How to Use Gratitude as Fuel in Your Cash-Based PT Journey Episode Overview

In this episode, Danny breaks down how gratitude isn't just a feel-good idea – it's a practical performance tool for stressed-out cash-based practice owners, especially those in the early "nights-and-weekends" grind. He explains why the early stage of business is mentally brutal, how gratitude helps you zoom out, and how to use it as fuel instead of living in frustration over goals you haven't hit yet.

Key Topics Covered

• The hardest stage of business: early Rainmaker-phase grind
• Why your confidence wobbles when you're part time and building on nights/weekends
• How to reframe "I'm not where I want to be yet" with gratitude
• Using your "past self" as a perspective check
• Why high achievers are most vulnerable to frustration and burnout
• Being grateful beyond revenue: health, family, and relationships
• Balancing ambition with contentment

Gratitude as Fuel, Not Fluff

Danny shares a post from PT Biz head coach, Courtney Morse, written to early-stage Rainmaker clients who feel like they're not moving fast enough:

• Your business might look early, messy, or slow – but you took control of your future.
• Most people stay stuck, complain, and never take action. You didn't.
• You stepped out, bet on yourself, and started building something from nothing.
• Gratitude isn't just a holiday feeling – it's a strategy to keep going.

Reframing Your Progress

One of the strongest gratitude practices Danny recommends:

• Imagine going back 2–10 years and telling your past self where you are today.
• That version of you would probably be fired up, proud, and amazed you actually took the leap.
• But current you might be frustrated that you haven't hit a certain revenue number yet.

Gratitude helps you hold two truths at the same time:

• You're not where you ultimately want to be yet.
• You're also much further ahead than you used to be – and that's worth celebrating.

High Achievers and the Gratitude Gap

Danny talks about why ambitious clinicians struggle with gratitude:

• High achievers expect progress and often move the goalposts as soon as they hit something.
• They fixate on what hasn't happened yet instead of what has.
• This can lead to chronic frustration, even when things are objectively going well.

Beyond Business Metrics

Most practice owners can quote revenue and visit numbers on demand – but rarely track:

• Dinners or time spent with friends
• Moments with family they're building this whole thing for
• Time invested in their own health

Danny challenges you to be grateful for:

• Your family, who supports you regardless of how the business performs
• Your health and ability to even take a swing at entrepreneurship
• The flexibility and privilege of having the option to start your own practice at all

When You Miss a Goal

Danny shares a story about missing a seven-figure revenue goal by ~$50k in one year and being miserable about it, until his wife reminded him:

• A few years prior, he would have been thrilled just to replace his $84k Army salary.
• In that context, "only" doing $950k in his own business is an incredible win.

Perspective plus gratitude completely changes how you experience your progress.

Practical Ways to Use Gratitude as a Strategy

• Regularly ask: "What would my past self think of my current life and business?"
• List non-business wins: family, health, relationships, freedom, flexibility.
• Use gratitude to pull yourself out of tunnel vision on a single missed number.
• Let gratitude energize you to build the next year, instead of beating yourself up.

Big Takeaways

• Early-stage business is brutally stressful – especially when you're still working full time.
• Gratitude isn't soft; it's a mental reset button that keeps you from burning out.
• You can be ambitious and still deeply grateful for how far you've come.
• You don't have to be miserable to hit big goals.

Free Resources from PT Biz

• PT Biz Part-Time to Full-Time 5-Day Challenge: Get crystal clear on your numbers, visit rate, and path to leaving your job for your practice. physicaltherapybiz.com/challenge
• Book a Free Discovery Call: Talk with a PT Biz advisor about your clinic, challenges, and next steps. Book your discovery call
• Try Clair, the AI Scribe for PTs: Offload your notes so you can focus on patients and get your time back. meetclair.ai

Connect with PT Biz

• Official Website
• Podcast: PT Entrepreneur Podcast