Life is Like a Spinning Toddler

This post doesn't have much to do with business, more life itself. I am currently sitting in my IKEA poang rocking chair, next to a Christmas tree, watching my 14 month old spin in circles and giggle with utter amusement. He spins and he spins until he crashes to the floor. His laughter captures a sense of pride in his dance. He has been working hard to master this skill. When he becomes too dizzy to continue he sits up and wobbles a bit. As his focus comes back, his eyes meet mine and he wears a huge grin and tries to get his steadiness back.

I suppose there are some similarities there- my son's semi-wild spinning for his own entertainment and the day-to-day operations of our Massage Therapy Center. Both are all-consuming, requiring much focus and energy. Sometimes chaotic, the Center like the spinning toddler, can be overwhelming at times. There are marketing deadlines to meet, therapist schedules to fill, goals to reach. Mid-way through a turn, or change in direction, we may feel lost or disoriented but only for a moment before we regain control. We are both encouraged by positive reactions to our work (yes, I believe Corbin is a professional twirler at this point). But at the end of day, we don't do it for the praise. We spin because it makes us happy.

And nothing makes me happier than a smiling baby following in mama's footsteps. Literally, big shoes.

Remodel Stage: Complete

Our remodel is complete! Yesterday, all three of our therapists were working at the same time! For two months we have been sharing one treatment room, but yesterday for the very first time, we were able to work in our own private treatment rooms.

The best part is the rooms are pretty soundproof! We put plenty of insulation in the new walls, but I was still concerned about the preexisting shared wall. But all is well! The front room needs some weatherproofing around the door to plug up the space under the door which let's in some sound. I don't want anything distracting my clients from their relaxation.

Video tour coming soon! I must get a haircut before my camera debut.

Holiday Gift Card Pouches

Here is my tutorial for the gift card pouches I am making!

First, find cute wrapping paper.

Check.

Second, find a template. I am using the brown paper gift card envelopes we normally use. I got these off eBay.

Third, open up the template.

Next, trace the template on the back of the wrapping paper.

Then, cut it out and use your template to fold.

Tape the flaps together and call it done!

I think I will get some tiny little bows today to add a little sparkle. Much thanks to the Pinterest pinner who posted something similar this week. I forgot to repin it and I can't find the link now. But credit where credit is due. This is not an original idea. Just passing it along.

The Perks of Flexible Scheduling

Being self-employed is risky business. Whether you win big, lose big, or just make ends meet is entirely up to you. Some people become their own boss because the idea of setting your own schedule is pretty enticing. I have to admit that perk has come in handy a lot this week.

My handy-dandy man....dy is also self employed. Two days ago our son's daycare called and said he was running a fever, which is not unusual for a 14 month old. He puts EVERYTHING in his mouth. He's going to get sick.

Yesterday, it worked out that I could take care of him in the morning and my boyfriend could do the afternoon shift. We each got to work when we needed to and we each played Clean Up, Aisle 7 at home. Same goes for today. I am working this morning and he is working whenever it stops raining. Our little one is staying home again. He isn't really contagious/sick but he's a bit too gross to subject his teacher to his mucus waterfalls. (TMI?)

Now I know it won't always work out this way. But I am very thankful that it has this week. When I was his age both my Mom and Dad were active-duty Army. It is only now, after having my own munchkin, that I fully realize their sacrifices and the sacrifices of all military families. They would have loved to draw a line through their calendar and say "Nope. Sorry. Kid has a runny nose. Think I'll sit this training exercise out." It just doesn't work that way with other careers.

Having been self-employed since I was 16 and selling Avon to friends and family, I have a hard time relating to other people's work life. I know what I do and how I go about doing it is different, very different. And I know I shouldn't take one minute of it for granted. I hope you won't either.

Renovation Continues

Progress continues as we are now mudding the screws and seams of the drywall so that the finished walls are smooth. A few more coats of mud, some light sanding and then we can prime and paint!

We are watching Design Seeds very closely in our hunt for color inspiration. If you haven't checked out their website yet pop on over, but only when you have lots of free time!

Renovating: Day Two

Here are pictures of our latest additions to the remodel project. (BTW, I am loving the instagram app that stylizes regular old phone pictures into fancy pictures!)

I can claim no part of the progress done for this post. I merely helped carry drywall and hold it in position. The ever so talented carpenter boyfriend did the rest. Half way done! The two rooms are half sheet rocked. Tomorrow we will install insulation for sound and the other half of the sheet rock. And then I will do my part and inform the Universe.

Construction Eye Candy:

For Every Massage Therapist That Needs A Fundraiser

In the beginning of September, when I started planning this little expansion, I was faced with the tough decision as to how to go about raising money for the construction and new equipment for our two new treatment rooms. The most logical route would be take out a loan or put it on a personal credit card, right? Go into debt. It takes money to make money. That sort of thing.


