yes, I did.

The reality is, most members don’t even vote in these elections. I didn’t for the first few years I was a member. I’m not saying that attitude is right. It just IS.

The reality is, most of us join an organization by default. We need liability insurance and someone we like or respect mentioned a particular organization.

The reality is, most of us don’t utilize any other member benefits, and we’re too lazy to scope out cheaper options, so we just renew every year.

We don’t attend state chapter meetings, we only take classes when we need the credits for maintaining certifications or licensure, etc.

Most of us don’t read industry blogs, maybe we glance at the journals we get free with our membership. We don’t actively pursue any involvement in the industry greater than showing up to our offices and seeing clients.

I say ‘we’ because I was like this for a few years, too. I say ‘we’ even though the massage therapists I’m identifying with here will never read this post. (And no, this post is not a call to action to get involved.) I’ve been there, and so have you.

Yesterday I put up a Facebook post that said, “Voting for AMTA National offices is beginning (and lasts through 12/1). I will say this: I vote for people who are active AND INTERACTIVE online.” A Candidate suggested that we go to candidates Facebook pages and ask questions so there can be more interaction. (Genius. I’m embarrassed that I hadn’t already done that.)

A few hours ago I posted this question on the Facebook pages of 4 candidates running for national office. (Please note, I posted on the Candidate pages, not on personal profiles. Of 10 candidates, only 4 have Facebook pages that I know about.)

Question: Do you think it’s important that AMTA empowers, encourages (and trusts) its staff and national level officers (President, BOD, etc) to be active online in places like Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, etc? Do you feel that effort is worthy of funding for some training for those representatives of AMTA?

A friend of mine sent me a private message (and then gave me permission to share a bit of it with you.) She said, “Just because someone doesn’t use Facebook as a primary form of communication doesn’t make him/her a bad candidate choice.  The fact that someone returns calls and emails in a timely manner should be far more important. Social media is AWESOME, but not the end all be all. A person’s intellect and knowledge of the position should be the first [consideration]”

Yup. I agree, amigo.

The problem here is that I HAVE NO IDEA about a candidates’ reliability in communications, or their knowledge and intellect unless I know them in person, or on Facebook. I have attended the last 4 National Conventions, and served at a state and regional level for four years. I know a bunch of AMTA people. I’m more involved than the average dues-paying member and I still don’t know all the candidates. I know one through my state involvement. I know three more in a very superficial way after meeting them at National events. And I know one ONLY from Facebook because we missed each other in Portland this year (but I love him on Facebook, so he’s getting my vote).

So there’s a problem of not knowing people.

But even more so, if a person is unwilling to embrace modern communication and networking technology, they do not represent me. As both a practitioner communicating with my clients and a member of the massage community communicating with colleagues, I feel proper and passionate use of technology is vital to the success of our industry.

If active online, we can mobilize, organize and squash crappy legislation in its infancy. We can share ideas, research and  quickly and with excitement. We can grow as individuals, practitioners, and a community.

That is why candidates who are not active and involved in Facebook, various forums, current webinars, or blogs, etc. will rarely get my vote. Of course I don’t expect every candidate to be proficient and active everywhere, but give me something. Show me that you understand how useful these communication technologies can be.

The bigger issue.

I love the AMTA. I have proclaimed it loudly and often. See for yourself here and here. I love the people I have met. I love the advocacy for our profession, the events that allow us to feed off each other’s talent and skill and excitement.

That said, I have become disenchanted with what’s happening (or not happening) online at the National level.

I think the online resources are difficult to navigate and generally crappy. As an experienced practitioner and longtime member, I couldn’t figure out how to find the intake and health history forms, and when I did find them and printed them out, they were in a font and color difficult to read. Entirely unusable. They were a PDF and couldn’t be customized.

