A candid conversation with Jamerie Michalek, massage therapist mentor and coach. You do not want to skip this episode! We talk about how not all massage therapists are flaky and as a massage therapist how to be future paced so your career does not become monotonous or stagnant.
This is a really fun conversation in our series dedicated to massage therapists, one of our spa businesses greatest asset. Jamerie is very fun to talk to and gives us some easy to use tips and resources to help you grow your business and career as a massage therapist.
MEET JAMERIE
When I was a therapist, I felt very limited by only helping one person at a time. As I progressed in my career I knew I wanted to help as many people as I could. I knew that meant stepping out of the massage room and into leadership roles. I wanted to be able to share my experience and lessons I learned along the way. Now being a coach allows me to help those who help others.
JAMERIE'S MISSION
I help ambitious Massage therapists who are uncertain of their next step in their career gain clarity by leadership skills and techniques.
CONNECT WITH JAMERIE
FOLLOW JAMERIE ON INSTAGRAM
https://www.instagram.com/mtspacoach/
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Julie: [00:00:00] Welcome to the SpaHive. I'm Julie Pankey, your host for today's show. In the SpaHive, we are dishing up killer industry buzz, tactical business insights and grass roots, inspiration. I promise our conversations will always be real raw, honest, and sometimes messy with experts from across. It's a globe meant to show you how to find your own joy, your own divine purpose, and the power of your spirit animal in the spa hive.
[00:00:42] I can help you have it all the business and life of your dreams. Join me on this wild ride. Welcome. I'm so excited today to be sitting with Jamerie. You're going to love, hearing about all the little bits of tips and resources and wisdoms that Jamerie, the massage therapist, this continues our theme, talking about massage therapists and chew massage therapists.
[00:01:17] Solo practitioners, as well as the spa owners and spa directors that manage our massage therapists. And I think this has been a really great tips and resource series about motivating, inspiring, and helping our massage therapist as a team grow within our businesses and massage therapists that have solo practices.
[00:01:46] Also helping our massage therapists that have solo practices grow their businesses, the way that they want to grow them, that fits their lifestyle. So Jamerie, welcome to the spa podcast today. Give us a little background about you, how you got started in the industry, why you're so passionate about what you do and how you help people.
[00:02:13] Jamerie: [00:02:13] Thank you Julie. I am so excited to talk about our industry today. I feel like our industry is so amazing and I'm so passionate about it. So I've been a massage therapist for over 10 years now and I've been in spa management for over seven. I love it a little bit. More about myself. I'm also a massage therapist, instructor, occasionally.
[00:02:33]But right now my current focus is coaching other massage therapists to move into leadership roles, or if you're already in that leadership role and you want to motivate and inspire a team to be better and kind of work consistently and as a whole, and as an amazing team. I'm always super excited when the clinic or spa or resorthas been an amazing rhythm where people are checking in and checking out and feeling so much better.
[00:03:01]That's a little bit about me and what I'm focusing on now.
[00:03:04]Julie: [00:03:04] I love it. And tell me how long have you been a massage therapist?
[00:03:08] Jamerie: [00:03:08] Over 10 years now? I was actually, or I have been a massage therapist since before there was like a consistent certification in California. So before there was CNPC, was that the massage therapy council?
[00:03:23] We had to pay each city. We did massage in, and follow whatever rules. We needed to follow for their specific license things. I think CMCC has been a great thing for our industry in California.
[00:03:37] Julie: [00:03:37] Good. That's really interesting. And so, Tell me about, you've been in the industry. I know, where you work and the amount of clients that you service and all the things that you've learned as resources and tips for other massage therapists.
[00:03:59]But tell me, what have you learned over the course of your career? That you wished you knew. At the beginning of your career. So what's your single greatest lesson that you can share with people that are early on in their careers?
[00:04:18]Jamerie: [00:04:18] It may sound cliche, but definitely being this management. Space.
[00:04:23] When people show you who they are, definitely believe them, no need to add any judgment or anything like that. Just accept the information and edits file. Because sometimes when a person calls out, we can kind of try to rationalize it and empathize with it, but we don't have to input all that information and things like that.
