cromagnonmale

Just wanted to wrap this thread up in case future providers are thinking about doing the same thing- Above responses were super helpful, especially those that directed me to look at courses overseas from USA (Europe/Thailand) - after a cursory search I found a LOT of courses from about 900 to 3K that last 5 to 10 days. I am going to pursue those. Thanks for everyone's help

I was a classic "provider" for 10 years, took a break about a year and a half ago. Recently tried getting started again and I find that my head and heart may have moved on from certain aspects of the work. Now I am thinking of going the masseur route. I am curious what kinds of certifications clients look for from masseurs, or other qualities you seek. I am curious what kinds of training programs other masseurs would recommend, if any. Im a well-built gym guy with strong hands, I have been told I would be a natural, but I am always afraid of hurting someone without knowledge. I feel kind of old to be starting a training program (37) but perhaps that is silly. I know there are providers out there who do the work without training, which is a tempting idea as these programs cost 8k to 12k (which will pay for itself quickly once I get started, maybe). However, I have been to plenty of masseurs who clearly have no training and nothing is worse, but I prefer a pretty thorough massage. Hoping to hear thoughts from providers and clients. Thanks!

Thank you! Favorite scotch is Laphroaig 10

For sure, that makes sense. We will see if I can stand out in a city setting without face pics. Really, my ultimate hope is develop some good ongoing relationships, and I am okay with it not working out that way. It might well be my days as a regularly active provider are in the past and this will happen more organically if at all. That said, I really do enjoy this work. It's beautiful and powerful and divine at the best of times. But returning to the website seems more complicated today than it was a few years ago.

That is one of the things I read through today. I am glad to see there are providers who thoughtfully navigate this process, and I will probably be reaching out to them soon for some advice.

CroMagMale - I took down my second pic because it showed the lower half of my face and I have spent the day reading about the horrors of facial recognition software and law enforcement. I am trying to decide what to do with the profile going forward.

For sure, and I have done that. The problem I always faced was the fact that guys booking are a. feeling me out, chatting, trying to decide, b. wanting to book during what I call "prime time" which is like, friday/saturday nights, and c. wanting to book at the last minute when I have less than a day left in my trip and I wiped out, using that time to get last moments in with friends or the place I am visiting. Rarely are guys booking and pulling the trigger and wanting to hang in the front end of my visit.

Unfortunately, it's a couple of big tattoos, but I am thinking of covering them up to take more pictures. I am open to traveling to big cities but I always struggle to "work" when I do that, as I tend to go into vacation mode and spend the time with friends or boys I meet, often drinking, and I dont love breaking away from friends to "work" and definitely don't drink before a session.

Well gee golly have I learned a lot in the past 24 hours, both from yall and sources around the web. My biggest take away has been that law enforcement is using facial recognition software to target providers and clients alike at international borders and turning them away, which sounds like only the beginning of what this tech can be used to do. My having done SW within the past ten years puts my squarely on these lists, though I am somewhat more free to move around as a US citizen, and that could easily change. This is very scary and does not incentivize me to put my face back on any databases any time soon. I did read that residents of certain jurisdictions can request to have their images removed from a certain image scraping database, but one has to upload their official ID along with their request for removal. Such legally muddled requests to a legally dubious entity does not give me much confidence that it would help, but their not keeping their word only keeps me in their databases, so I am debating whether or not to do so. What a wild time we live in.

Thanks everyone - these are all great replies. I'll need to take some new dick/bod pics that eliminate identifying tattoos. I was also thinking of posting a couple with my body and notecards that say my profile name so that it doesnt look like a catfish situation and perhaps get more creative. Also, appreciate the condolences. He was an amazing man.

Just joined the site after years from watching from the sidelines - heya! I am returning to SW through RM after a hiatus of a couple years, as 1. guys keep hitting me up on Grindr making offers and 2. my longtime sponsor, with whom I had many beautiful experiences, recently passed away, reminding me how important and powerful this work can be. My former profile had face and body pictures and descriptions of things I can provide, but now I intend to be much more selective, and much more discreet. I now live in a small town in a small state where discretion feels right. I posted a new profile, with just two pictures, face cropped out, and a description that I hope communicates that I am warm and friendly and I know what I am doing. I am curious if guys here would shy away from a profile with only two pictures, both without faces. I am also interested in any other general advice you have for returning to the biz in 2023. Thank you so much, and glad to finally join this site.