My question is, has anyone ever thought about what happens when you have too much business?   Well I have, I do.  You see, many a day over the last 4 years I have found myself with too much business; full schedule, too many appointment requests from existing clients and inquiries from new clients.  I understand that this is a great problem to have but it can be stressful and needs to be handled professionally.

To think more positive about your practice or future practice here are a few rules to live by when you find yourself on the Most Wanted list.

Say No
Let’s just start with the hardest one, saying no.  As care givers, it is extremely difficult to say no when someone is in pain but the fact is sometimes you will be maxed out and there is just no space in your schedule.  In this case, you will have no choice but to say no.   Provide the client with your next available appointment and several options from that date, in most cases they will book and wait for you.

Keep a Cancellation List
If you are booked out several weeks, let your clients know that you will contact them if something opens up sooner.  You will never have a happier client than the one that gets in to see you 3 weeks before their scheduled appointment.

Have Referrals Ready
Don’t be afraid to give your existing clients and new inquiries a few options other than yourself.  I always tell my clients that it’s important to have a back up massage therapist.   They will appreciate your honesty, admire your confidence and almost always schedule out a future appointment at that time.

Give Self Care Recommendations
You will have the folks that simply do not want to see anyone else, in this case they have to wait for your next opening.  In the meantime, find out what is ailing them and give them self care recommendations to help alleviate their discomfort.  Even though you can’t get them on your table immediately, you can still care for them in other ways.

Stop Taking New Clients
This is the leap of faith that many small business owners are too frightened to take. But if you have a full schedule and regular clientele it will serve you better to take care of them first.  If you are constantly taking new clients, your regular clients will get bumped out of appointments and be forced to find someone else to work with.  Whereas, if you make space to cultivate your existing clientele you will end up with more regular appointments and meaningful experiences as you get to know your clients better.  If things slow down, open your practice to new clients again until business gets back up to speed.

Be Good to your Good Clients
As much as I am an advocate to saying no there are times where you have to go the extra mile for your clients and find a space for them.  In this case, you squeeze them in for a treatment, look like a hero and take extra care of yourself so that you come out stronger in the end.

When you run a professional practice and you are good at what you do, your clients will respect and understand that you are busy.  Remember to always be a resource for your clients, don’t just say ‘no’ and hang up the phone.  Actions like that will ensure a less then financially satisfying schedule.  In private practice, there will be slower times and busier times but staying positive through all experiences while caring for your clients in the best way possible will help your practice thrive.

All of my clients get the same schpeel on their first visit. “Undress to your comfort level whatever that may be….”. I’ve had everything from pants to nothing. In all seriousness, it truly does not matter to me. The comfort and security of my clients overrules anything and everything. If I have a client on the table that is not able to relax completely because they are a nervous wreck about being naked then our session will be interfered with and full effectiveness will not be reached. So the rule will always be to make sure that you, the client, are comfortable with every piece of your experience whether that means you wear nothing or something.

In the end, it’s the client’s decision but I’ve had so many questions about this I thought I would address it from my point of view. And that is, I’m a massage therapist, I work with the soft tissue of the body and my work is best when applied directly to the skin. I have am trained to be meticulous with draping so that the client who does decide for the full monty will still feel safe and respected throughout their session.

You see, before becoming a massage therapist I always hated the tipping game.  ‘He’s the owner, do you tip the owner?’ ‘How much did I tip last time?’  ‘What if I tip less by mistake, will she think I didn’t like my service?’

For me, there was always an air of confusion around tipping.  Many times I found myself thinking about it during the session which undoubtedly diminished my experience.

When I decided to become a massage therapist, I knew two things: 1) I would go into private practice 2) I would not accept gratuities.

As my education ensued, I learned more about the ancient skill of massage and felt, many times over,  it’s profound benefits.  I learned that massage is not a luxury, it is a necessity.  Everyone in my class recognized that massage therapy is health care.  We talked casually in class a few times about tipping and I think it was summed up best by one of my classmates who compared it to tipping a doctor.  Of course, it made so much sense, decision not to accept tips confirmed.

Now, I understand that this policy would be difficult to uphold in a spa, clinic type setting when the therapist is receiving a percentage of the actual cost. But for me, it made sense.  I was going into private practice.  I would have complete control over my business, my rates and my policies.  I would be collecting 100% of the fees (me and Uncle Sam that is) and I figured if I ever needed my clients to pay me more, I would simply raise my rates.

It’s been 4 years since I started my practice and I have only received positive feedback from clients about my non-tipping rule.  They respect it and they appreciate it.  I know this because they tell me all the time.

Have you always wanted to go to massage-therapy school, but didn’t think you could afford it? Is your dream of becoming a massage therapist clouded by the thoughts, “How will I pay for school? Will I qualify for financial aid? Is my credit good enough?” These are great questions, but don’t worry! Almost everyone is eligible for financial aid regardless of one’s credit history, income, marital status or filing of a tax return.

