Some experts call these invisible money scripts, and they have a lot to do with how we view money, interact with it, and use it.
In previous blogs, we discussed possible limiting beliefs about success, happiness, and balancing life as both a solo massage therapist and business owner. But now, it’s time to talk about money. Specifically, your money beliefs, especially those that might be holding you back.
Limiting beliefs can hold back even the most capable massage therapists.
So, if you’ve ever said any of the negative phrases below, whether internally or out loud, you may believe (and be reinforcing) a negative money belief.
Your language decides your reality. It’s crucial that you don’t create a self-fulfilling prophecy of failure before you even start. Here are the phrases we’ll address:
Any of these sound familiar?
Let’s take the time to acknowledge these money beliefs so you can first understand where they come from. Then you can work on them, work on yourself, and move forward to new levels of success in your business, without being held back by these limiting beliefs.
We want to start with this one because it’s a more common belief and it’s enough to hold you back from reaching your full earning potential.
Take a moment to think about others in your field and if there’s anybody out there who is making a good living doing what you do. Most of the people we talk to can confirm they know somebody with a successful practice.
So, why repeat this belief if you already know it isn’t true? It may be because this is what you’re actually saying:
In either case, what you want is to feel financially secure as you build a career that is sustainable in the long run.
We want to remind you that if others can do it, so can you. Let’s start by saying to yourself that you certainly can create a thriving practice that allows you to live a rich life, as you enrich the life of others.
Now, if you’re struggling with hitting specific income goals, you can look into practical strategies to help you increase your revenue. Whether you need to increase your rates or your number of clients, there are steps you can take as early as right now.
For example, you can create service packages, raise your rates (more on this later), and invest time (and maybe money) into marketing your practice. After you’ve read through all of these mental money blocks, feel free to jump to the relevant section on these money-making strategies.
Most people would agree that money isn’t everything. But it’s quite something else to say that money isn’t important.
When you started your practice, you did so with the goal of making a living for yourself. That’s okay! There’s no need to romanticize the idea that helping people means you don’t get to have a rich life.
So, maybe you’re really saying:
Let’s turn this one around - you enjoy helping others and using your skills to improve their quality of life. The people you help, they see enough value in your service to pay you for it, and the last thing they want is to see your business fail.
If you truly want to help the people you serve, you need to confidently charge a reasonable rate. By creating a financially stable situation for yourself, you can invest in better tools, improving your environment, creating personalized experiences for clients, and more.
Valuing your work isn’t just about paying bills. You should be building a practice that makes you financially healthy and secure so you can run your business long-term, prevent burnout, reduce your stress levels, and keep on doing what you love.
You owe it to your clients who trust you to take good care of them. So, the belief that you don’t deserve success only works to affect you and your clients negatively. It’s time to value yourself, your skills, and your clients - don’t be afraid to create a strong financial future for yourself.
Before we dive into this one, let’s establish two things:
It seems like oversimplifying, but all you need to reach your financial goal is to set a reasonable rate, and get/ maintain a specific number of clients.
Why talk about numbers with this money belief? Because it’s a belief focused on feelings.
Now, we don’t want to invalidate what you feel - you may legitimately feel that charging a specific amount (or any amount) is unfair.
Our goal is simply to shift your focus from “this does or doesn’t feel fair” to “here is the math that gets me to my goal.” If you don’t charge enough, you won’t be able to cover your bills, and you won’t have a practice. You should be able to do what you love and help others, so what would really be unfair would be failing to keep your practice running due to unsustainable rates.
Using this equation might give you a number you’re uncomfortable with. That’s actually a good sign that you’re moving in the right direction. In fact, we might even go so far as to say, the next prospect that you hear from, take that number and add 10%.
If they didn’t have access to your existing rate, that new number is simply the rate you charge. Say it with confidence (practice it if you have to) and they might just say yes. If they do, you’ve locked in one more client, and that means you can lock in more at that rate (or a higher one).
We do recommend that, if you are increasing your rates, you do so with new clients first. Charging new prices to existing clients requires a bit of finesse and planning, but we have ways to help you do this in future posts.
Keep in mind that you want clients who are happy to pay higher rates. You will learn this for yourself, but all experienced practitioners agree that there is some price threshold that, once you cross it, unlocks a higher caliber of client.
On the other side of the coin, there’s no virtue in trying to set the cheapest rate around. Revisit the above section if you have to. If you do decide to race for the bottom, you’re likely to attract the fussy, will-not-gladly-pay-without-discussing-every-nickel-and-dime type of client. You may already know such a client.
The work you do is very valuable and if you want to attract the clients who will appreciate you and what you do, you need to set the right, higher rate. Feel free to do this in small increments to make it less mentally taxing, if you have to.
What about if you’re concerned that your skill level isn’t enough to raise your rates?
Let’s get right to it—you don’t need to be in the business for a decade to charge a decent rate. You can do it right now, and you should. It doesn’t matter if this is day one for you—massage therapy is worth the investment to many people.
You don’t need to be working a set number of years or have a specific number of clients or operate in a specific modality. What makes this belief particularly limiting is that, even if you meet all of these arbitrary criteria, you’ll still create new ones that are out of your reach.
So, set this belief aside right now, because people who hold to it will consistently move their goal posts and never be satisfied to charge more.
Our point is that, if you’re a massage therapist, you deserve to charge a healthy rate that makes your practice financially stable and alows you to live a rich life.
But you actually bring more to the table than that, and you should charge more accordingly. What do you bring? You!
You have your unique personality, focus, services, strengths, and techniques - allow yourself to list these out so that you can appreciate how much these details add to your practice. Physically write them down to establish them concretely.
Plus, we always recommend pursuing testimonials from clients who are happy with your service, which can help build your confidence. And, as an added bonus, you can use these testimonials in your marketing.
Don’t forget that setting a good rate for yourself allows you to expand your practice and you can invest some of that into personal development. That way, you can continue to grow your confidence and skillset over time.
But don’t wait another minute to charge higher rates—start today, because you and your skills are worth it.
Okay, this one is going to ring true for a lot of massage therapists. Accounting and finances are way outside your comfort zone and it seems pretty overwhelming to learn it all.
First of all—don’t worry. It’s not as hard as it seems, it’s just learning a few simple practices that you repeat consistently. It may seem like a whole separate world from your own, but if you want your practice to succeed, it’s worth learning.
What you don’t want to do is close your eyes and hope for the best. Your practice cannot survive your “hoping” your finances will work out. You have to take ownership of your money and, in later modules, we’ll walk you through everything you need to know so you can confidently do so.
In fact, you can start today by setting up a simple spreadsheet to track income and expenses on a monthly basis. Log each payment you get from each client and at the end of the month, you can calculate your total income.
You can break your expenses out into categories like rent, supplies, software, insurance, marketing, and personal development, then calculate totals at the end of the month.
If this still sound like too much—don’t worry. Since you’ve set your higher rate and are earning more, you can afford to hire a financial professional to help you create a system that works for you.
Limiting money beliefs, if not addressed, can hold you back from reaching your full potential, both in terms of what you can accomplish and what you can earn.
But they don’t have to be permanent. You can reshape your beliefs and earn more than you thought possible as a solo massage therapist.
So, take the time to identify any money beliefs that are holding you back. Remind yourself that you are valuable, you are unique in your skills, and you deserve (and indeed owe it to your clients) to be paid a healthy rate to support your business and yourself.
Take one action step today - whether it’s writing down what makes you unique, setting up your spreadsheet, or offering your new rate to an incoming prospect today. They might just say yes.