I started a private counseling practice with a file cabinet and a key that unlocked a door to a room I had access to every Friday from 8am to Noon. I may be embellishing a bit, but that’s how I remember it. It was late 2007, and although I was a new full-time professor, my family needed me to turn my education into some additional income. I started with one client…
Now, many years later, the practice has grown and changed, iteration upon iteration. And I’ve certainly learned a lot about owning and operating a business. I learned how to be a therapist in graduate school, but I had to learn to run a business elsewhere. And I often now coach other mental health professionals in establishing and running their own counseling practice. In reflecting upon what I know now that I wish I knew then, I developed the following list… Here we go!
In reality, many people who seek your services will not become clients. Many may not be the right client for your practice, nor you the right counselor for their problem. Finding a good counselor is like trying on jeans, and for a variety of reasons, many don’t quite fit. That’s ok. No need to try to wear ill-fitting pants. It’s uncomfortable for everyone. Not everyone who calls will be your client, and with that understanding, I have found it so beneficial over the years to try to be helpful to everyone who calls. If I know that I’m not the right fit, that there are better resources out there, I try to direct the client-to-be to better options. And more often than not, that good-will somehow circles back in my direction. The universe seems to be shaped like a whirlpool
At the beginning of my journey I had one client, and I’ve learned over the years that I still have one client; the one in front of me. Best wishes on your journey of learning how to run a practice.
If you would like more advice on how to run a private practice, join our workshop Building You: Launch and Grow Your Private Practice.
Now, many years later, the practice has grown and changed, iteration upon iteration. And I’ve certainly learned a lot about owning and operating a business. I learned how to be a therapist in graduate school, but I had to learn to run a business elsewhere. And I often now coach other mental health professionals in establishing and running their own counseling practice. In reflecting upon what I know now that I wish I knew then, I developed the following list… Here we go!
Selling is part of the job
Most counselors would not consider themselves a “sales person”, nor the profession of counseling a job in sales. But hear me clearly, “selling” is part of the gig. In my work with couples and families, I often encounter the skeptical or reluctant client; the family member who didn’t choose therapy, but for whom therapy was “mandated” by a spouse or family member, or other outside powerful force. With these clients I often have to “sell” counseling or myself as a good choice for helper. And furthermore, at the end of every session, clients must make the decision to schedule again, or not, to purchase more of my time, presence, and counsel, or not. A moment of decision hangs in the air, and I (gently) nudge the client to come again and work some more.Make scheduling easy
Coming to counseling is hard, and I learned early on that I don’t need to add additional roadblocks. My work, primarily as a couples therapist, is a bit like a root canal. Most folks will avoid it until the pain is unbearable. Again, no need to throw up additional road blocks with scheduling challenges. Scheduling, canceling, and rescheduling also takes a lot of time when done directly between me and the client, and making that process easier, and for me eventually automated, was essential for reducing this pinch-point. Prescreen clients well for a good fit, then make scheduling easier.
Build a diverse network of other professionals
In establishing and building a practice I realized quickly that I needed lots of help. For complex issues and tasks, I’m not a do-it-yourself kind of guy. There’s a ton of stuff I don’t know, nor know how to do. That’s ok. One of my mottos is to pay people to do what they went to school for. Which means, I need to know many other professionals in order to have access to their skills and expertise. I surround myself with diverse competences from various professions and backgrounds. It has also been critical to build a network of professionals and peers from diverse backgrounds; people who don’t look or talk like me. Diverse voices speaking into my life, work, and business has been critical for rightly orienting me in my world and work.Marketing is critical
You may be a great counselor, but if no one can find you, you’ll be sitting in your thoughtfully appointed office, alone. Marketing oneself is typically uncomfortable for most mental health professionals. In graduate school, we show up at a designated internship site, and clients just magically show up on our schedule. Not so in private practice. Potential clients and referral sources may want to know you, but if they don’t know about you or cannot find you, you’ll remain largely unemployed in your new practice. Marketing is a machine, and you have got to insert a few quarters (or a lot of quarters), over and over again, whatever that may mean in your context. It’s critical.Try to be helpful to everyone who calls
In reality, many people who seek your services will not become clients. Many may not be the right client for your practice, nor you the right counselor for their problem. Finding a good counselor is like trying on jeans, and for a variety of reasons, many don’t quite fit. That’s ok. No need to try to wear ill-fitting pants. It’s uncomfortable for everyone. Not everyone who calls will be your client, and with that understanding, I have found it so beneficial over the years to try to be helpful to everyone who calls. If I know that I’m not the right fit, that there are better resources out there, I try to direct the client-to-be to better options. And more often than not, that good-will somehow circles back in my direction. The universe seems to be shaped like a whirlpool
At the beginning of my journey I had one client, and I’ve learned over the years that I still have one client; the one in front of me. Best wishes on your journey of learning how to run a practice.
If you would like more advice on how to run a private practice, join our workshop Building You: Launch and Grow Your Private Practice.
New Bonus Episode!
Listen in as Dr. Matt discusses the 5 things he wishes he knew before launching his private practice. As a bonus, Tralana Eugene, marriage and family therapist, discusses the 5 things she’s considering as she prepares to launch her practice.
Listen here: https://bit.ly/3vpFyft
