The Creative Clinician Blog

VFTS 2026-| Lucy Barbera | Trauma-Informed Creative Arts Therapy

Wed, 11 Mar 2026 12:31:06 GMT

FEATURED GUESTS: Dr. Lucy Barbera, LCAT is a New York State Licensed Creative Arts Therapist, Art Teacher, and School District Administrator, whose work spans the medical, psychiatric, and educational settings. Dr. Barbera served on the faculty of The Humanistic Multicultural Education Graduate Program, at the State University of New York (SUNY), at New Paltz, for twenty-three years, where she developed and taught courses in Expressive Arts in Education, Human Services, and in Social Justice Leadership.

Currently, Dr. Barbera is facilitating the Trauma-Informed Creative Arts Therapy Certificate Program for Mental Health Professionals & Educators, a post-graduate program, professional development training program, now in its fifteenth year, in collaboration with the Expressive Therapies Summit.

Dr. Barbera lectures widely and maintains a private practice in Art and Sandplay Therapy in Kingston, New York, working with children and adults with life-threatening medical conditions, teens who self-harm, or are challenged with disordered eating, addiction, death, loss, and complex trauma.

Dr. Barbera’s doctoral dissertation on the Expressive Arts and Social Justice was granted The Excellence in Scholarship Award in 2009, by the Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Association (ETD) and her book, Expressive Arts in Teacher Education: Cultivating Social Justice Leadership, was published in 2011.

Her most recent publications include, Avatar: Masks of Hope and Healing, in Susan Ridley’s The Expressive Use of Masks Across Cultures and Healing Arts, was published by Routledge in 2024 and Joining Social Justice Teacher Education and the Expressive Arts, has just been republished in Natalie Rogers’ The Creative Connection for Groups: Person-Centered Expressive Arts for Healing and Social Change.

For Information about Dr. Barbera’s program offerings may be found on her website at:
https://www.arttherapycertificate.com/ and https://www.expressivetherapiessummit.com/ti-cat

LISTEN & LEARN:

The benefits of intermodal processes in the treatment of trauma.
What students in the certificate program can expect to learn.
The relationship between trauma and imagery.
How embracing a hybrid approach to training has allowed Dr. Barbera to reach students around the world and build a connected community.

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW:

Web: www.arttherapycertificate.com/
Facebook: www.facebook.com/arttherapycertificateprograms/
Facebook Group: www.facebook.com/groups/makingspecial
LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/lucy-barbera-phd-lcat-83578b8/
Trauma-Informed Creative Arts Therapy Certificate Program

SESSIONS AT THE SUMMIT:

Starting April 11 through June 13th Lucy Barbera will be leading the Trauma-Informed Creative Arts Therapy Certificate Program at Creative Arts Therapy Studio in Kingston, NY & Virtually-Live-Online sign up here at www.expressivetherapiessummit.com/ti-cat
You can attend in-person at the Creative Art Therapy Studio in Kingston, NY or attend virtually over Zoom.

CLICK HERE TO LISTEN TO THE PODCAST EPISODE
CLICK HERE TO WATCH THE EPISODE ON YOUTUBE!

What Therapy Practice Owners Need to Do in 2026 to Improve Their Website SEO

Tue, 27 Jan 2026 16:49:12 GMT

What Therapy Practice Owners Need to Do in 2026 to Improve Their Website SEO

At Creative Clinicians Corner, we believe building a successful therapy practice is both an art and a strategy. Your clinical skills, values, and vision deserve to be seen by the clients who need them most. In 2026, one of the most effective ways to bridge that gap is through intentional, values-aligned Search Engine Optimization (SEO).

SEO is not about gaming algorithms or becoming a marketing expert overnight. It is about clarity, consistency, and helping the right clients find their way to your work. This guide walks therapy practice owners through what SEO really is, why it matters more than ever, and how to take both simple and more advanced steps to strengthen your digital presence without compromising your integrity.

What Is SEO?

SEO, or Search Engine Optimization, is the process of improving your website so search engines like Google can clearly understand who you help, what services you offer, and where your practice is located. When done well, SEO allows your website to appear in search results when potential clients are actively looking for support.

For therapy practices, SEO helps answer questions such as:

What kind of therapy does this clinician offer?
Is this practice a good fit for my concerns?
Are they licensed and credible?
Are they located near me or offering services in my state?

In 2026, SEO is less about technical tricks and more about relevance, trust, and meaningful content that reflects how real people search for care.

Why SEO Matters for Therapy Practice Owners in 2026

Therapy seekers are more informed, more intentional, and more discerning than ever before. They are searching with specific needs in mind and expecting to find websites that feel human, clear, and supportive.

Several trends are shaping SEO in 2026:

Searches are more specific and conversational. People are typing or speaking full questions such as “How does EMDR help trauma?” or “art therapy for anxiety near me.”
Local competition continues to grow. Group practices, telehealth platforms, and private clinicians are all competing for limited local visibility.
Search engines prioritize quality and credibility. Websites that demonstrate experience, consistency, and expertise perform better over time.
Client experience matters. If your website is confusing, slow, or overwhelming, visitors leave quickly—and search engines take notice.

SEO has become an extension of clinical ethics: it helps ensure that clients who are actively seeking care can find accurate, supportive information.

Key Elements That Make SEO Work

Understanding the building blocks of SEO allows practice owners to make informed, strategic decisions.

Keywords and Search Intent

Keywords are the phrases people use when searching for therapy. In 2026, effective SEO focuses on intent rather than volume. This means aligning your language with what clients are truly seeking—relief, understanding, and next steps.

Content That Educates and Reassures

Blogs, service pages, and FAQs should answer common client questions in a grounded, compassionate way. Content that feels authentic and helpful builds trust with both readers and search engines.

Technical Health and User Experience

Your website must load quickly, function well on mobile devices, and be easy to navigate. Technical issues can quietly undermine even strong content.

Local SEO Signals

For most therapy practices, local visibility is essential. Accurate contact information, location-specific pages, and an active Google Business Profile help search engines connect your practice to your community.

Authority and Consistency

Publishing regularly, using accurate information, and clearly communicating your scope of practice signals credibility and professionalism.

Simple SEO Steps You Can Take Now

These foundational actions are approachable and effective for most therapy practice owners.

Clarify Your Core Pages

Your homepage and service pages should clearly state:

Who you serve
What issues you help with
What modalities you offer
Where you are licensed and located

Avoid overly clinical language and write the way your ideal client speaks.

Publish Consistent Blog Content

One to two thoughtful blog posts per month can significantly improve visibility. Focus on topics your clients regularly ask about in sessions or consultations.

Optimize Your Google Business Profile

Ensure your hours, services, and contact information are accurate. Post occasional updates and maintain professionalism in any reviews you receive.

Improve Readability

Use short paragraphs, clear headings, and plain language. Accessibility benefits both clients and search performance.

Include Gentle Calls to Action

Invite visitors to take the next step—without pressure—by scheduling a consultation or learning more about your approach.

More Advanced SEO Strategies for 2026

For clinicians ready to deepen their practice-building efforts, these strategies offer long-term benefits.

Create Service-Specific and Location-Based Pages

Develop individual pages for key offerings such as EMDR, art therapy, or trauma therapy, using location-aware language. For example, "EMDR Therapy in Fort Myers."

Build Topic Authority Over Time

Rather than writing isolated posts, create clusters of content around core clinical themes. This helps search engines recognize depth and expertise.

Write for Voice and AI Search

Answer questions directly and naturally, as if you were responding to a client in session. Clear answers perform better in modern search environments.

Strengthen Technical Performance

Work with a professional to improve site speed, mobile usability, and accessibility compliance. How quickly your pages load matter!

Review Performance Regularly

Use data tools to understand what content resonates and where refinement is needed.

SEO as a Practice-Building Tool, Not a Sales Tactic

SEO is not about becoming visible to everyone—it is about becoming visible to the right clients. When approached thoughtfully, SEO supports sustainable growth, reduces reliance on paid advertising, and allows your website to reflect the same care and intention you bring to your clinical work.

Ready for Support?

If you are feeling overwhelmed or unsure where to focus your efforts, you do not have to navigate SEO alone. I offer professional practice-building consultations for therapy practice owners who want ethical, sustainable growth strategies tailored to their values and goals.

To book a consultation:

Email creativeclinician@gmail.com
Or call 239-297-7099

Together, we can clarify your digital presence and build systems that support both your practice and your well-being.

VFTS 2026-1 | Sally Brucker | Discovering Goddess Archetypes: Professional Retreat in Riviera Maya, Mexico

Tue, 27 Jan 2026 16:33:12 GMT

FEATURED GUESTS: Sally Brucker, LCSW-C, ATR-BC, CAGS is a visual artist, art therapist, social worker, and certified life-cycle celebrant. Her work as an art therapist spans over 40 years. She was director of the Women's' Growth and Therapy Center for over 15 years and the founder of Studio Downstairs
(www.createartcenter.org) in Silver Spring, Maryland. She has extensive international experience working and leading immersive art therapy workshops in the US, Europe, Asia and South America.

Sally has worked in psychiatric institutions, hospitals, refugee camps, mental health clinics, homeless shelters, alcoholic treatment centers, and in private practice.She has worked with refugees, first in Africa, then London and Washington DC. Her project , The Listening Room, Refugee Art Project earned her two awards . She has taught courses in psychology at Montgomery College for over 30 years and has published several chapters on art therapy, as well as numerous articles.

Sally’s artwork stems from a passion for human rights and story-telling. She was a member of the Washington Printmakers' Gallery in Washington DC and now exhibits her mono-prints, paintings, collages, constructions and hand-made books both nationally and internationally.

Sally Brucker was born in Chicago, Illinois, received her BS in sociology/anthropology from Washington University, St. Louis, MO. She received her masters in art therapy and early childhood special education from George Washington University and her masters in social work from the Catholic University, in Washington D.C.

Her art work has been exhibited in Washington D.C. at the Washington Printmakers Gallery, Studio Gallery, Pyramid Atlantic, Hill Art Center, Bird-in Hand Gallery, Newman Gallery, and the Corcoran Museum of Art.
She lives in Takoma Park, Maryland.

LISTEN & LEARN:

How Sally began offering retreats
Why Sally includes rituals and ceremonies as part of the retreat
Where to learn how to create ceremonies
What one can expect if they attend the five day retreat
The importance of having witnesses while engaging in healing ceremonies
What archetypes participants will be exposed to and engage with during the retreat

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW:

Web: www.sallybrucker.com/
Facebook: www.facebook.com/sally.brucker/
Instagram: www.instagram.com/sbrucker2/?hl=en
LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/sally-brucker-a3564b12/
Discovering Goddess Archetypes: Professional Retreat
Sally's Youtube Channel

SESSIONS AT THE SUMMIT:

On March 5-9, 2026, Sally Brucker, will be leading the Discovering Goddess Archetypes: Professional Retreat at the magical Lunita Jungle Retreat (www.lunitajungleretreat.com) in beautiful Puerto Morelos, close to the Mexican Riviera.

S4E4 | Dr. Stephan Meyer zum Alten Borgloh & Stefan Oliva | Frameshare: A Digital Art Telehealth Tool

Wed, 24 Sep 2025 17:48:17 GMT

FEATURED GUESTS: Stefan Oliva
Stefan is the co-founder of FrameShare, a digital art therapy platform designed to expand access to creative mental health care. With a background in mission-driven tech entrepreneurship, Stefan helped launch Yale University’s first student-led impact investment fund and was an early team member at Gro Intelligence, a global agriculture and climate platform founded in Nairobi, Kenya. His work sits at the intersection of technology and equity—shaped by his lifelong relationship to art, community care, and systems change.

Dr. Stephan Meyer zum Alten Borgloh
Stephan is FrameShare’s Chief Technology Officer. He holds a PhD in neuroscience from the Max Planck Institute and completed his postdoctoral research at Rockefeller University, where he transitioned from laboratory work to developing research and clinical applications. After his postdoc, Stephan helped multiple startups shape their data strategies and build innovative products, with experience spanning clinical technologies and climate tech.

LISTEN & LEARN:

What is Frameshare?
How accessible is Frameshare?
What features does Frameshare currently offer that meet the needs of art therapists?
What are the plans for the future of Frameshare?

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW:

Website Before October 2025 https://www.frame-share.org After October 2025
https://www.frameshare.org
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/frame-share/about/
Email Stefan Oliva at Stefan@frameshare.org
Email Dr. Stephan Meyer zum Alten Borgloh at Stephan@frameshare.org

How to Optimize Your Google Business Profile to Market Your Therapy Practice in 2025

Wed, 24 Sep 2025 17:46:33 GMT

How to Optimize Your Google Business Profile to Market Your Therapy Practice in 2025

When it comes to marketing a private psychotherapy practice, few tools are as powerful—or as overlooked—as a well-optimized Google Business Profile (GBP). Formerly known as Google My Business, this free listing is often the very first impression potential clients will have of your practice when they search online for “Therapy in My City” or “Telehealth Therapy near me. ”

In fact, Google uses the information in your profile to decide which therapists appear on the map pack, local searches, and even voice searches!

If your profile is incomplete or neglected, you’re missing a major opportunity to connect with people actively looking for your services.

In this article, we’ll cover why your Google Business Profile matters, how Google ranks listings, and specific strategies you can use to stand out— all without spending a dime.

Why Google Business Profiles Matter for Therapists

Think of your GBP as your practice’s digital storefront. It shows up when someone searches for therapy in your city, even before they reach your website. An optimized profile:

Builds trust by showing reviews (we will cover the ethics of this below), photos, and accurate business details.

Improves visibility in Google’s local search results (the “map pack” you often see at the top of searches).

Encourages action with direct links for calling, messaging, or purchasing offers.

For therapists in private practice, where word-of-mouth and referrals are key, this free marketing tool can help bridge the gap between being found online and actually getting booked.

How Google Ranks Your Profile

Google uses three main factors to decide where your profile appears in search results:

Relevance – How well your listing matches what the searcher is looking for. For example, if someone types “ ADHD therapy for women in Fort Myers ” and your profile mentions that service, you’re more likely to show up.
Distance – How close your office location is to the person searching. If you offer telehealth therapy, you can broaden your reach by clearly listing this as a service.
Prominence – How well-known and active your profile appears online. Reviews, photos, and regular updates all help boost your prominence.

The more optimized your profile, the more signals Google has to determine that you’re the right therapist for the right client at the right time.

Step-by-Step Guide to Optimizing Your Google Business Profile

1. Claim and Verify Your Profile

If you haven’t already, visit Google Business Profile Manager and claim your listing. Google will walk you through verifying your practice by phone, email, or postcard.

2. Use the Right Categories

Your primary category should reflect your core service. Options might include:

Psychotherapist
Counselor
Mental Health Service

You can add secondary categories for specialties like “Marriage or Family Therapist” or “Psychologist.” Choosing the right categories ensures Google connects you with the right searches. Think of these as your Key Words.

3. Write a Keyword-Rich Business Description

Use your business description to highlight your specialties, services, and location. Example:

“At Florida Art Therapy Services, we specialize in therapy for women with ADHD, grief counseling, and telehealth therapy across Florida. Based in Fort Myers, we help individuals find healing and growth through evidence-based and creative therapeutic approaches.”

This naturally incorporates SEO keywords like therapy in Fort Myers and telehealth therapy.

4. Add Services and Attributes

List your services individually, such as:

Therapy for Women with ADHD
Anxiety and Stress Counseling
Grief and Loss Support
Telehealth Therapy

Adding these makes your profile more searchable and client-friendly.

5. Upload Professional Photos and Videos

Visuals build trust. Add:

A professional headshot.
Office interior/exterior (if you have a physical space).
A calming, therapy-related image that reflects your brand.

�� Pro tip: Google favors listings with consistent photo uploads. Aim to add 1–2 new images per month.

6. Post Regular Updates

Many therapists don’t realize you can post to your GBP just like you would on social media. These posts show up directly in your listing. You can share:

Blog links from your website.
Mental health tips.
Announcements (e.g., “Now offering telehealth sessions!”).

�� Frequency: Aim for 1 post per week. This signals activity to Google and provides fresh value to people browsing your profile.

7. Collect and Respond to Reviews

Reviews are one of the strongest ranking factors for local SEO. This can be a challenge for therapists, as soliciting reviews from clients is considered unethical and, in some states, may also be illegal.

There are ways to work around this. Consider asking colleagues with whom you have collaborated to leave a review. If you offer any non-clinical services, such as continuing education training or an art and meditation experience, you could ask those participants to leave a review. You can also ask your friends and family to leave a review about you as a human on there. And, as appropriate, respond with a " thank you for your feedback " to the reviews.

8. Keep Your Information Updated

Double-check your:

Address
Phone number
Hours
Website link

�� Consistency matters. Ensure this matches your website and any directory listings to avoid confusing Google (and potential clients).

How to Use Your Profile Strategically

Boost SEO with keywords : Sprinkle location-based and service-based terms throughout your description, services, and posts.

Highlight telehealth therapy: Since distance is a ranking factor, clearly stating you offer online therapy can help you show up in searches beyond your immediate city.

Track insights : GBP provides free analytics showing how many people saw your profile, clicked to call, or visited your website. Use this data to see what’s working.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

Leaving your profile incomplete.
Never updating photos or posts.
Ignoring reviews or failing to respond.
Using generic descriptions without keywords.

Remember: Google rewards activity and accuracy. A static, empty profile won’t stand out!

Final Thoughts

Your Google Business Profile is one of the most effective, no-cost ways to market your private psychotherapy practice in 2025 . By taking the time to optimize your profile with accurate information, keyword-rich descriptions, consistent updates, and engaging visuals, you can improve your visibility and connect with the clients who need your services most.

At my practice, Florida Art Therapy Services , we’ve seen firsthand how a well-optimized profile can make the difference between being invisible online and building a thriving practice.

If you are looking for practice-building support or consultation, please reach out to Reina at Creativeclinician@gmail.com

The Ethics of Running a Private Practice: Considerations for Practice Owners

Wed, 28 May 2025 19:19:53 GMT

The Ethics of Running a Private Practice: Considerations for Practice Owners

Running a private mental health practice offers the freedom to shape your professional life and provide individualized care. However, with this autonomy comes the ethical responsibility of managing a business that prioritizes the well-being of clients, protects their rights, and maintains professional integrity. Ethical practice is not just about what happens in client sessions; it encompasses how the practice is structured, marketed, documented, and administered.

In this blog, we’ll explore the ethical dimensions of operating a private practice, including questions to consider, actionable steps to implement, and areas of concern such as the website, paperwork, and client communication.

Key Ethical Questions for Practice Owners

Before launching or scaling a private practice, owners should reflect on several ethical questions:

Am I practicing within my scope of competence?

Ethical practice starts with ensuring that your services match your training, education, and licensure. Avoid expanding into services simply because there’s demand unless you’re qualified to provide them.

How do I ensure confidentiality and data security?

Are digital systems (email, EHRs, cloud storage) HIPAA or GDPR compliant? Do you use secure platforms for telehealth and digital communication?

How do I handle dual relationships or conflicts of interest?

In small communities, for instance, dual relationships may be hard to avoid. Having clear policies and supervision helps navigate such complexities.

Am I being transparent about fees, cancellation policies, and client rights?

Surprises about billing or unclear boundaries can lead to ethical complaints or loss of trust.

How am I serving diverse populations?

Do your practice policies, intake forms, and marketing reflect inclusivity? Are you actively working towards developing culturally humble systems within your practice?

Ethical Action Steps to Implement

To run an ethically sound private practice, these steps can create a strong foundation:

1. Develop Clear, Comprehensive Practice Policies

Include policies on fees, late cancellations, emergency procedures, confidentiality, and informed consent.
These policies should be clear, written in accessible language, and reviewed regularly.

2. Use Legally and Ethically Sound Paperwork

Key documents include:
Informed consent forms
Privacy policies
Client intake forms
Telehealth consent (if applicable)
Release of information forms
Ensure clients understand what they are signing. Before the intake assessment begins, verbally go over the consent to ensure they understand and have had an opportunity to ask questions and have them answered.

3. Ensure Compliance with Legal Standards

Stay informed of local and national regulations related to your profession.
Regularly audit your records, billing practices, and documentation processes for compliance.
Use practice management systems that meet data protection standards.

4. Seek Ongoing Supervision and Consultation

Even seasoned professionals benefit from consultation, especially when facing ethical dilemmas.
Supervision and peer consultation can help mitigate blind spots and enhance accountability.

5. Create a Crisis Management Protocol

How will you handle client emergencies, subpoenas, or complaints?
Include emergency contact processes, documentation standards, and legal consultation options.

Ethical Considerations for the Website

Your website is often the first point of contact for clients, and it should reflect your commitment to ethical practice. Here’s what to consider:

Truthful Representation

Avoid exaggerating your credentials, experience, or the effectiveness of your services.
Do not use client testimonials. The majority of ethical codes from various mental health organizations bar solicitation of testimonials and many states legally prohibit doing so.

Accessibility and Inclusivity

Use language and images that welcome diverse populations.
Include accessibility tools for individuals with disabilities.

Privacy Protections

Ensure your website has a clear privacy policy outlining how user data is collected, stored, and used.
If you offer a contact form, secure it using encryption and avoid asking for sensitive health information.

Clarity of Services and Fees

Outline your areas of specialization, types of clients served, session structure, and payment policies.
Being upfront avoids confusion and fosters trust.

Disclaimers

If you share educational content, include a disclaimer that it does not constitute therapeutic advice.
For telehealth services, disclose any limitations or jurisdictional constraint

Ethical Practice Paperwork: What You Need

All documents should be client-centered, easy to understand, and legally sound. Consider working with a legal professional to ensure compliance. Common documents include:

Informed Consent: Should clearly describe the nature of the service, limits of confidentiality, risks, and benefits.
HIPAA/Privacy Notice (or GDPR compliance): Required if you’re handling protected health information (PHI) or seeing clients in certain jurisdictions.
Cancellation and Payment Policies: Outline how missed sessions, insurance claims, and billing are handled.
Release of Information Forms: Use these whenever sharing client information, even for coordination with other providers.

These documents should be reviewed annually and updated as laws or practice standards evolve.

A Culture of Ethical Integrity

Ethical practice is more than compliance — it's a culture you cultivate. That includes:

Treating clients with dignity, regardless of their identity or background.

Being accountable for mistakes and seeking resolution quickly.

Ensuring your office (virtual or physical) is welcoming, safe, and supportive.

Creating clear boundaries around your availability and professional role.

Don’t underestimate the impact of your administrative decisions. Everything from how you return calls to the way you handle complaints reflects your ethical values.

Final Thoughts

Ethics in private practice is not a one-time consideration — it’s an ongoing process of reflection, education, and adaptation. Practice owners have a unique opportunity to design businesses that not only serve clients but also model the highest standards of professional integrity.

By asking tough questions, putting clear systems in place, and ensuring every aspect of your practice — from your website to your intake paperwork — reflects ethical care, you create a safe and trustworthy environment where clients can thrive.

Ultimately, ethical private practice isn’t just good for clients — it’s good for your professional reputation, peace of mind, and long-term success.

If you need support establishing ethical systems within your practice, reach out for a professional consultation at creativeclinician@gmail.com

S4E3 | Reina Lombardi | Ethics in Private Practice

Wed, 28 May 2025 18:57:13 GMT

FEATURED GUESTS: Reina Lombardi, ATR-BC, ATCS, LMHC-QS is a Registered Board Certified Art Therapist, Art Therapy Certified Supervisor, and Licensed Mental Health Counselor Qualified Supervisor. She owns Florida Art Therapy Services, LLC , a full-fee group practice, where she and a team of therapists provide in-person and technology facilitated individual and group art therapy and counseling services, contracted art therapy groups at various community agencies, supervision and continuing education programming for counselors and art therapists. She has contributed to several academic texts on the topics of art therapy and clinical supervision, and is a frequent presenter/speaker at local and national professional conferences.

She also owns Creative Clinician’s Corner, LLC where she provides practice building resources and consultation services for creative arts therapists with a desire to build and scale their own private practice. She is the host of The Creative Psychotherapist Podcast where she interviews successful creative therapists about the tools and strategies they used to grow their dream practices, as well as how they have hustled to create additional streams of income using their knowledge and creativity by developing products and services that enhance their therapy practices.

LISTEN & LEARN:

This Ethics in Private Practice Podcast recording, CEBroker Tracking # 20-1302891 , is eligible for 1 CE credit with purchase and passing a short quiz after listening. Click on the following link to purchase https://floridaarttherapyservices.groovepages.com/ce/ethics-ondemand
What is a Business Will?
What needs to be included in the Will?
Minimum disclosures included in an informed consent.
Minimum disclosures included in a telehealth informed consent.
Ethical rationales for termination.
Why it is unethical to solicit testimonials from clients and what to do instead.

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW:

Get your Bluetooth EMDR Tabs from Dharma Dr. at dharmadr.com/Creative10 and use CREATIVE10 at checkout for a $10.00 off discount
Need support in creating your practice email me for a consult: creativeclinician@gmail.com

VFTS 2025-2 | Mimi Savage | Personal Public Service Announcement (TM): an arts based approach for research

Mon, 21 Apr 2025 15:34:20 GMT

FEATURED GUESTS: Dr. Mimi Savage is an associate professor and core faculty member in the Master's of Counseling Psychology with Expressive Arts program at CIIS in SF. She has an extensive background in acute milieus and has researched adopted young women and boys from foster care using narrative inquiry, arts based and participatory research on the topic of intersectionality and self identity. She is a founding faculty member of UCLArts and Healing in Los Angeles--now called Integrative Arts and Healing Initiative.

She is a registered drama therapist and board certified trainer and mentors an international student body for professionals interested in drama therapy certification at her own school--So Cal Drama Therapy Center. She is now also core faculty for a new program she is helping to launch at CIIS which is Expressive Arts Coaching and Community Building. She is in the process of editing her book for Taylor & Francis/Routledge due next year called The Future of Black Creative Art Therapists: Practice, Pedagogy and Preservation.

LISTEN & LEARN:

What is narrative inquiry?
What is the Personal Public Services Announcement™ (PPSA) method?
The importance of identity work when engaging with adolescents.
The value of contributing to the field through the use of writing.
How to use the PPSA as a tool in participatory arts-based research.
Mimi's upcoming book, "The Future of Black Creative Arts Therapists: Pedagogy and Preservation," due in 2026 by Taylor & Francis/Routledge.

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW:

Mimi's Session at the Midwest Expressive Therapies Summit - Re-Storying Self-Identity Through Drama, Writing & Masks: Creating Personal Public Service Announcements ™ on May 3, 2025 from 10:00 AM-5:30 PMCT

In this day-long three-part master class, participants will have the opportunity to learn the Personal Public Service Announcement™ (PPSA) method, an arts-based approach that was originally developed to generate narrative data using drama therapy techniques with adopted young women in foster care. To introduce this novel format, past peer-reviewed research will be discussed from the empirical-based inquiry. For the majority of our time together, however, participants will be invited to work collaboratively and in embodied ways to create their own PPSAs using a number of expressive arts tools, including creative writing, digital apps, and mask-making. In particular, participants will discover the theory, processes, and outcome of this restorative way of doing participatory research within narrative inquiry. Synthesizing personal explorations to enhance emotional or clinical development — then creatively reconstructing that information and affect into PPSAs with the intent to re-story and restore self-identity while being witnessed — can be very effective in treatment, as well.

PLEASE NOTE: Participants' knowledge of qualitative research tenets and methods will be beneficial. The ability to access your narratives without concern about retraumatization will be key to maintaining safety in this session.

The Future of Black Creative Art Therapists: Practice, Pedagogy and Preservation will be available for preorder on https://www.routledge.com/ April 2026.
Mimi Savage, PhD, RDT, BCT contact msavage@ciis.edu
Mimi's SoCaldramatherapycenter http://www.socaldramatherapycenter.com/
Mimi's LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/mimi-savage-phd-rdt-bct-b0179931/

Need support in creating your practice Email me for a consult: creativeclinician@gmail.com

S4E2 | Christine Brooks, Mimi Savage, Shoshana Simons | Building Community through Expressive Arts Coaching

Mon, 21 Apr 2025 15:34:16 GMT

FEATURED GUESTS: Christine Brooks, PhD is a Professor and the Chair of the Expressive Arts Coaching and Community Building program at California Institute of Integral Studies. Her research interests include adult development, intentional childlessness, qualitative research methods, and transformative processes in coaching. She is a consultant and coach with expertise in social and emotional intelligence, identity development tools such as the enneagram, and leadership and executive presence. When not traveling the roads of the United States to experience the profound variety of people, creativity, landscapes, and regional food ways, she lives in Florida.

Shoshana Simons, PhD, RDT is Professor and former Program Chair of CIIS’s MA in Counseling Psychology, Expressive Arts Concentration. She is a drama therapist, voice actor and arts-based coach & consultant. She is also adjunct faculty at the Northwest Creative & Expressive Arts Institute, Seattle, WA, offering a Certificate in NarrARTive Expressive Arts in Coaching. Shoshana has 35+ years of experience in community-building in many settings including with children and adults in the fields of play, education, antiracism, counseling psychology, organizational development, and community work.

Dr. Mimi Savage is an associate professor and core faculty member in the Master's of Counseling Psychology with Expressive Arts program at CIIS in SF. She has an extensive background in acute milieus and has researched adopted young women and boys from foster care using narrative inquiry, arts based and participatory research on the topic of intersectionality and self identity. She is a founding faculty member of UCLArts and Healing in Los Angeles--now called Integrative Arts and Healing Initiative. She is a registered drama therapist and board certified trainer and mentors an international student body for professionals interested in drama therapy certification at her own school--So Cal Drama Therapy Center. She is now also core faculty for a new program she is helping to launch at CIIS which is Expressive Arts Coaching and Community Building. She is in the process of editing her book for Taylor & Francis/Routledge due next year called The Future of Black Creative Art Therapists: Practice, Pedagogy and Preservation.

LISTEN & LEARN:

What does a Master's in Expressive Arts Coaching & Community Building consist of?
What is Coaching & Community Building?
What is the Scholar-Artist-Practitioner model of pedagogy used in this program?
The integration of theory and neuroscience that grounds the program.
Brook's definition of loneliness as the perception of social isolation and why community is an integral aspect of healing work.
The stipend discount offered for the inaugural cohort in the program.

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW:

https://www.ciis.edu/academics/department-expressive-arts-coaching-community-building
The CIIS Expressive Arts Coaching & Community Building Launch Party April 23rd @ 11:30AM PT https://www.ciis.edu/events/launch-party-new-ma-expressive-arts-coaching-community-building
Christine Brooks, PhD LinkedIn www.linkedin.com/in/sofchristinebrooks
Shoshana Simons, PhD, RDT CIIS contact https://www.ciis.edu/profiles/shoshana-simons
Shoshana's Narrative Expressive Arts Coaching certificate program https://seattlearttherapy.org/narrartive-expressive-arts-coaching-certificate/
Shoshana's LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/shoshana-simons-b029a34/
Mimi Savage, PhD, RDT, BCT contact msavage@ciis.edu
Mimi's SoCaldramatherapycenter http://www.socaldramatherapycenter.com/
Mimi's LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/mimi-savage-phd-rdt-bct-b0179931/
Need support in creating your practice email me for a consult: creativeclinician@gmail.com

S4E1 | Reina Lombardi |Practice Considerations During Times of Uncertainty

Mon, 21 Apr 2025 15:34:13 GMT

Why collaborating with other agencies or partnerships can provide alternative fee models to access care in your practice.
The benefits of offering one-time wellness and creative-based workshops in your practice.
Why community-focused engagements can increase awareness and knowledge of your practice.
The importance of keeping your SEO relevant and 5 places to enter keywords on your website.
How using an AI chatbot can be beneficial to converting clients.

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW:

Get your Bluetooth EMDR Tabs from Dharma Dr. at dharmadr.com/Creative10 and use CREATIVE10 at checkout for a $10.00 off discount
Need support in creating your practice email me for a consult: creativeclinician@gmail.com

Top 5 Things Small Private Practice Owners Need to Know About SEO

Mon, 21 Apr 2025 15:15:00 GMT

Top 5 Things Small Private Practice Owners Need to Know About SEO

Getting Ahead of the Trends: Running a Successful Self-Pay Mental Health Practice

The landscape of mental health care is evolving rapidly, with an increasing number of providers opting to run self-pay practices rather than working within the constraints of insurance panels. This shift allows therapists greater autonomy, higher income potential, and the ability to provide better care for their clients. Creating and maintaining a successful self-pay practice requires one to stay ahead of industry trends. It requires one to position their practice effectively. Below are 6 strategies to advance your self-pay practice.

1. Niche Marketing
One of the biggest trends in self-pay mental health practices is the for specialization. Creative Arts Therapists are well-positioned for niching. Clients are increasingly looking for experts who can address their specific needs. Whatever your approach as a Creative Arts Therapist is, you are a standout over other providers offering more traditional talk therapy methods. Developing a strong personal brand that communicates what you do, the unique way you do it, and the resolution that approach offers for your potential client is essential. Optimizing your website with keywords that emphasize your niche and harnessing social media to reflect your specialization will benefit your practice.

2. Leveraging Technology and Digital Tools
Teletherapy is here to stay. Clients want flexibility to come in person or meet online at the last minute. Even if you have a brick-and-mortar practice, you need to have the ability to offer virtual sessions. Technology plays a vital role in practice management, in addition to telehealth sessions. Electronic Health Records, AI chatbots on your website, Customer Relations Management tools (CMRs) all play a role in the administration of your practice.

3. Building a Strong Online Presence and Thought Leadership
The way clients find and choose therapists has changed. A strong online presence is essential if you have a self-pay practice. Clients look for providers who share insights, demonstrate expertise, and engage with their audience through digital platforms. This could be through writing or creating videos sharing vital educational information, or through social media doing the same. This could be by having a youtube channel, a podcast, a blog or creating a tik-tok account.

4. Diversifying Revenue Streams
A sustainable self-pay practice goes beyond one-on-one therapy sessions. Diversifying income streams can provide financial stability and scalability. Developing and selling digital products such as resources or e-courses, corporate wellness programs or paid webinars are options for other revenue streams.

5. Strengthening Referral Networks and Community Engagement
Word-of-mouth referrals remain a powerful tool for growing a self-pay practice. Engaging with your professional community and fostering strong referral networks can bring a steady stream of ideal clients. Consider creating your own networking group. Reach out to other practitioners and develop connections and relationships which are mutually beneficial. Participate in local health fairs, conferences and collaborations in your community. Build collaborative relationships.

6. Prioritizing Client Experience and Retention
In a self-pay model, client satisfaction is crucial for retention and long-term business growth. A seamless, personalized experience fosters trust and encourages ongoing engagement. Consider how to reduce friction in the onboarding and intake process. Make it as easy and seamless as possible. Solicit feedback periodically and adjust your processes accordingly. Consider offering special events or workshops that cater to your client's needs at little to no cost.

The self-pay mental health practice model offers immense opportunities for therapists looking to break free from insurance constraints and create a more fulfilling practice. By staying ahead of industry trends—focusing on specialization, leveraging technology, diversifying services, and enhancing client experience—you can build a thriving, sustainable, and impactful business.
Now is the time to position yourself at the forefront of mental health care’s future. Take proactive steps today, and watch your self-pay practice flourish!

If you are struggling with figuring out how to prioritize what needs to be done in your business, find yourself getting overwhelmed by it all, or just need some support building systems to help you get in flow, I offer consultations to help. Send an email and let's talk. Have you ever found yourself feeling overwhelmed in your business? Perhaps, feeling like you are running from one thing to the next without a deep connection or attunement to the activity you are engaging in or the person you are with?

I have spent this past year in that state trying to get ahead. I revamped my schedule. I delegated more to my administrative assistant. I stopped accepting new clients. No matter what I did, it wasn't changing the feeling of overwhelm.

My practice experienced significant growth in the past year. And with growth comes lots of change.

Systems and workflows that were once automated break down creating frustration and inefficiency. When that happens, those things become urgent and important to resolve usurping other tasks on the to-do list that can be put off until they become the urgent and important tasks.

This pattern is exhausting!

It reminds me of the Poem "The Hole: An Autobiography in 5 Short Chapters" by Portia Nelson.

Sometimes what is needed when things get overwhelming is to step away, reflect, and reset.

I have heard many private practice owners say that they can't take time off for a vacation. And, yet, the truth is that we can't afford not to.

Stepping away gives us time to pause and reflect on what is happening. It wasn't until I took an intentional 10 day solo road trip this past June, that I slowed down enough to identify the root rot contributing to the overwhelm.

I needed that distance to create a new perspective about the challenges I was experiencing. I couldn't see them previously because I was too close to the source of the problems. It also helped me to identify the emotional reasoning and mindset patterns contributing to feelings of overwhelm.

Taking that time helped me to map out a plan and start to course correct.

After spending over a decade in private practice, I have learned there are seasons in our business. Winter is a time of preparation. Spring is a time for planting. Summer a time for tending. And Fall, a time to reap the harvest. I realized that I have been stuck in a summer season in my business for over a year.

That extended season was necessary though. Our office doubled in size when we relocated. We added more therapists to the team. We added therapy groups, special events, and even summer camps to our services. All of these took more energy and attention than I had been dedicating to my practice previously.

Now, I am taking the time to reduce what I am producing in order to invest in my back-end systems and allow myself the opportunity to re-envision where I want to go from here.

I only got here by taking that time to slow down and reflect. When the time comes that you are feeling overwhelmed by all that is happening within your business, I hope you remember that you, too, deserve the time to press pause, reflect and reset.

Getting Ahead of the Trends: Running a Successful Self-Pay Mental Health Practice

Mon, 24 Mar 2025 18:08:11 GMT

Getting Ahead of the Trends: Running a Successful Self-Pay Mental Health Practice

When Your Business Feels Overwhelming: Reflect & Reset

Have you ever found yourself feeling overwhelmed in your business? Perhaps, feeling like you are running from one thing to the next without a deep connection or attunement to the activity you are engaging in or the person you are with?

I have spent this past year in that state trying to get ahead. I revamped my schedule. I delegated more to my administrative assistant. I stopped accepting new clients. No matter what I did, it wasn't changing the feeling of overwhelm.

My practice experienced significant growth in the past year. And with growth comes lots of change.

Systems and workflows that were once automated break down creating frustration and inefficiency. When that happens, those things become urgent and important to resolve usurping other tasks on the to-do list that can be put off until they become the urgent and important tasks.

This pattern is exhausting!

It reminds me of the Poem "The Hole: An Autobiography in 5 Short Chapters" by Portia Nelson.

Sometimes what is needed when things get overwhelming is to step away, reflect, and reset.

I have heard many private practice owners say that they can't take time off for a vacation. And, yet, the truth is that we can't afford not to.

Stepping away gives us time to pause and reflect on what is happening. It wasn't until I took an intentional 10 day solo road trip this past June, that I slowed down enough to identify the root rot contributing to the overwhelm.

I needed that distance to create a new perspective about the challenges I was experiencing. I couldn't see them previously because I was too close to the source of the problems. It also helped me to identify the emotional reasoning and mindset patterns contributing to feelings of overwhelm.

Taking that time helped me to map out a plan and start to course correct.

After spending over a decade in private practice, I have learned there are seasons in our business. Winter is a time of preparation. Spring is a time for planting. Summer a time for tending. And Fall, a time to reap the harvest. I realized that I have been stuck in a summer season in my business for over a year.

That extended season was necessary though. Our office doubled in size when we relocated. We added more therapists to the team. We added therapy groups, special events, and even summer camps to our services. All of these took more energy and attention than I had been dedicating to my practice previously.

Now, I am taking the time to reduce what I am producing in order to invest in my back-end systems and allow myself the opportunity to re-envision where I want to go from here.

I only got here by taking that time to slow down and reflect. When the time comes that you are feeling overwhelmed by all that is happening within your business, I hope you remember that you, too, deserve the time to press pause, reflect and reset.

VFTS 2025-1 | Richard Sims | Somatic Movement Approaches in Psychotherapy

Mon, 24 Mar 2025 17:30:52 GMT

FEATURED GUESTS: Richard Sims MSME, MSMT, CTP

Richard Sims is a Master Somatic Movement Educator/Movement Therapist, Mindfulness, Embodiment and Body Awareness Educator, Certified Trauma Professional, Aikido Instructor, and Somatic Specialist in the areas of stress, fear, anxiety, pain and trauma. He is currently the Board President for ISMETA (International Somatic Movement Education and Therapy Association) where he tirelessly works growing the Somatic Movement Profession and its place in the integrative whole person health field. He also sits on the Board of Aiki Extensions.

He teaches adults, children and teens empowering somatic approaches and tools to improve their emotional and physical wellbeing. His trauma informed somatic approach combines the BodyMind connection, as well as our emotions and distress responses with many somatic and mindful methods including Being In Movement® mindbody education, Body Awareness, Breathing, Meditation, Somatic Education, Feldenkrais, Alexander, Trauma Informed Mindfulness, Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) and the principles of the the martial art of Aikido (The Art of Peace).

He teaches in person and online globally with individuals and groups. Additionally he runs workshops with allied professionals on how they can incorporate somatic approaches into their practice in a complimentary integrative whole person approach to healing.

Richard also works with organizations, schools, non-profits, first responders and companies, helping with their member's challenges that affect their relationships and performance personally, professionally and academically.

Some of these groups include: MenHealing (a prominent organization for male sexual abuse survivors and their loved ones) along with thought leaders from the psychotherapeutic field, The Cancer Wellness Center, Illinois Schools, Urban Gateways (curriculum through the arts), the State of Illinois (First responder professional and personal connection, de-escalation, stress and trauma), FORGE (Trans Survivors) and the H.O.M.E. Project, supplying electronic and video based resources and information to over a million incarcerated men and women in 47 states.

LISTEN & LEARN:

Rich's definition of Somatic Movement approaches to therapy.
Legal considerations regarding touch as a somatic movement practitioner and why he has elected to practice as an educator.
An experiential game designed to highlight the mind and body working together to construct core beliefs and narratives that may keep us stuck.
The benefits of training and seeking out consultation or supervision with an experienced mentor if you want to integrate somatic approaches into your practice.

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW:

Web: richardesims.com
Facebook:https://www.facebook.com/richard.sims.5667
Instagram:richsims_breathing
LinkedIn:https://www.linkedin.com/in/rich-sims-ab02337/
Sign up for Richard's list
Watch one of Rich's favorite exercises designed to help not only calm a racing mind but also a body that may be unable to relax and settle. https://richard-e-sims.kit.com/b79e217651

SESSIONS AT THE SUMMIT:

May 3rd 2:30-6:30 pm CT he will be teaching on A Somatic Movement Approach for Healing the Effects of Sexual Abuse & Trauma at the Expressive Therapies Summit MIDWEST 2025 at Double Tree by Hilton Hotel Chicago.

OTHER WORKSHOPS:

https://menhealing.org/somatic-healing-101-2025/

{Disclaimer: To be transparent, some links to the books/ products mentioned in the show are affiliate links. We receive a small fee if you purchase an item using the links. We use the fees to help us grow and improve the podcast. We will never use an affiliate link to a product that we don't believe in or haven't vetted ourselves. Thank you for your support.}

When Your Business Feels Overwhelming: Reflect & Reset

Thu, 13 Feb 2025 20:04:23 GMT

When Your Business Feels Overwhelming: Reflect & Reset

Insights Learned from "Buy Back Your Time"

Wed, 11 Sep 2024 18:16:09 GMT

Insights Learned From " Buy Back Your Time" by Dan Martell

When Your Business Feels Overwhelming: Reflect & Reset

Have you ever found yourself feeling overwhelmed in your business? Perhaps, feeling like you are running from one thing to the next without a deep connection or attunement to the activity you are engaging in or the person you are with?

I have spent this past year in that state trying to get ahead. I revamped my schedule. I delegated more to my administrative assistant. I stopped accepting new clients. No matter what I did, it wasn't changing the feeling of overwhelm.

My practice experienced significant growth in the past year. And with growth comes lots of change.

Systems and workflows that were once automated break down creating frustration and inefficiency. When that happens, those things become urgent and important to resolve usurping other tasks on the to-do list that can be put off until they become the urgent and important tasks.

This pattern is exhausting!

It reminds me of the Poem " The Hole: An Autobiography in 5 Short Chapters " by Portia Nelson.

Sometimes what is needed when things get overwhelming is to step away, reflect, and reset.

I have heard many private practice owners say that they can't take time off for a vacation. And, yet, the truth is that we can't afford not to.

Stepping away gives us time to pause and reflect on what is happening. It wasn't until I took an intentional 10 day solo road trithis past June, that I slowed down enough to identify the root rot contributing to the overwhelm.

I needed that distance to create a new perspective about the challenges I was experiencing. I couldn't see them previously because I was too close to the source of the problems. It also helped me to identify the emotional reasoning and mindset patterns contributing to feelings of overwhelm.

Taking that time helped me to map out a plan and start to course correct.

After spending over a decade in private practice, I have learned there are seasons in our business. Winter is a time of preparation. Spring is a time for planting. Summer a time for tending. And Fall, a time to reap the harvest. I realized that I have been stuck in a summer season in my business for over a year.

That extended season was necessary though. Our office doubled in size when we relocated. We added more therapists to the team. We added therapy groups, special events, and even summer camps to our services. All of these took more energy and attention than I had been dedicating to my practice previously.

Now, I am taking the time to reduce what I am producing in order to invest in my back-end systems and allow myself the opportunity to re-envision where I want to go from here.

I only got here by taking that time to slow down and reflect. When the time comes that you are feeling overwhelmed by all that is happening within your business, I hope you remember that you, too, deserve the time to press pause, reflect and reset.

VFTS 2024-2 | Dr. Ericha Scott | Addressing Trauma & Dissociation through Poetry

Wed, 11 Sep 2024 18:01:50 GMT

FEATURED GUESTS: Ericha Scott, PhD, ATR-BC, REAT, LPCC917

Dr. Scott is a healer who walks the fine line between mysticism and evidenced-based psychotherapy. She is a licensed psychotherapist (LPCC917) with additional certifications as a registered and board-certified art therapist (ATR-BC), registered expressive arts therapist (REAT), internationally certified advanced alcohol and drug counselor (ICAADC), and as a certified interfaith spiritual director. In addition, she is an Amazon number one best selling author in six countries, artist, photographer, and poet.

For 40 years, she has worked with those who struggle with substance and behavioral use disorders, survivors of trauma, complex trauma, torture, dissociation, victims of sex trafficking, and ritual crime. She is an Honorary Fellow of the International Society for the Study of Trauma and Dissociation, the oldest trauma organization in the world, and she was given the Alumni Recognition Award by Sierra Tucson for her work as a trauma and addiction therapist. For ISSTD she was nominated for her research on the topic of profound self-mutilation by those with dissociative identity disorders, and her advocacy for disempowered populations. This research, which included life-sized silhouette drawings and poetry, was published in a peer review journal by UCLA in 1999. Her commitment to health, wellness, and "art as medicine" includes art-based experiential teaching for the medical doctors in Andrew Weil’s University of Arizona Center for Complementary Medicine (8 years), professional clinicians, the public, and her own personal health journey.

Her investment in social change via the arts across the world includes travel, presentations, collaboration, and cultural exchange in 4 continents. Her worldwide creative and spiritual workshops bring hope and healing to diverse populations. Several of her peer-reviewed academic publications and lectures have been translated into Prussian, Arabic, Spanish, and Czechoslovakian. Last year, Dr. Scott was the keynote speaker in Cairo for the first international scientific art therapy conference in Egypt.

"I give the credit for my success to the power of art to heal and transform even the most challenging problems.”

LISTEN & LEARN:

Various ways disassociation manifests in an individual.
Use of Creative interventions to reveal and challenge cognitive distortions.
Use of Body Maps in work with clients experiencing trauma and dissociation.
Use of poetry and stream-of-consciousness writing in parts-work.

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW:

https://artspeaksoutloud.org/ or 310-880-9761 for information on her intensive offerings
Connect with Dr. Scott at https://artspeaksoutloud.org/
Linkedin: www.linkedin.com/in/ehitchcockscott
Facebook: www.facebook.com/ErichaScottPhD or www.facebook.com/erichascott
Twitter: www.twitter.com/ErichaScott
YouTube: www.youtube.com/c/ErichaScottPhD
To Attend Dr. Scott's FREE ONLINE workshop on Historical & Clinical Perspectives of Art by Patients who Report Extreme, Ritualized, and Organized Trauma on September 27th, 12:00 -1:30PM PDT {Content Advisory: Be aware that this presentation and associated materials contain explicit content regarding ritual abuse, including images and descriptions that may be disturbing. Please engage with care and take breaks or seek support as needed.}

SESSIONS AT THE SUMMIT:

November 7th, 2024 from 2:00-5:00 pm EST Haiku Poetry and Stream of Consciousness Writing for Release and Relief from Trauma and Dissociation at the Expressive Therapies VIRTUAL Summit 2024. https://www.expressivetherapiessummit.com

{Disclaimer: To be transparent, some links to the books/ products mentioned in the show are affiliate links. We receive a small fee if you purchase an item using the links. We use the fees to help us grow and improve the podcast. We will never use an affiliate link to a product that we don't believe in or haven't vetted ourselves. Thank you for your support.}

When Your Business Feels Overwhelming: Reflect & Reset

Thu, 29 Aug 2024 19:46:10 GMT

When Your Business Feels Overwhelming: Reflect & Reset

When Your Business Feels Overwhelming: Reflect & Reset

Have you ever found yourself feeling overwhelmed in your business? Perhaps, feeling like you are running from one thing to the next without a deep connection or attunement to the activity you are engaging in or the person you are with?

I have spent this past year in that state trying to get ahead. I revamped my schedule. I delegated more to my administrative assistant. I stopped accepting new clients. No matter what I did, it wasn't changing the feeling of overwhelm.

My practice experienced significant growth in the past year. And with growth comes lots of change.

Systems and workflows that were once automated break down creating frustration and inefficiency. When that happens, those things become urgent and important to resolve usurping other tasks on the to-do list that can be put off until they become the urgent and important tasks.

This pattern is exhausting!

It reminds me of the Poem " The Hole: An Autobiography in 5 Short Chapters " by Portia Nelson.

Sometimes what is needed when things get overwhelming is to step away, reflect, and reset.

I have heard many private practice owners say that they can't take time off for a vacation. And, yet, the truth is that we can't afford not to.

Stepping away gives us time to pause and reflect on what is happening. It wasn't until I took an intentional 10 day solo road trithis past June, that I slowed down enough to identify the root rot contributing to the overwhelm.

I needed that distance to create a new perspective about the challenges I was experiencing. I couldn't see them previously because I was too close to the source of the problems. It also helped me to identify the emotional reasoning and mindset patterns contributing to feelings of overwhelm.

Taking that time helped me to map out a plan and start to course correct.

After spending over a decade in private practice, I have learned there are seasons in our business. Winter is a time of preparation. Spring is a time for planting. Summer a time for tending. And Fall, a time to reap the harvest. I realized that I have been stuck in a summer season in my business for over a year.

That extended season was necessary though. Our office doubled in size when we relocated. We added more therapists to the team. We added therapy groups, special events, and even summer camps to our services. All of these took more energy and attention than I had been dedicating to my practice previously.

Now, I am taking the time to reduce what I am producing in order to invest in my back-end systems and allow myself the opportunity to re-envision where I want to go from here.

I only got here by taking that time to slow down and reflect. When the time comes that you are feeling overwhelmed by all that is happening within your business, I hope you remember that you, too, deserve the time to press pause, reflect and reset.

S3E16 | Reina Lombardi | Intentional Pause

Thu, 29 Aug 2024 19:45:50 GMT

FEATURED GUESTS: Reina Lombardi, ATR-BC, ATCS, LMHC-QS is a Registered Board Certified Art Therapist, Art Therapy Certified Supervisor, and Licensed Mental Health Counselor Qualified Supervisor. She owns Florida Art Therapy Services, LLC , a full-fee group practice, where she and a team of therapists provide in-person and technology facilitated individual and group art therapy and counseling services, contracted art therapy groups at various community agencies, supervision and continuing education programming for counselors and art therapists. She has contributed to several academic texts on the topics of art therapy and clinical supervision, and is a frequent presenter/speaker at local and national professional conferences.

She also owns Creative Clinician’s Corner, LLC where she provides practice building resources and consultation services for creative arts therapists with a desire to build and scale their own private practice. She is the host of The Creative Psychotherapist Podcast where she interviews successful creative therapists about the tools and strategies they used to grow their dream practices, as well as how they have hustled to create additional streams of income using their knowledge and creativity by developing products and services that enhance their therapy practices.

LISTEN & LEARN:
- What goes into taking an intentional pause
- What Reina hopes to learn from taking an intentional pause
- Why intentional reflection is important as we grow our businesses

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW:

Need support in creating your practice email me for a consult: creativeclinician@gmail.com

S3E15 | Jasmine Parker-Rodriguez | Mobile Art Therapy: Community Driven Practice

Thu, 30 May 2024 22:31:09 GMT

FEATURED GUESTS: Jasmine Parker is a Registered Art Therapist and holds a dual master’s degree in both Mental Health Counseling and Art Therapy. Her clinical experience covers a wide range of settings to include: Residential Treatment, Public Schools, Community Agencies, Psychiatric Hospitals, Medical Hospitals, Juvenile Correctional Centers, and private practice. Jasmine’s vision is to empower young people by providing them with a safe space to express themselves creatively and openly, free from judgment; giving them the opportunity to explore their inner workings and learn how to successfully navigate life's daily challenges. Jasmine is the owner of Listen to Your Art Therapy & Empowerment Services LLC, a company focused on the needs of the clients. Her practice is an art based, group focused and caters to teens and young adults Jasmine’s life goal is to help teens and young adults build resiliency and hope.

LISTEN & LEARN:
- What goes into operating a mobile art therapy practice.
- What Jasmine learned since taking her practice on the road.
- Community collaboration as part of a practice business model.

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW:

Connect with Jasmine at www.ltyart.com
Check out Jasmines Art Therapy Notebook https://www.ltyart.com/category/all-products
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ltyart_tes https://www.instagram.com/Miniatr_dolls
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LTYArt/

Shining Light Onto Our Gremlins: Casting out the Imposter

Fri, 17 May 2024 12:51:46 GMT

Shining Light Onto Our Gremlins: Casting out the Imposter

Shining Light Onto Our Gremlins: Casting out the Imposter

Whether you call the nagging voice of not enough a Gremlin, the Inner Limited Thinker, or the Imposter, one thing is certain - whatever it is whispering in your ear is likely a huge bold lie. Despite success and achievements, some of us struggle with feelings of unworthiness which leads to a false belief that we are a fraud.

What is it about this voice that causes us to listen to it and therefore, give it more power over us? The reasons may be varied and multiple.

A few that come up for me are fear of being seen, fear of taking up space, fear of being more successful than others, fear of not knowing enough, fear of not being experienced enough, fear of outgrowing those around me, fear of being perceived a B word or stupid, and fear of being judged or criticized by others.

I am sure there are more, but these are the biggies. Societal programming and family upbringing all play a role in the quality of the voice. Women and people of color often experience Imposter Syndrome more than our male counterparts.

In 1978, Dr. Pauline Clance and Dr. Suzanne Imes, coined the term "Imposter Phenomenon" to describe when high-achieving people experience varying levels of self-doubt despite their achievements. The Clance Imposter Phenomenon Scale, created by Dr. Clance, was created to determine how impacted one may be by the Imposter, which you can take here . I scored a 52 on the Clance IP Scale, which indicates moderate impact. Clearly, I am still a work in progress when it comes to quieting this inner voice.

If I took the assessment 10 years ago I likely would have scored between 70-80. The imposter wanted me to believe that I didn't have enough experience, training, or business acumen to be successful as an independent practitioner. I am so glad that I didn't listen to that voice. I wouldn't be where I am today had I listened to it and played small.

Experiencing the voice of the Gremlin, Inner Critic, or Imposter?

Below is an experiential for you to shine light upon them and cast them out.

Create an image of what this voice looks like either realistically or symbolically. Name them. Pull out some lined paper or your computer and dialogue with the image. Ask them all the questions you want to know about them. What is their origin story? Who do they sound most like from your life? What function are they performing for you? How might they be trying to protect you? Use their responses to form additional questions.

Now create an image of the Crone Archetype. This is the older, wiser version of yourself. One with an inner knowing, who has lived through it all, who trusts her intuition and understands the passage you are setting upon. The Crone has insights and knowledge that only one who has lived through this part of your life can possess. What does she look like? Dialogue with her. What words of wisdom can she offer? What does she have to say about the voice of the Imposter? What does she have to say about playing small and not taking up space? Perhaps, have the Imposter and the Crone have a dialogue with one another.

Once you do that, imagine what it would look like and feel like to be in a state of embodiment possessing the strength, wisdom and insight the Crone has shared with you. Describe that in as much detail as possible. Sit in that space for a while. Become familiar with that sense of yourself. Practice getting into that embodied state so that it becomes more and more familiar.

Take some time to reflect upon what came up in this creative process. What insights or awareness came as a result? How can you use those to quiet the voice and befriend it?

When you are ready to take action in your business that the Imposter may have been holding you back, get into the embodied state of the Crone. Reflect on what it feels like to operate from this state of embodiment versus that of insecurity and doubt.

Make a list of all your achievements and accomplishments this year - small and large. Refer back to this when the Gremlin tells you that you are not enough, need more training, or need more experience. Use it as a reminder and affirmer of all you are capable of achieving.

Need support overcoming your Imposter voice as you heed the call to play bigger, take up space, and build a practice? Call 239-297-7099 or email to schedule a consultation.

S3E14 | Reina Lombardi | Growth in Practice: When to Hire Help

Fri, 17 May 2024 12:42:18 GMT

How to identify when you are ready to hire help to run your practice.
Considerations for which tasks to hire out.
Why to onboard before you really need the help.

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW:

Need support in creating your practice email me for a consult: creativeclinician@gmail.com

A Month in the Life of an Entrepreneur: Week 4

Thu, 09 May 2024 10:49:14 GMT

A Month in the Life of an Entrepreneur: Week 4

A Month in the Life of an Entrepreneur: Week 4

Over the past month, I have been writing about my process of getting a better handle on my schedule in my business. One of the tools I have been using is a hand-made time tracker. If you are interested, you can check out my tracking log here . I thought I would write this series to give a behind-the-scenes view of working on my business while working in my business. As I write the final installment, I realize this series wasn't about that at all. It was about helping myself see how imperative it is to change how I have been running my businesses.

I think I chose the worst month, or perhaps the best, to track my activities. Every weekend for a month, I have had a work obligation. These were all positive things: presenting at a 1-day regional professional event, teaching a 2-day course through my practice, hosting a community event at the office, and attending a regional conference. I noticed that I didn't give myself any days off before or after, which meant the month ran one day into the next without a break. Hosting, facilitating, and attending those events was not the problem; not giving myself respite in between was.

In the last blog, I wrote about my difficulty cutting things out of my schedule. I have fallen back into an old trap - believing I can't take days off either. The pressures of community work dictated that I take minimal time off and if I did take time, I had to prepare myself for negative feedback from those above me. Now I am the only one above me and have been holding myself to this absurd standard. I keep asking myself, "Why?" There have been times in my business when I had no trouble taking 2 weeks off at a time. What is different about the past year or so that is sitting different? Why am struggling with this now?

The conclusion --- Survival Mode --- it got kicked into gear after Hurricane Ian hit in 2022. It has impacted how I have been running my businesses and personal life (because I have not had much time for a personal life) ever since. There has been an underlying fear that I need to work while the work is available because there may be a period where it isn't as readily available. Despite being fiscally prepared for such an occurrence, the fear is under there.

Today's episode of the podcast with Sharon Itkoff Nacahe , discussing burnout and creative resilience, reminded me of how necessary it is for business-owning therapists to nourish themselves with creative slow-down time. This weekend, I have some slow-down time planned for myself. I also plan to clear a bulk of time off my schedule to get away this summer and relax.

A Month in the Life of an Entrepreneur: Week 3

Thu, 09 May 2024 10:44:47 GMT

A Month in the Life of an Entrepreneur: Week 3

A Month in the Life of an Entrepreneur: Week 3

The past two weeks, I wrote about the process of time tracking and identifying bottlenecks for troubleshooting in practice. If you are interested, you can check out my tracking log here . I thought I would write this series to give a behind-the-scenes view of working on my business while working in my business.

The more my practice grows, the more leadership time it needs from me. This means that I have to cut back the amount of time I spend providing direct client services. This has been so difficult for me. It is something that I want to do and need to do and, yet, I struggle to be consistent with this boundary. For example, I said I wasn't going to take on any returning clients and yet I did. I am doing my best to be compassionate with myself for this choice.

I have been working on this with my therapist using EMDR. My old programming is impacting my ability to lead. I have been better at carving out more time for admin since processing this using EMDR, but I think I still have a few more places where old beliefs are tripping me up. I grew up in a household where I believed I needed to perform, be responsible and achieve. I have been working since my 14th birthday. Many times, multiple jobs, even as I was in college. While this is helpful in that I am self-driven, it is problematic in that I struggle to put myself in park. I always say our strengths often create our blind spots. I am not immune to this myself.

I have had many people tell me, "I don't know how you do all you do." I often reply, "I don't know either." There are times when some things don't get done. Some weeks I just don't have time to write a blog, for example. That usually occurs because other tasks emerged that week that were both urgent and important.

What helps me the most to complete all the things that I do is having a set day/time allocated for those tasks.
Wednesdays, I write this newsletter each week. On Mondays, I take care of payroll and accounting. On Fridays, I work on planning with my assistant. Immediately following my CE events, I enter the attendees information in CEBroker and file all the documentation I need to save for the event.

One of the benefits of making the time tracker is realizing just how much having those times blocked out for those tasks make in getting things done and reducing overwhelm. I have realized that the things that overwhelm me are not built into my schedule. The schedule is an evolving work in progress.

As I reflect, I realize my schedule has gone through so many revisions over the years. Each revision requires me to let go of something. I often use the phrase, "I have to kill my babies," to describe the editing process. It is the place of disintegration which is necessary to welcome the birth of new ideas and passions.

I know it is a very uncomfortable thing to hear. What mother would want to do that? And if she did, imagine the pain and sorrow that would come with that act. When we create something from nothing - we are mothering. We are giving birth to an idea and then nurturing that idea along until it is fully mature. When it comes time for a new idea that has been gestating and vying to be born, sometimes the previous creations don't allow for that space and time. When it doesn't, it requires us to prune back or kill off the old creation.

That uncomfortable phrase really captures the emotionality of what it feels like to go through this process. It is really hard, at least for me. But I know I must do this for my own growth. My creative process must evolve. And I must let go and say goodbye in order to welcome in the new, fresh and exciting idea. As Elizabth Gilbert says, if you don't act on your creative idea the universe will give it to another who is ready to take action on it.

Next week, will be the last in this seriated blog post. I haven't decided what I will write about yet...

S3E13 | Sharon Itkoff Nacache | Creative Resilience in Practice

Thu, 09 May 2024 10:44:37 GMT

FEATURED GUESTS: Sharon Itkoff Nacache ATR-BC LCAT LPAT PMH-C is a trauma-informed, attachment-based, relational clinician with a virtual practice serving New Jersey and New York. As a perinatal art therapist with almost 15 years of clinical experience, she specializes in supporting those who identify as caregivers–personally or professionally–in cultivating creative resilience in the workplace, throughout their family building journeys, and beyond. Her work has been featured in both the New York and LA Times, and her creative clinical approaches are grounded in principles of cultural humility, humanism, and the healing power of an empathic creative process. Sharon also provides integrative arts-based wellness workshops to aid in burnout prevention and creativity development on the job for employees in both the public and private sectors. She is currently involved with an ongoing partnership with the Whitney Museum of American Art and NYC Health and Hospitals system via their HHC Art of Medicine program, bringing creative spaces to public hospital settings. To learn more visit www.cocreatearttherapy.com.

LISTEN & LEARN:

Sharon's model of Creative Resilience.
The relationship between Role Fatigue and Burnout.
The scope of perinatal mental health.
The role of self-compassion as therapist and entrepreneur.
The benefit of engaging in a modality outside your comfort zone as creative self-care.

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW:

Connect with Sharon at www.cocreatearttherapy.com
LinkedIN: https://www.linkedin.com/company/co-create-art-and-reproductive-therapy
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/cocreatearttherapy/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/cocreatearttherapy

S3E12 | Reina Lombardi | Entrepreneurial Mindset: 5 Things That Help Me Stay The Course In Rough Waters

Wed, 24 Apr 2024 21:28:21 GMT

Five mindset characteristics to help navigate challenges as a business owner.
Why we need to reconsider how we define failure.
Using our greatest asset - creativity - in how we approach mindset in business.

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW:

Need support in creating your practice email me for a consult: creativeclinician@gmail.com

S3E11 | Dawn Burau | Permission to Pivot: Embracing Change

Thu, 18 Apr 2024 22:49:13 GMT

FEATURED GUESTS: Dawn Burau, ATR-BC, LMHC worked in a therapeutic classroom for 13 years at a school in Lexington, MA. The school works with children with social, emotional, behavioral, neurological and academic struggles and their families. She is currently a therapist in their outpatient program. Dawn was core faculty at Lesley University in the Graduate School of Expressive Therapy form 2016-2023. She has given multiple lectures at local and national conferences on topics related to special education, curriculum modifications, use of arts in the school setting, and interpreting and applying neuropsychological assessments in the classroom and in the development of treatment plans. Dawn co-authored two books with Daniel Reinstein: Integrating Neuropsychological and Psychological Assessments (2014) and Applying the Results of Neuropsychological and Psychological Assessments (2017). Dawn loves nature and being outdoors, recently opening a gardening coaching business Wild Indigo Gardening.

LISTEN & LEARN:

How understanding the results of neuropsychological and psychological assessments can enhance your therapeutic practice.
Why the Expressive Therapies Continuum provides an excellent framework for media process selection in connection with the results of assessments.
The value of listening to your needs and personality as you develop your business.
The role of risk tolerance and business creation.

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW:

A Month in the Life of an Entrepreneur: Week 2

Thu, 18 Apr 2024 21:51:47 GMT

A Month in the Life of an Entrepreneur: Week 2

A Month in the Life of an Entrepreneur: Week 2

Last week, I wrote about my first week of time tracking. It hasn't been an exact science, but I am doing my best to capture what I am doing throughout the day. If you are interested, you can check out my tracking log here . I thought I would write this series to give a behind-the-scenes view of working on my business while working in my business.

I am looking for themes and places within my systems and workflows that cause me the most frustration throughout the week. One area that is afire with frustration - managing all of my emails. My assistant and I have been working on her combing through and deleting the junk that comes in and assigning other emails into specific Task lists. Once I complete them, I can delete or file them. The challenge comes when I have a day where I can't get to email and it builds. It can feel completely overwhelming sometimes.

Last week I shared that I am going to have to build in troubleshooting time into each day. I think I am also going to need to reserve an hour each day dedicated solely to email. That seems like a lot of time. I imagine some days, I will not need an entire hour and others I may need more than an hour. It just depends on what is going on.

This weekend, we are hosting a 12 hour Qualified Supervisor CE event. There have been quite a few technical issues, people wanting to change their training date to a later offering, and folks that simply have a lot of questions. This week has brought in more emails requiring immediate attention due to those things. This is a training we offer four times per year. In the week leading up to the training, I am going to need to decrease how many clients I see to allow for more administrative time.

What I have learned over the years in practice is that nothing is complete. No system is perfect or will function effectively forever. Systems and workflows are in constant need of reevaluation and tweaking. Right now as things are growing, much of how I have been managing my business is no longer working. Major tweaks lie ahead.

Next week, I plan on writing about the painful but necessary process of terminating things within your business in order to welcome in something fresh and exciting.

A Month in the Life of a Therapist Entrepreneur: Week 1

Thu, 11 Apr 2024 11:00:26 GMT

A Month in the Life of a Therapist Entrepreneur: Week 1

A Month in the Life of a Therapist Entrepreneur: Week 1

I am in need of a serious revamp of my schedule and work-life balance structure. This is not a bad thing. This is a thing that happens in cyclical patterns.

My practice has been a season of growth over the past 2 years. This is exciting and has brought with it additional roles and responsibilities. I have taken them on, plus a few others, without pulling back on any of the existing responsibilities. My roles and responsibilities have become unruly beasts and are in need of some serious revision. Just like plants in an untended garden beg to be weeded, trimmed, or replanted to have the best opportunity of achieving a state of thriving balance, so do my roles and responsibilities.

