Psychologists and therapists need an online presence and a great way of communicating what we do is through video. It is not always easy to feel confident on video on social media. Allison Puryear shows us how we can entertain and educate in our videos. 

Allison Puryear is a therapist specialising in eating disorders and anxiety in the US who also owns a practice building community called the Abundance party. As you can tell from the name of her community Allison doesn’t create generic, boring content to promote her practice building business or her therapy services. She is a master at being authentic and, frankly, interesting online and I am really pleased that she is here to talk to us today about how you can use video, in an exciting way, to stand out on social media.

The highlights:

•  Allison tells us about what she does and why, stemming from her own experiences with eating disorders and private practice 01:15
• I explain that my passion for putting content out there is because I know how difficult it is to access mental health services 03:16
• Allison takes us through the reasons why it is a good idea for us to make video for social media 04:10
• Allison talks about why we should vet our reasons if we are reluctant to make videos 07:05
• Allison takes us through the common mistakes, beginning with getting hung up on our appearance 10:04
• Allison talks about the mistakes of not preparing enough or overpreparing 12:41
• We discuss live videos and the danger of over-editing 14:00
• Allison talks about the mistaken belief that we need fancy tech to make videos, and how we put things in the way because we are afraid of starting 16:30
• Allison tells us that the only thing a good video needs to have is great content, and what makes great content 18:56
• We discuss needing to serve what the client sees as the problem, and how you have to market to the real life situation rather than the psychological formulation 20:14
• Allison gives us her top tips for making video interesting to look at, beginning with dialling up your energy 23:47
• We talk about how exposure to yourself on video can help 26:21
• Allison suggests blocking your view of your face if that’s a hang up, as it’s about what we’re saying, not what we look like 29:08 
• Allison talks about her tips for batch recording, and why it can reduce the pressure 30:19
• Allison gives advice for improving reach and encouraging engagement 33:29

Links to find Allison:

Allison’s Therapy services: https://www.allisonpuryear.com/

Abundance party: https://www.abundanceparty.com/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/abundancepracticebuilding

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/abundance_practice_building/

______________________

Do you sometimes wake up at 2 am worried that you’ve made a terrible error that will bring professional ruin upon you and disgrace your family?

I’m laughing now but when I first set up in private practice I was completely terrified that I had “missed” something big when setting up insurance or data protection.

Even now, three years in, I sometimes catch myself wondering if I have really covered all the bases.

It is hard, no impossible, to think creatively and have the impact you should be having in your practice if you aren’t confident that you have a secure business. BUT it can be overwhelming to figure out exactly what you need to prioritise before those clients start coming in.

I’ve created a free checklist (plus resources list) to take the thinking out of it. Tick off every box and you can see your clients confident in the knowledge that you have everything in place for your security and theirs.

Download it now from https://psychologists.drrosie.co.uk/client-checklist

How to make social media videos that people want to watch with Allison Puryear - Transcript

Rosie  0:01  

Welcome to the Business of Psychology podcast, the show that helps you to reach more people, help more people, and build the life you want to live by doing more than therapy. Today, I'm talking to Allison Puryear. So Alison is a therapist specialising in eating disorders and anxiety over in the US. But she also owns a practice building community called the Abundance Party. And as you can tell from the name of her community, Alison does not create generic boring content to promote her practice building business, or her therapy services. She's a master at being authentic, and frankly, interesting online. And I'm really pleased that she's here to talk to us today about how you can use video in an exciting way to stand out on social media. Welcome to the podcast Allison.

Allison  0:52  

Thanks so much for having me. That was like the nicest intro anybody's ever given of me, thank you.

Rosie  0:57  

Well, I really want people to go and follow you to be honest, because your video presence really inspires me. And even on your landing page for the Abundance Party, you've got a really cool video there too. So I think there's a lot that my people can learn. And I'm really excited to introduce them to you. So why don't we start with you telling us a bit about what you do and why you do it?

Allison  1:20  

Yeah, absolutely. So there's this parallel process with my work as an eating disorder therapist, to be honest with you. When I first I was in college, I'd had an eating disorder for, I don't know, eight years, like since early adolescence. And when I went through recovery, I was like, Oh, this is available, like being at peace and not being stressed out about it and like enjoying my actual life is available to me. I didn't realise. And then I was like a recovery proselytiser. Right. I was like, everybody needs recovery. Did you know life is so good over here. And so I was already in school to become a therapist at that point, and so that's when I went through the process, became an eating disorder therapist. Well, fast forward several years, and I had the same exact experience going into private practice, this sense of like, oh, whoa, you mean, I can actually afford to go on vacations, and take yoga classes, and see fewer people, and work with people who want to be there that I do great work with, that's available to me? And so then I became like a non paid private practice proselytiser, and I kind of like, gently bullied my friends into private practice and helped them build. And then fast forward and I was realising like, there are so many amazing therapists, many of whom will leave the profession at some point, because they're burned out, because they're working in places that don't value them. And that's made apparent in so many different ways. And I don't want that to happen, because we need more therapists in the world, not fewer. So because I think private practice is just the best thing in the world, I want everybody who wants access to private practice to access it. So that's how abundance practice building was born. And it's been an awesome ride for the last several years.

Rosie  3:16  

I love that story. And I relate to it as well, because I think definitely my passion for doing anything on social media, because I'm not an extrovert at all, you can probably tell, I'm quite shy, bit of an introvert, but the reason I bother putting any of that stuff out there and have done is because I know firsthand how difficult it was to access mental health services. I know how scary it was, I know that I couldn't see anybody that I could relate to. And so I didn't realise that it was available to me to see somebody who might be nice and friendly. I just had no concept of any of that. So that's very much where my interest in social media started. And similar to you, the reason I started helping other psychologists and therapists is because kind of going through that hellish burn out at the beginning of my practice and coming out the other side and finding something better. It's just transformative, isn't it?

Allison  4:08  

Yeah, absolutely.

