Is it a good job

I have been encouraging people for years to consider massage therapy a part-time job/career while obtaining a higher degree. If you think about, during college you want to maximize your earning potential during the limited time that you will typically have to work. Hmmm, minimum wage and possibly a decent amount of tips or sales commissions to earn maybe $8-$10 per hour with retail or restaurant working 20 hours per week, or $15-$25 per hour working 8-15 hours per week? If you work for an established massage facility where you do not need to spend much time marketing and creating clientele for yourself, then that would be the best scenario. Avoid a rental situation unless you know you can commit to the time necessary to develop clientele.

www.swiha.edu

eepoy in new york said: I have been encouraging people for years to consider massage therapy a part-time job/career while obtaining a higher degree. If you think about, during college you want to maximize your earning potential during the limited time that you will typically have to work. Hmmm, minimum wage and possibly a decent amount of tips or sales commissions to earn maybe $8-$10 per hour with retail or restaurant working 20 hours per week, or $15-$25 per hour working 8-15 hours per week? If you work for an established massage facility where you do not need to spend much time marketing and creating clientele for yourself, then that would be the best scenario. Avoid a rental situation unless you know you can commit to the time necessary to develop clientele.

www.swiha.edu

There are SO MANY variables to that scenario it is unbelievable. Are you a gifted MT so that people come to you because they heard about you.

How do you find a place that you don't have to market??????????????? Tell me I'd love to work there.

Is there the ability to have a slow time financially. When you work at a restaurant it is steady work; massage is NOT consistent and steady.

for every hour spent in session you should be charting and marketing for 15 to 20 minutes so 8-15 mins in session is many more hours of busy work not to mention laundry.

I have been doing this for 12 years and let me tell you it IS NOT easy money! It is a labor of love and commitment and dedication!

OK I am done venting.

I'm 46 years old.I been a legal secretary for 25 years. Thinking about going to school for massage therapy.I'm not quitting my job right away. I love massages and I think they are very helpful to this stressful world. Will it be hard to make a decent salary?

What I can tell you about massage therapy - I have a friend (went to court reporting school, worked with her as a legal secretary/paralegal, etc). She was a massage therapist for (at least five years). She went back to the legal field because she said quote, "The market was just over saturated with massage therapists and it was hard to get a job."

Back in 1981 when I moved to Florida, I just started out as a court reporter (had RPR status). In Tampa, I was LUCKY to get any job in court reporting. Oversaturation. There were 13 court reporting schools in the area. The owners of reporting firms were making MORE MONEY operating a court reporting school.

Go through your phone book or check the Internet - find out how many training programs there are in your general area for massage therapy. That should give you a general idea of your competition.

mona in Lake Charles, Louisiana said: I'm 46 years old.I been a legal secretary for 25 years. Thinking about going to school for massage therapy.I'm not quitting my job right away. I love massages and I think they are very helpful to this stressful world. Will it be hard to make a decent salary?

I don't know about your area but as far as the profession... it is hard work to make a decent living doing massage. The hardest part is getting your clientelle. When I go to career days the most common misconception is that people think they will be able to work a few hours a day and make 40 - 50K per year. To make that much you need to work making 1/4 of that for 10 years building your clientelle and then a recession hits so we will see how much longer it will take.

I wish you all of the luck you deserve but please don't go into massage unless you have a passion for it and think you can do it well.

I am not sure that people look at the industry in the right way. I belive that Massage Therapy as a industry is going to grow larger as the insurance industry realizes the benefits of massage over surgery. If you have been trained in medical massage therapy or sprts massage therapy the field is wide open if you feel that a spa like setting is more your forte well there is a burgeoning niche as well. I live in florida and have seen that for as many massage therapist there are there are markets available for all. I dont believe that one massage therapist is much the same as another so dont believe that there can be that much competition. After all you would have to be taught my styles and methods of choice as well I yours for there to be a comparison. As we find that more and more pathologies are found to benefit from massage therapy and in some cases the only recommended treatment as in Fibro Myalgia the field will grow. Strive to become a competant and professional medical massage therapist and you will have a bright future.

Adrian,

I agree with all that you said. I do hear a little naivety in your statement however.

Insurance doesn't recognize massage as the amazing tx that it is....yet. Leaving many of my colleugues owed thousands of dollars.

In our area the market is so bad that business' are closing down that leads to people NOT getting massages, many not even buying Christmas presents.

I love massage (giving an getting) and I would love to have a lot more GOOD therapists around but I worry about people spending the money and time to go through school all the while thinking that they are going to get out of school and land a great job.

The truth is that, depending on your area,(I am sure there are some areas that don't have enough MT's)you really need to be dedicated and consistent and gifted at Massage to keep your clientelle. There are many MT's that come in new and (ie) my client will go to them once because they have an intro price of $30.00 well with that one visit I have missed $60.00 income. They always come back but when you have a huge flux like that with your clients it can be painful to the pocket book. Eventually those clients stop doing that but then you have new clients they will do the same thing... you see what I am saying. You will see under other topics in the massage forum that one MT was even giving FREE chair massages on her off hours(at her place of work) causing other MTs clients to cancel n get a free massage.