*Knock, Knock. It's Opportunity. Anyone home??


Rather than using "logic", I decided to go another route. I decided to advertise massage gift card packages and raise the funds needed by hosting our own fundraiser! I estimated that I needed $9,000 for supplies, materials, equipment, decor, etc. Thirty $300 packages would do the trick. But how do you convince a client to give you $300? That is a lot of money! The answer is very simple. Make your offer irresistible!


So the offer was 45% off (almost half off!) a package of six 90 minute appointments [regularly $540] for only $300. That breaks down to $50 per 90 minute appointment. So now we are saying, Get a 90 minute massage for less than the price of a 60 minute massage! That's a pretty good deal! Downright irresistible! But the catch is you must commit to 6 of these amazing deals upfront.


Let's talk a little bit about the benefits for the client:

• Duh, an extra 30 minutes on their appointment AND they save $10! (times six!)
• The chance to upgrade where they ordinarily would stick with 60 minute appointments.
• Saving a lot of money by paying in bulk.
• Not having to remember their wallet at their next 6 appointments because they are pre-paid.
• The rush that comes with finding a really good deal.

And then, here are the benefits to the therapist and why I believe every therapist should be considering packages for fundraiser opportunities:

• We got the money upfront before the services were rendered for a quick increase in cash flow.*
• Clients gave them away to friends and family members that may or may not have come in to see us on their own.
• The clients were aware of the purpose of our fundraiser and were more involved in the expansion of our company.
• Your services lose their price resistance immediately after the initial transaction! It is no longer a decision of "do I want to pay $60 for a massage or suffer for another week until this back pain goes away?" The client knows they have pre-paid appointments whenever they want them and they are far less likely to wait for their next appointment.
• Clients get used to coming in frequently, they witness the benefit of regular treatments first hand, and that may be a hard habit to break once they use up their package.

Other important things to mention about our package program:

• It was a limited quantity. Only 30 available because 1) we only needed $9,000 and 2) we could simply not afford to offer this deal forever.
• The limited quantity often inspired a sense of urgency for our clients which enabled us to reach our goals quicker.
• Once a client bought a package we gave them a few flyers to tell their friends so they wouldn't miss out on the deal. (more urgency)

* as mentioned above we collected the money up front and that means you have to be very smart about how you use it! Think long term. Plan ahead. Account for independent contractor pay if necessary.


Overall, I am very happy about how our fundraiser turned out. It truly was a win-win situation for everyone. Our clients got a lot more for their money. They were able to come in more frequently and for longer periods of time, then they were prior to this deal. And I believe they equally enjoyed the opportunity to support a local small business. The 30 package purchasers are cemented as a part of this company and when they see new things added they can say, "I helped her get that door!" or "You know, I probably paid for this table warmer!"

As for us, we are now half way through the building phase with our equipment and supplies ordered and on the way.  If you are in a similar situation in your business and could use a quick boost in your cash flow, I would encourage you to consider hosting a fundraiser before taking out loans and going into more debt. It may just be the best advertising you do all year!

Renovating: Day One

Last week, we began our renovations at the Center. We are adding two new treatment rooms to the open space between reception and the pre-existing treatment room. And by "we" of course I mean my wonderful boyfriend, who is a licensed contractor by trade, is doing all of the work and I am blogging about it. Here are some pictures to recap all of his hard work last Sunday.

All of the metal and tools required for the job. 

The top track mounted ever so carefully to the drop ceiling frame.

Steel studs placed along top and bottom tracks.

Close up of the metal studs.

My contribution to the renovations so far- new door knobs on the cabinets in the pre-existing treatment room.

As I post this, my ever so talented boyfriend is installing drywall and insulation to these metal studs. And I am blogging.

Moonlight Madness Recap!

Thank you to everyone who participated in the Moonlight Madness shopping extravaganza this past Thursday. The Marble Falls Chamber of Commerce and the Picayune teamed up to promote shopping local and general Halloween fun. So without further ado, here are some photos of the Marble Falls Massage Graveyard... Where stress comes to die.

How We Came To Be

This blog post will take you on the wonderful journey of how the Marble Falls Massage Therapy Center came to be. Buckle up, here we go!

The Marble Falls Massage Therapy Center was born on June 3rd, 2011. This is the day we celebrate as the Grand Opening/Birthday of this business. The weeks leading up to this date were filled with anticipation and anxiety which I hope to describe as accurately as possible here. This blog post will serve several purposes; 1) to honor the hard work my friends and family put in to help make my dream a reality, 2) to document the trial-and-error we experienced in hopes of helping other Massage Therapists set up their dream practice, and finally 3) to elevate my status to "Blogger" and join the likes of Allissa Haines, Kelli Wise, and Laura Allen all of whom I had the privilege of meeting with at the AMTA National Convention last weekend in Portland, Oregon.