I have already begun to do some restructuring. I am not taking on any new clients or supervisees. Once folks terminate, I will not be adding any new clients either. In the meantime, I had to figure out a way to open up more time to work on my business. I have set up a bi-monthly schedule whereby weeks 1 & 3 are heavy on therapy, groups, or supervision, and weeks 2 & 4 are heavily focused on project management, administrative tasks, and strategy. So much of my time has been dedicated to client-facing work that I have ended up compromising my time to complete administrative tasks on weekends, early mornings, or late evenings. Cue that movie quote about all work and no play.

In the short term, this isn't a big deal. I knew I would have to make some sacrifices as I relocated my office into a larger suite. We will celebrate our 1st anniversary in the new suite at the end of this month. It is fair to say that it has morphed into a long-term issue. And it is one that I can't allow to continue without it causing serious negative consequences for my well-being.

The task this week - creating a Time Tracker Log to document everything I am doing each day. How many minutes are spent on all the things I am doing. I am committed to completing this task for a month. Each week will bring with it a new installment of the blog on the progress of that week. What did I learn that you can apply if your business has grown into the weeds?

S3E10 | Juliet King | Neuroscience Informed Art Therapy

Thu, 11 Apr 2024 10:48:46 GMT

FEATURED GUESTS: Juliet L. King, PhD, ATR-BC, LPC, LMHC is an Associate Professor of Art Therapy at The George Washington University and an Adjunct Associate Professor of Neurology at the Indiana University School of Medicine. Juliet has over two decades as a clinician, administrator, and educator. She developed and implemented the graduate art therapy program at Herron School of Art & Design-IUPUI, where her leadership spearheaded over 30 graduate student internships in the Indianapolis community and throughout the state. As a translational scientist, Professor King investigates the systematic integration of art therapy and cognitive neuroscience, applying her research to support those exposed to trauma across diverse populations and contexts. In 2016, she authored and edited Art Therapy, Neuroscience and Trauma: Theoretical and Practical Perspectives, with a highly anticipated second edition slated for release in early 2024.

LISTEN & LEARN:

How having a general understanding of neuroscience can help support stigma reduction in treatment.
How helping clients to understand their nervous systems can have a positive impact on treatment outcomes.
The importance of interdisciplinary or transdisciplinary collaboration in research in art therapy.
Benefits of the growing body of research in support of the arts as healing practices.
The Expressive Therapies Continuum's role in helping therapists select interventions to facilitate different neurological responses.

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW:

Learn more about Juliet King at: www.arttherapyresearch.com
Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/tertiaryprocess/
LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/juliet-l-king-23377529/
Art Therapy, Trauma & Neuroscience edited by Juliet King, PhD
Neuroarts Blueprint https://neuroartsblueprint.org/
Arts & Mind Lab https://www.artsandmindlab.org/

S3E9 | Dr. Robert Bray | Thought Field Therapy

Wed, 03 Apr 2024 21:39:07 GMT

FEATURED GUESTS: Robert L. Bray, Ph.D., LCSW has worked in the field of traumatic stress recovery for over 40 years. Beginning as volunteer on a crisis hot line and throughout his professional career, he has always focused on the impact of traumatic stress on the mental and physical health of individuals, families, and communities. Dr. Bray has extensive experience as a clinician helping in recovery from natural disasters, criminal acts, and domestic violence of all types. He has been training, writing, and developing Thought Field Therapy since 1996. Dr. Bray’s book “Heal Traumatic Stress NOW: Complete Recovery with Thought Field Therapy – No Open Wounds” provides a consumer-friendly self-help guide to anyone struggling with overwhelming stress. He is also an approved ICISF trainer. https://rlbray.com/

LISTEN & LEARN:

How TFT engages the full person - body, mind and spirit.
The crisis tapping sequence used in TFT.
The role of muscle testing in TFT and how it circumvents the need for using verbal language.
The integrative capacity of TFT with any other therapy modalities.
History of TFT and the creator, Roger Callahan.

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW:

Learn more about & Train with Dr. Robert Bray at: www.rlbray.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ThoughtFieldTherapyCenter
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rlbray/
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/DrRobertBray
Association for Comprehensive Energy Psychology https://www.energypsych.org/
No Open Wounds E-Book https://rlbray.com/product/no-open-wounds-e-book/
More on Founder of TFT Dr. Roger Callahan http://www.rogercallahan.com/callahan.php

Unpacking Money Mindset: Understanding Klontz's Scripts and Their Implications for Therapist Entrepreneurs

Thu, 21 Mar 2024 11:00:04 GMT

Unpacking Money Mindset: Understanding Klontz's Scripts and Their Implications for Therapist Entrepreneurs

Money, an integral aspect of our lives, often triggers complex emotions and beliefs deeply rooted in our upbringing, experiences, and societal influences. Dr. Brad Klontz, a renowned financial psychologist, has extensively studied these psychological scripts surrounding money, shedding light on our money mindset and its impact on financial decisions. In this blog, we'll discuss Klontz's scripts, explore which one is the most challenging for therapists, and discover strategies for creating a more empowered mindset around money.

Klontz identified four Scripts that shape our attitudes toward money:

Money Avoidance Script : Individuals adhering to this script often view money as a source of anxiety, shame, or disgust. They may believe that money corrupts or that they are undeserving of wealth. Consequently, they may engage in self-sabotaging behaviors such as overspending or avoiding financial planning altogether.

Money Worship Script: Conversely, those subscribing to the money worship script equate financial success with self-worth and happiness. They may pursue wealth obsessively, believing it will solve all their problems. However, this relentless pursuit can lead to workaholism, materialism, and neglect of personal relationships or well-being.

Money Status Script: This script places one's value as a person as determined by possessions and social status. Individuals driven by the money status script may engage in conspicuous consumption to validate their worth in the eyes of others. However, this pursuit often leads to a perpetual cycle of comparison, dissatisfaction, and financial instability.

Money Vigilance Script: People with this mindset are hyper-aware of their financial situation and may exhibit frugal behaviors to ensure security and independence. While prudence with money can be beneficial, excessive vigilance can manifest as anxiety, hoarding, or an inability to enjoy life due to fear of financial scarcity.

Understanding Klontz's scripts can provide valuable insights into behaviors, emotions, and underlying beliefs surrounding money. Therapists, like anyone else, also possess their own money scripts which influence their attitudes and behaviors towards finances. While individuals vary in their money mindsets, therapists may be particularly prone to the "Money Avoidance" script.

Therapists, through their training and professional ethos, often prioritize helping others and may internalize beliefs that equate financial success with selfishness or materialism. They may feel uncomfortable discussing money-related issues, viewing them as secondary to the emotional or psychological aspects of therapy. Additionally, some therapists may struggle with setting appropriate fees for their services, feeling conflicted about charging rates commensurate with their education, training and experience.

The money avoidance script can manifest in various ways among therapists. For instance, some therapists may undercharge for their services or feel guilty about earning a comfortable income from their practice. They may also avoid financial planning or investing, viewing money matters as stressful or irrelevant to their primary focus on client care.

Furthermore, therapists may experience feelings of inadequacy or imposter syndrome when it comes to managing their finances or negotiating fees with clients. This discomfort around money can potentially impact their professional satisfaction, overall well-being and practice sustainability.

It's essential to recognize that not all therapists align with the money avoidance script. Some may resonate more with the money vigilance script, exhibiting careful budgeting and financial planning habits to ensure stability and security in their personal and professional lives. Others may consciously challenge their money scripts through self-reflection, supervision, or professional development, striving for a healthier and more balanced relationship with money.

Ultimately, therapists, like their clients, are not immune to the influence of money scripts. By acknowledging and addressing their own money mindset, therapists can enhance their self-awareness, integrity, and effectiveness in supporting clients on their journey toward financial well-being and emotional health.

Need support shifting money mindset and setting fees, download our Free Fee Calculator . Or, reach out to schedule an individual consultation at creativeclinician@gmail.com .

Reference: https://www.bradklontz.com/moneyscriptstest

S3E8 | Bridget Steed | Traveling & Telehealth: Making Work-life Work for You

Thu, 21 Mar 2024 10:49:35 GMT

FEATURED GUESTS: Bridget Steed is a licensed therapist, Person-Centered Expressive Arts Practitioner, and intermodal artist with a Master’s Degree in Art Therapy. She is passionate about using “art as healing” and believes that creative expression is an inner resource available to everyone. Bridget is the Arts & Recovery Team Lead for Disastershock, an international humanitarian relief organization whose goal is to help children and families affected by disaster-related stress and trauma, and she has served on the Board of Directors for The International Expressive Arts Therapy Association (IEATA) since 2020, currently acting as one of the board’s Executive Co-Chairs. After working in clinical settings, both online and in-person, with adults with intellectual and physical disabilities as well as children and adolescents dealing with poverty, abuse, addiction, and a myriad of other social and emotional issues, Bridget is now focusing on growing her private practice, Precious Cargo Expressive Arts Therapy, while living on the Yucatán Peninsula in Southern Mexico.

LISTEN & LEARN:

Logistical considerations for providing telehealth services while traveling.
The power of creating connections through volunteer work.
The benefits of showing up as we are with consistency to build opportunities in your practice.
An example of a non-hustle mindset approach to marketing.
Recognizing fear as a guide and the voice of historic programming designed to keep us safe at the expense of creating an impact in the world.

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW:

Learn more about Bridget at: https://www.bridgetsteed.com/
Bridget's online practice at: https://preciouscargoexpressiveartstherapy.com/
International Expressive Arts Therapy Association: https://www.ieata.org/
Disastershock at: https://www.disastershock.com/

Self Publishing: What you need to know before you start

Thu, 14 Mar 2024 11:47:58 GMT

Self-Publishing: What You Need to Know Before You Start

Self-publishing is more accessible and easier than ever before. Just because you can, doesn't mean you should. It can be a rewarding endeavor, but it's important to be well-informed before you embark on this journey. Here are three key things to know before self-publishing:

1.Quality Matters:

Editing and Proofreading: Invest time and, if possible, money to hire a professional editor. A well-edited book significantly improves its chances of success. Typos and grammatical errors can detract from the reader's experience and harm your credibility as an author.
Cover Design: Don't underestimate the importance of a visually appealing cover. A great cover design sells books! A great design will convey the genre, tone, and essence of your book.

2. Marketing is Essential:

Build an Author Platform: Start building your online presence and author platform well before your book is published. Even if you go with a publisher, they will encourage you to do this. Engage with potential readers through social media, a website, or a blog. This can help create a community interested in your work. Have you heard of #BookTok, yet? I just learned about it and was surprised by its popularity.
Book Launch Strategy: Having a strategy around promoting your book is an essential part of selling it. This will likely include choosing an official launch date, leveraging pre-orders, engaging your community, and coordinating promotional efforts. Utilize various marketing channels, such as social media, email lists, websites, and podcasts to reach readers.

3.Distribution and Formats:

Ebook, Audio, and Print Formats: Consider publishing your book in multiple formats, including ebooks, audio, and print copies. Platforms like Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP) and IngramSpark allow you to publish in both digital and physical formats, while Audible Publishing Services allows you to record and publish your book in audio format. Ensure your book is formatted appropriately for each version.
Distribution Channels: Research and choose the distribution channels that best suit your goals. Amazon is a major player, but there are other platforms like Barnes & Noble, Apple Books, Audible, and Kobo. Additionally, explore options for getting your book into physical bookstores or libraries.

Bonus Tip:

Legal and Copyright Considerations: Understand copyright laws and ensure that you have the right to publish the content in your book. Be aware of any potential legal issues, such as libel or plagiarism. It's advisable to consult with legal professionals if you have any concerns.

In Season 3 Episode 7 , Emery and I spent some time talking about all the research that goes into self-publishing along with the diversity around accessibility that can be achieved when you own the rights to your work. Self-publishing is more accessible than ever, and depending on your goals, might be a better fit than traditional publishing routes.

VFTS 2024 1| Dr.Jenn Lefebre | Integrative Body-First Approaches to Healing Trauma

Thu, 14 Mar 2024 10:44:56 GMT

FEATURED GUESTS: Dr. Jenn's dedication to working with those transforming their lives after trauma and addiction has led her to embrace a body-first approach to healing that is grounded in over two decades of clinical practice and knowledge regarding complex trauma, psychology, neuroscience, play, and embodiment, along with her own trauma survival journey and lived experience. Her innovative and integrative approach to trauma-informed holistic healing and wellness has been amplified by her deep personal work and professional training in Ayurveda, Reiki, yoga, nutrition, strength training, and alternative expressive arts healing modalities. Dr. Jenn has been a sought-after speaker, consultant, writer, and coach, and is passionate about working with adaptive athletes, survivors of complex trauma, and those working through addiction.

LISTEN & LEARN:

The difference between a Body-First Approach & Bottom-Up Approach.
How trauma-informed weigh-lifting and physical fitness sessions differ from mainstream models of personal training.
What is Reiki?
The benefits of tangible examples when teaching complex concepts to clients.

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW:

Connect with Dr. Jenn at https://www.facebook.com/MoonPhoenixRising.JA
Check out all 6 of Dr. Jenn's The Fabulous Fight or Flight Stress System Book Series for Kids
Center for Trauma & Embodiment

SESSIONS AT THE SUMMIT:

June 5, 6 & 7, 2024 from 6-9pm Transforming Trauma: An Integrative Approach for the Mind, Body, Heart & Soul at the Mid-Atlantic Play Therapy Training Institute in Norfolk, Virginia.
August 25-29, 2024 she will be facilitating experiences on Soul-Collage® & Shadow Work at the upcoming Summit Retreat in Sedona, Arizona .

{Disclaimer: To be transparent, some links to the books/ products mentioned in the show are affiliate links. We receive a small fee if you purchase an item using the links. We use the fees to help us grow and improve the podcast. We will never use an affiliate link to a product that we don't believe in or haven't vetted ourselves. Thank you for your support.}

S3E7 | Emery M |

Thu, 14 Mar 2024 10:43:59 GMT

FEATURED GUESTS: Emery Mikel, ATR-BC, LCAT (NY), LPAT (NJ) is based in New York City and is the founder & director of Water & Stone, a Creative Arts Therapy PLLC (a contemplative creative arts therapy group practice) and Firefly & Phoenix LLC (a company supporting psychotherapists’ entrepreneurial ambitions). Emery has spent over 15 years bringing a creative and contemplative approach to her therapy work, specializing in coping with grief and loss, transforming anxiety, and creating spaces for people to find and express themselves. As she blazed her own way into private practice and found diverse ways of working, Emery developed an approach to helping other therapists that combines her business acumen with contemplative exploration. Through workshops and programs, she supports others in realizing their own dreams of how they want to work with people in the world.

Emery also enjoys supervising interns, guest lecturing at George Washington University and is adjunct faculty at Nazareth University. Her first book, The Art of Business: A Guide for Creative Arts Therapists Starting on a Path to Self-Employment was published by Jessica Kingsley Publishers in 2013 and focuses on contracting with organizations while developing creative business skills as a traveling art therapist. She’s publishing a new book in 2024 that brings together the stories of over 20 creative arts therapists who have, in one way or another, found or created their own paths. This book is about making more people’s journeys visible, inspiring others, and hopefully creating a larger sense of community along the way.

LISTEN & LEARN:

What goes into self-publishing.
Why having inspirational content by creative arts therapists is important for up-and-coming therapists.
What to expect from the new Book The Art of Entrepreneurship.
The benefits of having control over your published work.

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW:

Connect with Emery Mikel at https://www.fireflyandphoenix.com
Follow Emery Mikel on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/fireflyandphoenixmentoring/
Sign up for the Monthly Newsletter: http://tinyurl.com/EmeryNewsletter

Three Ways Company Culture Impact Your Practice

Thu, 07 Mar 2024 15:53:19 GMT

Three Ways Company Culture Impact Your Practice

THREE WAYS COMPANY CULTURE IMPACT YOUR PRACTICE

Company culture plays a crucial role in any organization, including a therapist's private practice. It is particularly important for group practice owners. Below are 3 ways culture can influence your practice positively and negatively.

1.Team Cohesion and Collaboration:

Positive Impact: A healthy company culture fosters a sense of unity and collaboration among therapists in the group. When therapists feel supported and connected, they are more likely to share ideas, consult with each other, and work collaboratively on cases. This can lead to improved client care, as different perspectives and expertise are brought to the table.
Negative Impact: Conversely, a toxic or divisive culture can hinder collaboration. If there is a lack of trust or communication breakdowns within the team, therapists may be less likely to seek advice or share insights, potentially impacting the quality of care provided.

2.Client Experience and Satisfaction:

Positive Impact: A positive company culture influences the therapist's well-being and how they interact with clients. A supportive and respectful culture can contribute to a welcoming environment for clients. This is likely to have a positive impact on the overall client experience and satisfaction. Research suggests client satisfaction and better outcomes in therapy are linked.
Negative Impact: On the other hand, if there is tension or dissatisfaction within the team, it may spill over into client interactions. A negative culture can create a challenging atmosphere for both therapists and clients, potentially affecting the therapeutic relationship and overall client satisfaction.

3. Retention and Attraction of Talent:

Positive Impact: A strong and positive company culture is a significant factor in attracting and retaining talented therapists. When therapists feel valued, supported, and aligned with the values of the practice, they are more likely to stay long-term. This continuity contributes to a stable and well-functioning practice, which can positively impact the reputation of the group.
Negative Impact: Conversely, a poor company culture can lead to high turnover rates, making it challenging to maintain a consistent team. Frequent turnover can disrupt the continuity of care for clients, create instability within the practice, and negatively affect the overall reputation of the group.

Company culture significantly influences the dynamics and success of a therapist's group private practice. A positive culture promotes collaboration, enhances the client experience, and contributes to talent retention. A negative culture can lead to challenges in teamwork, client satisfaction, and staff turnover. It's essential for practice leaders to actively cultivate a positive and supportive culture to ensure the well-being of both therapists and clients.

Need support in creating a positive thriving practice culture? Reach out to schedule an individual consultation to clarify values and design a strategy to create an aligned company culture at creativeclinician@gmail.com .

S3E6 | Dr. Charity Godfrey | Intentional Collaborative Clinical Practices

Thu, 07 Mar 2024 15:40:12 GMT

FEATURED GUESTS: Charity graduated from Walden University with a doctorate in Counselor Education and Supervision. She is a Licensed Mental Health Counselor, LMHC 15667 and Qualified Supervisor for Clinical Mental Health Counselor Interns, EMDR trained, Certified Integrative Mental Health Provider (C-IMHP), and a Nationally Certified Christian Counselor (NCCC).

Dr. Charity Godfrey is originally from South Jersey and brings her direct, pragmatic approach to her clients therapy through applying bibliotherapy (The use of literature to process stress/life traumas), EMDR therapy, CBT, and/or Inner Child Healing Work. Charity has over 13 years of clinical experiences counseling: adolescents, adults, couples, and families in various therapeutic settings for: Couples in Crisis, Addiction, Mental Health Diagnoses, Trauma, and Grief. Charity specializes in INNER CHILD healing work through the use of Bibliotherapy, which provides context for the healing journey of inner child, outer child, and adult self. Visit the Services tab and read more under Inner Child Therapy.

Transformation Life Coach: If therapy is not what you’re seeking, you may benefit from a Life Coach. If you know what you want but feel stuck to move forward, transformation life coaching is the right fit. The program provides structured steps to put your plan into actionable steps. Reach out if you would like to know more about how I can help you in your life journey to success.

Personal Message from Charity: I provide a comprehensive and direct approach to helping people heal through life’s challenges in an empowering, collaborative, and honest manner. The purpose of Lifescape Integrative Therapy, LLC is to provide a safe collaborative environment in which the client can heal through self-reflective practices for long-term change.

LISTEN & LEARN:

The importance of taking time to envision your practice.
The benefits of authenticity and transparency in communication in growing a team and connecting with your ideal clients.
The power of inviting community partners into your practice.
The benefit of designing your practice according to your values.
Why finding an accomplished mentor with aligned values can be of benefit as you are building your practice.

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW:

Learn more about Dr Charity at https://lifescapeintegrativetherapy.com/charity-ann-godfrey
Connect with Dr Charity on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/dr.charitygodfreylifescape
LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/dr-charity-godfrey-2a016a58

{Disclaimer: To be transparent, some of the links to the books/ products mentioned in the show are affiliate links. We receive a small fee if you purchase an item using the links. We use the fees to help us grow and improve the podcast. We will never use an affiliate link to the product that don't believe in or haven't vetted ourselves. Thank you for your support.}

S3E5 | Mary Adkins | Writing Through Resistance

Thu, 29 Feb 2024 11:58:41 GMT

FEATURED GUESTS: Mary Adkins is a writing coach and founder of The Book Incubator, a 12-month program to write, revise, and pitch your novel or memoir. She is author of the novels When You Read This (Indie Next Pick, “Best Book of 2019” by Good Housekeeping and Real Simple), Privilege (Today.com “Best Summer Read,” New York Post “Best Book of the Week”), and Palm Beach (recently named one of the New York Post’s “Best Books of 2021”). Her books have been published in 13 countries, and her essays and reporting have appeared in the New York Times, The Atlantic, Slate, and more. A graduate of Yale Law School and Duke University, she helps aspiring authors finish their books with joy and clarity. Her new memoir is due to come out in 2024. Apply for The Book Incubator by going to www.thebookincubator.com to learn how to write your own fiction novel or share your own personal memoir.

LISTEN & LEARN:

Why therapists are uniquely positioned to write a novel.
The structure of a query letter to potential literary agents.
Ranges of advances one might expect when publishing for the first time.
Preparing oneself for the rejection letters when pitching for publishing.

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW:

Learn more about Mary at https://maryadkinswriter.com/
Connect with Mary on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/adkinsmary or at https://maryadkinswriter.com/contact
Find more resources at https://www.thebookincubator.com/apply-novel-writing-program
The First Draft Club Podcast https://maryadkinswriter.com/podcast
Liz Gilbert's Big Magic

Finding Your Niche: A Guide For Therapists In Private Practice

Wed, 07 Feb 2024 23:01:21 GMT

Sharing the Love: Using Instagram Videos to Boost Your Therapy Practice

Finding Your Niche: A Guide for Therapists in Private Practice

As a therapist in private practice, one of the most crucial decisions you'll make is determining your niche. Your niche defines your specialization, target audience, and the unique value you bring to your clients. While it may seem tempting to cater to a broad audience to attract more clients, narrowing down your focus can actually lead to greater success and fulfillment in your practice. In this blog post, we'll explore how to identify a niche as a therapist in private practice, along with the benefits and myths associated with niching.

Identifying Your Niche:

Reflect on Your Passion and Expertise: Start by reflecting on your own interests, passions, and expertise. What areas of therapy do you find most fulfilling? What populations do you have experience working with? Identifying your strengths and interests can guide you towards a niche that aligns with your skills and passions.

Assess Market Demand: Conduct market research to identify potential niches with high demand. Consider factors such as demographic trends, community needs, and gaps in existing services. Look for underserved populations or specialized areas where your expertise can fill a need.

Consider Your Ideal Client: Think about the type of clients you enjoy working with the most. What issues do they typically present? What are their demographics and backgrounds? Identifying your ideal client can help you narrow down potential niches that cater to their specific needs and preferences.

Evaluate Your Competition: Take a look at other therapists in your area and assess their specialties and areas of focus. Look for gaps or opportunities where you can differentiate yourself. It's essential to choose a niche that allows you to stand out and offer something unique to your target audience.

Seek Feedback: Don't hesitate to seek feedback from colleagues, mentors, or even potential clients. Discuss your ideas for a niche and gather insights on their viability and potential appeal. External perspectives can provide valuable insights and help you refine your niche selection process.

Benefits of Niching: Tailoring Your Practice for Success

Establish Expertise and Authority: By specializing in a particular niche, you position yourself as an expert in that area. Clients are more likely to choose a therapist who demonstrates a deep understanding of their specific concerns. This expertise not only builds trust but also establishes your authority within your niche, attracting clients seeking specialized guidance.

Targeted Marketing: Niching allows you to craft targeted and effective marketing strategies. Instead of casting a wide net, you can focus your efforts on reaching the specific demographic or community associated with your niche. This targeted approach increases the likelihood of connecting with potential clients who resonate with your specialized services, resulting in a higher conversion rate. Think about it, the best marketing speaks directly to us and our situation.

Enhanced Client Connection: Specializing in a niche enables you to connect with clients on a more profound level. Understanding the unique challenges and experiences of your niche population allows you to tailor your services, fostering a deeper and more meaningful connection with your clients. This connection can lead to increased client satisfaction, positive outcomes, and word-of-mouth referrals within the niche community.

Myths of Niching: Dispelling Common Misconceptions

Limiting Clientele: One common myth surrounding niching is the fear of limiting your potential client pool. While it's true that you may exclude those outside your niche, the targeted approach often results in a more engaged and committed client base. The truth is, if you are talking to everyone, you are reaching no one. Quality often trumps quantity in private practice, and by specializing, you can attract clients who are genuinely invested in the unique services you offer.

Boredom and Burnout: Some therapists worry that focusing on a niche may lead to boredom or burnout. However, the opposite is often true. A specialized niche can bring renewed passion and excitement to your practice, as you delve deeper into the intricacies of the specific issues your clients face. The sense of purpose derived from helping a specific population can be invigorating, reducing the risk of burnout.

Lack of Flexibility: Another misconception is that niching limits a therapist's ability to adapt and evolve. In reality, niching provides a framework for specialization, but it doesn't eliminate the possibility of growth or change. Therapists can always reassess their niche or expand their services within the chosen niche as their practice evolves and as they continue to develop professionally.

Identifying and embracing a niche is a powerful strategy for therapists in private practice. The benefits of expertise, targeted marketing, and enhanced client connection outweigh the myths of limiting clientele, potential boredom, and inflexibility. By carefully selecting a niche that aligns with both personal passion and professional expertise, therapists can cultivate a thriving practice that not only meets the specific needs of their clients but also brings personal fulfillment and professional success.

Need support finding your niche and developing a targeted marketing campaign? Let's work together to develop a simple executable plan to take you from saying yes to every potential inquiry to only serving those you feel more aligned to serve. Send an email to schedule a zoom consult to see if I would be a good fit.

S3E4 | Dr. Tom Murray | Talking Taboo Topics

Wed, 07 Feb 2024 22:33:46 GMT

**If you are listening in the car with children, please be aware that we are speaking about sexuality and some of the discussion may not be appropriate for young listeners.**

FEATURED GUESTS: Dr. Tom Murray is a distinguished figure in the field of intimate relationships and sexuality. He has been featured in various outlets, including the Washington Post, Huffington Post, and The Daily Mail. His expertise extends across radio, television, and podcasts, including notable appearances on “The Practice of Being Seen” and “Shrink Rap Radio.” Widely recognized as a dynamic presenter, he has shared his insights at local, regional, and national conferences, delving into a diverse range of mental health and relationship topics. Dr. Murray has imparted knowledge at esteemed institutions such as UNC Greensboro, Adler University, and Northwestern University’s Family Institute. In his clinical practice, Dr. Murray employs a straightforward and no-nonsense approach, seamlessly blending Buddhist philosophy, The Work of Byron Katie, and conventional methods. This integrative style has proven transformative, guiding individuals to silence the internal chatter that impedes happiness, intimacy, and the cultivation of fulfilling sexual relationships. A captivating author, Dr. Murray explores the intricate dynamics of self-control and its impact on one's sex life. His debut book, Making Nice with Naughty, stands as the 2023 Global Ebook Silver Medal Award Winner for Best in Relationships/Sexuality Non-Fiction.

LISTEN & LEARN:

The role over-controlling (OC) temperament plays in sex and intimacy issues.
The 4 key aversions for folks with an OC temperament.
The importance of education and sexual health throughout our lifespan.
Dr. Murray's integration of Radically Open - Dialectical Behavioral Therapy concepts in his work as a sex therapist.

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW:

Learn more about Dr Murray at https://drtommurray.com/ or at https://apathtowellness.com/
Instagram @drtommurray @apathtowellness
Facebook: @Dr.Tom.Murray
Youtube: @makingnicewithnaughty
Spotify: Making Nice with Naughty Podcast

**If you are listening in the car with children, please be aware that we are speaking about sexuality and some of the discussion may not be appropriate for young listeners.**

Sharing the Love: Using Instagram Videos to Boost Your Therapy Practice

Mon, 05 Feb 2024 13:00:02 GMT

Sharing the Love: Using Instagram Videos to Boost Your Therapy Practice

Today, we're sharing 6 tips for using videos on Instagram to grow your private therapy practice. Instagram isn't just for sharing pictures of your pets or delicious meals – it's a powerful tool to connect with people and showcase the wonderful work you do as a therapist.

1. Setting the Stage: Your Instagram Profile

First things first, let's make your Instagram profile inviting and friendly. Choose a profile picture that shows off your warm smile, and write a short bio introducing yourself and your passion for helping others. This is the first impression people will have of you, so make it count!

2. Lights, Camera, Action: Creating Engaging Videos

Now, let's talk videos! Instagram videos are like windows into your world. Share short, uplifting clips where you talk about common mental health challenges, provide quick tips for daily well-being, and share updates about upcoming events or simple videos of your creativity in action. Keep it simple, and don't worry too much about being perfect – authenticity is key! Use a short clip between 10-15 seconds and put it on a loop feature. These drive engagement algorithms when viewers watch a couple of times.

Share snippets of your daily routine, whether it's a calming meditation, a glimpse into your cozy therapy space, or even a quick introduction to your therapy dog (if you have one!). These personal touches help people feel connected to you and your practice.

3. Educational Gems: Informative Content

Use your Instagram videos to educate your audience. Break down complex mental health concepts into bite-sized pieces that are easy to understand. You could discuss coping strategies for stress, expressive interventions for sublimation, types of boundaries, or ways to improve communication in relationships. Remember, your goal is to provide value and show that you're here to support them.

4. Connect and Engage: Respond to Comments and Messages

Encourage your followers to leave comments or send direct messages. Respond to their questions, thank them for their support, and create a sense of community. Feeling heard and understood is crucial, and your engagement will foster a supportive online environment.

5. Consistency is Key: Establish a Posting Schedule

Consistency is the secret sauce. Create a posting schedule that works for you, whether it's a few times a week or once a day. This keeps your audience engaged and looking forward to your content. Plus, the Instagram algorithm loves consistency!

6. Hashtags: The Magical Search Tool

Don't forget about hashtags! Use relevant ones to increase the discoverability of your videos. Think about what potential clients might search for, like #MentalHealthMatters, #SelfCareTips or #ExpressYourself. This way, your videos can reach a broader audience who could benefit from your therapeutic expertise.

Remember, using Instagram videos is all about sharing your passion, providing support, and breaking down the stigma surrounding mental health. With a warm smile, genuine content, and a sprinkle of creativity, you'll be well on your way to creating a thriving online community for your private therapy practice. Happy posting.

Looking to a part of a small group of supportive creative clinicians as you grow your practice, consider being a part of the Creative Practice Builder Mastermind Group. Click here to set up your Free 20 minute consultation call today.

S3E3 | Kasey Compton| S3E3 | Kasey Compton |When Doing More Isn't Doing It Anymore: Finding Yourself

Fri, 02 Feb 2024 13:37:52 GMT

FEATURED GUESTS: Kasey Compton is a dynamic speaker, therapist, self-love advocate, and accomplished entrepreneur who has led four thriving businesses, propelling her mental health practice into multi-million-dollar territory. Her journey took over a decade to uncover the transformative missing piece in her life.

LISTEN & LEARN:

The major benefit of duplicating yourself in your business.
Signs that you may be over performing or over-functioning in your life.
Emotional signposts that suggest we might benefit from engaging in deeper reflection.
Powerful key takeaways from Kasey's book "In Search of You."

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW:

Learn more about Kasey at : www.kaseycompton.com
To sign up for Kasey's Free E-Book " Five Steps to Find Yourself Again "
Pre-Order Kasey Compton's book " In Search of You: How to Find Joy When Doing More Isn't Doing It Anymore "
To Purchase Kasey Compton's book " Fix This Next for Healthcare Providers "

Leveraging The Power of Video Marketing

Mon, 29 Jan 2024 13:00:02 GMT

Leveraging the Power of Video Marketing for Self-Pay Private Practices in 2024!

In the ever-evolving landscape of mental health services, private practitioners are increasingly turning to innovative marketing strategies to connect with their target audience. One such powerful tool that has gained immense popularity is video marketing. If you are on TikTok, Instagram or Facebook, you have seen it in action. We will explore the top three benefits of using video to market a self-pay private mental health practice in 2024.

-Establishing Trust and Connection : Video marketing provides a unique opportunity for mental health practitioners to establish a genuine connection with their audience. In an industry where trust is paramount, potential clients often seek a personal connection before deciding to engage with a mental health professional. Through videos, therapists can introduce themselves, share their expertise, and create a welcoming atmosphere that fosters trust.

By featuring short introductory videos on the practice's website or social media platforms, therapists can showcase their personality, communication style, and the welcoming environment of their office. This personalized touch helps prospective clients feel more comfortable and connected, ultimately increasing the likelihood of them choosing the practice for their mental health needs.

Additionally, therapists can use video content to address common concerns, share resources, and offer insights into their therapeutic approach. This transparency not only builds trust but also demystifies the counseling process, making it more accessible and relatable to potential clients.

-Educating and Informing the Audience: Mental health is a nuanced and often misunderstood field. Video marketing provides a powerful platform for therapists to educate and inform their audience about various mental health topics, therapeutic techniques, and the benefits of seeking professional help. By creating informative and engaging video content, practitioners can position themselves as trusted authorities in their field.

Practical tips, coping strategies, and explanations of therapeutic modalities can be conveyed effectively through video. This educational content not only serves as a valuable resource for viewers but also positions the practice as a knowledgeable and compassionate source of information. This can lead to increased visibility, as individuals searching for mental health resources online are likely to come across these informative videos.

Furthermore, video content can be tailored to highlight creative interventions commonly used by the practitioner. Whether it's anxiety, depression, or relationship issues, therapists can create targeted videos that resonate with their target audience, showcasing their expertise in addressing these challenges using creative strategies. The best part about highlighting your art intervention is that you don't necessarily have to show your face on camera (for those that are camera shy).

- Expanding Reach and Engagement: In the digital age, where attention spans are short, video content stands out as a highly engaging medium. Platforms like YouTube, Instagram, and Facebook prioritize video content, making it more likely to reach a broader audience. Sharing engaging and visually appealing videos can help a self-pay private mental health practice expand its reach and connect with potential clients who may not have discovered the practice through traditional means.

Social media platforms also offer the opportunity for interactive engagement. Live Q&A sessions, video series addressing specific topics, and behind-the-scenes glimpses into the practice can foster a sense of community. Viewers are more likely to share videos they find valuable or relatable, thereby organically increasing the practice's online visibility.

Additionally, video content is easily shareable, allowing satisfied clients to recommend the practice to their social circles. This word-of-mouth marketing, amplified by the visual impact of videos, can contribute significantly to the growth and success of a self-pay private mental health practice.

In conclusion, the benefits of using video to market a self-pay private mental health practice are multifaceted. From building trust and connection to educating and engaging the audience, video marketing offers a dynamic and effective approach for practitioners looking to differentiate themselves in a competitive landscape. By embracing the power of video, mental health professionals can not only attract new clients but also contribute to a more informed and mentally healthy society.

S3E2 | Carmen Reed-Gikison | Entrepreneurship After 40: Building Your Empire

Wed, 24 Jan 2024 22:21:10 GMT

FEATURED GUESTS: Carmen Reed-Gilkison is an Online Business Manager, a Whole Person Certified Coach with over 25+ years of marketing experience, and the co-founder of Encore Empire. Carmen specializes in mindset in entrepreneurship and marketing. Carmen and her business partner, Deirdre Harter, teach their clients the business of business through their year-long coaching programs with the goal of helping ambitious women scale their service-based businesses without all the guesswork. Just as no two people are the same, no two businesses are the same. For that reason, they don’t believe in making their clients fit into cookie-cutter frameworks. They work with female B2B service providers & consultants providing holistic business coaching & mentoring where they help build the strategies, systems, and support their clients need to create more consistent revenue while getting back their time.

LISTEN & LEARN:

How to Cultivate a CEO Mindset
How Mindset impacts the way we Market our Practices
The relevance of Values & Validation in Business
Ways to Authentically Connect with your Ideal Clients in your Marketing
The benefits of thinking of marketing as communication
Why you should build an Ideal Client Language Bank and use it in your copywriting
The benefits of time tracking, time blocking, and adding Islands of Calm to your Schedule

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW:

Learn more about Carmen and her latest offerings at: https://encoreempire.com or on Facebook at : https://www.facebook.com/EncoreEmpire
To sign up for Carmen's FREE "The Marketing Methodology Workshop" at: https://encoreempire.com/tcp
Join Carmen's Facebook Group at: https://www.facebook.com/groups/empireofunstoppablewomen

Imagine 2024 being THE YEAR YOU Build the Creative Arts Practice of Your Dreams!

Receive all the information and support you need to confidently grow on your journey to becoming the owner of a successful therapist owned business.

Sign up for the 2024 Mastermind Group with Reina Lombardi here
Schedule a 20 minute Zoom call to see if the 2024 Mastermind Group is the right fit for YOU!!!

Start Building Email List

Mon, 22 Jan 2024 18:10:11 GMT

End of Year Review

Start Building Your Email List Today!

One of the best things you do as a practice owner, before you even open in fact, is build your email contact list.

People often ask, "Do I need to have an email marketing app, like Mailchimp (that is what I use for the podcast)?"

I don't think a practice owner needs one, but I do believe they are at an advantage if they have one.

Social media accounts such as Instagram, TikTok, or Facebook, use algorithms which limit which accounts actually see your posts. Over the years, they have increased restrictions to coax us into paying for more views.

When you have an email list, you can directly share your message with your audience.

Does it make a difference? Absolutely. Especially, when your offers are dialed into the needs of your audience.

I have an account that I use to direct email market to promote groups, events, blogs, and trainings we are hosting at the practice. Every time I send it out, folks sign up for something. I can't say the same for posts on social media.

If you have diverse offerings, you segment your contacts into different lists. For example, I have segments for school counselor contacts, licensed therapists in Florida, and interested clients. This allows me to create email campaigns specifically for each segment if I want.

Here are seven ways you can start building your email list.

1.) Use sign-in sheets at different events or speaking engagements to collect names and emails.
2.) Add a link for folks to sign up for your newsletter in the signature line of your email.
3.) Put up a pop-up on your website inviting people to sign up to receive your newsletter.
4.) Provide a high value downloadable resource in exchange for signing up for your newsletter.
5.) Prompt folks who purchase products from you to sign up for your email list to receive information about upcoming sales and offers.
6.) Include your link to sign-up to your email list on your Linktree page.
7.) Offer giveaways or contests in which folks provide permission to email them in exchange for signing up.

Go start building!

It would be weird if I didn't end this little blog with a Call To Action to sign up for my newsletter. You can do so by clicking here .

S3E1 |Merle Yost, LMFT| Powerful Boundaries in Practice

Sat, 13 Jan 2024 15:31:32 GMT

FEATURED GUESTS: In this episode of the podcast, Reina interviews Merle Yost, LMFT.

Merle is full time writer, speaker and consultant. Retired from private practice psychotherapy after 25 years, he now lectures and consults to help people make sense out of their lives and often the pain they are in, so they can move forward. With over 35 years of personal and professional work, Merle has taken the summary of his experience and training and uses it to help others.

LISTEN & LEARN:

All of his books are about helping people live better lives. Merle is committed to continuing his teaching and efforts to educate people about themselves. His latest work, Unspoken Boundaries, is the topic of discussion for this episode.

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW:

Learn more about Merle and his latest offerings at: https://merleyost.com/
To sign up for Merle's 7 Steps to Unspoken Boundaries workshop at: https://unspokenboundaries.com/
To download Merle's latest book "Facing The Truth of Your Life" for FREE go to www.unspokenboundaries.com/podcastgift

Imagine 2024 being THE YEAR YOU Build the Creative Arts Practice of Your Dreams!

Receive all the information and support you need to confidently grow on your journey to becoming the owner of a successful therapist owned business.

-Sign up for the 2024 Mastermind Group with Reina Lombardi here
- Schedule a 20 minute Zoom call to see if the 2024 Mastermind Group is the right fit for YOU!!!

End of Year Review

Fri, 01 Dec 2023 11:00:00 GMT

End of Year Review

End of the Year Review

It is that time of year again. Time for review, reflection and revision.

Every author or speaker that discusses business mastery always shares on the importance of this process.

It is how we can determine the health and wealth of our business and make adjustments to build upon or improve in those areas.

Every year I develop a strategy for what I want to attain in the business and any changes to be implemented to help get the business there. This strategy might include financial metrics, launching a new product or service, office relocation, building a new website or metrics related to marketing practices. I try to narrow it down to a few things to stay focused.

At the end of the year, I review the impact of that strategy. What do the numbers say? What was integrated effectively or not at all? What was the impact of our efforts?

It is important to take time to reflect , especially on the SUCCESSES of the year . Acknowledge them.Celebrate them. It is hard work building a thriving practice.

When areas of improvement are identified, I don't beat myself up over it . The effectiveness of some strategies may require longer time to manifest in a meaningful way.

When I first began selling a 12 hour course on Supervision, I only had a few registrants. Did I want to reach full capacity - of course. Fast forward five years - we regularly fill that training four times per year. It took time, but we got there.

I do brainstorm ideas on how to meet the end goal using different means than I had originally employed. That is the revision process. I test them against one another. For example, when I first started selling the courses I made post-cards and sent them out to promote the trainings to licensed folks within a certain mile radius from our office. While the results were meaningful, I recognized there was room for greater reach. I then began using a CRM to send mass email campaigns promoting the training events to licensed folks in the entire state. This resulted a significant greater return.

I also look at what programs and trainings are being offered that I may invest in to up level my skills so that I may more effectively accomplish my goals. Continued learning is an essential aspect of business growth and development.

As you prepare for your upcoming year in business, consider joining the Creative Arts Practice Builder Mastermind Group . It is a 6 month commitment from February to July.

I recently heard someone say, "You pay greater attention to what you pay for." It makes complete sense. When we pay for something, we show up in a different way. We prepare in a different way. We also may be willing to do things that we normally might shy away from because of accountability.

Being part of a paid group provides opportunities to connect with other individuals just as dedicated to growing their business. We support one another, celebrate each other's wins, share resources and I offer mentorship and coaching. I look forward to this group every year.

Sign up for a FREE 20 minute consultation with me to see if it is right for you.

Season 2 Episode 25 | Reina Lombardi | End of Year Review

Wed, 29 Nov 2023 11:00:00 GMT

FEATURED GUESTS: Reina Lombardi, ATR-BC, ATCS, LMHC-QS is a Registered Board Certified Art Therapist, Art Therapy Certified Supervisor, and Licensed Mental Health Counselor Qualified Supervisor. She owns Florida Art Therapy Services, LLC , a full-fee group practice, where she and a team of therapists provide in-person and technology facilitated individual and group art therapy and counseling services, contracted art therapy groups at various community agencies, supervision and continuing education programming for counselors and art therapists. She has contributed to several academic texts on the topics of art therapy and clinical supervision, and is a frequent presenter/speaker at local and national professional conferences. She also owns Creative Clinician’s Corner, LLC where she provides practice building resources and consultation services for creative arts therapists with a desire to build and scale their own private practice. She is the host of The Creative Psychotherapist Podcast where she interviews successful creative therapists about the tools and strategies they used to grow their dream practices, as well as how they have hustled to create additional streams of income using their knowledge and creativity by developing products and services that enhance their therapy practices.

LISTEN & LEARN:

Create a year end comprehensive review
Develop and integrate services into your private practice
Learn more about using the good, better, best model of goal setting in your business
Project expenses for the new year using the Fee Calculator

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW:

Want to be a guest on the podcast click here to submit a request!
Download the free Fee Calculator here

Imagine 2024 being THE YEAR YOU Build the Creative Arts Practice of Your Dreams!

Receive all the information and support you need to confidently grow on your journey to becoming the owner of a successful therapist owned business.

Sign up for the 2024 Mastermind Group with Reina Lombardi here
- S chedule a 20 minute Zoom call to see if the 2024 Mastermind Group is the right fit for YOU!!!

Hey there, creatives. Thanks so much for your continued

listenership of the Creative Psychotherapist podcast. I'm your host, Raina Lombardi, and this is going

to be the last podcast released in 2023. In 2024, we've got big things planned. We are switching

to live stream format. If you have been reading our newsletters, we made that announcement.

So we'll be switching to that mid-January. So instead of getting a new episode Wednesday

morning, the recording will actually occur at two o'clock on Wednesday afternoons,

and it will be available live stream from YouTube and from our Facebook page.

And then that recording will be uploaded into our podcasting platform and will be available wherever

you listen. I am not sure in terms of like timing of that yet. We still have to figure that out as we

get started, but likely by the next day, by that Thursday morning, it'll be available on audio.

And I'm really excited to do this as part of my big picture plan for 2024 and growing in 2024

and stretching in 2024. And I, I've been putting off being visible on video for a long time. It took me

really long time just to feel comfortable with my voice on audio and sharing the podcast. And now it's

time for another stretch. It's time to push myself out there a little bit more. I've done a little bit

with video on social media over the years, but not a tremendous amount.

And I, I just feel like I'm ready to do it. And a big reason is because I was evaluating my schedule a couple months back. And what I realized was I was trying to pack so many things into my schedule. And I didn't have like enough

time to do it all. And one of the things that really took up a wide range of time each week was just

making chunks of time available in my schedule for people to book recordings. And I realized this is

no longer working for me. It is frustrating. It feels overwhelming. Sometimes I'll

I'll reserve time in my schedule for podcast recordings. But then I need to book other stuff. And

then I'm having to like manage all of these different calendars. And I felt like there had to be

a simpler way. There had to be a more efficient way. And live streaming where the show is

created and put out there at the same time each week made a lot more sense to me.

And felt a lot more doable than the way I've been doing things the past few years. So it was kind of the reason I needed like that feels more uncomfortable continuing to deal with the scheduling feels more uncomfortable

than going on video and live streaming on video. So I'm going to do it. And in today's episode I'm

going to be talking with you a little bit about kind of my end of the year processes and how I am

engaging in an evaluation and review. But also making time to really sit down and plan and envision

what it is that I want in 2024 and beyond really. You know I'm always thinking about

further down the road not just next year. But how does what I'm doing this year and next year

contribute to greater growth in the future towards what it is that I'm trying to realize.

So the first thing that I want to do I haven't started yet is to do a comprehensive review

in my business. And one of the things we'll be looking at the financial stuff right and that includes

what are the expenses that I have for programs that I'm using that may be duplicative or

there may be a more affordable option out there or maybe I'm using two services that could be

reduced and integrated into one whole you know single piece of software. The cool thing about

technology is that it keeps getting better and better and so services that I was looking for early on

when I first started that didn't exist or maybe were really expensive now exist and they're

integrated into something else that works really well with the business and they're more affordable.

So the benefit of doing that each year is you can really you know learn to manage your

your finances in a way that's effective and healthy right. Why put out more than what is necessary

when there are other options it might be a little bit of a pain to do the evaluation

and the time to get it switched over but it's it's worth it. I've done that for my phone system.

I've done that for my EHR system last year. Is it last year in 2022? I think so. I think it was in 2022.

We switched to a program called Jane app. It's a Canadian-based EHR and I will say that it is incredibly

robust. It is a little bit complicated and it's complicated because it can do so many different things.

It's wonderful if you own a group practice and it's very affordable in comparison to other

applications on the market and it integrates so many things that one would need. I know I

I'm really loving the program and probably the best feature is their live customer service.

They're a Canadian-based company and they have live phone support which is huge and it could be

really frustrating in the past dealing with certain platforms where they don't have live customer

support and you were dealing with a chat feature or going back and forth via customer support via email.

Jane offers live phone-based customer support. You can do email and chat too but I find that they're

really nice and really helpful. If you're growing your group and you're looking for a more affordable

way or more affordable option, I would definitely check them out. Looking at expenses, that's the first

part of the financial. The second part of the financial is really calculating the numbers for expenses

and projected expenses for 2024. I know in 2023 my expenses went up and I think overall probably

everybody's expenses went up because cost of living has gone up and so I really need to spend time

doing a new fee calculation for my practice and that includes all of the things that we offer,

services, products and therapy.

So completing that and then once that's done figuring out okay,

when am I going to implement the change in fees and what are the things I need to do to prepare for

that? Well, obviously I'm going to need to change all of the paperwork as it pertains to expenses

in my EHR. I have to make updates to the good faith estimate agreements and of course send out a

letter to all of the clients saying hey on this state we will be raising our fees,

want to give them enough time to also make any changes that they might need to to budget for that.

And if it's not in their budget to be able to respond and we can have a conversation and create a

plan of what we'll need to do to take care of that, whether that is making some kind of an adjustment

or referring out to somebody else. So reviewing and preparing, right, reviewing and preparing

financial wise, the other thing that I want to review and prepare for has to do with

evaluation of strategy. How can I look at where I invested time, energy and money in order to

bring or drive business to the practice? What worked? What didn't work? And how can I make changes?

Is there something that I have not considered or haven't been using that I could be using that

would make things more effective? And so really looking at that, looking at running a report

from my EHR on where our referrals are coming from, right? And really looking at that information,

okay, is it, you know, people, is it Google? Is it, you know, psychology today, word of mouth,

where's this information? Where, how are they finding out about us? How are they getting in our

inbox or on the phone with the office? So evaluating that and putting together a plan for next year,

I have a 2023 strategic plan that I developed and one of the things that I'm going to do is review that

and see, okay, based on those goals, what's good, what's better, what's best?

Did I meet any of the best goals? Did I meet any of the better goals? Did I meet any of the good goals? If you haven't used a good, better best model of goal setting, it's just breaking it up into a tiered model, right?

Of like, this is what I would be good, but you know, here's what I'm really shooting for over here.

And I think it can kind of take some of the pain or disappointment away if you're, you only

sat one goal and then maybe it was a big lofty goal and you didn't come close to it. If you have

it structured as a good, better best goal, then you know, it doesn't, maybe it doesn't hit so hard.

So I want to evaluate that. What did I follow through on with those goals and

how successful was I in achieving them or did they just kind of fall off my radar because I

got so busy with other things and I will say that yes, some stuff definitely got in the way of

achieving some of those goals for 2023. The move really took a lot of time, energy and money out of

me moving my office into a bigger location even though it was only two buildings down. It still was a

huge undertaking. So it's okay. I know that when I look over the stuff, if I didn't get there,

I still have more time to get there, right? You know, just because we set out our intentions for the year,

we may not reach them, but it doesn't mean that we can't reach them in the following year or the year

after that. I always try to look at things of like the work that I'm doing, the investments that I'm

making in my time and energy in terms of marketing the practice, that's there for the long haul.

It's a long-term commitment. So even if I don't reap something in the immediate time, I know that

in the long-term that it's going to be there, right? But that's about holding that big vision for

yourself and not losing sight of it, even in spite of shortcomings, right? But one of the things we

might evaluate are, okay, where are those shortcomings and what can I do differently? Or what can I

can let go of that's no longer effective anymore? I think that's an important part of understanding

marketing strategy, particularly as it pertains to advertisement and online stuff. Some things that

used to work many years ago no longer work.

So we have to be flexible in how we respond and doing a yearly audit or evaluation of what the health and wealth of your business is can help you to make changes and become flexible and how you respond to what's going on in your

business. And then finally, the last thing that I want to do is to really get clear

on my creative vision for what I'm developing both with the show, with Creative Clinicians Corner,

but also with Florida Art Therapy Services. And I'm going to do that both in my creative process and

creating a vision board. I'm going to be doing that in two weeks, spending an afternoon working on that.

And then in addition to the creative part, I want to do some writing around it.

So what does it look like? What does it feel like? And I'm doing some writing around it and really exploring like,

where are my limiting beliefs about bringing that stuff to life and making sure that I have a plan

to attend to those that, okay, I need to be consciously attending to some of that unconscious

programming that causes me to slow down and get stuck. And I want to make sure that I'm attending to

that so that I can reach my big lofty goals, my best goals, if you will. And so that is my plan for

2023, 2024, kind of end of the year planning.

Oh, I didn't say tax stuff, but yeah, tax stuff too, obviously. And I hope that as you round out your year, that you go through and carve out time for yourself to really evaluate and give yourself a round of applause, what are you doing? Well, what did you do that scared you? Right? What are some of the things that you've been able to

accomplish that perhaps you didn't think that you could really celebrate those wins and evaluate,

all right, so I have the wins and hear some things that I would like to do a little bit differently

and hopes that they may translate into a win in 2024.

So I hope that you're able to make that time for yourself. And if you are a therapist that's looking to grow and develop your private practice in 2024 and want to be part of a group of like-minded individuals that are doing the same,

that are challenging themselves that are pushing past their fear barriers and doing things that

scare them and taking action in their business. Consider joining the mastermind group that will be

starting in February of 2024. It'll run February to July. And we meet on Monday afternoons at one

o'clock. So if that sounds like something that you would be interested in, please reach out.

You can schedule a 20-minute consultation with me to discuss your goals and whether or not this might

be a good fit for you. And even if you participate and you realize, you know what, I actually don't

want to do this. It's actually more than what I want to give at this time of my life. That's a

valuable investment to gain that clarity. I know one of our participants this year that happened. She

had started building and then realized, you know what, I have other priorities and goals that

really need my attention at this time and that if I tried to really put everything into creating

a practice, I wouldn't have time for these other things. So that's okay too.

And if you're ready to stretch and grow, there's room for that as well. Anyway, I hope that you all have a wonderful

rest of 2023 and I look forward to speaking with you again in 2024. If you know of anyone or perhaps

even yourself, that would make a great guest in 2024. Please have them reach out to us on our website

CreativeCliniciansCorner.com. There's a link there that you know, you can submit to be a guest on

the podcast. You just scroll over to the cast and from the drop down menu, there's a be on the podcast

link and you can submit your submission there. And yeah, I hope you have a wonderful holiday season

and happy new year as we roll into 2024 and I will talk to you again soon.

Thanks for listening to this episode of the Creative Psychotherapist. If you like what you heard,

please rate, review and subscribe wherever you listen to your favorite podcasts. For show notes,

downloads and additional resources head over to the website at www.createofclinicianscorner.com

Three Reasons to Become Part of a Mastermind Group

Wed, 22 Nov 2023 13:18:12 GMT

Three Reasons to Become Part of a Mastermind Group

Three Reasons to Become Part of a Mastermind Group

What is a Mastermind Group, you ask? It was first referenced, as the Mastermind principle, by Napoleon Hill in The Law of Success . He synthesizes lessons he learned on achieving life changing success after years of interviewing the great industrialists and entrepreneurs of his time. Most people are more familiar with his book Think and Grow Rich . In both texts, he discusses the benefits of being part of a Mastermind.

The Mastermind Group is comprised of individuals with a common goal - to learn from one another, brainstorm ideas, and to reach goals through accountability and support. The old saying, "two heads are better than one," is the leverage a Mastermind group offers.

I have participated in Mastermind Groups and I have been facilitating The Creative Arts Practice Builder Group for the past three years. Here are 3 reasons to become part of a Mastermind Group.

1.) The law of averages. This law suggests that the results of any situation will be the average of all outcomes. Jim Rohn attributed the theory to the company we keep. He has been quoted saying, " We are the average of the 5 people we spend the most time with." Tim Sanders said, "Your network is your net worth." Both are speaking to the same idea. If you want to level up surround yourself with folks doing the same or who are little farther along than you.

2.) Building an Empowered Network. This builds upon the principal of reason number one. Joining a Mastermind helps you to connect, spend time with and learn from other folks pushing out onto their growing edge. Surrounding yourself with folks dedicated to growth and development, inspire growth and development within you. I have made such deep rewarding relationships from paying to be a part of a mastermind group.

3.) Support & Accountability. Taking action in unchartered territory can feel scary. It is helpful to have a place where you can express those feeling, receive mentorship and support, all while being gently held accountable to your goals. That is what a Mastermind Group can do.

Every year for 6 months, I facilitate a Mastermind Group. It runs February through July and meets on Monday afternoons for an hour. We also have a Facebook Group where we connect and hold each other accountable to our goals, share resources and our wins.

If you would like to be a part of a small group of Creative Arts Therapists pushing out into their growing edge of Practice Building, sign up for a Free 20 minute consultation to see if the group is right for you.

Season 2 Episode 24 | Nicole Rainey | Running a Multidisciplinary Creative Practice

Wed, 22 Nov 2023 11:00:00 GMT

FEATURED GUESTS: Nicole Rainey is a Licensed Mental Health Counselor and Registered Art Therapist. She has over 10 years of experience providing therapy to children, teens, and adults recovering from trauma history, foster care and adoption concerns. Most of her clinical work has specifically focused on survivors of trauma including sexual abuse, physical abuse, neglect, violence, and sex trafficking/prostitution. In 2020, Nicole started Mosaic Creative Counseling in Tallahassee Florida, a group private practice that specializes in the creative therapies: Art Therapy, Play Therapy, Music Therapy, Animal Therapy, etc. Nicole is an enneagram 7, who loves planning for future and traveling. In her natural habitat you’ll most likely find her barefoot, drinking an iced coffee and listening to a podcast.

LISTEN & LEARN:

Learn how to know when to expand your practice
Strategies to build new cliental
Develop your ideal client to help expand your current practice

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW:

Connect and learn more about Nicole Rainey at Mosaiccreativecounseling.com
email Nicole Rainey at nicolerainey@mosaiccreativecounseling.com
Check out Mosaic Creative Counseling Wellness Guide HERE help you gain control and live a more balanced life. This guide will walk you through practical tips about physical, emotional, social, spiritual and vocational wellness.

Imagine 2024 being THE YEAR YOU Build the Creative Arts Practice of Your Dreams!

Receive all the information and support you need to confidently grow on your journey to becoming the owner of a successful therapist owned business.

-Sign up for the 2024 Mastermind Group with Reina Lombardi here
- Schedule a 20 minute Zoom call to see if the 2024 Mastermind Group is the right fit for YOU!!!

Hey there creatives. This is season two episode 24 and today I'm talking with licensed mental health counselor and art therapist Nicole Rainey. She and her husband Julius own a multi-disciplinary group practice called mosaic creative

counseling in Tallahassee, Florida and I've known Nicole for a couple of years now she's been in my practice semester mind group and I'm excited to share all of the amazing things that she's been doing to build and grow her

practice. Today she's going to be talking about how she's gone about diversifying, how she's gone about expansion, how she's been learning from the different you know attempts and risks that she's taken that maybe haven't

worked out but there's always a lesson to be learned and and talking a little bit about what's to come in the future. So I hope you enjoy.

Thanks for listening to the Creative Psychotherapist podcast. I'm your host Raina Lombardi and I'm very very excited to welcome my next guest Nicole Rainey. She is a licensed mental health counselor and registered art therapist. She and her husband Julius are the owners of the multi-disciplinary group practice, Mosaic Creative Counseling and Tallahassee, Florida. She has over nine years of experience providing therapeutic children, teens and adults from diverse backgrounds, cultures and life experience. She believes therapy should focus on healing through authentic self-expression. And as a registered art therapist, she strives to make clients feel safe and comfortable expressing themselves and problem-solving through talk imagery and creativity.

And I'm really excited to have her on because I've known her for a couple of years now and I'm excited to share all of the cool things that she's putting out into the world. So welcome Nicole. Thanks so much for being willing to talk with me today. Thank you Raina. I'm so excited to be here. So let's jump right in. What? What? Like how do you know that

you were going to go into private practice? What like brought you to that conclusion? Did you always know was it something that you kind of came to after working in the field for a while? I wish I could say that I always knew but I don't think I did. When I was very young in high school, I wanted to do a multi-disciplinary

creative practice for survivors of sex trafficking. And I wanted art therapy and yoga and music therapy and equine therapy and wilderness therapy and play.

And I wanted it to be very holistic and healing with a lot of creativity. And then that graduated with my art therapy degree went into community mental health, loved the clients there, went into like sexual abuse treatment, even got a job working with sex trafficking and loved working with that population. Very challenging but the community mental health piece of course there's challenges with that and I had multiple experiences where funding came above the program or the people and so programs were cut because of funding and so I worked with my dream population but

then fast forward and I had my first kiddo and I couldn't my job with sex trafficking clients was 24/7. I was on call all the time and I couldn't do that with my baby and so I needed to figure something else out private practice.

There was a group practice in town that so graciously like incorporated me a little bit gave me my first tries at private practice and then the stars kind of aligned and I it was funny because I'd kind of forgotten that dream a little bit that I'd always said oh I always wanted to work with sex trafficking survivors but I'd forgotten that I wanted this multidisciplinary practice and so yeah so it kind of came back around, came full circle. So how did you end up making the switch? It sounds like it happened after the birth of your first child which that can feel really intimidating I

think to launch into it right at the crux of being a new parent.

Yeah it was definitely a I had those little life events that just reassured that I was on the right path because I knew going back into the 24/7 job wasn't feeling right in my body and then so I started a private practice on the side with this group practice and then had enough clients decided I was going to make the switch. I gave like probably like a two month notice probably something very extreme very long notice to my my agency job and two weeks before I was officially going to be out they announced the entire program was shutting down anyways so very much

being like you go girl go in your direction you're on the right path so any doubts that I had were kind of like nope this was where you needed to go and we would have pushed you there if you hadn't stepped out on your own.

So yeah that was that was all in 2020 and then COVID happened and that just kind of solidified everything I just feel like I kept going one step at a time and clients kept showing up kept coming I was very fortunate with that and because I started dabbling in private practice January of 2020 so I was building a caseload as COVID happened so I didn't see this giant caseload and then a dip and I didn't freak out because I was just still building a caseload so it all

just kept going from there and then I added our first clinician probably I think it was maybe one year into me being in private practice I officially started mosaic in June of 2020 and I think our first clinician came in March of

2021. Oh wow when you first started was it both you and your husband or were you just kind of getting started on your own.

It's just getting started on my own Julius always jokes he's like I would never be in private practice if you

hadn't started so yeah I started kind of created all the systems which him staying at his job allowed that was definitely a privilege that allowed me to take that financial risk take a lot of that risk on and then once mosaic was a

lot more stable he joined so we kind of balanced the risk one is one person at the time. I like that I think that that's helpful for folks to hear because it can be such an intimidating process where we really are

children a big risk creating our own business and especially as a couple with with small children that that can feel really intimidating I have some friends here in town they're a couple that own a practice together and kind of similar

beginnings of like it happening when she was having their their child and like meeting to have more control and autonomy of her life as she was taking care of a newborn but it's a lot.

Yes yeah and I think both of us are very especially me I'm very risk averse and so that's that's been an interesting walk because I have to keep moving forward but I move forward very cautiously we've always

moved our practice like at the speed of cash and not taken on a lot of like extreme risks and any risks we do take on of course I'm over here in the background being like uh it's very and sometimes it's just the next phase but yeah so

having us do it one step at a time when letting me and to establish the practice while he's still how the job was very very helpful and then letting him join after it was at least a year maybe even two years before he joined and so

2020 fast forward now to the end of 2023 you started off just yourself added on a clinician then your husband came on board.

But now you have many more therapists working with you kind of can you describe for the audience how your group practice is structured and how many folks and the different disciplines that you have because you've grown you've grown quite quickly yeah yeah so Mosaic has eight clinicians myself and my husband included because we still see

clients so eight clinicians and then we have two student interns so we have this team of ten clinical practitioners we have art therapists several of our clinicians have a background in art therapy we have a play therapist we have two

music therapists one of our art therapists has kind of a dual background in also she's becoming a yoga therapist and doing sound healing credentials and then we have my husband who specializes in couples counseling but doing that

through the lens of the enneagram so he talks a lot with couples through that personality assessment.

We also do animal therapy which isn't necessarily one practitioner we partner with another agency that brings in the therapy animals and so any of our clinicians can do that yeah wow that's interesting yeah yeah tell Hasse Memorial Healthcare but one of the hospitals in town has a really unique program of animal therapy and they will go out to the community they're wonderful and they have all these little therapy dogs that are trained and screened and they have handlers and so they come and join us for our sessions or sometimes just for our self-care that's wonderful yeah nice to have animals in the office for sure yeah so what has been your strategy for growing.

Im know you had mentioned that you know your risk averse and you kind of move it this slowly and I would say methodically yeah have have you employed a strategy for saying like okay we're ready to add on another person have you been looking did you look at like the number of calls that you were getting in in order to say yes we can support adding another person how did you come to that determination in terms of your growth process yeah so if if it's truly a good clinician that doesn't already have a caseload because that there might be a few

clinicians that want to join that already have a caseload but that's not really

been our experience.

The calls and not having anywhere to put a client or having like a specific subset of clients that I can't accommodate but I feel like they match our practice really well that's an indicator to me that there's this

gap in services that that it feels really an alignment with mosaic but it feels like we don't have the space to fill it so that's a little like soft indicator I think that just gets my feelers out and then once my feelers are out

I try to look at actual numbers as best as I can but try to see like how many is everybody actually full or is there this big service that people are searching for they assume mosaic has it and we don't I think we have this huge gap in services before we hired our play therapist where we had an art therapist that wanted to specialize in teens and then we had my husband who wanted to specialize in couples.

Then we had music therapist that was trying to age up she was trying to take less kids she was like I asked seven or

older and so we were getting all these young kiddos that in a sense mosaic creative counseling their parents were like yes my kid needs creative therapy not just normal boring therapy and we didn't have any place to put them we

didn't have like a highly trained therapist that could meet the needs of these like complex cases for young kiddos and I was like we are missing something here so that was a big indicator and that's where we started looking for a play

therapist or some something to fill that niche so I always look for a stream of referrals that aren't that fit our values but aren't getting served from us or if we just have nowhere to put anyone and we everyone is full we have no one to assign.

Or if we only have one person that we're taking we're assigning that's my biggest indicator but I will say just to be like fully transparent that each time I've grown and the first few times I had to do that I was completely insecure that that was actually an indicator like I was very scarcity mindset like the moment I add someone and everyone else's case will drop and we will need all these referrals for our current therapists and we won't have enough.

So I can say that looking back now but my logical brain knew that then and it still wasn't didn't get rid of all my scary thoughts. I don't think those scary thoughts really go away I think we just get better at like attending to them in an effective way and being like oh there you are again thank you for the warning it's gonna be okay it has been okay before it'll be okay again. Yeah and I've had to I'm I say that I move slow but a lot of people especially Julius would be like no you don't move really fast. I'm always like thinking of the next thing and thinking of the next project and I'm very much like a little bit of a hustler for how could we serve this how could we fill this need how could we provide this service.

I have to remember that even in times of scarcity or in times of struggle that that comes with me and that like someone can take away or a circumstance can take away my excess my abundance a little bit it can threaten that but it can't threaten my like problem-solving skills and my ability to see a need and think creatively to fill it like that comes with me and so that was helpful for me to be like no like I've always thought of something new

something new even to a detriment where I'm always thinking but it's helpful to remind myself that that that goes with me.

I think that that is part and parcel of an entrepreneurial mind. Right like successful entrepreneurs they're really able to pivot and see you know like okay yeah there is these external circumstances in the market that are gonna impact what I'm doing but I can shift how I'm doing it in order to move around that barrier effectively and we've had to pivot so much like we when we first added Julius I thought yeah people need couples counselors you know and that adding him was unlike any other addition when I first I was an art therapist. My first ad was a music therapist and those go so well hand in hand and we both specialized in trauma and so if you weren't looking for art therapy or music therapy if you were looking for trauma you found us either way and then Julius over here with

curveball being like couples counselor and I realized like our SEO we were not ranking for couples counseling we had never reached out to it's very different marketing and networking for couples counselors it's just different to carve that

niche out.

I'm glad that it was my partner that we experimented with that with because it took him a while to get full because we were learning it was a different niche it was something we weren't doing before and our old ways were working for us they were still working but we needed to tailor them for adding this new niche and adding this new service so what did you do on the backend how did you make adjustments in your website and SEO in order to start getting hits

for couples work what were some strategies that you used yeah I scoffed a blogging first for a while and that only lasted a few months and now I'm blog we publish a blog every single week and we have for like two years and so when he went like one month with no clients.

