The Financial Beast Podcast for Practice Owners

Would you buy a healthcare practice if you weren't a clinician, had no business experience and lived more than 1,000 miles away?

That's exactly what Gwen Claussen did.

Gwen's connection to pediatric occupational and speech therapy began when her premature son struggled with significant developmental and health challenges. After occupational therapy helped change the trajectory of his life, Gwen eventually began working at the clinic that had helped her family.

Years later, when the owner wanted to retire, Gwen made an unlikely decision:

She bought the practice herself.

She wasn't an occupational therapist. She wasn't a speech therapist. She didn't have a background in business. And when she took ownership, she was living in Georgia while the practice was in Michigan.

Since then, Gwen has grown the team from roughly 9 employees to around 37, nearly quadrupled revenue and opened a second location.

In this episode of the Financial Beast Podcast, Gwen explains how she figured it out.

You'll discover:

• Why Gwen bought a healthcare practice without being a clinician  

Gwen's story demonstrates that successful practice ownership isn't always about starting with all the right credentials or knowing exactly what you're doing.

Sometimes it's about being willing to learn what you don't know, surround yourself with the right people, take calculated risks and keep adapting as the business grows.

🎙️ Subscribe to the Financial Beast Podcast for financial strategies, practice growth insights, exit planning and personal wealth-building strategies designed specifically for healthcare practice owners.

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How do you grow a veterinary practice from a small operation into a multi-location business without having to personally manage every employee, every decision and every dollar?

Eric Miller sits down with Dr. Katie Stover.

Dr. Stover is the owner of Red Barn Animal Hospital. Over nearly a decade of ownership, the business has grown from 11 employees to 32, now includes seven veterinarians, and Katie is currently working on acquiring a third location.

But scaling the practice required Katie to change how she operated as an owner.

In this episode of the Financial Beast Podcast, Katie breaks down what she's learned about veterinary practice ownership, building a management team, expanding locations, managing cash flow and making sure the success of the business also creates financial progress at home.

You'll discover:

• How Katie became a veterinary practice owner early in her career

Katie's story is a great example of what happens when a veterinarian stops trying to personally carry the entire business and starts building the people, systems and financial structure necessary to scale.

And perhaps most importantly, the practice isn't the end goal.

It's an asset that's supposed to create a better life for the owner.

If you're a veterinarian, physical therapist, dentist, optometrist, chiropractor or other healthcare practice owner trying to grow your business while building personal wealth, this episode is for you.

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How do you build a multi-million-dollar speech therapy practice without watching your profit disappear as the business grows?

Jenny Matt built Speak for Yourself Speech Therapy from zero into a multi-million-dollar healthcare practice—and she did it without taking on business loans while maintaining healthy profit margins.

But it didn't happen because she simply chased revenue.

Jenny started small, grew only when demand justified it, learned the financial side of her business, brought critical functions in-house and built systems designed to protect profitability as the practice expanded.

In this episode of the Financial Beast Podcast, Jenny breaks down the decisions behind her growth and the financial lessons she's learned along the way.

You'll discover:

• How Jenny built a speech therapy private practice from scratch

One of the biggest traps for healthcare practice owners is confusing revenue with financial success.

A practice can generate millions of dollars and still leave its owner wondering where all the money went.

Jenny's story demonstrates a different approach: control overhead, understand where your money goes, build intentionally, reward your team for production and make sure the success of your practice ultimately creates financial success for your household.

If you're a speech pathologist, physical therapist, veterinarian, dentist, optometrist, chiropractor or other healthcare practice owner trying to grow without sacrificing profitability, this episode is for you.

🎙️ Subscribe to the Financial Beast Podcast for financial strategies, practice growth insights, exit planning and personal wealth-building strategies designed specifically for healthcare practice owners.

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What do you do when your healthcare practice loses 80% of its business almost overnight?

Lisa Taglauer and her partners had spent years building their physical therapy practice. By 2019, they had grown to five locations, roughly 62 team members, and had just experienced their best financial year ever.

Then everything changed.

In March 2020, only days after the team met to plan their next phase of expansion, the business dropped 80%.

Roughly half the team was laid off. Two clinics eventually closed. Hiring didn't meaningfully resume until 2023.

But they didn't quit.

In this episode of the Financial Beast Podcast, Lisa explains how her team rebuilt the practice by confronting weaknesses that had been hidden during the good years.

You'll discover:

• How a thriving physical therapy practice lost 80% of its business almost overnight

This isn't simply a story about surviving a difficult period.

It's about what happens when a crisis exposes the weaknesses inside a successful business, and how better financial discipline, leadership, communication and culture can create the foundation for a comeback.

If you're a physical therapist, veterinarian, dentist, optometrist, chiropractor or other healthcare practice owner navigating growth, financial pressure or uncertainty, this conversation is for you.

🎙️ Subscribe to the Financial Beast Podcast for financial strategies, practice growth insights, exit planning and wealth-building strategies specifically designed for healthcare practice owners.

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00:00 The Art of a Healthcare Practice Comeback

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Would you borrow $1.1 million to buy a dental practice at 28 years old?

