January 23, 2019

Skype massage?

Sent by Jonathan Stark on January 23rd, 2019

In episode 63 of TBOA, Rochelle and I talk about making the shift from working with local clients to working with anyone in the world remotely over the internet.

This raises the question, can ANYONE work remotely? Say, a massage therapist? Or a personal trainer? What about a coal miner?

My answer is yes.

If you’re good at what you do, there are almost certainly several ways to package your expertise that can be transmitted digitally over the internet.

But... how do you come up with remote offerings when all you’ve ever known are face-to-face engagement with local clients?

Here’s what not to do:

Don’t think about the activities that you are accustomed to undertaking and try to come up with ways to digitize them.

Instead, focus on articulating your mission (aka your purpose, your Why). Ask yourself, “Why does my work matter to me? What kind of clients do I most want to help? What improvements do they hope to gain from our work together?”

For the sake of discussion, let’s say your answers can be summarized like so:

“I became a massage therapist because I love helping athletes achieve peak performance.”

(BTW - If you can’t answer these questions, you have a different challenge... but that a story for another day)

With your mission articulated, you would next brainstorm a bunch of ways to help your ideal clients move closer to their desired outcome that do not involve your typical face-to-face visits. Things like books, workbooks, guides, training manuals, template libraries, video courses, membership communities, remote video consultations, physical products, etc.

In other words, package up your expertise in new ways.

Conceptually, this idea is simple. But in practice, it’s not easy for many people. Trying something new, going outside your comfort zone, operating with no guarantees, can feel scary.

But... what’s the alternative?

Yours,

—J