What my clients don't see

I wonder if I should reveal to my clients what they don't see about my work in the Shiatsu clinic.

They don't see my half hour of daily T'ai Chi health maintenance.

They don't see me doing the daily sweeping and cleaning and arranging the treatment room, and even if they did, they probably wouldn't see it as one of the necessary meditations I do to keep my mind on my work with them.

They don't see the Chi Gong warm up exercises I do before the first client of the day and sometimes in between clients to shake off uncertain energies and to re-vitalise my own.

They don't see the four pages of notes I produce to begin with on each client and his or her situation, which grows page by page into quite a little booklet of symptoms, diagnoses, background, ideas, treatment plans and suggestions for action.

They don't see the 10 mins upon which I reflect upon each case before I begin nor do they see the 10 mins of reflection and write up after their session.

They don't see the yearly workshops I do with shiatsu masters.

They don't see, or rarely see, the articles I write, the correspondence I enter into with other practitioners.

They have little knowledge of the experiences of other clients, except that of the client or contact that put them my way in the first place.

When you come to think of it, the clients are courageous to put themselves into a situation about which they know so little. Their trust is humbling.

You can never take a client's attitude for granted.