Here are the facts about funding your massage-therapy education—and the three most important steps for how to get started with your financial aid research.

Step 1-–Verify that the massage school you are looking at is accredited. View and search the Database of Accredited Postsecondary Institutions.

Step 2-–Use the Federal Student Aid forecaster online tool (called the FAFSA4caster) to learn about the financial aid process and get an early estimate of your eligibility for federal student aid. With this tool, you can answer the questions, “What is federal student aid? Who qualifies? How do you apply?”

With the FAFSA4caster you can:
• Calculate your eligibility for federal financial aid, including grants
• Reduce the time it will take to complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA), the qualifying form for all federal student financial aid

Step 3-–Find out if you qualify for financial aid. Submit a FAFSA. To start the FAFSA process, visit http://www.fafsa.ed.gov and apply as early as possible beginning Jan. 1 of each year. Schools and states also have their own deadlines, so be sure to contact the school you are interested in for exact deadline dates. (NOTE: The first “F” in FAFSA stands for “Free” and it has a “.gov” Web address. If you go to www.FAFSA.com, you can access the information, but will be charged a fee.

Most financial aid packages offered by massage-therapy schools include various types of aid, including:
• Scholarships or grants (money that does not need to be paid back)
• Loans (money that is paid back, usually at lower interest rates than other types of loans)
• Work-study (a job on campus)

Federal Student Aid, an office of the U.S. Department of Education, provides financial assistance for individuals wanting to pursue education beyond high school. Federal Student Aid administers the federal student financial assistance programs, authorized under Title IV of the Higher Education Act (HEA) of 1965. In 2006 alone, Federal Student Aid provided approximately $80 billion in new aid to nearly 10 million postsecondary students and their families.

Accredited massage therapy schools may offer the following financial aid:
• Need-based grants for students who have not earned a degree (associate’s, bachelor’s, etc.)
• Federal Student Aid
• Academic Competitiveness Grant
• Pell Grants
• Stafford Subsidized Loans
• Stafford Unsubsidized Loans
• PLUS Loans (Loans for parents of dependent students)
• In-house Financing
• Access to Scholarships

In addition, students may also qualify for:
• Veterans Administration benefits: U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs
• Vocational Rehabilitation funds: Vocational Rehabilitation State Offices
• Workforce Investment Act (formerly Job Training Partnership Act) programs: U.S. Department of Labor—Employment & Training Administration

Other sources of financial aid include state loans and grants, depending on the student’s state of residence. Your employer may also be a source of financial aid. Individual employers frequently offer education funds for employees or for retraining of employees.

Taking the time to research your financial aid options could open the doors to massage school. Believe in yourself, and make your dream of going to massage-therapy school happen.

Dr. Michael Adolph
HealthNewsDigest.com

COLUMBUS, Ohio — When it comes to relieving the nausea, pain and fatigue often associated with cancer treatments, some patients look beyond conventional remedies to alternative therapies such as acupuncture, massage and yoga.”And that’s just fine, as long as the patients let their oncologists know what they’re doing, before proceeding,” said Dr. Michael Adolph, a palliative medicine physician at the Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center, Arthur G. James Cancer Hospital and Richard J. Solove Research Institute.

“It’s always in the patient’s best interest to let their physicians know what they’re doing, so as to have the best treatment possible,” Adolph said. Complementary and alternative therapies are tools that patients may choose to promote wellness, help control symptoms and take control of what’s happening to them during their cancer experience. But not all complementary therapies can be endorsed for all patients.

Complementary medicine is used together with conventional medicine, while alternative medicine is used in place of conventional medicine. Integrative medicine combines mainstream medical therapies with complementary and alternative therapies that have been scientifically proven to be safe and effective.

“The use of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) therapies, such as vitamin and herbal supplements, along with mind-body therapies, and others, has been gaining mainstream popularity in recent years,” Adolph said.

For example, the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine, established by Congress in 1999 as part of the National Institutes of Health, supports clinical and basic science research projects in CAM, with more than $120 million in funding in 2006. Congress began funding the study and validation of CAM therapies in 1991.

“Studies have shown that up to 70 percent of cancer patients acknowledge practicing some form of CAM at their homes, including meditation, guided imagery, prayer, dietary changes and exercise in an effort to improve their quality of life,” Adolph said.

“Patients report substantial relief, and we support patients in their endeavors to cope and conquer in cancer survivorship,” said Adolph, who specializes in alleviating cancer patients’ pain and other symptoms during and after the entire course of cancer treatment. “We’re here to assist oncologists with any suffering the patients have incurred with the cancer process and treatment.”

“Many patients often are hesitant to discuss alternative methods they’re trying on their own,” Adolph said. Yet good communication between doctor and patient is key to incorporating CAM safely and successfully as part of treatment, he said.

Some herbal supplements can cause unwanted drug interactions, provoke bleeding during procedures or alter the efficacy of certain cancer-fighting drugs such as chemotherapy, Adolph said.