That's the decision Dr. Josh Drake faced only a few years after graduating from dental school.

After joining an established practice as an associate, Josh was given the opportunity to buy into the business. The price tag was intimidating—but once he understood the cash flow behind practice ownership, the decision began to make sense.

Nearly 20 years later, Josh joins Eric Miller on the Financial Beast Podcast to talk candidly about what dental practice ownership actually looks like after the acquisition.

In this episode, you'll discover:

• Why Josh took on a $1.1 million practice loan at 28

Josh's story demonstrates an important distinction for healthcare practice owners:

Owning a successful practice and building personal financial independence are not necessarily the same thing.

Your practice should be an engine for building your household's wealth—not the only place where your wealth exists.

🎙️ Subscribe to the Financial Beast Podcast for financial strategies, practice growth insights, exit planning and wealth-building strategies specifically designed for healthcare practice owners.

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What happens when your healthcare practice keeps growing, but your profits disappear?

Orit Hickman built Pain Science Physical Therapy into a million-dollar practice. One year, the business generated more than $1 million in revenue with roughly 12% profitability. The following year, revenue increased—but profit dropped to just 2%.

Something had to change.

In this episode of the Financial Beast Podcast, Orit explains how declining insurance reimbursements, rising salaries, increasing administrative costs and the growing burden of dealing with insurance companies pushed her physical therapy practice toward an unsustainable business model.

Her solution was dramatic: drop roughly 65% of the practice's insurance contracts and begin transitioning toward a fee-for-service model.

Today, the practice is seeing fewer patients while making more money.

In this conversation, you'll discover:

• How a growing practice can become LESS profitable

If you're a physical therapist, veterinarian, optometrist, dentist, chiropractor or other healthcare practice owner dealing with shrinking reimbursements and rising expenses, Ari's experience offers an important lesson:

More revenue doesn't necessarily mean you're building a healthier business.

🎙️ Subscribe to the Financial Beast Podcast for financial strategies, practice growth insights, exit planning and wealth-building strategies specifically designed for healthcare practice owners.

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Most veterinary practice owners are excellent clinicians—but marketing is often an afterthought.

That was easier to get away with when practices were overflowing with new patients. Today, competition is increasing, corporate veterinary groups are expanding, and pet owners are researching practices across Google, social media, reviews, websites, and even AI tools before they ever make an appointment.

In this episode of the Financial Beast Podcast, Eric Miller sits down with Cebron Walker of Walker Creative to break down the marketing foundation every independent veterinary practice needs to compete and grow.

You'll discover:

• Why your website is still the foundation of veterinary marketing

Cebron also explains why veterinary practices should focus on building a real online ecosystem—website, Google profile, social media, reviews, video and local SEO—before pouring money into advertising.

If you own a veterinary practice and want more clients, stronger recruiting, and a brand that accurately reflects the quality of care you provide, this episode is for you.

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What really happens when a physical therapy practice grows faster than expected?

Billy Beaudreau DPT started Comprehensive Physical Therapy in 2020 without a single patient. Today, his company operates two Louisiana locations, owns its primary facility, and handles roughly 400–450 patient visits per week.

But rapid growth created challenges Billy didn't anticipate.

In this episode of the Financial Beast Podcast, Billy joins Eric Miller to break down the financial and operational reality of scaling a physical therapy practice—from hiring too quickly and carrying excessive payroll to managing cash flow, purchasing real estate, building a leadership team, and deciding when NOT to open the next location.

Billy also shares how he and his wife eliminated more than $200,000 in student loan debt before launching the practice—and why that financial discipline gave him the foundation to become a business owner.

You'll discover:

• How Billy went from zero patients to 400+ weekly visits

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Rapid growth can create tremendous wealth—but revenue, locations, and patient volume don't tell the entire story. Building a practice that serves your household requires balancing growth with profitability, cash flow, reserves, and personal wealth.

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What makes a successful healthcare practice owner walk away from everything they built?

In this episode of the Financial Beast Podcast, Dr. Erin Holder shares the incredible story of building a seven-doctor veterinary practice from scratch, surviving the 2008 financial crisis, navigating COVID, and ultimately making the life-changing decision to sell her practice.

You'll learn:

• Why most practice sales have nothing to do with money

If you're building your practice for long-term wealth—not just income—this episode is packed with lessons that could save you years of frustration.

Your practice isn't just a business—it's your greatest wealth-building asset.

The Financial Beast Podcast helps healthcare practice owners build wealth, improve cash flow, prepare for successful exits, and create financial freedom.

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Growing your healthcare practice shouldn't mean living with constant financial stress.

In this episode of the Financial Beast Podcast, Eric Miller asks Dr. Cassandra Cruzen how she transformed a one-doctor veterinary practice into a thriving five-doctor business while creating systems that eliminated the financial anxiety many practice owners experience.

Discover how separating money into dedicated financial buckets helped her prepare for taxes, build retirement savings, hire great associates, develop leaders, and create a business that can eventually operate without her.

Whether you're a veterinarian, physical therapist, optometrist, dentist, chiropractor, or another healthcare practice owner, you'll walk away with practical financial and leadership strategies you can apply immediately.

In this episode:

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