Transcript
3
Professional and Personal Development
Learning Outcomes
• Describe the importance of personal growth for professional development
• Understand service as an important value for massage therapists
• Develop a strong work ethic
• Look and behave professionally
• Develop intellectual skills and concentration
• Develop greater emotional intelligence
• Use basic courtesy and good manners
• Communicate well and be a good listener
• Resolve conflicts peacefully and positively
• Present yourself to the public with confidence
Lecture Outline
I. Professionalism in Massage Therapy
A. Professional—how you look, behave, think, and act
1. Professionalism comes from the inside
2. Professional attitude shows on the outside
B. Elements of professionalism
1. Dedication to service
a. Hold clients’ well-being above our own personal gain
b. Primary motivation is to help clients achieve their personal wellness goals
2. Work ethic
a. Good attendance and punctuality
b. Reliability and accountability
c. Positive attitude and enthusiasm
d. Doing your highest quality work
3. Evaluating and improving your own professionalism
[Assign Practical Application, p. 47]
II. Professional Image
[Show Figure 3-1: Your appearance reflects your professionalism]
A. Makes a favorable impression on your clients, inspires trust
B. Appearance should be clean, neat, modest, and appropriate for the setting in which you work
C. Dress
1. Do’s and don’ts for professional dress
[Review guidelines in textbook, p. 47]
2. Employer may have dress code
3. Your school’s dress code
[Review school dress code for massage classes and student clinic]
D. Grooming
1. Includes nails, hair, skin
2. Good grooming
[Review guidelines for good grooming in textbook, p. 48]
E. Posture
1. Back in good alignment, head up, muscles relaxed
2. Avoid slouching, leaning, tilting
F. Image detractors
1. Annoying nervous habits
2. Other: noisy jewelry, chewing gum, smoking, eating or drinking in a client’s presence
G. Evaluating elements of professional image
[Present Critical Thinking exercise, p. 48]
III. Professional Boundaries
A. Clarify the nature of the therapeutic relationship
1. Differentiate the roles of massage therapist and client
2. Communicate that the relationship is professional, not personal
B. Responsibility of massage therapists to establish and maintain boundaries
C. Five types of boundaries
1. Physical
a. Personal space and touch
b. Separate space for massage
c. Draping
d. Privacy while dressing
2. Emotional
a. Limit disclosure about feelings
b. Scope of practice—massage is not psychotherapy
3. Intellectual
a. Respect for other people’s beliefs
b. Restrict forcing our beliefs and opinions on others
4. Sexual
a. Boundaries protect both massage therapists and clients
b. Sexual boundary violations are unethical and illegal
5. Energetic
a. Bad mood or “negative energy”
b. Do not let negativity into the massage situation
D. Professional boundaries are defined by office procedures and policies
E. Establishing boundaries with practice clients
[Present Critical Thinking exercise, p. 50]
IV. Ethics for the Massage Student
A. Ethics is the study of the nature of moral behavior, of right and wrong
B. Related to what to do or what not to do
C. Based on common values such as honesty, compassion, respect, privacy
D. Standards for students
[Review standards for massage students in textbook, pp. 49-50]
1. Professionalism
2. Class work
3. Relationship with classmates
4. Professional boundaries
5. Relationship with school
V. Intellectual Skills
[Show Table 3-1: Six Levels of Intellectual Skills]
A. Six levels
1. Knowledge
2. Comprehension
3. Application
4. Analysis
5. Synthesis
6. Evaluation
B. Higher-level thinking
[Show Table 3-2: Higher-Level Thinking Skills Used in Massage Therapy]
1. Critical thinking
a. Gets at the truth and avoids being deceived
b. Looks for objective evidence, confirmation of claims, errors, distortions, false information, and exaggerations
c. Looks beneath the surface for authenticity and honesty
d. Considers the thinker’s own prejudices and beliefs; self-reflection
e. Critical thinking practical application
[Review example in textbook of questions to ask when considering buying a product, pp. 51-52]
2. Problem solving
a. Systematic approach to finding a solution to a problem
