Finding Balance

Happy Valentine’s Day! Hearts and cupid notwithstanding, today is one of those special days of the year to let others know you are thinking about them. That’s what makes today special to me. We all want to know that someone cares. The nice part is that you can help your customers convey that message. A great way to tell someone you care is to treat them to a massage or skincare treatment.

We all know that a place can impact how we feel but often times we underestimate that influence. According to the book Sacred Spaces by Denise Linn “you cannot separate the purpose of your livelihood from the space you occupy to fulfill it”. In other words your space expresses concretely how you feel about your work, yourself and your clients. Trust me, in all the years of consulting I have walked into more than a few spaces that either impressed or horrified me by their message.

Getting up in the morning and going to work does not seem to be an issue for most of you. In fact, it’s quite the opposite. What I hear from so many of you at trade shows is how much you love your work especially because you feel you are making a difference.

In an unprecedented move the American Massage Conference has officially expanded to 3 conferences in one by adding education and vendor space for massage, chiropractic and acupuncture!  The producers have created a trifecta of conferences all happening simultaneously April 20th, 21st & 22nd at the Town and Country Resort in San Diego, California.

Last Thursday, my vet called in two prescriptions to my local drug store for one of my dogs. Fortunately it’s not a serious problem, but something that does need treatment. I followed up later in the day to find out when the prescriptions would be ready.  It should have been a simple call but there were problems. Whoever initially took down the prescriptions got my dog’s name wrong; and then there was an issue about one of the pills, which was a refill.

Over the years I have dedicated myself to being an effective therapist for Active Aging Adults. I have now reached the point my books are consistently full and if I’m going to continue to expand I need to fine tune. As most of you know, it’s easy for this type of intense work to become out of balance. I love it and would never give it up, so this year my focus is on incorporating Zest into my life and my practice.

Here we are once again off to the start of a brand new year. I always enjoy the anticipation of what lies ahead. Some things reoccur annually, so I pencil those in right away on my Day Timer. But there’s still a lot of time and time slots waiting to be illed. And that brings me to the point of my first blog of the New Year. What’s in store for you in 2012? Is it going to be pretty much a repeat of 2011 or is the year the year when you plan to try something new with your business. Call it a reinvention or maybe just a refresh, but the demands of the market and your clients – not to mention your own personal and professional aspirations – require doing something differently.

As a massage therapist and business owner I think itis important to stay up to date on the type of therapies being offered by mycompetitors. It is easy enough to do aninternet search to check out therapy menus or CE offerings, but my favorite wayto accomplish this goal is to book an appointment. Now I love my regular therapist, but withoutquestion I gain a competitive edge by educating myself in regard to what myfellow therapists are doing in session.

Three years ago, a friend who lives out of town sent me a digital picture frame for a Christmas gift. I remember being very excited about the gift and looked forward to setting it up so my life could truly flash before me. Photos from the last six or more years are digital so that makes loading them on the little card that comes with the picture frame very easy. But I also have a lot of prints. I could probably set aside a month of my life scanning 24/7 to get all of my prints converted to digital format.