[00:04:42] We kind of need to just take down the facts. And just write it down versus like making it a big deal. Emotional. It ruins my day that this person called out now my books are messed up. Now my couple's massages are messed up. No, just accept the information and move on because there's other things to focus on throughout the day versus this one uncomfortable or not uncomfortable.
[00:05:06] I feel like that's not the right word. Frustrating moment. And so instead of dealing with this one frustrating moment, just to focus on like, okay, that happened now we need to move on and call these guests instead of making it a big emotional, like disruption to the clinic or spa. It's just one thing that happened in the day and we need to edit a file and move on.
[00:05:27] So
[00:05:28] Julie: [00:05:28] that's great. That's great advice because you're right. Sometimes we do. Take it emotionally. And I think I like, when people show you what they are, believe them. It's funny because I was interviewing for a spa last week and we're trying to find a really amazing hairstylist. And so the person who I thought was going to be amazing.
[00:05:53] Didn't show up for her interview. And so I was like, oh, well hopefully something came up, blah, blah, blah, blah. So I sent her an email and I said, okay, I'm wondering if something came up, we had an interview for whatever time it was. And she sent me an email back and she said, oh, sorry, I got called into work.
[00:06:15] And I forgot to send you a message. Can we set up another meeting for another time? I'm really interested. And so. I set up a second meeting with her. And like five minutes before that meeting, she sent an email that said something came up and I really wanted her to be the one because she had great experience.
[00:06:41] She worked at a very reputable salon. And I started kind of making excuses. Well, she's busy and it's COVID and should I give her one more chance? And then just like what you said when people show you what they are, believe them. I thought to myself, but then when she's an employee what's going to happen.
[00:07:03] Jamerie: [00:07:03] Exactly.
[00:07:04] Julie: [00:07:04] And so I had to put her resume and application into the circular file and move on as disappointing as that is. So that leads me to being a massage therapist and a manager. What are some, so for the spot owners and directors on the call today, I know that a lot of people listening. Are trying to hire and are struggling with hiring massage therapists.
[00:07:36] It really seems to be a national issue and a big challenge. Getting enough massage therapists for some reason right now, when looking for a massage therapist, what are some red flags that you look for? If they're going to be a good fit? Fit in the business. And what are some things that you look for to know that they could potentially be superstars?
[00:08:02] Do you have any tips on that?
[00:08:04] Jamerie: [00:08:04] Yes. I have a few, I think, to kind of give a more broad in depth thing too. I feel like our industry is always looking for those rock stars and amazing people, and we need to kind of nurture and develop a little bit more so that those people just coming out of massage school can be amazing slash therapists in the future.
[00:08:27] I think we need to do a little bit more investing and get connected with those massage schools so that we can. Really employ those new grads right away. But I know many of us are like, ah, I just want rock stars. I want good Yelp reviews. I want people to just be amazing and awesome right away. So I don't have to do as much work, but it doesn't work that way sometimes.
[00:08:48]But finding a good fit, I feel like massage therapists are always attracted to the vibe of the fall or clinic, or they're looking for like similar, beautiful to work. I feel like always important or they're mostly connected with whoever's interviewing them. So I think building that connection right away and building that rapport right away is so important.
[00:09:10] Finding superstars and rock stars. I wish I had a secret formula of how to make them, but I've actually had a couple people that have been with me over the years, but have developed into amazing massage therapists in the industry, being a massage therapist, they always say like, you need a thousand bodies before you feel like.
[00:09:29] A massage therapist, like you feel like really connected and familiarized with the body. You need a thousand bodies. So just getting that experience and you have to do the hands-on work, which I think is a little bit more difficult now because a lot of people that are just graduating kind of had to do some online classes or they massage to the same body, whoever they were aware of at home and during the shutdowns and things like that.
[00:09:54] So. I think right now it's a really good time to develop people that maybe are lacking sort of skills. I think we need to check that kind of resource instead of like, oh, I just need someone good to hire. I think the most important thing when hiring is making sure it's a cultural fit. Because I feel like someone who's not a cultural fit can be disruptive the whole base.
