5 New Year’s Resolutions for Your Therapy Practice
Happy New Year! 2014 was a whirlwind of exciting change at Brighter Vision, and we’re greeting 2015 with open arms as we welcome more exciting growth and possibility into our services. In these first few weeks of the New Year, we’ve got resolutions on the mind to set us up for a successful year, but we also want to help you.
5 Strategies to Grow Your Therapy Practice
Many of our clients are therapists, especially therapists who are just starting their practices, and while we believe our web services help fulfill a variety of purposes, we thought we’d share some New Year’s resolutions for therapists to make your therapy practice the best it’s ever been in 2015.
Keep Learning!
It’s always a good idea to be on top of the latest research, but when the year starts getting busy, it’s easy to push furthering your education to the back burner. Start off the New Year by…
- Sign yourself up for a conference or seminar
- Subscribe to blogs and online article sources that regularly post new studies in your field
- Sign yourself up for some part-time (or online) post-degree coursework.
Do one thing each month to further your marketing efforts
Marketing yourself is one of the most intimidating things about starting a therapy practice, but the “M” word isn’t as terrifying as it seems. Break up your marketing efforts into smaller, more manageable chunks.
- Create a blogging content plan
- Set up a Facebook page (if that’s something you’d like to do for your practice)
- Make a list of conferences in your area that you’d like to attend or even speak at
- Reach out to other professionals in your area that compliment your services for referrals.
Learn more about your unique passions
Push yourself to educate yourself more and be more vocal about niche elements of your practice that set you apart. It’s easy to retreat to the safety of textbook therapy practices to find success, especially when you’re just beginning your own practice. But remember, those unique passions that set your practice apart from others are not only going to keep you interested and excited about your practice, but they will help you attract the types of clients you enjoy working with.
So whether you’re passionate about holistic, natural treatment, about infusing your practice with movement, or whether you want to become an online resource to reach people all over the world, find what makes you excited about what you do and learn how you can make it an integrative part of your practice.
Take your own advice
You can talk the talk, but make sure you also walk the walk. If you’re telling your clients to physically take care of themselves, make sure you’re getting in your 5 servings of leafy greens and 30 minutes of exercise each day as well. If you’re asking your clients to be present in your sessions, make sure you’re leaving your own baggage at your office door as well.
Your clients’ well-being depends on your own well-being too, so devote the time each day to meet your own needs so that you can provide the best care to others (this includes taking time off!).
Stop trying to do it all yourself!
We know, we know, easier said than done when you’re just starting out (and—ahem—are low on funds), but handing off tasks that aren’t directly related to your clients will allow you more time and quality energy to focusing on the clients you currently have and reaching out to new clients.
Find people who can help you set your practice up for success whether that’s hiring a real estate agent to find you the perfect space for your practice, an accountant to handle all your bookkeeping, or a really awesome web service company to help you gain some professional-level exposure with a new website (may we direct you to our portfolio of therapy websites?).
Ultimately, as with any goal or resolution, set yourself a realistic and specific time frame and break each goal down into manageable pieces. Map out the steps you need for success this year, and don’t be afraid to revise, revisit, and take a new course if things change down the road.
Check off your first resolution today and call us for a free consultation to see if we can help you grow your practice with a new website.