Miss Working With Clients?

I'm too removed from working with clients | I trained to be a therapist and counsellor, not a manager |

“I’ve moved too far from working with clients. Most of my time is taken up with administration, HR and management. It’s not what I trained for.”

To look at her you’d think she’s a happy, successful, upwardly mobile manager, overseeing the running of three busy mental health outpatient units. But she, and many like her, aren’t.

Successful, yes. Happy, no.

There’s something missing - I’m a counsellor not a manager.

They are frustrated and feel they are wasting their skills. They didn’t study to be counsellors and therapists to end up expending their energy on work that doesn’t inspire, motivate or satisfy them.

BUT. And there is a but. Those promotions do mean that they have security, a regular, predictable and good income, holiday pay, sick pay, and other benefits that you don’t have when working for yourself. At least not at first.

Some might be content working a weekend or a couple of evenings a week.

For many that isn’t enough.

They want more:

More time with individual clients
More time to spend with family
More time with friends
More time to travel (Online working means that you can pretty much work from anywhere in the world, provided it has great internet access.)
More job satisfaction

Building your private therapy practice is overwhelming

The problem is there’s ALL this business ‘stuff’ to think about. And that is overwhelming.

There is a whole list of things to consider, from how do I manage the transition from employee to self-employed, who do I want to work with, how much to charge and how do I get clients. Where do I start?

Let's face it, most of us aren’t business people and marketing experts. Whilst I had business and marketing experience from previous jobs, it still felt different when I was working for myself.

One of the best ways to deal with overwhelm is to break things down into smaller, more manageable chunks. My free download - Therapy Practice Essentials - is based on my experience and that of fellow therapists. It provides a good overview of what you need to consider as you start your therapy practice.

Here’s to your therapy practice success!

Categories: : Private Practice, self-employment