Carrie graduated in 1980 and continues to learn more about the profession she practices. She studied Thai massage for two months in Thailand and is certified in La Stone massage. More than 20 years after graduating from BCMT, Carrie says, “I’m so grateful I’m doing what I love.”

For over 15 years, Carried worked in chiropractic offices, gaining invaluable experience and earning enough to support her three children. “It’s a wonderful occupation for a single mother because of the flexibility.” At the same time, she built up a private practice through referrals. One of those referrals led Jorge Cisneros to her door. Jorge had been suffering from chronic back pain due to a long-time spinal problem.

Carrie will never forget the day she met Jorge. She was thrilled to have a client from Mexico and hoped that she had made him feel comfortable. After his appointment Jorge surprised her by saying, “I’d like to schedule another appointment.”

Little did Carrie know that Jorge was worried about the impression he’d make. “After arriving to my appointment I remember that I was not sure on ‘how much’ I should undress being my first massage ever. I was clueless and I didn’t want to cause a bad impression,” says Jorge. “Anyway the session went really well and I felt quite comfortable with Carrie. As she finished I knew I had to continue receiving massage. It didn’t take long to realize the benefits of massage.”

Jorge’s been a regular client of Carrie’s ever since and the intense back pain he once suffered from hasn’t returned. He’s also a recent graduate of BCMT’s 1000-Hour Certificate in Massage Therapy Program. How did this come about?

“A long time before I considered studying massage, Carrie gave me some basic massage lessons. I truly believe that Carrie was one of those people who played an important role (in my decision to apply). One of the things that I always admired from Carrie was that she seems really happy working in the massage therapy field. I also did some research on what other options I had and decided that BCMT was the best place for me based on the curriculum.”

So how does Carrie and Jorge’s story end? It doesn’t. For Carrie, Jorge and his family are like family to her and she’ll continue to do what she loves. As for Jorge, he says, “Carrie has been a mentor and an extraordinary friend by sharing her experience with me. I know for sure that I’ll keep getting massages from her for as long as I can.”

Carrie Tarran graduated from BCMT in 1980. She has a full-time practice, dividing her time between Boulder and Paonia, Colorado.

Jorge Cisneros graduated from BCMT in 2002 and has more than 1000 hours of experience working with a wide variety of people. He is currently employed by Massage Envy and has a private practice in Boulder, Colorado.

BCMT can’t win without your help and YOU can’t win if you don’t vote. So show your school some love and get a chance to win some goodies for yourself, too!

Vote today on the Massage Today website: www.massagetoday.com/msm.

A piece of this life purpose was revealed to me in the fall of 2009 when I traveled to Dharamsala, India on behalf of BCMT’s Massage for Peace service effort.   This trip was nothing less than life changing for myself, my travel mates and the incredible friends that we met along the way.  The intent of the group was to teach massage therapy to Tibetan refugees allowing them access to education, a new skill and increased hope for prosperity in their lives.  What I  found was that in many cases, I was the student.  Learning about deep compassion and forgiveness, sincere dedication to truth and enlightened thought.  Learning about their spiritual leader, His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama and their undying allegiance to him as children of his words.  This experience opened my world to this culture, their leader and a beautiful new mindset.

A client of mine recently told me about an interview on the Today Show, I wanted to share that today.  I hope that you are as captivated as I was when watching this and I hope you are as optimistic as I am about the future of our world.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=uo-pjhoYmbs

If you read my previously posted, Hidden Talents of a Massage Therapist article then you know that doubling as a DJ is required by our profession.   Switching up songs to keep the musical vibes fresh are a common pastime for any massage therapist but with Itunes Genius disc jockey duties are now officially delegated.  At this point, you’re either shaking your head and wondering how I’m surviving in such a sheltered life or like me, excited to learn more.

I found this quick tutorial online, click on the image below to view the video.  The great thing about Genius – it’s easy!  I do recommend a quick screening of the songs to make sure they are right for your clients.  I’ve been switching up my music each day for a week now and Genius has yet to steer me in the wrong direction.  Happy mixing!

Aspen, an integral member of the BCMT community, was subtle but fervent and committed to holding the top bid on her basket of choice.   At the close of the night, much to her delight she walked away with her culinary arts themed basket.  Recently, Aspen checked back in with us after using one of her prize winnings, a gift certificate to the Culinary School of the Rockies.

Thank you Aspen, for being a part of this special celebration and for sharing your experience with us.

I wanted to let you know Dave and I used our gift certificate at the Rocky Mountain Culinary school in Boulder that we won at the silent auction for the school last July.  I also wanted to let you know how much fun we had.

I remember debating about going to the fundraiser because it was held so shortly after my mom passed away and I was just not feeling up for being social.  I went and now I couldn’t be happier that I did.  Dave has a passion for cooking and it brought me so much joy to see him in a professional kitchen with a Chef.  He was able to ask her so many questions.  I, of course, will benefit in the years to come from that one little gift certificate we won the bid on.  Thank you again for the efforts put forth to make the fundraiser come together.

Take care-
Aspen