I was listening to a webinar today led by Ryan Eliason, founder of The Social Entrepreneur. He and I agree that business and profit can co-exist quite happily with passion, heart, and a higher purpose.
In the webinar today, he identified 5 business myths that hold people (like you and me) back:
Myth 1: You are separate from everything around you.
Truth: We are all one and everything is connected.
Myth 2: Self-interest conflicts with the collective good.
Truth: Your highest good is aligned with the collective highest good. A win-win-win is possible.
Myth 3: Making money is in conflict with service.
Truth: Ther are no global problems that don't have a profitable solution
Myth 4: Only special people, like Gandhi, can change the world.
Truth: There are as many ways to change the world as there are people on the planet.
Myth 5: There is no road map to success.
Truth: Role models for success already exist.
His explanation of these myths and truths was fascinating and I'm looking forward to his next webinar. They're free if you want to try them out yourself.
I find myself (and many other MTs) really tripping over Myth #3. Not as many as I used to meet but it's still a challenge for many of us.
He suggests that to be a balanced business owner you need to do inside work (developing a mind and passion for business) and outside work (marketing, etc.). Most of us only do one or the other.
What about you? Which of these myths speak to you? Do you believe they're truth? Are you doing inside work and outside work?
Tuesday, September 18, 2012
Tuesday, September 4, 2012
Re-thinking Continuing Ed
As a continuing ed provider, I'm talking to Florida's AMTA chapter about bringing me down to teach next year. In the process, I'm learning about how much variety there is among how different states understand continuing ed and "hands on". It's down-right absurd at times.
But it makes me re-consider my views on continuing ed. On the one hand....
Continuing ed does not make someone a better MT.
Just attending a class to meet license renewal requirements isn't going to make someone a better MT. Being motivated to actually absorb the info, practice it outside the class, and spend the time really incorporating it into your practice -- that's what makes a better MT. Curiousity and a personal commitment to being a better MT. On the other hand...
Massage schools aren't teaching us everything we need to know.
Even really great schools with long programs can't teach an MT everything. There are a lot of schools that, frankly, aren't even trying hard. They're pushing students through as fast as they can with little regard to their actual competency. Without continuing ed, the market is full of too many barely competent MTs (and I've received work from some of them!). On the other hand....
State's are so erratic (and often unreasonable) in their continuing ed requirements that they're making it harder to actually get smarter.
Maryland used to require every MT to take courses on HIV every two years (but not on other infectious diseases). Georgia (so I've been told) only gives "hands on" credit for the portion of a class where you're actually rubbing someone. So those hours of lecture associated with the rubbing? They don't count for the "hands on" requirements. I'm sure you all could tell me more. On the other hand....
It's a lot of work to develop continuing ed. We wouldn't have the range of choices we have unless the states required continuing ed.
Yes, it's a way to make money. And, yes, there are courses out there that barely deserve to be called "education". But there are also some amazing courses and new courses being offered all the time. We simply wouldn't have so many if there weren't a robust market for them. Rightly or not, making continuing ed a legal requirement builds that market. On the other hand....
Many MTs find themselves running out of courses they're actually interested in, especially after 15 years of practice. Seasoned MTs are forced to take courses they simply aren't interested in to fufill licensing requirements.
I've heard this from a lot of MTs with 15+ years of experience. They've taken the "big" courses they wanted to take, their practice is solid and where they want it to be. They don't want to add another modality and they hate patching together little courses here and there to meet license renewal requirements. On the other hand....
The world of anatomy, physiology, kinesiology, medicine, etc. is always changing. What you learned 10 years ago may no longer be accepted wisdom. Continuing ed provides an avenue for keeping up with these changes.
How to stretch. Fluid intake. Fascia. Muscle movement and strain. Scars. What I learned about these things 13 years ago is not what they're teaching now. Why? Because we've learned new things and had to change our understanding. None of us can rely solely on what we learned in school. Things change. How are you going to keep up? On the other hand....
Well, you get my point. Frankly, I don't know exactly where I stand on the role of continuing ed in our profession. I used to be a full-fledged gung-ho supporter. Ironically, now that I am a continuing ed provider, I'm not so sure.
But it makes me re-consider my views on continuing ed. On the one hand....
Continuing ed does not make someone a better MT.
Just attending a class to meet license renewal requirements isn't going to make someone a better MT. Being motivated to actually absorb the info, practice it outside the class, and spend the time really incorporating it into your practice -- that's what makes a better MT. Curiousity and a personal commitment to being a better MT. On the other hand...
Massage schools aren't teaching us everything we need to know.
Even really great schools with long programs can't teach an MT everything. There are a lot of schools that, frankly, aren't even trying hard. They're pushing students through as fast as they can with little regard to their actual competency. Without continuing ed, the market is full of too many barely competent MTs (and I've received work from some of them!). On the other hand....
State's are so erratic (and often unreasonable) in their continuing ed requirements that they're making it harder to actually get smarter.
Maryland used to require every MT to take courses on HIV every two years (but not on other infectious diseases). Georgia (so I've been told) only gives "hands on" credit for the portion of a class where you're actually rubbing someone. So those hours of lecture associated with the rubbing? They don't count for the "hands on" requirements. I'm sure you all could tell me more. On the other hand....