Rosie  4:09  

So powerful. So then thinking about video, why would psychologists and therapists bother making video for social media?

Allison  4:19  

Yeah, so I want to say first, you don't have to, like I want to give anybody who's listening whose stomach is churning, just thinking about it, permission to like, maybe keep listening just for fun, maybe to give a friend a tip or something, but like no pressure, if this is not a good fit for you. But the reason, I want you to vet the reasons that it's not a good fit for you, and we'll talk about that some. But the reasons to include video is like, we get to know people so much better. It's similar to podcasts, right? We both have podcasts, people probably tell you all the time, I feel like I know you because they've listened to so many podcasts of yours. And so it just takes that up a whole other level. Because not only do they hear your voice, they see your face, they see your expressions and mannerisms. I mean, we all get connected to TV characters sometimes. And so it kind of allows us to get known on a deeper level by our potential clients. But it's a way that you can kind of control it such that you're the one creating the content. So you and I spoke on my podcast about self disclosure and your marketing. And so since you're coming at that from the very mindful way that Rosie talks about, your videos can be connecting, but also to have enough distance that it's not like you're a reality TV star or some mess like that. So that's, I would say, that's the primary reason is it gives our potential clients the opportunity to get to know us better to see if we're a fit or not. Social media also prefers video, they're gonna show your stuff to more people if it's a real or an IGTV, or a video that you've posted. So not only does it broaden your potential client base, it also helps them opt in or opt out of whether they want to continue to get to know you.

Rosie  6:11  

I love that because I think one thing we can be really frightened of at the beginning in our practices is alienating some people. And I think that the fact is, when you get out on video, you do show your personality, and not everyone is going to want you as a therapist.

Allison  6:26  

Yeah, yeah. And that's so good. Yeah, that's a great thing. Because we will all refer out more people than we could ever see over the course of our private practices. And so we want to make sure that the people calling us are truly good fits.

Rosie  6:41  

And I couldn't agree more with that. I think you've got to feel okay with the fact that some people will walk away. And that's brilliant, because you probably wouldn't have been able to help them. Because you'd annoy them. Right? You're not going to transform into some other person, you're going to be you. And if they don't like you, then therapy with you would not go well for them. Probably.

Allison  7:02  

Absolutely. Absolutely.

Rosie  7:04  

That's really hard. So you mentioned kind of vetting the reasons why you think video is not a good fit for you. Can you talk a bit more on that?

Allison  7:12  

Yeah, so I think that a lot of people will be like, not doing video after they try once or twice, or even five times. Because the truth of the matter is none of us are that great video at first. I actually created some videos, I was doing a launch for my practice building business years ago. And I created videos for the first time. I like, my dad is a amateur photographer as I borrowed all his lighting, and I set things up and I was like in full, like full makeup for me is not actually a lot of makeup, but for me full makeup. I had like carefully selected shirts, I was like ready to go. And I showed up on video as you guys can probably hear I’m a very animated energetic person. I showed up on video like, 'Hello, my name is Alison Puryear, from abundance practice building'. Like I wasn't breathing. I was like, clearly nervous. There's something about that, like camera going on, and my personality shrank. And I was just this like cardboard cutout of myself. And I had this mastermind group that I love. And one of my buddies who was always so brutally honest, they were like, oh, show us, show us a clip of the videos, you're always so hard on yourself, like just show us, I'm sure it's fine. And I showed like 30 seconds. And she's like, you can't use that. Like, oh my gosh, it was, I appreciated her honesty. But I mean, I had practised those videos, like it was like three videos and it's spent, I spent all day trying to get them less awful. And I never got there. But I, the launch plan I had required videos. So what I ended up doing is sending out emails to some of my friends and colleagues in town and I said, Hey, this was obviously way pre pandemic, but I was like, Hey, I'm teaching these things I need some people to talk to because apparently I can't just talk to my camera. So would you just come and sit in my office and let me teach you some things about practice building. And these were people who were like on the waitlist for my group and some people who'd been in my group. And so it was, it was an audience that cared about what I had to say. And when they were sitting there in my cramped little office with like, six people, I was able to actually show up on video in a way that I definitely couldn't have. Even if I tried for another week with just me and my camera. I kind of had to like break the ice for myself and prove to myself I could do video.

Rosie  9:41  

That is an amazing tip. Because I think a lot of people find it a lot easier talking to a real person than they do their webcam. And when I think about the best videos that I've done, it has been interview style, talking to somebody who's into what you're passionate about then. Rather than just being in your head thinking about, oh, what are my teeth looking like, for me it’s always teeth.

