I’ve always been into watching sports.  My Dad is head official for the Penn Relays, a national tournament held annually in Philadelphia so track and field is an event that I’m very familiar with.

The great thing about sports is that with the right coach, athletes who might be considered just average can rise to great heights of excellence.

As I watch what’s happening in the spa industry today with retail selling and the lack of therapist training it makes me think about Olympic high jumper Dick Fosbury. (Hang in there with me for a moment and you’ll see where I’m going with this.)

Last week I had a very interesting conversation with the senior manager of a massage club company. I’d experienced great massages from one therapist in particular who works for his company and I told him so. I also mentioned that  although stress relieving products are in-house, in two years she had never suggested one to me. I trusted her so I would have purchased almost anything she recommended. I wondered if he might be open to try a new method of training that’s been very effective with therapists. He responded:

“We track metrics and invoke and promote strategies for LEs to improve and drive retail sales in line with our partners’ X and Y. We have instituted a National Director of Esthetics and National Esthetics Trainer to drive this facet of our business from a franchisor level and I’m pleased with the results to date. We significantly outpace our competition X and Y in revenue. I think we have the appropriate vision of what we can do, what we are doing, and are capable of doing.”

I think we have the appropriate vision of what we can do, what we are doing, and are capable of doing.”

I am certain that prior to 1968, world class coaches around the globe held the same conviction about their method of teaching the high jump.  And then an athlete named Dick Fosbury showed them something quirky and different.

New methods can often spur your team to levels of achievement that you never imagined.

Always be open.

Linda Harding-Bond is the creator of Increasing Your Retail Selling an Online Training Class for Spa Managers. It is the first retail sales and engagement training designed for how introverts learn.