My Private Practice Story

It was early 2018 and I was burned out. Actually, I was more than burned out. I was fried. I didn't know what I was going to do for work, but I knew I couldn't keep working a 9-5pm job where I felt underpaid, undervalued, and unseen.

I decided to take some therapist contract work while starting a private practice on the side. I didn't start my private practice with any clear intention of it being a full-time career. I honestly didn't think that I could make enough income for that to be an option. 

It wasn't until early 2021 that things began to change. I began focusing my attention on listening to podcasts focused on private practice growth that were both informative and motivating. I began to realize that I could prioritize ME when it came to my personal life and my business. It had never crossed my mind that I could charge a premium fee for a session and clients would value me enough to pay it. As the weeks went by, my inspiration and motivation to grow my private practice increased. I didn't want to stay stagnant.

I started by taking one small step. I raised my low rate to a moderate rate. At the same time, I did the hard work of investing heavily in my own business coaching. I clarified my target market, ideal client, and messaging. I cut down my caseload, seeing no more than 20 clients per week. I created my ideal schedule, only seeing clients 4 days a week and on weekdays when my kids were at school. No more evenings or weekends. No more saying "yes" to a client that was not ideal. Clients continued to come. I felt a wave of excitement about my private practice that I had never experienced before. 

"What if I raised my fees again?", I thought. So I did. I raised my fee to $200/hour. And guess what? Clients continued to come. I left my final part-time contract job to solely focus on my private practice full-time. 

So why did I hang on to having a side contract job for so many years? I was scared. Actually I wasn't just scared, I was terrified. All the "What ifs...." would come flooding in. "What if I don't have a back up?", "What if clients stop coming?"

But here's the thing.... Once I did it (scared shitless!) I saw that it was okay. Clients continued to be plentiful. My waitlist grew. Few clients questioned my premium fee rate.

I realized that the only thing that had been stopping me was ME.  I hadn't thought that I could actually do it. All of the fear, all of the impostor syndrome, had been running the show for years and now I was finally in charge.

To know that I'm capable of creating a business that works for me and family

- that provides a 6-figure income

- that doesn't require nights or weekends

- that doesn't require me seeing more than 20 clients a week

- that allows me to take 4-5 weeks of vacation/personal time annually

- that doesn't require me working with insurance companies

- that allows me to work from home

has been one of the biggest blessings of my life. I want that for you, too.

Hugs, Lindsay