Is Free Reiki Wrong?

Christian Stone | Standing Stones Healing Co.

I recently did Reiki at a wellness fair and had a drawing to win a free Reiki session after which I would tell them my pricing and packages. I selected numerous winners, and so far I've had two appointments, but they both no called/no showed. I'm bummed and this is discouraging. I've heard that giving away Reiki for free isn't a good idea. Was I wrong?

I can understand your disappointment and yes, many of us have had this kind of experience. Many practitioners will say that they didn't show because the session was free and that we shouldn't give sessions away for free because no one values it and this is exactly what happens when we do.

I'm going to offer a perspective that is controversial, but it's not always just about the free. People can and do no show or cancel for paid things, as well. I've had plenty of times when clients or students have pre-paid for a session and not scheduled the session. Things happen, life happens, we have good intentions, we forget, we mean to get around to things and never do.

I believe it's not about the money...it's about the mindset. We can have someone who is very appreciative of and takes a free session seriously. That person values the experience, is grateful for the session, and gets a lot out of it. We can then have someone who has paid hundreds of dollars for a service or class and doesn't show up. I've seen this happen in my own business and it no longer surprises me. 

I disagree with the idea that if people pay they will take it more seriously. Maybe, yes. For some people this is certainly the case and for many, perhaps, the more they pay, the more they "pay attention," as the saying goes. But not necessarily. I believe it's truly about the person's mindset and attitude toward the thing, whether a course or Reiki session or anything we might purchase, than it is about how much they pay. Have you ever bought something you haven't used? Most of us can say yes. Ok, probably all of us can say yes.

I think that free services and offers, when used with intention and care, can be helpful and effective. You may very well want to offer something free at some point again, and you may not want to completely write off free anything. For instance, the encouragement I'm providing in this article is completely free. Does that mean you won't appreciate it? I doubt that.

We can never know exactly why someone might not follow through on scheduling and when we offer free things, we sometimes forget or might not realize that there's more to it than simply accepting a free thing. Perhaps the person would have to find child care or doesn't have transportation or first has to understand what Reiki is.

In this kind of instance, how I might approach it is to follow up with the person. Perhaps they have some unanswered questions, aren't sure what to expect in the session, or had an issue. Maybe they even realized they really didn't want to win, anyway. Many of us might enter a drawing and not care if we win or would even prefer not to. But I recommend reaching out to any no shows to check in. It's a good business practice to get into, and this is a great opportunity to practice. No shows can be annoying and are especially disappointing when we're newer in our Reiki business, but they do happen, including when people pay, and I encourage you not to completely write off ever offering free sessions again. When we use them strategically and with intention, they can be helpful for our Reiki business.

For more Reiki business encouragement, grab the free Reiki Biz Kit. 
​And these podcast episodes on pricing and charging for Reiki might offer some encouragement...