All I am saying is dont expect to become a millionaire doing massage. It is honest hard work and if you have a passion for it you stand a chance of making a decent wage....if you live modestly.

mona in Lake Charles, Louisiana said: I'm 46 years old.I been a legal secretary for 25 years. Thinking about going to school for massage therapy.I'm not quitting my job right away. I love massages and I think they are very helpful to this stressful world. Will it be hard to make a decent salary?

I am a manager of a day spa. I have worked as a therapist for 9 years before finally, for the first time in my career, I am salary (but only because I manage and still do a small amount of massage a week). My spa employees 10 therapists and right from their first interview, they all assume they want 40 hours of massage a week. That just won't happen, in fact that could never physically happen. Even in a peak season, a therapist may take home up to $100 in tips off of 4-5 hours of massage plus whatever their base pay is. But that doesn't mean that will last all year. I advise all my staff to maintain a part-time job that can give them the steady income base they need to support themselves while they build their massage career. Building your clientel is as much about your personality as it is about your skill as a therapist. However, I wouldn't change what I do for a living for anything!

I am so with you on all of what you just wrote!! I do recruiting from MT schools for my spa and I also do guest speaking on my career as a therapist and believe you me, I do not sugar coat anything. I make sure to relay the pros and cons of being either an independent contractor or working as an employee. Yes, making $60 an hour on ONE massage may sound great, but you have to save atleast HALF of that for your taxes (because that's not taken out), then you have to account for laundry, health insurance (if you have any), and if its your own business, there's marketing, utilities and other overhead costs. So....it's like you said, a labor of love!!

Missoula,

I think YOU may have missed what Adrian was saying...its not that massage is easy to just jump in and start making big bucks...of course you have to work and be dedicated and expect ups and downs and cancellations as in any business (and it isn't even enough to be a dedicated therapist, you need to be business savvy too so that you know what to do when those cancellations and recessions happen..)
but in the very near future when the insurance companies begin to carry massage therapy...which I firmly believe is going to happen, then the game is going to change and then it won't be such a struggle anymore because it will be an insured health practice.

mona in Lake Charles, Louisiana said: I'm 46 years old.I been a legal secretary for 25 years. Thinking about going to school for massage therapy.I'm not quitting my job right away. I love massages and I think they are very helpful to this stressful world. Will it be hard to make a decent salary?

Hi, I am a 48 old secretary and work in the criminal justice system. I started MT school in October 2007, and went 4 nights a week (one night was my clinical hours) and completed my 9 month MT certificate in June 2008. I live in NJ and took the National Certification test on September 9th, 2008 and passed!!! I took it because right now NJ is in the process of required MT's to be Licensed. Also, I may move to Delaware in a few years, and felt it was good to have. I currently have a few clients. I am so very happy that I made this decision. I love giving massages, and learning as much as I can about it. The anatomy is crucial. I am planning on retiring in 2010 from my full time job, and will be able to collect a pension and have benefits; therefore, I will be able to concentrate more on giving Massages. I would consider such things as: going to school at night while working, once you quit your job-will you have benefits?-VERY IMPORTANT, and if you will work for someone or have your own office. Good luck with your decision. I am very happy about being a Massage Therapist

I dont think that I am being naive when i state that the industry is burgeoning. The numbers speak for themselves. The health and wellness industry brings profits now in the trillions of dollars. Massage therapist who are being certified today are entering a industry where the growth potential is estimated to be 75 percent in the next 20 years as baby boomers age. I don't think those numbers are naive. whats naive is the idea that the massage therapist does not have to be aware of those numbers. I am a pretty savvy business man and I am fully invested in my future as a L.M.T. I will pursue education in all areas of bodywork so that I can offer my clients the benefit of my knowledge and experience thereby ensuring a bright future. I so wholly belive this that I am furthering my education and entering a program to become a doctor of acupuncture and Chinese medicine. A field now accepted and integrated in to modern western medicine. So I say to anyone entertaining the idea of becoming a L.M.T. "come on there is always room for one more".

Im still in highschool but i have been looking into Massage therapy. I love giving massages and its something that interst me. I keep getting so many different answers about if its worth it. To me its worth it but i also want be be able to finacially take care of myslef. So would it be smart to have a steady job on the side? please give me adive my email is christa119@yahoo.com

I love being a massage therapist and it is what I was meant to do; HOWEVER, I must say that I am getting ready to retire from my first career after 20 years, and will be receivng a pension and health benefits for myself and my husband, for the rest of my life. It is very important to get health benefits and steady income, so I do think it is a very good idea to get a job that you can get both. I also think there is a lot to learn as a Massage Therapist, and it is important that we continue our education in order to do so. It may be a good idea to start part time and see where your career takes you as an MT. All the best.