How to Attract your Dream Clients Part 1: Build Your Dream Practice

Hi, and welcome back and if this is your first time here, it's great to have you on board and what a fantastic episode for you to start with, because today is the first of a three-part miniseries that I've put together all about how to attract your dream clients. So how cool is that? just before I start, I'm just smiling cuz this happens every time I just sat down to record this, you know, I'm just getting everything ready, getting my mic set up and all the rest of it.

And my dog, Kim, who was fast asleep a minute ago, saw that I was up to doing this. And she got up and came over and started wolfing at me and wanted attention. So anyway, so I've just kicked her out. But doesn't that always happen? Does that happen with you? I bet if you go on Zoom, your cat sort of walks across or something like that.

It's just typical, isn't it? Anyway, enough about my dog. Enough about my dog. Let's get started, because look, it might surprise you because when it comes to attracting your dream clients, it actually all starts with you. Okay? Now you might be forgiven for thinking that when it comes to attracting more clients, it's all about the clients, what, who they are, what they want, and yes, it is.

Don't get me wrong, it absolutely is. But that comes later. The starting point, and the thing that's often missed is you, you know, what do you want? What are your desires, your needs, your interests, your passions, because you know you are building a business, and the beauty of that is that you have the chance to turn this.

Into your dream business where you work with your dream clients and you work in the ways that you believe to be right. You know, you, you don't have somebody telling you that you can only work for six sessions or you have to work person-centered when you prefer. Or often we are told, you know, you have to work C B T.

And you might just, that might not be your favorite way to work. So you can choose in whatever way that you believe is right for your clients. The thing that sits best with you, you can work the hours that suit you. You know, basically you can run this business, this practice, how you choose to. And the thing is, This can take some getting used to, can't it?

Because if you are not used to it, if you are used to being employed and having someone telling you what to do, it just feels really weird. So rowing your practice into something that really suits you is what is going to make this fulfilling. This is what's going to make you feel contented and satisfied.

And I, you know, I don't want to over egg this cake, but. It can be really life changing. So, you know, let's have a little look. Let's explore who you are and what you are all about. So here's a question for you. Why did you get into counseling? You know, it takes a lot of time, money, and effort to train to be a therapist, and it takes dedication and passion in order to grow private practice.

So why did you choose to do it? You know, let's face it, you know, let's not. Sort of beat around the bush here saying that we enjoy what we do. It's not quite right, is it? Because, yeah, it's really great to see transformations, to see people getting these ahas and you know that positive change is amazing, isn't it?

It's fantastic. But to get there. Well, it's a really bumpy journey. You know, you have to navigate your client's stories that are often full of pain, full of cruelty, full of hardship. You know, it's really complex, difficult stuff, and there are no guarantees that it's gonna work. You know, we are told all the time, aren't we, to trust the process And that trips off the tongue quite easily.

But sometimes we question the process, don't we? We question ourselves. We question everything. Being a counselor is no walk in the park, and it can be hard work listening to difficult stories day in, day out from people and learning about all the negatives that are going on, people in people's lives, it can affect you.

So counseling isn't just a profession, it's a passion, it's a calling, you know, it's a labor of love that involves a deep commitment to help other people to navigate through their pain and their distress and whatever's going on for them.

So to put yourself through that, take something special, because otherwise you'd just get an easier job, wouldn't you? So why do you do it? You know, why did you originally choose to train to be a counselor and why is it that you are choosing to carry on now? Look, this isn't some insignificant question that I've just plucked out of the air.

The answer to this is what really bats, you know, the answer to this can change your business and frankly, change your life and that might be a massive claim. But hear me out well, I think you do it because you're driven by something deeper. So why? Why do you do it? I dunno if you've heard of Simon Sinek, or Si, I dunno how to pronounce it. Simon Sinek and s i n e k. Now, he wrote a book. Called Start with Why, and he talks a lot about understanding the importance of why it is that we do what we do.

