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Throughout the ages there have been men and women who have labored to better the world. Some of them worked through communities and institutions while some of them worked at what some people call the grass roots level, to raise a group of people wanted to help provide for the needs of the society at a deeper, more personal level, than most governments. These groups were often met with a great deal of resistance, but as more people joined them and they gained more power, they also gained enough prestige to become part of the larger system. This was both a blessing and a curse.

Today, due to the speed of communication, we can see the fruit of their success faster. As they become part of the system they get more power, but the amount of compromising necessary to remain at the table and keep that power also increases. After they have compromised too much they become the system instead of agents of correction. They begin to make a few cosmetic changes here and there and to pass out the Band-Aids, but they really dont make the foundational changes needed to stop people from getting wounded.

Their success has ultimately become their failure. They have ended up selling their souls to do good and bending their values so far they dont exist anymore. Finally they end up being the oppressors and suppressors they thought they were fighting. This is an example of how ones success externally can contribute to ones demise internally. The Shaolin discuss this in their wisdom literature. They say that some people only use their energy and light of awareness to fight against darkness and evil externally. While their awareness is being applied on the outside the evil they are fighting finds a place of welcome on the inside. They are then turned into what they are fighting against.

The Shaolin say that is more important to use the light of awareness on the inside to purify and strengthen oneself so one can work to fight evil from a place of wholeness, completeness, and goodness. To create a better society it is important to know who one is and to cultivate ones sense of self, honor, and dignity. One can work from a place of strength and power then, creating new ways to bring about social change. If one is moved by anger or by fear it can seem that she is doing great work while she is destroying the very principles inside herself that she wants the world to embrace. But if she struggles from a place of certitude and love, she will bring the principles she embraces to the world and be an example for following generations.

If you want to be a social change agent as part of your Karmic Yoga, cultivate love of self and neighbor. Treat yourself kindly. Truly love yourself and your neighbor--even those who oppose you. Love combined with just action will lead you to life. This life will replace the drudgery of fighting unbeatable odds, or the tiredness from maintaining a sense of righteous anger throughout the years and transform your work to one of joy. Your work will become part of the great spiral dance that weaves together and takes apart corrupt thoughts, concepts, and social systems, and recreates them in the image of love. You will be the very essence--the creative process of life, and your legacy of justice, which is applied love, will endure forever.

Dr. John W. Gilmore is the founder and Spiritual Leader of the Cyber Circle of Creation Spirituality, which is an online service dedicated to deep ecumenism, mystical union with the Divine, and a progressive voice for societal transformation. He is a Spiritual Director, Martial Arts Instructor, a writer and a certified Reiki Master Teacher, Massage Therapist, a Reflexologist. For more commentaries like this one explore this e-zine or our Free Journal of Practical Spirituality at http://www.dswellness.com . You can also find a link to our cyber service, The Circle there.

// posted by 58378 @ 6:18 PM 0 comments

One group of professionals you may consider adding to you network are licensed massage therapist or LMTs. It is a good idea to know a few massage therapists because you will have patients ask you who you recommend from time to time. Your patient will be very thankful if you refer them to a good LMT, especially if they were going to resort to a blind attempt of finding someone credible by using the phone book. If your philosophy is sound, you should not be intimidated by massage therapists and understand that what you do is very different. You should also be able to explain these differences. Unfortunately sometimes the general public may not know the difference between massage therapist and chiropractors. Thats fine; this can be another opportunity to educate your patients.

Your first necessity is to come into contact with a reputable massage therapist. Introduce yourself to as many as possible throughout your town or area of practice. Many will offer you a tour of their facility and sometimes even a free massage. Take them up on the free massage if offered. This will give you a chance to see how good they are at what they do and give you more time to work on your new network relationship by visiting with them. When you are visiting with these LMTs you are interviewing them at the same time. They are probably interviewing you also. Ask yourself questions like, is this someone I would trust with my patient, could I see myself becoming a client of this person? They need to have a respectable facility, reasonable fees and a philosophy that is somewhat close to your own. The last thing you want to do is refer a patient to a bad business that does not share your same philosophy. This could jeopardize your relationship with your patient.

I recommend you have about 4 to 5 massage therapist that you have built a rapport with. They need to be spread out in your area of practice for two reasons. First your patients do not want to drive all over town to get to your recommended LMT. Second this gives you a spread out area to receive your referrals from. Once you have your 4 to 5 LMTs you can trust and refer to, you also have 4 to 5 LMTs referring to your business. As always it is a good idea to keep in contact with each of them periodically to maintain your network.

When you refer a patient to a LMT, call them and let them know you sent that patient over to their business. Do no be afraid to put light pressure on them to refer you a patient or two when the timing is right.

Occasionally LMTs will want to barter with you. You may want to do the same. It is your decision. This may be the chance you are looking for to build your network relationship even stronger.

A great way that I have found to start the referral process with LMTs and build my practice at the same time is to offer a monthly special. For example, in the month of July refer a friend or family member to our office and receive a free 30 minute massage from a licensed massage therapist. Post signs in your office, have your receptionist tell patients and tell them yourself. This inspires patients to refer people to your office and at the same time allows you to start the referral process with your network of LMTs. Run the special only once every few months. This puts a since of urgency to your patients to receive their free massage. The only down side is you pay for the 30 minute massage. This is a small price to pay to add a new patient to your growing practice, and some massage therapist will give you discounts for your paid referrals. Again, its a win, win, win situation for everyone involved.

Dr. Ryan Marshall is a Tulsa chiropractor and a member of the American Chiropractic Association.

// posted by 58378 @ 5:40 AM 0 comments