One of the most frequent questions I get as a successful massage therapist, business owner and now, consultant, is "How did you get to be so successful?" or "What is the best thing I can do to get my practice/business going?" Whether you are a new practitioner on your own or the owner of a spa, my answers would still be the same. Here are a few of my suggestions.

1) Have confidence in yourself and your abilities. One of my instructors in massage school told me that being a great therapist was about 10% technique and 90% confidence. And she added that if I wasn't confident, to "fake it 'til you make it." That advice has served me well, whether I was speaking to a group, treating a new or VIP client, or interviewing for a new position. Even when I have to admit I don't know the answer to something, I will confidently tell someone "I'm not sure, but I will find out for you!" Confidence is very attractive and your clients/potential clients will definitely respond to it.

2) Always be willing to learn. No matter how much you know, you never know it all. For me, being humble enough to grow and learn from every situation and from others I meet gives me the opportunity to continue to stretch myself personally and professionally. It also opens my eyes to new perspectives, ideas, attitudes and adventures!

3) Help others succeed. Ever since I began my massage practice in 1994, and then later at my spa, I have always made it a point to help other massage therapists, spa owners and spa professionals. That attitude and aim has led to many teaching and speaking opportunities and is now the basis for my career as a consultant. If you help others succeed it will come back to many times over...and you will feel great about knowing that your deeds have really been good ones.

I can honestly say that my view of what success means has changed drastically over my 15+ year career. When I was younger it was more about status, public perception and money. Now it is all about doing what I love both at work and in life, having time to be with the people I care about, and being able to afford a few perks here and there.

Everyone's definition of success is different, but the key to achieving your own idea of success is to start by knowing what it looks like. Even now with my much relaxed idea and plan for success, I still set goals, determine necessary tasks, and set a time line for what I want to achieve. That's a lot of what I educate my students and clients to do as well because without some kind of a plan, the road to success can easily become a circular road to nowhere.

So here is a question for the rest of you...what advice would you give to new people in the massage/spa/healing arts field, either individual practitioners or spa business owners and managers? Be confident in the fact that you have something valuable to share so we can learn from each other...and together we will all succeed ">