Issue link: https://www.massageandbodyworkdigital.com/i/230373
best practices BUSINESS SIDE The CEO of You, Inc. Skills for Becoming a Successful Entrepreneur By Les Sweeney, NCTM, and Kristin Coverly, RMT KRISTIN COVERLY: So, Les, something that comes up a lot working with therapists over the years, and now teaching at the ABMP BizFit Live: Successful Practice Workshops, is their fear of stepping into the business manager role and taking on all of the duties of managing and marketing a private practice. They're bodyworkers because they want to help people, and they have their own practices because they want the flexibility that comes with that. The flip side of having your own practice, though, is someone needs to manage and market that practice on a regular basis. LES SWEENEY: We know many therapists don't enter the field with a resume full of sales and business expertise. And most people become massage and bodywork professionals because they want to help others. But the rent doesn't care, Kristin—and neither does your cell phone bill, insurance premium, and car payment. Most of us can't afford to go without income. I think the viewpoint we can emphasize— and individual practitioners would benefit from adopting—is that each therapist is a small business, of which they are the chief executive officer (CEO). Now, many therapists would say, "Yes, and I am also the laundry guy, and the cleaning lady, and the receptionist." To which I would say, "Of course you are." The most important word in the phrase "be your own boss" is boss. The buck stops with you. There are 22 million self-employed individuals in the United States. That means there are 22 million CEOs. 28 massage & bodywork january/february 2014