When the AMTA Twitter account promoted the forms, I responded with a question. There was no response so I nudged them. Still nothing. Ultimately I had to email friends with connections to National to get an answer. I ended up on a conference call with some people on staff at National handling marketing and communication. When I asked “What is National’s social media strategy?” there was no answer. Really.  I gave an hour of brain-storming and ideas. Nothing has changed, and one of them actively avoided me at convention in Portland. I never got to talk to him. (The other was very nice, but again, nothing has changed and I doubt it will.)

I personally know of four instances when emails from colleagues to National staff were completely ignored and never answered. One was from a student who wanted to join.

The Facebook and Twitter accounts are all ‘broadcast’ with vey little sharing of non-AMTA but still industry-related information and with very little response to or interaction with members. The tone is dry and non-personable. I have no idea who even manages the account.

There is no real blog. There was one, briefly, sort-of. It was not very good.

The National AMTA’s complacent, boring, stagnant attitude towards online media will be it’s undoing. There is another organization kicking ass at online communications. Their social media outlets are being managed by a person who is fun, lively, and participates in Twitter chats, reads current and popular blogs, promotes industry-wide education and information even though it is not specific to that organization. I know this guy by name. I can tell you his hobbies. He brings useful information and ideas to online conversations. He clearly cares about the industry as a whole, not just his organization’s place in it. He gets that online interaction doesn’t just occur Monday through Friday, 9am-5pm.  And because that organization has embraced online communication technology and empowered their staff member(s) to utilize it, they will continue to grow. Oh, and their president has a wonderful blog.

In Portland I ended up in a heated conversation with some friends. I was told I didn’t have enough experience, and until I was willing to learn and navigate the bureaucracy, I may as well shut up. (Totally my wording here. I’m still pissed about the conversation. Clearly.) I was told that, “You young people want to complain, but you don’t want to work to make the change.” I was told that my 4 years of volunteer service at the state and regional level and the free marketing consultation time I gave National didn’t amount to a hill of beans next to someone else’s 20 years of volunteering. I was told the National Staff doesn’t work for me, the individual member. It was implied that my opinion didn’t matter, I didn’t demonstrate a true desire to help make positive change because I didn’t spend a day watching the Board of Directors proceedings in Portland. (I’ve been told my recollection of this conversation is incorrect. Nonetheless, this is the feeling I was left with.)

Just before I bolted from that room someone else said, “Twitter will not save this organization.” No shit. But if you think it’s about Twitter, you are living in a cave. It’s about transparency. It’s about truly understanding the needs of the membership, (and not portraying a free credit card reader for a smartphone as a kick-ass member benefit when everyone on the planet gets one for free.) It’s about responding in a timely manner to any and all member communications. It’s about the attitude of a staff member that doesn’t care, in such an obvious way that a member senses it.

Online communication is my thing. I think participation in the latest communication and education venues can make or break any business endeavor, relationship or industry. If it’s not your thing, I respect that. You can ask any question you want to the candidates, provided you can find them. Good luck with that.

No doubt I’ll get a zillion messages saying ‘If you have so many problems with the AMTA, why be a member?” Because my state chapter is amazing. A-MAZE-ING. Phenomenal. Thoughtful, generous, forward-thinking individuals who make the lives of every massage therapist in Massachusetts easier and better. That’s my AMTA. That’s why I’m remaining a member. There are many more reasons I’m a member, I’ve covered them before. I’m not a hater. I’m not a non-participatory whiner.

I’m a member and a voter. The future of the AMTA matters to me. I think embracing social media, video, webinars, blogs and the like are the best chance we have at reaching non-involved members. It’s our best shot at truly finding out their needs and satisfying more of them. It’s the best way to build our community.  And that’s why I asked about the candidate’s feeling towards Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn, their feelings about its uses and the value of training staff and National level volunteers properly.

I hope you vote. I will. I hope it matters.

Added 11/4- The comments are getting off-track and I feel the need to add this note and rein it back in. This post is not an AMTA vs ABMP rant (I’m a member of both). Nor is it mindless whining about AMTA national. If that’s all you see, I’m sorry. 

