Starting a Private Practice in a Tough Economy: 5 Suggestions
Starting a Private Practice in a Tough Economy: 5 Suggestions
Therapists, counselors, psychologists, and other healing practitioners often come into their field with the goal of starting their own private practice. The current question I hear recently is "But, isn't this a bad time to start a private practice - since the economy is in such bad shape?". Believe it or not, this can be a good time to start your own private practice. You might have to work a little more creatively, and put in a little more sweat equity, but it can be done.
I started my own private practice after 10 years of working for a non-profit counseling center. I started venturing out on my own the same year the economy had began its downward spiral. Many of my friends and colleagues questioned my judgment and this gave me pause, but I was very motivated to be out on my own, working in a way that was meaningful to me.
One of the first things to ask yourself is, "Do I feel highly motivated to start my own private practice?" You will need a high level of motivation to fuel you as you go through the trial and error of starting your own practice. When things get tough, your high motivation levels will carry you through making it easier to find ways to work through or around the barriers that will arise.
Based upon my own experience just two and a half years ago, I will outline 5 suggestions for the practitioner who wants to venture out on their own. I feel strongly that if you have a dream and are wiling to learn as you go, you will be able to launch and grow your own private practice.
1. Start out renting office space by the hour from another pracitioner. There are many therapists, doctors, and other healing practitioners who are happy to rent their office to you by the hour. This allows you to begin seeing clients without having large monthly rent bills.
2. Start telling everyone you know that you are starting your private practice. Tell your Facebook "friends", your actual friends, neighbors, relatives, bank-teller, postal worker, grocer, and any other person you know. Word will travel.
3. Keep other expenses low (for now). Don't spend huge amounts of money on brochures, business cards, websites, and advertising. You can actually get business cards from Vista Print or Got Print.com very inexpensively. You can start your own website by using a template from Go Daddy, Yahoo Small Business, or Weebly.
4. Track your results! You will want to keep records about where your clients are hearing about you. That way, you will know where to continue to spend your marketing dollars. If you are a therapist - check out various therapist websites which can be relatively inexpensive ways to "get found" by patients/clients.
5. Network with other healing practitioners who complement your own services. If you are a psychotherapist or counselor, get to know psychiatrists, doctors, naturopaths, and other therapists who will refer to you and to whom you will feel good referring your own clients.
There are many other suggestions and tips I could list, but this will give you a goodbeginning to starting a private practice in a tough economy. Keep reading articles, talking to other practitioners and if you really want to give yourself a "leg up" - hire a business coach. I found that hiring my own small business coach helped me transition from non-profit therapist to private practice therapist. I liked the coaching process so much, that I have now added small business coaching to my own practice.
I wish you the best.
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