Continuing education is essential for many professional and healthcare roles and often leads to higher pay and additional career opportunities. While some careers require no or minimal ongoing training hours, massage therapists average 22 hours a year of continuing education courses. So while you may not be the only massage therapist continuing studies, the quality and care you put into your education can help you stand out.
Why is ongoing professional development so critical? The services you provide your clients can be life-changing and have a lasting impact on their health and wellbeing. With such an essential role in the lives of others, advancing your skills can bring greater rewards and a more fulfilling career.
And in our online world, reviews can make or break a business. Developing your skills to offer more significant services means you are more likely to receive great reviews and client referrals. It is a sure path to success.
Why continuing education is important
When you learn new ways to provide care for your clients, you become a more desirable massage therapist. You can increase your client base while fostering repeat clients. A combination of modalities will also allow you to charge more for your services and get the best return on your education investment.
Continuing education shows your commitment to your profession and to providing top services to clients. To maintain a client base and encourage repeat sessions, a massage therapist must continually enhance his or her skill set and gain confidence in skill application.
Classes also provide an opportunity to review basics such as human body anatomy and pathology. These are topics you covered early in your studies that can become distant memories the longer you practice your trade.
What you can learn
Discover Massage Australia offers courses for furthering your specialty or general knowledge. From four levels of deep tissue courses to advanced certificates, our curriculum will keep you at the top of your profession and in demand with clients requesting special services.
Using our courses to specialize is an excellent way to take your practice to the next level. Once you have obtained your certification, you can learn to treat spinal torsion, or achieve an HLT52015 Diploma to become a qualified remedial massage therapist.
How to stand out
The demand for massage therapists in Australia is high and growing. In 2015, there were 11,800 massage therapists in Australia and this number is forecasted to reach 15,100 this year. With so many people in the field, you might wonder how to make yourself stand out. Continuing education is the answer.
Additional courses enable you to create a completely unique offering and speciality by learning multiple modalities and combining those as an exclusive service. Though it’s best to choose a modality early in your career, so you have time to excel and use this to advance and grow your client base, it’s never too late to add new skills.
Once you have accumulated additional certifications, you can offer your clients a tiered menu of services in which prices increase with the level of modality sophistication. By doing so, you can get the most benefit—and income—from your added coursework. A highly skilled therapist with an assortment of techniques will be appealing to a broader range of clients.
Summing it up
The benefits of lifelong learning are innumerable. You will never regret being a perpetual student and adding to your skills, general business acumen, and recreational interests. The simple act of seeking to learn is the best skill you can have, regardless of your career.
But as a massage therapist, continuing education is more critical. You have one-to-one relationships with your clients and need their trust. Showing a commitment to your profession and your skills that promote a healthier body for them is just one way of earning and maintaining that trust.
Many courses are now available online, which makes attending class more manageable and more convenient. Make skill development a priority and set aside time each quarter for attaining new skills or improving current ones. It is the greatest gift you can give your clients—and yourself.