[00:10:16] And I think that would be worse than having a quote unquote bad massage therapist. So I think having someone who's a cultural fit and make sure that the rest of the team is staying on track and productive and they're willing to learn, I feel like that's also another key thing. So sometimes massage therapists come out of school a little bit as know it alls.
[00:10:35] Okay. I
[00:10:38] Julie: [00:10:38] hate to say it, but sometimes I do interviews and they'll say, well, I'm right out of school, really? Sorry, I don't have a lot of experience. And I love to hire people right out of school. I mean, if they have some good touch and a good energy and you can feel, it feel like they're disconnected and doing their grocery list while they're massaging, in their head.
[00:11:01] That I think that you can teach them all the skills that they need. As long as they have the good, basic massage skills, good energy, willingness to learn positive attitude, then you can cultivate them and you don't have to break bad habits.
[00:11:21] Jamerie: [00:11:21] Yes, exactly. And we get to mold them to how you want to build consistency in your business and how you want them to add value into your space.
[00:11:32] Julie: [00:11:32] Right? Absolutely. Well, those are really some great tips, especially for people. That are hiring massage therapists because you made a very good point, which is a lot of times we say we need to hire somebody with a client towel so that they can bring business into my business, or they have to have so much experience.
[00:11:54] But the beauty is that, the pupil right out of school, if they have the right culture that fits your business, you can make them into the rock stars. And so some of the key advice that you would have to investing in the success of your therapist, do you have some tips on how to cultivate them, how to invest in them and how to create rock stars?
[00:12:25] Jamerie: [00:12:25] Definitely. I think, especially since many of them are out of school or just out of school, they are already in that learning mode. So spending a good amount of time training with them. It doesn't have to be like all day for the first two weeks or something like that. You can have them receiving massages.
[00:12:42] That's another great way to learn. I know some. Owners are like, well, that costs me money because I have to pay my service provider, but it's how they learn and how they experience your facility so that they're able to replicate that same experience for somebody else because massage therapists are very focused on the client experience and how they feel at the end of their service and how they can add to it with their hands-on massage.
[00:13:10] Another way to build culture. Massage therapists love food. So buying them food is amazing. Getting to know them and really building that connection. I think that's going to be the game changer for a lot of people because they know a lot of managers or owners just spend a lot of time in the office doing paperwork because there's.
[00:13:30]the paper work to do, but building that connection and really infusing your culture and your vision into your team is so key and so important because they need to be able to see , where they're going in their career through you, and you need to share your vision so they can hop on board and be a part of it.
[00:13:47] Julie: [00:13:47] Absolutely. Absolutely. I love, love, love that. Tell me Jamerie, what have you considered. To be one of your greatest resources as you've gone through your career. And how did it help you?
[00:14:05]Jamerie: [00:14:05] So if you've never been in management or you're a massage therapist thinking about hiring as next step, or you're stepping into that leadership role, and you have no idea where to start because the internet and looking up leadership can spiral.
[00:14:19] So a really great book and a quick read is the one minute manager. And I think it kind of really puts into perspective. A lot of things that we need to focus on as managers, because there is a lot of things in those. Day to day that you can get lost and there's always inventory and things like that, or payroll or managing appointments.
[00:14:37] So I think reading the one minute manager helps you stay focused on what is important.
[00:14:42] Julie: [00:14:42] That's a great resource and not to get lost in the day to day. Don't miss the opportunities, really, because you're sunk in the day-to-day operation and letting yourself spiraling out a control or spiraling into a stress state, because it's so busy and you have so much to do, and you're doing the payroll and the marketing, and you're managing a team and don't get lost in the day to day and just.
[00:15:15] Step back when, remember that we're all people working with other people in the service of people and that we all need to treat each other as people, individual people that. We want to know their goals and their aspirations and how we can help them achieve them. And I think like what you said by being invested in your team, they're going to in turn, invest in your business.
[00:15:48] Jamerie: [00:15:48] Exactly. Exactly.
[00:15:50] Julie: [00:15:50] So what would you say is a common misconception about say massage therapists or our industry in general?
