What Makes a NO HANDS Massage Master?

By NO HANDS Master & Co-Owner, Tigger MacGregor

On the one hand, it's simple:

1) Complete the NO HANDS Massage Core Syllabus
Comprising the 4Elements (Part 1: Practitioner, Part 2: Advanced) & Transactional Bodyworker
= 18 days of training

2) Attend the Mastery Programme for at least one year
Three, 3-day modules in a calendar year
= 9 days of training

3) Complete the 7 essay-style assignments
As detailed in the members' area

4) Put yourself forward for Assessment while on Mastery
Tell the Master leading the Mastery Programme

5) Get Endorsed
Usually as a result of a Contract into Treatment
= 1 Massage, normally observed by at least part of the Mastery group

6) Pass the Master Exam
1 Massage observed by two Examining Masters with a third Master as your client

Doubtless, it is a chunk of work but on a par with many other serious vocational qualifications.

Having probably over a thousand therapists get to step 2, and hundreds get to step 4, why do we only have thirty-eight people who have been awarded the NO HANDS Massage Master Certificate? 

Therein lies the rub...

Because being a NO HANDS Master is more than following a routine or going through the motions. Yes, you're examined on delivering the Seven Stages of a treatment masterfully. But that's far more than delivering the right stroke at the right time – apart from anything else the Touch is only one of the seven stages!

1) The Greeting
Are you in the here and now? Are you really meeting this client where they are? Are you OK? Are you doing everything you can to encourage them to be, and stay, OK? Are you coming from Adult and encouraging Adult in your client? Do you maintain this OK/OK, Adult/Adult interaction throughout the Massage?

1a) Is it safe to Massage?
This is about probing the client to find out if they may have any contraindications to Massage. In particular, doing so in a way which doesn't use jargon, doesn't assume they have “therapist level” knowledge and which acknowledges your own scope of practice in regards to what you do, and don't, know about any conditions they have.

2) The Outcome Contract
Can you use the Outcome Contract questions to support the client in exploring and specifying their desired outcome from the treatment? Are you sufficiently comfortable with the questions to flex them when required? Are you comfortable with pauses and silence? Are you truly holding space for your client?

3) The Touch Contract
Do you explain to your client the options available to them, without overwhelming them? Do you give equal emphasis to all options? Do you create a clear picture of the treatment the client wants that both you and your client understand and agree to?

4) The Touch
Do you deliver the Touch Contract as agreed, without contamination (for example from the Outcome Contract)?

5) The Integration
Do you communicate to your client the importance of the integration, in a way that they are most likely to take seriously? Do you stay attentive for when they're ready to get off the table / come back into the room?

6) The Walk
Have you explained to your client WHY they walk? Do you support them while they walk, without defining what's happening for them? Do you recognise when their walk may be completing and check in with them?

7) The Goodbye
Do you finish the session clearly so both you & the client have a good sense of completion?

Alongside all that there are the small matters of choice of strokes, Client Hub, Practitioner Hub (including the seven postural keys), 8 Minds of NO HANDS, Sponging, constant contact, Stirring Mud and all the other NO HANDS theories and philosophies taught in the core syllabus.

And still that's not all there is

NO HANDS is beautifully rich. Any one of the strokes, tools, philosophies or applied theories can make a difference to a treatment (and a practice). Combined they're an absolute powerhouse of therapy. But underpinning every Master, I believe, are four things:

• Client-centric
• Being present 
• Generosity of spirit
• Belief in the power of Touch

Client-centric
If you're not motivated by serving the client's needs (while also keeping yourself OK) this cascades across the board. NO HANDS Masters truly believe that the client is the most important person in the room. Notwithstanding you earning a living, or loving what you do, or anything else – the client is the reason for the treatment.

Being present
Closely linked to client-centric, this is about dealing with the here and now. Every Massage is "for real". It's not a demonstration, it's not going through the motions, it's not a role play: it's real. 

This is being present to yourself and your competence to deliver a treatment. 

Present to the client - picking up on the micro-signals that could take the client from scarcely-OK to really met and really safe. 

Present to the environment and what, if anything, needs to be adjusted to get as close as possible to the ideal environment given the realities of where & when you are at that moment. 

Present to it all.

Generosity of spirit
Being a NO HANDS Therapist is inherently an uncomfortable position. Not knowing how your client will arrive, not knowing how you'll respond to them, not knowing what will happen during the session, managing your own script while you work to serve the client. So in order to serve your client a generosity of spirit is required: the generosity to deal with this discomfort in order to be present in order to be client-centric.

Belief in the power of Touch
Finally, a NO HANDS Master believes in the power of Touch. Truly believes, in the very core of their being. Most often this comes from working exceptionally hard as a client, as well as trusting the Touch when working with clients and letting the clients' words be their only reality. 

So why travel this journey all the way to NO HANDS Master?

As I outlined at the beginning, many don't. That's their right and their privilege. Why people persevere in becoming a NO HANDS Master (or rather, being recognised by their peers as one) is unique to each Master. This is my personal answer.

At the time of becoming a Master it felt like a matter of integrity. Due to my position in the Company (at the time an employee) I was party to information before Masters were, so it felt right to put myself forward for Assessment. Mainly it felt like the right time, like it was the "right" thing to do. More than that I couldn't say - then or now.

However, I know that having been assessed and passed as a Master by my peers and, in my case, Gerry, the founder of NO HANDS Massage, has been a massive resource to lean on. Every time my imposter syndrome kicks in - I lean on that certificate. Every time I doubt my abilities - I lean on that certificate. Every. Time.

Becoming a NO HANDS Master is one of the most challenging journeys I've seen people voluntarily put themselves on - and the most truly transformational. 

As with most things, it starts with Support

If this piece has raised any questions for you, please get in touch. With me, with another Master you're close to, or if you're not ready to chat to a Master, with a friend who's on Mastery. I can't tell you when you'll become a Master. But I'm 100% committed to supporting you to get there - one step at a time.