I Taught a Tai-Chi Class
But I don't know anything about the subject!
When I first graduated from chiropractic school, I had planned on practicing in the state of Florida. After all, Miami was "home." We had moved from Panama when I was fourteen.
In the state of Florida, in order to be able to sit for your chiropractic license exam, you had to complete a 3-month (unpaid) internship.
I decided I wanted to practice in an area that I was familiar with and found an office where the doctor agreed to let me do the internship.
I knew the area well—I lost my virginity in the front seat of a tiny Plymouth Arrow in the ballfields and park across the street.
Now, part of the deal was that I had to “generate dollar$”
I would need to bring in clients, I could adjust them-but everything was billed and done under the doctor that owned the office. The premise was that when I became licensed, then they would be my patients and I would be paid for whatever I brought in.
So now I had to come up with a marketing plan to figure out how to bring people in to this office.
We were in a large strip shopping center that was anchored by a Publix. My first instinct was I wanted to set up a table there and route them to our office.
Mr. Publix did not seem too keen on that idea.
There was a gym downstairs, so I went to talk to the manager. I introduced myself and suggested that maybe I could bring in a table and check people’s spines at the gym.
Mr. Gym guy seemed a little bit lukewarm and a moment before he was going to say no-
I blurted out: “Or I can teach a Tai-Chi Class!”
The Gym guy seemed to like that idea!
We scheduled it and then he shook my hand with his “Popeye-sized” forearms.
As soon as I walked out I said to myself:
“What the hell do you know about teaching a Tai-Chi class?”
I didn’t know anything.
I had seen a guy practicing Tai-Chi in the courtyard at Life University. I was fascinated with the slowness and deliberateness of every movement.
I bought a book and practiced. Then I found some videos. I practiced a lot because I enjoyed how I felt afterwards. Then there was a guy at a gym that gave classes and I probably took 2 of his classes.
No way I felt I was qualified to teach a class.
It was too late to change, I had to go through with it. The gym made a sign and posted it and I would show up Monday evening to teach.
To my surprise there were about 15-20 ladies that showed up.
So I talked about Chi and energy flow. we did some basic Qi-Gong and some very basic Tai-Chi routines. Towards the end one of the ladies asking “what’s that? what am I feeling?”
I said “you’re probably feeling your energy flowing for the first time! nothing to be scared of!”
After the class, I was honest and said I’m not a tai-chi instructor, I’m a chiropractor and tied in the energy flow and how a subluxation in the spine can prevent full energy flow between the brain and the body and that I could help them with any problems in their spines.
The next day 3 of those ladies called the office to make appointments!
Over the next 2 weeks I had more people come in to the office because of that class!
So I guess the moral of the story is
“Perfect is The Enemy of Good”
I used to wait until what I wrote was “perfect” It will never be. That is one less post that I will write, Nothing is ever perfect.
You’ll never produce anything if you don’t just say “Good Enough!”