I asked a question to the candidates. To me, it’s the most important question I could ask and the answers are crucial to the future of the AMTA. I used my personal, real-life examples to demonstrate why I feel this question is vital. This is entirely subjective. Please keep comments relevant to that theme.

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-or-I’ve got a blog and I can use it for this. Yay!

There’s been a great deal of talk lately about mentors and the value of gathering with colleagues. We’ve discussed coaches and the like and we’ve waxed poetic about conventions. I’ve decided to celebrate National Massage Therapy Awareness week with a tribute to My Greg. You’ve probably read bits and pieces of our story, because I blather about him a lot, but recently I wrote the full story for another project, and I wanted to share it with you.

Greg Hurd is a teacher and administrator at Bancroft School of Massage Therapy. He was my business teacher during the program and is the alumni coordinator as well. I was so very nervous about the mechanics of starting my own business, but he made understanding business plans and finances exciting and fun. It was apparent from the very first class that he reveled in the success of graduates and was genuinely thrilled to be laying the groundwork for that success.

Shortly after I graduated, I had a difficult experience with an employer involving ethical concerns. Even though we hadn’t had much communication since I graduated, Greg was my first call. He helped me examine the situation with appropriate perspective and make decisions about my employment with a clear head and solid reasoning.

Greg and I began to communicate regularly via phone and email, he would answer my business-building questions and we would discuss all things massage-related.

Early the next year I attended the AMTA New England Regional Conference and Greg introduced me to the Massachusetts Chapter leadership and so many colleagues. It was exciting and fun and a bit overwhelming, but he guided me through the conference and made me feel at home. The very next week, Greg and I became representatives for the Massachusetts Chapter on the conference planning committee, and I joined the education committee for the Massachusetts Chapter (Greg was the Chairperson).

Greg was already my mentor for massage business building, and he further became my mentor in service to other massage therapists. Over the next 4 years we created wonderful educational opportunities for our colleagues in New England. Also, my private massage business flourished and expanded, with his subtle but strong guidance.

Some months will involve a few phone calls and a meal together to discuss business building. Busier months will see weekly phone calls and a few meetings together. Greg’s feedback has been invaluable to me and the growth of my business. He gives a perspective cultivated from decades of experience in the industry. He is knowledgeable about all types and sizes of massage businesses, he understand the intricacies of each and his guidance has always been reflective of that vast foundation of knowledge. In business classes at massage school, I felt too naïve to even know what questions to ask. As I grew and my questions formulated and became more complex, Greg’s counsel became even more valuable.

As a new therapist and volunteer, I struggled to effectively communicate and work with the different personalities of clients and colleagues alike. Greg has never failed to provide effective and useful ideas for dealing with people, meeting them where they are at and achieving the successful, desired outcome. For me, the most important factor in our mentoring relationship is knowing that Greg will tell me when I am wrong. He will gently point out how I may have mishandled a situation, how I can repair it, and give me ideas on how I can avoid repeating the error. He is strong in his recommendations and gentle in the delivery of the suggested action. I have no doubt that Greg’s guidance has made me a kinder, more effective therapist, colleague and friend.

Greg’s dedication to the massage profession is apparent in his work and personal life. He regularly takes current students to local athletic events to learn and be out representing the profession. He attends career fairs at high schools, not only to talk about the career of massage but to help create future massage clients. He is a passionate about educating the general public about the benefits of massage and its value in health and wellness care.

Greg spends a great deal of time volunteering for the AMTA, and is responsible for igniting that fire in me. Together, we chaired the 2011 New England Regional Conference, hosting a full exhibit hall and 400 attendees, all passionate about our work and its potential to enrich lives and change communities. Greg encouraged me to learn about the positions of Delegate at the AMTA National Convention. It’s so easy to be complacent and apathetic about the function of our organization. He helped me see how important it is to be a part of the process, to contribute to the discussions and changes.

