What I look for when interviewing someone!

by Lynsey
(England)

I've been fortunate in that I've never had to be interviewed for a massage job, I started up my own business and therefore skipped that stage. However I can tell you what I look for in an employee during an interview!

Top of my list is punctuality! If someone turns up late for an interview they don't get interviewed it's as simple as that, no excuses, no explanations accepted, after all if they can be late to the interview then what will they be like whilst my clients are stuck waiting?

First impressions count for everything - buy yourself a uniform - the best employees I have turned up in simple stylish massage uniform, this to me demonstrated their commitment to professionalism and proved that they were serious about what they wanted to do! Anyone who turns up in jeans or sneakers doesn't even get shortlisted for the job!

A clean tidy appearance is also vital, short clean nails, clean tidy hair, minimum make up and minimum perfume are all other thing which will ensure you make a good appearance and take pride in yourself.

As for the massage, I always ask for a demonstration of their skills, however I don't give them a brief I let them decide what massage they wish to show, and I can tell you all this -

Keep it simple- as an employer I am far more interested to see that you know and understand the very basic of techniques, and that you can put them into practice with great confidence, I am more likely to employ you if you have demonstrated that the basic skills are second nature to you as opposed to trying to wow me with your own invented massage, these ideas whilst great should be saved until you actually have the job and are free to demonstrate the level of your skill!

If I see a good base massage then I either ask for a more advanced massage to be shown or I question my interviewee to see how far their knowledge goes! That said don't let a vast knowledge put you off I have employed people with only a small amount of knowledge who showed great potential and then trained them in salon, they are today some of the best therapists I have.

And finally confidence and approachability are two things you must have, as if you don't have these then your clients wont have confidence in you either, and a client who loses confidence in you, is a client you lose forever!