After viewing a handful of empty retail spaces that were up for lease, I found the one! 800 some odd square feet of awesome. For years I have been doodling the same basic layout on every scrap of paper I had; reception area, small retail space, room for 3-4 treatment rooms, separate laundry/supply area, restrooms in the back. And this doodle came with some other requirements; located off of a main road, easy to give directions, quiet neighbors, and close to a handful of good eateries for some lunchtime variety. 

I had toured other vacant units in the days prior. Some were too small, most were too big. Some had an odd layout that required you to pass through one treatment room to get to another. Some had other hiccups like zero flexibility on painting/decorating even if you signed a 5 year lease. The day Lynette, my leasing agent, showed me unit 207 in the China Kitchen building it was like she had found my doodles and built me exactly what I was looking for. It was perfect! Well, aside from needing electricity and new carpet- it was perfect! (Did anyone pick up that I said I toured the unit with no electricity. Ding! Ding! Ding! You got it. I signed a two year lease having only seen the interior rooms by illuminated cell phone lighting.) Trial-and-error recommendation: don't do that! But I was excited so I quickly signed the lease and called the Chamber of Commerce to schedule a ribbon cutting.

May 23rd: Picking Up The Keys

May 24th: The ribbon cutting with the Chamber has been set for June 3rd (10 days remaining). I figure a few coats of paint and some art on the walls and we were in business. My boyfriend, a licensed contractor, comes to survey the damage. Upon hearing I have scheduled the ribbon cutting for 10 days later he laughs. It's a nervous kind of laugh that tells me I may have my work cut out for me. The landlords have already installed new carpet and turned on the electricity. Check out the video tour of the move-in condition of our new space below.



First Impressions? It is very purple at this stage. What is hard to notice in the video is the discrepancies in the wall textures. Some of the walls are orange peel texture, some are smooth, some even change depth about half way through. This will not be a paint, hang up pretty pictures, and call it done adventure.


May 25th: The expert/boyfriend has now trained me to "mud". Mudding a wall fills in holes, indentations, and uneven textures. You put the mud on, you take the mud off, you repeat a million and a half times. Also, mud is heavy. View the video below to see a day's progress in the mudding department as well as the unpacking and playing with IKEA department (which do you think is more fun?)




May 26th: A lot more mudding going on. Apparently some walls needed second and third coats to gain approval from my expert. About this time is when I began questioning the importance of consistent wall texture. This was a lot of work and I was sure 1 out of 100 people (maybe 1,000) would even notice if we slacked on the mudding. My problem was I was living with one person who would definitely notice! So we continue. Mud on, mud off.



May 27th: The end is in sight! The end of mudding, anyways... This signals the beginning of sanding, priming, and painting. Again, all of this work and soreness so that, if you do it right, no one knows that you did any of it. You may notice the dark blue play pen in the middle of the chaos. This was done in an attempt to entertain our 7 month old so we could get a few extra hours of work in during the evening hours. He was entertained alright. He liked to throw all of his toys over the edge so that you could gather them for him to throw over the edge again. That game was second only to his never ending desire to tear an escape hole through the mesh sides of the play pen. 

May 28th: Window Decal is installed! Thanks to the guys at Signographics (located on the first floor of our building). They had the decal ready the next day and for a great price!


May 30th: Sanding complete, first coat of primer. It is going to take a lot to cover that purple.




May 31: (3 days remaining) It is starting to become crunch time. First coat of the sand color is up on the far wall. A lot of the furniture is getting assembled at this time. When your arms get tired from painting you can grab a screwdriver and put some chairs together and when your hands get tired from that you can go back to painting. 





June 1st: It is starting to take shape and not a moment too soon!





June 3rd: Ready for the Grand Opening!
Before & After Video (with Music!!)

The workshop area as of the ribbon cutting.

Another view of the workshop area.




Our design has changed a lot since then. Reception is now in the corner the videos are being shot from. The next phase in our development is the great expansion this fall. We will be adding two treatment rooms to the workshop space, tripling our availability to our clients!


We hope you enjoyed our recap of the days just before the grand opening! A million thanks to everyone who helped make this ribbon cutting a success. To Lynette Morrison my leasing agent, TJM Properties and their incredible staff, Kathy Daniels at the Marble Falls Chamber, to all of the new clients that have walked through our doors in the past 4 months, and most of all to my wonderful boyfriend for putting in the extra hours and for being so supportive in this business venture. I could not have done it without you!