When we launched A SMART PRACTICE earlier this year, our goal was simple: To provide engaging content to help practicians build their practices. We are six months in and have published over 50 articles by almost a dozen contributors and engaged our readers with bi-monthly newsletters. This week we launched a new feature of our site: Private […]
Happy New Year! Each year I try to identify a single word that is my focus for the year. Last year was “Finish,” this year is “Risk.” I’m generally a risk averse person, even though many of my friends would not say that about me. For me, taking risks means that I have to face […]
Today marks the 60th published article here at A SMART PRACTICE. When we launched in January of this year, we weren’t exactly sure how everything was going to shake out. Looking back over the past 6 months, and 60 articles, there’s been a lot of great content, resources, and community development here. Our goal here is to […]
Editors note: This is a guest post from Tressa Gibbs. We occasionally have other practitioners share their story and experience of building a private practice. Tressa shares some insights she gained from building her private practice in Nashville. We’d love to hear your story. If you have ideas you’d like to share with our readers, click here to contact us for […]
Some time ago, I was driving out of my office parking lot getting settled in for my commute home. Just as I was about to turn down the secondary street, I noticed my clients drive by me on their way into my office parking lot. My first thought is unpublishable here, but suffice to say […]
Admit it. You’ve always wanted to be a beautician, right? It’s ok, I didn’t answer ‘yes’ either. Regardless how you answered, the reality is that the role of a therapist and a beautician are very similar. I actually think beauticians have more access and trust with their clients than we do as therapists with our […]
Editors note: This is a guest post from Laura Anderson. We occasionally have other practitioners share their story of building a private practice. Laura offers some excellent insights about starting a practice. If you have ideas you’d like to share with our readers, click here to contact us for more information. March marked the three year anniversary of […]
“How do you like your fitbit?” Every so often I get asked for my opinion on wearing a Fitbit (a device worn on your wrist to track your physical activity and other health related data). I usually respond with the positives and negatives of wearing it, giving a 45 second product review like I’m on a […]
Like most new therapists, when I was beginning my practice I had no idea where my referrals would come from. Over the next several years, I developed some good referral sources but it wasn’t until around year 4 that I felt firmly established in my community. To get there I did a lot of experiments. […]
I’m probably a bit on the odd side, but I really like numbers. For one, numbers do not lie. There is so much ambiguity in our work as a counselor, coach, or consultant that numbers can be a welcomed relief of solid ground. The unfortunate part of this is most graduate schools don’t really train […]
We therapists are notorious for not being able (or perhaps we’re not willing?) to answer the phone. Often this is because of how our schedules work. I have traded voicemails with potential clients for many days due to not being able to connect at the right time. There are times at the end of a […]
It was Thursday afternoon at 4:30 and I was finished with my full day of appointments. As I locked my office, my colleague noticed I was leaving and said, “You look exhausted.” His observation couldn’t have been more true. I’d scheduled 7 sessions for that Thursday, with a scant 30 minute lunch break. One day of […]
In the past 5-7 years the range of payment options for counselors has had a significant expansion. This is primarily linked to the smartphone and the capabilities it possesses in business functions. If you’re not accepting credit card payments, you might be missing out on potential clients. But, what to do about the fee the […]
Facebook can be a fantastic resource for community and even for marketing. Something I’ve noticed in my own usage of the site is that it’s easy to get distracted. I can intend to get on the site for business purposes, but can get sidetracked with other conversations that don’t really have anything to do with […]
I’d furnished my office, printed my business cards, and met with several potential referral sources. It was my first full week in private practice, and I had no idea when my first client would call and set an appointment. In those first few weeks and months, I spent a lot of time making sure all my marketing […]
In the last Tidbit I suggested that you get out and speak as a way to build your practice. I wanted to follow up on that with a few suggestions for where you can find speaking gigs. The reality is you will have to create these opportunities: – Call a beauty salon, offer to come train […]
I’m sure you’ve heard the saying, “if something can go wrong, it will.” It’s a hard mantra to live by because it requires that we live with both our present and future needs in mind. This is a topic we often address with our clients, but can so easily forget to practice them in our […]
In just a few days on January 15th, a date all of us self-employed folks dread, our Quarterly tax payment is due the IRS. What I’ve come to appreciate about these quarterly payments is that I’m not writing a check to the IRS for my entire tax liability. Instead, I’m just writing a quarter of it. It’s like the old […]