Allison  10:04  

Right teeth. Interesting, because that's not anything I would have noticed about you. And that is I mean, we can kind of go into some of the common mistakes, because you just opened the door to one of the big ones. It's just that we're so hard on ourselves. And we are not, maybe now we're more used to looking at ourselves on video because of all the telehealth we've been doing, but we're not accustomed to seeing the way we move. Like I never realised I kind of talk a little bit out of the sight of my mouth, not figuratively, but literally, I talk out of the side of my mouth, it's not right in the middle. And I didn't know that until I started doing videos. And at first I was like, Oh, god, it's so, I need to correct that. But I couldn't correct that and concentrate on what I was saying at the same time. And so a lot of us get hung up on what we look like on camera. I mean, eating disorder therapists, like I talk all the time about being neutral about our appearance, but initially, I was like, Oh my god, I never realised I was so ugly when I talk. And now I'm like, whatever. Like, I have never in my life looked like a supermodel. And it's not going to just magically happen when I'm talking about practice building content or things that my therapy clients need to hear. That's all right. And once I was able to let go of that judgement, I was also able to be more of myself on camera, because I wasn't like, keep your chin in the middle. And like, you know, think about where your nose is, when you talk, I just, I was able to be present to the content that my people actually care about. Because y'all they don't care what you look like. They really don't, as long as like you're not on the extreme. Sometimes I get distracted if somebody has like 533 eyelashes like those really big, bushy, fake eyelashes. Sometimes I'm like, I don't even know what you're saying, because I'm just like mesmerised by when you blink what happens. But, if your ideal client also has mesmerising eyelashes, then by all means, like have them, be you if that's you. But for me, I couldn't be present. If I was thinking about the way I looked. I also couldn't be present if I was judging myself as I was doing it. If I was like, I just tripped over my words, what an idiot, I sound like a fool. Obviously, the rest of that video is going to go downhill. But the truth of the matter is our clients don't need us to be perfect orators. They need us to talk about the things they care about. And if we stumble over words, that doesn't take away from the fact that we know what we're talking about. So much of this is like getting out of our own way, right? I'd say another big mistake I see is either not preparing enough or over preparing. So for a while, and I invite everybody to play with this for a while, I would just do bullet points. As I’ve probably already done in this podcast, I say like and um and er, and I have my filler words. And I've gotten over the fact that I'm going to use filler words on podcasts and videos, because I'm a human being and that's what happens. Um, and see, there we go; Um. If people are gonna judge me for that, then maybe we're not a great fit anyway. So I would have bullet points. And there would be a lot of ums and likes and things like that, because I would just shoot from the hip from my bullet points. Then, once my, a lot of my videos are sponsored, so I felt like well, I should bring a new level of professionalism, since I'm getting paid for these videos at this point. Well, then I started scripting them. And I had to really pay attention to my voice because sometimes when I'm reading a script, it's really obvious. I'm like, "Welcome to abundance practice building. I'm Allison Puryear". That's not me, that's me being a cardboard cutout again, so I have to like, bring some energy to it. Um. 

Rosie  14:00  

Yeah, I think that's really hard, actually. Because I usually recommend to people starting out, and they hate me when I say it, but I usually recommend doing your videos live because of that, because otherwise, you're going to go back and edit out all the ums and the ahs. And those are the things that make it possible for somebody to listen to you. Can you imagine, and I have done actually, listening to a podcast where somebody has edited out every um, and every ah. It just is relentless....

The secret to remaining motivated and happy running a business is congruence. If your business gives you the life you want to live and it fulfils your professionally you will not burn out. We need to be very clear on why we are in business (vision), what our values are (the person we want to be in our business) and how we are going to achieve it (mission). The problem is most of us feel vulnerable when we think about designing a business this way and that leads us to jump into goal setting to avoid those feelings.

In private practice that can mean taking on any sort of work that you can get and charging whatever “seems reasonable” without really thinking about what you want from your practice. In an employed role that can look like taking any job that comes along, or staying in the same job for a long time without ever really thinking about whether it brings you true fulfilment. I have been guilty of doing both of those in the past. The most obvious example was when I set up my private practice. I had a clear vision of how I wanted to help people (trauma work) but did not consider how I wanted my life to look so I built a busy clinic with no consideration of my family life. 

Vision - what is the change in the world you want to create? Be grand! How do you want your personal life to look? If your business is a massive success how will your life be different and how will the world change?

Values - how are you going to be in your business? What personal qualities are important to you? Values determine how you will behave in your business (and life in general). Everything from who you work with/for, who you hire etc.

May relate to key areas such as:

Health, family, work, creativity, social life, social change, a cause you care deeply about

Examples: I want to be as fit and healthy as I can be. I want to be creative. I want to be generous and compassionate in my work. I want to be calm and kind as a parent. I want to be an innovator. 

Mission - how are you going to take action towards creating that vision. Your mission is the vehicle that takes you towards your vision and lets you live your values. 

Goals - The specific and measurable actions you take. Only when you have vision, values and mission that make sense can you even start to think about goal setting.

Notice that barriers that make it hard for you to think about your business vision. Are there thoughts that are hard to see past? Feelings that are difficult to tolerate? I know I didn’t really think about my business vision until a year a go because I just felt like such an imposter whenever I let myself dream big that I shut it down and went and busied myself in a spreadsheet instead. It is SO worth powering through those difficult feelings in order to build a business or shape a career that fulfils you

It can feel vulnerable to admit to a grand vision. If you are a student on Psychology Business School we will work through those barriers together in sessions and members of PBS or the Do More Than Therapy membership can bring them to peer supervision or office hours. If not then reach out to people who you trust and let them help you think your ideas through. No one lands on a perfect vision or mission statement in one shot. You need to talk it through and think about it with others before you can create something that feels solid. 

Do you sometimes wake up at 2 am worried that you’ve made a terrible error that will bring professional ruin upon you and disgrace your family?

I’m laughing now but when I first set up in private practice I was completely terrified that I had “missed” something big when setting up insurance or data protection.

Even now, three years in, I sometimes catch myself wondering if I have really covered all the bases. 

It is hard, no impossible, to think creatively and have the impact you should be having in your practice if you aren’t confident that you have a secure business. BUT it can be overwhelming to figure out exactly what you need to prioritise before those clients start coming in.

I’ve created a free checklist (plus resources list) to take the thinking out of it. Tick off every box and you can see your clients confident in the knowledge that you have everything in place for your security and theirs. 

Download it now from https://psychologists.drrosie.co.uk/client-checklist

Who is Psychology Business School (PBS) right for?

PBS is the right course for you if:

• You are a mental health professional looking to create a private practice that helps you to live your values, support yourself financially and make a bigger impact on mental health. 
• You know you want to do more than therapy in your private work and/or are considering setting up a social enterprise. 
• You want to build a practice from the beginning or who feel you need to revisit your business plans and processes.

Who is PBS not right for?

PBS might not be the right course for you if:

• You already have a thriving practice and you are confident in your paperwork and processes. You might be a great fit for DMTT membership instead. 
• You are looking to make millions overnight. We teach how to build solid, ethical private practices and how to grow them through offering “more than therapy.” We don’t teach how to get a million Instagram followers in a month.  
• You can’t give some time and commitment. If you can’t give at least three hours a week to working ON your business then you won’t make the most of the course.

