The Abundant Practice Podcast & Blog Spot!

How to Survive a Networking Event

Here’s the optimistic picture most people create about networking: You’re at a “networking event” in your new favorite outfit, feeling confident, looking great. Your most polished self is ready to dazzle them with your obvious charm, intelligence and sparkling white teeth. People hang on your every word and greedily collect your cards. They have a caseload full of people to send you on Monday. They’re so glad they met you. Here’s the pessimistic picture: You’re at a “networking event.” It feels …

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Networking for Fun and Profit (By Focusing on the Fun)

Networking is one of the single most important factors in practice-building. I know it’s not what you want to hear but I’m about to make it easier for you. Here’s the deal: we all know there are sucky therapists out there. We can tell in a single conversation what kind of a space they hold, how well they actually listen, if they seem empathetic, if they off handedly call yo “babe”. I’m going to interrupt myself with this quick story: I was at a dinner sponsored by an Eating Disorder Treatment Ce…

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This is going to be controversial

Not like sexy-controversial or appalling-controversial, don’t get your hopes up. This is going to be nerdy, business-divisive because I’m going to say the opposite of what a lot of practice-builders encourage you to do. I’m going to start off with: Maybe I’m wrong. Maybe I need to get with the times and maybe I’m a little old fashioned. I’m still mulling all of this over and am not quite ready to soapbox this but am ready to ask questions to get you thinking and tell you where I stand 95% of the…

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Marketing Your Practice for Real Life

a.k.a Why I deleted my Social Media Accounts, My Blog, and the Newsletter Sign-Up Form on My Website. A Guest Post by Natalie Moore, MA, MFT Intern

(A note from Allison: Today I'm featuring a guest blog from Natalie Moore. She's a therapist in California who has REALLY done a great job using her voice and being seen. She has been a member of the Abundance Practice-Builders Facebook Group and you may have heard her being interviewed on this episode of the Selling the Couch podcast about networki…

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Do I HAVE to have a website?

I get this question a lot. Like, a lot a lot. The concept of a website sounds great but if you’re not super-comfortable with technology it can be so daunting. I’ve had clinicians in the Abundance Practice-Building Group who have written AMAZING website copy (the words on your website), the kind that makes me want to schedule with them as I edit it. And then it just sits there offline and unread by potential clients because the website stuff is so unknown. I’ve also had group members not write co…

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Re-Starting Your Practice When You Move

Adventure! Necessity! Exploration! Education! There are a million great reasons to move some exciting, some heart-breaking. Maybe your practice is in that beautiful, easy place where referrals roll in effortlessly and it pains you to leave it. Maybe you are still in the building stages and are tired at the thought of investing all over again. Fair enough. Here are some things I’ve learned as I’ve ping-ponged across the United States as private practitioner: You are in transition. You know all th…

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Stop Cheating On Your Practice With Your Job

Wondering when you should leave that full time job? For those of you juggling a full time job, a private practice, and y’know Life, hats off to you. I was in your position for about 5 years and looking back, I honestly don’t know how I did it. You’re awesome and I want life to get easier for you very soon. While I can’t wave a magic wand and make you emotionally or financially ready to make the leap, I do want to give you a few things to think about. Questions to ask yourself: 

  1. In business, a…

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Why You Desperately Need Diverse Referral Sources

I was chatting with a therapist-friend the other day who told me the story of how his practice went from very few clients to full in the span for a couple months. A local behavioral health agency lost the psychologist who did their testing and boom! my friend’s business blew up. As one of very few psychologists who enjoys testing in his city, he was in a great position to fill the need. Having a niche is awesome.   I’ve been worried about him since that conversation. He was no longer working on …

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Pregnancy and Maternity Leave in Private Practice: EVERYTHING You Need to Know

Yesterday I had to cancel two clients because I couldn’t stop puking. How’s that for an intro?! And by yesterday, I mean the day I wrote this… I’m going to hold on to it until it’s time to tell you guys that I’m pregnant. I didn’t have this problem when I was pregnant with my daughter or with the pregnancies we lost. It didn’t occur to me that I’d have to cancel on anyone because I’m very rarely sick and I basically have to be told to take time off by my husband for it to even occur to me. I kno…

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Failing in Slow Motion

I’ve always heard this notion that failure is a part of business. That you can’t succeed without failing. I always found it unsettling to read and, having had plenty of successes without failures, hoped it was meant for OTHER people in OTHER industries. I saw these Pinterest pins about it and read these quotes and decided they were there to normalize it for those who struggled rather than take it like a harbinger of future failure for those who were succeeding.

Until last week.

I talk to my therap…

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