Use It or Lose It: New Impressions for Growth
There is nothing like learning something new to stimulate our mind/body with fresh impressions from which to grow, and to shock it out of old patterns of thinking, learning, feeling and doing. This is essential for massage therapy professionals since the quality of what we do not only impacts the effectiveness of the treatments we give our clients and patients, but also directly influences the living we make in doing it. Most of us are familiar with the expression, “if you don’t use it, you lose it,” and that certainly holds some validity. However, I think that massage therapy practitioners are less inclined to accept another similar truth, which is, if you do not seek to grow, even that which you know and do well will over time deteriorate and weaken — become stale. It’s not very different from body-builders who stop working out, soon after all their muscles begin turning to fat.
Becoming a health care practitioner, such as a massage therapist, is a commitment to life long learning and professional development. It is a responsibility that comes with being called a professional which is defined as ‘possessing great skill or experience in a field or activity.’ Although we know that children are naturally curious, as adults we can become complacent about learning new things, and it doesn’t usually get easier as we age. It should be no surprise that habits and patterns become more fixed as we become older and more settled and ‘uncomfortably comfortable in our ways.’ Every massage therapist forms habits and patterns of treating after doing what they have been doing for years. Therapists can easily become fixed and reach a point of stagnation. This doesn’t mean that practitioners are not doing a good job at what they do. Many have reached a high level of skill and get wonderful results. However, if nothing is done to continue to cultivate that, then it will eventually begin to wilt. What is worse, is that you may not even realize it until you notice your practice dwindling.
Brushing up on old knowledge and techniques after years of experience will often lead to greater and deeper insight into what you already know and do which will immediately reflect positively in your treatments. Expanding your knowledge and technical base with training in new specialty areas is another powerful way to enhance your level of skill and breathe new life into your practice. The trends in our field are changing rapidly. Getting stuck in old patterns and habits of doing massage therapy, thinking that you know enough or that you are good enough can quietly leave you years behind relative to the speed and direction in which the Therapeutic Massage and Bodywork Profession is moving. It won’t be long before clients are asking you questions about techniques and forms of treatment you haven’t heard of yourself. You really must keep up!
We owe it to ourselves as professionals to continue learning and training in our chosen profession. It is vital that all massage therapists hold a view that it is their personal and professional responsibility to seek continuing education. Most of all, we owe it to our clients and patients who depend on us for the best and most effective treatments possible. Make it your personal commitment to seek self-improvement and continue to serve your clients with safety and competency. Give your self the gift of Continuing Education this year. The massage therapist in you will deeply appreciate it, and so will all your clients.
Discussion: At one time or another every massage therapist experiences periods in which his or her practice becomes stale. Boredom sets in, and treating becomes mechanical and rote. I’d love to hear different experiences related to this and what action, if any, was taken to combat your “massage fatigue” and to renew and reenrgize your love for Massage Therapy and Bodywork. Did you find that taking new or refresher CE courses in your modality helped? Did attending a regional or national professional association conference or convention where you could be around many of your peers rejuvenate your passion for the field? Let’s hear!!
Steven Schenkman is an established leader in the field of Complementary and Alternative Medicine.
Steve Lefkowitz:
Great points made! The importance of consolidating one’s knowledge and continuing to learn new things cannot be talked about enough. Thanks for the great perspective to be applied within the field of massage therapy and throughout life as well.
Steve
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Steven Schenkman reply on March 20, 2008:
Thanks Steve for you brief remark. I really like the phrase you used - “consolidating one’s knowledge!” I think that’s so important in the practice of massage - in fact, in the practice of anything. Very often there is a tendency in this field for people to gather lots of unrelated techniques, information and practices and create a hodge-podge of a practice which may feel like fun and interesting to the practitioner but really isn’t based on very much. I didn’t want to give that impression in my blog, (albeit written several months ago) and I don’t think I did - but all too often continuing education is used to simply add “another technique” to the mix. Creation of a firm foundation of knowledge and experience, of being and understanding before one starts piling on a wide variety of new diciplines before consolidation is achieved is a common mistake. If there is a real desire to integrate new and various other modalities into one’s massage practice, it should be done after some real level of consolidation. Then the practitioner is in a much better place to understand what is appropriate and how to best integrate new techniques and practices into one’s own without diminishing and distorting its original and underlying intention.