[00:16:05] Jamerie: [00:16:05] A common misconception about massage therapists is that we're inconsistent and flaky. That may be like a kind of red flag for some people. I think some people are inconsistent and flaky, but that's just people in general, part of being human is we're a little messy.
[00:16:24] We're not robots that if you enter formula and spit out the same response, things happen. It can change over time. And I think people are different stages in our lives, but having responsibility and being consistent in the massage therapist industry, shouldn't be like a gold standard. I would prefer that it's more consistent.
[00:16:46] But I think it comes from us not connecting or feeling the right energy or vibe for the people we're working for. I think that's where it really stems from, because I mean, we have to have consistently when we're going to massage school, when we were going through our massage program and we have to show up consistently.
[00:17:04] So I don't know that that really, I think it just easier to dismiss that we're thinking system in place. He, but I think it's more like we're not connecting or we're not feeling the right energy from a place of employment.
[00:17:16]Julie: [00:17:16] And so let's dive deeper into that a little bit. So for our owners and directors that are listening, if we want to have a kind of culture that invests in our employees, do you have any tips on where to start to create the kind of culture that inspires your teams?
[00:17:41] Jamerie: [00:17:41] Yes. I would meet with them regularly, one on one, just pull them aside and be like, Hey, how are you just going to check in on you? I feel like that's going to make a world of difference. I know we're all super busy and we have payroll pending inventory orders to order and everything else and meeting with everyone, like just pull an employee aside that is kind of being a little inconsistent or maybe arriving a minute or two late and like, Hey, are you okay?
[00:18:04] What's going on? Not to add any judgment or anything like that. When I checked in with you and stuff like that, I feel like that's going to be a huge game changer because when you show up for them, they show up for you.
[00:18:16] Julie: [00:18:16] I love that when you show up for them, they show up for you. I got to write that down the next time you're talking.
[00:18:22] So I don't forget it. So let me ask you this. What would you consider Jamerie, as one of the greatest things that you learned in your career that you want to share with others?
[00:18:39] Jamerie: [00:18:39] One thing that I've learned in my career that I would share with others is that there are many career opportunities for us massage therapists.
[00:18:46] We don't have to leave the industry due to injury or searching for quote, unquote stability. We all don't have to end up like accountants or a banker or something like that to get more. Consistent work. I feel like there's so many avenues for us, so we can either move into leadership roles because I feel like massage therapists are the leaders that other massage therapists needs.
[00:19:10] And it also brings an added dynamic to other leadership roles when you're a massage therapist that becomes lead therapists or an owner and things like that. So I think it's definitely important search more avenues other than going to like straight to like accounting or banking, or I have to leave because I'm injured.
[00:19:29] No, I think it's important for us to think ahead and not be a one trick pony and just doing all the massages we can all the time. I think we need to start being a little bit more future paced in thinking about how we can progress in our careers. I think so many of us feel stuck and stagnated just being massage therapists.
[00:19:46] I remember one time in my career, I was like, gosh, I feel like this is what I like. 10 millionth leg I massage today and I was just going through the motions and I was like, I need to do something. I need a break from this. I think I need to step away for a second. So I think I was definitely a little burned out and they kind of needed to reevaluate what was my next step when you're massaging.
[00:20:08] And you're like, who's this person. And you're like lost in your thoughts during that massage, you're kind of losing focus of why you became a massage therapist, which is to help one person as much as you can at one time.
[00:20:20] Julie: [00:20:20] I love that. And when you, I know when we spoke initially and we talked about the one trick pony, I love that.
[00:20:28] I remember writing that down in my notes then, and I wrote it down again now, and that is such great advice. Now I know I said that was our last question, but it made me think a follow-up question, which is what would be your advice. For someone who's a massage therapist, whether they're in a solo practice or their massage therapist at clinic or day spa or resort spa, for that matter, that wants to grow in their career.
[00:21:01] What are some steps that they could take towards that direction?
[00:21:06] Jamerie: [00:21:06] Plenty of things to read on the internet regarding leadership, but I feel like a lot of regular or standard leadership techniques don't apply to a massage therapist or the spa industry, trying to get your massage therapist to understand KPIs or other metrics that they're like.
