So I wrote last week about my experience looking for a new therapist. This post will be more geared towards the overall experience of the massage I received and what I learned from it.
To be completely honest, I didn't have really high expectations of that massage, or I just didn't know what to expect. I wonder if clients of mine have that initial feeling of unknown/uncertainty when they book their first appointment with me. It is so hard to be able to enjoy a massage just for myself, without thinking of the same experience from the shoes of one of MY clients at the same time. Throughout that last trade, I tried to keep both perspectives as balanced as I could: deeply needing someone to give MY body the attention it needed, while also receiving a massage from a stranger, and viewing it as a client-experience. I tried even harder to not take on the perspective of massage therapist. That was tough.
I was pleased to be asked to fill out an intake form, as some therapists I have traded with don't bother with that with ME, because I'm "just another massage therapist." It made me feel cared about, that she was interested in my health, and it showed me that she was professional in her work as well.
The massage, at times, felt a little bit choppy, but this particular therapist doesn't actually work as a massage therapist. Through some conversation during the massage, she told me of her role as caregiver to her aging mother. A powerful lesson I re-learned here, and hope I haven't been too lax in the past with, is to keep conversation, if any, focused on the CLIENT. I know I have read time and time again that clients don't care about massage therapists' lives, a part of me always thought, "Well, why wouldn't they care?" And maybe clients have a certain degree of concern for us, as massage therapists, but the time they spend on the table is definitely THEIR time, not ours. This experience refreshed that truth for me. To be fair, this therapist didn't talk my ear off during the session, but for me, this massage was really something that I needed to be focused on MY needs.
I think those are the only minor-complaint issues I had from this experience. I was thoroughly delighted at the number of pleasant experiences I had as well, though many of them are geared more towards massage skills. The thing this therapist did that I liked the best, was asking me if I would like more attention on any area of my back side before turning over, or on my front side before turning over another time to work on my back again. She actually had me turn from laying face down, to face up, and back to face down again. To me, that really made me feel she cared about MY needs, not as much her own personal flow of massage. The experience massage therapist in me thinks maybe she offered that in hopes of finding ways to fill my 90 minutes of requested table time that maybe she was having a hard time filling through her own routine. I didn't ask her to be sure, and I think this skill, while so greatly treasured by myself, will be tough for me to apply, because many of my sessions have a tendency to stretch a few minutes beyond their allotted and requested times anyway. Something to work towards, I guess!
A few other skills I will adapt to my use are: gently pinching the sides of each finger. I know people love hand massage, but to me, it was nothing special until I experienced this technique! And she gave me a great foot massage too, which I wonder if it is similar to my style already...? I so wish I could experience one of my OWN massages and see what it's like!
My next favorite move this therapist did, was, when ending massage at my back, she kept flowing strokes going, while progressively lightening her pressure. Ooooohhh, that felt great! It gave me a terrific floating kind of feeling! LOVED that! And a great head-massage too. Love that!
It is definitely worthwhile to be a client again once in a while. And if the therapist of mention here should read this post, please take no offense to any of it, I was very satisfied by the massage you gave me! It was so nice to feel cared for, when so much of my life is spent caring for others. Thank you so much, and I look forward to our next trade and learning from you again!
Friday, December 18, 2009
Friday, December 11, 2009
Finding A Massage Therapist--From The Client-Perspective
Usually, when I need a massage, I prefer to trade with other local LMTs. Unfortunately, my most-preferred trading partner has just recently returned to work with a booked-out schedule after having a baby, and also works the same days I do, so it really takes quite a bit out of our schedules when we trade. So I began my hunt for a new massage trading partner, and I was really surprised at how difficult this was!
I'm a Googler, so I started there... called another therapist in town, left her a message two weeks ago, and have never heard back. I'll spare mentioning her name here, but if you ask, I won't hold back. Poor way to keep your reputation, if you ask me. I called a few other places, but even as someone experienced in massage, I felt a little awkward to leave a message when I didn't get an answer, so I hung up. I wonder what other prospective clients might do in this situation?
Thanks to my inside advantage of massage, I know of massagetherapy.com's therapist finder, so my search continued there. I don't want to drive far for my massage, so I limited my search to Oregon City, and I prefer trading with female therapists, so I tuned out the male therapists listed. Sorry guys, I know you're good, I just have a preference of working on women's bodies as opposed to men's when I get the choice. Found someone listed, but when I called her and scoped her website, she's actually located in Wilsonville, or somewhere else not in Oregon City. *sigh* It's a tough job trying to find a massage therapist!
Further down the line, someone actually answered her phone when I called! Success! It's amazing how nice it is to hear someone actually speaking at the other end when you call! We talked, and she was also interested in trading, woohoo!, so we scheduled our appointments.