Greg is impeccable in how he represents the massage field. He is highly ethical, unwaveringly compassionate and thoughtful to clients and colleagues alike. He is truly interested in people, their goals and their journeys.

I would not be the massage therapist, volunteer or friend I am today if not for the guidance of Greg Hurd. It is especially heartening to know that so many of my colleagues feel the same way. His enthusiasm and generosity with his time and skills has inspired and touched so many people. He is the model of what a mentor should be, a trusted advisor and skilled leader.

So thanks, Greg.

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There’s a thing that happens at AMTA National Conventions with fancy pins. Many state chapters have pins made to represent their state, and people collect them. And by ‘collect’ I mean ‘excessively hoard, trade and wear in a compulsive fashion. The collecting is especially hot and heavy in the House of Delegates meetings, when people race around before the meeting starts to trade and compare. I’m not a big fan of pins. But I don’t really like any jewelry, so I don’t blame the pins.

However, this video makes me reconsider the whole pin phenomena.

Shout out to Annie Lacroix for being brilliant.

If you’re looking for the deep philosophical wisdom in these post, here ya go: Going to these events can be tough. They’re exhausting. I miss my own bed. I miss my clients and the money I could be earning. But knowing these super cool people who share my love for this business and getting to learn and play and relax together, well, that’s just priceless.

(And if you haven’t seen this, please do so immediately.)

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-or- Making more money & giving fewer discounts

I got a great email the other day with a fabulous question from Leishaan:

My sister helped me design my business cards and thought it would be a good idea to put a punch card on the back: come in for 5 massages and get 6th for 1/2 off.  I charge $50. This is my 7th year of massage, 3rd year full time and I’ve never raised my prices.  My regulars love the punch card, but I’m not so stoked on it. I’m thinking I should change to $5 or $10 off 6th massage, not half.  Also, seriously considering raising price to $55.  I’ve added Soapvault and Schedulicity to my costs. I’m kinda banging my head to figure out what to do.

I think the answer is here: “I’m not so stoked on it.” If you’re no longer cozy with the deal, change it. Don’t offer discounts that make you uncomfortable. Period.

How should you handle the discontinuation of this deal? Get new business cards without the deal. Inform your current clients that you will no longer be offering that deal, but I would consider letting them use up any cards they’ve already started. Maybe put a time limit on it, something like 6 months so people who have just started a card have plenty of time to finish it without feeling like they got tricked. Offer some new package pricing that rewards people who come in regularly. Resist the urge to dramatically reduce a package price, I like something 5 to 7 % off, whatever works out to a round number. Or, if you feel strongly about continuing a punch card deal, perhaps change it to upgrading the final massage by 30 minutes, rather than giving a financial bonus. Remember, these people already like your services. You just want to reward loyalty, you don’t have to entice them to buy your service. You did that already. If anyone gives you grief (they likely won’t, but it’s always nice to have a script ready) just say, “I loved offering that deal when I was building my business, but it’s really outlived its usefulness. Instead I’m offering this new package pricing!” That’s it. No excuses or apologies.

Now, about the pricing change. I think it is indeed time. If you’ve been doing this for seven years, I would bet your skills have improved and increased dramatically. Your rates should reflect that. (Also, I happened to look up Leishaan and she was voted “Best Massage Therapist” in her area a few years ago. Clearly, people appreciate her skills.) Increasing your rates can be hard to do, it can feel awkward to explain to current clients. If you use email to communicate with your clients, put the new pricing in an email, give them at least 30 days notice (I like 60 days) and perhaps the opportunity to buy a package at the old pricing. Put up signs in your office and tell people when they see you that the price will increase at their next appointment. (And I looked up the typical rates for MT’s in Leishaan’s area, I think she should raise to $60/hour at least.) Yes, you may lose a few clients. But you’ll likely end up working less and making the same amount of money, or as you take on new clients, making more money as you re-grow.

