I usually don’t talk about massage therapy careers and the process of becoming a massage therapist here but I am today to try and get this site to the top of Google for the keywords massage therapy careers – it is just a few down on the first page right now and need to get it to be number one on the page and have my old site www.massagetherapycareers.com be below this site in rankings! This is how it is done- with keywords and search engine optimization!
Massage Therapy Careers are in demand but many massage schools and associations seem to forget to tell people about a few facts like most massage therapists start their own business and jobs in massage start out at really low pay – like $15 an hour. You also can only work about 25 hours a week max so making a living in a massage job isn’t very practical.
They also will tell you things like don’t quit your day job and other things like it will take you 5 years to build a successful massage business when really most massage school teachers have never built a successful practice. The truth is that you can actually create just about anything you want but it requires more motivation than most massage therapists have to start with. Massage school just teaches you how to do massage and not how to become a successful massage therapist. That is why I tell most high school students seeking out careers in massage to go to college for business and marketing and then decide if they want to go to massage school. Also the average age of all massage therapists is 45 according to the statistics from the Associated Bodywork and Massage Professionals (ABMP). Massage schools are really geared toward teaching adults with more life experience. There is much more than just doing massage. Touch has a way of bringing up deeper psychological issues for people – both the client and the massage therapist. We don’t even really know the true ramifications of this or how deep these issues really are and how they do affect the client when they are receiving a massage. Early in life we attach and bond to caregivers based on touch or the lack of it. That is why there is so much drama over the octomom who really cannot give the amount of care to 8 babies let alone 14 kids. Because touch is such a deep part of that early bonding and attachment, getting and giving massage recreates the bonding process and can even work to heal the many dysfunctional patterns that we all have to some degree. High school students just are not equipped to deal with things like that but then either are some of the older massage students/therapists.
What happens between the massage therapist and client is called the therapeutic relationship. When we touch people we are also touched ourselves as the massage therapist. Because of that many of our own issues will surface and get in the way of the clients experience. When it does (and it will) it is usually first such an unconscious process so it makes it difficult to acknowledge and to be aware of. I used to think that massage school should be about 200 hours of hands on work and about 1000 of supervision to work through these issues. We could really use some research on how much training is really needed. It has never been studied really.
So what does it mean to be a massage therapist. We play many roles to clients. Caretaker, healer, guide, pathologist, sales person, bookkeeper and are often challenged by becoming friends and dating clients. Here in WA it is illegal to date a client. I don’t think many other states have that yet but I am sure it is on the way. To help stay clear about who we are and our various roles and challenges it it important to get some form of supervision every month or more if you have a busy massage practice. Massage schools are just starting to talk about the process of supervision. It isn’t about supervision like you think about in a work situation. It is supervision that comes from the psychology profession that requires therapists to look at their own issues with a more experienced therapist in the same profession. It is a place to have all of your thoughts and feelings heard and to get the appreciation that you need as a person and professional so that your needs do not interfere with the needs of the client. You can then keep the massage sessions focused directly on the clients needs rather than always trying to get your own needs met by giving advice and getting in dual relationships that can hinder the therapeutic process.
So while most massage therapists have previously started their own businesses and are left to deal with all of these issues on their own there are more spas and massage franchises opening up that are hiring massage therapists mostly at low wages where people really can’t make $100,000 a year. These jobs are hiring the people who do go to massage school right out of high school or older people who do not want the challenges of running a business. We have yet to know what this is doing to the profession. Is it providing a place for people to learn about their role as a massage therapist? There are places that pay more than the standard $15 an hour Massage Envy employee. You can find or create a job in massage and get paid more like $45 an hour with benefits. Even though there is an employer taking most of the responsibility for the business it is still up to the massage therapist to make or break the business. Good massage employers will provide peer supervision and help massage therapists deal with their feelings that come up in working in this way with clients and deal with all of the issues that most people project onto their jobs. People often go into jobs (any jobs really) thinking that they will be taken care of and provided for. They rarely go into jobs thinking ‘What can I do to make the world a better place through this job’. Jobs are prime vehicles for projections of our unmet needs from childhood maybe even more so than just running your own business. Massage therapists take jobs that are really low paying and also have the challenges of actually figuring out if they should be an employee or subcontractor. Many employers try to take advantage of massage therapists and hire them as subcontractors to avoid paying higher expenses such as benefits and unemployment. They also are challenged by having to do what the employer says to do which could often involve working on people with conditions that are contraindicated or turning away people with cancer not knowing that it is now OK and very acceptable to work on people with cancer. (When I first started out it was highly contraindicated.)
The employer/employee relationship is a relationship that begins in a power differential. Any relationship with a power differential is prime breeding grounds for transference and countertransference but I would guess that most massage employers are not aware of how people do project their issues into jobs. When employers can accept that the employee is a team member and not a subordinate there is a greater chance of personal growth and individuation. It will also require that massage employees stop looking to be cared for and start taking more responsibility for their jobs and make them more about a career or vocation – a calling of the soul/heart to find meaning through the work we choose.
James Hollis says in his book ” The Middle Passage”
A job is what we hold to earn money to meet economic demands. A vocation (from Latin vocatus, calling) is what we are called to do with our life’s energy. It is a requisite part of our individuation to feel that we are productive and not responding to one’s calling can damage the soul.
