Make the Most of Massage

Author: Mark Liskey

  • 1st International Take Care of You School Event for Massage Therapists

    1st International Take Care of You School Event for Massage Therapists

    The MT Revolution didn’t happen overnight. Counting our combined massage experience, it took Krista Dicks (Radical RMT podcast) and me forty-plus years to get here. During that time, we learned how take care of ourselves in certain ways. For instance, I figured out how to massage pain-free.  But as valuable as massaging pain-free is, it didn’t help me with depleted energy reserves or a priority list that didn’t include the things that were important to me.

    Last year, after Krista interviewed me on her podcast, we talked about how we only had pieces of the self-care puzzle and not a comprehensive understanding of what it meant to truly take care of ourselves. Immediately we realized that we weren’t alone. Listeners of The Radical RMT and you all had the same questions and challenges.

    So what was stopping us from bringing together a curated group of experts to frame self-care in a way that is comprehensive, accessible, and practical, so that massage therapists can start to change their lives right now?

    Absolutely nothing.

    So we did.

    Enter the Take Care of You School Event for Massage Therapists on April 9, 2022.

    But here’s the thing: Two people do not make a revolution.

    We need you.

    So if it’s getting hard to think about continuing to live a life where you’re always putting other people ahead of you, then we only have one thing left to say:

    Welcome to the revolution.

     

  • How to Protect Your Time and Make Money Doing Massage

    How to Protect Your Time and Make Money Doing Massage

    I was caught in a massage catch 22.

    Initially, massage gave me freedom (time to do what I wanted to do), but not much money. And then when I started chasing the money, I lost my freedom.

    It took me many years before I discovered another way where I could have both freedom and money doing massage.

    What’s the way?

    Going all in.

    It seems counter-intuitive, I know.

    But it works.

    This is how it went down for me.

    My Massage Catch 22

    When I first started massage I didn’t invest a whole lot of time into my business and this is what occurred:

    Minimal time investment = not many dollars.

    I had plenty of freedom (time), but not plenty of money.

    Then I kicked up my time investment a notch and I got this result:

    Moderate time investment = a moderate income increase.

    The good news was that I still had more freedom than my friends working 9 to 5s, but much less time than I did when I was making less money.

    To be honest, I wasn’t any happier with a moderate income increase because in order to keep that increase, I had to make a moderate time investment each and every day.

    So, I’d bounce back and forth between minimal and moderate time investments without being happy with either one.

    Massage Catch 22 Revisited

    As time went on I had to face the reality of either making more money doing massage or finding another career.

    So, I thought what if I just went all in, like seriously all in, no-holds-barred.

    I did.

    And to my surprise, this is what happened:

    3. A lot of time invested = a lot more money  + time back.

    No More Massage Catch 22

    It sounds backwards, but it’s not.

    Going all in is front-loaded.

    You lose a lot of time at first because you hand over huge chunks of time to generate clients BUT once your business is really cranking, you can reclaim your time back.

    For me, I spent many months working my butt off to generate more business.

    I was doing demo massages, business events and running massage specials.

    I got my website updated and I fixed my SEO.

    For a while, I was so busy I could barely keep up with clients coming in and my marketing efforts.

    I was back to the massage catch 22.

    More money, but no time.

    Again, the time investment didn’t seem worth it.

    But after about 8 months, I noticed a shift in my business.

    Clients were coming in steadily. And the drastic, weekly ups-and-downs were gone.

    Hmm…I wonder what would happen if I did less demo massages and other promotional stuff and just focused on what was working to generate clients?

    What happened was my business remained steady AND I could start to reclaim my time because I didn’t have to chase down clients any longer.

    Before you go checking my About Page, let me just tell you, I’m not special.

    Other MTs do this, too.

    In fact, one of MT friends has gotten to the point where she goes away for 3 months and returns to a very busy practice.

    Are you in a massage catch 22?

    Damn the torpedoes, full speed ahead!

    Go all in.

    There’s no doubt that going all in will be frustrating at first.

    You’re going to be thinking that you’re wasting your time because you’re not going to see a big bump in income immediately.

    But then you’ll have a really good week.

    Then a couple weeks later, you’ll have another good one. And over the next few months, the good weeks will get closer together.

