their child clients. There are several ways to network that will make your practice and your expertise stand out in the community.
Offering to speak at local events and meetings about play therapy and other services provided by the practice will give community members a good idea of the therapist’s areas of expertise and scope of practice. Being creative in distributing business cards makes the practice or the therapist more memorable. I passed out cards stapled to cheap seed packets with a note that said, “Thanks for helping my practice grow.” I cards for the nurses thanking them for their hard work, with my cards in the bottom of the basket. Neither of these were expensive ideas to implement, but hopefully they made my cards memorable, even if people did not remember me. Beyond offering to be a referral source for others, networking often allows therapists to make appropriate referrals to other professionals, and builds collaborative relationships to provide the best possible care to families in the area.
Find Some Balance Achieving balance in providing services and developing business practices is a skill set that demands therapist attention and energy. When beginning a private practice, it may be exciting to juggle multiple roles and tasks; but, over time, having many roles may become overwhelming. one area, but the risk of taking on so many roles is that the therapist becomes overwhelmed by performing all of them.
During periods when fewer clients are scheduled, the therapist can focus more on developing the practice, improving the building, or promoting other aspects of the business. This involves the acquired skill of saying or energy resources. It also means learning to say “Yes!” to self-care busy practice to run. Finding personal balance will give the therapist the energy to create a peaceful work environment that sustains the therapist, the clients, and the work, itself.
Choose Colleagues Wisely Choosing one’s colleagues wisely is important for creating a peaceful work environment wherein the therapist feels comfortable (Grodzky, started private practice, I rented a space from another therapist who had adults and, although we all got along well, the combination was not a and peaceful setting, yet they shared a wall with my occasionally loud and intense playroom. Sometimes they would ask in jest, “Were you playing basketball in there?” I would respond with an emphatic, “YES!”
When therapists can choose their own space, it is important to choose wisely the colleagues with whom they wish to work. In our practice, we do not require that our colleagues work with kids, but we do want them to know that a meltdown in the waiting room or a loud basketball-playing
session is par for the course in a play therapy practice!
Be Passionate About the Work When people love what they do, others can tell. It comes across to clients. It comes across to friends. Colleagues take note, and they will refer clients and want to do case consultations with passionate therapists. When therapists are enthusiastic about their work, they pursue an of the services provided. Clients want to come to therapy practices where they know and feel that the therapists enjoy their work.
Conclusion of the playroom and, yet, sometimes therapists are dreadfully serious when it comes to cultivating their business practices. HIPAA compliance, insurance authorizations, and the administrative tasks of running a small business can be a lot to juggle when clinicians try to do it all alone. It is okay to take on team members to perform the tedious tasks, such as scheduling, billing, and taxes. This will allow therapists to continue doing the manageable missions themselves, such as networking and liaising with professionals and community members. Play therapists are absolutely capable of creating and growing their practice while enjoying the work they are doing! Just as we encourage our clients to do, we therapists should not forget to have fun in growing and promoting our practices!
References Association for Play Therapy, Ethics and Practice Guidelines Committee. (2016). Play therapy best practices: Clinical, professional, and ethical issues. Retrieved from
http://c.ymcdn.com/sites/www.a4pt.org/ resource/resmgr/publications/Best_Practices__-_Sept_2016.pdf
Grodzki, L. (2015). Building your ideal private practice: A guide for therapists and other healing professionals. New York, NY: W.W. Norton.
Herlihy, B., & Corey, G. (2015). Boundary issues in counseling: Multiple roles and responsibilities. Alexandria, VA: American Counseling Association. Newman, L.
(2017). Private practice won’t solve your problems.
Retrieved from
https://abundancepracticebuilding.com/private-practice /private-practice-solve-problems/
Smith, D. (2003). 10 ways practitioners can avoid frequent ethical pitfalls. Monitor on Psychology, 34(1), 50-55.
Truffo, C. (2007). Be a wealthy therapist: Finally, you can make a living making a difference. St. Peters, MO: Femme Osage Publishing.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Leigh Ellen Magness, MSW, LCSW, RPT-S is founder of Growth Therapy and co-founder of Athens Center for Counseling and Play Therapy. When she is not working with families, you will working to establish a children’s museum in her town so that more children can learn through play.
leighellen@growththerapy.net
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