It's a lot of work to develop continuing ed. We wouldn't have the range of choices we have unless the states required continuing ed.
Yes, it's a way to make money. And, yes, there are courses out there that barely deserve to be called "education". But there are also some amazing courses and new courses being offered all the time. We simply wouldn't have so many if there weren't a robust market for them. Rightly or not, making continuing ed a legal requirement builds that market. On the other hand....
Many MTs find themselves running out of courses they're actually interested in, especially after 15 years of practice. Seasoned MTs are forced to take courses they simply aren't interested in to fufill licensing requirements.
I've heard this from a lot of MTs with 15+ years of experience. They've taken the "big" courses they wanted to take, their practice is solid and where they want it to be. They don't want to add another modality and they hate patching together little courses here and there to meet license renewal requirements. On the other hand....
The world of anatomy, physiology, kinesiology, medicine, etc. is always changing. What you learned 10 years ago may no longer be accepted wisdom. Continuing ed provides an avenue for keeping up with these changes.
How to stretch. Fluid intake. Fascia. Muscle movement and strain. Scars. What I learned about these things 13 years ago is not what they're teaching now. Why? Because we've learned new things and had to change our understanding. None of us can rely solely on what we learned in school. Things change. How are you going to keep up? On the other hand....
Well, you get my point. Frankly, I don't know exactly where I stand on the role of continuing ed in our profession. I used to be a full-fledged gung-ho supporter. Ironically, now that I am a continuing ed provider, I'm not so sure.
Who's Making The Decision About Your Continuing Ed?
I've been invited to (maybe) teach a weekend course in Business Practices to a large state AMTA chapter! I'm very excited at the chance to do something I've wanted to do for a long time -- help educate MTs around the country on basic business practices (because soooooo many schools do such a pitiful job of it).
There may be a roadblock, however: this is not "hands on" / modality training. I'm working this week to ascertain whether the state regs literally mean courses must be "hands on" or if they simply mean they need to be "live" (vs. online or CD-based).
In the DC area we ran into a similar problem a few years ago with Maryland. Their state board governing massage therapists wanted to restrict eligible CEs to only those things specifically mentioned in the definition of massage in the state reg. This could have meant that courses in any non-rubbing modalities (such as Reiki or aromatherapy), not to mention business courses, would not meet the CE requirements when a therapist tried to renew his/her license.
The local massage schools and the state's massage therapist community fought them and won.
That myopic worldview isn't exclusive to state licensing boards. We do it to ourselves.
We have to quit thinking about continuing ed as a burden foisted upon us by an uncaring governmental beauracracy who just wants to take our precious money and time! Every truly excellent MT I've ever met has invested heavily and seriously in continuing ed. And not just the easy stuff. The best ones I know are certified in multiple modalities that can take a few years to get certified in. They know that they don't know enough and they are constantly striving to learn (and become proficient in) more and more and more.
Our regulatory agencies have to quit thinking so myopically about massage continuing ed (and that happens when we stay involved in the local regulatory boards). Worst of all, we have to quit thinking so small about continuing ed.
Continuing ed is a gift (dammit) you give to your head, to your heart, to your hands, and to your clients. Get busy!
There may be a roadblock, however: this is not "hands on" / modality training. I'm working this week to ascertain whether the state regs literally mean courses must be "hands on" or if they simply mean they need to be "live" (vs. online or CD-based).
In the DC area we ran into a similar problem a few years ago with Maryland. Their state board governing massage therapists wanted to restrict eligible CEs to only those things specifically mentioned in the definition of massage in the state reg. This could have meant that courses in any non-rubbing modalities (such as Reiki or aromatherapy), not to mention business courses, would not meet the CE requirements when a therapist tried to renew his/her license.
The local massage schools and the state's massage therapist community fought them and won.
That myopic worldview isn't exclusive to state licensing boards. We do it to ourselves.
- Do you limit your continuing ed to the number of CEs required to renew your license?
- Do you reject courses that interest you but don't qualify for CEs?
- Do you take the cheapest quickest version of a course to get your CEs with as little effort as possible?
We have to quit thinking about continuing ed as a burden foisted upon us by an uncaring governmental beauracracy who just wants to take our precious money and time! Every truly excellent MT I've ever met has invested heavily and seriously in continuing ed. And not just the easy stuff. The best ones I know are certified in multiple modalities that can take a few years to get certified in. They know that they don't know enough and they are constantly striving to learn (and become proficient in) more and more and more.
Our regulatory agencies have to quit thinking so myopically about massage continuing ed (and that happens when we stay involved in the local regulatory boards). Worst of all, we have to quit thinking so small about continuing ed.
Continuing ed is a gift (dammit) you give to your head, to your heart, to your hands, and to your clients. Get busy!
Monday, September 3, 2012
Quote of the Week: Bookkeeping (believe it or not)
"When you get your bookkeeping organized right, your taxes practically do themselves!"
-- Monica Maynard CMT (Maryland)
And that, boys and girls, is why it is sooooooooooo worth it to invest time in doing your bookkeeping right.
Quick & Dirty Bookkeeping
March 6 2013 (PMTI, Washington DC) or
March 9, 2013 (location TBD)
2 hours
$40
(2 CEs for MTs)
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