10 Tips to Become a Successful Therapist (Part II)

In Part I of this blog post, we spoke of the first 5 important tips to be a successful therapist. Choose your trainer wisely, be genuine, be professional, learn by experience and hygiene and responsibility. Let us continue to the next 5 guidelines that will help you down your career path. 

6. Learn to Market Yourself – Learn the tricks of the trade, keep your eyes open for opportunities and be creative in marketing yourself. If possible undergo training in communication and marketing in the industry. Your trainer may be able to help you with it.

7. Exercise Mindfulness – Each client will have a unique response to your therapies. Remember their responses for future reference. Notice their reactions during the therapy and change your techniques accordingly. Anticipate the need of the client and they will appreciate your thoughtfulness. More than anything else, people need to feel cared about. A therapist and client relationship should be a professional but caring one. Be empathetic towards the client and mould the techniques accordingly. Avoid being mechanical just because you do the therapies day-in-day-out. Understand that you are healing a person, not just treating them for the sake of earning money.

8. Challenge yourself – Monotonous work does make the mind dull, but you should keep the interest alive in the job. Read, research, take refresher courses and keep learning. Remain updated of the latest developments on the industry and health.

9. Network – Attend conferences and workshops and participate in discussions on social media. It not only helps increase your knowledge base, but also is useful to increase business. Do not consider others as competitors. They are all in this field because they want to heal people. Keeping this in mind, if you maintain good, honest relations with others, they are sure to reciprocate. Friends in the same field can help and guide each other out in times of need.

10. The Power is in your hands – Whether you are a hired therapist, freelancer, spa/ salon owner or even learning a therapy just for the sake of hobby, the power to uplift yourself is in your own hands. There are abundant opportunities out there to learn, grow and diversify. Do not allow yourself to become lax and follow what everyone else in the industry is doing. Be original and pour your heart and soul in everything you do.

Writer: Mr. Pinakin Shah, Founder & Trainer at Pristine Senses Academy

To learn more about Pinakin Shah's Pristine Senses Academy, click here.

10 Tips to Become a Successful Therapist (Part I)

Whether you are an employer or employee or working on a freelance basis, there are some qualities that make an exceptional therapist of you. Read on if you want to stand out of the crowd and make a sure and happy future of yourself.

1. Choose your trainer wisely – For an aspiring therapist, there is nothing worse than a ill-informed teacher. Half-baked knowledge will only make half-baked therapists who have no idea what they are doing. A trainer should be one who is always ready to answer questions, is available to you during and even after your course is over to share experiences, questions and guidance. Enrolling for a course may not be cheap, but it is a very good investment. However, like with every investment, be careful to do your homework and check if the course you are joining for is in your best interest. Read online reviews, meet the trainers beforehand, ask as many questions as you like, study the body language of the trainer and judge his / her genuineness. Take your time to decide and once you do, have full faith in your teacher.

2. Be genuine – Be honest in your interaction with your client. Do not take the client for granted. They can be even more informed and experienced than you and can make out how genuine you are. If they are happy with you, they will spread the word among family and friends and help you increase your business.

3. Be professional – If working in a spa / salon, there is no question of being unprofessional or casual. You must follow the rules of the trade, even when your boss is not looking. However, the problem arises when one is working as an individual or hobby. Many things are taken for granted. However, you can be different if you have a professional attitude. Not just the way you communicate with the client, but also your preparations, equipment, planning, etc. can be innovative and professional. For example, when going on house-calls or treating clients at your own home, keep a portable stereo with soothing music to create a mood and ambiance. Add some interesting twists or complementary additions to your therapy.

4. Learn by Experience – A trainer can only teach you the techniques and share their own experiences. However, real learning happens when you have experienced for yourself. So make sure the course you join allows you to have enough practical experience to gain confidence. Before beginning commercially, treat your family, friends and relatives for free. Get as much feedback and learning from them as possible. This will increase your field experience and confidence.

5. Hygiene and responsibility – Hygiene is extremely important not just for the client but also for your own health. Make sure you use sanitized equipment, sanitize your hands, keep your nails short and make sure that the client is not suffering from any infections or other disease that can be transmitted. It is your responsibility to ensure the client is fit for treatment and to see that no disease is spread to other clients through you. Explain patiently to the client the reason you have to refuse them in such cases. They will only respect the decision, understanding that you care about your clients’ safety.

