Don’t Be Hateful, Be Grateful - Thanksgiving Special [Episode 38]

Hello there, and welcome back to the Mountain Practice Journeys podcast! I’m your host, Cindy Norton. Here in Episode 38, the Thanksgiving Special Episode, I’m going to encourage collaboration over competition, while highlighting the importance of gratitude and abundance.

Let’s get started.

Have you been wanting to start your private practice, but you can’t seem to take that first step? Maybe you’re afraid of failure or lack confidence, or maybe the idea of running your own practice is overwhelming. I’m Cindy Norton, owner of Mountain Practice Journeys and I help therapists and counselors to love the business side of private practice. I’ll share with you practical skills and advice along with a healthy dose of inspiration so that you can be on your way to the practice of your dreams. Put on your hiking boots, and let’s get going.

If you haven’t yet listened to Episode 37, I urge you to do that. In that episode I chat with Jane Carter of Jane Carter Coaching about how to keep the spark alive in your money relationship.

Now let’s get on to today’s episode.

With Thanksgiving coming around the corner, we are reminded of being grateful. Although, I hope you are expressing gratitude all throughout the year.

Ever since I read the book The Secret in my 20’s it has had a big impact on my outlook in life. This book taught me many things including the law of attraction and having an abundance mindset.

It may have also been how I came to the conclusion that there is no such thing as competition. Sure there’s competition in some ways, like in a literal sports competition where there is a winner and a loser. But, I’m talking about in our business of private practice and entrepreneurship.

There are not many things that I have a strong opinion on, but the fact that we should remove the word “competition” from our solopreneur vocabulary is one of them. I have seen nothing but good come from collaborating with other therapists, even those who do the exact same thing as you!

In my own past experience as a couples therapist, there are countless ways that I have shown that I do not believe in competition. I’ll share two examples here.

The first example is that I collaborated with two other couples therapists in my area who do the same thing that I do to begin offering couples workshops. I reached out to them to see if they would be interested. We ended up taking a road trip to Nashville together for the training, which was a lot of fun. And we began offering couples workshops together.

The second example is that I created a small directory of couples therapists in the Asheville area as a page on my very own couples therapy website. And this was when I wasn’t even full in my own practice. These are couples therapists that do the same thing that I do, and I’m featuring them on my own website and directing potential clients to check them out. That’s how much I believe in the abundance mindset.

I want to express my gratitude for the amazing therapist community that I’m part of here in Asheville, North Carolina. I believe that we have Allison Puryear of Abundance Practice Building to thank for that! She has set a great example for therapists.

With Asheville being the birthplace of Abundance, it’s no wonder that this city is ripe with therapist collaboration and community.

I love welcoming new therapists to the area, and I find that they are pleasantly surprised by the supportive community of helping professionals that they now find themselves in.

Over the past 10 years, newcomers to the area have shared with me that they have felt more of a competitive vibe in their previous towns. Their colleagues would frequently turn them down for networking requests, or would not even respond at all. They felt very isolated in their practice, which isn’t good for the therapist or their clients.

If you find that collaboration is missing in your own private practice or small business community, you can begin to set an example of abundance.

If there’s no current therapist community in your area, here are a few ideas to help spark collaboration:

You can start a consultation group in your area and host it at your office.

You can create a facebook group and invite local therapists to join.

You can organize a monthly meetup for therapists to get together for coffee or drinks.

I’m a firm believer in that you attract what you put out into the world. If you believe that there are a limited number of clients and you have to compete for them, then that will be your experience. If you believe that there are plenty of clients to go around, then that will be your experience.

I think I have built my business on gratitude and an unshakable knowing that it would work out.

I would express gratitude when the phone was not ringing because that allowed me to get more work done in my business (when I could have been thinking about how my business was going to fail).

I would express gratitude for every session because it got me one step closer to my goals (when I could have been thinking that I didn’t have enough clients).

I expressed gratitude when I was approved for a zero interest credit card so that I could afford to move into and furnish my very own office space (when I could have been focused on the debt that I just incurred).

My gratitude practice is not what you would call an “evidence-based practice.” I can’t prove to you how it has helped my business – but I know it has. I can’t explain it. However, this practice of gratitude is risk-free. You’re not going to lose anything by having an abundance mindset and a gratitude practice – but you sure have a lot to gain.

Many others believe in collaboration too.

Robert Ingersoll said “We rise by lifting others.”

Helen Keller said “Alone we can do so little; together we can do so much.”

Henry Ford said “If everyone is moving forward together, then success takes care of itself.”

Napoleon Hill said “It is literally true that you can succeed best and quickest by helping others to succeed.”

And Amy Poehler said “Find a group of people who challenge and inspire you, spend a lot of time with them, and it will change your life.” 

During each episode I’ll be giving you one small take away, action step, or mindset shift. I call these acorns. Listen to Episode 0 to get the scoop on what the acorns are all about.

The acorn from this episode is that although there are other therapists who do the exact same thing that you do, they are not your competition.

No one else is like you.

Imagine that you and a colleague have the exact same niche and practice in the exact same area.

They are still not your competition.

There will times when your colleague is going to have a conflict of interest with a potential client and will need to refer out to someone who does the same thing they do.

There will be times when your colleague doesn’t have the availability on a Wednesday at 2:00pm that this potential client absolutely needs - but you do.

There will be times when a potential client is looking for a really warm-hearted, mushy therapist, but your colleague describes themselves as a direct and no bs therapist.

I could go on and on, but you get my point. Don’t you want to have a great working relationship with this colleague that you are conditioned to believe is your competition?

As I outlined in Episode 0, I’ll be alternating between a fun fact and ‘what I’m digging’ segment with each new episode.

The fun fact for this episode is that I love researching and reading stories about past-lives. My first book on the subject was Many Lives, Many Masters by Brain Weiss, that I read in my early 20’s.

I especially loved it because it is written by a psychiatrist (and this was even before I knew I would become a therapist). It’s still one of my favorite books. It really opened me up to the idea and I truly enjoy learning more about the subject. It is absolutely fascinating.

I’m also a member of a book club and we read the book Soul Survivor: The Reincarnation of a World War II Fighter Pilot by Andrea & Bruce Leininger. If you’re interested in the subject, I’d highly recommend these two books. I’ll have links in the show notes.

A friendly reminder that enrollment is open for Forestmind, my new comfy, cozy mastermind for private practice introverts, highly sensitive therapists, and solopreneurs who help and heal. If you join by December 15th you’ll become a founding member and get $1,200 off your yearly membership, along with other benefits. Visit mountainpracticejourneys.com/forestmind/ for more information and to claim your spot in this small, cozy, supportive group.

Thank you so much for joining me today on your private practice journey.

For Episode 39 I’m going to be chatting with Jamey Schrier from Practice Freedom U about the 7 steps to a 7 figure business. Jamey shares a wealth of valuable information.

Even if you don’t have the goal of a seven figure business, you can use these steps to avoid burnout and achieve that much needed work/life balance, however you define it. Even for those of us who may be working toward an $80 or $100K goal in our business, these steps are golden.

In the meantime, join me over on instagram @mountainpracticejourneys

There’s no way you can know how much it means to me that you choose to join me here as I share all things related to private practice. Please subscribe so you don’t miss a step. For more information about this episode, please visit the show notes page at mountainpracticejourneys.com/podcast I truly appreciate you Trailblazers. Your mountain is within reach. Journey on.