I often think that creating a therapy practice is a bit like leaving school. Do you remember your last year in school? The restrictions of timetables, classes, homework and early bedtimes on school days were stifling. The comparative freedom of work or college was inviting. I thought my elder siblings had it so easy with parties and nights out to go to. They always seemed to have lots of money to spend. College or work seemed to be a playground where lots of exciting things happened.
Then I left school, and that summer, I really did experience that sense of freedom. Old enough to be left largely to my own devices, I was indeed free of many of the restrictions of school.

But it didn’t last long!

I was going to train as a Chartered Accountant by the apprenticeship route, which meant I worked by day and studied by night. I found office life very difficult to adjust to. No one seemed to operate by the rules I had learned at school or at home. There were so many things I didn’t know; small things like whether a visit to the dentist was time off or sick leave, and much larger and more complex things like how do you relate to an employer, who isn’t either a parent or a teacher but still has power and authority over you, whose mode of correction included overtly sexual comments.

It was a rough induction. I discovered that no one cared if I turned up for classes or did my assignments. They cared about me getting the work done, with little or no instruction or supervision. I could go on.
You probably have similar stories yourself.

I had to grow up fast!

The point I’m making here is, leaving school meant I had to grow up very quickly. I had no idea how supported and protected I was until those supports weren’t there any longer.
Starting a practice is the same. It’s like falling off the end of a conveyor belt! There’s a lot to learn in a short space of time, with no syllabus, no path laid out for you, no one to check up if you’re doing what you need to do.
Support is everything.

If your therapy practice is struggling to get going, maybe it’s time to give it a shot in the arm with some extra support. My new training, The Business of Therapy: The Inner Journey It’s on in the Ardboyne Hotel in Navan on 19th October. You can find the details here. The training looks at the three main areas in which we need to grow to support our new practice.  In this short video, I explore this theme of stepping up a bit further…