I was like we're feeling it like where are they where they come in and I was like you need to write about couples therapy you need to write about relationships you need to write about the enneagram and I was like

making them pump out these blogs that I couldn't write for him because it wasn't my specialty and so he did like two months probably of pumping out a blog every single week we did a lot of brainstorming of like who's your ideal client where are they because they're not in your office so where they go in what are they

doing what are they a part of so he reached out to a lot of those places.

That was challenging because it was different than my ideal client and I didn't have to do that with some of our other hires because their ideal client was so parallel to mine that they just came in and so yeah that was we did a lot of that

and reached and then so mostly it was blogging and some SEO on the back end of our website and then a lot of it was like making one-on-one connections to places with his ideal client. Yeah I feel like there's so much value in that and building up your community connections you just never ever know who is going to reach out to you and when people think like oh it's not working I you know I know this person they've never actually reached out to me well I wouldn't say that that it's never gonna happen it just maybe hasn't happened yet you kind of

never know I received something from somebody that I worked with like 10 years ago.

My LinkedIn like hey I'm reaching out to you because I'm now working at this organization and we're really trying to find an art therapist can I connect to you with our you know program person and I was like sure yeah but I would have never expected that but it's those community relationships so constantly building the relationships over time even if you feel like okay nothing came in from that like just wait. Yeah and being open to it coming in differently than

you thought he got a lot of like opportunity I won't say a lot but he got several opportunities for like paid speaking engagements that were more about the N.A. Graham or more a little bit about like how to use the N.A. Graham to

lead how to use the N.A. Graham to like communicate better.

It still like up his alley because he is the in a group of relationships and so you know we think when we make these connections that people will want to become individual clients and they will refer their their friends you know whatever they'll refer someone friend of a friend to come be an individual client but we had that was the other thing is we have a become a contact or become a client page on our website we have like another form like we want to collaborate with you like just contact us and that has been helpful because people will contact us for supervision they'll contact us for like we want to pay the speaker and he has he's done that several times and then that kind of opened the door for some of our other clinicians to do like a workshop like we've had an art therapist that did like a workshop for an agency that works with persons with disabilities.

That was her jam and I don't know if any individual clients come from it but it was a paid workshop that she got to do and and that's opened the doors for other collaborations more like contract collaborations or even one time and it just starts to build that presence in and maybe some individual clients snuck through from that that we'll never know of but it definitely opened some doors and some different opportunities. Yeah I think those opportunities are really important in terms of your marketing kind of strategy whether they're paid or they're not paid I mean that's awesome that they're paid when that happens.

But even if they're not paid getting to give someone an experience and to meet you and work with you a little bit that gives them much more information if they are going to refer to you in the future like oh they did this I watched him speak and he talked all about this and this is how he uses it with couples like I could see somebody being much better able to sell the person that they're referring and not so much like sell but like being able to provide that rich full

description of here's why I'm referring this person to you here's what I benefited from when I interacted with them through this experience that's way more powerful in terms of getting the person that you're referring to take action and actually follow up and call then like oh here's this person I use here's their contact here's you know peers are contact information.

But you don't get much more than that I think I think it was in your mastermind groups that we talked about this of how many touch points does it take for someone to actually make the call and trust you specifically to call trust yeah agency to be the one that that's where they call and so these little touch points are super helpful because oh I saw you know I saw so and so present at that that conference I went to and they were from Mosaic Creative Counseling I thought I'd heard of that somewhere and now your neighbor struggling in their marriage or

in their like their kiddos and you think I think I know a place what was that place let me google it.

So yeah that's thinking of it as touch points is always really helpful because touch points make help remind you that it's not a waste it's just a point and so it's just it's just one on the path and there are a few more steps yeah I was talking with somebody else a few weeks ago about this and they were saying that they participated in some kind of marketing I don't know if it was a webinar or something but it was like the number has gone up to something like 16 touch points in order for you and your brand or business to become kind of solidified in the individual's brain that you exist I mean that's a lot of interactions and sometimes I think we we're like I want to do this.

I'm expecting an immediate cash flow or an immediate big win to come of it and it's not really like that it's really a long game strategy of like no I'm putting myself out there I'm building up familiarity in the community and reputation so that people go yeah I have heard of that company in fact not only if I heard of them but I was here I was at an event where they were at and and that's when you start to see things multiply but that takes time and I think that

truly comes from that ability to diversify and to pivot because if I'm only ever offering individual counseling in my niche or my group practice is niche.

I'm only ever receiving touch points for people that are in counseling but when

I'm offering things like little workshops or presentations or summer camps or groups or one-time creativity wellness retreats like those things reach a much broader population and so you're hearing from not just people who are already primed from mental health services you know like we love those people because they're ready to do the work but sometimes you have to get in touch with people that aren't primed and people that are not ready to do the work and maybe they go to one of your yoga events and then they go to a creative workshop.

Then they just feel really connected to you and they're not really down with this whole mental health thing but they feel like you're safe and they're ready to talk just to say person. Thanks so much for being a listener I just wanted to interrupt this interview really quick share a little bit about an opportunity in 2024 to

participate in our creative therapy practice builder mastermind group.

If you've never participated in a mastermind group before I will let you know that it's really a it's like a little environment where we all get together and support one another so that you can confidently grow on your journey to becoming the owner of a successful therapist own business whatever that means to you and we get together for an hour three times a month one of those weeks I'll usually focus on teaching something sometimes it's experiential where we go through an experiential process together to kind of explore where we're at maybe helping

people to overcome some limiting beliefs about what they're doing and the other

two weeks are more hot style or hot seat style where you come and each

participant is given the opportunity to share something that they're working

on that they need support around or need guidance around.

Or maybe they need some help with ideas and everybody in the group provides some support and

guidance and in our group we also have a concurrent Facebook group and there I share all the resources that I've developed and for you to use in your practice if you want the group is kept at 10 participants so it's quite small

and intimate and it lasts for six months I run it for six months because I feel like that's an opportunity for people to learn and develop a strategy and then put it in place and then we reconvene again in the next year sometimes people will stay a few years sometimes they might only join for one go round of the group this next group is going to begin in February of 2024 and the commitment is 150 a month for those six months if you join by 12 30 2023 the

price will go up in 2024 to 180 a month after that and like I said it'll be

capped at 20 people.

If you're interested to see if this would be a really good fit for you please go ahead and head over to our website where you can reserve a time to sign up for a 20-minute Zoom call that is at creativeclinicianscorner.com forward slash mastermind-group and I look forward to meeting with you plus you got them in your door so not now they don't leave not only do they know about you they know where you're located and they know what it feels like to be in your space.

I feel like that too when you can offer those little things that are in your space you get to provide and a total experience for them and it does it it's like okay like this isn't as intimidating as I thought it was going to be or this

doesn't look like what I was expecting it to look like it's much more welcoming and comfortable yeah it breaks down all those preconceived judgment but any of us have when we go to a new space you know but especially with anything in the mental health field stepping into your space and doing a little collage workshops like that breaks things down makes them different.

So what are some things that you've been doing in your practice to get people in the door and

how do you approach getting people in the door for those versus clients because I feel like there's probably a different strategy maybe there's not but what have you been doing you have done a lot of different things we've done

this summer we did our first summer camps those were a week long we called them creativity camp a therapeutic summer camp so we limited that to like about 10 kiddos.

I think the most we ever got was like eight which was good that was a blessing and so we did camps we're in the middle of a yoga series trauma informed yoga for anxiety and then we've done little one-time workshops we

did a chakra workshop that integrated art therapy and the chakras I've done a few of those paid like presentations for depending on who who requests it we've done a few free ones of those we've done like a free open house to get people in the door turn to think we've had a few that have flopped.

There was one where we were gonna do like a mindfulness and creativity workshop that absolutely

no one signed up for and I do a lot of I'll say experimenting with my interns where I'll challenge them to think of something new think of a new offering or a new service because they're kind of low risk right like they're in it for

the hours in the experience they're not in it for a paycheck. They're lively doesn't depend on it so when they're when their ideas don't go as planned it's just a great learning experience and there's no high risk to it when their

ideas go wonderfully then I can take that and then pitch that to one of our clinicians.

Say hey the interns just did a workshop on this and it made some good money maybe you want to continue it and so that mindfulness one day workshop actually bounced us into the summer camps because we realized like

mindfulness and creativity we weren't really identifying like a pain point we weren't really offering any sort of actual assistance and we were using a lot of jargon right mindfulness and so unless you were like really steeped in mindfulness. That was your thing like people weren't I mean it the numbers don't lie no one literally no one signed up for it so we talked about a pain point and what we did was we I said spring break is coming up and I'll tell you what a

pain point is is having to watch your kids spring break having to find child care

and so from there we did a spring break camp about mindfulness.

About some of those same themes but they adjusted it for an age range and they geared it towards

a time where parents needed some childcare and they needed and it was a great time for their kids to learn some extra coping skills to kind of bulk up on some of those therapeutic skills and the spring break camp was great and then I was like okay now we've got a little something so then we started doing summer camps

made them short so that they were sustainable .

But yeah it's helpful to like the that's what I mean where I'm like very risk averse as I always like try to

mitigate that first flop I'm like this could totally flop and I don't want to help anybody on the other end of that so that it's not they're not putting their everything into it. Yeah well I think too it's really helpful for you to

share that because sometimes people's perception of somebody who's successful in

practice they're not seeing all of all of those like challenges that you go

through where you've put something together and it didn't work out.

Which is totally fine because you learned from it and certainly you're gonna realize that

the next time you go to market like okay we need to step away from the jargen identify the pain point identify the solution that this service is going to fill and that gives you a different edge but had you not had the flop you

wouldn't necessarily learn that and I think it's important like I remember early on people were like you're really luck.

I was like I kind of feel insulted. I was like it did it kind of made me mad because I felt like I didn't

feel lucky I felt like I really invested a lot into figuring it out and making it work and of course there were flops and things along the way that didn't work out so it doesn't feel lucky it feels like you're you're you're putting the risk out

there you're taking on that risk and hoping that you're gonna learn from it.

And grow from it but I don't think it's luck. Yeah yeah no I feel like as whether it's solo practice owners or group practice owners like you show up and grind especially group practice you know not to minimize solo practice I know that's really hard to but group practice you know I care so much about my team and I feel

I have to recognize where does my initiative stop and where does their start but I know that I have to show up fully so that they can show up because if I'm not showing up fully I'm sabotaging something for them.

I will tell you that after that first flop I pointed out and I acknowledged like where did we not

show up fully where were we timid where maybe we sabotaged some things like for instance like putting it out on social media before it was perfect putting it publicizing it and getting tickets sold before we were really fully ready to do it and that kind of stuff like I think that when we did that first one that didn't work out they had only started advertising for two weeks before they wanted to do it .

Iit was a wonderful learn I've been wise it was a wonderful learning experience it was like full of things to learn and I realized like we I'm and I noticed that myself now like okay this is coming up but I'm I don't know that this flyers fully ready and I have to say like no like my me showing up timid or my hesitancy is actually going to sabotage this service or this event. We've got to push it out there what ready or not because that's gonna determine

if people have access to it and if people start to hear about it and the consumers or the clients or the participants or whatever it is they need time to like mull it over and decide but I tend to hog that time because I'm taking time

to mull it over and decide if I'm even gonna put it out there for you.

But they deserve to have time to decide if it's something they like they deserve to have time to budget for it and make their decisions so yeah showing up recognizing when I'm showing up really timid about a service and how that might be sabotaging it is hard. I love the reframe there that you know that you're

taking the time away from their decision making process. It really does shift it because I think that that's a common a common challenge when people are trying to create something they don't mark they don't mark it far enough in advance and then they're upset that it didn't come into fruition.

But it really takes a lot like if we were talking about the touch points right it takes so many

opportunities for interaction with that particular thing and it's in competition with so many other things that are being offered right like how many other little one-off specialty summer camps if you're doing that might be

happening and many book out in advance so there's a little bit of lik competitiveness there that you might miss out even though they might want to go to yours more than whatever they signed up for because it wasn't out and they

didn't know about it but they knew if they didn't sign up for something they'd miss their opportunity and then they wouldn't have that child care for their kid makes a big difference. So where do you see you and your practice

growing in 2024?

I feel really good about the team that we have even though we have like a multidisciplinary team I have tried to stay focused on our brand and our niche and so like of course my niche is art therapy but it's called mosaic creative

counseling and so anything that's holistic and experiential. And has that like creative specialty I always said they're wonderful talk therapists in my town and they're wonderful group practices that specialize in different

evidence-based talk therapies and so I'm not here to just recreate the wheel like if that's if that's what I'm here to do then I copying and pasting right and so I wanted to make sure as we grew that we stayed in our values.

That is like what even led me to make like what are the values like you say that but like what

are they and so I had to like write some of them down and I made sure that creativity was a value and we've had so I don't know I feel really good with our team and I feel like we are in all of those creative niches I would love one day to add like a drama therapist and a dance therapist and continue broadening that creative spectrum. I think one day owning a building is definitely one of my goals so that we have some permanency and we can have some

some nesting control over expenses yes yeah. We have some cool like our clinicians have some really cool ideas like our therapist is like how do you feel about a swing and I was like I love it but we're renting so I love the idea of being able to get more creative and not having to be limited by our landlord.

So yeah I think permanent space I'm interested in growth but I don't feel as urgent there was a time where I felt very urgent about growth I don't know if this is the moment that everybody has but I felt like the practice

was very precariously placed and that if one thing worth like there were like a few things but if those things went wrong this wasn't going to go well so there was a point where I felt very vulnerable. It felt like we were a little pedestal table and if that pedestal went down the whole table was going down and that was probably my scarcity mindset

a little bit but I do think you know when you're a small team of three and one person leads and the other person's your husband that doesn't feel great you know that's barely a group practice so there's points of vulnerability where

it felt like we got to we got to expand we got to grow.

We got to build this thing but I don't feel that urgency as much as I did now now I feel like we're here to like water the soil right here too nourish the seeds that we've planted and I really want to see our team get to like full caseloads and they have really good like creative ideas like this yoga therapy series for anxiety like that kind of I want to nourish those kinds of ideas. yeah I love that I've been seeing the marketing for it on Instagram yeah looks great

yeah she's had a lot of fun with it yeah and the way you're talking about it it

makes me think about the theory of the great round and and how you know that that sense of urgency

just to kind of really make your mark and now you're kind of pushing it to really fully develop.

Nurture it into that into that growth and to its full form I know it's what made me think of when you're saying like oh I need to like water the soil and and nurture what we've created that's a good place to be and appropriate too because that has to do with you being a leader and like really building your leadership style and your leadership skills in order to be there for all of your team. You have now yeah we our big moment was when we switched to a big office

and you were there with me I was in your mastermind when I was making that decision I was like oh what I'm doing right now but don't leave me um and there were lots of empty offices and so I think that was the big push like that was the moment of growth for us to sign this lease on a bigger office space.

We had like we needed to grow in some capacity and we needed to find renters and grow our team and um but that was a good learning experience that's what I mean when I say like my own resilience and my own like grit comes with me because I think I doubted that and then we figured it out and I keep reminding myself we'll get we'll figure it out. Yeah there's no wrong there's really no wrong choice there there really isn't there's not a wrong choice I mean there'll be consequences either way. But ultimately we'll learn from them and I think as creative individuals were really resourceful and one of the things that I think you're doing really well in the practice is the diversification

that by having a diversified well-rounded group of offerings that you're not pigeon pigeon-holing yourself into like one space so like all the funds are coming from this one thing

um so even if something happens you still have this other area to fall back on.

As you figure out what your next iteration will be well I believe we're coming to an end um it's we've been talking for

almost an hour it went really fast. I know that you have an offer for listeners um can you tell us a little bit about that we have a holistic wellness guide because it wouldn't be mosaic creative counseling if we didn't have something creative and holistic um so I have a holistic wellness guide listeners if they're interested it goes into five areas of wellness physical wellness emotional wellness social wellness spiritual and vocational wellness.

It gives like very creative practical ways that you can kind of reinvigorate those and um obviously not a substitute for therapy but it's a nice like little wellness checkup um to say huh I've been neglecting this whole area

of my wellness I've been neglecting this entire part of me. I've been focusing too much on

this part of me and not enough on that part so it's a good little guide um to reinvigorate some of that holistic wellness and you can get that on our website when you sign up for our email newsletter awesome so that your website is mosaic creative counseling dot com yeah yeah and if folks wanted to get in touch with you they had any follow-up questions would that

be the best place to find you as well?

Yes yeah they can if they are interested in any of our services obviously they've become a client page but if they just want to talk to me or if they're interested in asking questions or anything that doesn't really fall under becoming a client they can do that contact tab where it just kind of says like I'm interested in something else and I want to get in touch with someone and all of that stuff gets copied to me not necessarily forward but I see it and it'll find its way to me .

Excellent well thank you so much for being willing to talk about your experience and um the work that you've been doing in your practice and being so generous to share your learning lessons with listeners yeah of course of course all right thank you so much right now thank you for your time you're welcome thank you . Thanks for listening to this episode of the creative psychotherapist podcast I hope you enjoyed this conversation with Nicole and I um I am so inspired by what she's accomplished and how much she's grown over the past two years.

I've been working with her and getting to know her and and her business and I'm really excited to see

what's in store for 2024 I think she's doing amazing work um again if you are interested in joining us in 2024 to be part of the mastermind group where you can feel supported in your creative practice building journey uh we'd love to have you um go ahead and head over to the website creativeclincianscorner.com/mastermind-group and you can reserve a 20-minute zoom session with me.

To see if this would be the right choice for you and um even if you're kind of on the fence and you want to

talk it over a little bit uh please do sign up for the consultation doesn't cost you anything for that

um and some people in the past have asked like do I have to have a practice already can I join if I don't

have a practice yeah of course I've had people in the group actually start it. Then decide you know what I'm not actually ready um to go full force into starting a private practice but the group helps them to come to that determination in a more informed way.

I've had others that already have a small group practice going and part of the work that we're doing in the group is helping them to build systems and strategies to um support their growth and um and nurture them in their process

so no matter where you are in your practice building journey um this might be a good opportunity for you

again head over to the website creativeclistianscorner.com/mastermind-group and sign up for that 20-minute

consultation I look forward to talking with you and if you're a long time listener or a new listener

and you really enjoy the content that we deliver for you here please do rate subscribe and provide

us feedback wherever you listen to podcasts so that other people that would benefit or enjoy

hearing from the amazing people that we have on the show and their expertise um can more easily

those folks can more easily find the show.

Thanks so much for listening to this episode of the creative psychotherapist if you like what you heard please

rate review and subscribe wherever you listen to your favorite podcasts for show notes

downloads and additional resources head over to the website at www.creativeclistianscorner.com

Season 2 Episode 23 | Maureen Clancy | Integrating Alternative Healing & Traditional Psychotherapy Practices

Wed, 15 Nov 2023 11:00:00 GMT

FEATURED GUESTS: Maureen Clancy is a licensed therapist and trauma expert for over 20 years helping women go through enormous life changes who’ve also experienced childhood trauma. She’s the creator of the Gate Passages Framework, a structured, bottom-up approach to healing trauma and going through major life changes. She’s certified in EMDR and trained in Sensorimotor Psychotherapy (certification in progress), Internal Family Systems, and AEDP. She combines therapy with Reiki, Tarot, and flower essences. She’s a certified NASW clinical supervisor for social workers seeking advanced clinical certification and runs supervision groups for newer therapists looking to gain skills in treating trauma. She’s presented on trauma and self-care at Rutgers University Graduate School of Social Work and Limerick Institute of Technology School of Social Care (County Clare, Ireland). She’s a certified yoga teacher (200-hour), 20-year meditator, self-taught artist and potter. She is based in the NY metro area. She loves to garden, play pickleball, and feed people.

LISTEN & LEARN:

Learn more about two alternative healing methods: Bauch Flower Remedies and Rekki
Develop a better understanding of the origins of Rekki
How you can use Rekki to self regulate
How these methods can support clients in their healing.

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW:

Connect and learn more about Maureen Clancy at maureen-clancy.com
email Maureen Clancy at media@maureen-clancy.com
Check out Maureen Clancy's FREE Trauma Class Why You Can't DIY Healing from Trauma Class: Ready to finally get to the root of healing from trauma? Inside the class, you’ll learn: How your automatic survival responses keep you from thinking clearly while you’re experiencing trauma. Why these automatic survival responses get stuck in your body and keep showing up … even years later. Why regular talk therapy can’t help with this. How DIY and doing it yourself will only get you so far.
Check out more about Bauch Flower Remedies here

Imagine 2024 being THE YEAR YOU Build the Creative Arts Practice of Your Dreams!

Receive all the information and support you need to confidently grow on your journey to becoming the owner of a successful therapist owned business.

-Sign up for the 2024 Mastermind Group with Reina Lombardi here

Hey there creative, thanks so much for listening to the show. This is episode 23 of season 2.

We're getting ready to wrap up here shortly in December. So come back in 2024 with a whole new

style. We're going to be doing live recordings in 2024. So it'll still air on Wednesdays, but it'll

probably won't be live until Wednesday afternoon. Anyway, today's episode is with Maureen Clancy, who

really is an integrative psychotherapist. She's skilled in a variety of specialties, but

is integrating some alternative healing practices into her work as a therapist as well.

And we have a long conversation about that. And some of the challenges pertaining to judgment when you're

offering things that maybe other people don't recognize or see value in. And you know, how to

handle that? How do you respond to that? Which I think can be difficult, right? Whenever we're

putting ourselves out there in the world, it's a vulnerable position. And sometimes the feedback

that we receive isn't the nicest. And so when that happens, how do you respond? Especially when

you know that you're grounded in your truth and what you believe is of value to your clients.

So without further ado, I hope you enjoy.

Thanks so much for listening to the Creative Psychotherapist podcast. I'm your host,

Reina Lombardi. And I'm really excited to welcome my next guest to the show. Her name is

Maureen Clancy. And she's a licensed therapist and trauma expert for over 20 years, helping women go

through enormous life changes, who've also experienced childhood trauma. And she's the creator of the

Gate Passages Framework, a structured bottom-up approach to healing trauma and going through major

life changes. She's certified in EMDR and trained in sensory motor psychotherapy with a certification

in progress, internal family systems, and AEDP.

She combines therapy with Rekki, Tarot, and Flower Essences, and she's a certified NASW clinical supervisor for social workers seeking advanced clinical certification, and runs supervision groups for newer therapists looking

to gain skills in treating trauma. She's presented on trauma in self-care at Rutgers University

Graduate School of Social Work and Limorck Institute of Technology School of Social Care,

which is in County Claire, Ireland. She's a certified yoga teacher, 200 hours, a 20-year

meditator, a self-taught artist and potter, and she's based in the New York City metro area,

and she loves to garden, play pickleball, and feed people. Welcome, Maureen.

Thanks so much for joining me today. I'm really excited to be here with you. So, like I said, let's just dive in,

you know, in most of our graduate training programs, the emphasis even 20 years ago, I graduated,

almost 20 years ago, even then it was very focused on, you know, integrating evidence-based

practices, learning about more traditional models. How did you come exposed to

alternative healing practices in your work as a therapist?

Oh, I love talking about this. It happened during a time when I was trying to recover from a

workplace injury in my first career, which was a newspaper reporter. Oh, wow. Very cool. Yeah,

it was a lot of fun. And like most things that happened to me, it wasn't really what I was supposed

to be doing. I loved hearing people's stories and following up on the stories and the things that

they were experiencing. I didn't really enjoy just getting in and out with a quick story.

So, I developed this repetitive strain injury, which made it so I couldn't use my hands

anymore. And I was in chronic pain. Oh, my gosh. From typing?

From typing? Yeah, we were all in a big newsroom and we had all kinds of stations, computer stations,

and you just hop on one or hop on the next, whatever was open. And they weren't configured to

anyone's bodies. And we were all under deadline pressure. So there's the tension in your body

combined with trying to get that story into the queue on deadline. And it really created a lot of

inflammation and pain in my body. Wow. Yeah. So I had to stop working and I moved back in with my

parents in my early 30s. And I became really depressed about not being able to use my body any

more the way I was used to. For a time when it really hurt to even like hold a toothbrush.

Yeah. It was so significant. Especially like at 30, you know, that's such a young age to

experience something like that, where your body's not performing the way it should, in the way we

expect it to. Oh, yeah. I really thought, I don't know what I'm going to do for the rest of my life.

And so, you know, moving in with my parents was wonderful because it gave me a place to land

so that I had a roof over my head and food and the things that I needed to really heal.

And, you know, it was really depressing for a while as I tried to navigate how to heal and what

might be next for me. And so I went to therapy for the first time. And that was great. I loved it.

But I also found that it wasn't enough. So I mean, you know, I was doing physical therapy and trying

to heal what was happening in my body. And those two things weren't quite enough. So my mom's a nurse

and she said, you know, there's someone in town who does this thing called Rekki. I don't really know

what that is. I'm not quite sure, but you might try it. And so I thought, okay, I'm willing to try

anything right now. And after a session, I felt so much more at home in my body.

And I thought, this is really interesting. So I kept going. At the same time, I was experiencing a lot of anxiety

and panic to accompany that deep depression. And it was really about seeing all of my peers getting

married, starting to have families. And I wasn't really in a position to do any of that.

So I went to a health food store near me. And I talked to the owner about what was happening. And she

said, maybe she should try some box rescue remedy. And I thought, what the heck is that? So she brought

me over to where she headed on her shelf. And she showed me that little yellow box with the bottle

inside. And she said, it's mostly, you know, flower essences. But people love it. Give it a try.

So I bought it. And in my car, I took it out of box. And I thought, how can this possibly help?

But I tried it. I put it on my tongue. And right away, I felt this opening in my body. It felt like

there was suddenly more space to breathe. And I wasn't as

death grip on the wheel anxious. And it lasted for a couple of hours. And I was really surprised. So

those two things are things that I started incorporating on a regular basis into my own healing.

And it was really helpful for folks that are listening that maybe have heard of Rekki, but don't know

what it is. Would you be willing to kind of talk about the origins of Rekki and what it is and how

people give and receive Rekki? Yeah, I'd be happy to. And by no means an expert on Rekki.

But what I was taught is that it was discovered spontaneously by someone in Japan.

And he, I don't remember his name, but he was putting his hands on a family member and felt this

energy going through his hands. And that was the beginning of trying to figure out what was

happening. And the family member really enjoyed what was happening and felt better.

So he developed a whole system of channeling that energy. And he said it's just energy that's out there in the

universe available to everyone. So Rekki is a form of using that energy and directing it into

it could be a person, it could be a plant, it could be a place, it could be my microphone

as a form of healing. So that's what I can tell you about the origins of Rekki.

And as a recipient, what what what what would somebody who's never done Rekki before?

What could they expect if they go and say, okay, I'm going to do this. What does that look like?

So if you get Rekki in person, then you'll be laying fully clothed on a massage table. That's the

most common form or you can be seated. And the person who is doing the Rekki will have some kind of

centering that will happen. And then they'll be laying on of hands on the person's body. But it's not

like a heavy-handed gripping. It's more like my Rekki teacher, the first one I had said, it's like a

butterfly settling on your body. And so you just receive it usually feels warm at the place where the

person is putting hands on the body. There could be nothing that you feel. But the idea is that you are

you're receiving this energy that exists everywhere to heal whatever needs to be healed in your body.

So after Rekki session, people usually feel more at ease, calmer, more energized.

If they're experiencing chronic pain somewhere, there's usually an ease in the intensity of the pain.

And sometimes the you know how the pain is spreading in the body sometimes changes. So it's a really

gentle form of healing. And you can have Rekki that's done in person or you can do it be a distance.

And if it's be a distance, how does that work? Yeah, well it works kind of like

I mean Rekki to me is not a religious thing but it works kind of like prayer or sending you know

healing thoughts to someone.

So you have the intention of sending that Rekki healing energy to a particular

person or a group of people or a place. And then they can pick that up whenever they want. Or it

doesn't even have to be picked up, they can just be received. Fascinating. Yeah, there's not a lot of

science behind it, which I think is sometimes hard for people to try it.

For sure. I think anytime you talk about these kinds of methods, people feel

if they don't they don't understand it, they haven't experienced it, they can feel like

that is a little bit out there. And not you know they might have some judgment around it.

I know in my practice a couple of years ago one of my administrative assistant was a Rekki master.

And she was like you know would you be open to me teaching people how to use it. And I was like yeah

I want to I want to learn too. And well we started to promote it. And I got a lot of negative feedback

in terms of like emails responding to me marketing this because you know it's not grounded in science.

It's made up. It's like all kinds of things. And and I was tough. It's really tough to be on the

receiving end of that. And I thought okay well I've already been experiencing it in my practice.

And I've seen how like she was able to do things. I once had an intake where there was a young child

who was inconsolable and inconsolable at a level that was painful to be in the presence of. And it

was intense. And she heard it. She was in another room in the building because everybody heard it

even with the sound machines on it. And she was able to offer that energy at a distance. And the

kid fell asleep in his parents arms. And they said that's unusual. Normally this will go on for hours.

Which was of course why they were bringing him in and kind of referred them on to have more

testing because I knew there was something else going on there that really needed to be addressed.

And after she was like, are you okay? Is everything okay? And I was like, yeah, I know.

And she told me what she did. And I was like, oh, well maybe that's why he fell asleep.

And I thought, okay, yeah, I definitely want to learn how to use this. Not simply has something to

be offered to my clients, but more for me, more, how can I use that for me as a clinician when I feel

really dysregulated in context with the work that I'm doing so that the next appointment I can

really be grounded. And so I did level two training, one in two. I haven't done the third level.

But to be able to kind of self-administer the Rekki. And I love it. I found it to be really wonderful. And

I think that the therapist that ended up doing these trainings too have had really positive feedback

about how they've been able to utilize it for themselves. It kind of changes the directionality of

where they're going in the work. And I think if we're dealing with trauma, right, there's like,

it's an existential experience. And it's hard to separate that stuff out even though we kind of want to

in our field in some capacity. But last year during Hurricane Ian, which hit here and was really

devastating as part of the emergency response.

There was a mental health first responders kind of group that went out. And they were calling for volunteers. One of the things that they were looking for were trauma practitioners that also offered Rekki. That not necessarily,

you know, as they were going out to the hard hit community, which was real total devastation.

Not necessarily to facilitate therapy on the spot, but to offer some sense of grounding and comfort.

And to be able to move that, I think that energy in those hard hit areas. And I thought, oh, this is

good. This is positive. Maybe they're starting to be a shift here in people's receptiveness to

the practice. Have you observed any of that where you're at and you're part of the country?

Hey, there are creative psychotherapists. I want to share with you an upcoming opportunity in 2024

to be part of the creative arts practice builders mastermind group.

I've been holding this mastermind group for the past few years. And we usually meet for six months.

And then we have six months off. And it kind of gives people time to integrate what they've learned

into practice and then come back again in the new year. And if this sounds something that you're

interested in, let me know. We have opportunities for you to book a short

zoom session with me to see if it's the right choice for you.

And the group will begin in February 2024. We'll meet three times a month for 60 minutes. One will be, one week will be an educational format where I'm presenting something that is beneficial for your business. Or sometimes it might

be a creative arts experiential that's business focused that we engage in together. And then the other

two weeks are more hot seat style where somebody comes with a problem or a challenge, something

they're working on their business. And they receive support from the rest of the group.

And then on the off week, on that fourth week of the month, I usually will set up a meeting where

folks can attend and kind of work together. I'm not present during that meeting, but other

individuals in the group will come and you can work on whatever it is that you need to address in

your business. But if you feel like this might be a benefit to you, sign up for a 20 minute zoom

call with me on the website. And you can do that over at www.creativeclinicianscorner.com/mastermind-group.

And I look forward to talking with you real soon. Wow, Reina, as I'm listening to everything you just

shared, it really makes me so happy to hear that things might be shifting. Yeah, that's a big deal.

Hope so. Yeah, I haven't experienced that here where I live outside of Manhattan.

But what I find really interesting, I used to keep all of that hidden. And once I started working with

a client, I would say, "You know, I also do Rekki. Is that something that you'd be interested in?"

And this is what it is. And I'd go through the whole informed consent piece.

And some clients were like, "Let me think about it." And other clients were like,

"You do Rekki. This is great because I go somewhere else for that."

And if that's something that you will offer here, that's wonderful. Yes, I would like to do that.

So in that regard, I think it's becoming something that clients in my area are becoming more familiar

with and are seeking out as a junctive healing modalities to the therapy work. And I'm so excited

about that because there is this real energetic piece to trauma or any mental health issue that

you're grappling with that really isn't touched by talk therapy and sometimes those evidence-based

talk therapies. And when you're describing to me this backlash that you received

in offering Rekki to your clients, I think that that is usually the first thing that I hear

if I talk about Rekki with other practitioners, they're like, "Well, how can you combine the two

is that ethical? Are you jeopardizing your license?"

And I've reviewed my license, the code of ethics, everything. There's nothing in there that says you can't do this.

And it really starts with your intention for doing it. And it starts with that informed consent

piece which is really important. Yeah, yeah, yeah, for sure. I feel like that's

part of anything we offer, right? The consent, making sure where there's transparency that we both

are starting from the same place. We have the same understanding. We understand the limitations

of what we're offering, all of that. Yeah. So with your work with Rekki and flower essences,

can we shift a little bit over to that? And I know you were talking about how you were introduced.

How are you using that in your work with clients? Obviously that's more of like a supplemental

kind of thing. I've talked with different people about like, neutropics and different types of

more natural-based supplements to help with managing our symptoms, whether that's anxiety or depression,

what have you. But I'm not familiar with flower essences.

Yeah, flower essences are becoming more and more familiar to people. And I'm also really thrilled

about that. But flower essences are really the flower put in water for a certain period of time

in direct sunlight. And then after that you take all of the plant material and the flower material

out of the water. And you add something to preserve it. It can be alcohol, which is what's used in

box flower essences. It could be vinegar, the kind that I use most often if I'm not using my own,

and the ones that I make. It's preserved in red chiso, which is a plant in the mint family.

Which is a great preservative. It's one that's used very widely in Asia.

So yeah, and the idea is that there's something that everything that flowers can give you

and support you with. So, "Borage as a flower essence"

gives a sense of self-love and hope. And it's really soothing to the heart.

So, if I'm working with a client who is experiencing a lot of grief about what may be lost or what

they're losing, it could be someone going through a divorce or a job loss or a health condition

that's really going to alter how they function in the world. "Borage can be really helpful

in soothing that grief and sorrow." And so, it's thought that everything that flowers has something

that it can help with. Fascinating. Yeah, this is all new to me.

It's fascinating. And I think to a lot of herbal conferences, and one of the things that I had

never done before that I really wanted to experience is meditation and sitting with flowers or plants.

And so, one of the workshops that I went to was really wonderful.

And the person presenting gave flowers to every single person in that workshop and you had to

sit quietly with the flower and remain open to whatever impressions were coming to you.

And what did she give me? She gave me plantain. And I thought plantain, you know, this is something

that I'm yanking out of the cracks in my sidewalk. I wonder what plantain's going to tell me. And for a

while I didn't hear anything. And then I heard I can help in all of the ways that you don't ever really

notice. And I am a survivor and I can help you survive too. And so she asked us what came up and I

raised my hands and I thought, this is weird. This is what I heard. And she said, that's very interesting

because plantain is something for acute injury. You can take some plantain and either mix it together

with water or actually if you don't have water, you can chew it in your mouth.

And if you put it on like a cut or a burn or an insect bite, it will start to heal that a lot more quickly. And the pain

is going to dissipate. Interesting. I was shocked. And that was just, you know, sitting with plantain.

I think it took 10 minutes. So I had already been using flower essences at that point. And I thought,

this is something that I may be able to bring to clients. Yeah. It sounds like it is, it's like

wisdom from generations before we have like commercialization of all of the medical

pills and medications and things that we have today that like there's a lot of ancient wisdom

in the herbal methods and remedies that we probably probably a lot to learn there.

Yeah, there's so much to learn. But with box rescue remedy and it becoming really well known and

popular, it's a whole new way of introducing that wisdom and experiencing that wisdom.

Yeah. And when I first used that box rescue remedy, I mean, the bottle maybe lasted me three days

and I just kept buying more and more. And I noticed that it really helped me feel less anxious

about what was going to happen. What was my life going to be after this injury?

Which clearly that has been some time and brought you into the field of social work.

Yeah. And I'm so grateful. I'm grateful that that injury happened because it brought me somewhere else.

It's much more in line with who I am and where my heart is and what I'm interested in.

And not not spent stressing out writing short deadlines for work, although we have a different kind of

writing that we're responsible for. Yeah. Yeah. So how do you, if you do receive like any kind of

criticism or questioning from other colleagues about your methodology and kind of integrating

these alternative practices with your more traditional psychotherapy training?

How do you respond to those kinds of things? If that if that's happened to you, I know I struggled with that myself.

How do I respond to this? I don't even know how. Yeah. It's a journey. And at first,

it was really hard to hear that like, hmm, maybe I really am doing something wrong here.

Maybe I should keep that stop hidden and separate. But then I started to get really curious

about where that criticism was coming from. And what kind of fears might be coming up for those

colleagues who were questioning my use of those things. And might that always use to say something?

Well, who benefits from that? And I really started thinking, okay, who benefits from the separation here?

And it might be governing bodies. It might be, you know, states giving out licenses. I don't really

know. I don't have the answer for that. But when I became curious about those criticisms,

I think the best response that I ended up giving, and usually it's the one that I still have, it's,

you know, the alternative healing modalities aren't for everyone. And if it makes you uncomfortable

to know that I'm doing it, you know, I'm be happy to have a conversation about the anecdotal evidence

that I'm getting from my clients. But if you would rather not talk about it, we can also agree to disagree

on my use of that. So that's how I handle it now. But it makes me curious.

And it always, I think it's always going to make me curious about where that's coming from. Is it the patriarchy? I'm just not sure. That that's a good question. Yeah. Yeah. I think I don't really have the answer either except for

that it's somehow linked with fear. Like you said, I think people fear things they don't know and don't

understand. And yeah, I think your response is eloquent and an assertive, respectful and helpful.

So thank you for for sharing that for folks that might be listening that may also be in that position

too of, gosh, it feels really vulnerable to put this out there.

But I want to because I see how it is a benefit to the clients that I'm working with or perhaps it's been beneficial for themselves in some way. So thank you for sharing that. I'm happy to. I will often get supervisees

who will say I secretly want to bring this into the work, but I'm really scared.

And I'll say, okay, inform consent, transparency, that's really key here.

But try it. See if there's a client who might be willing to try what you'd like to offer.

Because we're not in like, visit, narrowly defined idea of what a therapist does. But clients are

coming to us wanting all of the healing power we have, not just this little place.

So I'm hoping that there's more and more acceptance of widening the scope of what's offered

in a healing relationship for therapists and their clients. I do too. I've noticed that over the

course of my career places that are maybe a little more receptive to it are facilities that are

end of life, hospice work, work with cancer, things of that nature, but not necessarily out in

kind of maybe more traditional places where psychotherapy is offered, which is really unfortunate.

But hopefully, as more people come to these things and they're talking about them and making them

visible and accessible and relatable, that it will come to be.

The fact that they were looking for folks that had that background to do the mental health

response for me was like, wow, I was not expecting that. That's a tremendous sign, which is exciting.

Yeah, that's really exciting. And Ricky is really great for providing that grounding and regulation

in the nervous system, which after something traumatic is so hard to come by on your own.

Yeah, I yes, absolutely. Our whole area was dysregulated for quite some time. I don't think

that we're really back to completely normal yet. There's still so much happening in terms of

recovery efforts, but a lot better than where we were a year ago, which was like right after it

happened. And it was just scary. That sounds awful. It was horrible. I've been through many,

many hurricanes. I'm from Florida and grew up here. So I've been through many storms.

This was definitely the worst I've ever experienced. And it just, it's changed our entire landscape of our

community here. So whenever you have something that's so destructive and catastrophic, there's

so much grief. And even like I know people have said, I know I need to do some therapy because,

you know, I was there and this happened to me, but I just haven't had time yet. I have because

because that seems like, you know, higher up on the Maslow's hierarchy of needs,

than just to kind of get stabilized in some way.

Yeah, there's so many acute needs after something like that happens. And, you know, the understanding that, yeah, I can benefit from therapy, but actually placing yourself in a chair so that you can confront or face what happened to you takes a lot of energy. So much energy. Yes. So much energy, which that's something that's nice that you're able to, you know, be with your clients and offer additional energy to them as they're going through the process.

Yeah, I'm very grateful to be able to do that. I'm curious how your gate passages framework

may integrate some of these things. You talk about it as a bottom-up process versus a top-down

process. And I think, you know, the more we're learning about trauma, the more we're recognizing that

we, that bottom-up is where we need to be focused. The cognitive shifts only help so much.

But would you be willing to share how you're integrating that into your framework?

Yeah, I would be happy to. And it really, you know, starts with the nervous system,

because when you are remembering something traumatic that happened to you, there are specific

body memories that also start to show up in the body. And it could be like an orienting response

or like a defensive response, you know, it can bring your hand up as a pushing away of something

or someone. And so I really, I saw so many clients who had that happening earlier in my career,

and I had no way of doing anything except noticing it.

And it wasn't until someone, it was a colleague who introduced me to sensory motor psychotherapy in 2018 that I really started to go, "Oh, this is the missing piece. This is what I can bring in for clients who had very severe

body memories and things that were happening that really kept them in a survival response."

And so the sensory motor psychotherapy has really changed the way I practice in that

when clients start talking about what happened or if there's a current trigger that goes back to

something that was traumatic that happened, we will start noticing what's happening in the body

and bring in mindfulness to do that.

Rather than talking about, "Okay, well, this happened and then

that happened." It's a, "All right, so when you talk about that first thing that happened,

I notice that your shoulders come forward." And we work with that sense of your shoulders coming forward.

And usually it's a real shift for people who've had therapy before because they want to talk about

their shoulders coming forward and what that means. And the last time they did it and 20 times ago

and how they saw their mom do it, and they want to really bring in that cognitive piece. And so

it's almost really training them to stay with what's happening in the body.

Yeah. As a way of reconciledating those body memories which really don't respond to talk therapy.

No. Yeah. No. They need a different way of being expressed and understood.

Yeah. Yeah. And so yeah. I was going to say so it sounds like with your, with the gate passages framework,

you're integrating a lot of the sensory motor psychotherapy approaches into that.

Yeah, as well as the Rekki which is a body approach, you really don't have to do anything except

receive and the flower essences because interestingly enough flower essences, once you take them they

go right to work on what's needed.

And if you're taking Borge for example and you're like, "I got

plenty of self-love. I don't need that." It just goes through your system and out as quickly as you took it.

So you don't have to think about anything that's happening with it. It works really on the body

and only on the body. And the idea of that is if your body is for example you're not experiencing any

love for yourself and you're taking Borge and you notice an opening here, your posture might

get taller. You might actually feel like you're more solid in your body because there's more space

in your torso now that you're sitting up straighter. So those methods that I'm using are really

designed to work with the body first. Not so much that you have to think about it.

Yeah, so it's kind of like you're getting out of the way or you're kind of working around the

cognitive defenses that might prevent stuff from changing because that's the goal of those

defenses, right? Keep us acting in the same way that we've habituated to. So you're kind of getting

around that, making some shifts within the body which then can be recognized and thought of differently.

I understand. Yeah, that's exactly it, right? Okay, perfect.

And a gate passage is my term for time of enormous change. And the idea of that phrase is

so that there's a structure that you can start to bring in when you're going through a big change.

You'll start at one area of the gate and you're just going to keep passing through until you're

out of the gate on the other side. And so on the other side, exactly.

So I used that phrase very intentionally to really set an expectation that whatever change is happening now, it's something that you're going to get through on the other side of. I love that. I always say, you know, the only

way out is through and you have to feel, feel our way through things and not think our way through

things. Exactly. That's it. Mm-hmm. Yeah. But it's hard to feel our way through things. So

having a, having a framework to do that within and support us as we do that is really helpful.

Yeah. It's a, for me, in a really safe way of working with trauma. And it really follows

a Pierre-Jones three-faced approach to working with trauma and healing from trauma.

So I'm hoping to be building on that work. Mm-hmm. Do you offer training in that approach?

Not yet. It's on my list of things that I would like to do. It's on the list. I have a long list.

There's so many things that I'm interested in and curious about. But I expanded recently from

an individual practice to a group practice. I have two clinicians who work with me now.

They work part-time. And so I am teaching them about this framework. And so hopefully in teaching them about

the framework, it'll really point me in the direction of formalizing this for training and helping

other clinicians learn more about it if they're interested. Yeah. I think that would be really helpful.

For sure. Especially for those of us that are looking to integrate different approaches to meet our clients unique needs. Yeah. There's not enough good trainings out there for that. No. And which is why I'm always

in my heart thinking the art therapists out there because they've really been at the forefront

of incorporating something else into therapy.

Yeah. I think I went to Leslie, which is a multimodal approach. So it integrates all the expressive arts. And one of the classes that I got to take as an elective was holistic approaches to psychotherapy. And the teacher, she taught us all,

we did all kinds of things in there that now I recognize like, oh, we learned about that in that

class, but it's being integrated into a lot of the current approaches to psychotherapy, right?

You pulling in yoga, which so many people are doing that. And there's now trainings to integrate yoga

in therapy for that. And, Ash, what else? She talked a lot about herbal, herbal

tinctures and different things, mindfulness approaches to eating. Just it was definitely not

your traditional program, but wonderful to have that exposure and to know, okay, like there's,

there is an opportunity for this here, which is wonderful. But the other piece is that with the

expressive therapies, it really is body. The body is part of part of that work, especially if you're

taking people in an owl, like, you know, you're creating about something art wise, then you're

expressing it through your movement. What does that look like with your body?

Where do you feel it in your body? And you're processing it in that way. So it's wonderful to see that as a whole, even

the creative arts, the expressive arts are kind of being more widely accepted and recognized

for their value. I know you were saying you're working on the certification for sensory motor

psychotherapy. And there's a training on sensory motor art therapy. I would love to take. I have not

been able to fit that in, but that's been around for a really long time.

And yeah, it's just fascinating. And I've read the book on the topic, but I haven't taken an actual physical training, which I would love to take. I've played myself in that realm, but I think it would be beneficial to take a legitimate

training with somebody who's a master and that's their approach. But it's all about like really

interpreting what's in the body into an art piece, but the art piece isn't a product. It's not a

product to be looked at as something it's an experience that you're going through.

And it's bilateral. So you're using both hands at the same time as you're expressing what's happening. And it's really

fascinating. This sounds fantastic. I can't wait to look this up, Reina. Yeah, yes. Highly recommend,

for sure. Yeah. So for people that would like to learn more about what you do, or perhaps maybe

their social worker that would really like to be in your supervisory group.

To learn from you and to learn how to integrate different approaches to treatment,

whether they're more traditional or more alternative into their practice, where can they

find more information about your Maureen? They can visit my website at Maureen-clancy.com.

And the information is there about how to set up a brief talk to discuss working together

in supervision. Love it. Well, I am grateful for you making the time. And for being willing to talk

about your work and how you're integrating these approaches into treatment and happy to have

this conversation. Because I think that there's real value in it. And I wish people didn't write

it off so quickly. And hope that we have more people coming around.

Yeah. And thank you so much for making space for this conversation. Because I think there are a lot

of clinicians who are curious about how to bring all of that in. So it's wonderful to be in conversation

with you about this. Thank you. You're welcome. Thank you. Thanks so much for listening to this episode of the Creative Psychotherapist podcast. I hope you enjoyed this conversation with Maureen. If you're somebody that has been wanting to integrate the alternative healing modalities into your work, I hope that you found this conversation

inspiring and hopeful that, hey, you know, other people are doing this.

And there's a way to do it that's ethically minded and grounded. As always, if you like what you hear, please rate, review, and subscribe wherever you listen to your podcasts. We very much appreciate your support in helping

us to be found by other folks that might find value in the conversations that we're having on the show.

And I hope that you all have a wonderful creative week. And we'll talk about you next week.

Thanks for listening to this episode of the Creative Psychotherapist. If you like what you heard,

please rate, review, and subscribe wherever you listen to your favorite podcasts. For show notes,

downloads, and additional resources head over to the website at www.CreativeCliniciansCorner.com.

Season 2 Episode 22 | Rachel Brandoff & Astra Czerny | The Empowerment Wheel & Art Therapy: An Integrated Approach to Helping Clients Heal from IPV & Abuse

Wed, 08 Nov 2023 11:00:00 GMT

FEATURED GUESTS: Dr. Rachel Brandoff is a Registered, Board-Certified Art Therapist (ATR-BC) and credentialed supervisor (ATCS). She is an Associate Professor and Coordinator of the Art Therapy Concentration in the Community and Trauma Counseling program at Thomas Jefferson University. Dr. Brandoff maintains a clinical practice specializing with individuals who are coming out of crises and coping with trauma. She provides supervision and consultation to art therapists and professional counselors. Dr. Brandoff has served on the boards of various professional organizations and is a regular presenter at regional and national conferences. Her new book, "The Empowerment Wheel: Helping Clients Heal from Relationship Abuse" , comes out in early 2024 and is available for pre-order.

FEATURED GUESTS: Dr. Astra B. Czerny is a licensed counselor (LCMHC-NC & LPC-PA), a National Certified Counselor (NCC), and a Board Certified Telemental Health Provider (BC-TMH). She maintains a small private practice for clients and a supervision and consultation practice with clinicians. Dr. Czerny is an associate professor at Lenoir Rhyne University in Hickory, NC, where she is the clinical coordinator and the developer of the Trauma Certificate program. Dr. Czerny is an active presenter at both state and national conferences. Her areas of interest include healing from trauma and empowerment.

LISTEN & LEARN:

Gain a deeper understanding of The Empowerment Wheel model
Learn more about the 6 main core elements of The Empowerment Wheel
Red Flags
Boundaries
Relationship Authenticity
Locus of Control
Self Talk
Integrated Self
Tools and structure for clinicians to help clients move through and process the domestic violence
The importance of the therapist exploring implicit bias when it comes to working with victims and perpetrators

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW:

Connect with Rachel Brandoff on Linkendin
email Dr. Rachel Brandoff at rachelbrandoff@gmail.com
Connect with Dr. Astra Czerny on Linkendin
email Dr. Astra Czerny at astra.czerny@gmail.com or https://www.lr.edu/about/directory/astra-czerny
Find out more about about the new book
Order their new book here "The Empowerment Wheel: Helping Clients Heal from Relationship Abuse" coming out early 2024

UPCOMING PRESENTATIONS:

Association for Creativity in Counseling (ACC) conference, Nov 2-4th, Melbourne, FL
American Counseling Association (ACA) conference, April 11-14th, New Orleans, LA
American Mental Health Counselor's Association (AMHCA) Virtual Summit, Date TBA
Expressive Therapies Summit , Spring 2024, Date TBA

TBD

Season 2 Episode 21 | Krista Verrastro | Using Your Strengths as a Creative Arts Therapist to Build Your Practice

Wed, 01 Nov 2023 09:45:00 GMT

FEATURED GUESTS: Krista Verrastro, MA, RDT/BCT (she/her) is a Registered Drama Therapist and Board Certified Trainer who blends drama therapy, talk therapy, and EMDR therapy. She works with teens and adults in private practice in Reisterstown, Maryland. She specializes in helping people who feel used, abused, neglected, and rejected transform from surviving to thriving. This includes people who have experienced various types of abuse or other relational issues that cause people to feel disconnected from themselves and others. She facilitates workshops online and in-person. She provides clinical consultation, private practice building consultation, and supervision for drama therapists in training as well as new drama therapists. She presents nationally and internationally about drama therapy and mental health issues. She has worked in a variety of settings, such as outpatient mental health clinics, schools, and nursing homes. She received her Bachelor's and Master's degrees from New York University.

LISTEN & LEARN:

Learn how to market in a landscape dominated by talk therapy
Understanding a clients pain points and develop your niche to reach ideal clients
Deepen your understanding of Drama therapy based Vision Board

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW:

Connect and learn more about Krista Verrastro at www.kristaverrastro.com
email Krista Verrastro at krista@kristaverrastro.com
Join the Creative Arts Therapists in Private Practice Facebook here to connect with other professionals who are trained in creative therapies
Sign up for the Vision Board Workshop on January 7th, 2024 from 1:00-13:30 pm by clicking here

Hey there, Creatives!! Thanks so much for listening to the show. Today on season two, episode 21,

I'm talking with drama therapist, Krista Verrastro. She has a private practice in Baltimore,

Maryland area. And she shares a bit about how she's gone about building her practice.

And the challenges of building as a private practitioner, you know, we don't necessarily,

all of us don't necessarily have a license because of the specialty that we have. And that

kind of forces people into having to build and not be able to take insurance funds.

And so it can be a little bit, a little bit more challenging. So she's shared a little bit about how

she's faced that, how, how long it took her to build up to being full and remaining full. And

she shares about how she's done a little diversification in her practice and created really unique,

dynamic offerings that go beyond therapy and have brought her out into her community and into

other businesses within her community, which I think is really cool. So I hope you enjoy this

episode with Christa.

Now here's your host, Reina Lombardi. Thanks so much for listening to the Creative Psychotherapist podcast. I'm your host, Reina Lombardi and I am delighted to welcome my next guest, drama therapist, Krista Verrastro.

And Christa is a registered drama therapist and a board certified trainer who blends drama therapy,

talk therapy and EMDR therapy. She works with teens and adults in private practice in

Rice to town, Maryland. I hope I pronounced that correctly. And she specializes in helping

people who feel used, abused, neglected and rejected, transform from surviving to thriving.

And this includes people who've experienced various types of abuse or other relational

issues that cause people to feel disconnected from themselves and others. She facilitates workshops

online and in person. And she provides clinical consultation, private practice building consultation

and supervision for drama therapist and training as well as new drama therapists. She presents

nationally and internationally on drama therapy and mental health issues. And she's worked

in a variety of settings such as outpatient mental health clinics, schools and nursing

homes. She received both her bachelor's and master's degrees from New York University.

And she is the administrator of the Facebook group Creative Arts Therapist in private practice.

Welcome, Christa. Thanks so much for being here. Hello. Thank you for having me.

So let's dive right in and kind of talk about, I think one of the challenges that we all

experience as Creative Arts Therapist is the challenges of how do we market ourselves and

and be seen as an appropriate option for people in a landscape dominated by more traditional

psychotherapy methods.

So I think I've come to view it as a strength to sort of market. When I first went into private

practice in 2016, I was like, hmm, this is so confusing to people. How am I going to get

myself across because people always have questions about drama therapy. And I realized one thing

that I'll emphasize is it's a matter of speaking to their pain, right? So more and more when

I talk to all types of therapists, I was told, yeah, people don't really care what your

modality is in a lot of ways. They want to know you understand their pain and that you have

a way of helping them with their pain. So I kind of changed in terms of the wording on

my website and stuff and how I market instead of it being like, I still think I'm front

and center with the drama therapy piece of it, but also just being able to talk to the types

of clients I like to work with, the niche.

You know, and so part of that too for me is, as you mentioned, I work with people who feel used to be used, neglected and rejected, lovely little alliteration. I came up with it. It's awesome. Yeah. And part of that is people who

feel different, right? And for me, like, hey, I'm a drama therapist, not different. And

I have this different thing to offer. So being able to throw that into my marketing to say,

like, hey, you know, talk therapy is the normal and normal doesn't always work for everybody

and try something that's a little different. This is something outside the box. So if you've

always felt outside the box, try this thing. So I think that's an important aspect of it

is it can be built right into niches, right? For a lot of us, we have some of that.

And just to be able to speak to our ideal clients pain. And I think the beauty of recent years

is the sort of popularity of creative arts therapies, right? So I know I get more and more

clients who will reach out saying, I read Bessel Vanderkulk and I read how the body holds

the memories. And you know, he talked about the drama and the EMDR. And so the fact that

I do both those things, people are often intrigued to tackle it in these newer ways that are

being talked about. So there's all this bottom up language we talk about when it used to

be the top down CBT kind of stuff. And so it's being helpful that around the same time that

I started private practice, I think this movement was happening where people are starting

to seek out more body-based therapies.

Oh, for sure. I feel like there's a whole movement not just with therapy, but just in self-development

and even in that like coaching sphere, pulling from different types of somatic methods. And

I think that's wonderful that people are realizing, hey, there's more than one way of working

through our stuff, our collective stuff. And the creative arts therapies have been using

those bottom up methods for a really long time while established.

Yeah. And I think the other piece too is we are trained and talk therapy, right? Like

people misperceived that it's all our, or all drama. And I explain to people, yeah, there

is a cognitive piece, right? We're going to process the art stuff that we do. So it's not

like we didn't have that in our training. Like I have written a little bit on my blog

and stuff about the creative arts therapies in general just to clear up misperceptions

and the myths about that, right? And I think all of us have that solid background in traditional

counseling methods and stuff like that, right? So yeah, that's something else I think is

about educating potential clients or other colleagues who might not be familiar, is to

say, I had all the traditional courses in that stuff too. So it's not like that.

Absolutely. I know for like theories, I had to take both. I had to take theories in art

therapy and theories in counseling and like it was like to duplicate coursework. And yeah,

so you do get that rich background, but that that often isn't the perception of what the

lay public thinks and sometimes even other colleagues and professionals. How have you found

it in terms of being a drama therapist, but not having a drama therapy license?

You have the credentials, right? And even like art therapy, there's only a couple of states that

have some kind of license. Most of us don't carry a license. How do you address that in

terms of the private practice sphere? So I always tell people like I've been in this field

since 2005 and still don't understand everything. Having lived in New York, so the year that the

LCAT went into a fact in New York is the year I left. So I didn't get it because I was like,

well, I'm new there. Why am I going to get this license? It's not going to serve me.

But other than that, like I moved to Maryland, which has no drama therapy license. And when I moved

to Maryland, no creative arts therapy held a license in 2012, Art Therapist got it and then just

last year, I think the music therapist got one. But theirs is not a psychotherapy license, interestingly,

I was informed. So still no dance therapy license here. Yeah. So it's a, yeah, our drama

therapy, obviously. Yeah. And a lot of us are told when we move to our states that they won't see

our masters as equivalent. So you've got to get a second masters, right? And then who has money in

time for that? Well, I'm a story short. Talking to so many people who've been in the field before me,

some people in it now paying attention to what state says what about terminology and title protection

and all that. So in Maryland, there is no psychotherapy title protection.

So technically, like I say,

I'm a psychotherapist. But for the most part, what I and a lot of people do is just really be clear

in our marketing to say, like, I'm not representing myself as a professional counselor. I'm not representing

myself as a social worker, right? I am a drama therapist. My credentials are the highest I can get in my

field, right? Like without their being a state license, you know, I'm practicing under what I can.

And so, you know, I know people in different states who, where there's title protection, they're

more cautious and they'll say coaching different things. But again, I feel like in Maryland, and I've

even talked to the counseling board because since I moved here in 2008, I've like been like, what can I do

here? I want to make sure I'm doing everything properly. And I literally had them look at my website

and tell me if the language is, you know, accurate. And I'm not misrepresenting anything.

And they told me I was fine. So I know some people are more skittish than others about this gray zone we're in.

But yeah, I'm like, all right, I've always been open about it. I'm not trying to hide anything with

my clients. Like, it's in my paperwork. These are my credentials if they're in a thing I also tell people,

like, I had one client ever be like, I don't understand your name, like the letters next

your name. And what does that mean? And so I had to explain it. And, you know, their main concern was,

if ever I had a complaint about you, do you have a board that I could like reach out to? And I say,

yeah, absolutely. For all intents and purposes, like, drama therapy's organization acts the same as

like a counseling or social worker psychology organization. Like we have an ethics board, right?

Like, we have those things in place that if ever I was out of line, there's something to hold me accountable.

And so I think that's another piece of it. Even to the point of like you were saying the education

piece people often misperceived. And also like, see, you use are the same. We have to get 30 every two

years, just like my understanding is all the other masters level folks have to do in terms of

just all the different things that are in place are internship hours and professional hours to get

their credentials are basically the same as the counseling, social work, all that.

So just advocating to people like, this is actually the reality of it. Like, you know, I know that it's

still very unknown. I always tell people, it's funny because I use art therapy, music therapy,

as examples when people say, what is what is drama therapy? I'll say, well, you've probably heard of

music or music and art therapy are more popular, more common. Drama therapy so small that when I got

my credentials in 2007, I was number 374. And now it's up to the 800s. It's just I think just about

to hit 900. I was just at the conference two weeks ago. Wow. You're so small. That's really tiny. That

puts things in like big perspective. Yeah, so we are small.

So I'm so used to advocating for what it is because people just don't know. Do you feel like putting out different workshops or like presentations within your community are helpful to, yeah. Yeah. In fact, when I started private

practice and I did the, I followed all the gurus. This is how you build a private practice. And I'm

happy to talk sort of about the things that have worked for me. But in the networking, I would

talk to all these, again, counselors, social worker psychologists. And they'd be open to me. I was so

thankful. Most people were like, warmly embracing me and so curious, right? Like fascinated and loving

it. And in that process and trying to explain it to people, I'd get several practices like, hey, come

do something for my team. Like I want everyone to learn about this.

And I would do like a what hour intro to drama therapy, give you a couple brief activities to show you what it's like. And it was a great opportunity to not just build my practice, but speak up for drama therapy in general. So yeah,

no, that's awesome. Yeah. Build relationships, educate other practitioners. I think that's really helpful

because if they have an experience of it, then they kind of can understand who might be best to

refer to you. If maybe they're stuck with a client and all of the things that they have in their

resource bin aren't effective. Sometimes the expressive modalities can provide people another

another way that's more accessible. So having that experience to reference and say to speak about it.

Like, oh, I did this with this person. And it was it was like really insightful or whatever their

experience was. And I think it's helpful. Yeah. And I know I don't want to switch gears too much

if you don't want to go there. But in terms of the vision board workshops, I do. I started those in

2017. So give or take around the year into my private practice. And so many people were interested. Like

professionals wanted to do it. Like I did several private practices that were like, yeah, I want to do it

for my team. And we could extend it out to the larger community. So I've done lots of those at this

point. And it's always great that there is interest. People see the value. I get so many people writing me

that all these things came true. My personal and professional life. Wow. That's awesome.

Yeah. So cool. I have a plan with my with the therapist in my practice. We're doing one in December

at our team meeting. That was everybody said, we want to do a vision board thing for our professional

goals. So we're going to do it. It should be fun. Yeah. So. And if I may just to throw it out there,

like in terms of what I love about mine, vision board workshops have been around forever, right?

And anybody can make a board and hang it up. But I love I have it. Drama therapy heavy. So it's all

about like using rituals to let go together. Using the drama therapy to look at our obstacles and

having people in the group role play obstacles for each other and role play going up against their

obstacles role play as their future self get advice from their future self on how to get there.

I even do role play with the strengths, like choosing our inner strengths and sort of using that

explore ourselves, a gratitude and all kind of practice at the end. So it's not just like the

traditional making of the board. Still great. But I love that. I found a way that you all these other

elements that really bring it to life. Oh, I know that sounds fantastic. And you're doing that virtually?

Yes. Yeah. I was doing it all in person until the pandemic hit. And then I was like, people love

these. I don't want to stop doing them. And then I started doing them on zoom.

And people can come from all over now. So it's really cool that I've had all these people who for a couple of years

there was like, I want to join, but I can't because so far now they can't. And I've had some colleagues

who actually love these enough that they've attended several. I have a lot of cheerleaders. I love it.

And I've been told it translates well online that there's not much loss. Like in person, I get to

use scarves with people that enhance the role play. But online it works just as well.

So how do you how do you navigate that in terms of like if you have, you know, 15 or 20 people in

your zoom? How do you navigate the role playing? Is it in the large round? Are you like using breakout

rooms? So depending on the activity, like the gratitude at the end, I'll have people go in pairs.

And I'll have them share about when they felt grateful and to sort of play back theater style,

play it back to each other after they hear a story about gratitude. So that's easier to do in

the breakout rooms, for example. But with like the obstacles and the future self, I'll just have

somebody volunteer to be the main person we're exploring. And then they get to pick people in the

group who are going to play certain roles. Like, all right, this what's your first obstacle? I

was to help people up to three just for the sake of time. So hey, time management, this is that person.

And then, okay, so what resources do you need to go up against that obstacle and picking someone

in the group to be a spouse and someone to be a friend? I've even had people pick their pets.

Right. So someone's just going to, oh my gosh, that's so cute.

So we assign the roles ahead of time. And for the sake of keeping it clean, I'll say like, all right,

I want to hear from the spouse right now. I want to hear from the dog right now. And so I'm very

clear with who's going to go next in the role play in that sort of because you have to, right? Like

you just said, the zoom room got a, and I don't make them too big. I've never done more than in person.

I've done like between 20 and 30 sometimes, but I like to keep them smaller under 20 if I can.

Well, that's a lot to pack in in a few hours.

I think what is it two and a half hours that you have scheduled with them? So between the board, do they make the board before they come in or you make it together? So when I was doing them in person, and I did do an in person one last year, the first one since the pandemic went down and I did it outdoors, which is cool in a park. But then,

hey, the wind was blowing on the art supplies everywhere. So it's a little chouchy. But when I have them

in person, I actually do three hours then and I'll designate the middle hour to the boards. I'll do

like the first hour is letting go, middle hour, making the board last hour. The, all right, let's

how to concretize what we're going to do with action stops, right? Online, I found it much easier to

send out instructions on both how to make a hard copy board and a digital board.

So people can

choose which way they want to make it. And that way they could take their time because part of the

feedback I would get in person is I could be here all day. Of course. I'd be like, I get it. But I

also really want to do the active stuff. Like that's as an experiential therapist, that's the stuff

I love. It's like, all right, it's nice to have this visual, but I don't want it just be a passive

thing. I want to make sure we tend to getting down to business with that. So yeah, having them make it

an advance and I tell them like have it with them whether a picture of it or the actual thing.

And it also helps me keep the cost down because I don't have to supply, you know, everything like I

used to. I used to have to shut stuff if I was going to other practices and stuff like that, you know,

having all the magazines. This is there's the glue, the boards. It's a lot.

It sure is. But yeah, right. So yeah, online it makes it easier in that sense more accessible.

Yeah, so we're good. Now that's wonderful. I think that's really helpful. And it sets you apart

in how you're facilitating the whole process versus ones where I've attended where it just simply

is the board and like talking about it, which is great. Right. But I love that you're

integrating a whole process of like, okay, it's not just about what's to come. It's what's no longer

serving me and having that ritual of letting go in the group is so empowering, I think, versus if

you're just, if you're doing that by yourself, it's, it's the witness, right? That others are

bearing witness to this process and we're doing it collectively together, which is really cool.

And then the role playing, facilitating the role plays to actually work through any barriers

to getting to where you want to go, that part is like in my favorite part, oh, ways, and I've had so many

people get so choked up when I let them role play with their future self. So they pick someone to

play their future self. They let them know, hey, along the way as we're doing these role plays,

they could say a mantra or they could say something that cheer themselves on the whole way.

And then at the end, I have them become their future selves and say what it feels like and give themselves

advice on like, okay, so what did you need to get here? And then I have that person

reflect back what they just heard so that the person who's exploring their future gets to hear,

they get to like look right in the eyes of their future self and be told like, look, I made it,

this is great. This is what you needed to stay in the course and people just always get so choked

up and I love it. Oh yeah, you're doing like the EMDR cognitive interweaves, right?

But I feel like the methods really complement one another, but having that dramatized and being able to actually

see it versus imagine it. Again, there's just something so tangible about it that really moves people

into a different space. Yeah. What other kinds of things have you done to kind of set your practice

up that it's not just focused on individual therapy because what I hear is that you've really been

intentional about kind of diversifying how you have your practice.

Yeah. At first, it wasn't necessarily that intentional. I don't, it's so funny. I can't remember how I first got the idea

for the Vision Board workshops. I don't remember the moment, but I'm so glad I did because they're so

popular and people really love them. I actually have even done them for local businesses. They've found

me on social media and they're like, yeah, they want to hire you. Even a granola company, I love that's

local. They hired me for their team. That's fabulous. So cool. A local beauty store that I love. They

also asked me to do like a lady's night. Oh, so great. So that kind of happened. I was like, I was

going to put this out in the world and like it might be a one-time thing and then it turned into

demand. So yeah, I do those at least in January and sometimes other times in the year.

And then it became like, I really like workshops and I like offering these kind of things to people

who might either already have a therapist and they want to do something, right, else.

