Hey guys! Savanna Bell here with My Massage World and in this week’s video I wanted
to talk specifically with you therapists who are considering hiring a coach, consultant,
mentor, teacher, guru (a term I personally hate) or whatever else you want to call someone
who’s going to help you become a better business owner and massage therapist.
Ok, so over the last several years there’s been a huge increase in this coaching and
consulting segment of the industry, and really it crosses almost all industries, but there’s
a ton of people who are offering to help you improve in some way. It may be changing your
habits, being more intentional, breaking down the details of the numbers in your business
and showing you the “right” way to do things, etc. It could be general – so they
touch on all aspects of your business from customer service to bookkeeping and expansion,
or it could be much more niche on things like Facebook ads or video development, stuff like
that.
So before you decide what or who in all this, there’s a few questions to ask yourself..
First, are you looking for a mentor, a coach, a consultant, a teacher, something else, or
a combination of some of these? So let’s look at what these really are.
Now, let’s be clear, everyone kind of has their own interpretation of what each of these
mean, and you may have someone call themselves one thing when it’s not really an accurate
description. So let’s look past some of that and see the real help you need.
A mentor is someone who is focused in on you – they’re going to have more experience
than you in a particular area and they advise you in your growth. This is most often the
term used when it’s a free setup. So the mentor is offering this guidance out of the
goodness of their heart; this could be for hands-on skills, business, marketing, whatever.
A coach is someone who is going to help guide you and your business, helping you clarify
your vision and goals. They are there for regular check ins to cheer you along and keep
you on the right path. A consultant is someone who is looking at
the details of your business, like going over your books with you and developing strategies
to move forward, take advantage of opportunities, avoid risks, clean up messes you may have
made along the way, things like that. A teacher or educator is someone who is simply
giving you lessons and expecting you to implement them.
Which you decide to use is up to you – I don’t think there’s a one size fits all
thing here. You need to figure out what you and your business need. Some people just need
the information because they don’t understand how to do something – so they find an educator.
Some people need someone to hold their hand and work through the details – so they hire
a consultant. Some people need a cheerleader and someone to help them fine tune the basics
of their business concepts and structures – so they hire a coach. And yet others need
someone to help navigate a specific part of the profession – so they find a mentor.
Next, what type of help are they going to provide specifically?
This is where a lot of people mess up, but it’s also the most crucial part of all this.
If you don’t really understand what you need, you don’t know who you need to seek
out. For example, some people thing “oh I need marketing help because I need to know
how to get clients on the table so I can make more money”. Cool. But is that really what
you need? If you get that boost in revenue by increasing your clientele, do you know
how to properly manage that money so you don’t end up in the same boat again?
Or it may not even be the subject of the help, but rather the way it’s delivered. Some
people do better with a cheerleader type, the one that’s going to tell you how great
you’re doing and pushes you to keep it up. But I’d bet a lot more of you need somebody
who’s not only going to cheer you on when you’re doing great, but give you some serious
tough love when you’re not; the kind that will tell you exactly how it is and call you
out on your own B.S., your laziness, lack of effort, or otherwise how you’re getting
in your own way. Some of you need a tactful delivery and some of you need somebody to
just lay it all out there for you.. So figure out what you need help with and
how you need it to be given. That’s going to really be how you determine who fits for
you before you ever start looking.
And lastly, do you resonate with that person? It’s kind of difficult to confide in someone
and take their advice if you don’t like them, and if their situation is so different
from yours. For instance, when I talk with therapists who have large practices and multiple
therapists and wanting to expand to numerous locations…I’ll be honest…I’m not the
best person to talk to. I mean, we can still run some numbers and apply some general business
and marketing concepts to it all, but those details about managing large facilities and
corporations like that…not my thing – not something I have much experience in and I’m
not going to pretend and waste somebody’s time. But the solo therapist who’s just
trying to fill their books, or maybe they have just 2 or 3 other therapists working
for or with them…I got you! But I’m also not going to be everybody’s cup of tea either.
Not everybody’s going to like me and I’m not going to like everybody. That’s just
life. Find somebody you enjoy talking with, even when you don’t necessarily like the
tough love they’re giving you, but you know it’s exactly what you need.
I’m not going to sit here and tell you what’s best for you, because I don’t know you and
your business – although I’d be happy to help you figure it out if you want to comment
below. But I will say that I think most people – not all, but most – could definitely
use some help along the way in starting and running a business. I mean, really, even if
you’re just a year into your business, you can see how many mistakes you’ve made and
all the hiccups someone might have been able to help you avoid. That would have been worth
a little investment early on, right? Now imagine how much more you’ll know in 5 or 10 years
going at the same pace you are now. Why not cut that down by getting some help.
I know some people have referred to me as a coach, but I don’t. If you do, don’t
worry, I don’t care what you call me, I’m sure I’ve been called a lot worse, but I
just don’t personally like the term coach – for me. I feel like I’m more on the
educator and consultant side. I’ll help you break down the details and teach you what
to do. That’s just me. If that’s what you’re looking for, feel free to reach out
– I include one-on-one office hour chats with my monthly membership where you get all
kinds of business classes and lessons and marketing content to help you build your practice
on top of that. It’s just $29 a month with no contract, and trust me, I typically charge
a heck of a lot more than that for any one of the components of the membership. You can
check out more on what’s included exactly and see examples of everything on our website
at mymassageworld.com. And be sure to like us on Facebook, subscribe to us on YouTube,
and stay tuned for more videos. There’s a new one every week.