thinking about business in a new way

Tax time can bring up all kinds of money issues for us. Here’s a healthy perspective on that.

“The first principle is that the business should be successful: that it should make money. There is a belief prevalent in America and other Western countries that being successful, making money, is somehow wrong for people who are trying to lead a spiritual life. In Buddhism though it is not the money which is in itself wrong; in fact, a person with greater resources can do much more good in the world than one without. The question rather is how we make money; whether we understand where it comes from and how to make it continue to come; and whether we keep a healthy attitude about the money.“

The whole point then is to make money in a clean and honest way, to understand clearly where it comes from so it doesn’t stop, and to maintain a healthy view toward it while we have it. As long as we do these things, making money is completely consistent with a spiritual way of life; in fact, it becomes part of a spiritual life.

“The second principle is that we should enjoy the money; that is, we should learn how to keep our minds and bodies in good health while we make the money. The activity of creating wealth should not exhaust us so much physically or mentally that we cannot enjoy the wealth. A business-person who ruins his health doing business is defeating the very purpose of business.“

The third principle is that you should be able to look back at your business, at the end, and honestly say that your years of doing business have had some meaning. The end of every business enterprise we engage in, and in fact the end of our lives, must come to every person who ever does business. And at the most important part of the business – at the end, when we are looking back on all we have achieved – we should see that we conducted ourselves and our business in a way that had some lasting meaning, that left some good mark in our world.”

The Diamond Cutter: The Buddha on Managing Your Business and Your Life

Geshe Michael Roach and Lama Christie McNally

If you want to explore your relationship to money, you want to read chapter 2 of The Accidental Business Owner.

https://www.handspringpublishing.com/product/friendly-guide-to-success/

I’ve been working my way through The Art Of Pricing, trying to translate it to a massage practice.

Recently, one bit of advice caught my eye: if there’s a product you can’t keep on the shelf, you need to raise the price.

What is something you “can’t keep on the shelf” in a massage practice? If you’re booked 2-3 months ahead, turning away clients, with a waiting list YOU are the thing you “can’t keep on the shelf”.

Maybe you don’t want to raise your prices the first time that happens. But if that’s been true for you for 6-12 months, seriously consider raising your prices. Your missing an opportunity to price your most popular product — your appointments — in a way that is consistent with market demand.

It’s not a way of “taking advantage” of your clients. It’s a way of honoring the value of your work and taking care of yourself financially.

There are a metric ton of business books out there but very few that I actually enjoy reading (much less understand!). “Company of One” by Paul Jarvis is one that I think is worth reading. I highlighted something on practically every other page that I think is relevant to the business of massage.

Warning: his idea of a “small” business is making $500,000 annually so some of this reflections have to be “translated” to our reality.

Here’s one passage to give you a sense of the book:

“It’s assumed that hard work and smart thinking always result in business growth. But the opposite is often true: not all growth is beneficial, and some growth can actually reduce your resilience and your autonomy.”