 FAQs

What is the difference between Psychology Business School and Do More Than Therapy?

Psychology Business School (PBS) is a new programme for people just starting out in private practice or people who want to rebuild their practice on solid foundations. By the end of the course you will:

• Feel confident that you have all the paperwork and processes you need to work in the online world (templates of all key documents written by a lawyer are included). 
• Break free from the fear of “not having enough” work by creating a marketing process that works for you (without sucking all your time).
• Unlock your creativity and focus on innovative ways to use your skills.

PBS students have weekly sessions that take them through a 12-week step by step programme for developing and marketing their practice. Students have access to the course for six months and can also take part in the DMTT masterclasses, peer supervision and office hours in this time. At the end of six months, you might want to join the DMTT membership and continue to grow your business with the support of a like-minded community.

The Do More Than Therapy Membership (DMTT)  is our monthly membership for psychologists and therapists who have a thriving private practice but want to grow and reach more people without burning out. The membership includes monthly masterclasses with experts in topics ranging from self-publishing a book to engaging with the media. Membership also includes access to monthly peer supervision sessions and weekly coaching calls (office hours) where we offer each other feedback and support. You can find out more about DMTT membership here.

What is included in PBS?

• A 12 week programme of masterclasses (excluding a 2 week consolidation break). Some classes are pre-recorded for instant access and others are live. The classes cover everything from setting up your business correctly to marketing your practice and preparing for growth.
• Downloadable templates for your legal documents created by a specialist lawyer (UK based)
• 6 months of access to the Do More Than Therapy masterclasses including the existing content library and new classes than happen live during your time on the course.
• 6 months of membership of the Do More Than Therapy Facebook Group
• 6 months access to Do More Than Therapy monthly peer supervision sessions
• 6 months of access to Do More Than Therapy office hours

What is not included in PBS?

Personal responses to your questions via social media messaging (Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, Twitter)

Personal responses to your questions via email (please use the Facebook group to ask questions)

If you feel like you need more personalised attention, drop us a line on [email protected].

When are sessions?

DMTT Office hours: Tuesdays at 2 pm

Peer supervision: Last Wednesday of the Month at 2 pm and 8 pm

Psychology Business School Classes: Thursdays from 12:00 - 13:30. You will receive your term dates in an email but generally, there is a six-week term followed by a two-week consolidation break and then another six-week term. 

DMTT masterclasses: Usually Wednesdays at 2 pm once a month. PBS students have access to all DMTT masterclasses for six months. 

NB. We invite guest experts to speak to us regularly so there will be some flexibility on days and times. You will receive reminders and zoom links via email and reminders on Facebook.

Do I have to attend training sessions live?

I would encourage you to come along live as much as possible so you can ask questions and benefit from the support of other students however all sessions are recorded and workbooks are provided so you can learn whenever suits you. 

What results can I expect?

The skills and strategies we will share with you in PBS are grounded in experience, research and the expertise of our speakers. However, the results you get depend on your commitment to working ON your business. I encourage everyone starting the programme to join a mindset session before the official start date of the course. You will receive your invitation by email and I strongly recommend that you attend if at all possible. If you can’t make it you can watch a replay of the DMTT mindset course. In my experience, the biggest barrier to achieving what you want from your private practice is usually imposter syndrome and overwhelm. Thankfully we can use our therapeutic skills and the support of the community to tackle these. If you are ever struggling to implement what you are learning (whatever the reason) then use peer supervision, office hours or the Facebook community to speak up.

Does the course include coaching?

We have weekly “office hour” coaching calls where you can bring problems you are facing and work for feedback. You can also ask me questions in the DMTT Facebook group which you will be invited to. My working hours are 9-5 Monday to Friday and my team keep the same hours. We will make every effort to reply when you tag us in posts but we may not respond outside of working time. If we haven’t responded after 24 hours (Mon-Fri) then please re-tag us as we might just have missed the post. I cannot guarantee that you will get individual feedback from me during office hour as they can be busy but if you submit your question in advance on the dedicated thread in our FB group I will make every effort to address it. If you know you would benefit from 1:1 coaching then please contact us to discuss our small group and individual coaching options. 

Do I have to be on Facebook to take part?

No. All of the PBS content is hosted in our dedicated membership site and classes take place on zoom so there is no need to be on Facebook if you don’t want to be. That said, the DMTT member’s group (which you are invited to as a PBS student) is a supportive and exciting community to be part of so I very much encourage you to join. 

What makes you different from other marketing courses?

I have done a lot of marketing courses. I enjoy them if I’m honest. BUT they don’t always sit well with the reality of working as a mental health professional. I know that you are time-poor, imposter syndrome ridden and ethical people and this course is built with that in mind. Yes, we will cover a lot of the same ground as more generic courses but everything we do is tailored to YOUR needs.

PBS is part of our social enterprise, The Innovation in Mental Health Project CIC. That means that any profit made from the programme goes into funding new initiatives in mental health or the provision of mental health services to vulnerable groups. So when you invest with us you know you are part of a movement to improve the mental health of the country at the same time.

Can I pay in instalments?

Yes, you can pay in 6 instalments of £99. If money is tight at the start of your practice it can be helpful to consider that (on average) the cost is the same as just one therapy session a month so if we help you get just one extra client the course has paid for itself. 

Do you offer refunds?

If you access the materials, engage with the community and feel that the course has not benefited you then we are happy to offer a money-back guarantee. If you have not taken part in the community or classes this will not be valid. 

What happens at the end?

When you have completed the programme you will then have access to the course and the DMTT membership for an additional 10 weeks. This gives you 6 months in total to complete the course and catch up on anything you have missed. At the end of this time, you will be invited to join the DMTT membership so you can continue to benefit from the monthly masterclasses and community. 

Learn more about Psychology Business School and join up here.

