A massage business is about creating relationships. Relationships really allow you to become more self aware and learn about yourself.
Writing your mission statement is one of the first steps in creating a business plan. It really is a process of discovering who you are and where you are at so that you can create a plan to get you where you want to go.
The process of writing a mission statement requires some introspection and awareness of yourself. Your mission statement will easily guide you in making decisions about your business – everything from where to set up your business, how much to charge and what clients to work on. (I often see massage therapists making the mistake of thinking that they need to work on everyone and end up working on clients that are not nourishing to their business which leaves massage therapists drained or resentful or in other words on the way to burnout!)
A mission statement based on your values will help you to attract your “Ideal Client” which is a person who matches your mission statement (and values).
Cherie Sohnen-Moe in her book “Business Mastery” says that a purpose is a general direction that you want to take in a business. You can have a purpose for various parts of your life – your business and your personal life.
A mission/purpose statement is based on Your Needs – so becoming aware of what it is that you need is part of the process.
The book “Attracting Perfect Customers” by Stacey Hall and Jan Brogniez aks:
“Does working with this customer make you feel needed, appreciated, respected and understood? Does he or she reconnect you with the passion and purpose that puts joy in your work?”
The focus of the book is to learn to attract clients who have the same values or mission statement as you do so that you can feel good about what you do. I know I find when I work on insurance clients in which the company pays me less than my hourly wage, I end up feeling slighly resentful and I have to admit, I may not work as hard as I would if someone were paying me full price. I also find that working with people who are constantly trashing their bodies and not respecting them is difficult to work with – but it sometimes pays the bills because they have to come in so often. Long term these people often become boring to work with to me as they always come in with the same issues. While this isn’t good or bad – it just is.
My favorite clients come in wanting more from their sessions. They want to have a better understanding of their bodies and new ways of taking care of themselves. They want to get more in touch with themselves through their body and particpate in the sessions by staying present. (This is also affected by how much I am able to stay present and I know what things take me away from that- things like people complaining and never doing anything about it or people who want me to fix them and not take responsibility for their pain and health issues.)
One thing that I see often in the massage profession is thinking that you have to or even want to work on every client that calls out of fear that they will go to other therapists or that you won’t have enough income. Knowing who your ideal client is will keep you working longer and feeling more fulfilled and successful. But it is a process of finding out who works and who doesn’t work for you so you have to start somewhere. Creating a mission statement that defines your ideal client will help you to decide who to work on.
“Attracting Perfect Customers refers to this as the light house affect – can you stand firmly on the shore doing what you are supposed to be doing and not running up and down the beach trying to get everyone to see you . There might be boats out there that have their own navigation systems and don’t need you for some other reasons. You can read more on their website…www.perfectcustomers.com
For more on mission statements;
Stephen Covey’s online Mission Statement Builder
Clarifying Your Values on www.massagepracticebuilder.com
Microsoft Small Business Plan Template
Share your mission statements with others so you can learn more about yourself and others can learn from you…
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