My Dream Deferred

[Pompal 09.]

Hi massage family,
well it looks like I'll have to go back to the corporate world and work full time.

I'm from Fairfield county Connecticut and its very expensive to live here.
I can't operate my massage practice and take care of household expenses.
My husband works and he takes care of the bills but he can't carry it alone anymore.

I truly love being a massage therapist and I'm very passionate about it, but I can't afford to run my practice full time anymore.
So I'll be going back to work and will only be able to to massages on the weekends.

Can anyone share some advice or encouragement? I could really use it right now.
Thanks so much,
warmD

 

[Captain Jack]

Sorry to read this WarmD. I don't know how I would feel if this situation happened to me.

If massage is truly what you love to do, is there anyway you could make enough of a living by working (doing massage) for someone else?

I really wish I had some great words of encouragement or advice.

I hope it all works out for you both.

 

[yahoo-userx]

Sorry to read this WarmD. I don't know how I would feel if this situation happened to me.

If massage is truly what you love to do, is there anyway you could make enough of a living by working (doing massage) for someone else?

I really wish I had some great words of encouragement or advice.

I hope it all works out for you both.

Thanks for responding.
I actually use to work at a wellness center, the owner let me go back in September 2005. The reason was because as she said my lack of availability. I worked there for 6 months and business had got really slow for the center, but I was booking my own appointments at my office.
Instead of her talking to me about her needing me to be their more often she was waiting for me outside the front entrance with my last paychk in her hand.

I was thinking of calling that place and asking if I could come and work for her again, but I didn't really make that much money with her anyway.

I've been checking job postings for massage therapist and there's nothing available in my area.
I've been trying to figure some stuff out.
I'll keep everyone posted.

 

[Chosen One]

Wishing you good luck. Have patience and keep your hands & heart in the game. I hope the New Year brings you opportunity! Keep your eyes & ears open for them.
Hug,
Jill/Sagetherapist

 

[MIL HOUSE MD]

WarmD,

It has seemed to be in my life that the things you need tend to find you when it is time. Hopefully this will be your case as well.

The last place you worked doesn't sound to me like a place worth trying to go back too.
I was given some good advice once while trying to find a good place to work - Don't be desperate. If you are desperate you can't make the best judgement for yourself. Going back to that job - seems desperate in a way.

Yes- please keep us posted.

 

[? ? ? Baby Mumma ? ? ?]

my dream deferred

Hi,

Dreams can be deferred for many reasons, some unclear and sad right now. I wanted to be a M.T. for 20 years but for many reasons had to have a stable job, plus there were no M.T. schools in my state at the time. Can you believe that?
When I did go to M.T. school I had the time to work three jobs{ kids were on their own} until I found a job that suited me. Had my husband's undying support and the experience I gained working at a hospital bathing people, changing dressings, holding them as they passed on, only enhanced my skills as a Therapist.

If you want to start the New Year, let's help get you up and running!
Questions:
How many people can you see on the weekend?
Will you only take people you know or will you market to general public?
How saturated is the massage market where you are located?
Will your current clients see you at your home?
What massage modality do you enjoy best?
How long was your business open?
Is your home in a rural area or in city, sub division,etc?
Do you have a S.O. or children to consider in your home business?
Your answers will help prompt us to get you started for the New Year.
Be gentle to yourself over the holidays!

 

[Skidoo]

WarmD,

I was given some good advice once while trying to find a good place to work - Don't be desperate. If you are desperate you can't make the best judgement for yourself. Going back to that job - seems desperate in a way.

Yes- please keep us posted.

Masthera,
these words spoke volumes to me.
Truly, great words to live by. I have written these words down and will keep them in my journal.

 

[Susanna M]

Hi, I know sometimes live leads us down a side road, but is there anyway you can have a plan for how long you will have to be working in suit land? I know I always feel better if I have a plan for the future. Plans can be changed if you need to but at least have an idea of when you can return to your dream. Anyways I wish you the best of luck, and hope for you that it will all come to be as you wish in the longrun.

 

[mrfrudd2006]

my dream deferred

Hi,

If you want to start the New Year, let's help get you up and running!
Questions:
How many people can you see on the weekend?
Will you only take people you know or will you market to general public?
How saturated is the massage market where you are located?
Will your current clients see you at your home?
What massage modality do you enjoy best?
How long was your business open?
Is your home in a rural area or in city, sub division,etc?
Do you have a S.O. or children to consider in your home business?
Your answers will help prompt us to get you started for the New Year.
Be gentle to yourself over the holidays!

If you want to start the New Year, let's help get you up and running!
Questions:
How many people can you see on the weekend?
I can see about 4 clients on Saturday and about 2-3 clients on Sunday, but I try not to do clients on Sundays if I can help it.

Will you only take people you know or will you market to general public?
I’ve been marketing to the general public since the beginning of 2005.
I have a website http://www.heartandsoulhands.com check it out.
Just recently I’ve been getting a lot of hits on the site and people are calling in to make appointments.

