With champagne corks popping, we all started off 2023 with resolutions to get fit, eat healthy, be a better student, or run a marathon. Seems easy on Jan 1^st but the reality is that lifestyle changes are hard to make, and when they start falling to the wayside in February, we lose hope and feel like failures. Don’t beat yourself up! The magic is in the planning.  Setting realistic attainable goals as opposed to grand resolutions is the winning ingredient.  The SMART acronym for goal setting is a great template to work from. Smart goals are based in reality.  

You want a goal that is:

 Specific- you goal should be as specific as you can make it.  Walk 15 min per day, attend study group 2 times per week, or make 3 healthy lunches per week.

Measurable- Can you measure your goal? If studying more is your goal, set a specific number of minutes or pages or even muscles per day. This is measurable, and helps you see if you have achieved your goal.

Achievable- Is memorizing all of the muscles in the body in 1 sitting achievable?  or is 4 muscles per lecture actually achievable.  You set yourself up for failure if goals are not achievable.

Realistic- Reality check your goals in the cold light of day. It’s admirable to plan to work out at the gym for 3 hours each day while in the RMT program at OVCMT, but with 7 hours of class time, meal prep, and study, you may be setting yourself up for failure. You need to ask yourself if your goal is realistic.

Timely- Set a timeline for your goals, keeping in mind that they need to be realistic.  A timeline gives you a sense of urgency to keep you moving forward.  Choose the right time for change, so that nothing gets in your way

  Goal setting to improve your life and get you to your goal of being an RMT is important, but you need to keep the SMART acronym in mind.  The realities of being a full time student can overwhelm the most motivated of goal setters, so it’s essential to encourage yourself  and reward yourself .

 Treat yourself kindly and plan little rewards to celebrate small milestones.  Treat yourself to a special coffee, a yoga class, or new highlighters. Studies have shown that massage increases feelings of well being, decreases stress, and helps decrease muscle soreness from workouts. Plan massage trades with other students, or get into the student clinic for a well deserved relaxation massage.  

 If your 2023 goals include a career change, we applaud you! Registered Massage Therapy affords flexibility, and a positive work environment that many people crave when seeking a new career.

If Massage Therapy is in your future- Come for a tour, check out our campus as a “Massage student for a day”  or chat with our admissions team, and see what this rewarding career can do for you!