So many massage therapists I’ve talked to think they’re “bad with time management,” which is not the case. If you find yourself with time on your hands and mostly what you do in that time is worry, twiddle your thumbs, or get sucked into social media . . . it has nothing to do with your time-management skills.
This unfocused behavior most often comes from not knowing, or not trusting, what you need to do to take the next step forward in your business.
Once you DO know and are on board with what needs to happen next, you’ll turn into a freight train of productivity.
This ability to become that freight train starts with the willingness to hunker down and do some serious thinking about your business.
As I say in the video, so often we feel like we need to be DOING stuff all the time even if that stuff is distasteful to us or if we don’t really understand why we’re supposed to be doing it. That stinks!
The best way to avoid that confusion is to spend time each week thinking deeply about your practice, your to-do list, the order of your to-do list, your priorities in life, and anything else that is siren calling you. Of course, I’m not suggesting endless rumination. But a good deep think can help us break loops in our thinking. It can help us see and start to work with unhelpful patterns in our thinking and doing. This deep thinking can bring us into a clarity that can make ALL the difference. (A note on clarity: it comes and goes, don’t get too attached. It tends to go as soon as you’ve started to dig into the work and things start changing. This is normal!)
So, I hope you’ll intentionally make time in your schedule this week, and next week, and the week after to have a good hard think about your business.
If you need a starting place:
- List all of the things your research or other people have told you to do to build your business. (Remember, not all advice is created equal and you don’t have to take each of these things seriously, just get them on paper.)
- Decide which of those things seems valuable to you (as in, they’re within your values system and seem like they could make a true impact on your business).
- Recognize and name any fears or anxieties you have about doing any of those things.
- Figure out which one makes sense to do first, break it down into steps, and get going!
Author Profile
- Isabel Spradlin has owned her full-time practice since 2007. She has a deep drive to help other massage therapists and bodyworkers to create thriving businesses for themselves. For comprehensive programs to help you do just that, see the 'Programs' tab in the menu.