Susan Proffitt:
I agree! And I have found myself in states of boredome and mechanical in my treatment plans. I have in the past stepped out of my comfort zone and taken a class completely different from previous classes, for instance, stepping away from cranial classes and taking orthopedic massage techniques. In that way I have to study and learn new depths of anatomy and pathology.
In other times, just picking up my Netter anatomy book and really studing one or two pages gets me geared up and excited about this awesome profession and the depths to which the human body can reach. And lastly, I cant stress enough how important vacation and time off and rejuvenate one’s mind and body to be ready to ‘be there’ for the next client.
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Steven Schenkman reply on March 20, 2008:
Hi Susan, (Sorry for the loooooonnnng delay in response.) Stepping out of your comfort zone and taking classes that are completely different from others you have taken or the kind of techniques you have practiced can certainly breathe new energy and life in to your attitude regarding your practice - but I just want to caution that you take care not to make a mish-mosh of your own work by immediatley adding what you’ve learned to the work you have been doing for a long time unless you are in a real place of unerstanding to do so. Refer to my respone to the comment by Steve Lefkowitz above regarding his use of the term “Consoldiation of Knowledge.”
And yes I certainly do agree that just picking up an A&P book, or a palpation book can also revitalize your attitude and relationship to your work as much as taking a workshop.
Linda Gutowski:
I, too, have experienced burnout only to find that a continuing education or a vacation has rejuvenated me. If I can fit both into a week, that’s even better!
What is interesting about taking a continuing education course is that I find techniques that I already use are enhanced. Even if the technique, such as craniosacral therapy, has nothing to do with techniques already in my toolbox, such as deep tissue therapy, I find enhanced palpation, speedy resolution and better results.
Since I’ve only been in practice for 7 or 8 years, I haven’t yet figured out how to resolve the dip in client attendance that reached it’s maximum (and a bit too much, I must admit) during my fifth year of practice.
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Steven Schenkman reply on March 20, 2008:
Hi Linda,
Certainly being present, energized and committed to every treatment you provide for a client is essential for success in this field and maintaining that level can often lead to burnout. So a well deserved and needed vacation, if you can afford to take one, especially with CE, is a great idea. But it won’t necessarily resolve the ups and downs in your client attendance. Sometimes it’s just out of your control and has to do with economic trends. But more often then not it appears to be the result of weak marketing skills and business acumen on the part of practitioners. It’s a well known fact in this profession that massage therapists, who love to give with their minds and bodies, have a lot more difficulty learning and manifesting all the ways necessary to assure a consistently successful practice regardless of the outside forces. Perhaps if you haven’t already take some CE courses in these areas, pick up some books on the subject, etc… Good luck!
Robert:
hello Steven, this is a great post and I totally resonate with what you are saying here, when you get a chance check out my blog and you see we share the same beliefs http://www.think-diagonal.com
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Steven Schenkman reply on March 20, 2008:
Hey Robert, Really nice site! Looks like a great place for practitioners to access different views/blogs, information and knowledge on all the many facets of the field. Good luck with it - I’m sure its quite an undertaking keeping it going!!!
Dave MacDougall:
I agree with Mr. Schenkman regarding the need for continual growth in our lives, not only as an MT but also as a person. New learning is what keeps our brain young. As Ashley Montagu said, “It’s not a matter of growing old, but rather becoming old when we stop growing.”