And he said, and this is a quote, working hard for something we don't care about is called stress. Working hard for something we love. Is called passion, and that is so true, isn't it? I mean, I dunno about you. I'm sure this has happened to you. If you've ever worked at a job that you don't particularly love, you'll know how It can just become something that's really stressful and unpleasant, and this is why understanding your why.

Is really important because by knowing your why, you know why you are doing this in the first place. So understanding, you know, what is your purpose? What is your cause? What is the cause that you are, you are sort of standing for? What are your beliefs around this? Knowing your why means that you can find your personal growth and fulfillment, through your work.

Which is really cool, right? So, so for me, when I was a counselor, I first experienced my, you know, I first went to see a counselor in my early twenties. And I have to say I was fascinated about how it worked and the process so I could be talking to my counselor about something and nothing. And then the next thing I knew, she was asking me a big, deep question about, you know, something that made me squirm.

And I thought, well, how does she do that? How does she go from a little chat about what I've been up to, to making me really, really think? And I, I became really fascinated by that, you know, and I, in my early twenties and, you know, through my youth and, you know, through my life really, I've been in such pain and distress.

I just wanted to help other people so that they could let go of some of their pain and distress and start to feel better about themselves. And you know, the word passion. I mean, it gets banded about a lot, doesn't it? But I do think it really fits here because it's that passion that you have that drives you. You know, you don't become a therapist half-heartedly. It's kind of a compulsion. We are enthusiastic. We are fascinated. We feel compelled, you know, think about.

The books that you read. You know, you're probably reading book after book about various different things about how the brain works and how people work and wellness and mindset and things like that. It's fascinating stuff. And you know, similarly for me later, you know, as a therapist, I became frustrated that other therapists were really struggling to attract the clients that they needed to both do the thing that they loved and earn a good living from that.

And that passion is what drove me to open a membership and write the Grow Your Private Practice book and, you know, record these podcasts regularly and do all the things that I do to help you. So, you know, passion is the thing that drives us. But you know, it's easy to fall into a routine and do things that aren't igniting that passion.

So, for example, and this is something that I hear very often. You know when you need a placement for your training, and obviously it depends on what training you do, but when I did my training, we needed a placement and placements aren't easy to find, so you are delighted to get a placement anywhere really.

So you, you go and get your placement. So let's imagine for a minute that you get, you are really delighted cuz you get a placement and this placement is a to bereavement center. And you worked there for a while and it's okay up to a point, but it's not something that you would necessarily have chosen to look more deeply into yourself.

But because you've had that placement, you've kind of taken on some extra training, you've done some more reading, you know, you've now got that experience. And then it feels like when you start in private practice, it kind of makes sense to. Talk about your training and experience in that field. So you fall into attracting clients with bereavement issues because it's something that's familiar.

But the thing here is that it might not be the thing that really drives you. It might not be the thing that's really firing you up. So if you are working with things that aren't. Really firing you up and that aren't making you feel that passion, that's when you can start to lose a little bit of enthusiasm.

You know, you, yes, you're gonna still be helping people and yes, you'll know that you are going to be, you know, doing good, but. It's somehow not fulfilling you in the way that you thought it would, and you might start to feel a bit about the whole thing you know. Now. If that sounds a bit familiar, then look, I'm urging you to do a little bit of work to find out what your passion is, to see where your interests really lie, because to run a private practice that you love seeing clients that interest you and leaving you feeling fulfilled. It's all about working with the people that you feel passionately about. So look, if this does resonate with you, It's time to do a little bit of delving. It's time to delve a little bit deeper into this and, and spend some time just looking at, you know, uncovering what your true passions are.

Figure out where your interests truly lie because you know, this is really important. Now, something I often find is that therapists are driven to help people with things that they've been through themselves or something similar to something they've been through themselves. So, you know, have a think about your life. You know, maybe you went to counseling, Think about what it was that drove you to go to your own personal counseling that first time.

