Issue link: https://www.massageandbodyworkdigital.com/i/694071
Continuing Education: Choose Wisely Most of us are required to obtain a certain number of hours of continuing education every year, but choosing that coursework wisely can mean the difference between simply checking a licensing requirement off the list and actually journeying into a whole new arena of professional enrichment and practice expansion. When looking for continuing education courses, always look for curriculum that can assist you in prolonging your career. Classes that teach less physically taxing modalities become more and more important to MTs with each additional year. Water Down Exertion with Hydrotherapy Hydrotherapy is an invaluable way to prolong your career. The application of moist heat to muscles prior to the implementation of manual work can help our massage strokes go deeper more quickly, which can help us accomplish more in less time. Not only does this require less elbow grease on our part, but the ability to satisfy our clients' needs in less time will keep them coming back for many years to come. Sell Your Smarts Another innovative way to enliven and extend your career is to diversify your practice by exploring other, less physically intensive revenue streams. This essentially means developing ways to earn income by charging for your knowledge, experience, and expertise rather than exclusively for your bodily exertion. We all set our massage rates in accordance with our level of expertise, but it can also be helpful to consider ways in which you can get paid to provide your expertise through education. The name of the game with this strategy is to profit from the power of your brain rather than your brawn. This angle can take many forms, including organizing and charging for informational seminars (geared either toward clients or other practitioners); writing articles for professional publications; contributing educational pieces to local health and wellness periodicals; or hiring oneself out to other practitioners or spas as a coach, consultant, or mentor. Many MTs are motivated to obtain their teaching credentials (as I have done) so they can teach at their local massage schools and/or teach continuing education classes. Another teaching opportunity is offered by community colleges and universities that have professional development or personal enrichment programs. Designing and teaching a course to colleagues or the general public through one of these programs can be a lucrative part- time endeavor and can also put you in touch with prospective mentoring and massage clients. Andrea Fleming, owner of Green Lotus Bodyworks in Austin, Texas, has found designing and teaching continuing education courses to be an integral element of her 12-year massage career. "After many years of practice, my business has become somewhat sparse during the summers, since I have many regular clients who travel during that time," she says. "Now, I fill in my summers by providing small continuing education classes and mentoring students in reiki. The flexibility and diversity that teaching is able to bring into my practice has been a welcome development in my career." Invest In Self-Care Thankfully, self-care is a topic that enjoys a prominent role in most massage therapy education programs. We are fortunate that our predecessors in the industry have identified the real need for self-care education and have insisted on its inclusion in our vocational training. Vicky L. Bryant, an MT in private practice at Bodywork Dynamics & Massage in Concord, North Carolina, has fortified her career longevity for the past eight years by adhering to her own formula for success, the foundation of which is self-care. "Longevity is vital for me in this amazing industry. Therefore, I follow my personal three S's. Self-care is critical, because if I don't take care of myself, I am of no service to my clients. Schedule effectively, affording enough time between clients and embracing my limits regarding how many clients I see in a day or a week. Smile a lot, because this work is designed to be fun, so I welcome joy and gratitude into every session I perform." Self-care encompasses not only employment of proper ergonomics, but also maintenance of healthy boundaries; the ability to be nurturing to ourselves and to embrace our own limitations; and the ability to recognize our own need to unplug periodically, step away from our work, and enjoy whatever leisure activities that bring us joy. Another important element of self-care involves reflecting on what it was that attracted us to our vocation in the first place.