And I love self-care stuff as we all have to do. And so another workshop I came up with and I

haven't gotten to do it as much as my Vision Board ones is using the four elements, the water air, fire,

and earth. It's debatable in different cultures like the main elements, but those are the ones I'm

going by. And I make stations with scarves. And so there's the four stations and we first go through

and we get rid of the things we don't want. You can see a theme and how my mind operates, right.

So we go around and let the water take the things we don't want and let the earth take it. And this

was based on, I collaborated with somebody who is, I think a social worker by background, but also

loves dance. So we collaborated, they do journey dance. And so we did like a workshop where I

led my portion and she let hers. So it was based on a book about Vicarious trauma. And the idea was

that the different elements represent different things that we deal with as dealing professionals

and it's not just therapists, but anybody. But I made it kind of more widespread.

So the different stations, there's different things to get rid of, right, like expectations of self and others who's

one of them. Any sadness brief, and that sort of thing to get rid of. So it's a process of letting

specific things go and then going back around those stations and taking from them advice from nature,

right. So the river might say go with the flow. Be sure of yourself is one of them. Be clear.

So it's the water, right. So there's different things. And when I'm guiding people through these,

we're doing rituals to sort of embody, right. So using the scarves to be waves and letting the

group members throw the things into the waves. Or with the, with the earth part, I have them plant

seeds, whatever expectations of self and others they need to get rid of.

They're going to plant into the ground. And then when we come back to that station, we become flowers or trees or whatever plant we want to be. And as I read the advice from nature, people get to embody it, like take root,

right. Those sort of things. So that sounds so fun. Yeah. Yeah. So that's something else I've done

in that. I want to keep doing that. And I haven't done that one online, but I'm like, I think

there's probably a way that I can't do it. Just haven't gotten there yet. So workshops have been

great because again, it offers people less commitment and still get to benefit from this stuff.

And then more recently, I've found myself branching out into the consultant thing because I have so

many people, I have so hard. And it's probably because of the creative arts therapy part.

You know, like therapists, again, more traditional types that struggle to build a private practice,

especially not taking insurance, right. Because so many people don't want to deal with that.

For me, I had to because like, like without the state licensure, I can't panel with insurance.

So I had to be private pay from the get go. And I feel like I have to prove myself because of the creative

arts therapy thing. So I've hustled really, really hard. People have seen how successful I was. It took

me three years to build into a full-time caseload, which am I understanding from talking to even some

counselor friends of mine. Somebody told me it took them seven years with a traditional counseling

degree, right. So three years to me without being able to take insurance is not bad by any means.

No. And I've been full sense to the point of turning people away all the time. So yeah, it's

been where like people come to me where they want to consult about. So how did you build?

Like you obviously were successful. And I decided, okay, so that's something I'll officially add as

consulting for the private practice kind of stuff. And clinical stuff because I've always been a

person who's been in peer groups. I love, I've never not been in a peer supervision group. I just

love to have that, you know, to always have people give me feedback and constantly learn.

And so a lot of my peers will come to me with clinical issues too. So both the clinical and the practice building

have become something I do. And then last year I got my board certification for training

drama therapists. And that's something I had wanted to do for a long time and sat on. And so now,

like I've added that formal supervising of other drama therapists. And along the vision board

workshop stuff, I'm in the process of writing a workbook because not everybody can attend the

workshops or some people who are into social might not want to be in a group setting.

And I have done individual work with some of my clients. And I'm actually also trying to branch out into maybe

doing some coaching around that for people who want to do that process with me individually. And I

thought, hey, a workbook would be a great thing. For some people who want to have that more introspective,

they could take their time to do it. So that's my hope. And yeah, in writing in other ways, as you know,

that it is chapter to a book. So lots of stuff that's branching out.

And the only thing I haven't done yet that I'd like to do eventually is retreats. And I know those are a lot of work to even other fun. Yeah, I feel like the hard part for retreats is the marketing piece and getting people to sign up,

at least from all the folks that I know that have done them or do offer them and like listening to their

process. But if you have a strong kind of. Well, it's challenging. I mean, I do have a strong networking

you know, approach. I'm comfortable with that. But even with my vision board workshops, I get a lot

of interest. But then I don't get a lot of commitment sometimes.

There's some years that I only get like five people. And I could still do it. Like it's and it's great to have an intimate group. But like then there's years that I've like, you know, 20 people. So you never know. And it's not a personal thing.

It's just like whatever's going on and everybody schedules, don't align. Now so.

Absolutely. It's it's unpredictable, I think, with scheduling everyone so busy. And especially,

I know your vision board workshop I was looking on the website is like the first week of January.

Or the maybe the first Sunday in January. Yes. January 7th, I think. And you know, people coming back

from holidays and that kind of thing too. I feel like plays a role into how much we

how invested people are in showing up for different offerings right after the new year.

Or at least at least here in my practice, I've I've had that where that first week is very slow.

I'm not too bad of luck in the January stuff. It's always tricky though. It's like like now that I'm

doing them online, I did after noon. So that way people on the West Coast can join because I had

complaints about that in the past when I did like 10 o'clock in the morning. They're like, I'm not going

to join some of the clock West Coast time. So now I figure, okay, one o'clock East Coast time,

people can ideally do both coast. Yeah. People are welcomed from outside of country. I'm trying

to think if I've had anybody think I've had at least Canada join. But yeah, I mean since it's online,

anybody anywhere can talk to you. That's awesome. I know I want to go back to you.

We're saying that you're officially a trainer for drama therapy. And is that specifically like somebody who provides

supervision or are you actually teaching classes to people that want to add drama therapy to their

kind of suite of what they offer? Great question. So board certified trainers really the main purpose

they serve is we have the alternative track in drama therapy. I don't know if you're familiar with that.

So my understanding is dance therapies, the only other creative art therapy that has this. So what

it is is because there's so few university programs is that the alternative track allows people to

get another degree. And then they study with the trainer to get the knowledge they need to meet the

credentials. So somebody could get a counseling degree or they could get a social worker degree.

And then they take the extra training and supervision with the the BCT to get what they need. So

some BCTs have their own training classes like they'll provide the intro to drama therapy, the

principles they need to know, special populations and these sort of things. And others just sort of act

as a guide to like, hey, there's these other people doing these trainings, but here you go. I'm going

to help you get where you need to go and providing that supervision. So I am only a year in. So I'm still

figuring out what I'm going to do. But that being said, you mentioned the teaching thing.

So for a long time, I have been part of a plate therapy organization in Maryland. And some other

creative arts therapists, especially art therapists, Peggy Kaladni who know she's definitely yes, we actually worked in the same office when I started private practice. As you refer my friends were in the same collective for years and years. And so. Small world. Yes. In the Baltimore area has a lot of great people. I love it. Like we have a lot of local celebrities. You do like Laura Reagan. Yes. Wonderful. I love her Lisa Farons who's not a creative arts therapist, but is a big fan and hired a lot of

creative arts therapist to train through her institute.

Yeah. So we've got some good people. And uh, yeah. So Peggy was actually the person who hooked me

up with this plate therapy organization. And I have done drama therapy and trauma work training through them, drama therapy and adolescent work through them. And so my thought is with the BCT to get to a point where I can offer some of those courses for alternative track students perhaps.

That would be really cool. Yeah. I know a lot of people who want to pursue, you know, entry into our world, the creative arts therapies world. And then they to find themselves up against them. But I don't want to get another masters. I will and I don't blame them. I mean, it's expensive. It's a lot of work and energy and time. And it's going to be a lot of duplicate knowledge. But certainly doing an alternative track offers an opportunity where, you know, doing another masters may feel really prohibitive.

You'll have to keep me informed if you, you know, once you start offering trainings. Well, I'm funny enough. I just started a Facebook group for the BCTs because at our conference two weeks ago, there's no dialogue in between people between conferences. We have a BCT meeting at the conference. But it's like, okay, so how do we know what each other are teaching? How do we know, you know, like how to get the people were supposed to be guiding. You know, I obviously, we can talk more about that with my Facebook group to create our therapist.

But I am a person all about community connection, talking, not reinventing the wheel because so many of us and creative works there. If you land, feel like we have to reinvent the wheel so often when we don't like there's been a lot of us doing this for a long time. So, only we actually communicate the resources are there.

Yeah, yeah, building community. I feel like is really important, especially like what you were saying, your numbers are so small. And so people are spread out all over and you're there's probably not very many people that are nearby that are also drama therapist. I know when I first started practicing in this area Florida where I'm at, I didn't know anybody had no connections.

I felt like I was like operating by myself in like a desert. Like people didn't even know what it was back then. They were like, what you provide therapy for artists. What exactly is that, you know, are they think you're providing art classes. No, that's not what we're doing. Right. Exactly why I wrote about the misperceptions. And so it's nice to be able to have opportunities for greater connection between us all now like through social media and groups like yours.

And where before that you'd have to go to the conference and maybe you could only get there once every couple of years because that too is cost prohibitive. It's expensive.

Yeah. Yeah. Can we go into the Facebook group? Yeah, let's talk about it. Yeah. So, yeah. When did you, when did you create that? So, when I started, I started to practice 2016 and I found a lot of resources helpful as far as private practice building goes, but they were all geared towards more traditional therapist. And I did Miranda and Kelly's Zenny me, who did the school boot camp. I did find that they had had some creative arts therapist I had asked when I did the interview for it like, you know, are other people doing those do you are you familiar with our stuff.

And they were very, very supportive and they helped me like with my website copy and stuff that was really helpful to get another view on it.

And I still felt like there was no resource for creative arts therapists who are in private practice and I felt like it's not always a safe space to talk about the licensure issues people instantly attack and some communities over it.

Even amongst creative arts therapists, I find some people, you know, people who are like, well, I went back to school and I did it. So you should and all the stuff that's like not everybody has the resources. Some of us are more, it's a systemic thing and it's more like stick it to the man I'm not going to give into your like, you know, white supremacy patriarchy like who gets to be important by your definitions.

So it's complicated and I wanted a safe space for people to connect and to share things like that and to have a place where we just kind of understand each other's language in a way the general Facebook private practice groups don't.

So yeah, that's what it was born from and I think it's been a great community. I always tell everybody like I've actually had a step down to being admin from a local therapist page because it was too intense. There was constantly.

It was exciting. Yeah, I mean, got accused of things just, you know, like, of course, if you try to be a peacekeeper, then you get accused of not taking a strong enough stance is just you can't please everybody.

But the creative arts therapist is in so quiet and very rarely drama in there and people are so lovely and it's a great resource. Yeah, for sure. I, I only learned about it. I feel like maybe earlier this year, maybe earlier this year or sometime last year, I don't like time escapes me, but it was more recent. I didn't know that it was out there, so I was glad to find that and to join and see, you know, my fellow colleagues there and sharing resources and information and opportunities.

My opportunities to learn from one another and and grow, I think is important and I felt the same way about podcasting. I was listening to all these like therapy podcasts and I found like two and both of them had like episode and then nothing. And I'm sure it was probably because they realized like, oh my gosh, this is a lot of work. I can't sustain it. And so I was like, I really want, I want to highlight the voices of creative arts therapist and expressive arts therapist. I want us to have our own platform and and to share what what we do, but also to give the up and coming folks the resources to help them get started and build their private practice.

I don't know about you, but I had a very difficult time finding a job that was specifically for our therapy.

Even harder for drama. Right. And you get pigeon hold in very, very high burn out opportunities because even the, you know, counselors and all the other masters levels we're talking about. Not for anybody, but especially hard. Yeah. And so I feel like we have to, we have to build and educate and advocate for our fields. And the same way that we do for our clients. And if we don't, then we won't, we won't be able to help our clients because they won't know how beneficial what we're offering can be for them.

Yeah. Well, Chris, I really appreciate you taking the time to talk with me today. If you had any like last final word of our words of advice for up and coming creative arts therapist who are kind of dipping their toe in the water into private practice. So what would you share with them? I guess three things come to mind. One is the networking piece. Don't be afraid to put yourself out there. And yes, you might have to educate people. But people are, I have found more people are welcoming and interested than the opposite.

So there's that something else that was really helpful for me is in this again for any kind of therapist because we can't ask for testimonies from clients for things like Google and Yelp and Facebook and all that where we can get rated to be able to ask our colleagues, people who work with us, people in peer groups with us. People in my case, like when I networked and I would do a little training at someone's place or people who take in my vision board workshops, I'll ask those people, can you just speak to the capacity you know me in and like what you see as my strength or anything like that.

So I have a lot of really good reviews from those sources and I get a lot of calls from clients who can trust my work in that sense. Right. So that's been a really helpful private practice building thing. And the last piece I will leave because the more I am a therapist and the more I've battled my own shame, being a great work therapist and that sort of thing.

Things are always personal. Sometimes the system is very messed up. It doesn't it's not a reflection on us.

I know even early on in my private practice, there is a point for two months in my first year where I didn't have any clients like I had a few and then they all dropped off for summer and I was like am I still in private practice if I don't have any active clients.

And I had to do some drama therapy on myself to say like okay, there's other roles I'm doing right now and still networking. I'm still putting up blogs. I'm still doing all the things even if I don't have any active clients right now.

So it is hard to build a private practice, but not to not to always take it to that. You know, it's my fault kind of a thing.

Yeah. So being being very compassionate with yourself as you're learning how to put it all together and make it happen. And I think that there's something about the longer you've been doing it, the easier it becomes in terms of like referrals and things like that. When you're just starting out, you're starting from nothing and you're having to build everything. It's a tremendous effort.

It takes a while to get there, but you can for sure. Yeah. Well, if folks want to check your website out, what is the link for that? How can they find your practice and your vision board workshop? So my website is www.crystafarashtra.com. And I do have the vision board workshops. It's on the bottom of the homepage. There's a little picture that people can click on and it does say vision board workshops and that has always information there.

On my blog page, there is a sign up if people want to get on my mailing list. I announce the workshops. So even if they can't make the next one, that is a space where they can keep up to date and any other workshops and the other offerings I do have. And I will say just because I do have the upcoming one, as you mentioned, it is January 7th of 2024 and it is online. So anyone can join if they'd like. And I do have a code, a discount code for the listeners.

So anyone listening who wants to join can use creative 2024.

Love it. The code. Beautiful. Well, thank you so much for offering that. I hope that people take advantage. It sounds like it's going to be an incredible experience. And yeah, that you're, you've made it into something really special and unique for participants. Well, thank you so much again. I really appreciate you taking the time to talk with me. Thank you. Thanks so much for listening to this episode of the Creative Psychotherapist podcast. I hope you enjoyed the conversation that I had with Christa and all the beneficial things that she shared about practice building and I just love how the vision board workshops that she's offering turned into something that is kind of a staple in her practice each year and how it's been able to bring her out into different businesses in the community.

And if you're interested in attending one, she has one coming up in January Sunday, January 7th. It's going to be totally online from one to 3 30 p.m. You can find more about that at www.kriesta.varr.com/vision-board-workshops. And if you decide to register, use code creative 2024 for $10 off.

Micro-goal setting in Business: A tool for Overcoming Resistance

Mon, 30 Oct 2023 23:46:24 GMT

Micro-goal setting in Business: A tool for overcoming Resistance

Micro-goal setting in Business: A tool for overcoming Resistance

Resistance . We all have it around something. Or if you are like me, you might have it around many things.

There are likely many tasks within our business which we love and can lost in for hours at a time.

And then.....there are the ones we avoid, postpone, unconsciously forget about, and convince ourselves we will get to at some point.

My inner critic likes to tell me I am not doing a good enough job on social media because I don't have a tik-tok or make snappy videos on Instagram.

Or get on me about how the SEO on my websites aren't good enough.

Or, tell me that the copy on my psychology today listing is not good enough and needs a revision.

And on and on and so forth.

Does your inner critic spout off out nasty comments about your "Enough-ness" as a business owner because you are not doing all the things?

No? I applaud you, and I might feel slightly envious. Seriously though, that is awesome!

Above is the garbage my inner critic would try to convince me to believe.

I would quickly find myself feeling paralyzed and unable to take any action at all. The exact opposite of what would be helpful in that moment.

There will never be a time when we get everything done in our business.

That task list that we love to check off - it doesn't end. I t is forever evolving and changing.

It is like progress notes . As soon as one is done another is in need of completion.

I have found that I am highly resistant to the redundant type tasks in the business.

Tasks I don't feel knowledgeable in or which require me to research and watch how to videos to complete are met with MASSIVE RESISTANCE. I have been working on a CRM website for my continuing education course offerings for a couple of years now. It only went live this fall.

And yet, I persist. And you can, too.

I have two approaches to help me attack the tasks when I feel stuck.

The first is adjust my mindset . Here are 4phrases that help me push forward:

There is more than enough time to get everything done that needs to get done.
Things will get done in the time it takes them to get done.
Done is better than perfect.
I don't have to get it all done today/right now/this moment.

Next, I identify and complete a micro-goal to take action on right now.

I define a micro-goal as:

A task I can complete in under 5 minutes.
A task that I can do even if the voice in my head is telling me I can't.
A task that by doing it helps build momentum towards completion of the larger goal.
The one task which by doing it will make everything else easier. (There is a great book called The One Thing by Gary Keller and Jay Papasan on this topic)

Okay, as therapists we might refer to these as objectives.

Micro-goal feels more approachable. Perhaps because it is less clinical?

Completing the micro-goal helps reinforce the sense that this large goal can be accomplished and helps me get started.

Rome wasn't built in a day , as they say. I t is unreasonable to expect we will be able to get all the things we want done for our business right away, especially when we spend a full week seeing clients.

Go easy on yourselves fellow practice builders. Take one micro-step at a time and watch it come to be.

If you are struggling with figuring out how to prioritize what needs to be done in your business, find yourself getting overwhelmed by it all, or just need some support building systems to help you get in flow, I offer consultations to help. Send an email and let's talk.

VFTS 2023 10| Reina Lombardi | Money, Marketing & Mindset for Private Practitioners

Wed, 25 Oct 2023 10:15:00 GMT

FEATURED GUESTS: Reina Lombardi, ATR-BC, ATCS, LMHC-QS is a Registered Board Certified Art Therapist, Art Therapy Certified Supervisor, and Licensed Mental Health Counselor Qualified Supervisor. She owns Florida Art Therapy Services, LLC , a full-fee group practice, where she and a team of therapists provide in-person and technology facilitated individual and group art therapy and counseling services, contracted art therapy groups at various community agencies, supervision and continuing education programming for counselors and art therapists. She has contributed to several academic texts on the topics of art therapy and clinical supervision, and is a frequent presenter/speaker at local and national professional conferences. She also owns Creative Clinician’s Corner, LLC where she provides practice building resources and consultation services for creative arts therapists with a desire to build and scale their own private practice. She is the host of The Creative Psychotherapist Podcast where she interviews successful creative therapists about the tools and strategies they used to grow their dream practices, as well as how they have hustled to create additional streams of income using their knowledge and creativity by developing products and services that enhance their therapy practices.

LISTEN & LEARN:

The benefit of addressing beliefs around money as a business owner.
Ways to reframe marketing that align with your personal strengths.

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW:

Download the free Fee Calculator here
Listen to Leah Guzman Season 1 Episode 71 where she talks about Manifesting an Abundant Life using Creative Exercises
Buy her book "The Art of Healing and Manifesting: Creative Exercises for Living in Abundance"

SESSIONS AT THE SUMMIT:

Friday November 17th, 2023 2:00PM-6:00PM
Money, Marketing & Mindset Mastery: Business Skills for a Thriving Private Practice
While graduate schools prepare us to provide clinical treatment, they rarely teach the necessary skills for launching and building a solo or group clinical practice. This didactic & experiential 4-hour session is for you if you are preparing to launch your own practice, are new to the world of private practice, or struggling to survive as a practice owner. Attention will be given to understanding the clinical relevance of having a "money mindset" in private practice, how to calculate your desired income, as well as set your schedule and fees, based on your expense estimate. Participants will engage in experiential activities to empower themselves with an ethical system for fee setting so that they may serve their clients at the highest level without burning out — plus have the ability to take time off without financial risk. We will engage in creative exploration around "money stories" so that participants can create financially solvent practices while being able to offer accessible care should they decide to do so. Marketing is another essential skill that is important to develop — especially if you don't already have a long list of potential clients — and it's an activity that is likely the most intimidating aspect of practice building for most. Creative values-aligned marketing strategies will be presented and — since we're therapists, after all — how to determine which strategy might fit best with your personality style so that it feels natural and authentic. Participants will leave the session with a realistic sense of what it takes to get started (and be successful) in private practice, along with practical guidelines and tools to get them headed on their practice-building journey.
ART SUPPLY LIST for the summit session above

Hey there creatives, I'm your host, Reina Lombardi and I am going to switch it up today and I'm

recording a new solo episode and it's specifically for the voices from the Expressive Therapy Summit series.

I'm going to be doing a four hour workshop on November 17th. It's online from 2 to 6 p.m.

Eastern Standard Time so you can attend from anywhere. And the topic of the workshop is going to be

money, marketing and mindset mastery, business skills for a thriving private practice.

And I've been teaching on private practice at the summit for a number of years.

It was I think one of the things that led me to want to expand and create this podcast and create some of the other

offers that I provide different consultation services, the business mastermind group that I run

every spring. Because I love helping other people to find success in their own way, whatever that

means to them. But what I've encountered is that these three things frequently come up and

create challenges to creating a successful stable profitable practice. And those things are

important in order to create high quality of life. And so I wanted to switch up what I was doing

where historically I've offered kind of a basic A to Z how to get started in private practice.

I wanted to switch it up and do something a little bit different that really addresses some of the

challenges that relate to business and operating your business. So that's what I would be talking a

little bit about today is kind of a teaser to what we'll be doing on the 17th. And so let's go ahead

and get started. The Creative Psychotherapist is the official podcast of the Creative Clinicians

Corner, a practice building resource for creative psychotherapists. TCP podcast is the cast for

creative, expressive and experiential focused psychotherapists. Curious to learn how to design,

build and scale a thriving private practice. Your host, Raina Lombardi, interviews successful

therapists about the tools and strategies they have used to develop creative focused practices.

They also talk about the products, services and side hustles they have developed using their

knowledge and creativity to enhance their therapy practices, make a greater impact in their

communities and diversify their income streams. Welcome. Now here's your host, Raina Lombardi.

All right everybody, thanks for tuning in today. The first thing that I wanted to talk with you

about is mindset. Why is mindset so important when it comes to business?

I think that it truly has a direct impact on our ability to take actions in business that are necessary but also feel very

uncomfortable. Two of the things that I've learned over the years and talking with other people and

mentoring other people as they develop their own practice is that money and marketing are two

main challenges where stuff just comes up, limiting beliefs come up, discomfort comes up in terms

of taking action, discomfort comes up in terms of visibility and discomfort comes up in

charging a fee that you have to command in order to pay yourself and sustain the operations cost

of doing business. Sometimes it's easy to look and think like, "Oh, that's their hourly rate."

That's what they're making per hour but that's not the case at all because your fee is broken down

and redistributed to and allocated to multiple different things that are required to operate your

business and market your business, sustain your business and also needs to cover your salary and

any benefits that you're giving to yourself. That can feel really difficult. Most therapists, I think,

go into this with the intent on helping other people, overcoming barriers, helping people to

have access and finances are one of the big barriers to access of care and so it can feel really

uncomfortable to charge a fee that is necessary to cover all the things that you need it to cover.

Sometimes there's fears around it. I've heard people say, "Well, people in this community can't afford

that." Well, according to who and where did you get that information? Did somebody do a study?

Is there some statistical research that supports that conclusion? How are you deriving that information?

I think just telling oneself that or believing that to be based on experience that you've had,

if you've been working in a community mental health based system, it's easy to think like,

"Well, this is the demographic of the community and they certainly can't afford it, so

therefore everyone in the community can't afford it." That is not exactly true.

I think that there are ways that as therapists we can do both when it comes to fee setting. We can set a fee that is

fair, reasonable and covers what you need it to cover. Well, still providing access and opportunities

for care for folks that may not necessarily have the means to access your services. That means

really doing a lot of creative out-of-the-box thinking, which I think as creative arts therapists,

we're all very capable of doing, especially if we use our superpower, which is our creative

ability and imagination to explore and tap into different avenues of resources within our community,

collaborating with other programs within our community, finding other programs that believe in

the work that we do and offer and will pay for their clients to have us provide this specific service

to them to getting grants. There's all kinds of ways to do it. The other thing is, maybe you are

limited in terms of resources or maybe the resources in your community are really tapped out.

Well, if you're really creating a fee structure that supports yourself and what your business needs

to take in, there's likely going to be room in there for you to offer some lower fee services

or possibly some pro bono services. But you want to keep that to a minimum and you want to do the

math in order to determine what risk your business can really take in terms of supporting that. If you're

going to be offering lowered feed or tiered feed or pro bono services. And there's formulas to do

that. I have a specific formula that I typically teach in the trainings that I offer related to

private practice. It's one of the things that I started first when I went out on my own.

I really spent a lot of time figuring out, okay, I have multiple avenues of income generation that I'm trying

to create in my business through individual therapy offerings, through supervision offerings,

through contracted groups in the community. And then different one off workshops or trainings

that I was offering. So each one of those, I had to use some kind of formula to figure out,

all right, what can I charge? What can I charge for each individual service that I'm offering

so that all of it put together generates the income that I need for both personal and the professional

business aspects. So if that's something that you're interested in, I do have that available

for download on my website. And you can get that by going to www.creativeclinicianscorner.com/b-calculator .

And that will allow you to save a copy of the fee calculator. It's a spreadsheet and it goes over

how to use it and how to come up with fees that really will support you both personally and

professionally. And I encourage you to do this periodically within your business. It's not a one

and done thing, particularly the past few years we've had an escalating cost of living around the

country. And that should reflect how you're charging your fees in your practice. So you have to do it

every once in a while review and revise and go through what your outgoing expenditures are seeing how

you can reduce those to help make adjustments to your fee schedule to keep it there and reasonable.

But it is possible. Okay. So the other thing is sometimes we struggle with charging fees or setting

fees because of our own personal history, our own money story. Maybe we grow up in a household where

we learned early on that there isn't enough money. And you can kind of hear that reflected back in

your inner dialogue or your inner critic voice or maybe that voice that kind of clicks into that

imposter syndrome part where the voice is telling you other people can't afford that or who's going to

who's going to pay you to who's going to pay you that much to to do what you're doing.

It might also come up in avoidance, right? If you notice that you're avoiding looking at your

banking account, that's a good sign that you don't have a stable relationship with your finances.

And I would encourage you to be looking at it at least once per day to make sure that you're on

top of things. And I say at least once per day just simply because of like the potential for fraudulent

charges and things like that, you can catch it quick. I know I've had my account compromised before

and it's never a fun thing. But if you're checking every day, then you're going to be on top of it.

But if you're avoiding looking at it, that's going to be problematic. If you're struggling to figure

out how to save enough money to pay your quarterly taxes and you've gotten behind, you didn't pay

and now you're on a payment plan. And now it's like it's starting to become a like a snowball,

but not a snowball in a good way, right? It starts to feel overwhelming and scary and intimidating,

thinking like I'm still paying off, you know, last year's taxes. I haven't been able to contribute

to this year's taxes. That's a that's a sign that hey, I need to do something about how I'm running

my business financially, right? No judgment, no judgment. It happens to many, many, many, many people.

It happened to me a couple of years ago where I thought I was paying enough in. I wasn't. And then I

got hit at tax time the next year and I ended up having to pay a boat load. Now fortunately,

I had been doing my due diligence with my finances to have enough saved that I was able to pay it

and not have to put myself on a payment plan. But had I not been really intentional in working

through my own money crap, I probably would have been in a real bind, in a real pickle.

And I would hate for that to happen to anybody else. So it's really important if you find yourself struggling,

it's okay. You know, don't beat yourself up over it at all. It's just an opportunity to learn some

new skills to help you. And one of the things that I would do is I would creatively explore my

relationship with money. If you have been a long time listener, I forget the episode now and I

apologize for that. But there's a wonderful episode with Leah Guzman who wrote the book, The Art

of Healing and Manifesting. And she has some really awesome creative interventions around money

that you could use to explore your relationship. I highly recommend them. They're fun. But they also

really get to the heart of the matter of like how am I viewing money?

How what is the viewpoint that I have about money? What's the stories that I'm telling myself about what it means to be a person of wealth? What does that mean if I'm maybe making some judgments about other people who have more money? What would that mean if I had that amount? Right? So you're able to kind of dive in and really get in

there and start to explore that stuff. And hopefully develop a... I don't want to use the word better,

but a different relationship with money. Because what is money anyway? It's a construct that we've created

as humans. Right? Like during different periods of time, different things have been used to

exchange for goods or services. And money is that for us today. But it's not a bad thing.

Money in itself isn't bad. And there's so many positive ways and ways and things that we can do to use our money

from a conscientious standpoint to be of service, to be of greater service. If I'm taking care of

and I'm stable financially, personally, and in my business, I am more apt to be able to create

access of care for those that would not otherwise have it. Right? So it's about changing and shifting

our relationship there. And like I said, it's okay if this is a challenging area for you,

it is for many of us. And a lot of it, I think, goes back to just our own personal fears, our personal

relationships, our beliefs around what it means to have in a society where there's so many people

that don't have. And anyway, we could talk a lot more about that.

But in the workshop that I'll be doing at the summit, we're going to be doing some creative exercises around money and exploring your relationship with money to really help you to be able to set a fee that you might feel slightly

uncomfortable with. But that is necessary to cover all of your expenses. And to be able to

feel more comfortable to look at your numbers, to deal with your numbers, to do your bookkeeping and

accounting and reconciliation. I want you to be able to have a healthy relationship with money

that fear doesn't come up when it's time for you to do payroll or when it's time for you to pay bills.

And then in terms of marketing, marketing is the other area I think that

where mindset really plays a role and has a direct impact on the health and viability of our business

because marketing is essential. It's necessary.

And I think oftentimes it's really paired with this like aggressive sales-y kind of construct or individual. I kind of used to think of it like,"Oh, it's like that creepy like used car salesperson." That it just feels so phony and inflated and

aggressive. But it doesn't have to be that way. It really doesn't. Sometimes I also think it's not

necessarily about that of like, "I don't want to be seen as that." It's just, "I don't want to be seen

or visible at all." When you think about the way we learn to be as a therapist and therapy,

we learn to really scrub a lot of our individuality from who we are in the room.

Who we are is not as important as who our clients are. We're there to witness what our clients

are going through. We're not supposed to have a lot that's visible. We're supposed to have

really strong boundaries. Somebody asks you a personal question. A lot of people are told you

don't answer that. You just reframe it back to the client and ask, "How is that going to be a benefit

to them to know that information? How is that going to influence the relationship?" Really

circumvent that. It's really about us not being visible.

I think that there's a lot of modern therapists that are changing that perspective and that are saying, "Hey, it is possible to be visible, to be myself, but also to have professional boundaries with my clients. I can reveal certain parts

without compromising the sanctity of the therapeutic relationship and still adhere to our ethical

and legal responsibilities." The reason why I'm talking about this in connection with marketing

is because marketing forces you to be a little bit more visible. If somebody who has not had to do that

and now you're forced to do that, it can be intimidating. Looking at all these folks on social media,

all the videos, some people are using humor and skits to do psychoeducation.

Some people are filming a lot of personal stuff in part to market whatever it is that they do as a

therapist. For some people that may feel really uncomfortable, what I like to do is to tell folks,

"Hey, you don't have to do all the things, but you have to find a way to connect with your ideal

clients in a climate where the costs of somebody's attention are extremely high." Think about how much

information you're bombarded with every day to grab your attention and focus in order to get you

to do something, whether that's to buy something, whether that's to go somewhere, whatever it is.

There's so much information out there that is in competition for your attention.

In order to connect with your ideal client, you have to do more than just build a website. The days of build it

and they will come are not there, folks. You have to do something that helps you connect. That might be

writing. That might be not necessarily doing videos about you per se, but it could be videos about

the creative therapeutic process that you're recording examples and providing some psych education

about what it is you're doing and how it can be beneficial. It could be blogging. It could be

oh my goodness. What else? It could be in-person networking, meeting with different

people and collaborative partners in your community on a regular basis in order to generate

appropriate types of referrals to your practice. I think that's highly beneficial.

That's one of my favorite things to do. I do some of the other things like social media, like writing, but not as

that's not my top tier marketing strategy. My top tier marketing strategy is connecting with people

in real time. That's where I feel like my strength is. I'd rather capitalize on my strength area

than put forth a ton of effort into another area where one, I'm not really sure about what the

return is going to be on that, but two, it feels uncomfortable or exhausting or difficult.

Now there is value in doing things that are difficult. I will say that. I think that's an important

part of developing your entrepreneurial skills because business forces us to do things that are

uncomfortable all the time, but that promotes growth. You're on your growing edge when you're feeling

excited, but a little bit uncomfortable at the same time. Little tangent there. Back to the whole

marketing piece, you can find something that connects with your personal strength

and use that as a tool to market as long as you're doing it consistently over time.

You don't have to invest a lot in terms of advertisements unless you want to.

For some people, it might be, you know what? I don't really want to do any of this, but I know I

need to drive business to my practice. So I'm going to hire somebody to write Google ads for me

or Facebook ads for me, and I'm going to use that as the mechanism for driving calls to my practice.

Totally fine. That might be a really wise investment of your time and money. I'm going to pay

an expert to do this for me because I don't have the skill set in order to do it.

However, if you're a little more guerrilla style like me and you don't want to invest a lot in terms of

paying to market and advertise, then there are other ways of like really that goes back to

relationship building. It goes back to understanding what your ideal client's pain point is

and designing programs and accessibility to services and additional resources that they need.

If you do that, that's going to drop people in because you're offering more than perhaps just

individual therapy. There might be other things that you can provide as well.

Like for example, maybe you work with postpartum moms and you have a group practice, then you might have a support group for postpartum moms and they can bring their children because there are other therapists there

that are going to watch their children for that hour that they're in the support group. That

would be a way of reducing the barrier that might prevent them from joining a group because they

don't have that ability to pay for childcare or have access to childcare. We can use our creative

and imaginative spirits to identify what are the things that my clients are really struggling with

aside from the fact that okay, yeah, maybe they have some anxiety or they're coping with depression,

but what's preventing them from getting in the door? Because it may not necessarily be finances,

it might be something else. Can you be creative in how you're designing your programming?

And then put that out in your marketing, right? Of like, this is for you and I've thought of you

and your specific needs of like this, this, and this. Well, that's going to already speak to that

client and they're going to go, wow, they already recognized some of the challenges that I'm feeling

and dealing with. So they're probably going to be effective at helping me move forward because

they already have a foundational understanding of my problem. So if you're struggling with marketing,

one of the things that I recommend is stretching yourself by doing a microactivity every day,

that feels like not you, right? That feels uncomfortable to do.

Maybe it is reaching out by email to a colleague in the community to say, hey, I've learned about you, I've heard about you, I really admire what I've heard. I would love to get together and meet for coffee if you feel up to it so that I

could learn a little bit more about your work and how you work with clients so that I can develop my

referral portfolio when I get clients that aren't a good fit for my practice, but I really want to have

an understanding of who I'm referring to. I want to have a warm hand off.

I don't want to just say, yeah, well, go back to your insurance. Now sometimes that is what happens, but if possible,

it's always nice to have a warm hand off. And for some people, just putting themselves out there

and making that kind of blind contact can feel really intimidating. But the more you do it,

the more comfortable you'll become. Because remember, right, discomfort isn't necessarily

about that there's something wrong. It's about our bodies unfamiliarity with the process, right? So

our body says, oh, I haven't done this before. It doesn't feel familiar. It feels uncomfortable

because I don't exactly know what I'm doing. So I was telling this like when I'm working with clients

and they're trying to change a behavior, it's going to feel uncomfortable at first. And that's okay.

How can you be compassionate and support yourself through that? And I would definitely do a similar

exercise as I had recommended with money, which is get to know the part, the voice that is coming up

when it's time for you to do some kind of marketing activity. Maybe you've put it on your calendar

to do. And then you're like, I just don't think I want to do that today and you avoid it and you

push it on to another day. What's that voice saying about what it would mean if you were to do that

activity? Get to know it, explore it. Where's it coming from? What's its historical value?

How is it protecting you? Right? When we can do these activities ourselves, it can help push us forward so much

in establishing a stable and healthy business. And a stable and healthy business is going to

help you to feel excited every day to go to work, confident and secure. Right? One of the biggest

things that people say is they feel like going into private practice isn't secure. They don't feel

like they're going to have a consistent income. They worry that they're not going to be able to

pay their bills. They worry about being able to pay for insurance and benefits and taxes and all

of those things. So yes, those are real concerns. I would never say that they're not.

And I felt worried about those two. However, when we work on our mindset in order to help us really master

our finances in our business and master our ability to drive traffic into our business,

to ensure that we're consistently bringing in the monthly revenues that we need.

Though with that, you're set. And then you can be confident. And you can feel secure. And of course,

that's what I want for all of the folks out there that are listening that are wanting to make a

change and to work for themselves and to design practices for themselves that align with their

personal values. I want you to feel secure and successful and stable so that you can live the

life that you want to live and find joy in every day, whether that is what you're doing at work or

what you're doing for play and recreation and with your family.

If you're interested in learning more from me on this topic, we're definitely going to be engaging in some experiential activities around money, marketing and mindset in this summit session on November 17th from 2 to 6 pm,

live via Zoom, interactive via Zoom. If you're interested, head on over to the Expressive Therapy

Summit website, www.expressivetherapysemit.com. From there, you're going to click on virtual summits,

and then you'll be able to click on the program for November. And you'll be able to register for that

or any of the other amazing offerings that are happening this year.

There's so many incredible opportunities for learning. I know I've had a few people on the show already this year that are going to be teaching, but there's so much more than that. So if you're looking for topics on

dance therapy, music therapy, drama therapy, psychodrama, intermodal expressive arts therapies,

art therapy, there's something there for everyone. And I've never been disappointed in any of the

learning that I've done at the summit. I love that it's interactive that we're engaging in our

way of knowing, which is through the creative and experiential process. And I love that every time

I attend something at the summit, I leave with tangible activities and experiences that will

inform the work that I do with clients and my business. So if that sounds good to you,

please do check it out. And I look forward to seeing you there. And until next time, stay creative,

everyone.

The Best Compliment I Could Receive As A Practice Owner

Mon, 23 Oct 2023 10:00:00 GMT

The Best Compliment I Could Receive As a Practice Owner

Pictured (from left to right):-Skyler Moore, Registered mental health counseling intern-Colleen Hentz, LCSW-QS-Victoria Doiron, LMHC, EMDR trained-Leeanna Mantica, MS, ATR-Reina Lombardi, ATR-BC, ATCS, LMHC-QS, owner & founder-Amanda Kranich, Registered mental health counseling intern-Liza Jean Meyers, Administrative Assistant-Alaina Loomis, MS, LMHC, EMDR trained Not pictured (in alphabetical order):-Amy Strom, LCSW-QS-Chelsea Darling, MA, ATR-P, NCC, Registered mental health counselor intern, EMDR trained-Malissa Maki, LCSW-QS-Michelle Sanfilipo, MA, Registered mental health counseling intern

The Best Compliment I Could Receive As a Practice Owner

When I first began my entrepreneurial journey, I thought I would be flying solo. I found myself in the role of leading a small team within a year of opening . That team, still small, has grown to a current team of 11. I didn't really know how to be a leader, but I knew I could learn.

Part of the work I do on my business is reading books, listening to podcasts, or watching videos about business administration and leadership . This was necessary in order to support a team of people.

As I grow the practice, I work hard at ensuring each decision made in the business aligns with my values. Empowerment, autonomy, creativity and growth are paramount. Collaboration, responsiveness and support are integrated within each of the primary values.

In what ways can I be responsive or supportive so that a member of the team can grow and feel empowered in their role? In what ways can I create opportunities for collaboration within the team to promote creativity?

This past week, I received a lengthy email by a therapist at the practice regarding some things she would like to discuss and have addressed in the meeting we had scheduled.

When I got the email, the inner critic voice piped up with all kinds of "not enough" thoughts as I read through her agenda. I immediately did some diaphragmatic breathing and refuted the non-sense that inner critic was spouting off . Then I printed out the agenda for our meeting and kept going on with my day.

I really had to work at reminding myself that this list was not a criticism of me or what I am doing, but rather an opportunity for us both. For me to grow in my role as a leader, and for her to be supported in what she needs to be successful within the practice.

When we met, we went through the list line-by-line . Things that could be addressed with immediacy, I did so in the moment . Things that needed to be addressed with the team, I added to my agenda for our team meeting which happened to be scheduled for later that day. Things I needed to time to address, I added to my task list and explained that time was needed to adequately attend to them.

The following day, she, another therapist in the practice and I were casually chatting. The conversation shifted to how much they both appreciate the way in which I have structured the practice and how I listen and respond to their ideas and requests.

She said, "I have never worked anywhere where I have taken my thoughts and concerns to leadership and have them not only listened to, but immediate action is taken to address them."

That brought tears to my eyes. It confirmed that the inner critic was dead wrong (which I knew intellectually), and that the leadership qualities I value are being reflected in my actions.

It was the best compliment I could hope to receive as a leader.

Season 2 Episode 20 | Carla Titus | Strategies for Building a Practice you can Sell

Wed, 18 Oct 2023 09:45:00 GMT

FEATURED GUESTS: Carla Titus is a finance expert with over 15 years of combined corporate financial planning, analysis, strategy, and online businesses experience. She provides fractional CFO services and financial consulting to business owners looking to grow their business profitably. Her priorities for her clients as grow profits, have cash in the bank, and pay themselves well so they can build personal wealth.

LISTEN & LEARN:

What is a Fractional CFO?
Why hire a Fractional CFO?
Why the first thing in your business to outsource should be Bookkeeping.
The benefits of evaluating your fee schedule every 6-12 months.
Key things to be working towards if you want to sell your business.
The importance of tracking metrics.
How to find more money in your business by engaging in periodic evaluation of expenses to determine which can be paused, delayed or cancelled.

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW:

Connect and learn more about Carla Titus at www.wealthworthwithin.com
email Carla Titus at carla@wealthworthwithin.com
Book a FREE call with Carla Titus HERE
Follow Carla on Instagram HERE

HI there creatives. Thanks so much for listening to the Creative Psychotherapist podcast.

I'm excited to share this next conversation with you.

If money is not your thing and if yours overwhelming, um, I think my next guest could really be an asset and help with that.Her name is Carla Titus and she's a fractional CFO and founder and CEO of wealth and worth within.

And in this conversation today, she shares a little bit about what we need to be thinking about in terms of, um, you know, finances in our business and some things that we can do to help prepare for selling our business.

Should we choose to do so at any time and without further ado, have a listen.

I'm your host, Raina Lombardi and I'm very excited to welcome my next guest.

To the show, her name is Carla Titus and she is a finance expert with over 15 years of combined corporate financial planning analysis strategy and online business experience.

She provides fractional CFO services and financial consulting to business owners looking to grow their business profitably. Her priorities for clients are to grow profits, have cash in the bank and pay themselves well so they can build personal wealth.

Thank you so much for being here today, Carla. I'm really excited to talk to you.

Me too. Thanks for having me. I can't wait to share all the golden nuggets. Hopefully with your audience.

Yeah. So I think probably the first question would be what is a fractional CFO?

Yeah, so we get asked this a lot. I think a lot of people are not familiar with even what a CFO chief financial officer does or is as far as the role and responsibilities of that position.

And I always like to describe it by sharing, you know, in a corporation. There's always the CEO and the CFO. We hear this a lot. People are probably aware of familiar and what it is is a partnership between the owner or the person driving the company and the financial partner that brings in the perspective on how to make best financial decisions going forward. Not just today or in the past, but really forward looking, projecting out what are the goals, how are we going to reach them? What is the plan and also making sure they were executing a monitoring on those goals as we're going along.

The other thing that I compare it to is when business owners are having money questions and they look at their accounting team, other bookkeeper, other account and they're like, should I, can I afford to hire? Should I do this thing? Can I buy this other, you know, piece of equipment I need. And they're the account in our bookie for looking at them like what I don't know like why are you asking me or like I don't have time to take your call because I have 400 other plans to attend to.

And they're just not in a position where they either have the expertise experience or skill set or even the desire to sit down with you and say, well, let's analyze that decision. Do the financial, you know, analysis required and look at the data to understand can we afford to if we can now when can we afford to how much is it cost us and what are some of the alternative to our problem that we're trying to solve which is hiring.

That we can evaluate in order for us to make progress towards the goal, which is to maybe grow the company or be more profitable or bringing more revenue. Create a new revenue straight and that is the function, the forward looking planning that a CFO is in charge of as a leader in the company and coming in at that what we call fractional role because those companies don't need a full time.

CFO yet they will one day and but they still need the leadership and the guidance and direction that an expert, you know, in the field has and we make that accessible through that fractional CFO position where you still bringing all the goodness of the leadership, the high level expertise, the planning, the proactive approach to your finances to your business at a fraction of the cost.

That's awesome. So basically it's a contract position that allows you to go in, look at the finances of the business and help provide guidance based on what they want to do. But it's not they're not paying a salary, which if they were paying a CFO salary, that would probably break the bank is a small business owner. I would imagine it wouldn't be affordable for them to hire full times the FFO with all the requirements that it takes to have someone at that level and experience.

And that's why the fractional role is so popular and much more accessible to all the small businesses out there that are trying to grow, but it really need to tap into that financial knowledge and expertise to help guide what comes next for the business and be very proactive and intentional about the decision making around finances, which I know.

Kind of comes from your gut instinct or is an afterthought, but we really want to shift that conversation to more less intentionally control the path forward and decide what is our best alternatives to evaluate. And then before we make a decision, we put it all out on the table, all the scenarios and all the options.

And then we make a decision based on the information we gather for each of the scenarios and move on that path that hopefully is more profitable and also can you know put you in a better financial situation to have stability in the business long term. Yeah, so what are some just general things that small business owners really need to be doing to make sure that their finances are in order. I think a lot of us come in as technicians were proficient and whatever it is.

We studied and we're there to execute on that, but we're not necessarily so skilled in areas of things like accounting and budgets, let's say things of that nature.

Exactly. Like you said, nobody got into business to manage the finances already accounting side of the business let alone do bookkeeping right like let's be really clear that should be the first thing your answers, the moment you can afford to do so. And we want you out of QuickBooks and into doing your business and growing the business big picture that only you can do. So back to what are the basic things you should be doing is first the books need to be close every month. I know it's tedious. I don't know what he wants to do it. It's such an affordable position to outsource and delegate out early on in your business. You should really consider bringing in a bookkeeper.

It could be a contractor. You know, that's doing that for you and closing the books. Make sure they're reconciling categorizing and sending your report every month as part of their service.

And also looking at the balance sheet to make sure there's nothing there that shouldn't be there. And if they don't know what that is, maybe as in what they're accounting background or experiences before you hire them because I find that there's a lot of bookkeepers other that maybe don't have that expertise and they really can mess up your books and they can really make it tough at tax time to not get the right. You know tax deductions if the things are done incorrectly. So that's number one. Number two is you want to be looking at those financial statements every month.

And you know, I know that some people are not good with numbers or they're like, oh my god, I don't want to look at a spreadsheet full of things that I don't understand. The things we're looking at are four key things, right? You want to look at revenue has it gone up or down from the month before has it gone up or down from the year before.

And just start to get an idea of what's happening in your business from a revenue perspective. That could be your how you bring money into the business, right? Your sales, your income, revenue, all those things are the same thing.

Then you want to understand what are your costs of services. If you have clinicians and you're paying them wages to do the work to deliver the service, you need to understand what is that cost.

And then after that cost, what is left? What is left for me to operate on that is what we call a gross margin.

And now on your gross margin will start to give you some good idea of, are you at a healthy level or you need to make some progress stores getting back to a healthy level. I see that a lot of group practices are on commission base or other types of compensation structures that are not serving them. And when we really come down to the gross margin. It's just not healthy enough for the business to survive long term and they're starting to see cash flow issues or start to feel really strapped.

Because they can grow and sustain that while still paying the staff high wages that do not also yield high results for the company. So there's got to be an alignment there. I see it often on capacity management and weekly clinical hours not being managed correctly. That is really leaking the profits out of the business and not allowing to have healthy margins. And then from there you want to look at your expenses running and operating the business total expenses. Right. What is your subscriptions costing you? What is your rent costs new utilities.

You know, if you have cleaning services for the office anything that goes into just the overhead what we call right operating expenses of the business, your admin stuff, maybe even yourself because maybe you got out of clinical work at this point and you're just an expense of your business managing the business and running it.

So understanding what is that number and again has it gone up from the month before is it down from the month before year over year, you know, just try to see some patterns in that. And you don't see like look at that many numbers to know where know your business is healthy. Finally, there should be some profit left. And if there's not that we need to do something about changing that and that's where this proactive planning really comes into play to understand what is your path forward to fix that issue. What are your action steps to get you to profitability, even if it takes one or two months. And also do you have enough cash flow to get you to the one or two months mark before you run out of money. You run out of business and that's one thing that I think a lot of group practices are not managing, you know, if you're insurance based, you know, it's going to take 30 60 days to collect on those how healthier you're receivables are they growing are your builders doing the follow up job.

You know, and if you're private pay are your clients paying you on time or did taking like 120 days to pay their invoices and do you have a process to follow up with them. Again, we want to make sure all those pieces are integrated because they all impact those for numbers revenue cost of services or cost to go so all right.

Open expenses and at the end of the day profit is left for us the owner to hopefully not just pay yourself, but also take some draw so that you can build your own personal wealth. Yeah, I think that's really important.

And I do think that it is challenging for many of us in in this particular business, one, because all of us have our own money stories that we bring along to the work.

But to I think that there's a lot of pressure in terms of accessibility and what that means in terms of fee structure and how can we command a rate that's commensurate with our education training experience, etc.

But that also meets our rising financial needs, the cost of living has gone exponentially the past few years.

And you know, most insurance companies have not raised their rates, which means that we're kind of getting squeezed as practitioners and making it difficult to really have a healthy profitable business. What are some recommendations that you have for folks that maybe they are taking insurance, the insurance refuses to negotiate and increase rates. How can they make adjustments in their business to still be able to call in the finances that they need to take care of themselves personally, but also like you're saying, you need to have a nice cushion to be able to pay bills out as you're waiting for those receivables to come in.

What are some recommendations you might have for that. Yeah, so you mentioned fee schedule. That's when we always are looking and evaluating every six to 12 months with clients to understand, are we leaving money on the table. Sometimes you'd be surprised that if you build more actually the insurance will remiss you hire for the same CPT goes that in the past they may be where and you were not worth other fee schedule reimbursement rates have changed. And we found with a client in the process of doing that that we were leaving money on the table. And so we went ahead and raised it high enough that we knew that for a few years, we'll be okay, not to revisit that because we also didn't want to have to change the fee schedule or an over again every six months.

And so we intentionally did a boost just because of that. And I think I know that money stories do play a big role in this, but just remember you went to school for how long to be, you know, an expert in your field, people are seeking your advice because they really, because you have the experience. And expertise and you put in the time to learn it and people are benefiting, you know, there's even value on the other side of this. And I also say the more that you take in from payments and insurance and people who can afford it, the more you can afford to give back out to the community by giving some provol know or reduce rate. And that is not possible if you don't have a profitable business is putting your oxygen mask on first like they say on the plane before helping others.

And the more oxygen you take in the healthier you'll be able to help everyone else, right. And so it's no different here. We want to make sure that you're profitable first that your margins are not getting squeezed. And if they are, we need to step back and analyze what is happening with each insurance. What are the rates are getting squeezed or reduce how much are we paying our therapist and do we need to make a change going forward.

This is not about this meaning your workforce either by the way, by reducing everyone's salary and then making a max Exodus in your company, but it's really understanding for them. Thanks. Hires, do we need to change the way that we compensate that's still fair that's still, you know, beneficial to them as much as it is to us as a practice and making sure that that change aligns with the margins. We want to see going forward.

And I think that's a much easier shift than trying to get your current work first to buy into a peer reduction. So like don't try that, please. And also there's ways that we can get creative maybe, you know, someone practices have been on commission base and we're trying to get them away from that to like a set rate. And we'll offer, you know, extro vacation days in exchange to changing or we'll do a bonus structure instead and moving them away from commission. So those are some things that we try and test with. We don't do it all at once. We try with one person see how that goes the more the ones that we will be more willing to change that value their time off right that like they want more vacation and we want less commission. So we tried to offer them something that they see value in an exchange we're asking for something in return.

You know, they can always say no and that's okay. We just know that we'll have to eat the margin on those hires and then the next ones we do will do something different to make sure that we're bringing the right level of margin. But

if you're not looking at your margins, immersion rates from insurance, reassessing your fee schedule. All of this is interconnected and then last but not least your receivables. Do you have 200,000 of receivables is just sitting there waiting because your claims go rejected. There's no follow up. Your billers not on top of it. You know, are you having to be behind your billers say, hey, do you submit the you read some it that you call the they get denied again. What are we doing. And also like negotiating with insurance companies and rates is something that can be done. I'm not an expert on that. So don't ask me for help with it. But I know it has been done in the right way.

There's people out there that teach you how to do that. And then something you can evaluate to to see if there's different, you know, codes that you should be building for. I don't code so you can maybe talk on again with appropriate and where the service is being delivered. Obviously we do everything with integrity and making sure that you're getting the most out of, you know, your insurance. And again, not every medical biller is, you know, as expert as they as others might be. So just making sure that you understand and our coaching and guiding to

And that's something we do for our clients is we do work with their medical billers to understand. Okay, why are you receivables.

So, hi, what can we do about it. Is there something missing. Do we need more follow up and really help them kind of build that process because to us is also as much an accounting process that is a medical billing process. It's a huge accounting process. Yes. It's reconciliation. Yeah. And like that really is your cash runway right there. Right. If you think about if you were to collect that at the moment you submit the claim. We probably would not be talking a lot about cash flow because you would have piles of cash to rely on and runway and time to make changes things wouldn't feel so urgent. But unfortunately, because we're at the mercy of insurance care, submitting payment.

And then if an issue happens where your claims are completely rejected and you have a hundred claims rejected at once and you don't know what's going on. You have to get on the phone with them and try to resolve it. And next, but they're holding your payment hostage until you get that result.

So if you don't have a line of credit. If you don't have that cash runway of two, three months of expenses, you might not make payroll in two weeks, right. And we've never want to see you in the position where you're having to choose between paying your own personal bills and paying your staff. Like that is not fair to anyone.

And it's not your fault either. But it happens. Unfortunately, things happen, right. Being sometimes, you know, decide to close your account for no reason or put a hold on it. Weird things happen. And what I've learned from my years of being a CFO for small businesses that we have to be prepared for a lot of things. And then when nothing goes wrong, it's great because we just have a lot of cash and other Christian and a lot of runway. And I have to worry about anything. That's true. I knock on wood. I have not had that experience, but I could see how it could easily happen.

Things come up every day that are unexpected to that might eat at your cash flow that you were an expecting to have to do emergencies and repairs or whatever might have you. And if you haven't been actively like saving before you took on other people under your wing, I could I could see how just rapidly it could become a disaster.

Yeah. And and emotionally that must take a toll on people too when they're in that situation.

Yeah, what I find with working with a lot of group practice owners is that everybody's so giving so generous and so caring for their staff that they'll bend over backwards and do anything that they need to to make sure that they're taking care of even if it means financially personally taking ahead.

And I think that we can avoid a lot of that if we were just managing our cash for preparing for scenarios where again for no fault of your own. Maybe you were put in a situation, but you know you have two or three months of expenses.

So you don't have to rush and try to solve something like an emergency fire drill. And you really have two months to figure it out and make some changes and figure out if you want to apply for a land of credit or something else that can help you whether that particular situation. And now we have time and we can breathe and we can relax and handle the situation from a position of power and control versus from a position of despair. And you know when you're looking a little despair, the pink snow like to give you money so like that's the worst time to go get on.

I know I didn't ask for anything. So having that ahead of time is going to be very beneficial even if you don't use it or top into it. A lot of my clients we set them up with one we never touch it because obviously we're good at managing their finances.

But it's there for the unexpected as you scale the business is going to take more money and more resources to get that to do the hiring. You won't see those payments for 60 90 days the higher one get fully to capacity for you know 30 60 90 days sometimes till they have a full patient load so just knowing that and kind of working through the timing, especially when you're working through hiring knowing when that's going to be. It's just going to be a piece of mind so that you can better prepare and not freak out when you're not seeing those profitable months rolling because you're stealing and it's costing a lot of money. Yeah, I'm glad that you shared that part right that like sometimes people don't realize that as you're growing things become more expensive it shifts your profitability.

I think I was definitely had better profit margins when I was a solo practitioner because I didn't have all of these additional expenses that I needed to purchase in order to manage.

Having a group right thing your rent goes up because you're in a bigger space and then you're if you're doing direct deposit will that cost money to do run payroll right there's just an expense of that there's an expense of you know making sure everybody has access to a shared. Schedule or EHR system which the more people you add on there the more expensive that is you know so things just add up really quickly.

And it makes it much harder I think to be profitable as a larger group practice and it did as a solo practice.

But there's probably things that I could learn to be more effective in this department to I would say.

Yeah, I think as you shift to group practice what happens is your profits do get tighter, but you also are you know taking out of a larger number right your revenue is growing and you might still have 10% profit but not a larger number that's 10% of and what you want to be comparing is those percentage of because as your company grows now you compare apples, apples by looking at those percentage of revenue rather than absolute dollars which we also want to look at to see you know are we making more. But ideally you have a bigger base that you're taking 10% of or 5% of and that if that continues to stick you know over a year over a year as you add more clinicians and to the practice and the bigger that 10% of profit is going to be for you as a you know net number.

And so there's benefits to scaling the practice is not easy it is expensive, but I think that on the flip side you should see more profit. The percentage again won't maybe won't change, but you should be able to see more absolute dollars as a profit total that you get to take home and you know also need to reinvest back in the business so there's a healthy balance there.And this is around the time where you know having our services or someone that's guiding the way because you finance is just called really complex there's a lot of moving pieces and as an owner maybe you don't even have the time. Let alone the energy or really like wanting to even look at it like I know that you know a lot of practice owners are just like I don't even want to look at my numbers and we don't really know what's happening so they want someone to guide the way or show the highlight real on what's happening so they still have the ownership of it, but they don't have to do all the work.

And we find that that complexity levels when we are best suited to work with a practice to come in help delegate that out you're not advocating your responsibility to know your numbers, but you at least have a guide to help you understand what's happening. Yeah, I think that's I think that's important and really helpful because like I said earlier, you know we're probably really skilled at providing the therapy, but. Most of us don't have a background in accounting or bookkeeping or business management, I some people will go back to school and get those kinds of degrees, which is awesome. But for other people, I think it's it's almost an overwhelmed thing to like it's overwhelming, I don't feel confident, I don't feel a sense of mastery here.

And therefore I'll avoid looking at it, which is, you know, not helpful, it's not a healthy relationship with the money if you're avoiding looking at it. So having somebody that has that expertise to be able to create the systems and structures in order to get the money managed in an effective way and help you interpret, okay, you do have enough money to be able to go and do this. X Y and Z thing that you want to add in your business or you don't and here's why that's really helpful. Yeah, we like to say not yet and then how can we make it possible because we don't like to tell people know they don't like it. And so what will we say is if you do this three things now is say, heck yes, let's go do it versus say, I'm concerned if you go down that route now, right.

It's like maybe three months here's what I want to see shift before we go make that decision and I think that really helps this and so on as P at ease knowing that okay, I need to go around 20% before I go higher than next person.

Right now I feel you know better about my decision. I know we're going to be a little bit healthy financially and we're not having to stress and have the sleepless nights. But also, you know, something you said around, oh, some people go back to school and get like their MBA or whatever degree to learn, well, you don't have to do that.

You can also just partner with someone who knows that they can bring that partnership and expertise to you just like you wouldn't go get a lot degree and an HR degree.

You also don't want to get a business degree. There's a lot of degrees. I know you guys love and have all the degrees probably already, but like being in that partner that also is kind of that second brain in the business that you can console with. Because I think ownership business ownership is lonely and you can't talk to your employees about your issues because you can make parallel into a week's right that's not an appropriate conversation to be having.

So who do you turn to your spouse's tire of listening to you. They probably don't really have good advice either.

Unless they have a business degree and then your friends might not understand the state of business. Your Adam might give you like advice for a different stage. Right.

And so unless you have a good support system, then who are you turning to for those questions to give you a really sound advice from a financial perspective to really make sure the business is operating in a healthy financial way.

Yeah, that's really sound advice and grounded in the reality of the situation, right. Like, yeah, we don't want to burden our employees or staff or team members with those things. And then of course, you know, we need that we need some expert information and those times. And we're probably not going to get them from our friends either.

Because they probably are an expert in our type of business. Maybe they're an expert in business, but they might not be an expert in what it means to run a private practice, which I think is a little bit different.

We have different constraints because of our ethical codes legal stuff like that. So having somebody that has a foundational understanding of what we need as as it pertains to clinical practice. And then we have this plus that expertise in the accounting area and financial area, I think is a win, win. It just I think it sets you up for better success in the future than if you're trying to just figure it all out on your own. That's for sure.

Exactly. We want to make sure you feel supportive and that you feel like you have the right information to make the right decisions in your business. And unless you love analyzing data and being spreadsheets, which we do, but might have some of you might not, then it's going to be really hard to get those insights.

Unless you're looking at your numbers, which is why we're such a big reporter enough star by looking at your number.

You know, they might be scary. They might not be perfect, but think of it as a starting point that you're going to make progress towards right. Just like when you give a patient a plan to improve on, you're starting for where they're at, right. It's not bad. It's not wrong. It's just what it is. And then you're helping them improve on that with your support. So it's no different than that is we're going to give your plan action steps problem solved with you and make sure that you have the right perspective from a financial lens to really get you to the next space of growth.

And you want to see improve for your already have. And that's really when I see a book on coming really handy. If everything's going great and you know your numbers and your cash was healthy, like you might not need us right.

So you're on a good path. We want you to be there already. But if you feel hesitant and you know that you can turn to your current team to ask the questions and nobody's really helping you with that.

Then it might be time to explore, you know, getting some support and see how back could work best for your practice, especially if you're looking to grow. That's where I see a full really.

Thrive is and really comes into help you accelerate that growth and also boy mistakes that are expensive and keep you on track. Yeah. And how can or how can and or how do you help people who not only want to grow but are looking at their business as as an asset as a financial asset, not for what it produces each week or month that it pays you. But as an asset for sale in the future, if you build your business up, it could have some valuation, which would allow you to sell and retire. How do you help people with that process?

Yeah. And what it's the right thing to me is that people think about selling when they actually want to sell.

This to be a little too late because if unless you had the right financial metrics that you were already hitting for the last two years, they're going to go pull tax returns to see what your business was doing. And if it wasn't looking very good, you're not going to get the highest value for your business and your retirement, you know, that was dropped up and maybe selling the business and making hitting that big valuation might not be there. It might just be discouraging this appointed at that point and that you have to put in maybe a couple more years to fix it.

And we don't want to see any practice owner, you know, be caught up with maybe it is even like a health situation where they can no longer run their practice or it could be a life situation where they just have to sell the practice for whatever reason. We want to get you the maximum value we can for it. So what we want to do is start a process a few years before you're ready to sell also. I just think every business owner should have the option to sell their business when they want to if a good opportunity or offer presents itself. So why wait till you're ready to sell what if someone came to you and said I'm going to give you this much and you're like wow, I never thought I could get that much for my practice. And maybe you're like sure I can go for that or like that feels great. I can go retired now and it's early than you expect there. Right. So always being ready with the right set of numbers and financially being strong is going to say you're not position of power to take on those opportunities.

But if you're just even not wanting to sell right now and you just want to have a good profitable business with a high valuation that one day down the road you want to sell in the meantime is just a cash flow machine for you printing them money printing those profits for you to create your own personal wealth in maybe buying a building or buying personal assets. And so now you leverage the profits of the business to get you the assets you need for an early retirement or even not even retired. So I think a lot of you like to work and so do I but it's a work option or more flexible work hours or maybe you peel yourself off your business as much as you possibly can because you hired a right health instructor to run the day day and you only get to do the things that are fun for you or the things that you really enjoy.

And to me the definition of you know personal wealth is really like the owners right is it freedom is it time is it money what is it like it's it buying a bunch of real estate properties what is it and we always work with that end goal in mind and walk backwards to an action plan today that will help you map out how to achieve those goals long term and it might not happen into years it might be five years 10 years. Whatever it is maybe putting your kids to college you know whatever your goals are your business should provide the lifestyle and the results financially that you need for your life to be what you want it to be and we're really big on.

You know mapping that out together because we know that as business owners you're not just a business owner you're also a person with life goals in mind and if you have a map does how we're going to you know fairly get you started a little bit on what is the end goal for this whole thing and how do we make sure that you know that you know you're not just a business owner you're also a person with life goals in mind and if you have a map does out we're going to you know fairly get you started a little bit on what is the end goal for this whole thing and how do we make sure that you know you're not going to be a lot of money.

And how do we make sure that the profits are powering all of those dreams and goals that you have for your life and then created a plan to make sure that you're ready for it so it's much more than just adding values your company of course we're all you know about the results here too but it's also what can the business do for you.

Yeah, I think that that part is really important right like we invest so much of ourselves into this business that the business really should be working for us we shouldn't be working for the business but sometimes it gets flipped around what are some things that people like need to be need to be doing if they do want to sell their business is there.

And things that you would recommend that they start to do to prepare for that.

Yeah so a lot of what we talked about at the beginning is really some of the key financial metrics you're going to want to head and start to work towards improving that is gross margin right knowing what is left after your play your clinicians for delivering services that needs to be healthy we like to see that you know again and it's going to vary depending on this is not financial advice but you know we're happy to help you with your particular situation.

We tend to see that between like 50% gross margins maybe even higher than that on average we want to see like that healthy level you know profits if you're scaling your company between 5 and 15% on a yearly basis is what we like to see because we want to also reinvest back into what you know the growth needs to be.

And it's going to vary depending on the size of your practice right if you just going from solo to group that might look a little different because you're investing a lot and then once you have you know 10 20 clinicians under you the profitability starts to shift and it starts to get a little bit better and then then from there on you know the more you add you'll see those profits continue to stay but again it's from a much higher base so really controlling that controlling your overhead costs I see a lot of practices are just adding a lot of admin support right like.

So many people and maybe you can streamline some of that you know what another opportunity that I see people are missing is automating a lot of their workflows right so what tech tools can we pay for to help reduce that amount of hours that employees are spending doing tasks especially recurring tasks and maybe we can automate behind the scenes and then obviously we want the human touch on the front end to make sure we're converting you know increase to paid first appointments and then we can't do that.

First appointments that you know where can you introduce something to help your team say sometime in streamline and help reduce the amount of workload and also just another right processes I think sometimes we are doing things that maybe are not streamlined and there's opportunities your staff might have some ideas ask them have you seen you know where we can improve what are some things that you're noticing that we're continuing to repeat over and over again that could just be. So we're going to be able to do a automated process and they you'll be surprised how many ideas they might bring to the table.

They're really keeping those overhead expenses to the right level right for the practice as you grow and scale you'll find that you'll add more to that but really being intentional and evaluating every year are we putting the dollars to the right places like what is the allocation being very intentional about that with some of our clients we do what we call like salary cops we say the size of the team is going to cost us this much per year. And then we find a way of how we're going to fit everyone's salaries and compensation structure under that so that we know what we can afford to hire what we can afford to hire yet and maybe what's a higher for you know the future versus the now.

And a good healthy mix of like interns associates and you know so pervac is that you can have can really help your profit margin also increase so like not overlook some of those junior level positions that a lot of people need to get license on and really are looking for the hours and being able to get the supervision hours needed to get their license sure is really you know helping with that margin conversation as well so I think having like a good mix of experienced people and then more junior are really going to help you drive those margins.

But at the end of the day really think about you know that profitability is that improving over time is a stain study how our micro margins doing and then you know it's the practice growing right is the revenue increasing or we see more patients how many appointments we have how many clinical hours per week and start to evaluate those numbers that are really going to give you an insight into what else you need to be doing to continue to grow and increase the value of your practice over time.