b. Define problem, gather information, analyze, evaluate base decision on criteria
C. Concentration
1. Ability to sustain attention on something for a period of time
2. Attention span—length of time a person can concentrate before becoming distracted
3. Needed in school and in massage sessions
4. Methods for improving
a. Minimizing attention disruptors
b. Single-tasking
c. Creating a more distraction-free environment
d. Practicing focusing the mind through meditation techniques
VI. Intuition
A. Direct perception of truth without thinking
B. Related to instinct
C. In massage—not thinking through every move you make
D. Stored knowledge and experience in the brain work on an unconscious level as skills are performed
VII. Emotional Intelligence
A. Two different kinds of intelligence: rational and emotional
B. Five domains of emotional intelligence
1. Knowing one’s emotions
a. Self-awareness: recognizing a feeling as it happens and its accompanying emotion or impulse to act
b. Difference between feelings and emotions
c. Naming emotions—an important step
[Show Figure 3-2: The broad range of human emotions]
d. Temperament—a person’s basic disposition
2. Managing emotions
a. Recognizing emotions and responding in ways that benefit self and others
b. Striking balance between suppressing emotions and letting them get out of control
c. Learning impulse control
1) Example: anger management
2) Example: delayed gratification
3. Motivating oneself
a. Having an optimistic outlook
b. Getting into the flow for peak performance
4. Recognizing emotions in others
a. Empathy—recognizing emotions in others
b. Differs from sympathy and pity
c. Compassion—empathy plus wish to relieve suffering
5. Handling relationships
a. Therapeutic relationship—fundamental relationship between massage therapist and client
b. Setting boundaries and expectations
c. Dealing with conflicts
VIII. Social Skills
A. Nature of social skills
1. Behaviors between people that promote harmony, understanding, and connection
2. Behaviors that peacefully solve problems like disagreements, misunderstandings, and reconciliation after harm done
3. Primary goal: Building good relationships
B. Courtesy and good manners
C. First impressions
D. Greeting first-time clients
[Show Figure 3-3: Greet a first-time client with a firm handshake]
E. Introductions
F. Conflict resolution
[Show Box 3-1: Choosing the Best Conflict Resolution Approach]
1. Resolving conflicts amicably
2. Five approaches
a. Collaboration
b. Force
c. Avoidance
d. Accommodation
e. Compromise
3. Tips for successful resolution
[Review success tips in text, p. 58]
4. Barriers to resolution
[Review resolution barriers in text, p. 58]
5. Practice resolving client conflict
[Present Case for Study: Elise and Conflict in Appointment Times, p. 59]
G. Tips for developing good social skills
[Review Reality Check, p. 60]
IX. Communication Skills
A. Importance of good communication
B. Verbal skills
1. General
a. Speak with moderate speed in a calm, steady, strong voice
b. Vary the energy, rhythm, and inflection
c. Articulate clearly and avoid mumbling
d. Modulate accents unfamiliar to listeners
2. Speaking to persons for whom English is a second language
3. Speaking to people with hearing challenges
4. Voice quality and volume
5. Poor speech habits
6. Telephone use
[Show Figure 3-4: Be friendly and relaxed when talking on the phone with clients]
a. Answering machine message
b. Tips for telephone use
[Review list from textbook, p. 60]
c. Return calls promptly
C. Body language
[Show Figure 3-5: Relaxed posture and a friendly smile communicate an open and welcoming attitude toward clients]
1. Posture
a. Good posture communicates confidence
b. Poor posture communicates disinterest, evasion, or boredom
2. Comfortable distance between two people
3. Crossed arms or legs, fidgeting
4. Hand gestures
5. Eye contact
6. Facial expression, smile
7. Body language awareness exercise
[Assign Practical Application, p. 62]
D. Listening
1. Importance of listening for massage therapists
2. Poor listening habits
a. Wandering mind
b. Formulating answers while others are speaking
c. Interrupting, finishing someone else’s sentences
d. Tuning out different points of view
e. Jumping to conclusions
f. Talking over noise
3. Good listening habits
a. Listen for feelings
b. Listen for content
c. Ask questions for clarification