Check back again to see how this trade turned out.
I'm a Googler, so I started there... called another therapist in town, left her a message two weeks ago, and have never heard back. I'll spare mentioning her name here, but if you ask, I won't hold back. Poor way to keep your reputation, if you ask me. I called a few other places, but even as someone experienced in massage, I felt a little awkward to leave a message when I didn't get an answer, so I hung up. I wonder what other prospective clients might do in this situation?
Thanks to my inside advantage of massage, I know of massagetherapy.com's therapist finder, so my search continued there. I don't want to drive far for my massage, so I limited my search to Oregon City, and I prefer trading with female therapists, so I tuned out the male therapists listed. Sorry guys, I know you're good, I just have a preference of working on women's bodies as opposed to men's when I get the choice. Found someone listed, but when I called her and scoped her website, she's actually located in Wilsonville, or somewhere else not in Oregon City. *sigh* It's a tough job trying to find a massage therapist!
Further down the line, someone actually answered her phone when I called! Success! It's amazing how nice it is to hear someone actually speaking at the other end when you call! We talked, and she was also interested in trading, woohoo!, so we scheduled our appointments.
Check back again to see how this trade turned out.
Thursday, December 10, 2009
Holiday Gift Certificate Special
Just a reminder about my Holiday Gift Certificate Special going on now through Christmas. Purchase a 60 minute massage or a body wrap gift certificate and choose between adding on an additional 15 minutes massage or mini-facial for free! A 75 minute massage is the perfect session for people needing their relaxation time just as much as getting tension relieved, and you can't beat the price. My mini-facial includes cleansing, pH toner, mask, and moisturizer with some light facial massage. Buy now!
Wednesday, December 9, 2009
Bartering For Business Growth
Bartering is a fun way to obtain services from other businesses without having to unload the debit card (don't get me started on credit cards!). Bartering also helps to build business by allowing your business to reach clients/customers who may not otherwise have an interest or need in your services, but once they experience them, they are converted into walking, talking advertisers of your company. Why then, is bartering such a rarely-used marketing startegy?
My goal is to bring back the barter. Sure, there's some bartering membership programs already in place, but if you are a small business owner and don't function on a nationwide capacity and can't muster the $500 initial membership fees, then why should you be left in the dark? I see no reason.
Plenty of small business owners or self employed service providers can certainly benefit by bartering. I think this should be a first step requirement in networking. Networking is great, but just because I've met you at a networking event and heard your quick self introduction, how am I to know you really deliver quality products or services? Why not include bartering as a piece of the networking puzzle? We meet, swap introductions, you try my service, I try yours, now I'm confident in telling my clients about the great work you do, and you are able to do the same.
Do you know by talking to me that I'm a qualified massage therapist? Yes, you know I'm licensed, but what if, when giving massages, I slathered on so much oil, my clients nearly slide off the massage table, or present them with some other less-than-satisfactory massage experience? Would you know that by my self-introduction? The answer is no. I don't use excess amounts of oil, but you won't know that until you've experienced a massage from me.
I think the common networking circuit needs to be updated to allow us to make confident referrals. I can't tell you now how many networking events I have attended, heard countless self introductions, and still know nothing about many of these people/businesses. Let's work together! That's the goal in networking, yes? Help grow business by spreading the word about what we do, and being able to refer our own clients/customers to you? So let's move to the grassroots level of this goal, and start by sharing our business with each other.
My goal is to bring back the barter. Sure, there's some bartering membership programs already in place, but if you are a small business owner and don't function on a nationwide capacity and can't muster the $500 initial membership fees, then why should you be left in the dark? I see no reason.
Plenty of small business owners or self employed service providers can certainly benefit by bartering. I think this should be a first step requirement in networking. Networking is great, but just because I've met you at a networking event and heard your quick self introduction, how am I to know you really deliver quality products or services? Why not include bartering as a piece of the networking puzzle? We meet, swap introductions, you try my service, I try yours, now I'm confident in telling my clients about the great work you do, and you are able to do the same.
Do you know by talking to me that I'm a qualified massage therapist? Yes, you know I'm licensed, but what if, when giving massages, I slathered on so much oil, my clients nearly slide off the massage table, or present them with some other less-than-satisfactory massage experience? Would you know that by my self-introduction? The answer is no. I don't use excess amounts of oil, but you won't know that until you've experienced a massage from me.
I think the common networking circuit needs to be updated to allow us to make confident referrals. I can't tell you now how many networking events I have attended, heard countless self introductions, and still know nothing about many of these people/businesses. Let's work together! That's the goal in networking, yes? Help grow business by spreading the word about what we do, and being able to refer our own clients/customers to you? So let's move to the grassroots level of this goal, and start by sharing our business with each other.
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