Those are the things we evaluate and look out with our clients to make sure the things are healthy and are going in the right direction and again everything is intentional we don't do anything by you know like just because surprise like this happen now we're like we have a plan we're working towards it and we're intentionally trying to move the needle in those areas. I love that and I agree I feel like it's really important to have a system for tracking your metrics. I know a lot of people will talk about that in terms of like social media and things but I think it's more important to be looking at that in terms of what's happening in your actual business right like our how how are the calls being converted what is that look like are you losing clients.

Because the person on the phone is in saying the right thing right that alone could be a way of automation teaching people how to have those conversations that convert and encourage that client to book that first appointment even if they're a little bit hesitant.Yeah, that makes a big difference. Yeah, I find this sometimes owners really benefit from getting on the front end of their process and getting on those calls to hear what patients have to say and like the feedback they get that gives them an opportunity to improve the process like don't overlook that right in my I know you don't probably have a lot of time but if occasionally you can jump on in a few calls and just listen to what you know patients are saying that gives you an idea of how to improve on things.

And making sure that you're definitely going to change your stuff on it and you know improving on those commercial metrics and also understand where your clients coming from like where your patients finding you because I think sometimes we invest time and money and effort on things that do not move the needle. I always say likes and comments on pay the bills we got to get calls but right we want paid patients that are in need of our services and that we're matching with our services and providing that value and solving the problem for them.

Where are they coming from are they coming from your website they're coming from your speaking engagements are they coming from local newspaper magazine ads whatever you're doing online or offline that really could yield those patients to come finding you and sometimes it is social media but just understanding which platform and where we're going to put our person how are we going to track that conversion to really understand that we have that return on investment. And I will notice activities that we're putting time towards to bring in the right patients to our practice.

Yeah, I think that that's really important for people to hear sometimes people think oh well I have to be through social media but that might not be the best way to get clients in the door.

It depends on who your population is who are you who are you serving and and then what are you doing on the social media because that part is really important what's the messaging that you're using to get people to come in the door.

I kind of look at it like it's another opportunity for visibility it's like another sign road sign out in front of the office just to let people know that work here I don't invest a ton in that to convert I'm more of a I would say in person.

Networker connecting with other people other therapists in the community and building that community network.

It's difficult sometimes because you might meet with somebody several times before you get a converted referral but I feel like it's a much more worthwhile investment of time and it's something that typically isn't going to change in the same way as like social media.

The way they change their algorithms to actually get you out in front of your potential client that's constantly changing and so that's time energy money that you're having to invest to educate yourself to figure out what that is or to pay somebody to do that for you. I don't know it feels like a lot of output for a minimal return sometimes.

Yeah, and I think this is where your data and your results are going to speak loudly on what is actually working on where you should invest more time maybe it is going to those referral doctor offices to send you all your patients and send them you know a little gift or don't answer coffee or something like you know making that connection you know that is bringing the leads that you really need to understand where are they coming from first if you're not asking that on your intake form and in your process that might be something you want incorporate right away.

And then I don't like your data how many people say you they found you on social media which social media platform you know are they giving you back what you're saying in your message are they repeating the words that you're using in your messaging that said oh I said this and then they're saying exactly those words back to me that means the message is hitting and that's why they're calling and sending up the appointment right maybe they're finding young psychology today like where are they looking for you and then how are they coming to you and that's data you have available in your business today.

And if you're not tracking it start now and then start to analyze and look at what are the trends how many people is that 80% of our people finding us through Google well, should we sing Google act right like what is it and how does it work for your specific practice and then what do you need to be doing more of that's working and then let's settle down on that let's allocate more money to it too and then see if the results increase because we put some focus or emphasis in the allocation of budget towards those activities. That's great advice.

Is there any other kind of quick win tips that you might be able to offer listeners who are trying to work on this aspect of their business to overcome some of the hesitancy and resistance to actually investing money and hiring an expert to help them with finances.Any kind of tips or guidance for that process.

Yeah, so I think that the best thing I can say is that we have been supporting your practices for a while so we do know what are like some of the pockets of areas of opportunity that we immediately can come in and make a big impact.

Our goal is to have not only our cost cover but then have you get more out of your business because you brought us in as your team to create more value that is the job of the CF was to create more value for the company and really steer that strategic plan forward looking and help you execute and stay on track on that.

So if you're having trouble doing that on your own if you're not reading your financial statements or you read them and you have no idea what they say and you need someone to interpret that I speak both therapists and accounting so I can help also be the liaison between you and your accountant and really get what we need out of that support role. You know, if you bookkeeping team as well to make sure we have the right structure to make the right decisions because that's what it comes down to with the data is your reports maybe are not being done correctly there for you don't know what they say or mean and you know something categories and things that get you know mislabeled and you're like I have no idea what was into this and then we start to explore some of those opportunities to streamline and really tell have the statement.

So that's what we need to know to make decisions and again if you're just not you know into spreadsheets or numbers and you just want a guiding light and someone who is going to come and not judge your business right you are where you are we're just here excited to make progress with you and being that partner and understanding that it might be hard for you to take that first step and we're just going to make sure that you feel taking care of along the way with compassion and care. So that's why you're business and we want to see you succeed and if you're going to bring us on or hire us to support you we want you to also have the financial results of bringing the team like this on to your business.

There's no fluff here the numbers online they will be results we will measure against them trust me I'll be the first one to put them in front of you right and say think that there's a lot of people are there offering services that maybe are not tied to the numbers of the results. So I'm very much tied to the bottom line and understand are we making a difference or not so if you're you know hoping to hire a CFO now or in the future something I want you to look out for is also what is their experience what is their expertise do they have a finance degree what is their background because I think all of that is going to help you in front to make a better decision on who you bring on to your team and trust that they know what they're talking about and do they specialize in group practices or health care are they the right CFO for you.

Because there's so many options out there and then there's a lot of people that are not qualified to give advice and don't have the education or background that are calling themselves CFO so I just always want to make sure that people are careful of that even your bookkeeper right do they have the right accounting background.

All these roles that involve money like are they the right person to you advice are they qualified do they have the expertise and then are they going to help you improve and help you through a process that they have to get you the results that you're looking for because it's really easy to spot in the first three to six months if nothing has changed because the results won't be any different right again the numbers online so you can always go back to your PNL and say they might see a folder or job.

If I had to hide from that that's great. No, that's true and that is really helpful to know that within three or six months there should be some movement to point towards the evidence of like this is effective or this is not effective and maybe we need to make an additional change or tweak to whatever it is that we're doing. That's really helpful and there've been a situation that could be as long as one year but you know you've got to be seeing some progress that's always my thought is like if you can see any progress and something might something else is happening and maybe they're you don't have the right person guiding you but if you can move the needle in six to 12 months and I'll be asking a little questions.

No, that makes sense because then you're like wasting more of your finances that you're wanting to be a better steward over and nobody wants to do that like flesh it down the toilet you know we work so hard to bring in what we do bring in that we want to make sure that when we're bringing on some money into our business that they are able to support our growth plan and and help us you know with the bottom line. Yeah and that's for every role in function right not just a CFO or finance but really like what are you getting out of your marketing team what are you in an of age or support legal team like you know we can just go and measure what is the impact on every single dollar we spend for every activity in the business and really if you don't understand that that might be

a place of opportunity that you can go evaluate what have I gone in from this teams lately and then what value are they bringing to me and my business.

Are they we just maybe I'll grow them or we don't no longer need their support that's another way to save some money and evaluate I always say go look at what you can stop pause delay or cancel and those are the areas where you could be surprised how much of the savings we can yell our clients right away by just looking at those things you know and it could be temporary delay or pause it could be we cancel and then we realized three months later we really needed that and we put it back on maybe at the wrong level maybe we had the whole team subscribe to really need two people you know like those are the things that I want you to start looking at and really be discerning with your money because you are working hard for your money so I want you to keep as much as you can of that and I'll be just giving it away.

Because only for the right things.Yeah, definitely we don't want to give it away and I love that idea of going through each thing line by line and can I stop this do I even need this service anymore can I pause it temporarily because I'm not using it consistently or can I just you know cancel it terminated I try to do that at least once a year I have not done

that this year something that I need to do I have a few things that I want to tweak in terms of subscriptions where I know I have a subscription to one program and a subscription to another there's some duplication overlap but before I can make the switch I have to do some adjusting but doing so will save me and it's not a lot but over the course of the year that's a few hundred dollars or five years that you probably ignore the four or whatever you know however long.

I always say maybe it's like you need to double that investment to get rid of some three other pieces of software you know I you know we're not all see if I'm not all about cutting we're just about allocating to the right places for the right amount to accelerate growth of the business right and to see the value we're always looking for ROI like I mentioned before and then making sure that you're doing that once a month this is your or once a year this is your reminder right to go through and do that and it's really about thinking strategically about your business and working on the business still instead of in the business which we do a lot day to day we know we're busy we all doing 20 different things but really come up for air look you know from the top down view.

What I hear a lot of our clients tell us is if it wasn't for our time together I probably would never look at my numbers so if functions like a great accountability to the work clients to have the meeting to go through the numbers answer the questions and really take away whatever tasks or things we need to go work on so that what next time we meet we've actually made some progress so if that helps your audience kind of get an idea of what is like to work with us as well on why they might or you know one that consider our support in their business too Yeah, no, I think that's great and probably extraordinarily accurate having that accountability to to somebody else particularly if it's something that one's been avoiding for a long time that's that support through the process is important.

Yeah, where can people learn more about you learn more about your business and and find out more of how they could work with you and you could come on and assist them and their financial goals for their business.

Yeah, if you're looking for a fractional CFO or you're ready to outsource your finances but still we're going to hold your responsible for the results because we both do the work we take most of it away but there's still the decision making the stage for you you can check out our website at wealthworthwithin.com on the contact page you're welcome to book a free call we can have a conversation about whether or not now is the right time if we are the right support for you and can we meet your needs we're really big on what are your needs and how can we meet them from through our service.

And if we are not the right person we have a huge network of other CFOs and professionals that can help you as well if you're in a different stage than maybe we think you can benefit from a different service we do a lot of our services with integrity and honesty we just want to make sure that you all have the right support that you need not just that you buy our services right if they're not right we're going to tell you and say go somewhere else is what you need now not as yet and then come back when you're ready. So if you're ready for that go ahead and book a call on our website if you want to follow along to what we're up to as we're growing our firm as well and helping other business owners you can subscribe for our newsletter on our website again wealthworthwithin.com and if nothing else we love to put educational content and free resources on our social media at wealthworthwithin and you'll see a lot of videos where I explain a lot of this thing that I talked about go more in depth and they're sure videos because I want to make sure you get the key take away.

And then if you have follow questions you know make sure you contact us we're happy to provide you as much of the free resources as we can we just want to see businesses thriving and you know employ more people and being profitable and being here for the long term and we always want business owners to enter their business and have the business to what they need for them. I love that Carla thank you so much I'm definitely going to sign up for your newsletter for sure. I feel like I've learned I feel like I've learned so much just from listening to you share about what you do today and and how the services that you provide are really valuable.

If we're serious about growing our business getting it to its optimal healthy state profitable state and so that it can best take care of everyone ourselves but also the other folks that we have in the practice and the clients that we're serving.

So thank you so much for coming on and talking about this really important topic today.Of course things for having me and I know I want to see more group practices how they're supporting all the mental health needs of all the patients are there that all need you so much in their life so that's what we do what we do so that we can help more through the work we do to support you all. Yeah it takes a village right like we might be doing the work of therapy but I do think that there's so many other people out there that are supporting the work of therapists through their unique lens and expertise area that you know it's a ripple effect of caring for the community so thank you so much.

Yeah thanks so much for having me.

Thanks so much for listening to this episode 20 of season two with Carla Titus I hope you enjoyed this conversation again if money is not your thing. Her services might be something to look into early love to that she will give a look at your situation and really provide some guidance on whether or not she's the right person to support you at this time like maybe first you need to do some other things before she can come in and and really help get your finances in order. Anyway I hope you enjoyed listening to this episode and we'll talk with you next week stay creative everyone.

My 6 Step Creative Technique for Redesigning My Work Schedule

Fri, 13 Oct 2023 12:00:02 GMT

My 6 Step Creative Technique for Redesigning My Work Schedule

My 6 Step Creative Technique for Redesigning My Work Schedule

At least once per year, I redesign my schedule . It is necessary. The more my businesses grow, the more time I need to work on the business and less in the business.

When I first started my practice, I saw clients 5 days per week. I was taking insurance back then and it wasn't unusual for me to have more than 30 face-to-face appointments over the course of the week. It was not sustainable.

I have had a schedule over the past year where I only see clients Tuesday through Thursday. Leaving Mondays and Fridays for administration, networking, podcasting, writing, etc...

Well, this is no longer working for me. It is time for my to creatively and intentionally commit to a redesign. Below, I share my creative process for tackling what feels like an overwhelming task.

Step one: Create art about how I want to feel when I am working each day . If I am looking at my schedule on Sunday and feeling the dreads.... that is a powerful indicator that my current schedule is out of kilter.

Step Two: Engage in written reflection on what I created . The focus here is identifying what is currently working in my schedule and what areas are not.

Step Three: Identify which non-work related activities must be included to help me feel my best each day. What is needed for me to get into an embodied state of excitement, curiosity and calmness? Excitement and calmness may appear to be in opposition, but for me both are essential for optimal functioning.

Step Four: Using post-it notes, write down every task you complete each week . Each post-it is one task and should include the time needed to complete it. I will include both the non-work activities, such as exercise or meditation, and the various work activities, such as client appointments, networking, phone/email, writing newsletters, etc... I think it is helpful to set aside a time block for random things that pop-up, too.

Step Five: Plot the post-it notes into a either a planner, up on a large white board or wall. Play with the organization and structure as though it is a game of Tetris until it feels right. Identify tasks that need to be eliminated or delegated.

Step Six: Add this into your work calendar. Commit to yourself. Don't schedule over times that are allocated to
specific tasks.

After a month or so, I like to evaluate what is working and make any needed tweaks.

Do you have a creative approach to scheduling? Let me know by replying to this email . I would love to hear your approach to tackling this task.

Do you need support building your practice? I offer consultations focused on aligned action within your business so that what you create is a reflection of your personal values and not someone else's model. Email me for a 15 minute Zoom to see if I may of service to you.

Season 2 Episode 19 | Jackie Schuld | Redesigning How We Create A Practice

Wed, 11 Oct 2023 08:00:00 GMT

FEATURED GUESTS: Jackie Schuld is an expressive arts therapist and mental health counselor who is also autistic and ADHD. Jackie just published her new book, "Therapy Private Practice: Creating a Private Practice that Enriches Your Life as a Person and Therapist." Jackie's art therapy private practice specializes in late-identified autism. As a neurodivergent therapist, Jackie has had to re-imagine business by tailoring her practice to honor her neurodivergent needs - which runs counter to what is taught in the mental health field where everything is supposed to be about our clients. Jackie is passionate about this topic because the norms of the mental health field are crushing fellow therapists. Jackie wants to see systemic changes in the mental health field so it is a sustainable and enjoyable career for all.

LISTEN & LEARN:

How Jackie has developed a one-week per month, small caseload, practice.
How micro-blogging has contributed to Jackie finding aligned clients ready to work with her in therapy.
The relationship between self-confidence and fee setting.
The ways in which Jackie is able to invest more in her clients and their needs with the unconventional practice schedule.
The importance of honoring the creative needs as an individual and the impact of doing so personally and professionally.

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW:

Connect and learn more about Jackie Schuld's work at https://www.jackieschuld.com/
Read the newest BLOG at https://medium.com/@jackieschuld
email Jackie Schuld at jackieschuldart@gmail.com
Order her book here "Therapy Private Practice: Creating a Private Practice that Enriches Your Life as a Person and Therapist."

Hey there creatives, this is season two episode 19. You're going to be hearing a conversation

that I had with registered expressive arts therapist and board certified art therapist

and licensed professional counselor, also an author and an artist Jackie Shult and she is going to be

sharing a little bit about her latest book which is called Therapy Private Practice,

creating a private practice that enriches you as a human and therapist and I love her ideas. I felt

like we had a very resonant conversation and she has some really great strategies for designing a

practice that aligns with the therapist as a person and a human and she's really breaking the

mold and I just loved our conversation and found that the way she's designing her practice

to be bold, unique and really inspired. So I hope you enjoy this conversation with

Jackie and myself.

Thanks for listening to the Creative Psychotherapist podcast. I am your host, Raina Lombardi and

I'm very excited to welcome my next guest, Jackie Shold. And she was recommended to me by a former

guest, Jennifer Lawrence, who was on the show while back. And Jackie is a registered expressive arts

therapist, a board certified registered art therapist and a licensed practicing counselor,

who also happens to be autistic and has ADHD. And she has developed her art therapy private

practice to specialize in late identified autism.

As a neurodivergent therapist, she's had to reimagine business by tailoring her practice to honor her neurodivergent needs, which runs counter to what is taught in the mental health field where everything is supposed to

be about our clients. She's passionate about this topic because of the norms of the mental health

field that are crushing her fellow therapists. And our humanity is being ripped from us and she

wants to change the mental health field so that it's sustainable and enjoyable for all practicing

therapists and their clients.

She also recently published a book called Therapy Private Practice,

creating a private practice that enriches your life as a person and a therapist.

Welcome, Jackie. Thank you so much for agreeing to talk with me today.

Thank you for having me. I love the work you do and what you're doing to promote the work we're

doing as therapists and create a therapist at that. So thank you. Yeah, oh, thank you.

When I first started, I was like, who's going to want to listen?

But over time, it's really nice to hear the feedback and that people feel honored and supported

because when I was listening to podcasts, initially, I couldn't find any that were about the

expressive arts therapies, specific. And I thought, well, that needs to happen. I found a couple and

it was like somebody recorded one episode and then never did anything again. Yeah, yeah.

I think I probably found that one too because that feels familiar.

Yeah. So tell me a little bit about how you structure your practice so that it allows you to serve

your clients in the best way possible while honoring what you need as an individual.

Yes, I think one of the biggest things that has impacted this is acknowledging that my needs change

with time because there was some part of me that thought I need to find this ideal as a therapist,

like the ideal schedule, the ideal policies, the ideal everything and that it would never change.

Like now that I say it, it sounds ridiculous. But that's what my mind was doing. And the reality is

my needs are shifting, my clients needs are shifting. And so it's kind of giving myself permission

to change how I run my business as I change. An example of that would be I recently moved across

the country from Tucson, Arizona to New Jersey. Oh wow. And that meant I needed to close my

Art Therapy Studio in person and take my business online. And you know, I gave myself permission

to do that. But like, hey, I'm thinking and I want to keep doing what I'm doing.

And guess what means I'll go online. Or another example is I'm currently only seeing clients once a month,

which is not how I normally do things. However, I'm in a period of my life where my mind is just like

above creativity and writing. And I really need to give it the space to pour out. And so I'm finding

basically what I'm doing right now is seeing all my clients in one week and then taking the other

three weeks off for all my creative endeavors. That's really awesome. I don't know any, like I haven't

heard other people doing that. I've heard people like doing that as a temporary thing. Like they have a

book chapter that they have to write or they're writing a book and they've carved out that period,

almost like a mini sabbatical or something from their practice. But that's your regular monthly

schedule all the time. Yes, though I should say I just started it in September. And so we're only in

October. But what it started because I did take a creative sabbatical for the whole month in July.

And that, oh my gosh, the expansion I felt there, it was just incredible. And when I came back,

it was I could notice with such a queuey how much things impacted me that I never noticed before.

And so that's when I really realized, okay, it's time for another change.

I love that you're listening really deeply and intently to what your body is telling you. And

sometimes I think it's really difficult for us to do that when we're in our typical routine.

Because we like come to a homeostasis around it.

Like, okay, if we're managing this like level of stress, that becomes the norm. And it's not until we give ourself that slowdown, that break that our bodies like, thank you. Gosh, I've been trying to tell you. Yeah, I was so surprised during my creative sabbatical, like a good portion of it was just spent morning. Like, it wasn't all just like, "Lew, joy." It was like, there was suddenly space to feel everything and to think about life and to like,

but it was morning in a really good, healthy way. Like, it was a good thing. I was still in therapy.

But a lot of things for me to talk about my, talk to my therapist about. So, yeah, no, I love that.

I love that you're giving yourself that time. Because I would imagine that, that then allows you to

come back to your clients in a different way. Did you notice a shift in how you were able to hold

space for people after giving yourself that space? I think it's, I, if I had to just like,

pick an answer. It would be no. But the nuance to answer is more that I'm far more excited to see

my clients now than before. I think I was so tired before that it was like kind of like a checklist

thing. Like, okay, get it done, get it done. And now I find in the structure I'm in, like, I'm looking

forward to my clients next week is the week I meet with all my clients.

And I'm excited to see like what topics they're going to bring up. And it's also a new structure in that, you know, I meet

with them once a month. And then I give them art activities to do every single week that were a part

that's focused on like the issues we're discussing. So, I'm also like so, so excited to see what they've

made. And like, it's, it's going to be really fun. I love that. I, I think it's really important for us

as individuals to honor our own way of doing the work, to find our own way. I know what first it

feels like there's a lot of pressure to kind of conform to some kind of rigid adherence of a model.

And while there may be some value to that for very specific protocols, I find it so limiting and

like soul sucking it for me. Like, I need to have that ability to shift and change and integrate

new information. Do you think differently? And I mean, it sounds like that's what you're doing,

thinking like, okay, I know I'm only meeting with my clients once a month, but that doesn't mean

that I'm not still creating the opportunity for therapeutic insight and development to happen while you're not seeing each other. That you're, you're probably having to take some time to craft whatever homework.

Yeah, you're giving each client to create for three weeks.

Definitely. And I want to acknowledge that when we make shifts in our businesses, like, it doesn't

mean that every client will necessarily come with us. And, and that's okay. I feel like in grad school,

we're taught to like contort ourselves around our clients. And I absolutely want what's best for my

clients. And I acknowledge sometimes that isn't me. Like, and that's okay. Like, when I shifted to

this monthly model, there were one or two clients that, you know, I found what we worked together to

find someone who could provide them the weekly therapy they were wanting and still needed.

And then there were like a bunch of new people that were like, oh my god, I didn't want to do weekly

therapy that I heard you're doing this once a month thing. That's more my pace.

So it was just interesting to see. Yeah, that like, and yeah, it works out. Like, everyone's always afraid,

like, well, I get clients if I do this, well, I this, well, I that. And like, it does work out with time. Yeah, I really appreciate you sharing that because I think that there's real value for other people to hear that it is okay to craft the schedule that you need for your season of life, whatever season that happens to be in. And that there will be people that, you know, it you either retract or you repel, right? And that's okay. It propels some people away. Those weren't your people, right? That wasn't the right fit for the relationship. And that's totally fine. But you're right about fear

kind of getting in the way there. Yeah, I think that's one of the themes I write about most in my book.

It's just how frequently here comes back where you're like, oh, I dealt with you. Why are you back?

But like, at least for me, I'm always always in conversation with fear. It seems.

So, right. Yeah. I kind of view it as like a tallies man where, you know, when it comes around,

it's like, okay, I see you there. I know what you're about. Yeah. This means I'm at the growing edge

of where I'm pushing out even more. And the more I learn to listen to what fear is saying, but not

necessarily follow its guidance. It's usually an opposite action. The better I am for it, right?

But if I listen to fear and follow its guidance, the more constricted and restricted, I feel

personally, but also in my business. Yeah. I like what you're saying about it being at your

growing edge because when I say fear comes back, it's not always the same topic, right?

Like at the beginning, when I started my private practice, and I was raising my fees to a fee that was significantly

higher than the average in Tucson, I had so much fear around the judgment of other therapists.

Like I was, I mean, and they can be ruthless. My gosh. Absolutely. And now that I've been at that fee

and even higher for at least two years, like I don't care anymore. It doesn't even like cross my mind.

And so it's almost funny to look back at how scared I was. Like, what are they going to think of me? And

now I'm like, well, they can think what they want. I'm confident enough in knowing like what I do

works for me and that I can ethically, not just ethically, I hate that word in some ways because like,

we throw that around as therapists, like what you're doing is an ethical and you know, we do.

Thank you. And we use it as a judgment piece. So what I'm more trying to say is what I'm doing is in

line with my own values. And I'm at peace with that. Yeah. Absolutely. There, I've done a fair amount of

reading on like business development, according to mission and values and the alignment of those things.

And how important that really is because if we're not, if our business isn't aligned with our values,

it just makes it so much harder to operate. It's like you escape a system because you don't agree

with the value system that it's operating in. The last thing you want to do is recreate that same

wheel over. But I see a lot of people doing that because it's known, right? Like that's what we know.

So we recreate it. When I told, I totally did that with my private practice. Like me too. And so it was one of

the things that encouraged me to write my book is that I was really examining the belief systems

in myself that I was, because once, let me back up here, basically it was like Mother's Day. And

I was thinking about my life and my mother has passed away. And I was thinking about how much I missed her.

And how tough my life was feeling. And I realized like I, I was fully responsible.

And that, mate, no one was going to save me, but me. And I guess this ties to my mother just in that, like she was

the one person that I, you know, always loved me the way I want to be loved. And so it was just like

this day of contemplation. And I, I really kind of used it as a turning point of like, all right, you

need to be your own mother now. And that encouraged me to start making the changes in my business to take

care of myself. Wow. I love that. I love that you did that. And they sure are able to do that.

There's the part of me that is motherless. Because I lost my mom several years ago, really resonates

with that. There's something I lost both my parents. So I am parentless. And what you're talking about,

it really becomes part of that inner exploration of like who am I now that I don't have these people

that have been there for me my entire life and taking care of me. And they, they were always there.

Right. I could rely on them. And they're like in the back of my mind, I would think, well, you know,

if something ever didn't work out, I could always ask my mom for help. Right.

Yeah. Now don't have her to ask for help. Yeah. And, um, and that shifts things because it means, okay, we have to be even more responsible for our business because our business is responsible for the earning set

or necessary to take care of ourselves in ways that we need. Which means we have to parent the

business too. Yeah. And when I started, I was at that time, I was single. And so there was also,

and I started my private practice as single. And so there was also this extra weight of like,

this is your livelihood. I had no nest egg. It was just like, you better make this work. And

I'm in many ways. I'm actually really grateful for that. It really just gave me the momentum.

And now that I'm married, I see in some ways it was easier to be so flexible and so like, let me try

this and this and this because like it would, it didn't impact anyone but me. It was a lot,

you know, it could be like, bam, bam, bam, bam, bam. So, or it's like now, yeah, where's now I, you

know, I mean, it's a positive thing, but I check in with my husband to be like, hey, what do you think

about this? Yeah, sure. Yeah, it's different in the situations. That pressure though, it's like,

it's there, right? If you've been working through COVID times in your practice, right?

That was like a wave of big wave of fear. Yeah. That kind of rippled through and people were really anxious and freaking out at least where I am and the people that I talk to in community, you know, feel like every time

something major happens, there's like, ah, this is my business going to be able to handle it and how do

you, how do you create a sense of security? How do you structure that in your business so that when

those kinds of things happen, you, you don't have to worry so much that you know that, okay, I have

a structure here and it's going to work itself out. For me, I set my fees at a level that takes

care of me in multiple ways. So it's not just for the present, like my present budget, it's also for

my retirement and for my vacations and for sick days and for savings, like I'm doing those things

in my fee. So, um, and that's what's allowing me, for instance, to take this risk of moving to a

monthly model. Um, you know, it was like, well, I get enough clients to do this.

That, and that was a risk that I was willing to take because I had savings in my business that I was like, well, it doesn't

work out. Like, one, I have a little bit of savings and two, I can always go back to like, you know,

meeting weekly. Um, but it's working out. So not problems. That's awesome. Yeah. I, I feel like it would be

wonderful if more of us were embracing this idea that our fee isn't about accommodating other

people's needs. Yeah. Our fee is about really ensuring that our needs are met and that we're in a

stable position. Because I kind of think about it in terms of like, with like attachment theory,

right? If a parent is dysregulated and their child is struggling and they're overwhelmed and

the parent is overwhelmed, the parents ability to really adequately care for and help that child

regulate is impaired because they're, they're not, they haven't taken care of that themselves.

Right. And I, and I feel like that happens in the way our system is, it's like a systemic thing.

Yeah. Yeah. Like, yeah. Like, I don't blame therapists. I get it. Like, it's the fee, not the fees,

but the mental health industry in general pays so low compared to our skill set and the demand. It's

just, yeah, some else. I write a lot, a lot about it. Because it needs to be different. And I think

the mental health field attracts people who are helpers and servers. And so we don't question as much

about the fee or like whatever we're paid. I think when I graduated out of my, I was at an internship

site and they offered me a job and it was going to be $35 per client hour. And this was as an

independent contractor. And like, $35 an hour, someone else might think, like, oh, that's great.

It's like, no, that is only what you get when you meet with that client face to face. Like,

I'm not going to see eight hours of clients a day. Let alone like, that doesn't, that means they

give me absolutely no benefits. And all my taxes get pulled out of that. Like, yeah, I was great.

I was, yeah, I was pissed to say it. I was. I was like, I can't, I did the math. And it was like

equal to something like a salary of like 20,000 a year. It was like so ridiculous.

I agree. Just thank you. Yeah. That like, and I really liked those therapists that were running that

place. And so I feel like again, we end up perpetuating the systems that are harming us. Like,

we as therapists get tired. We don't want to see as many clients. So some people set up

group practices. And then you're essentially taking from other therapists so that you can rest more.

And it's just this self-feeding cycle of burnout. It's, yeah.

Yeah, I agree. I see that a lot. Like, when I first started, I decided to become paneled. And

I took Medicaid. And the reimbursement model here for Medicaid is abhorrent. The fees are gross.

And they haven't been addressed. They, they, I think maybe they just recently did an adjustment.

I'm not on a panel anymore. So I'm not paying attention as much. But, yeah. But it was like,

they hadn't given a raise in 20 years. Like, what other industry doesn't get a raise in 20 years?

Yeah. But somehow that's okay. Yeah. And what other industry is so mentally and emotionally demanding?

Okay. There's other ones. But that's like, we just also don't acknowledge how

difficult our job is. Like, okay, yes, we're physically okay. We're just, well, that's not even true.

Sitting somewhere for eight hours straight is not good for your body. And so like, there's just

a lot. And then to add to it that I'm autistic, I get extra gined from interacting with people. And so

it was like, not only am I dealing with norms in the mental health industry that are abhorrent for

any therapist, then like, I have like extra needs on top of that.

So it just felt like, maybe use the spectrum that I'm like, on the other end over here. And what they're doing is on this

end, I'm like, oh my god, how do I, there were many times I contemplated leaving the field,

like not being a therapist anymore because it was like, I don't know if I can do this.

Yeah. I think when we like perpetuate the systems, right, if we go out, we say, okay, I'm going to do

my own practice. And I'm taking this insurance. And now I'm going to switch to a group model.

And then you start to try and divvy up the insurance fees. That's when you get people getting paid

$25 an hour as an independent contractor, $35. I mean, I've heard people getting paid 20.

Yeah. Oh, I like sent me the shivers. I'm like, that's, I know, that's like, gosh, that's something

that you could wait tables and make more than that. Like and be stressed at the end of the day.

You know, it's a physically demanding job, but and sometimes it's stressful, you know,

mentally because you're dealing with grumpy people or hungry people, but it's not life or death,

right? It's a, it's a completely different set of circumstances, which make more than

what some of these places are offering. And you still end up, you know, in order to make enough money

on that hamster wheel, when I hear people talking about like, well, it's normal for me to see 35 people

or 38 people in a week. Oh my God. I'm like, that's not normal. That is not normal.

The 40-hour work week is not meant to be that level of intensity, that level of oneness. Yeah. Right? Yeah. And yet that's what's happening. When I want to be clear in my like, even in my model of working one week a month,

my max is 20 clients in that week. And it's crazy to think there's someone, there are many therapists

out there that are like working double what I do every single week. Every single week. Yeah. Yeah.

I think I don't, I don't have the constitution for that. Especially like the individual work. I like

breaking it up groups and individual kind of helps balance my energy.

Yeah. But just thinking about it, seeing, you know, five days a week, eight hours a day. Yeah. Yeah. And I like that you and I are discussing like, this isn't the fault of therapists. It's not like, it's no. You know, they're doing what they

can with what's out there. And I think that's why so many of us start a private practice and start

doing other things because that's really the only way to kind of have the freedom and flexibility

to design something that fits your needs and honors them.

To live life on our own terms, right? It's so interesting to me. Like, that's what we're trying to get

our clients to do, right? To step out of their comfort zone, to step out of the broken systems that

are caging them in. Yeah. To construct a life on their own terms, their own values, their own

beliefs, and live in a really aligned way. And yet when therapists start to do that, there's often

some judgment about them like, you know, they're not as good of a therapist because they're,

you know, choosing to do that or their their fees are so much or they're not being part of the

insurance, you know, framework.

They're for they're contributing to lack of access and all these

things. It's like, wait a minute, why are you blaming the individual? It's a systemic thing that

goes beyond our profession. Right. And like, I'll just speak for myself here, but like, I specialize

in later identified autism. And I have I have time to research and learn more and to like, I do so

much writing and so many things related to this topic that I would not have time for if I was or

even the energy for forget time. Like, if you're seeing for me, if I'm seeing more than five clients a day,

it actually is probably more like four clients a day. I have very little capacity for anything mental

or emotional afterwards. I'm just kind of that, yeah, I'm not as much used to myself.

So, I think I'm a far more educated and prepared and happy therapist. Like for my clients, like,

so yeah, I argue that I think like when someone's like, oh, I need to find a therapist,

you know, one I'm always like, okay, what are you looking for? And then make sure you find someone

that that is their topic. Like another thing that happens with the way this system is is that

there's so many therapists that are generalists. And that's because a lot of the mental health

organizations are just, you know, churning people through like, oh, see this person, oh, see this

person, you don't really get a choice. And so like, I see why in some ways that's necessary.

But then you have someone who knows surface level information about things, and that's why like so many

autistics have horrible experiences in therapy because many, we're not really educated about it

in grad school. And we're not educated about most conditions with any depth in graduate school.

I mean, how could we, when there's, you know, we're covering the wide spectrum, I get it. And so like,

a lot of education is up to us once we graduate. And there has to be time for that.

You're right. I agree. There's something to be said about not only time for that

research and education, but also time for client-specific research, right? Like your client shares

with you, their affinity for a certain genre of something, whether that be music, writing,

a film, whatever. Yeah. If you're really burned out, you're not going to have the energy to

make an effort to investigate that, listen to it, read it, view it, whatever, so that you can

better relate to their experience. Because if they're sharing that information with you,

that's a rich source of material for you to better understand them. But if you don't have that time,

it's a miss opportunity. Right? Like I have clients who will tell me like, oh, I'm reading this book,

but I'm not sure about some things. I will go and read that book.

Because again, like I want to connect and I find it interesting, it's my special interest topic. Or even like I've had a client say, I watched this series, it meant so much to my life. And I went and watched that series, even though

it was not my thing. Because like you're saying, I really want to understand them and relate,

not just really, more like connect on the level. Yeah. Right. Well, you're better able to understand their symbolic language. I think to a certain degree, right? Because I forget where art therapists, or actually I shouldn't make assumptions about you being an art therapist, but that we are creative.

Okay. It's just fun to have someone throw out symbolic language. I was like, oh yeah, forgot. We speak the same language. Right. But if we listen to the music that they're listening to and they're saying this really,

this song is really important to me. And there's just something about it. I feel like really captures

this, right? When we listen to it, we're now going to be more queued up to hear certain things to

understand even the, just the felt sense of the sound quality, right? What is that deliver? And

how they're experiencing the world. That's really important. But you can't do that in a burn and

turn. Yeah. You saying that reminds me, sometimes one of the art assignments I'll give clients is to

create a playlist that captures, you know, a specific topic in their life.

And so yes, of course, I'm like, I'm going to listen to it when they're done with it. So yeah, I do. When there's

space and time on our side, it can, I can have that feeling of excitement and enthusiasm. But when

I'm overloaded, it switches to a feeling of a to-do list. And like, oh my god, another thing on my plate.

Yeah. So for therapists that feel like, okay, I have a practice and I'm on the dread mill.

And I'm doing it. But I know that I don't have it set up the way it would feed me.

Where would you recommend they start? Is there like a starting kind of expiration or creative

intervention that you would recommend for them to kind of start to figure out what kind of changes

they could make? When you said creative intervention, I wish I had one. I was like, that's cool. But

it's much more straightforward. I think it's starting with for envisioning for not envisioning.

Thinking for where you're at right now, what would you prefer your client case load to look like?

Meaning how many clients a day do you want to be seeing? And I'm assuming most people will see

clients every week. I know they're not all like me.

So we'll stick with that structure. But once you know that, then you can start to make more decisions about your fee. Because the fee is really what's going to sustain you to make the changes you want to make. And so that's also where I started was, I think originally I was shifting down to four clients a day, five days a week. And so I was like,

okay, I need my fee to be fixed. And I've adjusted my fee over time based on the changes I'm wanting to

make. So for example, right now, my fee is 250 per the hour that I need with clients. And that's enough.

Seem 20 clients a month that it meets my needs. Wonderful. Yeah. Thank you for sharing that. A lot of

people are reluctant to share their fees. And I think that that's encouraging.

Yeah. It's actually down from what it was when I saw people in studio. I was at that time that was 300. But I just,

what I'm doing now, I don't need as much money since my writing and my other creative endeavors are

making money. So I was like, okay, I think I might lower it a little right now. So that's also the thing.

I can be flexible to go either way. I love that you're finding a way to balance your artist identity

and your therapist identity. Yeah. By the way, you're structuring your therapy business. Because if you

lived by that traditional model, you just wouldn't have the energy, space, time, capacity to create

other things that other people are interested in consuming because they're finding them valuable.

And that brings in earnings in that area. Yeah. In that area of my life was never intended to make money. That

wasn't my drive. I just love creating. I love writing. I love painting. I love all sorts of things. And I

wanted time for that. And ironically, it's all my writing now that brings me every single client.

I never would have thought that. So. Wow. Are you just focusing on blogging on your website?

I no longer host my blog on my website. It's on medium. Because another therapist suggested I try

medium just to reach a wider audience. And I don't know why, but medium has so many neurodivergent readers.

And it was like, they found me and I found them. And I was like, dang.

And I say that because I also write about other topics like therapy, private practice or this and that. And like nobody reads those. I don't think there's a lot of therapists on there. But anything I write related to autism gets

like a lot of views. So some of it was just luck, I guess. But anyway, it's pointing to now all of my

clients now say like they found me through medium. And that's also wonderful because if they've found

me through my writing, they know my style. They know how I think, how I work on it. And so I'm also

finding a client that align with me like my personality. It's so much better because I'm really big on

a kind of a screening process for both of us. Us being the client and I like, are we going to be a good

fit? It's, you know, they're putting investing a lot of money.

I want to meet them where they're at and be, yeah, a good fit. So I'm turning away far less people now since it's like we automatically kind of die with each other. That's beautiful. I think that's really valuable to because people ask like does blogging really make a difference? Is that really going to impact? Do I need to do that? That feels

like a lot of effort and work. And I think for some people, you know, maybe blogging isn't the thing.

Maybe there's another way that you're able to use your voice and get your message out there.

But if you love writing, I think like what you're saying, it's so true. You're giving people an

opportunity to already know you develop like an affinity for you to trust you, to see you as

the person that they specifically want and believe will be best able to help them with their unique

needs and circumstances. That's powerful. I think that also allows you to command a higher fee because

people are committed. They've already developed a relationship with me.

Yeah. And I like to what you're saying at the beginning about me liking writing because I think some people, you know, hear about me finding clients through medium and they're like, oh my god, I must write too, even though they don't like writing. And I'm like, oh my god, don't do it. Don't do it because I write multiple essays a day

because it's fun. And I pair all my essays with art. And like, no, it's my autistic like special interest.

And so like most people cannot and will not operate at that level. And so I think that's also part of

why I'm so successful is I'm releasing one to two essays every day. I would never encourage someone

else to do that if they don't want to. Like, they don't have that natural drive.

So what I talk about in my book is finding something that aligns with who you are. Like some people are great at little

TikTok videos and others. It's more like podcasts. It's, but it's finding something that you enjoy doing

so that it makes it sustainable for you and where you're really like cultivating an audience in that

area. Like, yes, I'm sure I'm missing all the YouTube people and I'm missing all the podcasters,

but like or podcast listeners, but that's not me. You know, I want people who align with me. And me

is most appropriately showed. Showed. Anyway, see, this is what I mean. I write far better than I speak.

So anyway, no, I think that's lovely. And I, I agree. When I work with people on marketing,

relating to their private practice, that's what we talk about is like, you don't have to do all of

the things, but pick something that you enjoy doing. If you don't like in person networking, and that's not

your jam, yeah, don't force yourself to do it. You don't have to. Yeah. If you love writing, you can make

that like how you connect or perhaps you really enjoy speaking. Maybe you don't like the mingling

piece of networking, but you really like speaking and educating people about your niche or specialty or

maybe the population you best serve, that's an opportunity. It doesn't, you don't have to do all of the

things unless you want to do all of the things. I'm a nerd and I like a lot of different things.

And I and I get bored too easily. So I constantly have to be switching it up by doing a little writing. Yeah,

speaking. I like networking. It's, it's, it's finding what works for you. But the last thing you want to do

is like put something on your to-do list. It's going to feel like exhausting. Yeah. And I do want to add,

there is yes, a level though of fundamentals, meaning like have a good website. Like you don't

have to pay money for it. I made my own. Like, I'm not so good. Doesn't mean like, but meaning like where it

showcases you and what you do to distinguish you from other therapists. And before people were

finding me on medium, many, many, many commented about my website and how much it resonated with them.

And so no matter how, like no matter what way people find out about me, there of course,

going to go to my website. And that needs to be on point. There's like, then have them reach out to me.

Yeah, no, that makes sense. In your book, do you offer any guidance for folks of like how to

overcome and work with their fear about implementing these kind of big changes in their system? Because

you know, I love what you're talking about. And I really believe all the things that you're doing

are incredibly valuable. And I think inspired. And that we we should be working towards that as a

profession because then we're modeling that for our clients too. We're because we're setting boundaries

and creating structure in our life in a way that is feeding us and nurturing for us so that we can

be there for clients and our people in our life, right?

And ourself. Right. And when I raised my fees, because the first time I raised my fees, it was a big jump that that was like the big shift ever since then, it's been more subtle checks. And that it was so hard to have those conversations with clients because of like the fear in me. But working through those fears and really examining my own

beliefs around around money and this and that made me such a better therapist. Like it meant I could

then go deep on those topics with my clients. So when money came up for and well, so I had one

client that when I raised my fee, she was automatically like, yeah, I can do that. And normally, you know,

you'd be like, cool and move on. But then I like paused because I knew her. I was like, do you think

that quick decision mirrors ways you make decisions in other parts of your life?

Because I knew she likely could not afford my new fee. And so it was a chance to like, I was no longer scared to go to those deep places about money. Or I had other clients that were like, wow, they also own their own business.

And they're like, I've been wanting to raise fees, but scared. And so like, it's really weird

watching you do it and having like a model. So it's just it's so cool. It just reverberates to your

clients in many ways. Yeah. So do you make some recommendations? Oh, sorry. Yeah. That's okay.

After your first question. That's all right. Yeah. I was looking back through my table of contents.

Because I have a whole section with like three, six, eight chapters, eight, well, when I say chapters,

each chapter is an essay. So there are like two to three pages. I'm an autistic. Like, give me my

information quick. So one section is all on getting your fees and money in order. So it's all about like

one of my chapters is called high fees, mean you're a capitalist. I know someone said that to be.

Yeah. No. But it was got sucked. But it was a good chance for me to sit with that and really

examine why that hurt so much. And then write a whole essay about how that isn't true. And how to

respond if someone says that. Because a lot of times it's the little it's us saying that to ourselves.

Right. I think that only hurts so much because there was part of me that was

worried. That's what I was doing. And so I have that section all on money. And then I have,

I think one of my favorite sections though is called thought patterns that impact you.

So it's like looking at like the martybum mentality we often have. Like I must serve everyone. And I

must help everyone. And you know, setting our fees that way, setting when we're available that way.

Like I know some therapists that see clients at night because they're like, well that's the only time

my clients are free. And like that's fine if you like working at night. But if that gets in the way

of your own energy schedule or your family, whatever, then it doesn't, then it doesn't work for you.

So I guess that's really at the heart of my book. My book isn't about here's the one right way

to do everything. My book is more about how do you discern what's right for you? And how do you

acknowledge all the shit getting in the way of that? Like, like kind of like the capitalist thing. Like,

oh, sorry, this got stuck in my thoughts there.

So I'm going to be like, that's okay. Yeah, no, what I really hear you saying is like,

you're not writing a prescriptive approach to guide people of like, this is what you need to do.

It's more about how do you check in with yourself to discover what is it that you uniquely need?

And how do you overcome the limiting barriers, beliefs and conditioning that might be influencing

your ability to get there? That's kind of what I was hearing you say. Thank you. You're welcome.

I'm trying to be open with my own experiences, like sharing my fees, like that when I started my private

practice, my sliding scale went as low as $35, $40. And like, you know, going and then eventually

all of my clients were at $300 for per session. And kind of showing how I got there and all of the

stuff that came up for me. So it's not just like, hey, it's all rosy. It's like, hey, this is the reality.

And I I wanted to be that open because I couldn't really find other people talking about that. And

like, that's what I wanted. I wanted to know what is it really like. Don't give me like,

that yeah, you can do it. And it's all great. Like, that's not relatable to me.

What's not accurate either? Yeah. It's hard. There's like, there are some wonderful moments and aspects.

I certainly would never I would I would really try hard to never go back to working for a corporation

or a nonprofit organization. I prefer to work for myself and to be able to make autonomous

decisions about when I take time off. And not have to like answer to somebody else on how I structure

my life, the idea that I have to get permission from somebody who I'm providing a service for.

In order to take vacation, doesn't make sense to me. I just that does not connect on so many levels.

So, but there are times where I'm like, okay, this has been really a tough season. I've gotten through it.

But it was really tough. It was really stressful. And it's not, you know, so it's not all like roses and

sunshine. Yeah. So when it isn't a tough period, I think about how much harder it would be if I wasn't

in private practice. You know, like when I moved across the country, like, guess that was challenging

for many different reasons. But the fact that I ran my own practice, I do still want to get through.

And for me being autistic, change in transitions are really just difficult and energy draining.

And so that was why I took one of the reasons I took the creative sabbatical. I didn't plan

that I didn't dance. It was just that once I got here, I was like, oh my god, like I didn't know I'd

be this tired. I was like, wow, I was like, I really just every bone in my body was just like rest.

And that I could then decide to do that. I felt like the luckiest person on the planet,

quite frankly. Like every day I woke up, I was like, I'm so lucky.

And what a gift. Right? It was so weird. I mean, I don't think I've not worked for a month since,

or like been an, you know, it's just one's a lot of time I took a whole month off.

Before I was 16, it was like, yeah, it was just, anyway, sorry, I could go off. I'm thinking about that question for myself. Like, when is the last time I took an entire month off? Right, that you weren't intentionally doing something.

But it was just a month of rest. Like, yeah, I've taken a month to go study somewhere,

or like this or that. But a month where you're like, nope, I'm not doing anything.

Yeah, no, that's been a really long time. I've taken, you know, a couple weeks here and there.

I did take a lot of time off for grief, which I kind of felt the same way at that time. I was like,

there would be no way I would get fired. I wouldn't have a job. If I didn't, you know, if I was

working somewhere else because of how much time I took off that that year, that whole year was

a lot of time off in different bits and spurts for different reasons.

But that was a gift, right? The gift to having, having a practice and doing this work on my own terms

gave, afforded me. Yeah. And I see it how it is impacting other people who are going through that

life transition and they're in a place and how hard it is. Yeah. And them. Yeah. Yeah.

I know. I remember when my mom died, I was working somewhere and I had three days of grief leave.

Look, what's that? Yeah. For real. It was the weirdest thing to go back to work after three days.

I was like, what? Like, come on. I like, I was in such a like dissociative state at three days.

After I know, right? Like, I don't even remember that time period. It was such,

yeah, such grief that I, yeah. Yeah. That's gross. That came up with that idea.

Clearly does not have any empathy or like, doesn't do feelings. I know. Yeah.

Right. Like, yeah, you need more than three days to be human again, to go back to, especially as a

therapist, when we're listening to other people and what other people are going through. And like

in that time, what other people are going through from our perspective, when you've just your whole

life has just feel like it's turned upside down and crushed. Like, it's very difficult to empathize.

It's very difficult because it doesn't, what other people are saying just doesn't seem significant.

That's so true. Like, my mom had cancer and so as she was dying, I wasn't a counselor at the time.

But I remember like, people would complain about things and I was literally like, shut the fuck up.

Like, you don't know pain. Yes. Yes. Exactly. Exactly. Mine too. It was, it's not easy, right?

Like, that whole, the whole process, right? Because it starts before. Yeah. And yeah, it's enduring. And

as a therapist, right, we want to be empathic and like, I needed, I needed the time that I took off

when I took it off. And sometimes I was like, all right, I went back to work, but I was like,

nope, I need more time. I'm taking more days because I need more time in order to be able to be empathic.

Yeah. Right. So I feel like I could talk to you forever, Jackie.

Thank you. But I know we were on a time schedule. And, but I do want listeners to be able to find you

and to be able to find your book because I feel like it is a valuable resource for others who want

to create a practice on their terms so that it serves them and their clients equally.

Where can they find more information about you and your book?

For me, it's just my website, which is my name, jacquishill.com. Try to keep it simple.

And on there, I talk about all my books. I have a section there. This book is my most recent book. And so

it's, and all my books are on Amazon. So that's, that's where you can buy them. So

yeah, all right. And is your blog that's on medium connected to your website? Or is that a different?

Yeah. Okay. Yeah. So like if you click on the blog on my website, it'll be like, I've moved to medium.

So they can get there that way too. Awesome. And I do have a ton of essays about private practice on my

medium. So that that's another way if you aren't into buying books, you can also read essays.

Short short short little essays. They're like three minute reads.

That's perfect. Yeah. Well, I have really enjoyed talking with you today. Thank you for being

an inspiration for us to be creative in the way we design our practices and and sharing how

you're doing things differently. I really appreciate your time.

This will thank you for giving me the chance to talk about it. Thanks for listening to this episode of the Creative Psychotherapist Podcast. I really hope that you enjoyed this conversation with Jackie Shold and myself.

If you're in private practice and you're trying to figure out a way to make it work for you,

designed for you, I think Jackie's book would be a great resource. She's certainly figuring out how to

design a practice that really breaks the mold of what we might typically see or think about

in the way a practice would look like and operate. And I find that really inspiring because

I think if we're building this business, it really should work for us. We shouldn't be working for it.

And if you enjoyed this episode and any of the other episodes and you haven't already,

please do rate, subscribe, give us feedback on the show so that we can continue to grow our audience

and listenership and improve the work that we're providing to you. Again, thanks so much for listening

and take care everybody.

Season 2 Episode 18 | Dr. Rachel Brandoff | Networking: Redefining Our Approach to an Oft Dreaded Process

Wed, 04 Oct 2023 08:00:00 GMT

FEATURED GUESTS: Dr. Rachel Brandoff is a Registered, Board-Certified Art Therapist (ATR-BC) and credentialed supervisor (ATCS). She is an Associate Professor and Coordinator of the Art Therapy Concentration in the Community and Trauma Counseling program at Thomas Jefferson University.
Dr. Brandoff maintains a clinical practice specializing with individuals who are coming out of crises and coping with trauma. She provides supervision and consultation to art therapists and professional counselors. Dr. Brandoff has served on the boards of various professional organizations and is a regular presenter at regional and national conferences. Her new book, "The Empowerment Wheel: Helping Clients Heal from Relationship Abuse" , comes out in early 2024 and is available for pre-order.

LISTEN & LEARN:

How networking can feel challenging even for the most seemingly outgoing of people.
Ways to shift your mindset to make networking more natural, fun and without expectation of an immediate return.
How unexpected interactions can blossom into meaningful friendships and professional connection.

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/rbrandoff/
email Dr. Rachel Brandoff at rachelbrandoff@gmail.com
Order her book here "The Empowerment Wheel: Helping Clients Heal from Relationship Abuse" coming out early 2024

Thanks for joining us for this episode of the Creative Psychotherapist podcast.

I am really excited to share this conversation with you, with a friend and colleague.

Somebody that I respect very much. If you've been a long time listener, then you may have heard a few other episodes with her on the show earlier on in the podcast development.

So today you're going to be listening to a conversation with Rachel, Brandoth and I.

And we were talking about how challenging networking can be and it doesn't seem to matter if you're

in private practice for yourself or if you're working at an agency where that may be part

of your job or even in higher education.

There can be a lot of kind of sales requirements for the work that you're doing.

And we thought, you know, maybe we should have a conversation of how we can think about

this in a different way and make it more palatable for people.

And so if you hate networking or you think you hate networking or it feels really uncomfortable,

maybe this episode will be helpful. And without further ado, I'll have you take a listen.

And you'll let me know.

Now here's your host, Raina Lombardi.

Thanks for listening to the Creative Psychotherapist podcast.

I'm your host, Raina Lombardi and I'm really excited to welcome back Dr. Rachel Brandoff

to the show. If you're a long time listener, then you'd likely heard her as a guest in the past, but she

also interviewed me once for the show. And so I'll give you a little bit of an introduction about Dr. Brandoff.

She's a registered board certified art therapist, a credentialed art therapy supervisor and

she is an associate professor and coordinator of the Art Therapy Concentration in the community

and trauma counseling program at Thomas Jefferson University.

Dr. Brandoff maintains a clinical practice specializing with individuals who are coming out and coping with trauma. She provides supervision and consultation to art therapists and professional counselors.She's served on the boards of various professional organizations, is a regular presenter at regional and national conferences. Her first book, Quick and Creative Art Projects for Creative Arts Therapists with very limited budgets was published in 2019.

And she is currently the co-author of the Empowerment Wheel, helping clients heal from relationship

abuse, which comes out in early 2024 and is available for pre-order now on Amazon.

And we'll have the link to that in the show notes. However, later on in the season, I'll be interviewing her and her co-author about the book and how it could be beneficial for clinicians that are listening and how they can utilize

that to enhance their practice. So without further ado, thank you, Rachel, for being willing to talk with me again.

Absolutely.

Thanks for having me back. So today we thought it would be a good idea to talk about something that very many therapists struggle with, especially as it pertains to developing their own, I think they're marketing self.

There's the therapist self that is providing the therapeutic and clinical work, but there's

also this marketing self that we have to develop as clinicians if we're in private practice

or I think even in some cases in your area where you've spent a lot of time in academia that

marketing oneself and networking becomes really important if you're an author.

Even though that might not be your main job, it certainly plays a role in how well your

books are received and purchased and that kind of thing. Absolutely.

You know, we didn't go to school for marketing and yet it is such an integral part of everything

we do in this world, which sometimes can feel a little bit icky like I didn't get into this work to be in sales.

But I tell my students and supervisees, you could be doing the greatest most important work

in the world, but if nobody knows about it, how great is it.

And without fail, a conversation that I have had so many times with students and supervisees,

professionals who are relatively new in the field, sometimes right out of their master's

degree, I say to them, you need to start networking. And they say, oh, I knew you were going to say that or I hoped you weren't going to say That. I don't want to have to hear that.

And sometimes I think they erroneously believe that, well, I already found a job or I have

a job and I even like it and I could see myself staying here for a while.

And I'm doing the work so isn't that enough. Why do I also have to put myself out there and network?

It's one of those things that always sounds so painful. I know. I think I hear this too in consultation work when I'm helping other people get started in their private practice. There's a lot of resistance around networking. And what do you think that relates to? Why do we feel resistance around this particular task?

That's such a good question. And not one that I'm sure I have an answer to.

I do think it ties in with a few things. It, calling something networking makes it feel like we're turning what could otherwise be a social encounter into work. And that can be distressing when we often don't even get enough social encounters in our lives that are just connecting with another human being.

Because it can feel like, I'm not on the job right now. I'm not seeing clients. I'm not teaching a class.

I'm not advising a student. I'm not doing the work of my work.

So I really want to be off the clock and not have to, we do talk a lot about maintaining

our boundaries and self-care and that work life balance.

And also that distinction of when is the work time and when is the lifetime gets muddy

if you think about everything as a networking opportunity. And to some degree, I think that's not a bad thing, right?

Life is muddy. This idea that you're going to be at work and you're doing your work or you're going to

be not at work and you're not going to be doing your work and there's going to be this

clean and clear distinction is maybe a myth.

Now, I agree. I think that it's easy to want to compartmentalize things into those categories because it seems

easier to wrap our mind around. And I think there's also this thing of like, I don't necessarily want to be on.

But if we were to shift our perspective about how we're viewing the networking process,

I think it does make it more manageable. You know, like if you say your kids are in soccer and you're hanging out at the soccer field with the other families, you know, that is an opportunity to network.

If you are serving children, perhaps you wouldn't be able to serve their children directly.

But chances are because they have kids, they're talking with other families too.

And they might be a potential referral source, you know, for the services that you offer.

Or, you know, maybe you wrote a particular book on parenting or like parenting for a child

with a particular condition that they know somebody who's experiencing and that it's

not so much the main focus.

It just happens to be a way that you're like sharing information about what you do with

other people. But I also think it's an opportunity to learn more about those people that you're with.

Like, well, could they potentially be a resource for you in your work in terms of how you

make referrals? Absolutely. I think that, gosh, what you said brings up a lot of thoughts in my mind.

I think that, you know, this wanting to keep things separate, this boundary like I'm at work

here and I'm not at work here, partly comes into wanting to feel like we're not working

all the time, which is a good thing, right?

We definitely don't want that. When I go to the park to take my kids to soccer, I don't want to feel like I'm working.

That's my weekend. That's my kid time. So if I, if I'm viewing networking from the standpoint of I need to be on, I need to meet people, I need to tell people what I'm doing, I need to find a referral stream.

You know, if that's the way I'm viewing my networking goals, then I really am working in a way

that's not what I want to be doing on my Saturday morning.

On the other hand, if I am viewing things more from, if I'm living my personal and professional

life more, I don't know if authentically is the word, but more in integrated, maybe more

integrated, more where I'm presenting as that same person in both forums than that networking

component feels less like work. It can organically come up that this is what I'm working on and this is what I'm doing

if it feels appropriate, but it doesn't have to be push. And I think that that can be really valuable.

Of course, right, you and I know that because we've both been in a situation of having immense

rewards come from networking people in places that we didn't expect to be making connections.

So we know that the payoff from that can be immense, but it also can be really scary.

And I think one of the reasons it can be scary is because when I'm at work, I want to look,

I want to, I want to seem polished. I want people to look at me when I'm at work, whether it's in the classroom or in my clinical office, in person or virtual, whether I'm advising students or presenting at a conference.

I want them to see me and say, wow, she really knows her stuff. She really has it together.

In fact, I work hard to put that out there.

That's why I might pick out a really nice professional outfit and put together the best

PowerPoint slides that I can and really try to polish my presentation. Because I want to present in a way where I'm holding myself out as an expert on something. And I want to look the part, right?

Whereas when I'm going to soccer with my kids on Saturday morning, you know, my hair might

be unwashed and amassed. And I'm in a t-shirt and, you know, ripped jeans.

And I'm kind of feeling like I'm barely holding it together as a busy working mom.

And I know the busy working moms out there will nod at how what a disparity there may be

between your professional world and your personal world.

And it feels really uncomfortable to think about making a professional connection or an

overture from that vantage point of, you know, I don't look the part here.

I feel vulnerable. I'm not really presenting as my best most together polished self.

So I think that, you know, it's hard to think about networking as something that can happen

everywhere when I'm really centering my polished self into my work life for, you know, certain

work hours. Yeah, I know that's an interesting perspective.

And I can see that I recently in my own therapy session was kind of talking about this disparity

of like that professional self. And then in the part within me that sometimes doesn't feel very professional.

And like having to negotiate that and like hold self compassion for myself when maybe I

don't live up to my own expectations for myself, right? Because I'm juggling so many different things that like certain, certain tasks in my home life may not get the attention that they need.

And that then can become internalized is, you know, that like not enoughness piece.

And so I can see how that could filter over into the networking if we're not fully polished that we're not altogether.

But I also think that it's important for us to be able to be present in the world as not

put together and not having all the answers and having like those rough and tumble days too. Absolutely.

I couldn't agree more because, you know, ultimately, I don't think I knew this earlier in my career.

But I know this now when I'm networking with somebody the same way up when I'm connecting

with them in any forum. But I don't really want to be networking as professional Rachel.

I want to be networking. I want to be connecting with them as a human being. Yeah.

I have this, this story I'll share with you that just came to mind when we were talking.

I have this friend who I met. Gosh.It's got to be about 20 years ago now. Maybe more.

And I will call this a networking story. Although it was really unintentional. It was certainly unintentional networking.

I had no intention to socialize or meet anybody at all.

So I was going on a weekend trip at the time from Philadelphia to New York.

And I get to the train station and I'm standing in line to buy a ticket at a kiosk machine.

And there's one woman in front of me at the kiosk machine buying her ticket.

And the machine is malfunctioning and it's not doing what it should be.

And she is having a time of it. I can just see her blood boiling and her frustration rising. She looks like she's ready to kick the machine. And of course, we know that's not really going to do anything productive.

But it was the only option to get the ticket and get on this train.

So I'm waiting and she is losing. She's slowly evolving. I didn't think about it at the time. I thought about it in hindsight.

I just felt so much empathy for her because it looked like she was having a day. She was having one of those days.

And I leaned forward and tapped her on the shoulder. And she turned around kind of hurried and was like ready to either apologize or maybe tell me to flip off or something. And I said, I totally get it. I had that day yesterday.

And she laughed. And I laughed. And suddenly, this moment that was this totally irritating, frustrating machine not working on a busy night when you're trying to catch a train out of town moment became two women

appreciating the frustrations of life and connecting for a moment over that.

And what I didn't realize I was doing when I said that because I was not thinking, oh,

maybe I should meet somebody or maybe I should network or maybe I need to put myself out there.

I was just being human and having a human response. And we ended up, she was also on the way to New York and we were happened to be on the same train. Eventually, the kerfluffle with the tickets got worked out and we both got ticketed and we got on the train and we sat next to each other and we talked the whole way.

And on the other side of the weekend, coincidentally, we were on the same train on the way back and

we found each other and we sat together and we talked the whole way and we traded phone

numbers and we became really good friends and started meeting for dinner regularly.

Turned out, she was a social worker, she became a regular part of my referral stream and

I hers and we have crossed paths professionally over the years. Wow.

And you know, it was a case of networking, although that was never the goal. Right.

Because we were both messy-haired and unkempted, our most unpolished, not our professional selves

in the way that we think of holding out our professional selves. Right.

Maybe not handling our own frustration in the moment of life's really annoying moments.

And you know, sometimes we're not good at following our own advice in those timeframes and get

the best of us to. Nice to know that we can still connect in that space and with those parts of ourselves

being visible. I try to, you know, I see now that what I was doing was networking, but I didn't think

about it that way at the time. And when I think about that story, I'm reminded that, you know, networking doesn't have to be walking up with a handshake and an outstretched resume saying, "Hi, I'm Rachel, here's what I'm

Doing. How can your work and my work connect?"

Right. Sometimes it just starts with a smile, a joke, a human gesture, something that then opens the

door further. And you know, it was a complete coincidence that she was also an allied health professional

and that we cross pass there. If she wasn't, it still could have been a networking opportunity in a different regard,

Right? The same way that I might not be looking to offer services to the kids on my kid's soccer

team, but maybe there's some, you know, further connection. Right.

I think that there's something that you're emphasizing here, and it has to do with perspective,

it has to do with the way we construct meaning around the topic of networking.

If we're looking at networking as an activity that has a specific outcome, okay, I'm going

to do this in order to get this. That is where I think some of the yuckiness factor comes in like, "Oh, I have to sell myself." But if you look at networking as an opportunity to weave the social fabric of your personal

support system, right? Not just professionally, but personally, your personal support system.

I think it becomes way more palatable of an activity because you can just show up as you

are and be yourself and ask questions and learn about the other people that you're connecting

with without an emphasis of like, "Oh, I have to sell myself." Because that doesn't feel, that feels weird.

It feels weird to, the self-procordedness of it, you know?

Yeah, artificial is a good term, but if you're just having a human experience where you're

connecting with another person, that's totally different and it feels a whole lot easier. Absolutely.

Absolutely. And to that end, you know, tying it in with the things that make you feel more human.

So last week I went to a conference. I was at the National Organization for Arts and Health conference in Cleveland, Ohio, which was a beautiful experience, actually. Held at the Cleveland Playhouse.

I had never been to a conference in a theater, but it was pretty amazing.

And I went because I was presenting with two of my colleagues.

And I had this moment of sort of questioning on my way, on out there, where I kind of thought,

why am I going to this again? Didn't see the exact linear path between, you know, what I was presenting on and what my regular day job is. And you know, when lines aren't so cleanly drawn professionally, I think it's easy to sometimes

get a little bit discombobulated about, you know, which path is this leading to or what

is this on? And I kind of pushed those thoughts out and just kind of thought, you know, I'm going and

this is going to, you know, I'm moving forward in this arts and health community that is

very rich and where there's actually a lot of exciting things happening.

So I get there and they had this networking reception on the first night.

And I walk in and I immediately felt this wave of dread wash over me and I was like, oh,

God, I'm going to do this. And probably some people who know me professionally, both from my university or in the art therapy community might be surprised to hear that, that networking doesn't come easy to me all the

Time. And putting myself out there and taking those initial steps and having those initial conversations

isn't always the easiest thing. In fact, sometimes it feels easier when there was like a specific mission at hand, like

if I'm presenting on a specific topic, I can talk on that, but when it's a little bit

more off the page. And right, not as goal oriented towards a specific outcome, it feels harder.

So I walk in and I was with my two colleagues who also had a similar reaction to me.

They both responded with a, oh my goodness.

And I was a little surprised by that because I view both of them as people that have a really

easy time networking and they can talk to anybody and they seem so outgoing and it seems to

me from where I sit like it comes so easy for them and I know that that's how it looks to

other people when I do it too. But here we all three were having this conversation, oh my goodness.

And it was probably as good as networking party setups can be.

They had a buffet with really good food. They had a live band that was playing really great music.

You got a drink ticket when you walked in and there was a lot of people there and everybody

seemed to be there for the same reason and it was in this beautiful restored 1920s theater in the center of the city.

So all of these great things were there. There was nothing about the setup, but it was just this feeling, perhaps built on expectation that I had about what I was like, here I got a, I got a perform, I got to be on, I got

to figure out a way to, to sell myself for what I'm doing or talk to these accomplished

people that clearly have it all together when, you know, I'm a hot mess. And my colleagues and I had like a little powwow for a moment and somebody, I don't know which one of us said, you know, we were kind of saying encouraging things to each other, kind of pushing ourselves forward to networking.

And somebody said, you know, let's each meet two people. If you talk to, like you don't have to win the whole room over, you don't have to leave with a whole football team full of names.

Like if you talk to two people, that's fine. And I thought, okay, I can talk to two people, that's doable.

And so I felt like now I had my task list. It still felt like work, but it was like a shorter task list than how do I work this room or make my way through it. Well, there were some people that gave little speeches at the beginning, people that were on the board.

And one of those people said something and I thought, oh, well that's interesting what she's

doing, that's an opportunity to connect. So after the many speeches, I walked over to her and I introduced myself and I referenced something that she had said and I said it's interesting to hear that you're doing this

Work. And so that was a point of connection that made it easy to talk to her for a few minutes

and it was based on, you know, my interest, shared interest, her work. And then I thought, okay, I talked to one person good. I got my one person down. I only need one more. This is my mindset at the party.

And I start walking through the room and I'm kind of looking around and seeing, you know, am I going to catch somebody? So I, is there going to be a situation where I can move into a group who's at a cocktail

table or something like that? And I see there's an art table.

So this is what I mean, I said something about like tying your networking to your interest. So I see there's this table filled with art supplies and some of it's like a little bit more project oriented and some of it's kind of open ended, take it where you want. And that's my wheelhouse. I'm like, great.

I don't know what I want to talk to next or what to do. I'm going to go check out the art table.

This is one of the things I've always loved about professional conferences that include

art, whether, you know, I mean, my very first American Art Therapy Association conference

was in 2002 in Washington, DC.

