by William Lee Rand
If you have taken a Reiki class, even if it is Reiki I, you can begin charging money for your Reiki sessions. This fact is not always mentioned in Reiki classes but based on the way Reiki has been traditionally taught, it is true!
Charging money for your Reiki sessions means that you could use your Reiki training to supplement your income in a meaningful way! And if you find that you like giving Reiki sessions and you are so inclined, you could even develop your Reiki practice into a full-time business with a full-time income! Doing this is not as difficult as you might think. The reason is that you can start out slowly and learn as you go. What I am saying is, even though you might think this a daunting project and you may feel intimidated by the idea, you can learn how to do it.
If you are over the age of 18 or so, you have learned how to do lots of things that may have seemed challenging at first. These things could include learning to sew, learning to cook, being able to paint a wall, learning basic carpentry, learning how to go fishing, applying for and starting a new job, or learning to drive a car and so forth. And, learning how to start and run a Reiki practice can be just as easy and just as fun as any of these things.
Don’t sit on the sidelines watching life go by;
jump up and grab hold of life and
experience the feeling of accomplishment!
When I first took Reiki I and II in the early 80’s, Reiki was new, and it cost more than it does now. As an example, Reiki I was $175.00, and Reiki II was $500.00. In inflation-adjusted numbers, this is equal to about $500.00 for Reiki I and $1400.00 for Reiki II or $1900.00 for both. Because of this, most people took Reiki I and only a few took Reiki II. (1) I paid for Reiki I and about a year later, because I was able to organize the class and recruit the students, I received Reiki II free! I felt fortunate that I was able to do this.
The idea of receiving the ability to heal by simply taking a short class and getting attunements was also new and very fascinating. I had a friend who had taken Reiki training, and he confirmed that it was not a sham and that it did in fact work. So, I went ahead and took the Reiki I class, and I was very happy that I did.
As previously mentioned, at that time most students only took Reiki I, so the teacher would explain that with Reiki I you could begin giving Reiki sessions to others and charging money. It is also important to note that at that time, Takata Sensei trained virtually all the Reiki Masters (except for a few who remained teaching in Japan after World War II), and they were teaching very strictly in the way she trained them. Because of this, it is clearly the case that charging money for Reiki sessions after receiving Reiki I training was part of the Reiki tradition.
And in fact, since the ability to channel Reiki healing energy comes automatically to all students who take the training and receive the attunements, and the actual session using all the hand positions listed in the training manual is not difficult to follow, virtually anyone who takes a Reiki I class can begin giving Reiki sessions. It is also important to know that since Reiki is a very simple technique and is very easy to do, if one uses a very light touch or keeps the hands an inch or so from the body, one does not have to be concerned about doing any harm.
But of course, now, the Reiki I & II classes are often taught together, so students have even more training and are even more qualified to give sessions.
After you have received the basic Reiki training, your next step is to practice. To do this, I suggest giving simple sessions to your family and friends for free. After you have done a few of these and gotten feedback from your clients, you will see that your Reiki does in fact work and that people really enjoy receiving Reiki. This response will give you the confidence you need to go to the next step.
Next, you need to begin charging money for your sessions. To do this, it is best that you get a Reiki table. A new table will be nice, but used tables are often available and can be found in ads at the health food store or posted on New Age bookstore bulletin boards. Keep in mind that you are starting a business, and can expect that there will be some investment needed to do this and that the cost of the table is relatively small when compared to the income potential that awaits you.
Start out charging a low fee and work your way up to your target fee. Your target fee will be what others in your area are charging for Reiki sessions or otherwise, it would be the same amount that people are charging for a massage session.
To begin, tell everyone that you are starting out and will be doing your first ten Reiki sessions, as an example, for $10.00 and then you will be increasing your fee to $20.00. If you tell everyone this, they will know you will be increasing your fee and will not be surprised when you do. Also, they will know that if they sign up for a session right away, they will be saving money. This promotion will encourage people to act. Without this incentive, most people will think to themselves that yes, at some point they would like to have a Reiki session, but they will not set one up right away and may even forget about it. But with this system, they are much more likely to sign up quickly. Then after you have raised your fee to $20.00 continue in this way up to your target fee. This method will keep the motivation going for people to sign up right away for a session. You will need to check in your area, but the fee for Reiki sessions is usually between $50.00 to $150.00 for an hour session depending on the area of the country in which you practice.
As you give more sessions, you will gain more experience and you will feel more confident in charging more money. Also, make sure to get everyone’s name and email address. Get some business software and place each client into your database. Then, when you have a special event like a Reiki Day or you have a booth at a psychic fair or you will be at other events, you can notify those in your database about it. This database will also come in handy for notifying people when you are ready to teach Reiki classes.
Set a goal of giving five or six sessions for part-time or up to 20 sessions or so per week for full-time. By doing the math, you will see that the potential income for your Reiki practice can be significant! This method is a simple, straightforward way to get a Reiki business going and covers some of the important first steps. And if I have piqued your interest, I suggest you get the booklet, Developing Your Reiki Practice, and carefully read it. This booklet contains articles that cover every aspect of setting up and running a Reiki business. People just like you who learned from their experience wrote it and shared all the details of how they got a thriving Reiki business started including what worked and what did not work.
Life presents many opportunities, and it is the person who recognizes an opportunity and takes action that is the one who moves forward with his or her life. Don’t sit on the sidelines watching life go by: jump up and grab hold of life and experience the feeling of accomplishment.
1 Reiki Master was $10,000.00. (One group still charges this amount!) In the 80's, with inflation, this was the same as almost $30,000.00 now. In addition, there was a reluctance on the part of the existing Reiki Masters to initiate other Masters even if they were willing to pay the fee! Needless to say, at that time, it was very rare for someone to become a Reiki Master.
