Article Index - Training & Education
 
Finding the right advanced training course for you
 
Training - Enjoying the journey with no end
"Those who seek mentoring will rule the great expanse under heaven
Those who boast that they are greater than others, will fall short.
Those who are willing to learn from others become greater.
Those who are ego involved will be humbled and made small"
Shu Ching - Chinese Book of history
 
Although these insightful words above were written more than 25 centuries ago, they are just as relevant today, especially in the health and complementary therapies field where finding the right training can be crucial to achieving success. If you are taking the time to read this article it suggests you are already in the top percentage of complementary health professionals who realise that gaining a qualification is just the beginning of your journey. Advanced training is crucial if you want to be at the top of your field. Think of professional athletes who train day in day out, continually striving for ways to improve their performance, finding ways to work with the best coaches. After 15 years in the massage business it is very clear to me that those therapists who are successful are also those who have the humility to accept how much more there is to learn.
 
Taoist sages claim that "one who does not know actually knows, and one who knows really does not know". To be empty, to recognise how little we know, is to be abundant. There is a classic Zen story about a pompous professor who goes to the master to learn about Zen Buddhism. The Zen master invites him for tea and to enlighten him he pours the tea until the cup is overflowing. Then the master gently reminds him "Exactly. Your knowledge is already spilling over so how can I offer you more?"
 
Once we have the humility to accept our limitations, learning becomes a pleasurable and lifelong journey, an eternal renewal that inspires and gives purpose to life.
 
Which advanced training is right for me?
There can be a bewildering number of choices around in the complementary health field and unfortunately not all of the courses out there offer good value for money. A good training course can ignite a passion for your work in ways you have never dreamed of while, conversely, an unsupportive teacher or learning environment can knock your confidence tremendously. With this in mind you may wish to consider the following factors when looking for the training that is right for you:
 
Value for money
Value for money is not necessarily about finding the cheapest course out there. It is about how the money you put in to your training will work for you in real terms, usually by either increasing your business or enabling you to achieve better results with your current practice. Training is an investment: - as with the stock market you want to invest in the courses that will give you the most return for your money. For example, one of the courses offered by our company Jing Advanced Massage is a 6 day training in Hot StoneFusion. This is much longer and therefore more expensive than some of the other one or two day courses in Hot Stone massage available. However our course is 6 days because we believe this is the optimal training time required to give a great hot stone treatment - we know this because we have a few thousand hours of giving stone massages ourselves so we know what is required to really feel comfortable with these techniques. Most of our students find they are able to make the money back from the course within 1 or 2 months (a good return for their investment). In contrast we have a number of students attending the course who have already paid out for a one day course and are still unable to use the stones comfortably (a poor return on that investment).
 
So when choosing your training course think about how the course will make money back for you. Will you be able to put the techniques into practice immediately, increase your client base, feel more confident when dealing with current clients? These factors are much more important than whether the course is the cheapest or shortest around. As a guideline to pricing, you can expect to pay anything up to £150/day for quality training in the UK. But also don't assume that the more expensive training is always better- take time to find out the facts before you put your hand in your pocket!
 
Tutor Expertise
The expertise level of your tutors is a really important factor in making sure you get good value for money from your training. Having trained with a number of experts in the bodywork field around the world, the factors we feel are most important in making a great teacher are:
1. Enthusiasm and passion for their subject: Is your tutor excited by what they teach? Do they excite and inspire you? Or are they burned out, listless, jaded? Are they able to talk intelligently about the material in a way that allows you to understand without feeling inadequate? How long have they been in the field? Be suspicious of those "experts" who have only just qualified themselves!
2. Maintaining a current practice: We are constantly amazed by how many teachers are no longer practising in their chosen field. At Jing we feel it is vital as a teacher to always continue with your own massage practice. True learning comes in the daily therapist/client interaction, the joy at successes, the humility when things don't go as we expect. Maintaining a practice enables a teacher to relate to students on every level; together as therapists we are taking a similar journey.
3. Having trouble starting your practice? Been there. Feeling exhausted after every client? Been there. Trapped in your full time job and desperate to break out? Been there too. And most importantly we have been there and got out the other side and are happy, healthy and making a wonderful living doing what we love to do. The best teachers are the ones that are "walking their talk" and are able to relate to you on your level.
4. Being open to student interaction: A good teacher really wants you to "get it". This means someone who does not put him or herself on a pedestal out of reach but is open to questions and true interaction with students. They welcome discussion and critical thinking of what they are teaching. Good teachers understand that they are not the "guru" but have as much to learn from their students, as they have to offer. It is like a flowing dance between teacher and student where each is involved with giving and receiving. Our students constantly inspire us to learn more, to reflect on our current practice and to rediscover the beauty of bodywork basics.
5. Humour: The Tao is often called the Way of Laughter. Good teaching involves fun, the ability to see humour in difficulties and to promote serious learning with lightness and joy. Good teachers never take themselves too seriously and are always able to laugh at their mistakes.
6. Further Training: Your tutors should themselves always be developing. It is important that their passion drives them to learn more. This will translate to you as a freshness and new angles on information.
 
Learning Style and environment: Unfortunately many of us have had negative learning experiences in childhood where we have felt inadequate or stupid. Good adult education is about stimulation, getting you excited, not about sitting in a classroom bored and watching the clock. Find a course that involves you, with plenty of hands-on and practical learning. Look for courses where the teaching is encouraging; not critical. A true learning environment is one where we are able to feel safe in "not knowing"; it is only from this place of emptiness that profound growth and change can occur. Most important, good learning means enjoying yourself.
Course material: Your tutor should be able to tell you exactly what you are going to learn on the course and what outcomes you can expect to gain by the end. Ask for a course syllabus or ask the tutor to talk you through what you are going to learn. Watch out for what we call "packing material" - this is like the big box you get through the mail that looks really exciting but is 90% foam packaging. There are many courses out there where you have to wade through mounds of unnecessary material to get to the bit you really want. In all Jing courses our aim is to give you only the material that really works; the stuff that has been tried and tested over many years in clinical practice; to show you the shortcuts to where you want to be. We believe that a teacher's job is to "shorten the journey" and this is exactly what good training should do.
 
Training is a wonderful journey and we urge you all to continually strive for your own development; there are always deeper and richer paths to follow.
 
"Do not assume that you know all. Notice nature and abide in the infinite. Travel openly on uncharted paths. Be all that you are, but do not make a show of it. Be contented and remain empty, and learn to sustain the Beginner's mind".
 
© Jing Advanced Massage and Training is an organisation dedicated to excellence in all aspects of postgraduate massage training. Based in Brighton. We offer courses around the country. Please call or check our website for further information and course dates.
 
www.jingmassage.com
info@jingmassage.com
Tel: 01273 628942
 
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