Do You Have What It Takes to Be Reiki Credible?
Reiki practitioners face a double challenge: the credibility of Reiki practice and the credibility of the practitioner.
Credibility is an obvious concern for Reiki professionals, but it is salient for all practitioners. We want to feel proud of our practice, and we want to share it with others.
Clearly, meeting the credibility challenge is good for your self-respect. If you are a Reiki professional, being credible is also good for business.
But the benefits of meeting the credibility challenge extend much further. Being a credible Reiki practitioner is a service to the practice, and to the community of practitioners who value a thoughtful, credible approach to Reiki–the kind of approach that helps the person on the street take a second look at what Reiki practice might offer him and his family.
Let’s explore what it takes to exude Reiki credibility. Here are four aspects to start the conversation.
What’s Your Reiki Experience?
Nothing establishes credibility like years of experience and a long list of accomplishments. Additionally, years of daily Reiki self-treatment and clinical practice bring a depth of confidence and clarity that can’t be faked.
But even a Reiki beginner can be a credible Reiki beginner. Just be upfront about your level of experience, tone down the enthusiasm so as not to overwhelm anyone, and have a seasoned mentor you can turn to as needed.
Can You Stick with the Reiki Facts?
Credible practitioners share accurate, factual information and document their sources. Folk tales are not credible, unless of course you are an expert in folk literature, and then you not only tell the story, you trace its history, etc. Many Reiki myths and folk tales have been circulated as fact.
How can you tell what is credible information in this unregulated, non-academic field? This is admittedly a challenge, and I started Campaign for Credible Reiki to help the community address it. If you have a question, click here to ask it.
Being credible doesn’t mean having all the answers. You build credibility when you admit that you don’t know the answer to a question, promise to find out, and then follow through with your promise.
Do You Model the Gifts of Reiki Practice?
An even temperament is essential for establishing credibility. If you doubt it, consider the last time you were impressed by 2-year-old tantrums or teenage drama.
A credible practitioner is more than respectful of questions and other perspectives; she welcomes and anticipates them.
A credible Reiki practitioner shares credible information so that people can make informed choices; she doesn’t persuade the listener or sell the practice.
Can You Hear Me Now?
Good listening skills are essential to establishing credibility. Not only do people need to feel heard, but also, when we listen, our understanding is deepened by what we learn from others.
When we truly listen to others, we learn what matters to them, which is important if we want to serve them. We also learn how we are perceived, which is important if we want to serve more people like them.
The best practitioners and teachers are perennial students of their practice and of their community. Keep listening to the people you serve, and they will keep teaching you how best to serve them.
Scroll down to the comment section to share what you look for in a credible Reiki practitioner.
The TALKING REIKI: Communication series is designed to improve your effectiveness, credibility, and comfort when talking about Reiki, and you can access the recordings online anytime you want, as many times as you want. Click here to learn more.
If you liked this, you might also like:
The Reiki Police
Mainstreaming Reiki: Acquiring the Power to Help
The Reiki Credibility Challenge
Recipe for Reiki Credibility
I believe the above four tips are perfect for the Level I Reiki Practitioner. Once you get past Level I then I believe a Reiki Practitioner needs to demonstrate an earnest desire to be a student of life basically. A person that is striving to know themselves well through Self Reiki, Meditation and/or a strong Yoga practice. I believe a Reiki Practitioner has a person that may be considered a mentor that they can go to with questions. They also have a community of Practitioners they are connected to. A credible Reiki Practitioner may have a degree in counseling of some sort. And if not a degree then at least a mentor they are strongly connected with and may be meeting with on a regular basis. I believe a credible Reiki Practitioner also receives Reiki from others on a regular basis. A credible Reiki Practitioner is earnest in keeping their own energy field clear and is always focused on the outcome for the greater good.
Thank you for presenting this to the Reiki community. I agree that all four are essential for developing a credible Reiki practice. I would like to add to the first one concerning length of experience. Be honest when reporting this. Do not use chronological years if you only practice now and then. It’s deceiving. Better to say, “I have been a Reiki Practitoner for four years doing weekend sessions”. The energy around your truth will support your practice.
And doing self-practice everyday IS reportable.
Good point, Lorraine, thanks for bringing it up. And I agree completely about letting people know we practice daily self-Reiki. I see daily self-practice as a deal-breaker when it comes to credibility. If a practitioner doesn’t value her practice and her own health and well-being enough to use it for herself everyday, why would I want to receive a treatment from her?
@ Anita, I self-treat daily but do not receive Reiki regularly from others, and in my experience many Reiki teachers do not. I’m curious about why you would include that.
Gassho to you for your article. With so many Reiki canards, it is important to share factual history, etc . I was introducted to Reiki in the 1980s, then in the 1990s began completing various Master teacher levels Western styles of Reiki. I began teaching in 2002 after first completing Gendai Reiki Ho under a Reiki Shihan (teacher) that had studied under Hiroshi Doi. I went on to complete the update Reiki Shihan level directly under Doi Sensei and then on to complete my update Shihan in Komyo Reiki Kai under Rev. Hyakuten Inamoto; both men have only 2 teachers between themselves and Mikao Usui. I teach, practice, and live Japanese styles Usui Reiki Ryoho. I do not dishonor the memory of Mikao Usui by adding anything from other modalities into my Usui Reiki Ryoho practice.