4. Affirmative listening
a. Lets speaker know you are listening
b. Occasional verbal cues and body language
c. Examples: nodding, leaning forward, eye contact, saying “yes” or “I see”
5. Active listening
a. Reflects back to the speaker what you think was said
b. Paraphrasing or restating words to clarify their meaning
c. Lead-in phrases: “You seem to be saying . . . ”
d. Guidelines for reflective listening
[Review five guidelines for reflective listening in textbook, p. 63]
E. Presentations
1. Informal and formal presentations
2. Audience as learners (visual, auditory, kinesthetic)
3. Basic considerations
a. Know your goals
b. Know your audience
4. Explanations to clients (loose script and props)
5. Demonstrations (verbal plus showing)
6. Art of persuasion
a. Establish credibility
b. Provide organized presentation of your ideas
F. Written Correspondence
1. Memo
[Show Figure 3-6: Memo format and example]
2. E-mail
3. Business letter
[Show Figure 3-7: Business letter format and example]
4. Written correspondence guidelines
[Review written correspondence guidelines from textbook, p. 65]
videos
Professionalism
Emotional Intelligence
Social and Communication Skills
(MyHealthProfessionsLab.com)
Discussion Topics
• Students describe someone they think of as “professional.” What makes them think so? Dress, posture, language, behavior?
• Students share experiences with either good or poor manners. Was there a situation when courtesy helped them? Or defused a potentially negative situation? Have they seen poor manners make a situation worse?
• Discuss the different expectations people have regarding good manners. How might it be different for people of different ages, cultures, or parts of the United States?
• Students give examples of how they resolved conflicts in the past. Analyze the situation and have the class determine what type of resolution was chosen. What was positive and what was problematic about their approach? Have them evaluate the outcome and discuss alternative approaches to the situation.
Learning by Doing
• Students give a fictitious massage therapist an “extreme makeover” to project a more professional image. One student dresses up in an unprofessional manner, and students offer suggestions for looking and acting more professional. Use choices of real clothes for a more realistic exercise. [Variation: Students give each other suggestions for makeovers that project a professional image while staying true to who they are as unique individuals.]
• Students role-play greeting clients for the first time. Pay special attention to eye contact, friendly smile, and the handshake.
• Pair students and direct them to try out the different styles of handshakes. How does each make them feel? Help them develop a confident, professional handshake for greeting clients.
• In groups of four, have students role-play making introductions as if they were at a professional conference.
• In front of the class, one student interviews another student for about 5 minutes about how his or her day went yesterday. Afterward, the class picks out instances of good or poor listening habits on the part of the interviewer. Were there examples of affirmative or active listening?
• Begin future classes with a minute of quiet sitting to give students practice in pausing to clear their minds and focus on the present moment before they begin their work.
• Students write memos and formal business letters related to their future massage therapy practices. Emphasize the importance of format, spelling, and grammar in making a professional impression.
• Have students make audiotapes of their voice mail greeting. Play the tapes back, and if appropriate, rerecord the greeting until it is acceptable.
Speakers and Panels
• Invite one or more employers of massage therapists to talk to students about qualities they look for in employees. Ask them to discuss the importance of a good work ethic, social and communication skills, and professional image.
Visual/Auditory/Kinesthetic Aids
• Post a checklist for good grooming on a bulletin board. On randomly chosen days, rate students on their professional dress and grooming. Encourage students to get into the habit of coming to class well groomed.
• Display photos of professional looking massage therapists. Provide a variety of different styles of professional dress.