    At this point, it’s time to double-down on the referral sources that are working and to shelve the ones that aren’t.

    Boom! You gain some time back.

    And within a few more months you’ll have good, predictable and steady income.

    But you’re not done.

    Put those key referral sources on maintenance mode. Voila! Even more time back!

    This article will help you get started going all in.

    And if you need more help, sign up for my email group.

    I’ll send you my latest everything about making more money and staying out of pain.

    It’s free.

    Sign up here:-)

     

     

  • The Key to Massage Longevity: Massage Options

    The Key to Massage Longevity: Massage Options

    Here’s the foundation to staying out of pain when doing massage: massage options (as in different ways to get the job done).

    I’m not talking about advanced massage techniques here.

    I’m talking about options for pressing, gliding, squeezing, stretching and vibrating soft tissue without causing yourself pain.

    For example, say you were taught to use your thumb to press on tight areas. Six months into massage you get pretty good with your thumb and it becomes waaaay comfortable to do, right?

    But guess what happens in a year?

    Your thumb hurts (trust me).

    Now what?

    Well, if you continue to be a one-trick-pony you’ll soon be talking about massage like this: “Back in the day, when I did massage….”

    Here’s an alternative to burning out your thumb(s): You find other options to pressing with your thumb, like two thumbs barred together, one thumb over a thumb, knuckle(s), knuckle and a thumb together, massage tools (like a T-bar, L-bar, My Precious, TheraPress, Effleurage T-bar, JackNobber II, Pointer) and the list goes on.

    But I need to be honest, having more massage options is not easy to do.

    In fact, here’s what’s probably going to happen. You’ll be gung-ho about finding more massage options.  Then you’ll do this.

    Nothing.

    No judgment here.

    I was the king of doing nothing when it came to acquiring more massage options.

    For one, I didn’t know what to try. And, two, I was afraid to try anything.

    Here’s how I changed that.

    To address “what to try” I broke down massage options into three categories: 1. Pressing, 2. Gliding, 3. Squeezing. Then I started experimenting.

    To get you started experimenting, I’m going to offer an alternative option to the traditional way of pressing, gliding and squeezing. Think of my suggestions as fodder to fuel your experimentation so that you can come up with your own strategies and techniques that work best for you.

    Pressing Option

    Instead of pressing with your thumbs use a massage tool. Here’s an example of what I mean:

    Gliding Option

    Instead of gliding with your palms or forearms, try fists.

    Squeezing Option

    Instead of squeezing with one hand, do a two-handed press.

    So, go ahead try one…I’ll wait…anytime…just pick up that massage tool…or put your fists down on that back…or press that trap between your knuckle and thumb…hmm…not happening, is it?

    I know, you’re afraid. 

    I was, too–because a mistake would mess up my flow.

    Here’s how my brain played out me interrupting the flow of the massage: I’m massaging along…I find a tight spot…I pick up the massage tool and jab it into the tight spot and the client screams, then gives me a bad review on Yelp…I lose my confidence, close my office and start hording cats…at least, they won’t know how crappy of a massage therapist I once was…

    Flow is everything to a relaxation massage, right? Mess up the flow and you mess up the massage.

    But is that really true?

    I mean, yeah if you’re doing a herky-jerky massage, absolutely. But if you have a couple of hiccups, no way.

    You can always get back in the flow AND you can practically avoid any flow interruptions while gaining more massage options by first (1) working on friends and colleagues, (2) working on a client who you can get feedback from without disrupting the massage, (3) initially trying out the new technique for a very short period of time (seconds). 

    Okay, we got flow under control, what else do you need to know?

    How about how many massage options do you need?

    More than when you started massage.

    More than 6 months ago.

    More than a month ago.

    In other words, the “more” should never stop.

    The more massage options you have, the less likely you are to overuse a joint or muscle. And the more prepared you’ll be to deal with adversity, like an injury or challenge.

    How to Deliver Deep Pressure Without Hurting Yourself

    Don’t over-think massage options.

    Try some of the options that I’ve suggested and get your brain churning.

    If you need more help, email me. I’m here to help:-)

    I also have a book and online, home-study classes.  

     

     

  • Advanced Dreaming: Take the Hard Road

    Advanced Dreaming: Take the Hard Road

    You are a massage therapist and a  ________. Many massage therapists in the United States fill that blank in with an additional occupation.