And I went with a friend and I think we spent the entire conference on the floor in a corner

of the art studio. And it was manageable. And then, you know, the expressive therapy summits have always been a rich repository of art making and certain other conferences do too, including the NOAA conference.

So there was an empty chair and I sat down and once I was sitting down and working with

our materials, suddenly networking wasn't work. It was fun. And it came so easy and I met three more people in like a minute. The woman sitting next to me was folding this paper in this amazing way that I had to lean over and ask her about. How did you make that? Oh, where did you get that idea?

And next thing you know, she and I are talking about her work and my work and it's just flowing and I feel like I've known her for 20 years. Because now it's not work. Now we're just two people sitting at the art table playing.

Mm-hmm. Yeah. I think that that's a really helpful thing to share for people that are struggling with

figuring out how to network with others. Because you're right, it can feel really overwhelming.

It can feel like dreadful. It can feel like work or there's like a performance element to it.

And I feel like there's two different types, right?

There's sometimes where it may be performative.

And you have to get into your like theater-esque kind of persona in order to accomplish those ends.

And then there's the more casual networking which you don't, it's open-ended. It's just the goal is just connection.

And if you can do that while having fun over something where there's a common, like a

commonality or shared interest, it does make it so much easier and more pleasurable.

We had an open house at my practice and we had art, art activities and experiences set up

throughout because we wanted people to stay.

We wanted people to feel comfortable and engage and create and get their hands into things.

And it worked. People that came did stay. I had somebody say it just felt like everybody was so comfortable in your space because people were engaging in this really meaningful way. Yes, they were connecting with other people, but they were having fun with the creative process and engaging with the materials which opened up that ability to talk with whoever was sitting next to them and to develop that exchange. I would have loved that open house.

I know where I would have been. That art table the whole time.

Yeah, I mean, I think to that extent, like you, with a lot of things and people say this about dating and relationships, right? You can meet people a lot of different ways. You might as well do it in concert with activities that are of interest to you. So if I'm partly because if I network, when I sit down at an art table to network with

Someone. I might meet somebody of interest. I might make a connection, but I'm also going to do something I'm already interested in and make art and have a good experience for myself in myself.

And because I'm engaged in something that's meaningful to me and that I like, it's probably

going to lower my defenses and make me more open to connecting with others.

No, true. And I think that that sort of open-ended connecting opportunity is a really important piece of doing

networking in a way that feels more authentic to who we are and less like work.

In my program at Jefferson, I host art studio nights that are open for my students in the

art therapy concentration and in the trauma counseling program.

And I invite my alumni to come back to that and I invite faculty to come. And you know, sometimes students have such tunnel vision. They don't meet anybody outside of their own classes or their own cohort or their own

Year. And networking isn't always so linear like I'm going to talk to this person and I hope it results in a job. It's often sort of the muddy means to the ends. And if you like making art and you go to a studio night and you're there with other people in the same profession who are doing that too, that's already going to lead to something.

And the fruits of that may not be harvested for a long time.

We had an experience years ago where we went as volunteers to a clay studio and constructed

clay masks that were donated to a fundraising event and were there with other art therapists.

And then years later, that connection that I had struck up resulted in an internship placement

for a student. So I couldn't have foreseen it at the time. I didn't know that student. I wasn't looking for something like that. Sometimes, you know, I think not knowing what the fruits of the networking are going to be is kind of part of the fun. I actually think that it's better to have that perspective to go into these experiences

for the purpose of having the experience and being in the moment and whatever that has

to offer with the people that you're engaging in.

Because if you're going there with the purpose of I have to go here in order to get this outcome

or to get, you know, this person to refer people to me or whatever, there's a lot of pressure,

a greater expectation. And I think that just like raises our own anxiety around the experience, which then it

just, I don't know, I think it has an impact on the dynamics of the exchange.

I think you're right. And it also sets up this dynamic where, you know, if I have this objective and I don't

achieve that objective, then I have failed.

And if I'm viewing myself as having failed in that objective, then I'm not open to all

of these other potential outcomes that could result of that. Maybe this person knows somebody.

Maybe there's a connection to be had. Maybe they can help leave me to a supervisor or somebody.

Yeah. I think every time we're engaging with people, whether it's colleagues in a current job

that maybe we don't like and we want to leave, those collegial relationships that you create

there have role over potential for you later on in your future.

That every relationship that we, you know, establishes an important part of that fabric,

right, that tapestry that I'm talking about personally and professionally.

And then even like when you're, I don't know, when you're going into your like, it sounds

strange, but like even my dentist office, right? Like I have been going to the same dentist office for years and had the same hygienist, although I don't need more. She left the practice and went somewhere else which was heartbreaking because I had, we had like this really great rapport. And like when I was opening up my office, I was like sharing with her. And of course she like shared with the dentist who owned the practice and it's like every

time I would come in, she would ask me how my practice was going and you know, you, you

start to develop relationships everywhere that you go.

It doesn't have to be like going to a specific conference or work related event to

build your network and create opportunities for greater connection in your, in your community,

Right? Well, I think what you're speaking to, what you're saying speaks to this idea of like the

authenticity that you, you are, you're not, um, or therapist, Raina and then, you know,

regular person outside of work, Raina, you're Raina and all of those are a part of you

and sometimes you're at work and sometimes you're at rest, but you're still all of who you

are and what you are under every circumstance.

So holding yourself out as who you are and not, I mean, yes, there are some benefits of

segmenting your life and I'm not saying that, you know, work hours should never stop.

That's certainly not the message. I once got a referral from my podiatrist. I wasn't planning on it.

I wasn't, I, I was saying this podiatrist, not because I was networking, not because I was

working for new clients or selling myself. I had an ingrown toenail. I mean, I had to deal with that.

And, um, she's looking over my chart and talking to me and she says, you're an art therapist. What's that?

And so I started, I told her, you know, of course my students do their two minute elevator pitch

early on in their program because as we know, people will ask you what is art therapy and

you will have to explain it.

And she was so interested in that she's had never heard of it before and she thought it sounded

so useful and she could see the potential for it. And for the next several visits every time I came in, she said, what's my art therapist? And she was so excited to have learned that this is a thing and what it is.

And it was interesting when I needed to call up for a refill of a prescription.

I told the receptionist, tell her it's the art therapist because I knew she'd remember

that aspect of me.

But eventually, she made a referral to me because she ran into somebody in her own life and

I was the art therapist that she knew. And so this was sort of professionally beneficial for me, but not because I went into every single sector of life thinking I need to network because I'm marketing my practice because I was

just being me and part of being me is being an art therapist and answering a question

about what that is if somebody is curious. I love that.

I think that takes so much of the pressure off of this whole process, right?

That you can just be yourself and not see enough for the networking process.

So how do you think that we can turn this whole process of networking into opportunities

that, like, connect with things that you're passionate about?

I know we've been talking about how to integrate networking just as part of what you do naturally

and not actually looking at it as a task that you have to do separate from just living

your normal life.

How can we turn these opportunities of connection that we have into things that we're passionate

About? My collaborative opportunities, let's say. That's a great question.

I mean, one, a few things are popping up in my mind.

One thing is, I think it's important to be proud of what you do. Not to say that you always want to have a conversation with everybody who crosses your path about exactly what you do, but I do know a lot of people, mental health clinicians, who might hold back on saying what they do or describing what they do.

And I don't think that helps to further anything. And certainly, it doesn't introduce yourself as an authentic person.

What you do is that you're a therapist, being able to say that and hold that out there

in a way.

And it might mean finding the way to talk about it that you are comfortable with.

I think it has to do with boundary setting, right?

Our comfort level with boundary setting. I know that earlier on in my career, I can think of like one time being at a little pizza place, which was around the corner for my house.

It only had a few like tables to sit at and then it had like a little bar area up at the Front.

It was a really tiny little hole in the wall space.

And I had gone there and the only place to sit that night was up at that little bar space,

which was fine. Except for that, frequently people that were coming in to pick up their dinner would

come and stand there and hang out and wait and pay for their stuff.

And one time this one time that I was there, I was with another girlfriend and we were just

kind of catching up. And a woman who was picking up her dinner started talking to us and did ask what we do and

I did share. And then she proceeded to really divulge a lot of her personal stuff, which it was not necessarily

the most appropriate thing to divulge in that context and setting with somebody that she

didn't know even though I was a therapist.

And early on, I don't think I had the skill set to actually say that to her and say, I appreciate

that you feel comfortable enough to share that with me right now, but it's really not the

appropriate time nor place.

I can give you a card and I can give you some recommendations for people that might be

able to help you, but this isn't the right venue for that.

But I didn't have that skill set at the time. And I've been in the opposite situation where in one case, I was in a social setting and starting to have a conversation with a person who was interesting and the conversation started

out to be one that felt promising. And then when I mentioned that I was a therapist, everything sort of shut down and came crashing down very abruptly because this person was very, very anxious that now that they knew that

I was a therapist that I was clearly going to be analyzing and teasing them apart and unfurling

and diagnosing and sort of, you know, the worst case scenario fears that they had about what

that meant.

And so it didn't allow anything to go forward.

And I, all similarly, this was earlier in my career, didn't have the knowledge or the

skill set or the practice to be able to say, you know, I'm enjoying talking with you.

And the fact that I'm a therapist doesn't mean that I am bringing my work that I do with

my clients into the conversation that we're having now and kind of move past this discomfort

into a place where we could have a more productive discussion.

But I think, you know, finding that way to be both proud about what you do, honest about

what you do, also boundary reading and reading the situation that allows for comfortable,

productive, interesting connections to arise is important.

I also like the idea of, you know, looking at networking as an extension of the stuff that

you like to do anyway, like in the example of being at the conference where I sat down

at the art table, that made it really easy for me.

Suddenly, I was all of my anxieties about putting myself out there and having to meet people

were sort of fell away and I was free to just like create and enjoy my space.

And then I ended up having conversations with several people around me at this art table.

And I would always encourage people to set themselves up for some networking success by finding

the things that they like to do anyway or they enjoy anyway, which could be, you know,

a personal or professional book club or it could be, you know, an activity or a hobby

or a sport or it could be taking a class somewhere or it could be, I mean, any number of things.

Yet, then there's also this piece of like sometimes you do need to flex outside of your comfort zone.

Right? Yeah. Oh, definitely.

Flexing outside of your comfort zone.

I personally think that that's super important as a therapist because that's what we do all

day long as we ask our clients to do things outside of their comfort zone. That's part of growing.

And so if I'm not doing that as well, then I feel a little bit hypocritical.

So I really try to push myself to go out of my comfort zone.

And what I found was that over the years, it was not natural for me to be a networker.

But I feel more of a connector unless of a networker. I feel like that's my view of what I'm doing is I'm building connection. I'm forging connection between myself and the other person that I'm meeting and learning

About.

But I'm also then forging connections between them and the other people that I've met in my

network that I believe it would be beneficial for those people to connect with on some level

or whatever reason that that may be.

And that I'm not just, you know, the goal isn't like, oh, I'm connecting for me, but I'm also

connecting for all of the people that I'm in connection with, the bike and facilitate

that.

It feels really good.

But I think it's also helpful for them in some way.

And then it creates greater opportunities for things like collaboration amongst like,

you know, like-minded activities like you were saying, whether that's, you know, hosting

a book club together or maybe a consultation group together or a training or a writing

Opportunity. You are a connector and I think that you do, you do it in a way that doesn't just benefit you.

I mean, even hosting this podcast and all of the people that you interview, I feel like it's

like an extended networking service that I get to learn about all of these different professionals

around the country and the world who are doing this different kind of work.

Things that's similar to what I'm doing and sometimes that's very different.

But it makes me think that perhaps one of the most important ingredients in networking,

and this is especially true if you're getting out of the mindset of viewing it as a task

and, you know, as work and viewing it more as an extension of the authentic way you carry

yourself as a professional, is that there's great value in being curious.

And you do this all the time when you interview people and talk to people and you learn about

the different kinds of contributions that they're making both in the creative arts therapies

but also in other allied health professions and in the greater world of social service.

And I think that when I approach people, I mean, if you approach people from the standpoint

of be curious, right, you have something to learn from everybody, everybody has something

interesting that they're doing or thinking about or talking about.

And it could be that it sort of exists within one conversation or less in terms of overlapping

with you.

But it also could potentially go much more than that. I mean, certainly I have met my share of people for whom after one conversation, I've learned enough that I don't need to take it forward. I'm sure I've been that person for other people too where they're like, okay, now I know what she's doing next.

There's a lot of people out there that makes sense. But starting with that one conversation, regardless of how you met them or came across them, starting from the standpoint of like, I wonder, I wonder what this person's doing.

I'm curious about how they're overlapping.

I have had the good fortune through some professional colleagues this year of developing this new group

of friends who in some ways are very different from me. They're in some cases different generations, different points of their life, very different professions. One woman is an industrial designer and another is an MD and another is a nurse. And I mean, people that are just doing different work coming at helping people from different

points of education and experience. And yet there's still so many opportunities to overlap and to have interdisciplinary collaboration. And I think it starts from this standpoint of curiosity and I wonder what they're doing.

I wonder what I can learn from them.I wonder what.

And if you find that when you meet somebody or you start learning about somebody that the

questions keep coming for you, that perhaps is a sign that there's something that this

connection is awakening in you. And maybe that can be something that moves forward, whether it's having referrals to your practice or collaborating on a workshop or an article or getting the opportunity to

guess, teach a course or whatever it is. But when you start out from the standpoint of, oh, this person's doing this thing that I never heard of or I didn't know about or I want to learn more and that's neat.

And you know, that's something to capitalize on even if they're from a different background or space from you.

I love that. I think that there's so much more that we can accomplish when we approach connecting

with others from that curious space. And then it opens up the opportunity for really impactful conversation and dialogue to happen. And that then can really, you know, lend itself to that collaborative aspect of things.

Because ultimately, right, if we go back to the old construct of what networking is, right?

I'm doing this in service of advancing my career in some way or my life in some way, whatever

it is, well, that collaboration can be that.

Now, I don't think it's helpful to have that as the definition. I think that that usually is impairing people from actually taking action towards networking. Whereas if you go in with the intent of I'm going to meet somebody, hopefully I'll make a friend. And that's enough.I'm going to learn about somebody else, what they do, what their interests are, who they serve. How, how, who they serve might benefit from people in my network, who I'm serving. That's enough.

It is enough.

And if you're going to a networking event, whether it's the networking mixer at a conference

or something like what you held at your office, which was an opportunity for networking, or

you're at a dinner or something like that. Other people are there with the same agenda. They're thinking the same thing. How do I connect with people? How do I, at ends, what can this lead to?

And you don't have to go in polished, right? You don't have to have your script.

In fact, you're probably less appealing and more of a turn off if you are too scripted or too Polished.

It is those interesting anecdotes, those human pieces, those stories that really make us

want to lean into other people. And that's what makes them want to lean into us is not when we're giving the lecture or sermon in a really clear, clean way. But when we're muddy up to our elbows, we're more appealing perhaps.

When we present as human beings and not as somebody who is perfect.

I mean, I love that my first encounter with this woman that became a good friend was seeing

her have a meltdown at the ticket kiosk in a train station.

And we have joked about that over the years about how funny it is that seeing somebody's, I mean, we know this as therapists, right? But seeing somebody's vulnerability can build connection, can help strengthen the way we

relate to them. But there's still so much fear in that. Right.

And we're willing to turn into it and tune into it that that's where like the fruitfulness

of it happens. Yeah. Well, I appreciate you making the time to talk about this topic today. I think it was a really great discussion. And I hope that it inspires listeners that have been struggling with networking to think

about it from a different perspective and to give it a try from that other place of not

having to be perfect, like that it gives them that permission to just be themselves. Yeah.

And to go in with no agenda, right? Maybe you'll get a client out of it. Maybe you'll get a contract. Maybe you'll get a new friend. Maybe you'll learn something. Maybe you'll realize something that you don't want to do.

Maybe, you know, I mean, there's just the possibilities are endless if you go in considering

them that way. Yeah. Yeah.

Thanks so much for having me.

This was a fun conversation to explore. It was.It was. If listeners wanted to reach out to you and connect with you, where can they do that? And I'm always available by email and I'm happy to share my email.

You can share it in the in the show notes also, but it's Rachel Brandau at Gmail. And LinkedIn is a great way to contact me as well. Dr. Rachel Brandau. Yeah.

LinkedIn. All right. I'll put those in the show notes.

Thank you so much. And I look forward to talking to you soon about your new book.

Thank you. As always, thanks for listening to the Creative Psychotherapist podcast.

I hope you enjoyed this episode of the show with Dr. Rachel Brandau.

And I I'm going to have her on again shortly in the next, I don't know, month or so.

And we're going to be talking about her new book that is coming out in early 2024. The Empowerment Wheel, which focuses on art therapy interventions using an empowerment based

approach to helping individuals that have been in various types of relationship abuse.

And I've had the good fortune to be able to read it in advance and it's awesome. And so I can't wait to talk with her and her co-author author. Her name is Astra Cesarney. I think I'm pronouncing her last name correctly. I may have it pronounced wrong. But it's excellent. And it is available currently for pre order on Amazon.

And again, it's called the Empowerment Wheel if you're interested in that.

Anyway, I hope you enjoyed this episode and perhaps you're inspired to think about networking in a different way.

And I look forward to sharing the next episode with you next week.

And if I knew what it was, I would let you know, but I don't even know what it's going to be yet.

So it'll be a surprise for both of us.

All right, stay creative, everyone.

EMBODYING FLEXIBILITY

Fri, 29 Sep 2023 12:00:13 GMT

EMBODYING FLEXIBILITY

EMBODYING FLEXIBILITY

As a small business owner, there are only so many hours in the day to accomplish all the tasks. Most days may be so full that anything extra that pops up will assuredly cause delays and add extra hours to the workweek . In order to preserve my life force energy, I have had to become intentional in how I respond to these pesky interruptions. The more my businesses grow, the more interruptions seem to happen.

Responding to these with intentionality might mean cancelling or rescheduling meetings or tasks. Other times, it means putting the interruption on the backburner until I can get to it. Or it may mean putting in the trash or filing under the tasks to do when Ideal Conditions exist list.

It is so easy to feel overwhelmed by it all . But if I do that, I will get caught in freeze and not take any action at all. Thus creating more overwhelm. A viscous cycle causing personal suffering.

What I have learned over the past 10 years is I need to embody a state of flexibility in order to progress forward. Here is why:

There will never be enough time to complete all the things . In other words, I had to let go of checking off all the things on the to-do list otherwise I risk burnout.
Not all interruptions are worthy of my attention . This required me to use a system of prioritizing where I put my energy and attention. Results flow where that energy goes.
Progress is better than perfection EVERY TIME! I would rather move forward imperfectly than stay where I am at in an effort to attain the myth of perfection.
Most of what pops up isn't a matter of life or death , despite what my nervous system may be telling me. I evaluate the importance of the situation as it pertains to safety, health and well-being of those in and served by my business. If it doesn't meet that criteria - then it is not urgent nor important.
Being flexible reduces my cumulative stress. Learning ways to Shake it Off and Let That S#!+ Go have been essential to my individual wellbeing.

VFTS 2023 9 | Ericha Scott | Kinetic Mobiles: Art Therapy to Address Dissociation & Parts Work

Wed, 27 Sep 2023 08:00:00 GMT

FEATURED GUESTS: Ericha Scott is an authentic, dedicated, and passionate, licensed and certified creative arts psychotherapist, artist, author, and advocate for disempowered populations. For 39 years, she has worked with those who struggle with substance and behavioral use disorders, victims of trauma, complex trauma, torture, dissociation, and victims of sex trafficking. Her commitment to health, wellness, and art as medicine includes experiential teaching professional clinicians’, medical doctors, the public, and for her own personal health journey. Her investment in social change via the arts across the world includes travel, presentations, collaboration, and cultural exchange in 4 continents. Her worldwide workshops bring hope and healing to diverse populations.

LISTEN & LEARN:

Engaging clients through life size body mapping.
How Ericha came to using kinetic mobiles in her work with parts and dissociation.
The value of engaging in one's own arts practice as a means to longevity in the profession.

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW:

https://artspeaksoutloud.org/ for more information

SESSIONS AT THE SUMMIT:

Friday November 3rd, 2023 12:00PM-7:00PM

Mapping Inner Worlds Dynamically: Mobiles for Insight & Dissociative System Management

Cultivating Self-Compassion, an experiential intermodal expressive arts session for all counselors and therapists, offers an opportunity to build skills of self-compassion using imagination and expressive media. Drawing upon imagery and contemplative practice, participants will identify ways to provide self-compassion in response to emotional pain and difficulty. They will discover a creative approach to working with themselves and others to provide tools of self-compassion that contribute to healing and growth. Through the introduction of simple expressive arts practice, participants will consult their own inner knowing and be guided through a simple, nourishing experience that can easily be taught to their clients in treatment in virtually any clinical setting. Participants in this 3-hour virtual workshop will be invited to share the gifts that their images bring, connect within and in community, as well as witness their own and others' compassionate presence.

Thanks so much for listening to the Creative Psychotherapist podcast. I am excited to share

with you this next episode, episode nine from 2023's series from the Voices of the Expressive

Therapy Summit, where I interview different therapists and professionals that are presenting,

speaking and facilitating workshops at the Expressive Therapy Summit events. If you've

never been to an Expressive Therapy Summit, what you can expect is highly experiential

participatory learning, where you're getting a deep dive into the creative process while

you're learning how these methods and interventions can be used and benefit the work that you're

doing with clients. I often feel like it is one of those opportunities where you are giving

to yourself in as much as you are learning to be able to facilitate these processes with

others.

Today I'm speaking with Erica Scott and she has been working in the field for multiple

decades and she's a registered Expressive Arts Therapist as well as a registered board-certified

art therapist. Her focus has been working using the arts with individuals that have experienced

various levels of complex trauma and she specializes in working with dissociation and

her presentation is going to be part of the dissociation track that the summit is offering

at the virtual event this November, where there's a number of different presentations that

are focusing on that topic. So if that's an area that you want to further explore and

develop, it might be a great opportunity to learn from people who have been practicing

for their career.

Doing this work, Erica shares some really cool interventions that she's

been using for a really long time with her clients and I think if you are someone that works

with individuals who've experienced trauma, this would be a great training to participate

in. It's going to be on November 3rd from 12 p.m. to 7 p.m. Eastern Standard Time so it's

an entire day and she is going to include some didactic information but it's primarily

going to be experiential where you're going to be engaging in the creative process as part

of the learning experience. So if you want to learn more about her presentation or any of

the other presentations that the summit is providing, please check out www.expressivetherapysemit.com .

There you'll find a whole host of different events that are being offered throughout the

year that you can learn from really, really talented and accomplished therapists that have been

developing their particular approach for a really long time. I highly recommend checking

it out if you've never participated before. So without further ado, here's my conversation

with Erica Scott.

Thanks so much for listening to the Creative Psychotherapist. I'm your host, Raina Lombardi.

And I am delighted to welcome my next guest, Erica Scott, PhD and licensed professional

clinical counselor, board certified registered art therapist and registered expressive arts

therapist. She is an authentic, dedicated and passionate licensed and certified creative

arts psychotherapist, artist, author and advocate for disempowered populations. For 39 years,

she has worked with those who struggle with substance abuse and behavioral use disorders,

victims of trauma, complex trauma, torture, dissociation and victims of sex trafficking.

Her commitment to health, wellness and art as a medicine includes experiential teaching,

professional clinicians, medical doctors, the public and for her own personal health journey.

Her investment in social change, beauty arts across the world travels across the world includes

travel, presentations, collaboration and culture exchange and for continents. Her worldwide

workshops bring hope and healing to diverse populations. Thank you so much for being here,

Erica. Thank you. It's a delight to be here. I'm really excited to talk to you about your

work. You have a breadth of experience of working with very heavy therapeutic content.

How have the arts played a role in helping you to have such an enduring career? That's probably

one of the best questions any interviewer has ever asked me because it's critical to my

longevity. I love art. I love outsider art. I was a professional artist before I became an

art therapist. And I believe this sounds maybe corny and hopefully not reductionistic, but

I truly believe that the art clients make in session, heal them and me. There's something

about looking at productions made in session that I find no matter what the content, I find

it energizing and uplifting and they can paint the most horrific stories. But I know that

it means they're getting better, that they will get better, that they are healing, they're

in the process. But there's also the energetic aspect of color. There's the joy of spontaneity.

There's the relief of just literally almost vomiting your emotions on the page, right?

Yeah. And I just, I feel blessed. I call crayons and paint brushes my magic wand because now

the research is being to support what I've been saying for 40 years that art heals. There's

no question about it. And I believe more than just having an art therapist on staff, we need

to create programs where art is embedded in every aspect of the program. I agree wholeheartedly.

And while one or two hours a week helps, it's nothing like having a totally immersed program.

So for example, it's your Tucson when I was the trauma therapist for a dual diagnosis program.

And you can imagine the trauma that was coming to a residential program, right?

Absolutely. And so I had every single person in the group did a life-size silhouette with their

whole addiction, trauma, surgeries, you name it, physical health, everything on their body

map. It was the visual life story. And I had everyone do a timeline. So those things are

sort of stereotypical. And then everyone in my group also did a sand tray because I had

figurines in my office. And then often they would do other art assignments. And I had them

hang up on the wall, all of that, genograms, you name it, everything. And then tell their

life story from beginning to end. And the life story was told a little bit from a postmodern,

except for very much immersed in the trauma about what a survivor hero story they have.

Like that they have survived all of this. And then they could see it, the group could see it,

I could see it, and the visual cues. So I'm very visual as you can imagine. I'm more

kinesthetic ironically than visual, but I'm of course I'm very visual. And so seeing all

of their art on the wall gave me cues for opening questions to ask about where they might

be stuck or in denial or minimizing or justifying you know all of that. Oh sure. So and magic

happened one time a woman did and I have a release to talk about this story. She did her

body map and included trauma. But the irony is that it looks like a golden Tara. A gold

like the Eastern Asian goddess. So her mother made her wear funny hat. So she had this gold

peaked hat like Tara wears. She had a trauma where she had a big bruise or lump here in her

childhood. Well it looked like a bendy. Okay so it's like on the center of her forehead.

Right. You've seen the little red dot. Right. So it wasn't quite exact, but there it was.

And then she had scoliosis. So her back was curved and she drew her hands in a way. Excuse

me. That it looked like a mudra, like hand gestures. Wow. Right. So she had that kind of you've

seen probably sculptures of goddesses or paintings of goddesses where they kind of look

slightly twisted. They're back. Yeah. And then they're holding their hands in the sacred

symbols. Excuse me. I'm going to call for. And so I said that. I said it isn't this interesting

as a total reframe or transformation. It you look like a golden Tara and I explain what I just

explained to you. Another person in the group had a full Kundalini experience right there.

Wow. They almost looked out of their chair and they went, "Woof, what happened? What happened?"

I said, "I don't know what happened. Tell me." And he said, "It's like an energy hit the

base of my spine and shot out the top of my head." And I said, "Well that's an awakening of the

Kundalini." Wow. Fascinating. I think art opens that gateway to something more than just

therapy or psychology or I think it opens the gateway to other realms of consciousness and spirituality

and the force self and the way that I don't know. I think some somatic experiencing can get there, but

I've not seen any other treatment modality take people there. And often it's a surprise for them.

That's not where they think they're going. That's the funnest part I think about working with

adults, particularly like that population, dual diagnosis population, folks in substance abuse

treatment that oftentimes are kind of hesitant to like about this idea like what I'm not a

kindergarten nerd. What do you mean you want me to? And then they have that like full 360 degree

thing like, "Wow, I can't believe how much I got from that hour, that just that this small experience

that can be so transformative. And if we did what you're talking about, which is to say,

have that immersed throughout and embedded in all aspects of treatment, what could possibly happen

because of the way the art is a symbolic language or unconscious is make sense through symbols.

It's not logic. Right. So it really does have that interconnectedness.

And power. Yeah. So Andy Stropthrow approached me. He was our lead psychologist at the time and he was

doing the pre-test post-test for the groups. And he approached me and he said, "I want to show you

what's the results." And he turned page after page after page after people with, let me know how you

used to a title and a press and anxious and they were leaving happy. Which is like what they're there

for, right? They're there to reconnect with that love joy and sense of being human

that we're all here to experience. And it's the art to take people from that level of distress

and 30 days later they leave grounded, not a superficial happy, centered happy, of knowing who they are

and accepting all aspects of who they are. And he said, this is like, I've never seen results

like this and I said, it's the art. It's the art. It's amazing.

Yeah. I think as we, as we learn more about our brain and what our brain needs to thrive. Earlier before we started recording, we were talking a little bit about neuro stuff and you were talking about neuroplasticity and I think that there

is a direct relationship between art making and neuroplasticity. And part of it I think is because

it is a novel experience every time we engage with the materials. It's a new, fresh experience.

Even for a seasoned artist who's been creating for years and years and years and is very knowledgeable,

every time we engage it's a new delight, it's fresh. It's, it's, there's something. Desiaprised. Yeah.

That's brilliant because what generates new neurons is art, novelty and beauty.

And that's Ernest Rossi after he had his stroke. He was talking about covering from his stroke.

And Ernest Rossi was a protégé of Milton Erickson and a expert in trauma and his own right.

So you're right. So when you talk about novelty, that is one, that's so art itself is

healing and then the aspect of novelty of making your own art. And then even in my opinion,

ugly art therapy is beautiful. So there's a beauty. The witnessing. The witnessing of it. Yeah, which is

so important. Yeah. Yeah. So it's fun. I have always believed in art because I was considered to be

retarded as a child. And I nearly, I nearly failed birth rate twice, not just once twice.

And I overheard my art teacher. I mean, she went in my art teacher. She was my fourth grade teacher.

But she turned to my mother and said almost in an off-handed manner, you know, she really likes our,

why don't you get her in our teacher. So my mother hires a beat neck who I just loved and he taught me

how to paint. And by the end of fifth grade, I was reading college level. Wow. So I have never doubted

the power of art. And I always made that connection even though I was just a little kid.

I knew our had something to do with them. That's wild. That's incredible. Yeah.

I think it's interesting. You know, we have a sense of knowing when we're children, when we're small

children, we like come in. I think as we get older, you know, we're so used to dismissing,

dismissing children's insights as unknowing. But really, I think kids have a greater sense of

knowing the truth than those of us who've been here living for longer time. We might have some wisdom

about what it means to live here. But kids have a different sense of knowing of like what to do.

Even like you think about how they engage in play, right? They like know what to do to take care

themselves naturally if you allow them to, right? We don't have to. And they haven't been traumatized.

Yeah. Absolutely. But that brings me to earlier, you had said something about when the folks left the

program that you were working in that they had a connection with and an acceptance of all of their

distinct parts. Yeah. And I know that you're going to be presenting at the upcoming Expressive Therapy

Summit in November, November 3rd. It's virtual. And part of that, I think, feeds into

the topic that you're going to be talking about. I believe the session that you're teaching is called

mapping inner worlds dynamically, mobiles for insight and dissociative system management.

And I would love if we could spend some time talking about that because there's a clear connection,

with all the parts. And can you share a little bit about what that is, what that looks like?

How did you come to integrate mobiles, which I think is such a brilliant metaphor for it? But I would love

to hear from you. Thank you. So I began working with dissociative identity disorder in

1987 in Dallas. And God or spirit or energy or luck gave me the most gentle easy client to start with.

I was so blessed. And I nobody at that time really, we really didn't know exactly what we were doing.

But following the inner child work, it was the next step. So we did have through

P.M.L.D. work and Terry Kellogg's work and John Bradshaw's work. We did have a step on the path.

So I began using all kinds of mapping with DID, including the life size body maps. So that's the one

way I use the life size body maps that most people don't use it that way.

I ask people to paint their parts on their map, where they think they are, where what they their jobs, their likes, their

dislikes, their energy, their size, because often it's hard for child parts to get that the adult

is an adult. It's very helpful for the child parts to understand that the adult is big and can

protect them and talk there if he doesn't really break through that denial. So I was already doing that.

And it was the late 80s by the time I came up with the mobile idea and it had to do with balance

and the movement, like how the parts move. Different sizes, different shapes and

right and different, the executive control switch from the parts that lurk or hide inside.

lurk might not be the best word. Sometimes it's the right word.

And how the executive control can change in a minute. So the first time I did it,

I think I was working with about 20 clients and I brought all the supplies, I asked them to bring

supplies. It was so much fun. Some of the mobiles, like one guy used a closed line and you know how

normally a mobile just one line or wire hanging down with then objects like colder life.

Well, he had several wires coming down from his closed line. So it's really pretty. So we went wild

with it. One of the most beautiful mobiles I've ever seen was at charter hospital. I don't know if

you remember charter. Oh yes, I do remember them. Right. So I used to share an office with Colin Ross

in Dallas. And so I was doing some groups on that unit for dissociative identity disorder. And

this one woman made these beautiful delicate origami type boxes that opened and closed and had

insights and outsides and windows and flaps where you could peek in or know that it was so intricate

and lovely and tender and respectful. So I, what I have noticed and I know you've seen this too,

is that there's something about three dimensions that I don't care if it's mass making,

sculpting mobiles, it deepens the process. And I can't tell you why exactly, but

research will show us eventually why I trust my observation. I'll go with that for now.

For example, a student of mine wanted to do a mask of herself hate. And she didn't recover for 10

years. And it was a group of therapists. And I trusted her not to be triggered by it or to manage

her triggers as she was triggered by it. And she did the most monster like mask I've ever seen.

And I'm used to looking at heavy dark work, right. She had a nice sticking in her head, she had a

noose around her neck, she had bulging eyes. It was like really hard to look at.

And I had just asked people to gather in a group and I was the last one to join and she was sitting

on the floor. And I'll never forget she was rocking her mask like it was a baby.

I have like just a rolling goose bumps going down my body, just hearing that and visualizing that

and understanding the depth of transformative energy that it was present for her in that moment.

Amazing. I'm having a hard time speaking. It moved me still to this day. And she looked up at me and

I smiled at her and I said, it looks like you're rocking your mask. And she beamed this

10,000 watt smile and said, my power was locked in myself. Hey,

wow. Incredible. So there are times we need to take risk.

And this is the thing though, you have to be able to bring someone back.

So sometimes I see people take risk with their clients and it's not okay in a way because they don't

know what to do if the client starts to have a psychotic break or starts to dissociate in a real

profound way. And so I do take risk. But I also can bring people back.

And so I wouldn't take those risks if I didn't know I could bring them back.

Does that make sense? Yeah, absolutely. And I understand that there's a lot of concern about don't trigger

or don't trigger the trauma vortex. But I think that's sometimes people that are afraid of intense

emotions because there are so many times that people learn from being triggered in a therapy session

and then having a context frame for them immediately. It reduces shame. It helps them grasp the depth of

their trauma. It helps them feel empowered because if you don't really get the depth of your trauma,

you feel weak? Yeah, absolutely. Or like, well, it's not really a trauma because

it somehow, it's my responsibility, right? There's that piece that sometimes can be present for people

until they can connect with that pain. Exactly. Right. Yeah.

So as heavy as this is, it's fun because one starfish at a time, we're returning

them to the ocean and where they can thrive and be joyous and free.

And that is the goal of all of this work. And mobiles are fun. That's part of it too. While we're

dealing with such heavy issues, you can't help but not all of us have mobiles and childhood, but we know

what they are. We know mobiles are hung over a baby's bed. And so I think there's an element

of that that enters into the process of it's a joyous, colorful, moving experience. And why not

have that as part of the process while dealing with something that's so heavy? Yeah.

I'm just thinking of like words that I would associate with the mobile, which is like, childlike or childhood and

whimsical and fun and playful. And so there's that fusion of, okay, yes, we're talking about

something or we're not necessarily talking, but we're through the language of art. Yes. We are

talking about it. We're talking with image, color, line, shape, movement, volume. Yes. And it's also

a paradox. It's holding the dark and the light at the same time. And that in my opinion, fosteres more

healing than positive thinking. So there is very important to have positive thinking, gratitude list,

especially in this day, I have to do it myself because these are not easy times for a lot of people.

Yep. But the real, real power where the, forgive me for being an old expression like when the

rubber meets the road, where you really get traction for healing is holding that paradox. It's

Robert Fritz calls it structural tension. And so the playfulness and the heaviness together is a really

good paradox. I agree. It's a way of being able to integrate that we can hold both things at the same

time. We can be both that it gets us out of that all or nothing trap that so many of us find ourselves

in, which is to the brain's wiring, right? That there's a reason why we struggle with that.

It's so true. I think the emellity called it joy pain.

Always like that. I haven't, I have not heard that phrasing before, but yeah.

Joy pain. Yeah. So thank you so much. And I hope to see you again, I really enjoyed your presence

in your company and your so articulate. Thank you. Oh, you're welcome. And I hope that people

might be excited from this conversation to take the training with you at the summit. It's going

to be an entire day on the 3rd 12 to 7 pm. Can you share a little bit about what folks might

learn besides exploring the sculptures in that session? Right. So you just helped me remember that

I need to make a PowerPoint. Thank you. So I need to do the same. Yeah. So I believe we all have parts.

So many theories of counseling have included ego states or parts of self or subpersonalities,

whatever you want to call them from a dare adult parent child to

in ego, super ego. Like they're all these different ways of looking at the multifaceted

humanist that we have. I like to think of it like a diamond or sometimes I've likened it to a

honeycomb with different liberal compartments.

So we all have that. And whether or not someone is the sociativa identity disorder,

this mobile process would still be impossibly insightful. So I'll probably do like a light overview of dissociation.

How it shows up. I have several lectures on that of course already. We'll start with that. But I also

want to talk about clues or signs or symptoms of dissociation because I was taught by Rene Fredrickson

in the 80s to read body language. So how people carry shame in their bodies. I think Nourling

Gwistik programming does some good work around this, but not necessarily specific to dissociation.

How eyes can flutter or blink a lot when there's dissociation or roll even. Like you need to have

a sphegal type eye roll. One time I made a mistake. I was, I had been asked to visit a colleagues group

and discuss dissociation and I roll played what some perpetrators do is they're switching before

they fn and the whole group was laid out. It was so accurate. They were like, oh my god. So I won't be

doing that. But sometimes there's like a chin nod, like a ducking of the chin and then coming up

as a switch to another part of self. I see it also in the way people speak. I've heard even politicians

use words that are made up words that are really like a two or three year old way of speaking.

So it's not that vernacular or the words that confuse people and yet if you listen very carefully,

they're their child life words. They're made up children's words. And so that also is a clue of

earlier trauma, but also dissociation and regression. So it shows up in the artwork, especially art

therapists, like people. So we all, if we don't have an art background, we can all paint in a child

like way, third grade or so. But then there are times when the artwork is really childlike

in the way that's not just lack of art background. So pay attention to those things.

So I'll be educating about how to identify dissociation. What's important, especially for the dual diagnosis,

substance use disorder, residential programs is that in the 90s, there was a multi site research,

residential programs, four different programs, and 14 to 39% tested as having the full diagnosis

of dissociative identity disorder. So when we are missing it in treatment, especially rehab,

but any treatment, it's a disaster because they're not getting what they need. And in my opinion,

all the parts need to show up as much as possible to prevent relapse because so I had sent

a DID client to a residential rehab in the early 90s. And she came back and Googled and said,

"You know, my attic never went to one group." Oh my gosh. That's the one that needed to go.

They all needed to go, but whatever. And then sometimes I think parts need some

codependency training, like black belt codependency training. So the

arts help us have a gateway into gently addressing the issues of dissociation.

Because addressing it helps the overall success of treatment. I can't tell you how many clients

I've been sent because they weren't going anywhere. They weren't making progress

without it being identified. So we'll be talking about things like that. Why it's important,

how to incorporate it, where to start a little bit. But so there'll be at least one hour of lecture,

probably not more than that. And then some just discussion about like today, what we talked about,

and like how it showed up in my practice and why I'm still doing it. And I'm delighted. I haven't done

this in a while. So I'm delighted. I have this old idea that I'm dusting off and polishing up

and bringing back to the world. And so I'm thrilled about that. Yeah, no, it sounds wonderful.

And like you said, even though yes, you're going to be talking about dissociation. It certainly seems

like there's many other opportunities to generalize that concept of the mobile into different aspects

of therapy work. Yeah, well, one last comment, I'm sorry, because I think this is important.

As you know, people who dissociate tend to have a sense of floating or lying.

So the mobile addresses that too, if you think about it. And so I think that is a wonderful mirroring

of the experience of dissociation. So that was my last comment. No, that is interesting.

And you're right. It made me think of somebody like client from my past too.

You had brought that up and didn't have any recognition. You know, didn't

had no idea. And that was like the work was talking about what was happening for them. And when it

happened, like what when were the moments that that happened and how that was a form of protection.

But yeah, like, yeah, it's exciting. Yeah. So that's going to be November 3rd, 2023, all day. And people

can find more information about your session. And any other sessions at the Expressive Therapy

Summit website, which is Expressive Therapy Summit.com. You click on virtual summit. And then you'll

go there and click on program. And you should be able to find Erica's session there and all the

others. But for folks that maybe want to learn a little bit more about you or participate in some

of the offerings that you provide. I know that you do kind of your own intensive workshops and

other speaking engagements too. Where can they find that information at Erica?

Well, first of all, people can call me. So 310-880-9761-310-880-9761. And my office is full of

thousands of figurines, the San Trea huge art table. And I have my butcher block paper mounted against

the ceiling. So people can stand up and do their life-size silhouettes or whatever they want to do

standing up, painting against the wall. It's less vulnerable feeling. It's wonderful.

My, my, I just had like a brain explosion moment thinking about that. That's such a brilliant idea.

Hanging it up high like that. I've done them and you know, we like rip them and then tape them up on

the wall. But it's always like a challenge. But to have it permanently mounted there, that's brilliant.

Really fun. And so there it's, I call it my incubator. It's my incubator office with the art table.

And I, I provide acrylics, not just for paints. I think people deserve to have good quality paint.

And the different experience, right? It is different. And it makes, it, it makes it a more

positive, successful feeling experience to the client, I think. So, so we'd even do body maps with

acrylic paint. Wow. So it's fun. And we do abstract paintings, drumming. I mean, really, I just

listened to what the client needs. And then we co-create what to do. And sometimes we go out in nature and

make art with nature. That's always fun. Yes. At the beach, it's really nice. So it's, the minimum

commitment is two half days because I believe there needs to be a day to kind of assimilate the first

day in, or to germinate. And then really, in the second day, it's quite powerful too. So yeah, sounds

awesome. And so my website is artspeaksoutlouds.org.org. So it's A-R-T-S-P-E-A-K-S-L-O-U-D.

Did I get that right? I think I forgot out. You missed out, but I didn't miss out.

But that's okay. So it's just the word artspeaksoutloud.org. And we'll put it in the show notes too.

Thank you. Thank you. Thank you so much. Thank you so much. I really appreciate you making the time

to talk to me today. And delighted. Thank you. Thanks so much for listening to this episode of the Creative

Psychotherapist podcast. I really hope that you enjoyed this conversation with Erica Scott.

Again, she brings a wealth of knowledge to the work. And I learned so much just in the short time

that I was talking with her on the show. And I am confident that she's going to deliver a really

wonderful learning experience for participants that attend her workshop. And you can learn more about

her offering and register to sign up and learn all about all of the other presentations that are

happening at the summit by heading over to www.expressivetherapysemit.com and click on the virtual

virtual summit tab. And then you'll be able to click on the East Coast Summit, which will be taking

place throughout the month of November in 2023. I'll be presenting as well. I'll be presenting on

on private practice and money and marketing as it relates to private practice. And there are so

many other incredible presenters that are going to be training this year as well. So check that out.

And if you enjoyed listening to the show and want to help us become more accessible to other

creative arts therapists in the field around the world, please do like, rate, subscribe to the show.

That will help us become more easily found when people are searching for these types of topics.

And I really appreciate your support in that. Alright, creatives, take care.

Thanks for listening to this episode of the Creative Psychotherapist. If you like what you heard,

please rate, review and subscribe wherever you listen to your favorite podcasts. For show notes,

downloads and additional resources head over to the website at www.creativecliniciansquinter.com.

The Power And Impact of Being A Connector

Fri, 22 Sep 2023 10:00:00 GMT

The Power and Impact of Being A Connector

THE POWER AND IMPACT OF BEING A CONNECTOR

When I present and mentor others on the topic of building a sustainable and thriving practice, I share on what I mean when I say, "First, or Above all Else, Be of Service."

It goes without saying that we are acting in service of your clients. But what about the other folks working within our practices? What about the collegial relationships we establish in our network? What about agencies with which we partner? What about those we train, mentor and educate ? What about the kind folks in the service industries we partake (stylists, food service, banking, etc...)?

Every single relationship we make in our community is integral to the success of our businesses. When this is done effectively, people remember and are eager to support your work as you have done for them.

I challenge myself to do is to learn as much as I can about the skills, talents, roles and goals with those I build relationships. Having this knowledge helps me to know how I can support them by identifying potential clients or colleagues with which I can connect or refer. If I hold similar knowledge of the folks around me, I'm more effective at creating win-win connections. I visualize this like a web of interconnectedness which creates our network.

Networking can feel intimidating to many. It doesn't have to feel that way. If you think of networking as a task to do to gain referrals or dollars in the bank, it will likely feel like a chore. Networking isn't about selling yourself.It is about building meaningful lasting relationships. Genuine ones.

When networking, unless someone is specifically asking me about what I do, my focus is on learning as much as I can about them and commit that information to memory. I understand that the best way to be of service when networking, is by making meaningful introductions to others who will benefit from having that knowledge. And vis-à-vis. We all benefit when we collaborate and support one another. The mental health of each member of our community is enhanced when there are multiple accessible resources to support the whole person or family system. And thus, by building this web of interconnectedness you are also better equipped to be of service to your clients and anyone else in your circle.

We know that we heal in connection . Genuine connection. We know that societies that spend time in connection live longer, healthier lives . We know that those that have strong social supports experience a greater likelihood of maintained behavioral change. It makes sense as practice owners we are responsible to create lasting connections in our community.

Do you need support building your practice? I offer consultations focused on aligned action within your business so that what you create is a reflection of your personal values and not someone else's model. Email me for a 15 minute Zoom to see if I may of service to you.

Season 2 Episode 17 | Julia Vering | Multimodal Expressive Arts with Older Adults

Wed, 20 Sep 2023 08:00:00 GMT

FEATURED GUESTS: Julia Vering is a performance artist and musician, licensed clinical social worker and Registered Expressive Arts Therapist based in Kansas City. She has integrated the arts into social work for 20 years, centering her practice in joy, humor, imagination and the strengths perspective. Vering began experimenting with video-based drama therapy techniques while working at a nursing facility in 2004, and noticed that residents with dementia had decreased agitation, increased spontaneous communication and increased joy while engaged in this improvisation. Residents loved watching themselves in the “movies” they starred in. She continued to hone this method, incorporating fill-in-the-blank scripts, green screen technology and live performance participation via video projection. She has received grants from The Charlotte Street Foundation and Andy Warhol Foundation for Visual Arts for her community-based performance work involving collaborations with older adults and people with neurocognitive disorders. Vering tours and releases albums as “Unicorns in the Snow”, a performance art project that integrates interactive projections, stop-motion animation and original music. Vering has worked in hospice and long-term care settings for the last 17 years. She opened her private practice, Expressive Arts Therapy KC in 2022, serving children through seniors individually, pediatric palliative care patients in their homes, and groups in nursing facilities. Vering's expressive arts groups engage nursing facility residents in reimagining vintage movies and musicals through improvisational play. She became the first Registered Expressive Arts Therapist in the state of Kansas in 2023 and serves as the Kansas State coordinator for the International Expressive Arts Therapy Association. She integrates expressive arts, psychodrama and EMDR into her practice, and is currently creating a workbook and film on performance art interventions for people with neurocognitive disorders.

LISTEN & LEARN:

Julia is the 1st Registered Expressive Art Therapist in Kansas.
Learn how EMDR can be easily integrated into the expressive arts therapies.
Methods of meaningfully engaging clients using interactive dramatic and videographic methods with older adults in memory care and hospice facilities.
Julia's philosophy of "Try something new, there is space for you here," to engage clients at any level or ability.

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW:

⁠https://expressiveartstherapykc.com⁠
⁠Sign up for Julia's updates on upcoming workshops and offerings.⁠
⁠https://unicornsinthesnow.com⁠
Check out Unicorns in the Snow videos below:
⁠https://www.youtube.com/@juliavering2981/featured⁠

SESSIONS AT THE SUMMIT:

Friday November 17th, 2023 9:00AM-12:00PM ⁠Green Screen Video for Everyone: Multimodal Expression & Improvisation for Joy and Inclusion⁠

In this 3-hour virtual workshop, participants will have an opportunity to explore and experience the joys of incorporating video into clinical work with diverse populations. In particular, we'll highlight a conceptual framework along with the benefits of using creative video creation with older adults and people with neurocognitive disorders. Creative Generativity, which draws from the social work strengths perspective, role theory, narrative therapy, punk ethos, and embodied cognition will be at the core of our process. Learning will be highly experiential as we create our own collective movie-based improvisation as an example of an activity that can be used with virtually any population or setting. Absolutely no video or drama experience is necessary! The only technology you will need is a bright green piece of fabric or paper for a green screen (and ideally, a tripod with smartphone mount. See details below).

Two inexpensive options for a small green screen ⁠Option 1⁠ ⁠Option 2⁠
Optional, but helpful: ⁠Tripod with smartphone mount⁠

Read the transcript below...

Hey there creatives. Thanks so much for your continued

listenership to the Creative Psychotherapist podcast. Today I am really excited to share. I know I'm always really excited to share, but

really no, I am. I'm excited to share this conversation that I had with expressive, registered expressive arts therapists and licensed clinical social worker Julia Vering and she's doing amazingly cool stuff with

video-based drama therapy techniques, screen screen technology in the work with hospice clients and adults with neurocognitive decline.

And I was just blown away and I hope you enjoy this conversation and are inspired

by the way she's making some changes to the way services are delivered

for those the aging population of people and yeah I was so inspired by this

conversation so without further ado.

Welcome! Now here's your host Raina Lombardi.

Thanks for listening to the Creative Psychotherapist podcast on your host

Raina Lombardi and I'm delighted to welcome my next guest, Julia Vering. She is a

performance artist and musician, a licensed clinical social worker and a

registered expressive arts therapist based in Kansas City. She's integrated arts

into social work for 20 years, centering her practice, enjoy, humor, imagination and the strengths perspective. Vering began experimenting with video-based drama therapy techniques while working at nursing a nursing facility in 2004 and noticed that residents with dementia had increased agitation, increased spontaneous communication and increased joy. I said increased agitation, really decreased agitation, which is what we're looking for.

Sorry about that, but they had increased joy while engaging in the improvisation. The residents loved watching themselves in the movies they starred in and she continued to hone this method, incorporating film the blank scripts, green screen technology and live performance participation via video projection. She's received grants from the Charlotte Street

Foundation and the Andy Warhol Foundation for Visual Arts for her community-based performance work involving collaborations with older adults and people with neuro-cognitive disorders.

Vering tours and releases albums as unicorns in the snow, a performance art project that

integrates interactive projections, stop-motion animation and original music.

She's worked in hospice in long-term care settings for the last 17 years and opened her

practice expressive arts therapy KC in 2022, serving children through seniors,

individually pediatric palliative care patients in their homes and groups in nursing facilities.

Her expressive arts groups engaged nursing facility residents in reimagining vintage movies

and musicals through improvisational play. She became the first registered expressive arts therapist

in the state of Kansas in 2023 and serves as the Kansas State Coordinator for the International

Expressive Arts Therapy Association. She integrates expressive arts, psychodrama and EMDR into her

practice and is currently creating a workbook and film on performance art interventions for people

with neuro-cognitive disorders. I'm so excited to talk with you today about your work.

Thank you for agreeing to do this. Thank you so much for having me and your work in getting all of us creative

people to know each other. Yeah, so I can't believe that you're the first registered expressive arts

therapist in Kansas. Yeah, this this year. Yeah, what's going on in Kansas? Oh, we need we need more

expressive arts therapists for sure. Yes. So, um, we have, I don't know how many art therapists

are music therapists we have around, but yeah, it's kind of the registered expressive arts therapist

credentials a little more of a baby compared to some of the older ones. I think it was born in the 90s.

So, yeah, I don't know. I guess I'm a Leslie grad. Oh, yeah. So, in my mind, I'm like, what?

That's impossible. 70s. How does not everybody know about this? Yeah. So, how did you get started

with like integrating drama and acting? Was that something that you were doing outside of being

a social worker? And just like that, let me check this out with my clients. Yeah, it started pretty

early because as a teenager, I knew I wanted to be a social worker and an artist and I thought

photographer at first. And essentially in college, I ended up doing an internship at a senior center.

And that's because I had worked with many different populations. I thought, oh, I haven't really worked

with seniors. I'll try it and fell in love and started doing, um, recording oral histories and

composing music to them. I switched from photography to video and music and got really into learning

about performance art in late 20th century. Composers and Lori Anderson and Miranda, got to see Miranda

July live, who's incredible. Um, Benny discipline artist filmmaker and everything else. Um, and so,

I started out as a performance artist myself. And then when I worked in my first job being a

activities assistant at a nursing facility out of college, um, I just thought, well, we've been doing

the same thing. I, you know, I looked at the calendar and I got hired. I thought they have to picture

around the calendar like every night for the last 10 years. Like I wonder if anyone else would want

to do something different since, yeah, after all. And also everyone's bored.

And there's only five people here. And so I thought, let's just do let's make a movie night.

And so I brought out the TV on the cart and I brought my ad. I have an extension collection of

extensive collection of wigs. And, um, I just thought, okay, I'm just going to bring some simple

improv scenarios. Unless you give it a world, we're going to video, we're going to just make the

movie and play it right away. No editing.

Just plug it into the TV on the cart. And I was bored late. I was bored by, I already knew the

residents, at least some of them pretty well and kind of knew what their baseline level of communication

was. And, and for some of them, it might be, you know, if I would ask them, what is your name,

it would be quite a delay. And maybe. And so with one of these residents at that kind of level,

I said, okay, you're going to a restaurant and you just realized you're in a date and you thought

you're well, and he was like, well, let me go out to the car. And I was just like, I just went on

and on and it was like, per made perfect sense. And then they brought in this other lady.

She was screaming and they, um, there's sometimes, you know, we get someone that's causing a wreckage.

And they're like, let's drop them off in activities. And so she was like, what am I to, you know, she was in a,

she had just moved in. She was like, they stole my apartment. What am I doing here? And for woman.

And so I said, okay, hold on. You can we just take a second here, your movie director.

And you just auditioned this woman and you have to tell her she didn't get the part. And I swear,

like that she was like, oh, honey, your hair is just all wrong. I was like, last. And she didn't go back

to screaming. And so and then I, you know, it was, this was an old camcorder. This is like not fancy.

I think I was in Burr, my dad's camcorder. I plugged in. I showed him the movie, you know, which had no

editing. And they were like, wow, the movie. And so I kind of thought sparked and inspired about

this full like, what is the future of video technology and performance art and like, what else is

here? And so at that level, you know, I was working a minimum wage job with a liberal arts degree.

The person, you know, I was the activities assistant, which people were like, why did you go to college

for this job? Like, are you crazy? And, you know, they said the next day when I came in after that first

time, my boss was like, everyone's talking about the movie thing, but we talked to the lawyers and you

can't do, you can't do video anymore. And so it kind of took, yeah. So it was like, okay, note to self,

get another degree. And so it took like six, you know, I did still play with a lot of drama and

improv. And let's do a puppet show and and do things that way.

But it was kind of like, okay, I've got to get a few more, I got to get another credential and and move

myself up in the ladder so that I can do this, do this kind of work the right way and get permission

and have enough, you know, credibility that I'm about the intention of this work that I can actually make it happen.

I'd such an awesome story. And I think, I mean, that's really the emergence of all of our expressive

arts disciplines, right? Somebody who has a deep connection with the art process brought it in a space

in a space where I think often humanity gets lost. Yeah. And the arts re-infuse that into the space.

And it really does wake people up in a different way. Absolutely. I talk about the dehumanization of

our healthcare system. And I'm sure you've heard people say, you know, I'd rather die than go to a

nursing facility. Yeah. And people aren't joking when they say that. And that's a problem. And I know

why they say that. Of course. But yes. And the reason I've, I mean, been able to continue to do this

work and kind of elevated and get degrees and things and now get, do it at a level that's sustainable

for me. And that's recognized is is my colleagues, my interdisciplinary colleagues, seeing the impact

of the arts on our health, patient and on the residents and vouching for it.

So are you a art? Obviously you're doing green screen technology. So you are using film now in your work.

Well, so let me say that until the pandemic I was doing, I was working for a day program for people

with early stage early, demon stage dementia. And in that program we had, so it was all green screen

video work. And so they would come in. We would start each session by watching the edited version of

what we had made the week before. And so again, people wouldn't really remember what,

necessarily what we had done. Just like it was fun, but I don't really remember which show we did or

what we did. And so being able to re-experience that joy while watching it. And then also kind of like,

well, where were we? Because it's like, oh, there's these cool backgrounds.

It's like, you know, we did foot loo. So it was like, I use the background from Save by the Bell.

So, so unfortunately the green screen work has not picked up again, but I am doing mostly nursing

facility work now without using video, although I am working on a film of to document the work and

hopefully get more people using intermodal expressive art with this population. And for people to

build off of it and play more, that's my goal. No, that's awesome. I have such respect for what you're doing.

I know it's hard to change systems. And those systems really have a very closed box. So to be able to open

it and get in there and start small and convince people like, this is worth investing in because it's

increasing these folks quality of life. And it's bringing them into the present moment where they can

live and engage in meaningful ways. That's so powerful. Absolutely. I mean, it's essential, right?

It's what makes life worth living. And not only that, you know, but identity expansion. Like there's

these old models where we kind of like stop developing at 60 and like, I'm particular.

That you can still have new experiences and expand and create new work at that age with those

conditions. It doesn't have to be doing all a single long to Frank Sinatra, although I will do that

at time. But let's make something new. Let's be frank. Let's see what Frank would do. Like let's not

just listen. Let's become it. Let's. Yeah. I think that there's something that happens in those settings

where there's there's a sensory deprivation. That occurs in a nursing facility. And if somebody's

never worked in a nursing facility and spent a lot of time there, they might not know. But even the

decor of the space, it's really, really unappealing. You know, the access to the locations, if you're

in a locked facility, you're kind of bouncing from one space to another, pacing a hallway.

And we need sensory interaction. Absolutely. Right. Of a variety of things, I think as functioning,

you know, adults out in the world where we're inside of our homes, we're outside of our homes,

we're in different environments. We are experiencing a constant flurry of sensory information,

which is important to our neural health. And then as soon as somebody is starting to experience

this decline, it seems like that's really important to be bringing in that they are still being

stimulated in these ways. And I can see how the work that you're doing, bringing in props and

and getting them to move and and watch themselves on the screen, like all of these things are really

contributing to that stimulation that they wouldn't be getting. Yeah. And the sense of community,

I had one of the residents, so I was the facility a couple of weeks ago, say like, hey, and she's

the resident council president. She's like, how often do we even know who each other are?

Like when we're not doing this group, we don't talk to each other, we don't know each other. Like so it's also

community building. And I, you know, when I started out as an activities assistance, it was like, well,

the people on hospice, they need one on one. So I would go, you know, revolution on their hands and

do do your abbie and all those things. But really, there's, I mean, there's some reasons that clinically

people need to our bedbound or something. But for the most part, not really. And so that same person

that would be stuck in a one on one, which means like more time in their room could come out and be

in my group. And even if they are nonverbal, quote, quote, quote, they can absolutely be a part in a play

and take care of the baby or be used the dog puppet or, you know, smile and mouth some words as I'm

putting the microphone to their lips. Like all of those things. But if we don't try, we're not,

we're going to find out. Yeah. So true. So so true. It's easy to just say, oh, that person, that person

is mute or not even give them the opportunity. I think that happens to with young people as well.

Right. Like, oh, well, you know, they stopped talking. So why are you asked, why are you inviting them to

speak? I hear that from the, you know, the teenagers I work with who are on palliative care services

about, yeah, the isolation and how they're treated, you know, as being like a wheelchair user. Like,

yeah, that it's, I mean, as if being a teenager wasn't isolating enough period and then to have that

and then the pressure, the same pressure to have the certain body and all those things, you know,

so yeah, there's, and we can't afford to do that, right? Like, there's going to be the 2040,

the number of one in five Americans is going to be over 65 by 2035. There's going to be more older

adults than kids. So we can't continue to let like working with people with disabilities or older

adults be kind of a fringe issue. Like in my master's level program for aging, you know, master's

social work, but aging, I think with their 10 people, like with the tiniest group, no one wants to study

aging, but it's so much fun and it can be new and creative and fun and there's so much there.

These, I mean, this work feeds my soul. Like, it's, there, there's a lot of people that are overlooked that

have so much to offer and we can't afford to just ignore that. Yeah, I, that, I know I've read that

statistic somewhere, but just hearing you say it, it's shocking. And what does that mean? Because

I feel like, well, that's going to be me. I'm going to be that aging person. And, you know,

are there, are there going to be people like you that are engaging us in meaningful engagement,

meaningful interaction for self and, and connection with others? Yeah, because our approach to just,

well, let's turn on the TV and everybody kind of gathers around the TV. It's so depressing.

Yeah, it is. I'd rather be in dirty dancing. We did last week.

I'd rather be pretending I'm Patrick Swayze. So yeah, then watching. Yeah.

Absolutely. So how, like, how do you go about building the relationships with the different

nursing facilities? And kind of I'm sure there's an education process that you go when you're saying,

okay, I'm going to partner with this facility to provide the service for them. Can you kind of walk

listeners who might be interested in doing something similar? Like, what is that process like?

And are there any suggestions for what they should prepare to present to the decision-makers in those

facilities? Yes, very good question. And I am very lucky right now in that. So before I started my

private practice, I was full-time employed by Kansas City Houses, like the oldest Houses in Kansas

City nonprofit. And I, as well, first as a social worker and then as an expressive therapist,

and started doing some groups in that role. And then so basically, once I decided I was going on my

own, I had a lot of support from my team that were like, we still need to do it. We still need

this expressive multimodal expressive arts work. Like, we are, this is the impact we see on our

patients faces. We see them come alive. And so they advocated.

So I turned that into, I have a contract with Kansas City Hospice and they fund and support the program.

And we already have relationships with the facility. And so, you know, actually one of the facilities

I was at this week, I used to work at, I worked at for three and a half years. So sometimes it's like,

I already know people and it's a small world. But, and so I just kind of put together a really simple one page piece of,

you know, very colorful and fun with all the different characters I play. But also like, hey, this is

what this program is. It increases joy. It increases communication, sense of community,

sense of meaning. These groups are completely inclusive of all levels and abilities.

And basically, these were the benefits for your residents. And at first they're like, what are you doing?

I was like, I still, I'm pretty honest. I could still work on my schedule a little bit. But,

I explained, you know, I've been doing this work a long time. I'm in a registered expressive arts

service. I love this population. This is my jam. And then it kind of builds like the first time I

might come to a facility, be like, what? And, you know, you get that, like you just said, you know,

well, that resident can't do that part or like, yeah, he can't really, that they can't do the thing.

And I just kind of politely smile and ignore this.

Go ahead and give them a role anyway. And sometimes it can be a role. That's the main role.

So we're not trying to like recreate this world of exclusion where we're like, okay,

and now that we have a small group, the people that aren't as verbal also don't get parts here.

Absolutely not the paradigm we're trying to recreate here. And so then once they see like

all the residents can do when they're like, what? Oh, you're going to perform. I'm like, no,

the residents in I are performing for each like with each other. They are playing parts like what?

And it takes my heart. And once they see what the residents can do and how they come alive and

then they, you know, the residents will talk to each other too. And then the groups will get bigger.

And people remember like, oh, I played this person last time and I did this. Oh, I want the drums again

or no, I want the baby. Don't I want that puppet? I want that puppet again. And like I had to,

you know, and it just grows and evolves. And it's like get to know each, you know, I'll learn each

resident a little bit and know like what they're strengths. Or I know that, okay, that woman is deaf.

And I had trouble at a group not too long ago, not trouble. That's not the right word. But I had

struggle connecting at time. I mean, with in a group where she, yeah, I was trying to use like

read my lips and write, anyway, we weren't we were struggling. And then last time I went in there,

I gave her the big puppet, this big huge puppet. And she was just like, oh, look at her dance,

look at her dance. And like all of a sudden she was in the group through the puppet, she was completely

in the group smiling looking at me, but also like, pausing at times when it was appropriate.

And completely engaged, even though she could not hear what was happening and didn't know that we were

necessarily doing dirty dancing. It didn't really matter. But she was completely engaged in her role.

And I had never seen her light up like that before. And I could just see watching

staff watch her. Oh, she's so powerful. So watch like, yeah, she, and then you know, anyway, it's so many

magical moments every time. I love it. So yeah, I guess, okay, my other, I didn't really answer your question.

The activity director is usually the person, you know, every facility is mandated. Like,

at least if there is skilled nursing facility to have activities and have an activity director,

which has some qualifications. So now whether or not they have one at the moment, that's another question.

But so there's systems already in place in all these places, some better than others.

And most of these places really need and want different things. I mean, more things. Like they,

you know, bingo only goes so far. So I think there's so much opportunity to, I would say also

you know, every facility has a social worker. So you could meet with the social work team because

they're the ones that are really monitoring the residents, you know, psychological mental health

issues through this mandated assessments. And all the screenings they need to do. So it's a win,

win for everybody that they can, you know, if you have a program you want to bring in like,

there, this is a, there's a lot of opportunities there. And if you get no, keep going. Because even if

you're offering, I hate to say that even if you're offering something that is not costing the

facility anything, many times you will still have to make many calls and track people down. It's not

the most well-oiled machine. So but don't despair. You will find like, there is going to be there's

tons of facilities. You'll find one. You'll get the right activity director on the phone that

hears what you're offering and can like, and knows the value. And it may not be every director.

And even if they don't know the value, it's okay. The residents know the value when you get in there.

Even if the activity person walks away and doesn't see the whole thing because I'm too busy.

The residents give you the feedback you need. Yeah, that's powerful. So connecting with the activities

director and the social work department and providing that with some education about how express

of our therapies can connect and wake in the lives of the residents so that they're engaged in their day.

Which I think facilities want to see that. Yes. In theory. No, they do. They do. They do. It's just

not always knowing how to do it. And I will say like on facilities behalf, I do not want to be saying anything.

But I mean, with especially, you know, facilities funded by Medicaid, which pays less than it requires

to take care of somebody. It is just not. It's a broken system. It's a really bad system. So

it's a really difficult system to work in. And there's a lot of equity issues with the way

certified nursing aids are paid and that the work, you know, they're doing back breaking work.

And the extra assistance typically don't get offered a lot of education on

will really, I'd say some facilities do a good job. Most probably don't do the greatest job.

So there's there's just real opportunity there. Yeah. And important. It's important work too.

I I living in Southwest Florida, there's an assisted living facility or skilled nursing facility

like every block everywhere you go, right? There's so many are aging population is large. And

and the need is there for sure. And I know that, you know, that's not just here. I mean, we have a

lot of retirees here, but it's right. I know the other stat was like, what is it? The number of adults

age 85 and older, the group most often needing help with personal care and the nursing facilities

will quadruple from 2000 to 2040. So the old old, they don't dare to tell us, there's like old, old,

and I can just call it like different types of old because you know, a 60 year old and a 90 year old,

that's a different generation that's not. So these these groups too, I mean, the people that live in

these facilities, it's a heterogeneous. This is not like, and depending on the facility too.

So I know, you know, for one facility, dirty dancing is going to work better than pajama game or whatever,

just based on the age, the demographics, all those things. Yeah. You must have a

excellent survey of like soundtracks in your mind for all of these different generations of people.

Yeah. And with, you know, technology, it's like, what do you want to hear? Like they can pick.

So yeah, if they, you could, if you want to do this song, you know, we'll go next. Yeah.

Oh, that's wonderful. Yeah. So I know you're out in the field doing the community work, but you also have

a practice. How do you balance that? How do you balance the two? Yeah, it's taken a minute to figure out.

But I, so I do the groups, the nursing facility groups working hospice one day a week, and then I do

private practice three days a week. And I've found that I can only see 12 to 15 max to feel okay and not

feel too stressed and feel sane. And like I have enough time to prepare and really think about everybody.