Feeling crushed by overwhelm? You need a plan. If you are sticking to a well thought out business plan, that considers your needs,  you are much less likely to get overwhelmed. In this episode, I explain the key things to consider in your plan.

The highlights:

• I explain why I am so passionate about today's topic, as the message I get from the Do More than Therapy community is that overwhelm is the thing that prevents us from building the kind of practices we want to build 00:17
• I talk about how the focus of today’s episode is all about the different ways that focused sections of your business plan can help you cut through overwhelm, and that everything covered today will form the foundation of the first six week term of Psychology Business School, launching in January 02:05
• I explain how a good business plan starts with a statement of your values 03:44
• I talk about how a business plan helps you plan out your projects 04:34
• I look at how a business plan tells you which things you should focus your attention on 05:11
• I explore how a business plan allows you to develop a focused marketing plan 05:57
• I talk about how a business plan forces you to work out the maths and set pricing appropriately (with reference to last week’s podcast) 07:12
• I look at how a business plan makes sure you get the systems in place that you need to work efficiently 08:30
• I talk about how a business plan prepares you for growth 09:41
• I explain that my Psychologists Business Plan is included with Do More than Therapy membership, and with Psychology Business School. Or you can buy it from my website 11:34
• I hope that I’ve shown how a business plan can be a great step to reducing overwhelm, and explain that Psychology Business School is designed to reduce, not add, to overwhelm. It consists of two terms - the first six weeks focus on business plan, and the second six weeks focus on marketing 12:02

The first step to a brilliant business plan is to set your specialism and focus for the year. To make sure you have a specialism that works for you come along to our free webinar on December 18th or January 4th. 

Join the Waiting list for Psychology Business School here.

I’m laughing now but when I first set up in private practice I was completely terrified that I had “missed” something big when setting up insurance or data protection.

Even now, three years in, I sometimes catch myself wondering if I have really covered all the bases.

It is hard, no impossible, to think creatively and have the impact you should be having in your practice if you aren’t confident that you have a secure business. BUT it can be overwhelming to figure out exactly what you need to prioritise before those clients start coming in.

I’ve created a free checklist (plus resources list) to take the thinking out of it. Tick off every box and you can see your clients confident in the knowledge that you have everything in place for your security and theirs.

Download it now from https://psychologists.drrosie.co.uk/client-checklist

Sally Farrant is an accountant who goes by the name “pricing queen!” Sally has taken her skills from the corporate arena and now supports businesses to understand their accounts and price their products and services so they actually make profit.

●     Pricing and setting fees is something that stresses out psychologists and therapists in private practice - I ask Sally why she is so passionate about pricing and how she got here 0:40

●     Sally talks about how people tend to underprice and don’t consider all the costs 1:14

●     Sally advises that you should put prices up by a small amount regularly 2:44

●     I ask Sally what the consequences are of getting our pricing wrong 3:30

●     We discuss avoiding burnout and being realistic about earnings, clients, hours, and the importance of pricing properly 4:43

●     We explore how charging high fees can better enable you to help the more vulnerable and disadvantaged 11:05

●     Sally advises on ways to implement price increases, and why it’s important not to make assumptions on what people can and can’t afford 15:30

●     I explore why, as a therapist, it’s important to unpick why someone says they can’t afford it anymore, as it may not be about money 19:26

●     We look at lower cost offerings, and how the client must be aware it’s a lesser offering 20:55

●     Sally talks about recognising what you can and can’t manage 24:57

●     Sally discusses why benchmarking the opposition is one of the biggest pricing mistakes 25:40

●     We talk about advertising your prices to avoid anxiety 28:40

●     Sally explains her pricing calculator and what needs to be taken into account 30:54

●     We discuss the importance of considering why you went into private practice and being honest about what you and your family want and need 35:58

●     I ask Sally how she helps gets people to back on track with their pricing 38:50

●     I’m so excited to let you all know that Sally is going to be doing a masterclass for the psychology business school, our new course to help you build your practice in a way that allows you to live your values, help more people and avoid burnout. So if you know that you need to set your prices properly from the beginning (or put them right) make sure you come and join us.

Links for Sally’s Website:

https://www.businessgrowthbynumbers.com/

Pricing calculator: https://www.businessgrowthbynumbers.com/pricing-calculator-sign-up

Pricing personality quiz: https://quiz.businessgrowthbynumbers.com/

You can find Sally online at:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thepricingqueen/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sally-farrant/

Do you sometimes wake up at 2 am worried that you’ve made a terrible error that will bring professional ruin upon you and disgrace your family?

I’m laughing now but when I first set up in private practice I was completely terrified that I had “missed” something big when setting up insurance or data protection.

Even now, three years in, I sometimes catch myself wondering if I have really covered all the bases.

It is hard, no impossible, to think creatively and have the impact you should be having in your practice if you aren’t confident that you have a secure business. BUT it can be overwhelming to figure out exactly what you need to prioritise before those clients start coming in.

I’ve created a free checklist (plus resources list) to take the thinking out of it. Tick off every box and you can see your clients confident in the knowledge that you have everything in place for your security and theirs.

Download it now from https://psychologists.drrosie.co.uk/client-checklist

Successful businesses don’t do the same thing all year long. They tend to work in focussed projects. This helps reduce the overwhelm and ensure that all your energy goes to something that will really help your ICAs.

To plan your projects you first need to be clear on your specialism so go back to the podcast on finding your specialism if you haven’t already given that some serious thought.

Then you need to decide on which ideal clients you want to support this year. In the training, I have been doing with the school for social entrepreneurs it has been really noticeable to me that the bigger social enterprises often service a few different groups with different projects. They aren’t trying to catch everyone with the same offer. So for example, the Heart of BS13 project has cooking, gardening and therapy projects all aimed at helping people with different needs. 

https://heartofbs13.org.uk/

It got me thinking that while we need to specialise in our clinical work we don’t need to make every project that we work on fit the exact same client. For example, you might have a specialism in workplace trauma and provide therapy for people who need it, online courses for managers that want to support staff who have been through trauma and in-person workshops for students who need to learn about workplace trauma. Those are three projects you could be working on in 2021 that all relate to the exact same specialism are for target different ideal clients. 

