Crowdsourcing vs. Polling
And why you probably just need a mentor
Back in May of this year I was in California for a barefoot massage instructor meetup. After class one evening a bunch of us were relaxing in the hot tub and as massage therapists are prone to do, we got to chatting and solving the world’s problems.
One subject entered the conversation that I’d been thinking about for a while. It was about crowdsourcing, polling, and how therapists on the internet will go to a group of anonymous and often times inexperienced massage therapists to ask questions instead of going back to their instructors or other industry professionals and experts. While we didn’t solve this issue, I still have thoughts about it.
What is Crowdsourcing?
Crowdsourcing, simply put, is asking the internet a question and hoping a large group of people will see it. The concept is that the internet will deliver your question to a massive cross-section of people who possess diverse backgrounds and knowledgebases. This large group of people will see the question, and someone will know the answer or give you leads to find the answer. Sometimes crowdsourcing can bring together a multi-disciplinary team of people with knowledge, that combined, can solve the problem.
I think crowdsourcing is among one of the best uses of the internet. Polling, not so much.
What is Polling
Polling is similar but completely different, at least in the internet/social media arena. Polling is typically asking for an opinion. It often is disingenuous as people typically use it to confirm a decision, opinion or bias. Others use it to avoid the heavy lifting of critical thinking or researching the question at hand.
The Question is Why?
Why do people use crowdsourcing? I would hope that answer is pretty obvious. Did you know that Wikipedia is a crowdsourced project that benefits everyone with an internet connection? What about the Waze mapping app that depends on real-time data from drivers to transmit information about road conditions?
A quick search on the internet turns up a lot of big, boring, business projects that are crowdsourced. I remember when crowdsourcing was novel and groundbreaking. People were finding cures for their kid’s mysterious and unexplainable ailments that stumped local medical communities. People were helping solve cold cases and crimes. It was so impressive there were movies and television series made about it.
Coming from this kind of pedigree, the polling we see commonly on the massage therapy forums are usually a big disappointment. The comment sections devolve into a shitshow with people fighting over their unique opinions. No one’s problems are being solved and oftentimes the poster just wants people to validate them. Don’t get me started on people who can’t self-validate…
What you really need is a mentor
If you’ve ever gone into a social media forum and asked a question like, “How much do you charge for massage?” this section is for you. If you’ve ever gotten embroiled in the comment section on a question like this, you already know this is a question that’s impossible to answer. Yes, you know what you charge, but how could that possibly be relevant to the OP’s location and unique circumstances? And then there’s always that business coach who is trolling the youngsters trying to drum up business.
What you need is a mentor who can help you think critically through all the details of this question.
Why aren’t you asking for help in the right places?
Social media typically is not the right place. I mean, maybe you can find a focused community that will work for you, but in my experience, they might work for a while then lose focus and devolve. Unless they find a way to monetize those communities, the leadership loses interest. Maybe you can use social media to find leads to offline or off-socials groups that fit your needs.
Where you need to be focusing for answers is a resource you already have. Your school instructors, your CE instructors, your massage therapist, the massage therapists you work with, your community gray beards…these are untapped resources that you’re not going to be able to access via social media. At least not for what you need them for.
But, I’m <insert concern here>
Here’s the list, right off the top of my head:
I don’t want to look dumb/stupid
I know I didn’t pay attention in class, I should know this
I’m scared someone will be mean to me/think I’m dumb/tell my boss, this list is endless
What if they think I’m trying to steal their clients or have nefarious intentions?
I’m <insert any number of insecurities here>
What if I offend someone by being unintentionally invasive?
What if I can’t do it even if I get the answer?
I’m here to tell you that none of that shit in the above list matters. Yes, it’s scary to put yourself out there. Yes, some people might think poorly of you, but that’s their problem not yours. You know your heart.
Everyone who has ever set about improving themselves has had to take a deep breath and risked at least one of those things in the list above. That’s how we improve. By being brave, by learning to deal with the discomfort growth brings, and by learning and implementing what we learn.
Buck the System
There seems to be a trend lately and I’m not sure if it’s a generational thing, jealousy, immaturity, or something else I haven’t discovered yet, of newer/younger therapists who refuse to listen to and learn from more experienced therapists. I’ve heard several different versions of what is turning them off and they all seem to revolve around ego. And I don’t mean ego, as in stuck up, though some certainly are, but it seems like the younger generation of therapists don’t like hearing about experiences or credentials and literally, “quit listening and leave the conversation.”
On the other hand, some of us are being accused of gatekeeping industry information. Can these two things be true at once? I guess so, but it’s hard to gatekeep when so many people saying this are the one’s walking away from the conversation.
When I was coming up, I had to check myself every time someone said they’d been in the industry for 10, 15, or 20-plus years. I was always envious of someone having this career for so long.
If you’re a person who catches feelings when someone more mature in the profession presents their credentials, take another deep breath, maybe two and stay in the conversation. Credentials are how us old-timers signal to each other that we know what we’re talking about. For us, if you don’t present your credentials, we’re less likely to listen to you. We’d rather hear, “I’ve only been a massage therapist for a month, but I’ve already noticed…,” than you just presenting what you’ve noticed.
With no frame of reference for the maturity of your knowledgebase, we can’t begin the process of answering your question without more information. There are few simple answers when it comes to massage therapy. Fortunately, we have a massive knowledgebase available to us in the form of other therapists who have already done what you’re trying to do.
Please consider having a conversation directly instead of jumping on the socials and asking people who may or may not have the experience necessary to engage with your questions.
Food for Thought
Who are your mentors? How are you using them? What kind of fees are they charging? Or do they do pro bono questions?
I find it perfectly acceptable to buy a massage and ask the therapist questions or just pay them for an hour of their time and pick their brain. You’ll get different reactions from different people, don’t let that stop you from continuing to explore the profession.
If you don’t have a mentor or someone to talk industry stuff with, I challenge you to look around and find one before the next TISHLIMS article comes out!
If you enjoyed this post, please consider donating a small amount to allow me to continue this kind of work.
About the Author: Sharon L Bryant has been a massage therapist since 2008 and a massage therapy educator since 2014. You can read more about the TISHLIMS project, its history, and what brought Sharon to Substack.
This is awesome!
You are my spirit animal right now!! Saying things straight from my angsty Sole! And dead on with the old timer signalling: that is me, and I DO so totally want and expect the newbs to recognize and reflect before reacting. 🧿