And then I kind of preserve up Fridays for like my own therapy work and peer, peer support. And

that's kind of how I've made my week work. And it so far it's working really well. And it really,

I kind of need both. Like I really like doing the individual work as well and integrating expressive

arts with EMDR and and using a lot of psychodrama and working with very different populations than I do

in the nursing facility. And I find I kind of, I really, I couldn't place it in an office more than

three days a week either. Like that would be a challenge for me. So having this balance right now kind of

feels kind of perfect for me, but it took a minute to figure out exactly where to put all the pieces and

all those things. So the spice is the variety of my life.

So I found that I don't think I could do private practice more than three days a week.

I didn't even know that going in, but I just got okay. So I got to yeah, contract with my

former employer one day a week. And then so I just, they worked out, but yeah, I know for

sure now I don't I know people do private practice five days a week and and people see like insane

amounts of clients. I just I know I can't I'm not that person. Yeah, that's okay. I agree. I'm not that person either.

Like my my case load is small. And I do a lot of like colleagues supervision. Right. Some supervision work.

I also do some contracted groups in the community.

And I agree. Like I like that movement. Right. It keeps it keeps it challenging. It keeps things

interesting. And it prevents that I love a routine. But having that routine day in day out, if it

gets boring, then oh, that's not good for me. Yeah. Yeah. It's not good. It's not good for you.

Yeah. No. Right. I think that there's something about, you know, being a creative person that

we are drawn to a lot of diversity in what we're doing. Yeah. To sit and do like

office work all day every day. That would be way too hard.

Yeah. I also try to throw in a little bit of my own work now. I kind of my own, you know,

performance art, art work, personal process. And sometimes that's collaborative at other times.

It's not. And working on our starting a new performance art project. My sister just gave me back

this amazing Barbie apartment. It's like this little cute thing that folds out and it's got like

a the murpy bed that folds down. So anyway, I'm playing around with some stop motion animation and

floor projections. It's going to be called the worm.

And it's going to be in a multi multi-dimensional projection kind of I do all this work with like hand to

mimeing with projections moving and making things bigger and smaller. And yeah, creating a surreal kind of experience through different modalities. Sounds incredible. Yeah. So it's important to have that time for you too.

As just being a performer and helping others perform, that's a tremendous energy output.

That, you know, if you're just sitting and engaging one on one, there's energy output. But when you're

orchestrating a whole group and and you're performing in that, that it's a whole performance in itself,

what you're doing, that definitely takes a lot and it makes sense that you.

Yeah, I couldn't do it more than one day a week actually the way I do it right now because you're

right of the physical energy. And also I have already thought about adaptations as a good older,

but I, you know, like right now I'm always most of my group is in wheelchairs and I'm walking around,

but I'm also like squatting a lot and kneeling and I'm always it's like I'm engaging each one one

on one and the group and kind of going back and forth and checking in with people and going back

and forth. So it's I am always drenched in sweat at the end. Plus I'm usually wearing a wig and

polyester costume. Yeah. It is physically physical. Yeah.

So it's nice to have like that really fit not that it's not also emotional, everything else, but doing

that is very different than sitting and doing EMDR with, you know, complex trauma. It's just it's

nice to be able to move back and forth. Yeah, for sure. I love the EMDR process so much. And I only

recently took the training to start doing it earlier this year, but I feel like I'm just going down

a rabbit hole in just learning as much as I can. And there's so much to learn and there's so many ways

of adapting it with the creative process.

So many with like using guitar for bilaterals, and you're like, fuck, fuck, drums, you know, just yeah, doing an inner weave with a little bit of a chi move. I yeah, there's so many actually I would put a plug in for the, I need to say this right. The trauma informed practices and expressive arts therapy institute. So that's Kathy McLeodies

center and they're doing a lot of really cool. I'm actually in the middle of training right now on

it's all EMDR phase two sensory integration. And it's like, oh phase two is like can be there's

a million ways to containment and not one can just one container it's taught by Kathy McLeodie

and Elizabeth Morrison. And anyway, they have a lot of really great way kind of integrating EMDR

and arts and really drilling down on all these different ways to expand different the different

phases and really yeah, that it's much more complicated than it's that people make it.

Now it sounds great. I know lots of people are integrating like physical movement, you know dance,

you know movement with using the sand tray in the sand and there's just I feel like so many different

applications. I thought Dr. Jamie Marich for she has institute for creative mindfulness. She

came to Kansas City a little while ago for an EMDR training and did a demo where the demo ended

up inside the full EMDR phase. I guess seven because it wasn't no evaluation but I'm a stand-up

comedy routine was weaved into the EMDR and it was standard protocol but integrating yeah and

that just happens spontaneously. My jaw is kind of dropping. That sounds incredible. Yeah and it

just happened. I mean it wasn't like a planned thing like we're going to show you how to do this.

It was just it just happened. So it was like yeah I don't want to reveal too much more about it but

anyway so that that's possible. You can do a standard protocol EMDR and we've been in a stand-up

comedy routine. That's that's so awesome. Yeah the more the more I learn the more I want to learn

it's just it's such a it's so effective one and I love I just love the aspect of the the creativity

our own creativity that's doing all the work for us. Yeah like the imagery you know I've received

the MDR training and I'm receiving it now like integrated from an art therapist EMDR person and

that's another big belief in mine is like receive receive receive you will learn so much more if you

receive yes the modality I'm receiving psychodrome 2 and that's like I buy it someone that's

faculty at Hudson Valley.

Psychodrome Institute and luckily she lives in Kansas and so I just

am so lucky so that has been like honestly just as big a part of my training is doing classes is

doing it receiving from the other end and yeah just these wonderful images that can come

from doing that work that are so healing. So so healing is true that's how I got interested was I

was doing it myself and I was like I have to learn how to do this and and we got to a place and she's

like well you know think you know what do you want to do I was like oh I'm not done yet.

I mean you're not getting rich I mean that you see no I've got more I've got more stuff to do we

just unpacked a little bit. Yeah yeah I know yeah I can I love I mean I think it's so important to

keep doing our own work because I can just it helps me relate when you know clients are like

dang I'm still here and I'm like I know what you mean. Like I mean I'll play some I'm still here

in the same place but it's like yeah it's it's not some our inner healing work isn't just one

and done and it's not like once you've gone to graduate school for therapy that all of a sudden like

you don't work. You don't need to do anymore. Yeah especially yeah life long. Absolutely.

Right like you were saying that whole like identity development piece that okay you've reached you've

reached you know you're seeing your years you're done growing no way there's there's still so much

work to do even as we are getting older and are we're still able to learn and and let go and

release and integrate different things that perhaps in a different time of life we weren't able to

it's yeah it's ongoing. I slipped the other day and I said how did it feel like kind of go my

ending thing is kind of checking in with each person and saying like how was it to be in this role

and kind of derolling and what are you taking with you and I modify that depending on the person

and I said what was it like to be a young dancer again I don't know why I said again but she was like well

and she looked probably she think she's in her 90s she was like well I I never was a young dancer so it

was just totally new.

That was just like you're right this is about new experiences it's not about reliving the past like we're

creating new memories and new experiences we're bringing in stuff that we have from the past but

we're not stuck back there. I love that that is so cool so I know you were

talking about you're going to be creating a workbook yeah and a film can you share a little bit about

where you are in progress for that and how that's coming along because I think that would be just

a tremendous resource for the community especially for folks that really do want to work with the

aging population using the expressive arts because there's not there's not a tremendous amount

of literature out there on that population.

Yeah there really isn't and yeah given the stats it just doesn't make sense so so my workbook

I've been working on it for about a year and a half and I've been

kind of like essentially operationalizing each of my groups that I do based on the different

movies and and shows so it'll be like people's court the musical and so basically where I'm at

and I'm going to self-publish and I'm kind of now working on more of the conceptual part which is like

this you know what is this new model of the creative generativity and and incorporating digital

and identity expansion so that I would say it's probably a year out though honestly and and then

the film hopefully will be done sooner it's quite a process as you can imagine to get permission

so even you know when I was doing the day program or it was a much smaller group of people

just kind of honestly even finding the right person to talk to on the board took six months

so I'm in the middle of getting some consent and I have a local filmmaker that's going to do the

the actual shooting for me and then I'm going to edit it all and hope to get that out as soon as I

can but it's still I would say that's another place it's month or so because seeing is believing because

you really need to see I can explain it all I want and but to be able and there's there's one

video up there right now on Facebook of me doing during dancing the other week but I really you need

to see the face and the expression and what I'm seeing so I'm excited to capture that here soon and

yeah I posted I would say that that then becomes a resource for other people too to say why don't you

check out Julia's film on this topic to see right if this kind of work might work in this facility.

I think it becomes you know a ripple effect yeah absolutely practitioners and then the participants

yeah I mean I could probably talk for 10 years but you could probably see seeing a few minute video clip

would probably be more effective in the relationship and understanding I mean that of course the

explanation is important too but I mean seeing is believing so to be able to see people come alive

in this very visceral way is is an important part of the work I'm being able to capture that

I I also think and I'm certainly not suggesting but maybe that it would be amazing for you to

mentor other people that are wanting to do this work that they you've been doing it for so long

I'm sure you have techniques and approaches that help you get in there and get the clients to do

things that other people are like you're a magician that you do that yes.

I would love to do that and I'm always like encouraging the activities assistance I work with

I'm like like the other day one of them actually kind of took over when we're doing people's

court for a minute and I was like this is exactly what I want them to do I want them to take over

and you know I can give them I mean they

need guidelines and things like that but like it's kind of unrealistic that there's going to be

enough reach you know like right so like we yeah we need more people doing it so yeah mentoring if

there's anyone else out there that's listening that's like working also working on a workbook or

in a similar vein and wants to like harder editing or just share ideas like I'm all about just

like let's talk about our work and what you're doing what I'm doing and yeah so supervision and all

those things I mean I can do read supervision and you know LCSW supervision and yeah so I there's

more people yeah I definitely need more people.

I've done some teaching but not that's not really my main thing so I'll do I'm hoping to present

like conferences like finish the film so yes I think that you need to present at the expressive

therapy summit conference I love I love I love their summit it's so good yeah and the work that you're

doing it's like all all the people that you know want to do that kind of stuff that's worth or

they're going to be to be a perfect fit yeah yeah so I know I was already planning after our

conversation to suggest that Barry reach out to you yeah but yeah and gosh once you have

your film to like show other people what's possible.

I think yeah and I should say I do have I mean like I don't have documentation

of the work I'm doing at this moment but I do have other work up online like on my website

unicorns and the snow.com and expressive art therapy kc.com that's more my clinical work but I do have

you can get on there I mean there's Google my name Julia Vera and green screen videos and you'll

see them on YouTube and and see what I'm talking about with not the nerd with a similar population but

more people that are still living in the community so it's it's different I mean it's a different

population slightly than what I'm doing now but but you can see you can see oh what do we have

our renditions of Greece and but loose and oh I don't back to the future 2020.

So check it out check I will I will definitely check it out and I'll put some links in the

show notes to the videos and of course unicorns in the snow and and then your practice is expressive

arts therapy kc.com if there's any harding wisdom that you could give to an up incoming

expressive arts therapist who wants to work with the aging population integrating

you know creativity and drama and music what would what would you give them what advice would you

give them I would say we have a great opportunity here in the risk of

doing something new and trying something new.

Bringing in something new and what that might be is is what what could happen for trying to work in new ways is much lower than leaving things as they are we can't we can't so we need new work new ideas and some you know within limits some risk taking as far as trying things and being willing to safely fail we don't want our clients to fail but

it's okay if what we try doesn't totally work out the first time like it's okay yeah as long as we're

taking care of people and keeping people safe like try try something new because we really need some

novelty in in this area yeah totally there's space for you there's space for you there's plenty of work

to do here yeah awesome thank you so much it's for all you do it's been a joy to talk to you and to see

how your face light up with all the passion that you have for the work that you do which is really

important thank you so much rain I keep up all your good work to bringing us all together thank you

I'm planning on it there are times where I'm like I don't know if I have the energy to do this podcast

anymore but then I'm like nope.

I took a break I took a nice long break in the summer and now I'm like

I'm it's been so rejuvenating talking with people this week because this is a first week I'm recording

again and I just learned so much from all the people like yourself that I talk to and I think it helps

me to be a better therapist at what I do by having these conversations so thank you thank you

thanks so much for listening to the Creative Psychotherapist podcast I hope you enjoyed this

conversation with Julia and myself I again I just I'm so inspired by the work that she's doing

and I think that it holds great potential for future growth I know where I'm at it is in such need diverse

diverse programming that really meets the psycho developmental needs of the aging population is

there's a deficit in this area even though there are so many facility.

so I just loved our conversation and I really look forward to seeing what else she does and her contributions

the film that she's creating about the work that she's been doing and the workbook to help other

people go out and do similar types of programming in their area and locale anyway if you enjoyed

this conversation and the other conversations that you hear on the show we would greatly appreciate

and I use the term we because it's not just me even though I'm the host there are other people that

help make this show possible that I couldn't do it without them and so I use that the term we

we would really appreciate if you would rate subscribe provide feedback or review so other people

can find us to all right have a creative rest of your day thanks for listening to this episode of

the creative psychotherapist if you like what you heard please rate review and subscribe wherever

you listen to your favorite podcasts for show notes downloads and additional resources head over

to the website at www.creativecliniciansquinter.com

VFTS 2023 8 | Kathleen Horne & Tamara Teeter Knapp | Expressive Arts: A Personal & Professional Guidance System

Tue, 19 Sep 2023 08:00:00 GMT

FEATURED GUESTS: Kathleen Horne, M.A. LMHC, Registered Expressive Arts Therapist (REAT), Registered Expressive Arts Consultant Educator (REACE) has been a psychotherapist since 1980 and an expressive arts therapist since 1996. She has a M.A. in Counseling from University of South Florida, and a Graduate Certificate in Expressive Arts Therapy from California Institute of Integral Studies. Her training and practice in expressive arts has been life-changing, both personally and professionally. Kathleen is Co-Founder and Core Faculty of Expressive Arts Florida Institute, and, since 2011 has been training students in the field of Expressive Arts, as well as offering a wide variety of workshops and community programs. She believes that expressive arts is a wisdom practice, and is dedicated to living and sharing the transformational gifts it offers. She is a visual artist, with a love and life-long practice of creating mandalas. Kathleen divides her time between Sarasota, FL, and Cortes Island B.C. She has been a board member of IEATA since 2007, and is proud to be the recipient of the IEATA Shining Star award for 2023.

FEATURED GUESTS: Tamara Teeter Knapp, MA, REACE, Mental Health Counselor Intern, Certified K-12 Art has 20+ years’ experience educating others through the arts. She is co-founder and core faculty at Expressive Arts Florida Institute and began her teaching career as a Waldorf teacher in 1997 in Alaska before relocating to Florida where she taught art and elementary education. Tamara continues to value the integration of arts in education and has been training others in the field of expressive arts for ten years. Since earning a master’s in mental health counseling, she has worked to integrate her extensive experience and knowledge of expressive arts in her clinical work. Tamara continues to develop her interest in body-based intermodal processes that integrate theories in neuroscience and creative modalities. The focus of her work is to help others to discover the healing and transformative power of their own creativity.

LISTEN & LEARN:

The origin story of Expressive Arts Florida.
Accessible learning opportunities to become a Registered Expressive Arts Therapist.
How Kathleen & Tamara define self-compassion and use the arts to practice it.
How they use collaboratively use the expressive arts as part of business administration and development.

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW:

www.expressiveartsflorida.com

SESSIONS AT THE SUMMIT:

Thursday November 16th, 2023 10:00AM-1:00PM Cultivating Self-Compassion Through Expressive Arts Practice

Cultivating Self-Compassion, an experiential intermodal expressive arts session for all counselors and therapists, offers an opportunity to build skills of self-compassion using imagination and expressive media. Drawing upon imagery and contemplative practice, participants will identify ways to provide self-compassion in response to emotional pain and difficulty. They will discover a creative approach to working with themselves and others to provide tools of self-compassion that contribute to healing and growth. Through the introduction of simple expressive arts practice, participants will consult their own inner knowing and be guided through a simple, nourishing experience that can easily be taught to their clients in treatment in virtually any clinical setting. Participants in this 3-hour virtual workshop will be invited to share the gifts that their images bring, connect within and in community, as well as witness their own and others' compassionate presence.

Read the full transcript below...

Hey there creatives, I'm excited to bring another bonus episode of the voices from the

expressive therapy summit series to you today.

This episode I am speaking with Kathleen Horn and Tamra Teter Knapp who are expressive arts therapists and they own and operate expressive arts Florida, which is just north of me in the Sarasota area.

And I've been following them for years mostly because in where I live there's just so few

businesses that are focused on the expressive arts that when I learned about what they were

doing, I was immediately interested and really was looking at oh they have great speakers

coming into town.

Unfortunately, I was never able to go up, but I also knew that they were providing

an opportunity for folks to learn how to do this work in a format that allows somebody

to obtain the registered expressive arts therapy credential through the International Expressive Arts Therapy Association.

Which I think is a really amazing opportunity because people want to know how to do this

work or like what the educational requirements are often and a lot of times it feels inaccessible. And this was really accessible because it's so close by.

Anyway, they are going to be presenting at the upcoming virtual expressive therapy summit

November 16th from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. and they're going to be talking about cultivating self

compassion through their expressive arts practice.

You can join in from wherever you are in the world because it's going to be virtual.

And honestly, it sounds like an amazing opportunity to feed yourself, to feed your soul, to engage in meaningful creative practice that taps into your creative flow and inner wisdom.

And I hope that you enjoy this conversation that I have with both of them, which really

talks about their process.

And one of the things that I found so inspiring about their work is how they're so true to their

value of using the expressive arts as a way of knowing, being and working in the world.

And hopefully you'll hear that kind of come full circle in the conversation.

Welcome.

Now here's your host, Raina Lombardi.

Thanks for listening to the Creative Psychotherapist podcast. I'm your host, Raina Lombardi. And I'm super excited to welcome my next two guests. I'm kind of fan-girling a little bit right now. I've known about their work for quite some time and so I'm so excited to talk with them and share their work with you.

So my guests are Kathleen Horn, who is a licensed mental health counselor.

She's a registered expressive arts therapist, a registered expressive arts consultant educator

and has been a psychotherapist since 1980 and an expressive therapist since 1996.

She is a master's in counseling from University of South Florida and a graduate certificate

in expressive arts therapy from California Institute of Integral Studies.

Her training and practice in expressive arts has been life changing both personally and professionally.

Kathleen is the co-founder and core faculty of expressive arts Florida Institute.

And since 2011, she's been training students in the field of expressive arts as well as

offering a wide variety of workshops and community programs. She believes that expressive arts is a wisdom practice and is dedicated to living and sharing

the transformational gifts that it offers.

She's a visual artist with a life-long practice and love of creating mandalas. Kathleen divides her time between Sarah Soda, Florida and Cortez Island, British Columbia.And she has been a board member of IEDA, the International Express of Arts Therapy Association

since 2007 and is the proud recipient of the IEDA Shining Star Award for 2023.

Wow, congratulations, Kathleen, that's awesome.

And Tamara Napp, who also is a registered expressive arts consultant educator, a mental

health counselor intern, and a certified K through 12 art educator with 20 plus years experience educating others through the arts.

She's the co-founder and core faculty at expressive arts Florida Institute and began her teaching career as a Waldorf teacher in 1997 in Alaska before relocating to Florida where she taught art and elementary education.

Tamara continues to value the integration of the arts and education and has been training

others in the field of expressive arts for 10 years. Since earning a master's in mental health counseling, she has worked to integrate her extensive experience and knowledge of expressive arts and her clinical work.

Tamara continues to develop her interest in body-based intermodal processes that integrate theories of neuroscience and the creative modalities. The focus of her work is to help others discover the healing and transformative power of their own creativity.

Thank you both so much for being here.

Thank you so much. So both of you are going to be teaching at this year's virtual East Coast Expressive Therapy Summit and you're going to be teaching on the art of self-compassion through expressive arts practice.

Can we first start off Kathleen by talking about what is self-compassion?

Well that's a great question to begin with. Thank you so much. When I think of self-compassion and I think of self-compassion within the context of expressive

arts, I think about being a loving witness to ourselves and bringing that spirit of bearing

witness holding space to ourselves, to our own inner life, to our struggles, our challenges,

our accomplishments, to give ourselves the gift of what we as compassionate people and

therapists and teachers give so easily and readily to another.

Tamara, anything to add to that definition?

Well I love that phrase I wrote down, loving witness and something that I think is very

true about self-compassion.

I know that I look at self-compassion too through the lens of like Christen Neff which really includes mindfulness, self-kindness.

I was not just about, I mean compassion includes kindness, being kind to ourselves and common humanity, right, connecting these three things.

So when we turn toward something with self-compassion, we connect within ourselves, acknowledging and being kind and mindful of whatever is that's tender.

And when we connect then within ourselves in that way, we can also connect to others in. that way. And so there's this beautiful like loop, right, that happens. And so it's like turning towards something that is needed with kindness and love and offering

that back to ourselves.

I love that, I love that. I too love the phrase loving witness, being a loving witness. It's often we don't allow ourselves to witness our own process in the same way that we

might do for others.

And yet when we do, it really makes a big difference. Yeah, I could kind of see the loop from within like your heart space out to the other person's heart space through that process.

Do either of you have a your own kind of method or ritual with your art's practice that

integrates that regularly? Tomorrow shaking her head, yes. Yeah, of course.

Yeah. Well, I do. And that is something I've come to, I've begun to practice, which is when I'm feeling a little bit, and that's really I think what this teaching or experience will be in the

summit about is that when I identify that they're for myself that there's something, like I

said, that's feeling tender that is I'm having some difficulty with.

I first then I kind of ask, what is the need?

And what is it that I need?

And, and then I offer that need some compassion in a sense and offer it back to you.

And the way that I often identify what it is I need is through my art practice.

So something's negalling at me, right?

What is going on here?

I can't seem to settle or I'm feeling agitated or just kind of whatever, I don't know.

And I create around in my practice maybe create an image or do some movement or sound.

And it just depends on that, you know, the time and what I'm what I'm grappling with.

And then from that place, then I can offer back what it is that I feel meets that need,

right?

And sort of offer that back to myself.

So, a regular art practice for me is really about that being present to what is arriving

within me and offering myself the compassion that I need.

And then it does really help to meet the need that's being called calling me.

There's like some honoring there.

There's honoring your space and time to allow yourself to discover what that is and then respond to it in a way that is meaningful and attends to what's happening in that moment.

Yeah.

Kathleen, how about you?

Do you have your own method that maybe similar, maybe different? Yeah. Tamara's? Yes, I do. I've never, I didn't start doing this as a way to cultivate self-compassion, but my

arts practice certainly does.

And picking up on what Tamara has said about being present for ourselves, I find what

I, what I do mostly in my expressive arts practice is I just make it a habit to come to my

space, to sit down, to take a few moments, to connect with the earth and connect with my

heart and connect with that what I call ever present, ever abundant creative flow.

Remember that it's there. Remember that it's wise and open my heart to that. And then just it usually open my journal sketchbook and make an image. It's usually not anything that I recognize from the outer world.

It's colors and shapes on the paper and usually a mystery.

But I don't try to figure it out.

I give it a voice then. So sometimes I'll move to it, take the energy and move my body, often without even getting up out of my chair.

And then I'll write and I usually write from the voice of the image.

So I start with I am or I know.

And then somehow my image speaks and I just write down whatever it says.

And what happens for me is that through that practice I am staying connected with myself.

Right?

I am staying current with what's going on inside of me. And when I don't do that, when I feel like I'm too busy or I'm too this or I'm too that and I find myself moving away from that practice, that's when things start to build up internally that I feel like I need to really consciously pay attention to.

Right?

Yes.

A lot of wisdom that you just shared there is so easy to for us in our current state.

So I think that's the kind of society how fast pace things are to fall victim to that.

Like I don't have time to take care of me.

I don't have time to carve out the space to take care of my needs, which I think there

is a need.

There is an inherent need for all of us to express ourselves creatively. Yes. I believe that.

So we don't give ourselves your right.

We don't give ourselves that time at it hurts. Yes.

And you know, it's sort of like Tamara was talking about that loop.

Right? And we can't leave ourselves out of that loop. We have to nourish and feed ourselves.

And I don't expect it's this way for everybody, but for me, it's through my creative practice

that really feeds, feeds that need for being aware and mindful and a witness to myself.

Yes.

Yeah, it also sounds like not just being that witness to yourself, but it's also about

refueling yourself and making sure that you have the energy resources to be able to extend from your heart to other people that you're helping and being with.

Yes.

Absolutely.

Yeah. So what are you going to be doing in the three hour workshop with attendees that go to

the summit and participate in the self-compassion training that you're offering there?

Well, we will be doing a very, is it will be a very, very, very experiential process that

will offer that will be simple, a simple express of our process, but again, really with

that focus of how do we turn towards something that is in need and offer self-compassion to need that need?

So in expressive arts, we use all the many different arts modalities, not necessarily all of them every time, but in the experience, we will guide very, very carefully and gently guide

everyone through a process that will include several different arts modalities to identify

the need that they have.

Practice they'll be able to repeat again, right?

So in that moment, focusing on the moment and somebody that might be present in that moment, how do I identify that, express that, and then offer that, offer some self-compassion around that.

And then one of the things that's very powerful in the whole process, I think, is the witnessing

piece, Kathleen was just thinking about.

We always, we have, basically, a five-step approach in the way that we work.

And one of the parts of that is distinct and that is witnessing.

And that's really the piece.

So that will be part of the process as well.

And I think by offering self-compassion to ourselves in the process, and then witnessing

one another will actually be able to receive that sense of feeling seen and heard by ourselves

and one another.

And so it will be an interactive, you know, experiential process.

That will be something that they can do again and again for themselves. And also those who are attending will be able to, I think, pretty easily translate to their-- you know, to clients they're working with or other implications.

Yeah.

Kathleen, for folks that are listening, that maybe they identify as their modality as music,

they do music therapy, or maybe they're a drama therapist, but they haven't had exposure to the intermodal process.

Could you mind sharing how that differs from, say, just distinctly another creative or

expressive arts therapy approach?

I know I'm familiar because that's -- I went to Leslie and -- and that's their thing and I love it.

But for listeners that maybe aren't as familiar.

Or that's just such an important question and it's a big question. And I guess I -- what I'll try to do is I'll try to answer it in a concise way.

Sure.

So I think that in intermodal or multi-modal two phrases that are often used interchangeably, although we think there are distinctions between them.

In intermodal work, it's kind of like where the power is is in what we sometimes refer

to as that thread of creative expression that moves through different modalities if we

learn how to listen, right?

So it doesn't really -- as a practitioner or a therapist, we have to have familiarity with

all of the modalities. We have to be able to kind of traverse that area -- all the areas, but we do not have to be experts in all the modalities.

And truth be told, most expressive arts therapists and practitioners, we have modalities that are most natural to us.

I'm very grounded in visual art and in writing and Tamra is really grounded in movement

and visual art.

So we have our places of maybe beginning and returning to, but we also have that enough

familiarity to be able to follow that thread and to see in a person that we're working

with.

What is their modality?

Just their language might show that they're a very auditory person or they might be using

their hands a lot and so they're already moving and showing us that movement might be a really good place to start, right?

They might be like, I'm always like looking up when I'm thinking, like, I'm looking up when

I'm thinking and I'm very visual, right?

I'm also very kinesthetic.

So it's sort of becoming attuned to how that thread of creativity moves through myself

and anyone that I'm working with, how it moves through a group, right?

So we become attuned to what sort of invitations to offer as places to start and then each, you know, we watch children, they don't distinguish, right? They're dancing around while they're telling a story, you know, or they're singing while they're painting.

And, you know, that's, but we forgot that, you know, because in our culture, the arts

have been divided up, right?

And that's fine. It's not there's anything wrong with that, but this is kind of reclaiming that thread of creativity that we can follow and as we follow it, we follow it into different parts of ourselves through different modalities.

We follow it into our emotional body.

We follow it into our physical body.

We express it through movement or through rhythm or through voice and then we reflect on it through writing. You know, I mean, it's a, I'm not sure what else to say.

I think that, I think maybe I should have knocked. Maybe you have something to add, Tim, right? Yeah. I think you're thinking pretty well. So we just follow from ship from one modality to the next and just stay with, you know, what's present.

And then it feels like when we do that each time we shift, there's an opening, right?

And I have an expansion of our awareness, you know, and really we have as humans, I think,

so many ways of knowing.

But that our dominant culture doesn't always encourage or support.

So it's for me, I find it to be as I, you know, see other people and for myself as well, just

this like reclaiming and learning, even relearning or remembering, perhaps all these different ways of knowing how to know myself in my world and what another and, you know, I mean, sometimes there are things that we really know inside, you know, we know it, but we don't have words for it.Yeah.

And there are other ways of expressing those things that we know as well. So it's not just ways of knowing, but ways of expressing who we are in the world and really just kind of moving into the fullness of who we are and becoming very whole in that way.

Yeah, I feel like the process, at least in my experience is deepening, deepening that

sense of knowing that you're describing because we're allowing ourselves to explore it from a different perspective.

And it's like amplifying, it's amplifying that sense of really getting to know whatever it is.

Because we're giving our self permission to play around with it in all of these different

ways. Because to know something through what it feels like to move our body to express a concept is so different than to know something through what it feels like and looks like to express it in paint or in play.

And then of course, with our words, to give it voice, like you were talking about, I often

as a supervisor, I encourage my supervisors to do that process, that giving voice to the

image process.

And a lot of them are like, what are you talking about? Because it is a very expressive therapies technique. And they're a little resistant at first. But I'm like, please, if you just let yourself be vulnerable and try it, it's really magic happens.

There's so many gifts that come with that process. It's beautiful.

Yeah. It is a vulnerable thing to ask, right?

And it's also so rewarding. And I think it builds, also builds self trust in the scene.

Oh, I can do this.

And as I do it, I can trust that it works.

And it continues to, you know, I love that you just use the word amplify.

I think that is very true.

Yeah.

So I think so many people believe this work is about, we're going to have a lot of things

going to ask them to make an image or to create a movement or something.

And then we're going to talk about what it means, right?

And we don't really do that.

You know, we see our role as facilitating the relationship between the artist and the

image.

How can I support you so that you can learn more from the images, from the movements, from the sounds, from the rhythms that you create? And that's where the wisdom is.

It's in that relationship. And as we move through the modalities, it's often the modality that we're the least comfortable with, that brings the biggest shift.

Not always, but often that's the case.

So really being able to create safety around helping people just take those gentle risks

to move into something that yes, it's going to feel a little weird at first.

The movement doesn't have to be covering the whole room. It can be as simple as moving your hands and you'll still derive something new. Yeah.

I love that you made note of that.

It's often in those most vulnerable places where really transformational information comes to the surface.

So I want to shift gears a little bit and kind of go into how the two of you came to

found expressive arts, Florida, and share and teach others how to do this work because

it is such a unique program that you don't see very often.

Tamara, would you mind sharing a little bit?

No, I don't mind. It's such a wonderful question. Such a long story that I'll try to make very short.

I would like to say that I, Kathleen, actually is the one who has just heard in her bio, right?

She received her training at CIS and then she came back to Sarasota and she kind of held

the solo little candle light of expressive arts here.

And I came to Florida in 2000 thinking I had left it behind where I was and I wasn't going

to stay long and I inadvertently met her and I also met Victoria who was one of the other

co-founders in our business in 2001.

And then they started a program and I got my certificate from them and then there was someone who got their certificate with me in t hat program Elizabeth and then before of us said, "Hey, we should start our own business," since we started a business in 2007, mostly doing contracts in the community and different works, different work like that.

And I was teaching full-time as an expressive arts teacher, actually in the school system.

So we continued for a few years.

We had a studio and a gallery and we had community contracts and then it became clear to the four of us at the time that we really needed something was shifting and in fact,

and so what we did, and this is what we always did when we developed our business and when we formed our business, we always made art together.

So our business is based on that.

And so we got together, we made this mandala together, we were affectionately called pie

pieces where each of us had a section.

And the very funny thing is that I went down to the storage unit to find the microphone today.

And you know what I pulled out of there, Kathleen?

I have them here, so many.

So the four of us, so we had this thing and what we did is through our art process really,

it showed us that what we needed was to in some way open up things and provide space for others to come in and learn more.

So that all, having said all of that led to us developing a training program, which we

started in January 2011.

And we haven't stopped since then, basically.

It was at least the way I feel, and I think I speak for Kathleen as well, but we just feel

like this work is so needed in the world.

And we couldn't do it all by ourselves, right?

And so over time, the partnership of four was three and then became two.

And so now it's just Kathleen and I, but the beginning of that was really the four of

us deciding that we really need to disseminate this work right out into the world in a much

bigger way.

So we started teaching others.

And it's been extremely wonderful, leading for awarding, I guess, is how I feel about it.

So since 2011, we've had a certificate training program. Awesome. And I had a couple of small things to that. I just love tearing you say that, Tamara. And I was really glad that you got that question, not me.

But I think the thing that I want to emphasize is what you touched on that are our business

and our training program was built through the arts. And even before the four of us decided to create a business, there were a few more of us. I think there were six people in the beginning that we were all just getting together every week.

And we would sit around this little table in this little tiny studio that we had.

And we would just make art together.

And we'd do different kinds of arts practices. And we would talk. And we were like, we're being kind of called together.

And something is emerging out of this.

And we don't know what it is yet.

And we have continued to follow that.

If you can call that a model, follow that model throughout the entire creation and evolution

of this business.

And working out the questions and challenges as they come up through the arts, usually through some collaborative art making.

Yeah. I love that. That's such a beautiful thing to share, I think with others, that business development doesn't have to be just, you know, spreadsheets and business plans that connecting through the artistic process and exploring what's working, what's not working, what do we want to do differently

here?

Is possible that there is a business practice that can incorporate the arts in that way?

So thank you for sharing that.

I would just like to add that it's far more effective than sometimes than trying to think

your way out of it, right?

And, you know, yeah, that consulting your arts practice when there are challenges or when

there's any uncertainty or to impose an uncertainty, like whatever.

I mean, for whatever reason, really, seems it is just, again, goes back to that ways of knowing,

right? We have within us all that it is that we need in order to move ourselves forward as a business, as an individual, as a group, as a collective, as a, you know, as a planet.

I believe we have that in within us.

And so the arts provided a way for us to consult the wisdom that we share.

Let's bring it forward and to form. I love that.

That's wonderful. An important, important for people to hear.

I think, you know, as practitioners, we, we have a sense of knowing about that.

It's different because of our immersion in it and all of the witnessing that we do in seeing

others find wisdom in their art making process.

But for folks that might not, might be in the mental health field, but they're not really

exposed to the arts process in therapy and how it differs.

I think what you said is very helpful, right?

Like, hey, that there's a lot more happening here than this is we're making art and that's

an enjoyable experience.

There's real deep work, excavation that's happening through the process.

And I think that's what you're really speaking to that wisdom.

I think excavation and cultivation, right?

And, you know, we kind of somehow this term came to us, creative wisdom.

And I think it's, I think that term that came because for me anyway, I didn't feel like I

had a word to refer to that kind of stream of inner wisdom that comes when we trust our

creativity.

Yeah.

And I think that's what I think is really interesting, trusting the process is something that I think we learned pretty early on.

And as we're learning this work, which is just trust the process, you learn to trust in your

creative process and that it really does have a lot of rich material for you to learn from.

How does one go about setting up a certificate program, which allows people to learn all the

things that they would typically learn in a graduate program?

I think that's what's so unique about what the way that you're teaching, right?

There's plenty of practices like mine where it might offer continuing education training,

but that's not just what you're doing.

You have a curriculum that people follow.

They are working with you for a long time.

They're having a deep, a deep, rich immersive experience.

How did, how, what goes into that?

I know.

It's such an interesting, that's so interesting that you ask that because honestly,

once we decided that that's what we were going to do, we just started writing the curriculum and putting things in place and learning as we went, you know, what do you have to set up?

What do you have to like, what kind of structure do we have?

You know, it does seem like a big task when you ask the question that way.

And it was, but honestly, I don't think we ever really looked back or questioned it once

we made the decision.

And, you know, we're very involved with the International Express Farts Therapy Association, IATA.

And so we've been attuned all along the way to the requirements for professional

registration, both for registered expressive arts therapists and registered expressive arts

consultant educators.

And so we knew that it was going to be important to create a program that would meet those requirements, right, that would give people the essential training in expressive arts that would allow them to pursue registration, either as a reach or as a reach, depending on the pathway that they were on.

So we're not in our program.

We don't teach the therapy part, we teach expressive arts. And so the people that come through our program and are going on to become reach, they already have either already have their therapy training or they're getting it concurrently with our

program, right.

So I think what we've done in our program that is pretty unique actually is that we have

defined and refined the essential components of expressive arts and expressive arts is

at the center.

And how expressive arts is applied is limitless, right. And so it can be integrated with professional, spiritual direction.

It can be integrated with the profession of psychotherapy, with social work, with, you

know, hospice and of life care with business.

It just kind of goes on and on.

And I think that perspective of putting expressive arts at the center and really defining and teaching what it is and how it can be applied. And you know, over the years of teaching this, we've really developed our own approach which at the beginning we had it but we couldn't really articulate it.

But now it's, you know, we do have a defined expressive arts Florida approach to this work.

Thank you for sharing that.

I would like to add a little bit to that of our may and others that I think, you know, like

caffeine said, we identified the competencies, like the things that, you know, needed to

be learned in order to practice this work in whatever setting we needed, one wanted to.

And then we set to work to develop the curriculum in a way that not only helped people to develop those competencies, but to really experience the work from the inside out.

So we do have, I mean, our program is very experiential. It's what I would call a transformation learning model, which is that our students come to us

and they do the work and then they reflect on the work and through the whole process they

are transformed.

And it's, so it is a deep dive.

And it's also a supported process, so our students receive monthly mentoring and the clinicians do a course called Supervised Clinical Practicum.

So they're all of the, if they're, if they're learning to be facilitators, they're mentored

by facilitators. If they're learning to be, you know, if they're, if they're in a clinician, then they're, they're mentored by a clinician, right?

So there's an individualized component to the program as well and built into the program

are hours that they need to do on their own.

We call them electives. They can do them with us or they can do them elsewhere to also individualize the program. But all of that is said so that they are set up so that our students get what they uniquely need in order to develop their own expression of this work in the world.

And that's, that is, I think, a really important part of our kind of mission, right?

Because we really want our students' experience to be valued.

Like this is one of those professions where life experiences fully, you know, valued, right?

The, you know, it's almost like the more life experience you have, the better, right?

Because you really, it's like becomes part of, you know, what you're able to empathize

with, you know, what you're able to imagine as possibilities.

And so we really do spend time to help them to do that. But each of our core courses then are, they're kind of looked at, it looks at express of arts through different lens, so to speak. And we try to really give them a full experience of what expressive arts is and then ways for them to incorporate that into who they are.

Our students embody the work is what happens. They embody the work.

There's no way they can't share it, right?

Because they just, they coming out, they, it's just part of them.

And that's another piece of it is that we, um, firmly believe that you have to be practicing

this work. So personal practice is something that's, um, an element in the program and we have to practice it in order to share it with someone else, right?

Yeah.

And so that's another cornerstone, I think, of the programs, the personal practice piece.

And then the reflection piece, teach them how to reflect on their experiences using

expressiveness.

They get all kinds of ways, I guess.

Yeah, I love that, you know, you're highlighting that it is such an experiential process because

as we were talking about before pertaining to knowing, yeah, the experience helps to

concretize that knowing within.

And that's a different sense of knowing than I read a paper about it or I read a book about

this approach, but spending time immersed, doing, playing, reflecting, doing again and reflecting again and kind of moving through that process that creates a different sense of knowing that as a practitioner, you, I think, develop a greater flexibility of response with the clients that you're working with because of that knowledge, right?

You're using that term like embodied, right?

They're so embodied because of it.

That's helping them in their role.

I think I'd like to say that we've had quite a few students enroll in our program who they

state their intention as I'm going to learn some new tools to use with my clients.

And that's good, you know, we're always like, we always say that's going to happen.

It's great. And you're also going to go on a personal journey just so that you know that.

I can just like remember one particular student who at the end of like maybe her second

intensive, she's like, oh, I get it.

It's about me, right?

And yes, and it's about your clients, but it has to be about you because it's like that

circle that we talked about, that loop at the beginning, like you have to be, we have

to be embodying this in order to share it.

Yeah.

I hear that, that, you know, you were talking about the thread of the intermodal process, but I really hear that that thread is through everything that the two of you are doing.

Every person that you're working with, every student, every part of how you operate your

business, that thread is there.

Mm-hmm.

That's a lovely way to reflect it back.

Thank you.

Mm-hmm.

Yeah. How long does it take for somebody to go through your program for them to then be able to start their practicing work to work towards the credential?

This obviously, just like with our other credentials, the read, if you're, people aren't familiar

with, it requires clinical practice and supervision as well.

Yeah. Well, oh.

Good. It's the length of time that students spend in our program is actually flexible, right?

Because we have, I guess you would call it a rolling entry, like each time we offer a level

one course, new students can enter, right?

So they don't have to wait till the whole new cohort starts.

And then as our courses come up, students can take anything that they're eligible for, but

they can also slow it down if they want to for any reason because of resources, because

of schedule, you know, because of travel, whatever it is.

So we have some students who are finishing all the core courses in a year and we have some

who are taking two years.

I'd say, I don't know.

What do you think, Tamara, now, since we've gone online maybe a year and a half to two years would be sort of average?

Yes, I think so.

Yeah.

And still, if your, if a student is not a clinician, but a facilitator, and they're going

to be, you know, pursuing like the Reese, for instance, they do an internship, right?

So they'll do all the core courses and they still do internship, the others do.

And those are offered when we have, like, those are offered all the time.

They're offered, you know, once or twice a year kind of thing.

So, so yeah, it's typically like one and a half, two years, maybe something like that.

We had one student do it in like a year.

I don't even know how she did it, but she did a great job, you know, but that's also very

fast. That part of one of the factors is the, on how long it takes is the individual's capacity

to assimilate all of the information, not just information, but experiences, you know,

that they're having, because it's really an integration process, right?

So if they're busy mom and they're, you know, working, you know, it might take longer.

But if they're, you know, single and don't have children or whatever the circumstances

are in their lives might allow for more time.

Because there are assignments and readings and, you know, along with the courses.

Yeah, no, that's wonderful.

I think that's okay.

I think it's a great answer.

And I know it's one that I'm going to direct people to listen to this episode when they are

curious about this work and they already have a master's degree, but they're really passionate

about the arts and really want to integrate it into their work, but they don't necessarily

want to move out of state to go to, you know, another program.

So that they can hear what you offer, which is so valuable and it is important.

And like you were saying, there are, there is not enough people doing this work, which really helps people connect to what it means to be human.

And sometimes I think in our profession, in the therapy profession, we get away from that.

But the arts help us stay connected to that piece. Yes. I so agree. Thank you.

Yeah. Well, for folks that want to learn more about your program, what you do, where can they find you?

What would be the best way to find you?

Probably on our website at expressiveartslorna.com. Be the easiest thing.

I will definitely put that in the show notes.

And I'm also going to put a link to your expressive therapy summit session in the show notes, which anybody can attend from anywhere, because it's virtual over Zoom.

And it sounds like it's going to be a beautiful gift to oneself to anyone who attends.

And I am so grateful for both of you making the time to talk with me today about your work

and what you're going to be teaching at the summit.

Thank you so much, Reina. I am very appreciative and just so touched that we were able to do this. And wonderful to talk with you.

I agree.

I feel honored by the interest and the questions that you've asked and the way that you've reflected back to us.

It's been a beautiful conversation. Thank you.

Yes. Thank you.

Thank you so much.

Thanks so much for listening to this episode of the Creative Psychotherapist Podcast.

I hope you enjoyed this edition of the Voices from the Expressive Therapy Summit.

Definitely check out Kathleen and Tamara's session on November 16th on the East Coast

Virtual Expressive Therapy Summit event.

There's going to be plenty of other opportunities to learn from other amazing clinicians there as well.

I'm also going to be teaching at the summit this year. Kathleen and Tamara are going to be teaching on cultivating self-compassion through expressive arts practice.

So that means it's an opportunity for you to connect with yourself and engage in your

own practice while learning how to facilitate this approach that they use with others.

And honestly, I think anytime we can have that time to replenish and renerish ourselves

through the creative arts practice is really important.

It just allows us to be present for clients through our own understanding wisdom, ways

of knowing that doesn't often translate through just the didactic experience alone.

And I hope you kind of gleaned that from our conversation too.

That is so much a part of the process maintaining our own practices as best we can.

And if you can't make it to their workshop at the summit, I highly recommend that you

head over to their website www.expressivetherapysemit.com.

You'll be able to find plenty of opportunities to learn from amazing practitioners from around

the country and around the world and many opportunities to learn virtually from wherever

you are, but still immerse yourself in the creative experience.

They also have opportunities to learn in person. There's the, obviously, the East Coast summit, which takes place in November.

They also have a Midwest summit taking place in Chicago.

They have the West Coast summit, which is California based. And over the summer, they had programming in Arizona and Sedona, Arizona. And I really wanted to go this year, I learned about it last year, but by the time I learned about it was too late.

And then I got so wrapped up in everything that was going on, I think, with my move that

it just didn't happen. By the time I learned about it, it was the dates, it was already happening. But that is definitely on my agenda to attend next year.

So if you're looking to expand your learnings, to learn from people, maybe outside of your

modality, the Expressive Therapy Summit is the best place to go for that information.

And I swear it's one of the best training experiences that I've had continuously as professional over the years.

I may be a little biased, but, you know, anyways, check out Kathleen and Tamer's session over there.

I put the link to the registration page in the show notes, but you can always just head

over to www.expressivetherapysemit.com.

And until next time, keep it creative.

myth

Fri, 15 Sep 2023 10:00:01 GMT

THE MYTH OF NOT ENOUGH TIME

I think it is fair to state that many of us have caught ourselves saying, "I don't have enough time," to do the things that are necessary for our personal self-care.

As therapists and helping professionals, it is easy to get caught up in caring for others, prioritizing others, and putting ourselves on the back burners. We can easily misapply ethical mandates to place client's needs above our own. And yet, there are times where placing our needs first is actually in the best interest of our clients.

If we are out sick - our clients will miss sessions. If we are exhausted - our ability to focus and deeply listen to our clients is jeopardized. Research on lack of sleep and fatigue on drivers suggest that the brain is functioning similarly to someone whose blood alcohol content is bordering on the legal limit. Our response times are impaired because our nervous system is tired. If we are feeling burned out - we are at a greater likelihood to cut corners, compromise our ethics, or worse, stop caring about our work.

It is easy for us to feel as though there is not enough time to invest in our self-care. I am guilty of this, myself. Prioritizing working out, meditation, eating healthy, drinking enough water, and engaging in my own creative process is something that takes intentionality and commitment. Even taking a vacation requires energy to invest in additional planning.

One of the challenges I have had is getting stuck in all or nothing thinking about the activity. For example, if I only have 15 minutes, I can't work out. That is simply untrue. I have a wonderful app on my phone call FitOn that has lots of 10-15 minute workouts.

The same goes for creative time. While my inner artist wants to spend hours creating and getting into the flow. Somedays, I may only have 20 minutes. Giving myself permission to create for that short time, makes a powerful impact in my ability to cope with the day to day stressors.

Vacation time is essential for all of us. We need a break. That is where our creative juices get the opportunity to really flow. I have heard from many practice owners that they struggle to take and enjoy vacations. And yet it is something that is vital to our wellbeing.

When I catch myself stating that I don't have enough time, I look for the evidence to support that I do have the time. I evaluate where I am spending my time in low value actions (social media, television, etc...) and figure out a plan to divest from those activities in order to invest in the activities that have a higher return on my wellbeing.

How could you amplify your self-care practice if you work up 15 minutes earlier? How much time would you gain in your week if you set a lock on social media after 30 minutes of use per day? If you limited your television intake to an hour per week? If you stopped checking email after 5pm?

We live in a time where being busy is socially and economically rewarded, at the expense of our health from prolonged oxidative stress. You owe it to yourself, your family and your clients to make the time to take care of you.

If you struggle with this, you are not alone. I am a work in progress. I do really well, and then I have setbacks and have to start over again. What matters is a continued commitment to self-evaluation and action.

Season 2 Episode 16 | Melissa Wesner| Preventing Burnout: Retreat for Business Owners

Wed, 13 Sep 2023 08:00:02 GMT

FEATURED GUESTS: Melissa Wesner is a type A, counseling nerd who likes to cross her t’s and dot her i’s. She’s often the person to rain on the parade by asking, “I wonder what kind of documentation we would need to do that” in the midst of a really exciting work conversation. She’s the person who thinks about risk management, liability, and documentation and who reads the books and signs up for ALL the trainings! As your Protecting Your Practice co-host, Melissa will be bringing all of this nerdy excitement to the table. Melissa is the Owner of LifeSpring Counseling Services, a group practice in Towson, MD, and of LifeSpring Counseling. As the owner of 2 thriving practices, Melissa has lots of practice management experience to bring to the table.

LISTEN & LEARN:

Burnout rates for working professionals have increased drastically since COVID including small business owners.
Benefits to attending a Retreat as both a self-care process and business development activity.
Give yourself permission to retreat + recharge with other business owners in Costa Rica!
How you might feel as a business owner who has gotten rest, eaten healthy, and checked back in with yourself about why you started this business in the first place.

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW:

Early registration BONUS -Online Meetup After Retreat Sign up by 10/13 to receive BONUS
Sign up for the 6-Day Retreat for Small Business Owners April 14th-19th, 2024 in ⁠Costa Rica Retreat ⁠
Connect with Melissa at ⁠lifespringcounseling.net/⁠ or ⁠protectingyourpractice.com⁠
⁠Get a FREE Burnout Prevention Plan!⁠

Read the transcript below...

Hey there creatives. I am excited to share this conversation that I had with guest Melissa

Wesner. She has been on the show a few times before, maybe twice before, but I meet with

Melissa about once a month and we talk about business development stuff and she's amazing.

I am always inspired by what she's doing, her generosity and the way she thinks about

business development, running her group practice and expanding her offerings outside of the

therapy room. And we're going to be talking a little bit about one of her latest offerings

on this show as well as the reason why she went ahead and developed it. And part of that

relates to the need for us as business owners to really refuel and replenish. And sometimes

it can feel difficult to make that time. Maybe it feels selfish or that maybe we feel

like we can't we can't justify going on a nice vacation for ourselves when there's

so much that needs to be done work wise. And so she's kind of mixing it up and has created

a business retreat, which will take place in Costa Rica in April of 2024.

And it sounds really lovely what she has in mind. I've been following her on her social media and she

just did a trip to the location and has a bunch of videos up of her experiences there and

kind of prepping for what's to come and it looks like it's a beautiful, beautiful retreat

community center and lots and lots of beautiful ways of engaging. And I don't know, it sounds

amazing to me and it's going to be part part, you know, for your person, for the person

of the therapist, the person of the business owner to really refuel replenish, relax, but

also an opportunity to connect with other business owners and to do a little bit of work

around business. And anyway, I hope you enjoyed this conversation. And if that sounds like

something you'd be interested in, definitely check it out.

Thanks for listening to the Creative Psychotherapist podcast. I'm your host, Raina Lombardi.

And I'm really excited to welcome Melissa Wesner back to the show. If you are a listener,

you've heard her on here twice first talking with her podcast co-host, Daniel Meyer. No mayor

pronounced it incorrectly. And they were talking about, you know, legal things related to practice

ownership. And then this spring she was on and we were talking about systems and group practice.

And today we're going to be talking about business owner stressors and burnout and prevention.

And, you know, the role of our own self-care and how to go about those things. And so a little bit

about Melissa, she's the founder of Life Spring Counseling Services, a Maryland based group practice

where she and her therapist strive to provide hope, healing and empowerment through the collaborative

process of counseling. And she's a certified brain spotter and brain spotting consultant

and an avid believer in the power of brain spotting. She's a dreamer, a doer and a co-host of the

protecting your practice podcast. And she is currently creating and will be hosting the ultimate

business refresh retreat in Costa Rica in 2024. Thanks so much for coming back, Melissa.

Thanks for having me, Reina. I'm looking forward to our conversation.

Me too. So let's kind of talk about like what inspired you to say I'm going to pivot a little bit

and I'm going to do a retreat for business owners. Yeah. I think over the past year I've just been

reflecting and thinking about how can I do things that allow me to have more fun in work.

You know, there are a lot of things that I was doing that I have a good routine for,

you know, but I think as an entrepreneur, you like to have your hands sometimes in a lot of

different hats while also, you know, not giving into shiny objects syndrome.

But I have been attending a number of retreats over the past year. So I've been on the receiving

end and I know how good it can feel to be attending a retreat. But I also know that I love hosting,

I love bringing people together. I love giving people experiences. And as I was attending this one

retreat, I was like, I would love to do this. Like I would love to just be offering retreats.

That would be so much fun. And having been in a position where I'm attending retreats that other

people are putting together and just knowing how good it can feel to have someone else organizing

that for you and kind of taking care of you. You know, I have both sides of that. I like the

planning and I like the process of providing people with connection, community and experiences.

But I also know how good it can feel to be on the receiving end. And so that's kind of what started

this is just wanting to pursue things that I really enjoy. And also have more time with other

business owners and being community with them. Yeah. So what do you think are some of the benefits

of attending a retreat as a business owner? Yeah. I mean, one of the nice things about attending a

retreat is that you don't have to plan anything. Like you book your flight, you mark your calendar,

and you show up and someone's going to take care of you. And you don't have to worry about your

food or your lodging and all of your things. Someone else is going to take care of you. And when

you're a business owner, I think you're so busy taking care of everybody else.

You might be taking care of your clients. You might be taking care of your employees. You might even be

in a role where you're taking care of your family. You're taking care of everybody else. And sometimes

if one person who's not getting your care is you. And so it's an opportunity, one for you to make an

active decision to say, I'm working my butt off. I'm going to take care of myself. Because if I don't

take care of myself, it's going to impact everything and everyone around me. And I'm worthy of being

cared for. So one, making that decision to care for yourself, but also putting yourself in a position

where someone else can take care of you for a little while. And you can just show up, just show up

and relax. I love that. I like when you were saying, you know, as a business owner, you're taking care

of so many people. I took a really deep breath because it is so true. You're responsible for so many

things that, you know, you're constantly having to shift things around like, okay, that popped up.

Now I have to adjust and take care of that. And that sometimes means that your needs are not

attended to, but they may be attended to later than what you had originally hoped. So having somebody

else do all of that planning, which for me, I love that. I don't, I love traveling, but I don't like

the research of figuring out where I'm going to stay, booking all those things, figuring out what

I'm going to do. I love when somebody else does that for me, and I just show up and just naturally go

to all these places wherever it is. I have a really good friend who loves the research and travel part.

And so I'm always like, Hey, are you going anywhere? Yeah.

I'll take a long because I know she's going to plan everything. And I don't have to think about it.

I just go, okay, well, here's my half of the money. And we go and have all these awesome experiences

that she's arranged for. And it is so nice to not have to like think about that and have that

experience. Yeah. And it's funny that you say that because we were just talking about this,

right? Like we were just talking about how I love, like I love the planning process for retreats

and doing that, right? But when I'm in that process, I'm doing it for other people, right? Like I'm

thinking I'm doing the planning and the research with other people in mind. I'm going to Costa Rican

next week to scope out the place where we're going. And I decided to extend my stay, but I don't even

have my own lodging for after my time at the retreat center, right?

And right now for me to look at my own lodging for myself does feel like a little bit of work. But it doesn't feel like that when I'm planning a retreat for other people, right? So kind of this idea about the things that we do for other

people in our roles that we might not be doing for ourselves or that might not feel the same way when

we're doing it for ourselves. Yeah, that's so true. That's so interesting too, right? Like the joy

that you get from doing it for everybody else, but then when it's time to do it for you, you're like,

oh, that feels like too much. Yeah. You know, and I saw this coach recently who posted on social media,

and I don't remember her exact language, but she said something like being a business owner is

accepting like this non-reciprocable relationship with maybe people who work with you or something

like that, right? Like you're giving, right? But you're, you know, it's our job to take care of the people

who work at our office. It's our job to take care of our clients. It's not their job to necessarily

worry about us or take care of us, right? And so if we're not taking care of ourselves, if we're not

doing that for ourselves, you know, who else is going to do that for us? Yeah, yeah.

No, it's so true. Recently, the state of floor, you know, our boards are always updating their legal codes and stuff,

and they updated the responsibilities for supervisors. So if you're supervising, you know,

somebody to get their license, part of your responsibility is to be, you know, monitoring your

supervise self-care. That's been a law. Yeah. So surprised that they added that. They added some

other stuff about self-lifters too. I thought, wow, that's, that's awesome that they've added that

that there's enough recognition that they're saying, no, we have to be doing a better job of this because

of I think that attrition in our field, a lot of people give up. They don't go all the way through

and decide, I'm going to leave. I'm going to do something else. This is really hard.

And part of it is that making that time to care for oneself. Yeah. And that's so interesting that they made it

part of the law to be monitoring that, right? I mean, we see it in our codes of ethics and stuff like

that. And really in some ways, it's almost like taking self-care is almost part of our job description.

I don't know that it ever gets integrated into like our actual weekly duties, right? You know,

in terms of our job, but it is almost something that said, like, this is your job and this role,

it's your job to do this. Yeah. So what are you seeing in terms of how people are impacted as business

owners when maybe they're not doing such a good job taking care of themselves or they're getting

overwhelmed and like not setting aside that slow down time. I know for me, setting aside slow down

time periodically is really important, even if I'm not doing much, but just whatever I'm doing is fine.

Like that, I need to have that break that space. Yeah. And I think that space is part of it,

right? Like again, you know, in the mental health space, we're always talking with people about like

what self-care is and that self-care isn't always really fancy. It doesn't mean you have to go get

your nails or your hair done or a bubble bath. It might not look like that, but sometimes it is just

making sure that you have some free time on your calendar, some free time for your mind to decompress

because especially if you're in a creative role and you need to generate ideas, you can't be creative.

If all of your creative juices have been depleted, if there's no time to be imaginative, if there's

no space to dream, if there's no space for your brain to just be free to roam. And so I think that

that sometimes we're not feeling inspired because we don't have that time. We're kind of feeling

like I don't have any ideas. That's a thing I think that can happen, but I think a lot of what I'm

seeing, at least in counseling spaces or in our field, is a lot of people talking about being burned

out, feeling burned out. I think we have a lot of conversations about like key slowed size and we

often attribute our burnout to our key slowed size, where maybe even due to the content that we're

exposed to. And the thing that I think is important for us to think about is that those things have

been around since before the pandemic. And I think that right now is a time where I'm seeing so many

people talk about burnout. And I wasn't seeing so many people talking about this before the pandemic,

but we've always been exposed to difficult content. We've always had certain metrics maybe to

meet with a key slowed. That's not new, but I think all of the reports about burnout are new.

And so that raises some questions about what is going on. And I wonder how has the pandemic impacted us?

Is there an impact from the pandemic that we're not yet aware of or we're not aware of how much

has impacted us? I was mentioning earlier that I've been reading some stuff. Gallup has come out with

a book called Wellbeing Outwork. And they've a great website. And they have been sharing some of the

research that they've been finding. And one of the things that I found really interesting is that

one study found that when they looked at people who were working remotely or hybrid or in person

during the pandemic, that the people who reported the highest rates of burnout were people who were

remote workers. And that really has been probably the majority of people working in the mental health

field. So many of us have worked remotely during that time.

And there might be different factors that influence to someone like working from home. Do they not like working from home? But I questioned, you know, how has remote work impacted us? We are more isolated now. We and a lot of people have been talking about I feel so isolated because they're not working in person anymore. And if you're in

private practice for yourself, you don't have colleagues necessarily, even on your team that you can talk to.

So those are some things that I'm really seeing come up. And also, you know, I think during the

pandemic, we had to be in go mode. And I think sometimes when there's a crisis or something happening,

we go into go mode. And our body will perform for us. Our body will do what it needs to do to get us

through something. And so I also wonder, is there like a delay where our bodies are like,

oh, the crisis is over. Just kind of like your body gets you through a crisis or gets you through

a stressful moment. But then after it's over, you crash and you get sick.

Yeah. Right. And so I don't know the answers to these things. But what I as to why reports about burnout are so prevalent right now in our field. But what I do know is that, you know, there's some new studies coming out that might

give us some information and to know that maybe the pandemic has impacted us more than we know.

I would imagine that it has for sure, because there were so many drastic changes that were out

of people's control. And in that regard, I mean, I think a lot of people experience some traumatic

symptoms as a result of everything that happened with the pandemic, right? There's I have no control

of whether I can go out and be in public when I go out and when I'm out in public, I have to, you know,

wear all of this, you know, protective year, which I've never had to do before, which feels

uncomfortable because it's new and we're not used to it. Even though the medical folks have been

masking up and covering up and like crazy, like, you know, precautions suits and stuff for years,

right? Yeah. But for the lay public, it feels uncomfortable because it's not something we've had

to have on our skin and and it wasn't a choice that we had. Yeah, working remotely might not have

been a choice, right? Maybe not someone who would have chosen telehealth.

Maybe I'm not someone who identifies as being good with technology. And during the pandemic, this was an experience where we were processing these things with our clients while simultaneously going through them for ourselves, navigating children being at home and helping them with their schoolwork and navigating technology,

work life boundary in terms of your actual physical space. So so many things that were there and many

of us are still working remotely, not working in person, right? So in some ways, the pandemic has

completely changed the landscape of how we do our work. And so now it's about if I'm feeling isolated,

well, how do I find community and connection? That book that I had mentioned also talks about the

benefits of in-person gatherings, whether it's planning them for your employees or new employees

who are coming on board and how that builds trust. But also if we've still been working remotely

from the pandemic, what are we doing to be intentional about having in-person time with people,

whether there are colleagues, whether they are friends and family? How are we making sure that we

are getting that in-person time for our mental health as well? Yeah, that's so true.

I feel I feel really fortunate in that like even though I do a lot of telehealth, I've consistently been in-person

throughout the pandemic because part of what I do is I have a contract at the local mental health

hospital and I go in and deliver services in the crisis unit there. And so I've been doing groups

at different facilities the entire time, you know, with precautions. But so I never fully

was only operating in my home. And I think that was really important for my own sanity because

just one week of doing all telehealth from home, I was like, this is so tiring. I don't understand why

I'm so tired. I'm seeing less people than I normally would in a day when I would be in-person,

but I feel twice as fatigued. And I think it was just again like accommodating to be present

through the screen, which is a different skill set. Yeah. And I'm going to be curious how this

continues to play out because one of the things that I've been seeing, you know, from some of the

information on the Gallif website and also just online, like on LinkedIn, as people are like sharing

information there is talk about how so many people are now wanting remote positions.

That lots of people in the workforce want remote positions and that some companies are reducing.

During the time that people want to work remotely, some companies are reducing their remote options

and maybe it's more hybrid or maybe some companies are going back to requiring in-person.

But I'll just be curious to see how that goes. I think there may be a perception that remote work

is really great. And I would love to work remotely. But I think that there's a percentage of those

individuals who will find out that maybe once I embody the reality of being remote, that maybe it

won't be as exciting as I think it is right in terms of my energy or in terms of that work life

distinction. Yeah. I think it really is dependent on the individual and their style.

I know one of the therapists that works with me, she also works for another company full-time,

which is all totally telehealth. It's a total telehealth provider. And during the pandemic,

she invested in her own VPN and did a bunch of things to be technologically sound. And she and her

husband traveled. So we have two spring training stadiums here. And she got an offer for the red

socks to rent her house. And they're like for spring training. And they're like, if we do that,

we can travel, work remotely while they are renting our house. It's a win-win. And she just, she

was like, this was the best experience, work experience ever. Because yeah, she was still able to do what

she did with clients, but then have this really meaningful experience with her husband.

And I was like, yeah, that's awesome. I'm so glad that that worked out for you in the way that it did, right,

where other folks, it might be a completely different scenario where it's like, okay, there's

kids at home and it's challenging to work and have family and not have the disruptions. And it's

just hard. Yeah. And even for myself, I'm someone who would probably say that I love working from home.

And you know, really enjoy that. But there are times where I'm like, hmm, I wonder how this has

truly impacted you or will impact you, right? Sometimes, so I don't leave the house too often,

which makes me sound like a little bit of a hermit right now. But to don't go out too much,

because I work from home. And I'm happy to be at home. But every now and then when I leave,

I'm like, oh, like the world is a nice place. It's nice out here. And so sometimes, even for myself,

even though I'm someone who identifies as enjoying working from home, I'm like, you know, how has this

influenced you? How has this impacted you? Yeah. It's easy to just stay in.

I know it's easy for me to, even though I love being with people and I'm, I think, very social. But it's no problem. I'll stay at home and find things to do. Yeah. And go, oh, wow, I haven't left the house in four days. So,

how that happened? Yeah. And so, you know, at least locally, one of the things that I have done

based on one, the fact that I live hosting and just hearing people say, I want connection, right? And,

you know, you go to a networking event and like, you meet someone, you have your little spiel,

high emalissa, I work here. This is what I do. Did it and you do the like business card swap. And then

you may never talk to that person again, because you didn't really get to know who they are.

So, locally, you know, we started organizing a clinician community membership where for local clinicians,

who want to sign up, I now arranged like fun activities for us to do every month. And we, you know,

at least the first time that we did this, our day one activity had a rule that we're not going to

talk about what we do for work. That we're going to get to know one another as humans first. And so,

now this is the second time that we're doing this, but we get together on a monthly basis just so

we can have fun and get to know one another, but even in terms of community referrals and stuff like

that, you know, if you know someone for a year, because you've hung out with them once every month,

maybe more, just feels a little bit more of a more organic. You have a connection.

You know, who this person really is. And so, at least for myself as well, right? Like we're a community, but also

for myself, it's an opportunity to say, okay, like let's get some people time in. Let's do something fun.

And we're doing things activities that I enjoy as well. And their activities that probably, like,

my partner's not interested in doing like candle making maybe wouldn't be what he would pick. So,

that's awesome. Yeah, no, my husband would not be down for candle making. Yeah. So, get some in in person time,

doing fun activities, you know, and so now with the retreat, it'll be another opportunity for people

to get together and have and have some community. And in person time, the in person time, that

connection. And I agree with what you're saying about getting to know people, if you feel so much

better than knowing of someone. Well, I've met them.

I know that they do this, but I don't really know much about them. And yeah, I think that too kind of turns people off. And at least when I've been mentoring other folks that are trying to build their practices, like one of the things that feels really intimidating is that networking piece. Yeah. But I think it's like that's how we look at it.

Like I'm going to go to some kind of like mixer and everybody's like, who's going to get the most

cards, but you never really form a connection. I'm like, if I'm in a big crowd, I'm going to migrate to

like one or two people and talk with them for a long time. I don't really take, I feel like it's so

much energy to manage the whole crowd. But a small intimate group like that where there's, you know,

10, 12 people and you're all doing some kind of fun activity together. It kind of, I feel like

takes maybe some of the anxiety out of the picture of networking too. Yeah. Yeah. And just a chance

to have some fun, get to know someone's actual personality, right? If you know someone's personality,

you have a sense of how they're going to show up in the room with a client and to be able to say,

like, I think you'd really get along with this person, right? Like they're really funny.

They have a great sense of humor. I just think that the two of you would really connect. And so it

just adds a different dimension, I think. I love that. So what are some of the things that you're

going to be bringing to the retreat experience for business owners to kind of help them

be more effective in running their business and also manage the stress so that they aren't

finding themselves burning out. Yeah. There's so many things going through my mind right now.

So a few things. So this retreat is going to be open to small business owners in all industries.

And someone recently asked me, well, what made you decide to open it up to all small business owners?

And one of the reasons for that is that I've been spending a lot of time over the past two years in

circles, like coaching or just educational programs for small business owners in different industries.

And I found that there's a lot of value in being around small business owners who are in other fields.

I think in the counseling or mental health field, a lot of times, like, you know, we've all received

similar training. And so we start to share a lot of the same information. It just starts getting

circulated in our community. And I've just found that being around other small business owners,

there's just a freshness in a different way of thinking about things, different ideas that

they've been exposed to as part of their training. So one, we're going to have opportunities to learn

from one another while we're on the trip. But there will be a cross-pollination of ideas because we're

working with people from other industries who have different ideas, different approaches.