How saturated is the massage market where you are located?
Massage is moderately saturated here in Fairfield county. My city, Bridgeport is just getting a clue about how powerful massage can be to health and well-being. I’ve had some people tell me that they don’t want to get a massage b/c they’re embarrassed about showing their bodies. Then there’s others that can’t afford it, but I hear them tell me how they went up to the casino (MOHEGAN SUN or FOXWOODS) and blow their whole paycheck. I’ve learned that people will spend their money on what they want to spend it on.

However, many of the surrounding cities massage is widely accepted. I know many of you have heard of the town of Westport (Martha Stewart use of live there) or Greenwich, CT. These are very wealthy cities and spas are abundant, so many who have unlimited resources turn to such places. I try to communicate to people that I can give them more 1 on 1 personalized attention, sometimes spas fail to do that.

Will your current clients see you at your home?
I actually started at home and then found a nice office space. All my current clients have moved over to the new space with me. If I were to move back home, I feel several clients would not come back. I’m getting some new clients calling in, about 2 to 3 per week. I don’t want new clients coming to my home, it’s a safety and security issue.


What massage modality do you enjoy best?
I love doing Swedish and Deep Tissue work. I’ll be

How long was your business open?
I’ve been in business October 2004, but I was working out of my girlfriend’s hair salon. It was too noisy there and I had to share the room with her shampoo station. Not very calming and serene.

Is your home in a rural area or in city, sub division,etc?
I live in an over populated city, very urban. My massage studio is about 10 minutes from where I live in the business section of the city.

Do you have a S.O. or children to consider in your home business?
I have no children, its just me and my husband.

 

[BOMSR]

Hi family, guess what?
I had an interview today that never happened. This is the 4th time I've been trying to interview with these people. Everytime they scheduled me to come and meet with the hiring mgr they were in a meeting or going out of town.

So this told me that this is a place I don't need to be.
The in-house recruiter gave me some details about the position and it would entail 9 hr days and lots of overtime. Working 2-3 days per week until 10 or 11pm.

I just couldn't see myself working those kinds of hours and then there's my commute, it would be 30 to 45 minutes each way. I'd never see my husband and trying to work on clients during the weekends would never happen. I'd have to shut down my practice all together.

So I've decided I can't sacrifice my business like that. I've worked too hard to get it.
Now with a renewed sense of purpose I carry on. I'm going to makeup some new flyers, send out several new email campaigns and work on getting some ads.

I've surveyed some other therapist in my area and they've been successful with the Yellow Page ads, so that's my new goal for 2006.

 

[jaydens_mommy.]

My dream Deferred

Great info.! Sounds like you have your space set. I agree working in a hair salon is very noisy, and can be smelly. Glad you found a new spot.
Have you talked with your local library, city hall etc. to set up a date in the New Year to talk with people about what massage is all about etc?
Talks are a great way to let people meet you. Have you contacted Human Resource people at white collar companies to see if there is interest in coming once a month for chair massage? Focus on insurance companys, law firms, business corps.
We are so saturated with so much advertisements that we tune alot out. Studies show, for every three times people see adds/marketing, they tune out two of them. What does that mean for us? That means you must repeat market 27 times before it saturates people's brains! I know that's a lot of marketing but it will pay off.
What special things do you have to make the session comfortable? I have a table warmer, paraffin for hands, hot towel cabi, heated stones always available, just to try one on the back, heated towel rack to place clothing on, and I give H20 and a cookie when they leave. What type of marketing have you done? Have you asked your clients to refer a friend and they get 15 min. extra free when the friend comes in for a session. Just thinking off the top of my head. Want this to work for you!

 

[Tattoosformyvalentine.]

Good news WarmD. I think you are being pointed in the right direction!

Good suggestions lovely day!

Best of luck to you WarmD - Keep coming with the updates!

 

[Nick M]

My Dream Deferred

So I'll be going back to work and will only be able to to massages on the weekends.

I know sometimes you can feel like a failure when something like this happens, but kep in mind, in private practice, the holidays are sometimes the slow season. I know we've been slow since October this year.

Saw your other posts in this thread too and I have to say, if you can get a job and still keep your people in your private office say M-W-F / 9-2 and Sat. all day --- or something along those lines.... a few mornings or evenings or a combination thereof, along with a second job. You may work harder, but feel better about the whole thing. At least until you get your feet back under you again. (Just a thought).

One other thing.... you may want to find a recruiter (headhunter) who can give you some leads. Usually they don't charge anything to do this.... just another idea!

Maybe consider doing a chiropractic assistant job (not massage related), or some work in a dental or medical office? Maybe you can find a wholistic MD who is hiring part time.... something like that.

Just a few thoughts, and I want you to know, I'll skim the web and if I come up with any leads, I'll send them in your direction!

 

[Candleguy:]

Hi folks,
thanks so much for the help, ideas and kind words.
I'm writing down some of the ideas and I'm going to check with a few chiro's in my area to see if they could refer their patients to me.

Another LMT friend gave me an idea to work with a few doctor's ask them if I can come into their office and do free 5 minute chair massages on their patients.

Then if I get approval, I can bring some brochures and discount coupons for those who would like to receive a full body massage at my office.