We do not really choose a vocation: rather it chooses us. Our only choice is how we respond.
Many massage therapists are just becoming massage therapists thinking that it will be a good job or career and will make them lots of money. High schools students are looking for careers in which they don’t have to take Math! Choosing careers without having a passion for the work or a calling to the work will leave most feeling burned out and thinking of massage as just a job will influence the future of the massage profession.
So think carefully when choosing massage therapy careers. They are a really great way to fulfill a calling AND you can learn to make a great living without having to sacrifice yourself along the way. There are high paying jobs out there if you take the time to create them and you can make $100,000 or more a year in a massage business when you understand the true value of massage work and what it really does for people. How can you put a price on giving people what they should have gotten in childhood to become a whole person and know it in every cell of their body?
See also: massage therapy careers and choosing a career in massage and finding a massage school.
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Trust me working for yourself can be expensive. If you are an independant therapist its best to work out of your home if you have an extra room. No need to pay extra rent. You also need to keep track of your ROI on your advertising. Don’t waste your money if the advertising isn’t bringing in the clients. Lastly, pricing is tricky. You have to walk the line between providing a premium service and having a value price. Many times the two don’t mix. Many people assume “you get what you pay for” so don’t undervalue yourself
Working out of your home has it’s pluses and minuses. It can be more difficult to promote yourself and get clients because you really don’t want strangers coming into your house. It is also easy to not think of yourself as a business and not care if you don’t have a client because you can get the laundry or housework done. You can rent an office from another type of health care provider or rent from another massage therapist (which is what I have done for 23 years). Yes pricing can be tricky especially when you don’t have clients and you feel like you need to have low rates to get people in the door. You can do that but have a plan to increase them when you get busy and have a plan to create repeat business. I explain much more on my other site Massage Practice Builder
[...] Massage Therapy Careers Many massage therapists are just becoming massage therapists thinking that fef it will be a good job or career and will make them lots of money. High schools students are looking for careers in which they don’t have to take Math! [...]
Freddy’s numbers are so outrageous that I have to believe he’s a ME franchise owner or employee. He says that a phone system is $1,500/month but as Julie points out, this is not necessary in a small office, it would only be required to support a number of therapists and then the price/therapist goes down considerably. This is also the case for his other numbers like rent, utilities, and advertising. C’mon Freddy, don’t pollute the site with lies and scare-tactics.
It’s true, owning your own business can be expensive but it’s still the only way you can really make it as a massage therapist. Sometimes partnering with other massage therapists is a good balance. Now, how far you take it is a personal choice that has to be weighed against quality of life factors.
That’s more of the misinformation that is floating around out there about starting a massage business. I pay about $600 a month for office space in downtown Seattle which is a really high rent area. My website costs me $300 a year. I have a blackberry to keep me connected through email to clients because I don’t have a computer at the office. I don’t have any other utilities – they are included in the rent.
I charge $85-$110 an hour and my expenses are minimal. I see about 12-15 clients a week.
Very few make it on their own because they are not taught how to run a business which isn’t really anything more than working at places like ME. You still have to keep the clients coming in no matter if you work for someone or have your own business.
To make $35000 a year at $15 an hour you would have to work about 48 hours a week – or maybe 36 hours if they get $5 in tips. I wouldn’t want any massage therapist who has worked over 20 hours a week to be doing a massage on me- the quality just won’t be there.
Yes more people are getting massage but what kind of massage are they getting? I have been into a few ME and spa type places in my 20 years of being self employed as a massage therapist and I can tell you they are all pretty bad and all I want is a basic deep swedish massage. They can’t even do that. It has changed our profession from being one of providing the best care to a ‘puppy mill massage’.
What a crock-How much you make is not only tied to how much money you make an hour but whether you want to perform massages only all day or do you want to distract from doing massages while you own your own business & pay for your own advertising ($1,500-$2,500 per month), your own lease payments $2,500 & up for a decent location, $850-$1,000 a month for utilities, $2,000 a month for complete insurance coverage, $10,000 & up for the purchase of equipment, supplies, computer, etc., $500 per month for linen services, several hundreds for gels, cremes, lotions, $1,500 for a good phone system, $350 per month for accounting fees & an answering service, while charging $45-$65 for a massage.
Or, you can work for massage Envy, have ALL bills paid, earn $35-$45,000 a year including gratuities and do nothing but what you went into the massage profession to do-give great massages & help people feel better. Your choice as to which one makes sense.
Remember when you go to the grocery store & the bill is $312.96 they won’t ask you how much you charge for massages they just want their $312.96. The best prospect to work at a massage Envy clinic is the person who bought into the lie that you can make all of the money you want to being in business for yourself, work if you feel like it, roll over & go back to sleep if you don’t feel like working today, etc. The reason that thousands & thousands of massage therapists are no longer performing massages & have surrendered their licenses is very, very few make it on their own.
Finally the statement to the effect that we don’t know the effect businesses like Massage Envy will have on the massage industry is misinformed. That effect was determined 5 years ago & continues to be proven every day in almost 700 massage Envy clinics nationwide. Millions more people now routinely get massages than ever before or would ever had ever started getting massages as apart of a well balanced wellness program had it not been for Massage Envy being affordable, professional, and convenient & tens of thousands of licensed and insured massage therapists have a great opportunity to earn a decent living.
That’s the real way it is. period.