If you are running a business on your own, or with only admin support though, I do believe we should only focus on one project at a time. If we don’t it is hard to make any project as impactful as we want it to be.

What could you do this year that relates to your specialism and would help your ICAs in DIFFERENT ways?

Brainstorm anything you can think of that might help your ICA

Eg. 

Downloadables             1:1 therapy

Books                      Workshops

Podcasts                   Supervision

Online Courses             Webinars

We are all familiar with Maslow (1954). We need to think about the needs we have as people and business owners and the practical needs of the projects we are creating before we decide when to do them.

If you have unmet deficiency needs you will never be motivated to achieve the self-fulfilment needs. 

If you need money coming into your practice quickly you will need to prioritise projects that can do that for you. 

In my experience, for most of us, this is 1:1 therapy or supervision. Other projects tend to take more time to make more money as we need to spend time building an audience.

Map out your projects on a big piece of paper or white board.

Think about what you need in your business, what you need to make the project work

and how intense YOU will find the work. 

This is personal so I can’t tell you your intensity scores. 

For me, I find I am very drained after a therapy session (even though I love it) so therapy is 10/10 intensity. Whereas I can spend a day prepping a session like this and feel totally energised so that gets a lower score for me. 

Write the needs for each one and an intensity score under the project

Now pick the projects that you intend to focus on this year. For now, just choose four and make sure they are a balance of high and low intensity.

Allocate your projects to a quarter of the year depending on the needs they meet and the requirements they have.

For example, if you need money in your business fast or you need to build your expertise in an area then put getting more 1:1 work in Q1 and leave launching an online course until Q4. You can be building the audience for your course launch throughout the year. 

Top tip - consider whether projects might meet each other’s needs. For example, next year I am planning to launch some online resources for mothers with ADHD at the end of the year. I don’t have an audience in that area yet so it makes sense for my Q1 project to be getting more 1:1 clients with ADHD, my Q2 project is launching a podcast and free resources for women with ADHD, my Q3 project is creating a group programme and my Q4 project is launching the online course. 

This is the basics of your business plan, obviously, it will need a lot of extra information adding in as you work out pricing, logistics etc but for now it is just there to help you decide where you will be focusing your attention as we go into the new year. Most importantly, you might refine your projects but now you know your specialism and your intentions none of your marketing efforts will be wasted.

The good news is that if it feels a bit overwhelming to do this on your own I have a free webinar coming up to help you find your specialism so you can plan your focus projects for 2021.

I’d love to see you there live so we can talk about your plans so I am running it on Friday 18th December at 13:00 AND Monday 4th January at 19:30. 

You can save your space here. 

Plus, excitingly, I am happy to announce that we have a new course starting in January which will walk you through turning your basic plan into a fully thought out business plan and everything you need to make that plan a reality. You will hear more about that over the next few weeks when we are ready to share the details :) 

Do you sometimes wake up at 2 am worried that you’ve made a terrible error that will bring professional ruin upon you and disgrace your family?

I’m laughing now but when I first set up in private practice I was completely terrified that I had “missed” something big when setting up insurance or data protection.

Even now, three years in, I sometimes catch myself wondering if I have really covered all the bases.

It is hard, no impossible, to think creatively and have the impact you should be having in your practice if you aren’t confident that you have a secure business. BUT it can be overwhelming to figure out exactly what you need to prioritise before those clients start coming in.

I’ve created a free checklist (plus resources list) to take the thinking out of it. Tick off every box and you can see your clients confident in the knowledge that you have everything in place for your security and theirs.

Download it now from https://psychologists.drrosie.co.uk/client-checklis

Sometimes we can be so preoccupied with the day to day stress of working in mental health that we forget to connect to our creativity. In this interview Sarah Wassall explains how being a professional actor and psychologist enriches her work. Prepare to feel your creativity returning!

Sarah is a Clinical Psychologist, DDP Therapist, Actor, and Mental Health Consultant to Creative Arts Projects. She specialises in working with those who have experienced developmental trauma, and child and adolescent mental health services for young people who are adopted or in care. Her approach focuses on the therapeutic importance of compassion to self and others, integration and regulation of mind and body, and developing resilience through relational work. Sarah worked with Unicorn Theatre as consultant on The Year 7 Project; a free six-week scheme of learning that addresses periods of transition, change and adaptation, using Philip Pullman’s Grimm Tales. Sarah is a versatile actor with experience in theatre, comedy improvisation, corporate events, training and film.

● Hear how Sarah started life as both an actor and psychologist, and her time in secondary school 01:15

● How Sarah’s career developed from school and her focus became psychology 02:24

● How Sarah came to explore acting again, and how it came back into her life at the right moment with the confidence that comes from having a psychology career as a foundation for self-esteem as a professional 03:14

● Sarah discusses the differences between how she was treated as a psychologist and actor in light of Covid 06.14

● Here Sarah explores battling what you do and don’t compromise on, especially as a woman, whilst holding on to your sense of self-esteem and value 07:34

● Sarah compares the job security taken for granted with psychology compared to the instability of the creative arts, especially during Covid 10:36 

● Sarah talks about what her psychology work looks like at the moment, after going independent 11:46

● What a typical week looks like for Sarah 13:59

● How Sarah comes across creative arts consultancy projects to work on 15:54

● A discussion on not being embarrassed to use your connections and reach out to the people you know 17.11

● We explore the difficulty of promoting yourself – your brand and your value 19:46

● We discuss dealing with typecasting and keeping a sense of identity 25.06

● Sarah explains what DDP is (Dyadic Developmental Psychotherapy) 27:23

● Sarah talks about how DDP principles and theatre can work together, exploring playfulness and clowning 29:07