What were you struggling with? Because sometimes that can be the thing that drives you helping people so they don't have to go through whatever it is that you've been through. Or it might be that you've experienced a loved one go through something difficult and you felt helpless and didn't know what to do.

So you know, and. Maybe you've wanted to help to do something that's positive to help people in that situation, and that might drive you to be a counselor. So, you know, it can be all sorts of different things. So here's a few questions for you to reflect on. Okay. So I'm just gonna go through a few questions.

So here's the first one. What made you choose to be a therapist? So when you first looked into therapy into training to be a therapist, what was in your head? What did you have in your mind? And when you imagined being a therapist, what type of people did you envision working with? What type of issues did you think that might be?

Have a think about the work that you do. Who do you currently like working with and what are the issues that you find most interesting? Also, you know, think about your therapy library. I think most therapists have far too many, like far too many books in their, on their bookcase, don't they? So have a think about what therapy books you have.

Do you tend to have a lot of therapy books around a specific topic? Cuz that's a good indication you're clearly interested in it. And also really, really importantly, what sort of issues do you not like working with? You know, what sort of issues turn you off? So for me, I never liked working with bereavement.

It was just something I never really, I don't know, I don't like working with bereavement and, you know, occasionally I saw a, a client with issues about bereavement and it just, it just wasn't my thing. So it's better, isn't it, to refer people onto somebody else. If you know you don't like in work, like working with it, it's good to know that.

But that can help you work out what you do like to work with. Also, you can have a look at what your preferences are. You know, do you like working with individuals, couples, families? Do you prefer working face-to-face online? Maybe a bit of a mixture of the two. Do you like the thought of doing walk and talk therapy?

Do you like to work with children and young people? Or lgbtq plus communities, or maybe you are somebody who is a person of faith. You know, maybe there's something that you just are interested in, or maybe you are the sort of person that likes very intricate work looking, you know, delving into murky pasts and exploring things that have gone on.

Or alternatively, maybe you're somebody that works well with short-term clients. Working with short-term clients is a great thing. You know, you can, you can, that can be a great thing to work with cuz not everybody can afford to come to long-term counseling. So maybe you do like working with short-term clients, you know, you, we all have a preference, which would be your preference.

Now, remember my favorite saying, inspiration without action is merely entertainment. So your action step now is to do some brainstorming around this. Now, as you know, my favorite way to do this is take yourself off. Go to a cafe, go to a pub, go to the park. Just go somewhere a little bit different away from, you know, the washing machine and you know, whatever, just away from things.

And get yourself a spot of lunch, maybe have some coffee and a cake. Just find somewhere that you can think and just consider those questions. And this way you are gonna start to consider you in this because it's your business. And as I've said, one of the beautiful things about running your own practices, you can make it your dream business.

You can make it so that it is perfect for you. So that's it for part one of this miniseries. So look, I hope you join me next time when we are gonna start looking at your clients. You know, who are they, what are their issues, what are their problems? What are their hopes and their dreams? Because if, if you know who they are and what their needs are, you are gonna be able to speak to them and connect with them, and they will then go on to become your dream plight.

So I'm really looking forward to talking about that. So look, thanks for tuning into the Grow Your Private Practice Show. I really hope that you found today's episode valuable and that you've learned something new that's gonna help you to grow your private practice and assist more people and ultimately earn more money.

yeah. So look, if you are looking for any additional resources to help you to achieve your goals, you know, be sure to go and check out my website. It's Jane, that's Jane without a y. So it's Jane Jane Travis dot co.uk. And there you can access free guides and free resources to help to take your practice forward to the next level.

And just before I go, don't forget to subscribe to the show on your favorite podcast platform, so you never miss an episode. And if you enjoyed today's episode, look, I would really love it if you could leave a review to help me to reach more therapists who could benefit from listening to this show.

Remember, a rising tide lifts all boats. So that's it for now. Thank you for listening, and I look forward to speaking to you next time on the Great Private Practice Show. Take care. Bye-bye.