    But how many of us would like to fill that blank in with a dream job?

    I’m a massage therapist and I own a massage business.

    I’m a massage therapist and a bestselling writer.

    I’m a massage therapist and I opened a wellness center.

    I’m a massage therapist and my album just went to #1.

    Oh, no, Mark, you’re not going to sucker me into a dream only so that dream can be dashed.

    Yep…but, hopefully, without the dash-ing part.

    And honestly, I’m really not suckering you in.

    You’ve been done sucked in for a long time.

    Why am I so sure of that?

    Cuz you’re still reading.

    So, come on…just say it…don’t be the Fonz…admit it when you’re wrong…you’re a dreamer.

    It’s okay.

    This boy is a dreamer, too, and I’ll show you how it’s going to be okay, meaning no more dashed dreams.

    Yeah, that’s a big statement.

    Dashed Dream Correction Factor

    Let’s take an honest look at these dashed dreams. Most dashed dreams are dreams never tried, right?

    Like 99.99%.

    Now what about the 0.01%, the time that you really tried, but you had to roll over, give up, retreat, retire, call it day and accept your life as it is?

    Yeah, let’s talk about that one.

    For one, was it really over?

    I’ll go first. I want a website (this one) to reach tens of thousands of massage therapists across the globe.

    And my Google analytics SAYS: Uh, seriously not there, buddy.

    My dream is dashed.

    Or is it?

    My readership is growing every day.

    My monthly views continue to go up.

    And in general all analytics are heading in the right direction.

    I’m gonna say dream in progress. Not dashed.

    How did I NOT dash this dream so far?

    When there was a fork in the dream road and I went the right way—not because I’m smart.

    I took the right road because I had taken the wrong road sooooo many times.

    And I hate to say this, but you probably already missed the fork in the road.

    It looks like this: You’re on your dream road and you come to a fork. One road sign says “Instead Of”. The other road sign says “In Addition To”.

    Okay, Mark, this is not making a lot of sense.

    And I’m going to make it more confusing by going way back to this sentence: Massage therapist + ________.

    You remember that sentence, right? That’s when you stuck your dream job into the blank.

    Do it again.

    Good.

    You’re at the crossroads.

    Yeah, seriously, that fast.

    Is your dream going to be pursued in an “instead of” or in an “in addition to” way?

    Are you going to write that novel instead of taking on more massage clients to pay for the writing class?

    Or are you going to write than novel in addition to taking on more clients to pay for that writing class?

    “In addition to” is the harder road, but the road that will give you the best chance of making your dream come true.

    “In addition to” does three things that “instead of” can’t.

    In Addition To Advantage

    In addition to…
    1. …forces you to be selective with the dream you choose to follow.

    Why?

    Because “in addition to” requires a huge time commitment so it’s a natural filter for dreams that don’t drive you.

    2. …covers your financial base until the dream job starts making money.

    You may be getting less sleep, but you’re not making less money when you go down the “in addition to” road.

    This is important because dreams take time. If you cut back with or bagged your current job and went all in with your dream, you may run out of money before your dream job starts making money.

    3. …gives you enough time to determine whether the dream is worth pursuing or not.

    Because you’re not dropping everything and following your dream job you are taking the long road. You’ll see progress, but not as much as you want to see. Is that okay with you?

    Believe it or not, that’s a great spot to be in. Because you will have some victories under your belt along the way AND a true sense of how hard it’s going to be to make your dream come true.

    Now, at every questioning moment along the way, you can make an informed decision as to whether you want to carry on.

    Okay, good luck.

    Of course, I’m kidding. Dreamers don’t abandon dreamers.

    First, let’s recap.

    The Hard Road Recap

    Think about traveling the “in addition to” road when pursuing a dream job.

    When you do you’re more likely to pick the dream that you can stand behind, your bills will be covered, and you’ll have enough time to make an informed decision.

    And when you need a little, extra push, check out Advanced Dreaming: I Live in Philly. 

    Also, you may want to join my email group.

    You get my latest on dreaming, making money and saving your body.

    It’s free:-)

    Does your dream have a website?

    I can help you with that.

    Here’s a DIY guide that will allow you to build a website fast.

    If you need more assistance, email me and I’ll help you get your website set up.