● Sarah talks about how she looks after herself with all the judgement in both professions 33:26

● How to connect with Sarah 42:46

Link to Sarah’s work with the Unicorn theatre:

https://www.unicorntheatre.com/grimmsutm_source=GrimmSocial_FB&utm_medium=SocialFB&utm_campaign=GrimmSocial_FB

You can find Sarah online at:

https://ddpnetwork.org/professionals/find-a-practitioner-or-therapist/sarah-wassall/

insta: @sarah_feltham_actor www.instagram.com/sarah_feltham_actor/

twitter: @Dr_SarahWassall twitter.com/Dr_SarahWassall

twitter: @DrSarah_Feltham twitter.com/DrSarah_Feltham

Do you sometimes wake up at 2 am worried that you’ve made a terrible error that will bring professional ruin upon you and disgrace your family?

I’m laughing now but when I first set up in private practice I was completely terrified that I had “missed” something big when setting up insurance or data protection.

Even now, three years in, I sometimes catch myself wondering if I have really covered all the bases.

It is hard, no impossible, to think creatively and have the impact you should be having in your practice if you aren’t confident that you have a secure business. BUT it can be overwhelming to figure out exactly what you need to prioritise before those clients start coming in.

I’ve created a free checklist (plus resources list) to take the thinking out of it. Tick off every box and you can see your clients confident in the knowledge that you have everything in place for your security and theirs.

Download it now from

https://psychologists.drrosie.co.uk/client-checklist

Do you have a specialism? Many psychologists and therapists in private practice don't. Read why you need one if you are serious about doing more than therapy and how to find one.

This week in the DMTT membership we are looking at business planning and specifically planning out what projects we are all going to be working on in 2021. In writing the materials for the course I realised how crucial it is to be clear on your specialism, the projects you want to work on and the ideal clients for each project before you start to even consider creating products or services or marketing. 

In this episode I’m going to talk to you about:

Why you need a specialism and why you might not know what it is yet.

How a specialism is different from your ICA but how it helps you find them

Why thinking in “projects” will help you to plan a private practice that feels more professionally fulfilling.

PP makes it easy NOT to have a specialism as insurance referrals can be broad and we often want to take EVERYONE because we are scared of not having enough work. There is also the imposter syndrome… In the early stage so of my practice my imposter syndrome was so huge that I literally told people that I had no specialist skills and actually refused to see anyone who might require any kind of specialist. Even now when I get an email from a prospective client who says they have chosen me because I am “an expert” in birth trauma I feel like replying saying “oh no you got it wrong, here are the contact details for a REAL specialist”  

BUT I have learned that, even if it feels uncomfortable, a specialism is vital because it:

• Helps you to avoid burnout/overwhelm because you can focus all of your activity on one subject. All your CPD, all your marketing, all of your resources are all on one topic. Doesn’t that sound less overwhelming?
• Provides the reassurance our clients need (wouldn’t you rather see a specialist when you are struggling?)
• Helps you build authority, credibility and an audience who trust you enough to buy products and services.
• Helps you identify your ideal clients (ICAs) for your services. 

Your specialism is the problem clients are most likely to want your help to solve.

Think about some very successful psychologists and therapists that you have heard of. Bessel Van der Kolk - the trauma and the body guy. You know what his specialist subject is but when you look across his career he has applied that specialism to a whole host of different client groups/ICAs. 

A specialism can be quite a broad thing as it is about the struggle that people are facing. Through your career, you might help lots of different client groups that all share a similar struggle. For example, if your specialism is trauma and the body you might start your career helping veterans, move on to helping people who have been through birth trauma and further down the line help healthcare professionals who worked on acute wards during COVID-19. The time and energy you have put into the CPD and research associated with your specialism can be applied in many different ways to different people through your career.

BUT each project you work on through your career will be targeted towards specific ICAs. This helps hugely with marketing and making your message clear for the people who need to hear it and also reduces the overwhelm for you.

Personally, I think the way that NHS services are structured often does not help us (or clients) in the best way. To me, it doesn’t make sense to have services such as “adult mental health” when the only thing the people using the service have in common is that they are 18-65. The reality in most services I have worked in is that psychologists and therapists within those teams will naturally develop specialisms that focus on a particular kind of struggle clients might face. You get to know that Sue is good with anger and Ben is great with trauma. 

I think it is helpful to think about specialism in this this way when you are planning your private practice as one thing I have noticed in the Do More Than Therapy community and other groups that I am in is that people can get stuck in thinking that one particular client group or set of ICAs IS their specialism. For example, people can understandably get very worried that if they specialise they will then ONLY get to see a certain type of person. That can feel limiting and can make us feel incompetent when a client comes along that is outside of the client group we are used to working with.

Instead, if we pick a struggle as our specialism and think of our work in terms of projects that are targeted to different ideal clients we can evolve over time and take on different types of work over our careers while continuing to build our specialism and authority.  

Taking my practice as an example. My interest has consistently been in helping “non-typical” people deal with trauma. Initially, I worked in prisons and the people I saw were often “non-typical” because of their forensic challenges and often learning disability. Then I worked in a LD team and focused on positive behaviour support for people who could not articulate their trauma verbally. Then I started working with birth trauma and mothers particularly mothers that are having a second baby after a traumatic first birth. This could seem like a lot of jumping around in my career if you think in terms of client group. However, there is a thread that brings them all together and that is what I consider my specialism.

If you aren’t sure what your specialism is or what it should be then think about the following areas:

What have you published research on / what are your research interests?

Where have you received the best client feedback

Where do you have the best access to clients (existing audience and networks)

What is your most exciting work

What was/is your NHS specialism

You can, of course, have a “local” specialism and be known as “the psychologist” in your area. Many people have very successful private practices that way and I would strongly encourage you to build the local side of your business when you need clients fast. BUT if you want to do work outside the therapy room a local business won’t give you scope to build a big enough audience and people won’t see you as having as much authority as someone specialised in a particular area. 