I do take issue however with one of his statements. He said “It won’t be long before clients are asking you questions about techniques and forms of treatment you haven’t heard of yourself. You really must keep up!” I have been in the field for nearly 30 years and pride myself on maintaining and expanding my competencies and knowledge base but I feel no need to “keep up” on the “latest” techniques which are often realy just old techniques that someone has put a new name on.
I have attended many workshops and trainings over the years from the excellent to the mediocre as well having taught a number of classes myself. One thing I have been struck by is the large number of people taking classes who have never done any serious reading or study in the subject being addressed in the class. Continuing education is fine but self-study and practice is often more rewarding.
As professionals we should understand that “continuing education” has become an industry unto itself including the entry of corporate interests into the mix. A recent ad touted Cortiva’s 200 years of collective teaching experience in their continuing ed program but no names were attached to the classes so although maybe technically true in this case the statement is just meaningless hype.
If it is boredom that is driving you to take continuing education rather than frustration with your skill level and a motivation to be better or a real curiousity and need to understand then I suggest you ask yourself why you are doing what you do.
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15 December 2007, 9:46 amDavid MacDougall:
I agree with Mr. Schenkman regarding the need for continual growth in our lives, not only as an MT but also as a person. New learning is what keeps our brains young. As Ashley Montagu said, “It’s not a matter of growing old, but rather becoming old when we stop growing.” Montagu’s Touching: The Human Significance of the Skin has never been surpassed as a resource for our understanding of this aspect of our work. Researchers like Tiffany Field are “discovering” the effects of touching that were outlined by Montagu over 35 years ago.
I do take issue however with one of Mr. Schenkman’s statements. He said “It won’t be long before clients are asking you questions about techniques and forms of treatment you haven’t heard of yourself. You really must keep up!” I have been in the field for nearly 30 years and pride myself on maintaining and expanding my competencies and knowledge base but I feel no need to “keep up” on the “latest” techniques which are often really just old techniques that someone has put a new name on.
I have attended many workshops and trainings over the years from the excellent to the mediocre as well having taught a number of classes myself. One thing I have been struck by is the large number of people taking classes who have never done any serious reading or study in the subject being addressed in the class. Continuing education is fine but self-study and practice is often more rewarding, much cheaper and will enable one to truly get the most out of time spent with a good teacher. I learned very early in my massage career, mostly from receiving, that the success of a therapist’s treatment was mostly the result of their depth of aptitude and understanding and not so much related to the breadth of techniques they could name and/or demonstrate.
As professionals we should understand that “continuing education” has become an industry unto itself including the entry of corporate interests into the mix. A recent ad touted Cortiva’s 200 years of collective teaching experience in their continuing ed program but no names were attached to the classes so although maybe technically true in this case the statement is just meaningless hype.
If it is boredom that is driving you to take continuing education rather than frustration with your skill level and a motivation to do better work or maybe just a real curiosity to understand then I suggest you ask yourself why you are on this path.
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Diane Lake reply on February 6, 2008:
You bring up an interesting point and that is that everyone seems to be on the continuing education bandwagon. How do we, as therapists, share information regarding which CEU classes are beneficial and which are a waste of time and money. I have taken classes seminar style, weekend classes, and correspondence. Each arena has good classes and hype. Is anyone willing to talk about which classes are worth the time and energy involved?
Steven Schenkman reply on March 20, 2008:
Thanks Dave for your thoughtful comments. A little clarification - - my words emphasizing the need to ‘keep up’ and clients asking practitioners questions that they were unable to answer was really meant more as a way of emphasizing that practitioners stay current and develop further — not out of some sort of ego competitive drive to know more or be better then the next MT, but for their own sake of development. In addition, with the internet, it is not all that uncommon that clients who do research into the field of massage therapy can easily, and often do, access information on various forms of treatment modalities available and what conditions they are best suited to treat, etc.. They can surely, at times, stump practitioners with their questions. That’s certainly not a sin, but it does point to the fact that in some way practitioners who evolve through real consistent efforts to study and understand what they do to higher and higher levels, and add to that development with appropriate CE, will generally have a competitive edge over others who stagnate and don’t have that drive or feel the “need to keep up!” Something that must be dealt with on their parts for success.