[00:21:24] I don't know what this percentage means, and I don't know why I have to do this. So I'm actually offering a one-on-one coaching that's massage therapist, moving into leadership roles, and I teach them how to shift from an employee or an adjustment Taj therapist, mindset to leadership mindset. And I teach them how to step into that role.
[00:21:45] I share some how, how to tools and sharing my mistakes so that they don't have to make them themselves. And I also teach them how to execute and be a leader or be a CEO or be a boss.
[00:21:57]Julie: [00:21:57] So that leads me to Jamerie, how can people get in touch with you? Tell me how to find you online on Facebook on Instagram.
[00:22:09] Give us a rundown on where and how people can find you to connect with you.
[00:22:14] Jamerie: [00:22:14] I post a lot of free, valuable content on Instagram. My Instagram name is NP ball coach. My website is mtspacoach.com as well. I'm accepting applications now for coaching clients and I share stuff about. Culture and why to upgrade for 30 minutes.
[00:22:34] So even if you're just a massage therapist, now I share a little bit tips and tricks on how to increase your sales gift card sales and other key metrics you can track on your own. If you're a solo practitioner as well, like you should track your rebooking, your overall revenue, your gift cards, or gift certificates, sales, and other tips like that.
[00:22:55] Julie: [00:22:55] I think that's great. Not to worry. You don't need to worry about writing this all down in the show notes. We're going to have Jamerie's contact details as well as links to her website and social media so that you can connect with her. And I know sometimes it's overwhelming and if you're running your own business and you're feeling sometimes run down, you feel like your body's starting to break down after being a massage therapist for many, many years, and you want to be able to grow in your career.
[00:23:32] I've seen so many massage therapists go back to school and be estheticians. And then they become dual therapists. I've seen them grow into lead positions, managers. Supervisors and spawn directors, if you want to open your own spa and you're a massage therapist now working for a spa and your dream is to open your own spa.
[00:23:55] I know Jamerie will help you find the resources and tools to be successful. By showing you, baby steps that you can take step-by-step to reach those goals that you want. So you don't have to be a one trick pony. You can be future paced. I love that. Be future paced and have a goal and know where you're going, but then let Jamerie as a coach help you.
[00:24:26] Put that in a plan of action because we're not all naturally born business people and entrepreneurs. So you can, you can put a plan into action and have actionable steps that you can work towards with a coach so that when you're ready to take that big step and won't be so scary. So, if I have to ask you Jamerie, your one last bit of advice for our audience, what would be your one last tidbit of advice before we say goodbye?
[00:24:58] Jamerie: [00:24:58] When you're feeling frustrated and stuck, don't stay stuck there doing things, anything, moving, brainstorming, writing it down. The answer will come to you. And leadership is an amazing avenue. Where your next step in your career, but it's not for everyone, like you said. And sometimes it is, and sometimes it isn't and sometimes it's something we just have to discover that we're capable of doing within ourselves because not everyone thinking that, oh, that's the next step in my career.
[00:25:29] Sometimes it kind of just happens where you're a massage therapist that's fully booked and busy, maybe a month or two out. And you're like, what do I do? I can't just. Keep having to wait waitlist people. So your next step would be, oh, you have to hire a, how do I hire, what do I do I say? And that's kind of where I help, but definitely if you feel stuck or stagnant in your career, no, it's not the end of the world.
[00:25:54] And you can say in the spa industry and you don't have to feel that way for much longer. Just you have to let the answer come to you.
[00:26:04] Julie: [00:26:04] That's great. That's such great advice. Thank you so much, Jamerie. I know you're super busy and you're joining us bright and early from California. So thank you so much for hopping on with the SpaHive audience today.
[00:26:21]We're so excited to continue to follow mtspacoach and see how you're helping massage therapist around the country. Be more successful. Find the tools and resources that they need. Thank you again for joining us today. Thanks for joining us today. Be sure to check out our new episodes each Monday and our quick tips series every Friday.
[00:26:49] In the meantime, if you'd like to connect with us, join our free online spark community. Head on over to Facebook search SpaHive, professional community, and join me our spa board and over 500 other spa wellness. And the hospitality professionals there.