I’d love to know your thoughts about specialising and any struggles you may be having with this so as ever please do get in touch I’m at @rosiegilderthorp on instagram or you can find me in the Do More Than Therapy free Facebook group as Rosie Gildertrigg

I hope that has given you a chance to reflect on your specialism and how you might use it to plan out what you want to work on and achieve in 2021. 

If you’d like to think a bit deeper about your ideal clients (and how to find them) then you can listen to my podcast episode on the ideal client avatar (for mental health professionals here).

Do you sometimes wake up at 2 am worried that you’ve made a terrible error that will bring professional ruin upon you and disgrace your family?

I’m laughing now but when I first set up in private practice I was completely terrified that I had “missed” something big.

Even now, three years in, I sometimes catch myself wondering if I have really covered all the bases. 

It is hard, no impossible, to think creatively and have the impact you should be having in your practice if you aren’t confident that you have a secure business. BUT it can be overwhelming to figure out exactly what you need to prioritise before those clients start coming in.

I’ve created a free checklist (plus resources list) to take the thinking out of it. Tick off every box and you can see your clients confident in the knowledge that you have everything in place for your security and theirs. 

Download it now from https://psychologybusinessschool.com/client-checklist

Does perfectionism stand in your way? Do you struggle to own your expertise (and charge for your time) because of it? Hear how psychologists and therapists can overcome perfectionism and use a book to accelerate their practice with Michaela Thomas.

Michaela is an experienced Clinical Psychologist, Couples Therapist and founder of The Thomas Connection, as well as a speaker and author of The Lasting Connection, about developing compassion for yourself and your partner. Michaela has a special interest in perfectionism and parental mental health, especially for working mothers trying to balance work with motherhood. Michaela teaches busy ambitious people how to let go of the pressure of perfection and give themselves the permission to pause and unwind, so they can find their passion and purpose, and then move towards joy, vitality and playfulness. Michaela's mantra is 'balance over burnout'. 

• Hear how Michaela got to where she is today and how she partitions her time 00:54
• Michaela explains how she came to focusing on perfectionism as her specialism 02:20 
• How Michaela balances her practice and her passion projects 04:03
• Michaela explains how she structures her time to create a sustainable business whilst incorporating boundaries 08:04
• Michaela touches on the fact that Psychologists have to take their own advise 10:30
• How writing a book has opened doors for Michaela 11:58
• Michaela believes that most psychologists are self doubting and self critical 14:57
• The truth about how much research Micheala did for her new book 15:24 Michaela’s laser focus on her couples gave her the freedom to write her book 18:36
• Here Michaela explains how she surrounded herself with others who supported her through the book writing process 21:00
• Discussing outsourcing in order to scale your business and safeguard your wellbeing 23:48
• Michaela shines a light on how the current pandemic is going to affect our industry 28:37
• Michaela’s tips on making small changes for those perfectionists amongst us 31:06
• I share an example of modeling taking time to look after myself 35:57
• Pause Purpose Play - listen to Michaela’s driving thoughts when setting up her podcast and facebook community 36:51
• How Michaela plans her next passion project and what’s on the plan 39:55
• Hear who Michaela would like to hear on my podcast 42:00

www.thethomasconnection.co.uk

Insta: www.instagram.com/the_thomas_connection

Facebook: www.facebook.com/thethomasconnection 

Twitter: www.twitter.com/thomasconnect 

LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/michaela-thomas

Facebook group: Pause Purpose Play

Podcast: Pause Purpose Play

Book: The Lasting Connection

Are you planning on launching something new and innovative?

Are you hoping to reach more people and build a business that lets you live your values while avoiding burnout?

Then you need to download our cheat sheet - 14 Steps to a simple launch.

We are sharing a foolproof process to make sure you develop your project WITH the people you want to help and then get it in front of as many of them as possible.

Sign up to get it in your inbox now

https://psychologists.drrosie.co.uk/launch-in-14-simple-steps

https://psychologists.drrosie.co.uk/episode/simple-launch-for-psychologists-and-therapists

https://psychologists.drrosie.co.uk/launch-in-14-simple-steps

https://psychologists.drrosie.co.uk/the-do-more-than-therapy-membership/

Please do rate, review and subscribe to the podcast and as ever, DM me @rosiegilderthorp on instagram to let me know your main takeaways from this episode and what you would like to see in the next series!

Ever wondered how some psychologists get on the news, This Morning and other high profile shows? It turns out they just talk to journalists... Who knew?! In this episode James Waterhouse, broadcast journalist on a mission to get more psychologists on the TV and radio, talks to us about what the media want and how we can reach people in their living rooms.

Today I am talking to James Waterhouse, some of you may recognise James’ voice if, like me, you cling to your youth by listening to radio 1 as he is a broadcast journalist for the BBC. He has a pretty interesting personal story, which I will let him tell and is on a mission to get more psychologists talking in the media.

You can get in touch with James via Twitter @JamWaterhouse or via email [email protected]

Are you planning on launching something new and innovative?

Are you hoping to reach more people and build a business that lets you live your values while avoiding burnout?

Then you need to download our cheat sheet - 14 Steps to a simple launch.

We are sharing a foolproof process to make sure you develop your project WITH the people you want to help and then get it in front of as many of them as possible.

Sign up to get it in your inbox now

https://psychologists.drrosie.co.uk/launch-in-14-simple-steps

https://psychologists.drrosie.co.uk/episode/simple-launch-for-psychologists-and-therapists

https://psychologists.drrosie.co.uk/launch-in-14-simple-steps

https://psychologists.drrosie.co.uk/the-do-more-than-therapy-membership/

Please do rate, review and subscribe to the podcast and as ever, DM me @rosiegilderthorp on instagram to let me know your main takeaways from this episode and what you would like to see in the next series!