I could not agree with you more regarding your statements on the importance of serious reading, studying and practice. It’s part of what I addressed above in some of my responses to comments regarding “consolidation of knowledge.” It seems that will provide a real good prerequisite and foundation for practitioners to have before adding and integrating new areas of the field into their practices.
I will take issue with your last remark however and just say in response that boredom with work at times is very common and certainly does not mean that practitioners are on the wrong path. It’s really, as I am sure you will agree, not just that simple. But I do certainly agree that everyone should once in a good while sit back and reflect on the path they have taken!
cecilia:
Hello Steven,
I am currently a Massage Dept. Manager for a very prominent day spa….I have been having trouble trying to keep my Therapists motivated. I am in charge of helping them to grow, to learn new, or more massage modalilties, and to give them ideas to market themselves. But all I continue to hear is how slow it is at times, or why do I have to stick around for walk-ins and/or add-ons? They do not take into consideration that these slow times are good times to catch up with Thank you cards, home care reccommendations, or other marketing skills. We have monthly meetings and I do my best to bring up motivational skills or ideas from other therapists but still a no go. What can I do to help them understand that a Massage Therapist has to continually market themselves so as to keep client retention strong? I give them incentives, tools and contests but not everyone is motivated. I have also tried to let them know that if a Massage Career is going to be their livelihood, then they are going to have to come up with uplifting, imaginary strategies and self motivation to keep client retention strong. Out of ideas…….C,
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Steven Schenkman reply on March 20, 2008:
Hi Cecilia, This is an old problem, and one born mostly out of inexperience, as well as a kind of unearned sense of entitlement. It also speaks to the point I make above in my response to Linda’s comment to my initial blog entry “Use It or Lose It” that massage therapists as a group of people are not known for business and marketing skills. This is a big issue and has “forced” regulators and accreditors of massage therapy schools and programs across the country to add courses to their curriculums on business and ethics that cover all of these issues. Unfortunately not enough time is really devoted to these topics for many reasons and by the time the graduate is credentialed and ready to practice much of what was learned is already out the window.
For the most part it will take a hard lesson for practitioners manifesting the poor attitudes you describe to “get it” and wake-up to what is necessary to be successful and make a consistent living in this field. As for yourself and the sake of your position, you’d probably be best off to keep the practitioners that demonstrate the best attitudes for learning and growth and rid yourself of those who are not up to the job. That will help you develop a stronger team, ultimately make you more successful in your job responsibilities and at the same time, hopefully, will wake up those therapists you let go of.
Margo Hutchison:
I realised a few years ago the importance of keeping abreast of current knowledge, I felt I was getting stale and doing the same old thing and needed a change. I am 69 and began my massage career 20 years ago. In 2000 I began teaching at a Natural Therapies College and in 2005 I did a 6 month course to upgrade my Diploma of Remedial Massage - in 2006 and 2007 I went to Thailand and studied Thai Massage - and recently redid courses in Lymphatic drainage and Reflexology. I am usually the oldest student in the class but don’t feel old when I am with young people. I love massage therapy - even though it has damaged my hands in the process - I keep fit by teaching yoga and still work as an RN. This year i will be doing a Uni course to learn how to teach in Higher Education as the college where I teach becomes a University soon. It is all very exciting and challenging and I endorse everything Steven says.
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Steven Schenkman reply on March 20, 2008:
Wow Margo!! What can I say but how inspiring it is to hear the level of enthusiasm, energy and commitment you have to learning, self development and this field and other fields you work in. Just compare that with the young whining MT’s Cecilia just above describes that she has to deal with! I think the contrast says it all!!! Good luck and I hesitate to say, “take it easy” at least a little!! LOL!!