I also noticed that Leishaan offers a considerable discount for senior citizens. Love it. Remember that increasing your prices (and your income) will give you more time and financial freedom to offer those types of discounts. I personally love working with kids, so I offer a pediatric rate, and I donate time regularly to a local school for children with Autism Spectrum Disorders.

Take this opportunity to look at everything you offer. Are there therapies you have offered as complimentary that are increasing your expenses? <<cough>> aromatherapy <<shrug>>. Consider that. Perhaps you can still offer a complimentary version, but also have an upgrade to a super-special version with a take-home item. <<eyebrow raise>> Add 15 minutes, and $20, for extra aromatherapy foot massage and a 2 ounce bottle of fancy foot cream? <<wink>>

And hey, are there any therapies you currently offer that you don’t like really doing? Stop. Take them off your menu and have someone in mind to refer to for clients who want that modality. Now’s your chance.

There will always be a few clients who grumble, change is tough. But it’s more likely that that bulk of your regulars will say, “Good for you, it’s about time you get a raise!”

If you don’t feel confident that your skills match your pricing, neither will your clients. Confidence is key. You don’t need to talk about the increase in expenses. Your personal reasons for wanting to make more money are nobody’s business. Simply say, “I’ve been a massage therapist for 7 years and I think this pricing better reflects my skill level.” Before you sit down to refigure your pricing, read through all those testimonials. Look at all your education certificates. Sleep with that “Best Massage Therapist” plaque under your pillow (don’t really do that, you might drool on it).

You are skilled. You are worthy. Go make some money & save the world.

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episode 4, presenters don’t work for free

Michael Reynolds and I spend far too much time whining about and repeatedly explaining our quirks about online marketing, so we decided to record some chats about why we think these details matter. Enjoy!

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You asked for it! My thoughts on enforcing a cancellation policy, and some highlights below.

Be clear about your policy. Decide what it is, 24 or 48 hours, etc. and make it very well known. List it on your website and brochure. If clients schedule appointments by email or online scheduling systems, make sure it appears in all email communications. Verbally explain it when new clients schedule by phone, and better yet, send confirmation emails to all new clients that include directions to your office, the cancellation policy and any other office policies you may have.

Have clients sign or initial to acknowledge receipt and explanation of your cancellation policy.

Decide when you will enforce it. Will you make exceptions when a client is sick? For weather situations that make travel dangerous? Decide. Having guidelines created ahead of time will help you when the situation comes up.

Enforce it. Every time. Say, “I’m so sorry you missed your schedule appointment. I would love to get you scheduled for another. But first, I do need to charge you for the appointment you missed. Would you prefer to give me a credit card number over the phone, or drop a check in my mailbox this week?”

What if the client resists and doesn’t want to pay for the missed appointment? Let go of the client. Simply say, “I’m so sorry you feel that way. However, it’s important to me that my time at work be accounted for, so I choose to enforce the cancellation policy. If you don’t want to comply with that policy, I understand that you’ll want to find another massage therapist.”

(Did you catch that? You don’t ‘have’ or ‘need’ to enforce it. You ‘choose’ to. Just like you may ‘choose’ to make exceptions, but you never ‘need’ to.)

Don’t argue about money, or need or details. Don’t get sucked into someone else’s drama. You can be kind and say, “If you need more flexibility in scheduling, I’m just not the best massage therapist for you.” It’s a bad match, just let it go.

Remember: if you enforce the policy regularly, you’ll build a clientele who will self-regulate, not miss appointments or automatically pay you when they do. That will free you up financially and mentally to make exceptions when you want to. It works both ways.

PS- This ‘getting comfortable with uncomfortable conversations’ bit comes from a conversation with a friend about how to navigate romantic entanglements. And it’s useful in EVERY aspect of one’s life. Just let that simmer for awhile.

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episode 3, get a blog already

Michael Reynolds and I spend far too much time whining about and repeatedly explaining our quirks about online marketing, so we decided to record some chats about why we think these details matter. Enjoy!

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