Meet Tatiana Johnson

We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Tatiana Johnson. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Tatiana below.

Tatiana, thanks so much for taking the time to share your insights and lessons with us today. We’re particularly interested in hearing about how you became such a resilient person. Where do you get your resilience from?

I am a single mother of two boys Tizairian (17) and Timarian (12). As a teen mom who was ostracized for having children at such a young age, I did not let that stop me. With family and so called friends telling me to give up, that was the drive I needed to keep pushing forward. Most of my family told me that I wouldn’t even finish high school but with the support of my mother and two older sisters, I was able to prove them wrong! I always knew I wanted more out of life and that’s where my ambition comes from. My boys are the motivating force that keeps me going on days when I just want to give up. They are my biggest supporters and I just want to continue to show them that NOTHING is unattainable if you work hard for it. Being faced with great opposition, I persevered nonetheless.

Thanks, so before we move on maybe you can share a bit more about yourself?

I have been a licensed massage therapist for seven years. I received my certification at First Institute in Crystal Lake, IL. I had never had a massage prior to becoming a therapist so it wasn’t something I’d always wanted to do. Before attending school, I wasn’t really doing anything with my life. At the time, I was living with my mother to help out amid her recovery from cancer. After nursing her back to health, I decided to go back to school. As a single mom, I was working third shift so I knew long hours at school would be a challenge and it was. some days I had to take my kids with me to class and most days I was exhausted but everyday I showed up. After an extensive 10 month massage therapy program, I got my first job at Elements Massage. I gained most of my experience there, working with them for six years. I worked at the front desk two out of those six years and that’s how I gained knowledge of the business side of things. I absolutely loved working there and this was the first job I didn’t hate, but I felt like something was missing. I wanted more than just to be making someone else’s dreams come true so after being with them for two years, I branched out on my own (still working for them) and started my small business. I was hesitant to start because I didn’t have any supplies or equipment other than my massage table from school. I started renting a small suite in September of 2019, not knowing that in just a couple months, my business would be closed and hurt financially by covid. I lost a lot of money that year but I didn’t let that discourage me. By June of 2020, my business was back up and running and has been great ever since. My entire business has been self funded. I didn’t take out any loans and I didn’t get any of the grants I applied for. Starting out with just my table, everything else I needed came with time. In February of 2023, I was able to quit my job at Elements because my self funded business was now paying my bills. Quitting my job has been by far the BEST decision I have ever made. I get to put all my time and energy into my business and focus on building my brand. The name of my business is Trinity Therapeutic Massage. I grew up in church so the trinity (father, son, holy spirit) was heavily inspired by my baptist background. In correlation to my business name, the trinity refers to mind, body and spirit. My main focus in my business as of late has been lymphatic drainage. Although, I offer swedish, deep tissue, sports massage, trigger point therapy, aromatherapy and prenatal massage. I have struggled to find my niche and I wanted to expand my horizon so I became certified in advanced lymphatic drainage. I got into this so I can help clients with lymphedema and to accommodate the high demand of post-op cosmetic surgery. I have reached out to surgeons to partner with them in hopes of getting referrals to help grow my business in that direction. Overall, the most exciting part of my job is that I love what I do and the feedback I receive from clients. whether it was helping to relieve their back pain or calming their anxiety, knowing that I was able to give them peace of mind makes it all worth it.

Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?

The three most helpful qualities for me would have to be consistency, having a mentor and being good at what you do. Being consistent is very difficult but is dier when you’re an entrepreneur. Even when things seem like they are not going right or you feel like you’re not reaching your financial goal, you HAVE to keep going. Being consistent over time and hardworking will grant you the results you’ve been waiting for. Having a mentor is also very important in your entrepreneurial journey because you’re not going to get everything right the first time around. You will need someone to lead and guide you along the way. For me, I had several mentors that I could reach out to whenever I needed help. whether it was massage related, ideas on how to attain more regular clients or simply doing taxes. My mentors also gave me referrals, told me things to expect when working for myself and stopped me from hitting a lot of hurdles as a first time small business owner. Being good at what you do is going to help you when it comes to marketing yourself. no matter how much you pay for marketing or put your ideas on social media, people want someone who is personable. If you’re good at what you do, people will tell their family and friends. Word of mouth is your best friend when trying market your business.
The best advice I can give to someone starting out is to JUST START. Stop thinking about having all your ducks in a row, do you’re research on whatever it is you want to pursue and just do it. If you keep putting it off, you’ll never do it! Don’t let procrastination shatter your dreams. For those who have started and feel lost in their journey, find a mentor. Your mentor should be someone who has already reached the level of success you are working hard to get to and someone in the same field as you. for instance. most of my mentors are massage therapist with their own spa.

How can folks who want to work with you connect?

I have been certified in advanced lymphatic drainage, using the Vodder technique. I would love to collaborate with plastic surgeons from all over to help with the high demand of Brazilian butt lifts (bbl) tummy tucks, face lifts, breast implants, liposuction and much more. I am based in Elgin, IL ( the outskirts of Chicago) and I have already seen several clients who have undergone cosmetic surgery. A lot of my clients are from my area but I have also had clients fly to Miami and come back to receive lymphatic drainage. I look forward to working with different surgeons and helping their patients on their road to recovery! If you’d like to collab with me I can be reached at info@trinitymassage.net or phone 847-236-2600.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://trinitymassage.net
• Instagram: trinity3massage
• Yelp: trinity therapeutic massage

Image Credits

LibbyLou images