(To be continued...)

Writer: Mr. Pinakin Shah, Founder and Trainer at Pristine Senses Academy

To learn more about Pinakin Shah's Pristine Senses Academy . Click Here

It Takes Time to Heal

Alternative Medicine is not magic, it is a science based on hundreds of years of experience and experimentation. It helps heal the body naturally, without any use of chemicals that bring about strong and instant reactions in the body. For this very reason, it takes time to bring about healing.

No disease occurs suddenly. It manifests slowly and if the signs are recognized at an early stage, preventive measures can be taken. However, not everyone knows how to read the signs and they finally realize only when they really feel unbearable pain or sickness. At this stage, they might come to you for healing and look for immediate results after the first session itself.

As therapists, it is our responsibility to first explain to them how healing takes place. In any kind of alternative medicine, energy channels are cleared up and healing is stimulated. Toxins come out in natural forms like sweat, mucous, urine, etc. Since the elimination process is natural, it will take time and will depend on the regularity of the treatments. 

You can even include this information as a clause in the consent form the clients will fill and sign. They are welcome to take a trial session first, and if they like it, advice them to book the next session (it is up to you to judge how often they need treatment). They are likely to ask how long it will take to heal. Inform them that recovery time depends on the nature and intensity of the problem, the reaction of the client's body to the treatment, frequency of treatment, etc. It is different for everyone and can be gauged with regular treatment. You can take notes and record the progress of each client for a better study.

However, remember that alternative medicine is not a replacement for medical treatment. Make sure clients with serious problems have a doctor's written approval. 

After each session, ask for client feedback on how they feel. Call them the next day to see how they are progressing. But emphasize on regularity!! Otherwise all efforts on both parts will be void. 

Work hard and keep healing!!

Flexibility Brings More Business!

Did you know that the more flexible your body is, the more flexible and adjusting your nature becomes? In fact, in Palmistry, it is believed that if the thumb is flexible and you can bend backwards almost to 90 degrees, you are of flexible nature. Try it and see what your nature really is like!

But no, in terms of business I don't mean you get more customers if you do gymnastics...

Flexibility in service- customization, is the one thing a customer looks for when going in for any kind of therapy, may it be a foot massage, hair treatment, or even just applying nail polish.

People love being pampered, but they want to be pampered in their way, not yours. Whether we believe it or not, having a fixed package or style of doing things will not bring you more business.

For example, a customer is coming to you for a foot reflexology treatment. However, he is having shoulder pain and would like to also have a short neck, head and shoulder massage as the icing on the cake. It is true that foot reflexology alone can help in relieving most of the pain, but isn't it relaxing and oh so satisfying to have a last minute (complementary) surprise addition to your treatment?

It shows that the therapist cares for what the customer feels, needs and wants, and is not only after making a quick buck.

When sitting in the waiting room in one of the foot spas, I came across one such a customer who requested something additional for his pain but was told, "Sorry, we have only these and these treatments. We cannot help you." It is sad to see that even spas, made for pampering the clients, claiming to 'give you a most satisfying experience' are so inflexible when it comes to your needs.

If you charge by the hour and are going to the client's house to treat them, make it a point not to have other appointments too close to each other. Some clients find it easier to open up to you after a treatment and share their feelings. 5-10 minutes more will not kill you. It will only build a stronger image of you in your client's mind. Of course, some people have a habit of going on and on, but a therapist must have the skill to be able to wind up the talk on time.

This time for emotional release is very important for clients, because most problems result from those emotions, which are released with therapy. During the therapy, it is better to not talk, so the only time one can talk is after.

The client is the most important person. If they feel they are being cared for and are getting real quality service, they will tell others about you. Soon you will have a long list of clientele without even much of marketing on your part. Your business will grow, only by spending a few extra minutes with each client.

Do share your thoughts, comments and experiences when it comes to serving the client in your own special way. What else do you do for increasing your clientele without much expenditure on marketing?

Stay Well !!