So that's one thing on the business end. But one of the things that I'm excited about is the experiential component,

you know, especially as mental health providers, like if we know the things that we need to do to be well,

like sleep, nutrition, hydration, movement, you know, free time, like we know those things in our

head. We just don't always put them into practice. And so I'm really excited to be able to give people

an opportunity where they can have experiences where they're getting out of quick sleep. We're going

to have gourmet vegan meals on this trip. Like where they're eating really healthfully. And even the

smoothie bar contains like mock tails, right? So like it's an alcohol-free venue. We'll have mock

tails. We'll have gourmet vegan food. You know, but for people to see like in just a few days,

how does my body feel when it's rested with sleep, with eating healthfully, with moving my body in

ways that I'm going to enjoy on the trip? How does that actually feel? And what is that doing for my

creativity and my inspiration and my ability to maybe think differently about my business while I'm here?

So that's part of it experientially. But I think also just giving people an opportunity to say,

you know, what were my intentions for going into my business? Maybe it was money, maybe it was free time,

maybe it was to have more time with family and to say, you know what, let's check in. What was that

intention? How are we doing? Are we achieving that goal? And if not, then how do we need to maybe

readjust? And also how do we make our businesses sustainable? Right? Like how do we, it's really,

if you're a business owner, you can work all the time. There's always something to do.

Right? But like if we work all the time, right? Like it's never ending. Yes, you have to be, you have to adjust your

mindset if you're somebody that needs to check that box off that it was done. Being a small business

owner is going to be stressful because yes, those boxes are never going to be all checked off.

Right. And so, you know, we have to find a way to make our work sustainable. And one of the things

that personally I've been thinking about is, you know, how hard I've worked over the years, but also

like like I need to make time for myself, whether that's like right now, I'm really trying to prioritize

exercise, which you've heard me complain about before, but I'm really trying to prioritize

exercise right now and just say, I'm going to do it first thing in the morning,

because I want to give myself the best of myself when my battery is fully charged, rather than

having only fumes in the tank at the end of the day. And then I don't do it maybe or maybe even if I do,

I have like no energy. So I think really working on how do we make this, how do we make our businesses

sustainable? How do we, these wellness practices that we talk about on the retreat?

How do we make sure that we follow through? How do we make sure that we look at that? What are some things that we're doing that we can take off of our plate also? But in terms of specific activities, we will be doing a

really cool blue clay experience. There's like some blue clay by a waterfall. So we're going to get to

experience the blue clay. That sounds awesome. Yeah. So that's going to be really fun. And I think I'm

doing that next week. So I get to try it out. I hope you take pictures. I want to see. Yes, everyone's

going to be so sick of my pictures, but I will have them. So that's happening. We're going to be

doing yoga because I feel like if you're going to have a retreat, you kind of need yoga. I think it's

almost like a prerequisite. So yoga is happening. I'm pretty sure we have some hikes happening.

There's a mandala on the beach experience as well. And I think we're going to do some drumming. I think

I have that listed as one of our activities that we're going to be doing. So we're going to be doing

things to help us relax in between the workshops that we'll be doing. So those are some of the

activities that we'll be doing. That sounds awesome. And I know that the retreat center that you picked

out is really special. Can you share a little bit about the lodging accommodations of if people

are interested in going, which it really sounds like a beautiful experience that you're

putting together what would the accommodations be at this facility?

Yeah. So the accommodations are really cool. And I took a big leap in renting out the entire venue. So we will have the entire venue to ourselves. We'll have a private jet for ourselves that'll be taking us there. And we have

options for single occupancy lodging, double occupancy lodging. We have domes or like so the

like those clear domes that you see online. I've never stayed in one, but maybe next week and I'll

see them. But you can stay in a dome. You can stay in a bungalow. I mean, they have all sorts of

options that are just really cool. Some of them have pools outside of them. And so the lodging will be

really cool. And I've never been on a private jet before. So that'll be a new experience for me as well.

So the private jet experience is that like people fly into like the main airport in Costa Rica and

then the private jet takes you to the facility or like. Yeah. Oh. Yep. So we have our own private jet.

It's just us because we took the whole venue. So we have our own private jet that we're going to be on.

We'll have the whole facility to ourselves. There will be nobody else there, but the people who run

the retreat center. That's awesome. And so when are the dates? When is this happening?

Yes. So it's going to be April 2024. I have to go look at the dates. I don't want to give you the

wrong one. So April 14th through 19th, 2024. And right now we have our early registration set to

September 1st. It's coming up soon. Potentially, potentially that's going to be extended since I'm

only going to the retreat center next week. But we do have an added bonus for people who sign up early,

which will be that you'll get to do a post retreat call because after you go to a retreat,

like you want to see the people that you've been on a retreat with, right?

Like if you've never been on a retreat, I think the thing to know about retreats is that it just facilitates closer relationships faster, I think, because you're around people for X number of days in close quarters. So it just

really facilitates close relationships when you're on a retreat. And you want to be in touch with

those people. So we're setting up like a post retreat call so everyone can connect and so we can see

how everyone is doing with implementing the content when they go back home. I love that. Yeah, that sounds

really important and something that maybe doesn't happen, right? You're like, okay, now what, now what,

now how am I going to stay connected with these people that I just really had this amazing experience with?

Yeah, yeah. And I think, you know, just thinking about that. So I've led two different workshops to

Mexico, four mental providers in particular. We did a continuing education program. I'm still in touch

with all of those people who have gone on these trips with me. Two of them work at my office now.

Two of them are in the clinician community membership that I'm running. I just had lunch with the

other one the other day. And so there's just something about being on a retreat with other people.

That just facilitates the building of relationships. I was in another retreat this past year that

someone else was hosting. And on the last day, there was someone crying like they were like, I just,

I just don't want to go back home. I feel so isolated and it felt so good to be here. And

and I've been on retreats too. Like tears happen, right? Like stuff comes up when you're on a retreat.

I've been the one with tears at the retreat. You know, there's just something about it to be

supported and to just have a space where your stuff can come up and where you can be with other people.

I love that. And I do hope that if you extend the early bird special,

that you let me know because we're recording and it's the 25th of August right now. And I know

it's not going to be out by the first. It's probably going to be out like the second or third week

in September. Yeah. So let me know. Yeah. I feel pretty confident. We're going to extend it just because

I'll have more information to share with people after being there.

So I feel pretty confident that what we're going to extend it. It sounds really exciting and a wonderful,

a wonderful way to take care of oneself while also, you know, taking care of one's business. Yeah.

You know, because so oftentimes we it's we prioritize taking care of the business over

over ourselves. Yeah. And understanding like we we are the business in some ways, right? Like if we

are not taking care of ourselves, our employees are going to feel it, our clients will feel it. And if

we're bringing a certain energy to the business, it will directly impact the business.

And so one of the things that I've been thinking about is we think about our business strategy,

which our strategy, whether it's like marketing or outreach, whatever that is. But we don't often

talk about business about our business strategy, including our wellness. And I think our wellness

needs to be considered an important element of our business strategy. And there's tons of research

out there to show ways that, you know, even things like movement can help us facilitate creativity,

which we need is entrepreneurs. And yet we don't often think about the importance of our wellness

in our business strategy. Yeah. No, that's so true. But it really does need to be part of it.

It really does, right? We're building a business to work for us, not for us to work for it.

Yeah. If we're adding that wellness component and then we're really staying connected to that.

Yeah, which again, I think is a thing that can come up for people, even as they're deciding,

do I sign up for this retreat? Do I not? Right? And am I working for my business? Where is my

business working for me? How many business owners are like, I can't take a step back. I can't

get away for a weekend. I can't get away for a week. I can't do that. Right? Is my business

working for me? Or am I working for my business? I think a lot of people, it's the latter. Right? Yeah.

I know I just had COVID earlier this month. And I was like, all right, well, I'm canceling pretty much

the whole week. All right, I didn't intend on it, but there it is. But I didn't have to worry about it.

I didn't have to worry about the finances of that because of the way I've structured

the accounting piece. Right? Yeah. And as I'm thinking about this, right?

The podcast episode that you did with me and Dan on the Protecting Your Practice podcast, when we were talking about grief, that was one of the things that we talked about, right? Is that the strategy that you have used?

And have had to use or develop as a result of life circumstances, but also sometimes forward

thinking that you've developed to make sure that you have that ability as a business owner.

Yeah. And I think that is like that. How do I prioritize my wellness? What am I going to need?

I know that I need time. I know that I need big chunks of time throughout the year. Like the idea of

one week a year, 10 days a year, who would that concept? Yeah. Terrible. Terrible. I think we have to

adopt that more like European mindset around work. Yeah. That would be lovely. I've been seeing lots of

like reels on that lately. So that's been on my mind. Well, for folks that are interested in

participating in this retreat with you in Costa Rica, where can they find more information?

Yes. So I can send you the links. So you can put it in the show notes because the link is really long.

But if you don't want to look at the show notes, you can go to lifespringcounseling.net and then

under our services tab at the top, people can find that retreat. But the easiest way will be to go to

to the show notes and take a look there. So they'll be able to get all the information. I'm available

if they have questions, Melissa at lifespringcounseling.net. And it's not up there yet. But we by the time

this airs, we will have an opt in. We've developed like a little burnout prevention plan specifically for

small business owners. And so when you go on the website, you'll be able to check that out as well.

That sounds awesome. Thank you so much, Melissa. It's been so fun to talk to you. I love talking to you

anyway. Yes. Well, I'm so glad to see you and I'm so glad that we were able to catch up today.

Yes. And I'm excited to share this with listeners. And I hope that you fill up the whole center.

Yes. That's gonna be awesome. Thank you so much.

Thanks so much for listening to this episode of the Creative Psychotherapist podcast. I hope you

enjoyed this conversation with Melissa. As I said in the intro, I really adore her and everything that

she does. And I'm grateful for our friendship and just being able to learn from her

has been a real treat. One of the things I really admire is that

part of her entrepreneurial spirit is creating.

She's always coming up with new ideas and iterations and things to do. But at the same time, she's also willing to let go and cut chords of creations that she's developed that she doesn't feel connected to anymore. And if you're interested in learning about business development from other accomplished entrepreneurs, some, which may be therapists, and some which may not, you might want to give this retreat a look into. And you can find more

information about that on her website, lifespringcounseling.net. Anyway, I will talk with you next week

with my guest Julia Varing. And I think you'll be really excited to hear about her work

using expressive arts therapies with the aging population and that conversation's really inspiring too.

If you like what you hear, please rate, review and subscribe to our show so that other people

might find it as well and benefit from listening. Thanks so much everyone.

Thanks for listening to this episode of the Creative Psychotherapist. If you like what you heard,

please rate, review and subscribe wherever you listen to your favorite podcasts. For show notes,

downloads and additional resources head over to the website at www.creativecliniciansquinter.com.

THREE THINGS I LEARNED MOVING MY PRACTICE

Mon, 11 Sep 2023 10:00:01 GMT

THREE THINGS I LEARNED MOVING MY PRACTICE

This is the third office my practice has inhabited since I opened in 2015. Each time I move, I learn something that I wasn't expecting. Moving an office is different from moving your personal residence. There are companies whose sole service is managing corporate moves for a reason. I didn't use one of those, but I can appreciate and understand why companies choose to pay for such a service. Instead I asked for the help of friends, family and the therapists in the practice to help with the process.

I did everything I could to not allow the move disrupt any of our client services. This was achieved through careful and thoughtful planning and lots of "Parden our Mess" signage on display. I want to share with you, the top three things I learned this time around.

Create a Master Moving plan with workflows and dates. This means holding the big picture in mind throughout the transition process. Having a master plan helps keep all the moving parts flowing with consideration for how you need your office(s) to function throughout the transition process. It will help you identify which items can be boxed and/or moved over first, when to submit your order requests for transferring utilities and technology if applicable, and ensuring you are staying on top of any repairs or updates that need to be made before you move out and move in.
Use a realtor who specializes in representing tenants. I interviewed Colin Carr of Carr Real Estate on Episode 22 . His team represent tenants and buyers for medical practices. The realtor showing the property represents the landlord and can't ethically provide advice or help negotiate on your behalf. I ended up working with Jared Vandersluis to help me scout and schedule viewings for potential properties. In the end, I moved into another unit owned by the same landlord; however, Jared helped me to negotiate free rent for two months during the transition and a few other things to help ease the financial burden that comes with moving. Oh, and his commission is covered by the landlord. The other recommendation is to start your search sooner than you think you need to move.
Have a back-up plan for internet during the transition . For whatever reason, I had the WORST luck getting the internet service transferred over to the new unit despite all of my preparation and advanced planning. The provider didn't show up for 3 scheduled installation appointments. Despite being a therapist, I was not doing a good job coping with my frustration about not having internet in our new space. It impacted our ability to provide telehealth services. I was worried it was going to impact a regularly scheduled online intensive training. I ended up having to switch internet providers. We went without internet for about a month. You don't realize just how much you rely on it to get things done until you don't have accessibility.

Season 2 Episode 15 | Jacob Nordby | Creative Life

Wed, 06 Sep 2023 12:04:08 GMT

FEATURED GUESTS : Jacob Nordby is the author of The Divine Arsonist, Blessed Are the Weird, and The Creative Cure. He is a passionate researcher and teacher of creativity, healing, and human potential. Co-founder of the Institute for Creative Living Foundation, and A Writing Room community with Anne Lamott and others. He loves to invite others into lives of joy and healthy creative expression on all levels. You can meet him at www.jacobnordby.com

LISTEN & LEARN:

Jacob's top three journaling prompts he uses to help him connect creatively.
The connection between slowing down or intentional rest and creativity.
The impact of the practices Cameron's The Artist Way on Jacob's creative practice and philosophy.
How Jacob defines the Inner Creative Self and it's relation to Creative Practice.
The power of a micro-practice if falling into the not enough time trap.

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW:

Bonus multimedia journaling program gift at www.creativeselfjournal.com
Visit Creative Cure book page: www.creativecurebook.com for free excerpts of the intro and first two chapters of the book
https://www.jacobnordby.com
https://www.awritingroom.com

Read the transcript here...

Hey there creatives, I'm really excited to get back to podcasting. I took a long hiatus

over the summer, which was much, much needed. Sometimes it is important to just pull away and stop

some of the things that you're doing to give yourself some slow down time. And we're going to talk

about that in this episode a little bit, that importance of taking breaks and allowing yourself

that time to slow down because it really impacts your creativity. And I'm really excited to have

my next guest on the show and to share our conversation with you. And today you're going to listen to

conversation I had with Jacob Nordby. He is a writer, speaker, and creativity researcher and guide.

And he is the author of several books, one of which is called The Creative Cure. And we talk a

little bit about that on the show. I just, I loved our conversation and the way he thinks about

creative practices and really tapping into our own creative source to help us to regulate

ourselves and to connect with our own guidance system, really, our own kind of wisdom and

and support that we all have within us. It's like, it's all about resilience really. So without

further ado, here is a psych conversation with Jacob Nordby.

Now here's your host, Raina Lombardi.

Thanks so much for listening to the Creative Psychotherapist podcast. I'm your host, Raina Lombardi,

and I'm really excited. This is going to be the first episode back after our summer break.

And I'm really excited to bring on my next guest and welcome him to the show. His name is Jacob

Nordby, and he is the author of the Divine Arsonist. Blessed are the weird and the creative cure.

He is a passionate researcher and teacher of creativity, healing, and the human potential.

He's co-founder of the Institute for Creative Living, Institute for Creative Living Foundation, and a writing room community with Anne Lamont and others. He loves to invite others into lives of joy and healthy creative expression on all levels.And you can learn more about him at his website, www.jacobjacobnodby.com.

And I'll have more information on where you can learn more about him in the show notes, but

we're going to find out a little more right now. So welcome Jacob, thanks for being here.

Thank you so much, Raina. I was chuckling when you were spelling out my name. Thank you for that.

And my last name doesn't seem to be easy to spell, so.

I think it's like the consonants, the two consonants, the D and the B together, can kind of throw people off.

So I want to make sure that people know where to go and everybody spells their name so uniquely.

I've met Jacob's, which the traditional Jacob is how you spell it, but I've seen it spell other ways too.

Well, I'm awfully glad to be here, Raina. Thank you for inviting me to be on your show.

I'm excited to talk to you. And I think probably the first question I really want to ask is

what led you into becoming a researcher of creativity and having creativity be at the center of

your work that you do?

That is such a great question.And probably like many people in your audience seeking to heal the pain in my life really led me towards digging into some really interesting rabbit holes of information.

And you know, I grew up in a very restrictive kind of Christian fundamentalist cult environment.

And then when I left that, you know, there was a big hole left in me.

And it wasn't until my mid 30s and late 30s that I began to realize that I kept bumping my head on what

I now call the invisible furniture. So these old beliefs, these old survival strategies and coping mechanisms.

And even though my life looked fine on the outside, I kept bumping my head and my shins

and discovering how limited I really was. And that wasn't something I was okay with. So it just led me

into a lot of search. I love that term, the invisible furniture, right? It's there. It's built.

It's like a strong framework. And it's so strong that you're blind to it. I mean, you don't even

notice that it's there. But you're like, why is this keep happening? Yeah, it's kind of like getting

up in the middle of the night to go to the bathroom and thinking we know where everything is.

And then we keep bumping our head or shins on something. And later when we turn the light on, we go,

okay, well, we're going to fix that. But I think a lot of us tend to just keep bumping our heads and shins,

you know? Yeah, that's true. And so where did you start when you're like, okay, I'm going to

explore this for myself? Where did you start with your creative process? Was it always in writing?

Because clearly you're an author and that's part of what you do. But were you exploring any other

avenues of creativity as well? You know, like a lot of people as a child, I didn't know any better. So I

drew and I sang and I played the violin and I did all these things that were, you know, creative.

As it began to become an adult, of course, I began to place economic value or I'm never good enough

at that. And so I began to just put those things away. And as I entered my mid-30s, Reina, I discovered that

despite the fact that I had all of these external markers of success, this great big new office and

a big house and all the things I was not feeling at peace. I was not feeling satisfied. And it wasn't just

that I wasn't making art. It was parts of me.

I weren't being lived. They weren't being fulfilled. Andit wasn't until I had a pretty dramatic shake-up in 2008-09 that really turned my life upside down and caused me to well lose everything, all those things and start fresh.

It didn't feel fresh. It felt scary. But I moved to Austin, Texas and took a few part-time jobs just to pay the bills and I was in this big warehouse. And I had all the time between fulfilling these box orders. And I began reading the

artist's way. And yeah. And I started doing the exercises in there, Reina. And I would just sit there

at this dusty desk with a notebook with tears running down my face. And I began to open up this

deep well that I didn't even hadn't really acknowledged before. And it was that that really began

to open me up. And then I remembered my childhood dream of being a writer and I started writing.

And that's where I probably, I love your questions because that's where I probably first began to

notice the connection between healing and creativity. And I think a lot of people tend to put those

in two different silos. I know you don't. You're an art therapist, but a lot of people tend to see

them as different, right? Yeah. I also see it as an existential experience that the creative

process is, it's like an essential core of being human and our purpose here on the planet.

As we're all here to create something to express something that it's just built in our DNA. And if we look

back archaeologists, all the evidence there, right? Like just thousands and thousands of

generations of humans finding ways to express themselves with whatever tools they had available.

There's just something at our core that if we're not living a creative life and we're not

connecting with that part that needs to be expressed, that we do feel like snuffed out, like our light

is being snuffed out. Yeah. I love that. And I love the that you brought up archaeology because it

takes us back to long before the industrial era, before we had big distribution systems and began

trying to monetize everything. People were making art and singing together and making music and doing

things artfully. That they never were worried about am I going to become famous while I make a living

at this. It was just part of their natural human experience. So I love that you've made that connection.

Yeah. That their life has certainly changed with the way we live today and modern times. But I think

people that that intentionally live creative lives recognize that and they prioritize that space and

time to allow for that creative way of living, whether it's you know singing, singing together,

dancing, painting, and there's something really special about creating and community too.

Yes. I couldn't agree more and I just think that well I grew up in this church and I mentioned that

before and despite the fact that it was very restrictive, it was it was community rena and we sang

together and that's where we played instruments and that's where we did things and so I feel like

there's something really intrinsically important about what you just said and I think that it's hard for

us sometimes in our current culture to make space for it. You know. Yeah, but because art is

it's intentionally slowing yourself down. If you're creating in some capacity, you have to slow down.

Yes. Right. As a writer, right. I don't know your process for writing, but I've read a lot about

other people's process for writing and I know that it's like people find the time where they can have

that space and time unobstructed, no interruptions where they can just get into the flow and experience

whatever it is of that material coming in and flowing through them. And that's it's a slowing down

but we don't live in a culture that prioritizes going slow. No, we're told 25, 8 hustle and grind.

And you know, one thing, that's one thing I want to also address though, rena, because I have, as I

mentioned before, we got started today. I have a lot of therapists in my world. My mother is a

therapist and I have many therapists and I love love the conversations we have and it seems and

I'd love to hear your perspective on this. It seems that just before then during and especially

after COVID, there's become such an awareness of the need for mental health work and I love that.

And it just seems like a lot of therapists right now feel as if there's not a there's not a time

between taking care of people to hardly go to the bathroom much less slow down and do something

artful. I think that really speaks to the systemic issues that we have within not just mental health

but health care in general. You know, if you look at the requirements of doctors that are

panelled with insurance, the numbers that they have to meet per day. And if a therapist is working in a

you know, an agency setting, there are certain quotas or billables or productivity standards

that they're expected to make and in order to make them right. We know people

have life events, they cancel or they forget or they have to reschedule for whatever reason.

So they'll book people for eight hours a day of therapy and therapy itself definitely is a

slowed down process. You are in the presence of another person. You're all of your attention. You're

really attuning to that other human. What is going on for them? You're observing everything that

they're doing with their body, what they're saying. You're you know, you're responding to them in a

way where really is communicating that you're listening and understanding deeply.

That's a tremendous amount of energy output. And for people to do that for eight hours straight a day,

right? Then they go, then you're like, oh my gosh, like I want somebody to cancel because I can't

prove the eight hours, you know, that it speaks to this larger issue of that hustle culture. But also

kind of how we we structure our healthcare in today's society. If you're working in private

practice, maybe you have a little more flexibility and you don't have to do that. So yeah, yeah, it's

funny. You say that my mother is in her 70s and she didn't become a therapist until she was after

60 years old. So she was really a big move for her. And she's extraordinary.

I know I'm so inspired by her. If I were feel tired or worn out, I'm like, yeah, that's also I need my mom is some

but she does that. She'll do eight sessions in a day, Rayna. And I do I do individual work with people

I'm not a therapist, but even that work that I do, which is, you know, similar in that it's holding

space and being very present. You know, when I'm done with a 60 or 90 minute session, I've told my mother

another therapist, you know, I just don't know how you take a breath, clear, metabolize what just

happen and go back in and do it again immediately. It's just remarkable. Yeah, I think, you know, I've

been working as a therapist for close to 20 years and I will say that early on in my career, I would

often feel so depleted and zonked by the end of the day. I would come home and I'm not a nap person,

but I would need to take a nap. I would need extra sleep. I, um, it felt really depleting. And then

after being in the field longer, I think you find little ways to adapt to cope, to build in time and space.

Fortunately, in, in my work as an art therapist, sometimes I get to make a little bit of art

with my client and that, that is nice too. It's not so much me focused. I'm creating, but I'm still

paying attention to the client. But it's still, I don't know, it allows, it allows a little more, um,

I guess space. I'm not a loss for words to describe what it does, but it helps.

It helps. Yeah. Um, yeah, I love that. I'm, um,

one of the things that I seek to do is rather than give people some sort of prescription of,

you need to make an hour a day for whatever it is, you know, to reconnect with your inner creative self.

And by the way, I want to make that distinction. I think that a lot of times we get wound up in the idea

of a creative practice of some kind that means we're pursuing some particular art form, for example,

I'm in a right for an hour a day. I'll work with a lot of writers. And, um, one thing I like to help

people understand is that creativity is not some substance or force outside of yourself. It is

your intrinsic spark. It's the your spark of life. And it's meant to flow through all of your life.

And so a creative practice, as I see it, the the first and most important one is reconnecting with that

inner self and listening to ourselves and asking, what do I need? And so that sending that signal to our

deep psyche that I matter, that this time matters that I deserve a little bit of space, but also developing

that as a micro practice. So it doesn't have to be an hour five or 10 minutes a day of intentionally

sitting down. I'd use the do it first thing in the morning, Julia Cameron would would would prove,

but I talked to Julia and I do classes with her pretty frequently and it's funny.

People will always ask, does it have to be in the morning? Of course, her answer is yes. And then I'll privately say,

and it's more important that you do it, even if it's 10 o'clock. I mean, I did my morning pages

last night in bed at 930. So I mean, but even five minutes, Raina. And I think that comes to a lot of

people as a great relief to go, oh, I felt like such a failure because I'd never have an hour unbroken

and single mothers, I was a single dad for years. I mean, there's not time to breathe between things

and it's legitimate. It's not an excuse. And some like, hey, what if you can give yourself just five

minutes? And then maybe it turns into 10, but don't even worry about an hour. And I watch people

light up and go, I can do that. I can make that promise to myself. The hour is just I can't promise

that. And when I try to do it, I get a streak of two days and then something happens and then I fail

and I fall off the horse and I'm like, great, let's do five minutes or even two on us. Let's start somewhere.

Yeah, I feel like I, I'll be honest, I wish that I was consistent like that and I did it every day.

I'm not. There will be streaks where every morning, I do some kind of art journaling or

expressive writing or something. And then there will be months where it doesn't happen

just because, well, there's other things going on and that becomes not like what my needs are

different during that time. And it's about listening to what your needs are.

You know, earlier this year, I had a good start to the year. Then it was like, oh, the world just got

really intense. Move my office along with moving my office. There was like all of these other

external things that happened. And you know what, getting up in the morning to work out and to do

the expressive practice. That was not what was a priority, but sleep was.

And getting that extra sleep was. So, you know, if you lose track of it, like it's okay, you can start

again when you feel called to. Yes, yes, I couldn't agree more. I think a lot of people, I've heard,

I heard a trainer one time use the phrase, die of shame. And because they didn't do it perfectly,

they didn't do it every day or enough, you know, then they just go, well, I guess I'm just not one of

those people or I'm lazy or I'm a slob or whatever it is. And I like to just get that out of the way

altogether. It's like you're you and your parts are welcome here, however you show up today.

I work with groups and that's one thing is like, I didn't feel like coming today because I didn't,

I haven't done it for a week and I didn't all these things. And I'm like, I'm just glad you showed up

today. Let's start there. Yeah, right. That's what matters. That present moment. Yeah.

Not what you did yesterday. What can we do right now? You're here right now. Yeah.

I would love to talk a little bit about a very simple journaling practice if this feels like a good

place for. Yeah, let's do it. We you said a few minutes ago, you said, you know, tuning in with what I

need, what I'm feeling, that sort of thing. And I lit up a bit because that's at the core of this creative

journaling practice I have. And this was born from my own experience of really working journaling

for years and years, Rayna, but then also realizing how many people felt somewhat estranged from the

experience of it or they would feel like my journaling, even when I use a, you know, practice such as

morning pages from the artist's way, it ends up sounding like boring wife, boring, whiny, barfy,

drivel. And it's just day after day of nothing but the same thing.

And I don't, it just doesn't feel good to keep doing that. And I'm like, you know, obviously there's some benefit in boring, whiny, barfy, drivel. But so over time I developed this practice for myself of asking three questions

because I grew up with a lot of childhood trauma. I found that hypervigilance and anxiety were

constant parts of my life. I found myself often feeling guilty when I would make a little time for myself.

And so what I developed was a practice that has three questions. And the first one is,

how do I feel right now? And that one by itself, again, in your therapist, many of us got the message

early and internalized the message that what I feel doesn't matter. And our society is full of

messages like "F your feelings" and things like that, you know, right? And so we're taught from an

early age what you feel doesn't matter. You can't trust your feelings, feelings always lie, all of those

things. And so by asking the question, how do I feel right now? And sometimes that can be

existential or emotional. Sometimes it's just very, I'm feeling tired this morning. I'm feeling

anxious today. Whatever it might be, or I'm feeling this morning is a beautiful day.

We had a bunch of rain and it's clear and bright outside. And I was sitting on the patio of a coffee shop journaling.

I'm like, I'm feeling wonderful today. Sometimes it ends up being that way, you know? But so how do I

feel right now? That by itself sends that message to the inner creative self, somebody's listening,

somebody's paying attention, you know? And then the second question is, what do I need right now?

Similar to the first question, a lot of us are taught early on that our needs don't matter.

You know, I was the oldest of six kids and everything just was a hurry in our life. And by necessity, we

were making food and washing dishes together and doing all the things. But it got to be an early

message that I internalized, you know, my needs really are less important than everyone else is around me.

And so asking that question of ourselves, what do I need right now? And sometimes it's very

prosaic. I need a nap. I need to pee. I need to prank, you know? And what would be the third one?

Well, I wanted to pause there, not just keep rattling on in a monologue, but yeah, and that needs part.

Like I just love, I love sending that signal that says, my needs matter. I'm going to pay attention

to them. And I've come to see the inner creative self as a very intelligent, curious toddler in a certain

way. It's open. It's taking in information. It doesn't know all the rules for things. But like a toddler,

I have three children and when they were toddlers, if I ignored them, Raina,

daddy, I need to drink. Okay, just a minute, daddy needed to drink just a minute. About the fourth or

fifth time if I didn't pay attention, something was going to break. They were going to get my attention.

So when I would turn and look at my beloved child and say, oh, honey, what do you need? I need a

drink. I've said it 17 times. Okay, let's get a drink. The minute I paid attention to them,

they settled right down. They were no longer breaking things. And so I found that if we treat our

inner creative selves in the same way as an intelligent, curious and very vocal toddler at a certain point,

that helps us then frame it to go. I don't have to walk around with these feelings of angst and

urgency all the time. I can actually spend a little time and find out what's needed.

And often, it's something very simple. Love that. It's a great metaphor. And yeah, I think when we're not creating,

it's mad. It's mad. Well, yeah, it's having a tantrum. At least for me. I'll speak for me.

Raise my hand too. And the other thing that I think this points to Raina is what is one of my great

motivations, which is to help people no longer put creativity outside of life. It's not like, well,

that's my creative self. And then there's the rest of my life. No, your life is a creation. In fact,

that's one of the processes here. Right? I see you nodding. I love inviting people into the

understanding that creativity is an energy that's meant to flow through every part of my life, much

like the sap and a tree or the blood in our veins. And that means that any part that is not filled with

our creative selves will weather up. And if we pay attention, our creative selves want to flow back

into that area of life and make it artful, whether it's my relationships or the work I do for pay

or my more classically creative type things or the walk I need to take by the river.

Any of these can be an artful part and an artful expression of our lives, you know.

Yeah, I agree with you 100%. I was nodding the whole time. I truly believe that it is, it is,

it's just a natural part of living that as natural as breathing. And I think it helps us so much

when we are able to embrace it. And we're able to nurture it. And we're able to celebrate it and

have fun with it and allow it to be a mess. Allow it to be ugly. Allow it to allow it to not

meet certain standards that would, you know, generate income.

That thing, that the creative process, I think, can get really sticky if we're using our creativity

for our income that can create some challenges. And we have to make time to just create,

just to experiment, have fun to play for it, to create for creativity, sake for our own

childlike self to have that exploration. And what you said about walking down by the river and

having an artful experience that way, I think it isn't just the act itself. There's the research,

there's the, there's the sensing. There's collecting all of this inspirational information,

which were then synthesizing. And then that becomes the creative output. But gathering,

collecting all of that information, that's part of the creative process too. But people don't talk

about that much. We almost never talk about it. In fact, what we judge ourselves by is the finished

creations of others that took, you know, months or years or whatever it took to make these things

happen. We didn't see the mess. We didn't see the meandering and the boredom and the despair and

all the things that go into the work hand, you know. And yeah, one thing I love is the polyvagal chart.

Obviously, you're familiar with that. And I have it tattooed inside of my forehead virtually.

So that I remember this, right? Because when you look at the ventral vagal, what I call the green

zone of the creative zone, that's kind of the holy grail for most spiritual traditions and

therapy and most self-help or meditation. Like if you get into the green zone physiologically,

everything is going to be more supportive immune system increases,

sense of connection to others and resourcefulness. All the good things happen in that zone.

But most of us are living up way up on this scale somewhere higher and higher in fight or flight.

And many of us tip over into, you know, freeze at some point. And so one thing I like to help people

realize is that meditation is wonderful and I use it. Journaling is wonderful and I use it. But honestly,

understanding that the green zone, that ventral vagal state, can be reached if we're willing to

make a little time for it with a few minutes gentle walk. It doesn't have to be an athletic walk.

A bath, a cup of tea, sitting and talking with a trusted friend or partner. These things, if we

understand the intention behind it and the reason it feels good, sometimes that helps people quit

having anxiety about not meditating enough or not journaling enough or whatever. It's like,

no, I know how to get into that state and there are many, many different ways of getting there.

I love that. Yeah, so getting into the flow when everything is just synergistic.

It's easy, right? You're like, oh, wow, all the creativity slowing out of me. Oh, everything's working out.

Doesn't feel like a fight.

About seven or eight years ago before I really dove into the understanding for myself and then

was so fascinated by trauma research that I really began to dig into that more. I visited a holistic

Asian medical practitioner and she asked me if I knew what active resting was. I was dealing with

a lot of chronic fatigue and some depression and all these things. I went to her saying, I need help.

My energy was really low and she asked if I knew what active resting was. I laughed as if I've heard

the term, but I don't think I know what it means. She said, well, that's obvious.

She helped me understand the simple mindset shift. She said, because I told her, I said honestly,

I feel like I'm lazier now than I've ever been. I feel like I have to take all this time because I

just don't have any energy. She said, well, what if when you crawl in bed and pull the blackout shades

and put your laptop on your lap and start watching Netflix, what if you make the shifts

in mentally that says I am actively resting? That means she said, I want you to imagine you're

plugging your iPhone into the wall charger and watching it go from 1% red into the green.

She said, if you're anxious about what you're doing, you're actually not letting yourself recharge.

You are telling yourself a story that's keeping you elevated in anxiety, which means you're actually

not getting the rest you genuinely need. It was so funny, right now. That began to help me and

it's taken me years and I still have to work on myself with that. But that visual, sometimes even

what we might call self-indulgent activities, if we understand that using the journaling questions,

I said, what do I need? It's like, I need deep rest. Maybe I need a day. I'm an introvert.

Maybe I need a day without a lot of social contact and just in my pajamas, in my house. It was hard for me

to give myself permission for that for a lot of years. I think that is a hard thing for many,

many adults to give themselves permission to do. It's drilled into us that we need to be responsible.

We need to be productive. All of those things and we don't often take that. I do think though,

we're seeing a pivot in awareness about that and people are changing the way they're living

and working, which is really exciting to see because they're prioritizing what you're talking about,

that active rest and they're prioritizing the way that they live and work, right?

Creating that balance that it's not all one or the other. I'm so glad you brought attention to that. That was one

of the things that as COVID said in and we had this massive disruption. Of course, we were dealing

with so much distress, but also it felt like a chance for us to pay attention to our needs in a

different way than has been possible or maybe even legitimate in the last 40 or 50 or maybe more

years. Yeah, absolutely. I hope that it continues. Yeah. Yeah, I think that the industrial era,

by the way, I've said that a couple of times. I think that humankind has been developing these

things all of the down through our story, our history. It's not as if we haven't gained a lot of

benefits from the developments of the industrial age. I feel like what we're in right now is a time

where we're asked to genuinely take the power back from the machine world that we've created

because it was meant to make our lives easier, not more frantic and anxious.

The fact is, we just keep creating, creating, creating out of a fear of scarcity. I feel like we're in a time

where if we are willing to, we can step into a different promise of what is possible, which

means genuine freedom and genuine, which also, I think one of the reasons we don't take advantage

of that, Raina, is because we are so afraid of boredom. If I don't have work, productive work to

fill my life, what will I do with that time? And Cal Newport, who wrote deep work and other

researchers talk about the crucial importance of boredom. In fact, I talk about it in the creative

curbsome, but understanding that boredom is a necessary state and is a brainwaves data associated

with it. And we honestly can't tap our deeper creative gifts or feelings unless we're willing to

allow some follow-time, some time that's not filled with productive activity. Yeah, we need that

those breaks. I know I've read a lot of like, you know, about different inventors, right, that

that was like part of their strategy, that they would have intentional breaks to go do nothing.

Totally, and understanding that we are, especially, I'm in a period right now where I've been

developing this big retreat within LeBotte and Julia Cameron, all these. And so that's

requiring a lot and we're developing a whole writing community around it. So it feels like every

day is filled with exciting and really intense work. And so I was sitting there journaling this morning

and I watched myself reign a like a squirrel. I'm journaling a few words and then I pick up my phone

to check and there's a message coming in and there's an email and I'm journaling for a few. And

finally I wrote my journal, I am a mess today. I can't seem to focus. I can relate. I can totally

relate. I am starting to teach a new class or new to me class tonight and I've never taught it before.

And so, yes, in this, Art Therapy Assessments. Oh, interesting. Yeah. And so last night I was like,

okay, it's like, what's, oh, it's 230. Oh, it's three. I gotta get some sleep. I gotta get some sleep today.

Yeah. 38 am. Is that what you meant? Yes. Like 238. Like I was waking myself up because my brain is

like rehearsed like actively, like mentally rehearsing and going through all of the things that I want

to make sure that I hit and talk about and I'm like, no, it's not time for that. We can go over that tomorrow.

Get some sleep. But no, I've been up since like five. Oh my god, I hope you get a little rest.

I wish I will after we're done talking. I'm going to do some meditation myself and an energy

meditation. Yeah. But it happens where I was like, okay, I'm really frazzled this morning. I felt

really frazzled and I had to like tell myself, you know, be really intentional about how I was talking

to myself. Like, it's going to be okay. Nothing to frazzle about. Oh, well, it will be and I also

understand, you know, the need to be responsible and show up well prepared and deliver them on the

promise of a class. Those are important too. And so it's a lot. Yeah.

Yeah. So whenever you're, I think you're developing something new, it can feel that way where you're like, okay, I had everything organized in my mind. And now it all just, whoosh, everything got jumbled up. Oh my god, I can relate

to the fact I remember sitting down in front of a in front of my laptop a few years ago before a big

event we were putting on and I just was feeling completely terrified. Even though it, you know, I'd had

a great flow of ideas ahead of that. And then I'm sitting down five minutes before it's time for me

to go on stage and just trying to make sure I'd remembered everything that was important. And I felt my

my inner guidance go, hey, you've prepared so much. It's all in there. In fact, the

PowerPoint slides and the notes you're making, these are all to really take care of that.

Ego part of your mind, which is by the way, I don't use the ego as a bad word. This is taking care

of that part of your mind that wants to show up and wants to be seen as prepared. And that's totally

fine, but you can trust that it's all back. It's all in there. It will all come out and it did, you know.

Yeah, that's awesome. So I want to I want to make sure we double back because I think we only got the

two questions. And there were three. One was, how do I feel right now? The other one was, what do I

need right now? And what would be the third general prompt? You are so good because I realized that

we missed that question too. Thanks for coming back. So the third one, and I really, the order of these

has become important to me because how do I feel? What do I need? A lot of times we try to jump right

into visualizing a desired state of mind or a desired, you know, creation or something without

paying attention to the first two things. A lot of times we're trying to kind of, it's almost like

people who want to get to self acceptance, but don't do the inner work of self discovery or the

the needed healing and the things they're trying to get to. I am a strong confident human or whatever.

And they wonder why they always feel like a fraud with that. And so this third question, I really

invite people to put it last because I find that moving into this third question is best when I

have prepared the ground by settling myself a bit. The third question is, what would I love? And often

when I'm in the middle of emotional turmoil or stress, sometimes I've reframed that question

rena as how would I love to feel right now? Sometimes putting a goal or a, you know, I'm trying

to visualize this thing, this accomplishment that I'm going toward. Sometimes that can feel way too far

out in the future, especially when someone's going through, you know, turmoil or destabilization of

some kind. So coming right into the present, how would I love to feel right now? And a lot of times

for me, that ends up being getting ready to go into this meeting or I'm getting ready to go on

rena's podcast. I would love to feel confident. I would love to feel open and friendly.

Or I'd love to feel less anxious. Whatever it is, sometimes that next step on the path helps me not try to focus on

something way down the road and just go, oh, I would love to feel this way right now. Or if I'm going

into a tough conversation with, you know, one of my business partners or a, you know, supplier or

something, it helps if I get myself centered just that little bit. But then for longer range things,

well, what I love, and this is where the creative self loves to dream. And if I give it a few paragraphs

to dream, and sometimes I'll start that out with a prompt like, I'm so happy and grateful now that

and put myself in a future situation and let myself create the story. It's remarkable sometimes

looking at, if I look back at a journal entry from two or three years ago and look at something I'd

written down, I would love to, I'm so happy and grateful now that, and to look back and without any

real like dedicated daily focus on that, just realized that came to be. That's amazing.

Back to that conversation with Dr. James Dota yesterday and he wrote into the magic shop and he has a new book

coming out next make about manifestation. And he's a neurosurgeon, he's a scientist, he's like this

really deep researcher in the brain and how it all works. And we were talking about manifestation,

you know, and he's, he's an outspoken atheist, he's not into all the, you know, more spiritually things

that I'm very familiar and comfortable with, but I love that because he's taking it from a very

strong standpoint like that. But that's one of the things that he really teaches in his work and has

observed is that we have so much power to create the lives that we would love to live. And often we

we step, we stay back from even imagining it because it feels so, we feel so afraid or inadequate.

I hate, well, it's like, well, I don't, if I imagine it, there's like a fear if I imagine it and it

doesn't happen, then I'm like grieving this thing that didn't come to be or like I, some people have

the perspective like, I know that's not even possible. So why am I going to even allow myself to

entertain that idea, which that that hurts my heart because if you're not going to allow yourself to dream

bigger to just allow yourself to imagine all the things that are possible.

Yeah. We say so stuck in our, our own little space. Go ahead. I'm sorry.

Completely no, I got excited when I interrupt you. Oh, you know, that points to me. It's interesting,

Raina, when I was reading Body Keeps the Score six or seven years ago and then the deepest well,

I began to notice that I myself, even though I've been, you know, I'm left-handed, I'm right-brained,

you know, I tend to have a lot more access to that kind of experience. I would discover that when

I would sit down and try to imagine an outcome or an experience that I would really love,

I noticed how hard it was for me. And then I began pulling the thread on that and I began to realize

that much like our needs and our feelings, we get taught in early age, sometimes explicitly,

that's just your imagination, stop day dreaming. And we actually get trained to train the most powerful

and the first step in the creative formula, as I've identified it, imagination is always the first step.

But we never lose our imagination. What happens is we get trained to use it to paint scenes of what we

don't want, failure, pain, rejection, disappointment, all of that. And so we are, most people, if you,

I'm sure as a therapist, if you ask somebody to imagine something they don't want, my god,

they can create a Steven Spielberg-Murvey in a second. Oh my gosh, it's so true. It's so true. And

I think that that happens to our young people, right, in school, like, you know, teachers don't even

allow people to doodle as they're like listening and paying attention. Like, what's so wrong with

doodling while people are paying attention? But we learn that that skill is not valued.

What is valued in society is rope memorization, conformity. And following those expectations of those

in leadership without question. And that's problematic on many different levels. Aside from squashing

our creative juices. Yes. Yes. I have a friend Dr. Chris Nebauer, he's a neuropsychologist, and we

were talking, as I was writing the creative cure, we were talking, because he's all into left brain,

right brain, all these things, you know, fastening character. But I got excited. I said, Chris, it sounds

like what you're telling me is in our society, we've placed all the rewards and the focus on left

brain activities, which is reflecting what you just said, right? And it's almost as if we've told a

body builder, never work out the right side muscles on your body, only the left and only, and you need

to work them hard and you need to make them big and strong. And then after 30 years, we wonder why

that same person has no functional, like they can't hardly walk down the road. They're out of balance.

And he started laughing. He said, I would have never thought of that metaphor, but that's actually

exactly what's happening. And he said, it's not that anyone is really all left brain or right brain.

He said, actually, we just been so trained, even those of us who are more easily

right brain experiences, we are also trained, like you just said, to create linear

goal oriented behaviors. And so it takes some time, it can feel awkward, and sometimes even painful

to let ourselves get a little looser and learn that we're, I don't even want to make people feel

like they have to get or create it. I would love to be inside of them, you know?

It's frustrating that the creative process isn't as valued because what we know is that it's essential

in all workforces, if we allow people and encourage people's creative process.

I mean, we start to solve solutions for problems that have existed for a really long time and

become more efficient. And there's just so many positives that come with creativity.

In your book, what do you share with readers about the link between the creative factors of

the creative process for their own healing and well-being?

You say that one more time. I was listening to the question and I wanted to make sure I'm really

clear on what you're asking there. Yeah, so your book is called the creative cure.

And so I'm curious what in your book you highlight are the curative factors from the creative process

for our healing and wellness and, you know, ultimate benefit. Yeah.

It's interesting. A lot of this started for me, at least in terms of this book, Reino, when I saw

the World Economic Forum update back and I think it was 2015 or so and they do this every five years

to where they do a massive study and they come back with all of this data that says these are

the kinds of skills you need to survive and thrive in a career. All right, so this is money,

this is big data, but it was interesting to see that the previous one that they had published

creativity was at the bottom of the top 10 list and then in this new one that they had set up for

2020 and beyond, creativity had moved to number three on the list, but what was interesting is that

some other what they call softer skills such as empathy were now on the list for the very first time.

So that set a light bulb for me and I did a study with 10,000 people and of those who responded,

I asked what's your greatest creative challenge? And then I had a multiple choice and then there was

also a box they could say other and explain 72.3% of those who responded said I doubt my talents and

abilities, I don't think I'm good enough. Oh, that's awful. Right. And I had a hard time believing it

and then as I engaged with that group who responded and we started doing some work together,

I found that it really reflected a deep inner belief that I'm not good enough. I'm not good enough.

So to me that began to help me realize it's not a matter of, it's not even a matter of the creative

activity they don't think that's good enough or that they could become skillful enough in.

There's a deeper hidden belief that I myself am not good enough. And so that was one and then of

course some others that came up were I think I have things that are worth sharing, but I don't think

other people will value them. There was a lot that came back to self-worth and so that began

and helped me continue the process of asking that question of okay this is a big clue

because the business world, the economic world is understanding that we need creativity.

People are beginning to talk about it a lot, but when it comes right down to doing it, a lot of people

or being it is how I'd prefer it, not just doing it because to me creativity is well one of the

simple definitions of it, Raina is the process by which something rare, original and valuable is formed.

And one thing I love to help people understand is that as we

heal the connection to our creative inner selves, we begin to realize that I myself, you yourself,

everyone, we are our own most exciting and challenging and magnificent creative projects. If we

focus first on the inner self, everything that begins to come from that is an expression of that

rare or original valuable being that each of us is.

And so I begin to then approach my writing or the creativity I take in business or whatever it is, you know, I begin to take a different approach with it in that it's no longer a test of whether I'm good enough or not. I'm doing that work

internally. And so it gives me more of a chance to take risks and to not be good at something.

And so as I think this is a long way around of answering your question, but you know the subtitle

of the book is how finding and freeing your inner artists can heal your life. And I watch so many

people whenever they use the word creativity, their face kind of puckers up. They're like, well,

that's for those creative people. And it hurts my heart because I'm like, it's genuinely here for

everyone. There is no creative class out there. And everyone else just has to be these peasants

working around in mundane experiences like creativity is genuinely meant to come out of us.

And if we heal that connection, we begin to bring more joy into our lives. And if I

bring joy and artfulness to what's within my own arms reach, how am I? I remember feeling so

overwhelmed by the world, Rayna, and realizing that I can't overcome the forces of stupidity and

evil and cruelty and all the things that are so stressing for me out there. I can't overcome those

forces. What I can do something about is how are my children doing in our home? How am I doing?

He inside of myself? How is my partner doing? How are the friends in my life who might get more and

more isolated? How are they doing? How can I touch and bring artfulness and love into what's within

my own arms reach? And I found that as I did that, it began to more and more reduce my sense of

anxiety and overwhelm in the world. That's not denying the forces that are distressing out there,

but it's saying I can do something about this right here. And that brought and continues to bring

more and more sanity into my life. And that's what I share with others. Let's bring more joy and

sanity into our lives, more connection. When one writer and researcher wrote, we don't heal in

isolation. We heal in community. And so I invite people into creative community and into joyful

community. And like, take the word creativity out if you need. Let's have fun together.

Let's actually have fun together. I love that. Creating can be such a joyful experience and fun. If we allow it to be

yeah, that's beautiful. How can I make this thing right in front of me artful? So if I show up to

have a conversation with you and I'm concerned about how to way up here, how am I going to sound

and I'm mechanical about it. Let's let's serve the agenda of making sure everyone knows about this book.

To me, that's no longer artful. If I show up and go, I'm interested in rena and the work that you do

out there. And yes, I want to talk about these things and get excited about them.

But if this right here, if I'm thinking about the next five things I have to do today, I'm going to lose the artfulness

of this experience. And this feels artful because I'm connecting with you as an actual person

and listening to you. I totally agree. It's creativity teaches us so much about

presence and mindfulness and living in the present moment, focusing on this one thing that we're

doing right now. And that is that's a gift. That's a relief, you know. It's a relief from like when

things feel overwhelming and jumbled and anxious to be able to just be in the present moment fully

engrossed in whatever it is that activity is that you're engaging in, whether it is a conversation

like this or painting or your writing or movement, whatever it may be. Making dinner. Making dinner.

Yes, I love cooking. That's one of my places where I like to get creative and express myself and

definitely get in the flow. I can I can lose like 10 hours in the kitchen easily. Oh my gosh,

my feet hurt. Well, yeah, you've been standing making stuff for 10 hours.

Well, and I love to say, rena, that I love what you just said when you lose yourself, you know,

you're cooking. This is artful. I don't really care about the words. I do care about the experience.

And so what I love what I love for people to allow themselves to do is

reframe it to go anything in which I feel more alive, whether it's a conversation or my sister's

a CFO working on a spreadsheet. She loves numbers. It actually makes her feel alive.

Right. She goes into a flow, stay with it. It doesn't really matter what it is. It's so long as it's

not harmful to others. Whatever it is that makes you feel truly alive, that is an expression of

your creative self. That is art. That is actual art, you know. I love that. That's such a great

quote. Anything in which I feel more alive is an expression of my creativity,

creative self. That's beautiful. You might have read a small passage from this. I don't know if

you've ever seen this book belonging by Toko Paternor. I haven't. But yes, please do.

Beautiful. She's a Jungian dream worker. She does a lot of really beautiful work. And this book,

if you looked at it, it is full of underlines and dog years and my tears and everything else.

But I share this often in my classes and workshops. I'm not going to read the whole thing, but she says,

I believe we have more than enough creativity to solve the problems of our times. But we have to make

a perilous trek into the wilderness within to reclaim it. She says, "Few make the trek into this

creative wild because the path requires great vulnerability. To come into our true originality,

we must surrender the layers of numbness we used to protect our hearts."

Oh, I have the goose bumps. That's beautiful. Beautiful and so true.

I can think of that disconnection, how people disconnect and go numb instead of going in.

Well, this is one reason I just love when I got the invitation to show up here and then

knowing what you're doing with working with so many people who are working with others out there.

I just really want to honor everyone who is in the trenches of inviting people into

surrendering even if it's for an hour every two weeks that they come into a therapist office and

they for a moment are able to be vulnerable to put down those layers of numbness, even if it's just

for a few minutes. You're doing the work, you're helping provide the medicine that this world needs.

And I am so firmly convicted that what she says is true, that a lot of the work that's needed right

now is really not mechanical. We don't need better technology. We don't need faster cars. We really

need to come deeply into our true originality. I agree, beautifully stead and thank you for

sharing that passage. Now I wrote the book down. I'm going to have to put that on my list.

Really great. If people wanted to learn more about your work, the writing retreat that you're

creating and your book, the creative cure, where can people find more information about you Jacob?

Well, like a lot of people who get a lot of projects going, maybe you can relate, right? I have

websites here and there and everywhere. So you mentioned at the beginning of the show Jacob

Norby.com. That's a great place to go. And I have this journaling practice that I mentioned earlier.

It's a program. It's downloadable ebook and also an audio version. I also have a little instruction

video like three minutes long. And I have a creative visualization that are included and it's all free.

And they can find that at creativeselfjournal.com. That's a great, that's a great plan. It's

again, it's free. I love when I created this years ago, I shared it with some therapist friends and

just said, I don't know if this is any good. You know, it's a 12 page ebook. I don't know if it's

any good. And a couple of them came back and then more and more have come back and said, oh my god,

I'm sharing this with my clients because they all I've been wanting them to journal for years.

And many of them just won't do it. They said, for whatever reason this practice is really

helping them do it. So that makes me happy. The other one is creativecurebook.com is where you can

go and sample. There's an audio sample. And that's where I talk about the three enemies of

creativity, which is traumatic experiences and conformity. Wow, my own three are escaping me now.

Yeah, trauma and the fear of rejection and then socialization essentially. But we talk about

there on that page and there's downloadable samples and things. A writing room retreat is coming

up this year in Santa Fe. We're also streaming it worldwide. So people can show up in Santa

Fe if they can make the trip, but a lot of people can't. So we have well over a thousand people

already registered to join us from worldwide. And that can be found at awritingroom.com,

which is our retreat site. But then that will soon morph into over into our community.

So there's an online community with an app coming out in the next month to support people who are writers or

who want to be. I'm so fortunate to be working with Anne Lamod and Julia Cameron and Sark and Alex

L who just wrote the book How We Heel, some of these amazing teachers. So it feels really good to be

doing this. That's awesome. I think such a great resource for people. So many great resources for

people, the journaling prompts, the retreat, creating a community where people can connect and create

in community, which you've highlighted that it's really important for the healing process to

heal in community. We don't heal in isolation. Isolation is, ooh, the antithesis, right? He keeps us

stuck in our own in our own stuff. So yeah, when I get isolated, I get more and more crazy.

Right. Yeah. You know, I mean, no, it's yeah, inside of my bubble, if I don't get out of that,

and Rayna, I just want to just say I still appreciate the attention and the highlighting of my work.

But I would love to just put this out there. It's not a decision you have to make now, but I would

love to invite you to come and share some things with some of our community at some point. I love

Art Therapy and I love that you're doing it. It's amazing. So we can talk about that at some other time.

Well, thank you. That's so generous and kind. And yeah, I would love to. We'll have to, we'll stay in

communication and you let me know. I really see what you're doing. It's like you're doing it.

Well, thank you so much for doing what you're doing and being willing to come on my show. I know

my show is really it's small in comparison to some of the other podcasts out there. So I'm grateful

that you wanted to come and talk to me and my audience about your work. Well, I look forward to

sharing this with with my groups as well. I just feel like we can't have enough of the work you're

doing. And honestly, I feel like doing it, you said, you know, a smaller show. I actually prefer

working with people who are doing work out on the streets. I think some of the big famous shows

are amazing and I would never, you know, disrespect them. And I just I just love that you're doing

the work out there in the trenches in the fields. I think it's just beautiful. Thank you for that.

Thank you. And I I'm grateful for your kind words and I appreciate you.

And the work that you're doing, I feel like it takes a village of people to reach everyone

that needs to be reached. And, you know, particularly I really believe that creativity is is

curative. Like you for so many reasons. And, you know, not everybody, not everybody needs to go

to therapy, but they still need to have that creative experience and to be invited to be creative

and let go of that inner critic voice and play and explore. And I think, you know, the more creativity

out there, the better the world is going to be for all of us.

I know that first question, how do I feel right now is often a check in art exercise that I do in

groups just to kind of get us warmed up and see where people are in their bodies and and where they're

at. What's their energy level at that day? And it just helps people to get into a different thinking

and feeling place. And I also loved the question of how would I love to feel right now?

How would I love to feel right now? I think it's a question we don't often ask ourselves,

but if we did, if we asked that of ourselves every day, I think that there's a great potential for

helping ourselves to embody that more desired state of being that we're all looking for and that

we're helping our clients to find. And yeah, anyway, I hope you enjoyed this conversation and I

look forward to sharing more conversations with you for the rest of the year until December.

And if you liked what you heard, please do subscribe. And if you really, really have the time,

we would love if you rated or gave us feedback on the show wherever you listen so that other people

can find us and they can benefit from the conversations that we're sharing as well. All right, take care,

everyone. Thanks for listening to this episode of the Creative Psychotherapist. If you like what you

heard, please rate, review and subscribe wherever you listen to your favorite podcasts. For show notes,

downloads and additional resources head over to the website at www.doub.com/doub.com

VFTS 2023 7 | Dr. Mariana Alessandri | When Positivity Becomes Toxic

Mon, 04 Sep 2023 13:46:04 GMT

FEATURED GUESTS: Mariana Alessandri, PhD, is associate professor of philosophy at the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV). She is cofounder of the Rio Grande Valley Parents United for Excellent Dual Education; its mission is to promote bilingualism and biculturalism at UTRGV. In her new book, Night Vision: Seeing Ourselves through Dark Moods, Mariana asks readers to rethink dark moods like anger, sadness, anxiety, grief, and depression. Worried about the effects that toxic positivity is having on North Americans, she asks us to stop focusing on the “choose happy” mindset. Instead, Mariana challenges us to dim the lights until our eyes adjust to the rich darkness that human existence offers.

LISTEN & LEARN:

How Dr. Alessandri focuses on the effects toxic positivity
The power of challenging ourselves to dim the lights until out eyes adjust to the rich darkness that human existence offers
Leaning into and rethinking about dark moods like anger, sadness, anxiety, grief, and depression
How to make changes and shift by looking outward ( being more critical and seeing things ) and inward (try out the night vision by not turning on the light immediately)

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW:

Dr. Alessandri Website: www.marianaalessandri.com
Dr. Alessandri Email: mariana.alessandri@utrgv.edu
Her new book Night Vision: Seeing Ourselves through Dark Moods

SESSIONS AT THE SUMMIT:

Thursday November 16th, 2023 7:00PM-8:30PM Against Toxic Positivity: Embracing Sadness for Genuine Empathy

Read the Transcript below...

Hey there creatives. I am really excited to launch this next round of bonus episodes for

the voices from the Expressive Therapy Summit Special Series, which we've been bringing to you over the past couple of years. It highlights interviews that I have with various

speakers and presenters and workshop facilitators that are affiliated with the Expressive Therapy Summit. The next handful of episodes that we release will be released as we get them done in promotion for the November East Coast event, which will happen virtually completely online so you can join from around the world wherever you might be.

Our first guest, her name is Mariana Alessandri, and she is an existential philosopher, and she draws on a diverse group of 19th and 20th century philosophers to help us see that our suffering is a sign, not that we are broken, but that we are tender, perceptive and intelligent. So she's really looking to reframe the way we stigmatize people for not feeling good. I hope you enjoy this conversation, and if you're interested in hearing more from her, you'll definitely have to check out her presentation at the Expressive Therapy Summit where she's going to talk about going against toxic positivity and embracing sadness for genuine empathy, which will happen on November 16th from 7 to 8.30 pm Eastern time. And like I said, it will be virtual so you can join from wherever you happen to be on this big planet. And without further ado, here's our conversation.

Welcome. Now here's your host, Reina Lombardi. Thanks so much for listening to the Creative Psychotherapist podcast. I'm your host, Reina Lombardi and I'm very excited to welcome my next guest who is going to be presenting at the November expressive therapy summit. And her name is Mariana Alessandri. And she is an associate professor of philosophy at the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley and the co-founder of the Rio Grande Valley Parents United for excellent dual education. It's her mission to promote bilingualism, biculturalism at UGTR-GV. And she has a new book, Night Vision, seeing ourselves through dark moods, which has been published by Princeton Press.

And she asks readers to rethink dark moods like anger, sadness, anxiety, grief and depression. And she's worried about the effects that toxic positivity is having on North Americans. And she asks that we stop focusing on the choose happy mindset and instead challenges us to dim the lights until our eyes adjust to the rich darkness that the human existence offers.

So welcome, Mariana. Thank you so much for taking the time to talk to me today. Thank you for having me. So let's just jump right in. What connected you to this calling to address toxic positivity and highlight the benefits of feeling all of the feelings, the full range of emotions that we feel as humans?

I think at first it was just the basic fact that I can't stay positive. And after years of struggling

with it and saying what's wrong with me and reading like 1000 self-help books on how to be more grateful, how to appreciate your life, more how to change your perspective, how to do it all yourself. I just realized I can't stay positive and there's nothing wrong with me. And so I wanted to carve out a space because I sense that I'm not alone, that I'm not the only person who can't stay positive and who feels broken because of it or who feels like there's something wrong with us.

And so I wanted to go like analyze the different moods that I and others experience like anger and anxiety and grief and sadness and depression and try to understand what it is about those, why they make us feel broken in our world. Like I think it's super contextual because it's such a bright-sided world where the real sped up is that you get to choose happy. You can be happy if you want to be. If you set your mind to it, you can be happy. It doesn't matter what your circumstances are. And so that all sounds great. Like when everything's going well, I can say, I'm being positive. I have a positive mindset. I choose happy. I keep a gratitude journal. But then as students, we just become regular humans again, right? We suffer and we bleed.

And we hurt each other and we're disappointed. Then all of a sudden the world comes crashing down on us. All the self-help authors are going to say, well, then that's your fault. You must not be doing it right. And they make their money off of the whole idea that we must not be doing it right. And so I wanted

to push against that and say, hold on a second.

Maybe it's the case that these moods constitute what it means to be human and that we ought to look at them deeper instead of just by default kind of reject them and avoid them and be scared of them. And so my whole book is about leading into them and thinking about them and staying there for a bit. Yeah. I love the idea of this and it's making me think about how you mentioned it's contextual.

And it really is if we think about the medical model and how it applies to mental health,

we've pathologized a whole host of emotional experiences. They are labeled as a disorder.

If somebody is feeling grief for a prolonged period of time, it's a disorder. I feel like we need to revisit the way we do that. That there has to be another way that still

allows us to help people that want to say, like, I don't want to feel this way anymore. I'd like to feel different because it's affecting me in this way. Can we do that without we can still have that category to understand it because we know categorizing things helps us to understand and make sense of our world.

But can we do it without the pathology? Yeah. I mean, if you think I've made lists of the words that we use for just general mental illness or things, I mean, mental illness is one of them. Disorder, dysfunction, deficiency, disease, pathology, and firmety, ailment, malady. We don't speak nicely. As a society, we don't speak nicely about human moods. We speak very nicely about joy and pleasure and all these things, but we don't speak nicely. And so there are, you know, that self-help book about like how to talk nicer to yourself or what to say when you're talking to yourself.

There's lots projected onto the individual, right? Like, you're not speaking nice to yourself. You should be kinder to yourself. And I want to take the heat off of the individual. I want to say, hold on, it's not me who's decided that I have a deficiency that I'm broken. It's actually society that has told me in all these words that I'm dysfunctional. And so I want to get society.

Like, I'm a philosopher, so I'm doing a social critique. I'm not just doing sort of psychology on the individual. I'm trying to push it back and say, what in our world is making us talk, not, you know, not nicely to ourselves. It's all the billboards. It's all the things that, you know,

like, sort of attack me when I go into the to the airport. I see a woman whose shirt says,

"Stay positive." And I see a sign that says, "It will get brighter optimism. Pass it on," right?

There's so much messaging that says, "If you're not doing this, if you're not in this space, then you're broken." And that's what I'm calling, like, there's this economy in the book or a kind of,

like, parallel structure where there's the light metaphor, which is, "Everything will get brighter, bring your own shine your own light, bring your own sun, love and light," the light at the end of the tunnel. It's related to make today ridiculously amazing, as though these things are just solely within our power. Like, bring your own sunshine, right? The world may be breaking around you but you can still, you should still have a great day. So that's like the light metaphor.

Every time we say that something is bright and brilliant and, you know, light, we're saying that anything dark is gross and ignorant and dangerous and ugly and we should ignore it, avoid it, suppress it, get rid of it. And so then I think, well, I'm an existentialist, so I just think we are pretty dark, right? We're just humans, right? We have some light in us and we have some dark in us. And if that's the setup, where only the light parts of us are celebrated and deemed kind of human and good, then all of a sudden, when we're in a dark spot, what do we do? Right? Then all we have, right?

Society's just basically telling us, "Now's the time you feel bad about yourself. Now's the time that you feel like you haven't done what all the self-help authors do, all the YouTubers, all the people who say, I got myself off my feet, I changed my life and you can't do." And so it's a, I don't know, like I've gotten mixed messages about whether it's a particularly American, US-American phenomenon. I've definitely seen it in Mexico. I don't know about Europe. I feel like maybe the English are a little more pessimistic or something, but I don't know, you know?

But certainly in this country, I feel like we are tormented by all the signs that say, "Blessed," and that, like, tell us how to live, how to feel, and how to make our day. And I feel like it's like walking into target is difficult for me because I see all the things that say, whether it's a pillow or a coffee mug or a sign, and people willingly hang this stuff in their house. And I think, "Oh, that's the dangers." Like, I don't, I don't want to hang that in my house because I've already failed. Like, my kids' soccer coach wears a skirt

that says, "#NoBadDays." And I think, "Oh, my God." Like, I already failed. I've, I've failed, like,

when I was born, I already had bad days. Like, none at all zero. Like, our tolerance for dark moods is basically at a zero.

And so I just think, "Okay, can I elevate that with this little book? Can I get us to be a little more realistic about what it means to be a human being, which is dark and light, happy and sad, often at the same time, a whole bunch of bittersweet. I like what Susan Cane is doing. Right? Like, just like the mix, the, the fullness of a human being is not never going to be just all bright and love and light and bring your own sunshine. We're never going to be that. So we have to figure out a way to talk nicer as a society about these moods that I've considered to be just thoroughly human.

I, I agree. I do a lot of work with teens and they already espouse that well, that anger is a bad emotion. I'm not supposed to feel angry or it's, I'm bad if I feel, feel angry. And so if our children are already espousing that mindset, right, they've already integrated all of those messages that you were talking about from various environments, whether it's

like going to target or just the messages that they hear at school at home, it's all around television. Like that is, that's painful.

That's painful because then they are setting themselves up to be in a more pathologized state because now they're questioning like, well, if I'm bad, then it starts taking them to really scary thoughts. And they're not seeing their value in the world.

They're not seeing that they matter because they are exploring and feeling these really painful difficult feelings. But that are essential to our human experience, right? The idea that we're supposed to feel happy or we're supposed to feel joyful all the time doesn't make any sense feelings are cyclical, they come and go. And I think, you know, the deep dark stuff teaches us so much about what it means to be human. Yeah, I mean, I'm really glad you brought up anger because part of what I'm trying to do in the book is show where we got our opinions from.

Where did we get these like sort of real knee-jerk reactions, default assumptions that it's wrong? And so I talk about ancient stoicism, which is super popular today. And it's fascinating because I find it completely dangerous.

It's a dangerous philosophy to play with because their whole idea was that you cannot feel things. You can make yourself stop feeling things that you don't want to feel. And most, like, I don't know a lot of people who actually believe that, but their idea was feelings or judgments and judgments are optional. And that's all through certain kind of, um, psychologists that we learn about today.

But so, so they're, they were the harshest on anger, they were like, you shouldn't feel it. You can actually stop yourself from feeling it. Even if you're feeling it, you're already in the wrong. If you're feeling it, you're already weak. Then comes Aristotle who's like, "Wait, wait, wait, wait. It's okay to feel it because feelings are just feelings. It's okay to feel angry. Just don't act on it." And so he was like a little bit nicer, but I tell a story in the book of like having kids like through that all out the window for me, because I would yell at them, right?

I would behave badly. And I would be like, "Okay, now am I just a monster? I'd look in the mirror and be like, I am the worst mom. I'm a monster because I'm a philosopher. And those are the things I was brought up on. And even if you're not a philosopher, you either believe that you shouldn't get angry. So if you ever say, "I'm sorry, I got angry." That means you're with the Stoics. And you believe you actually have a choice in whether you get angry or not. If you find yourself ever saying, "I'm sorry, I acted out of anger," then you're more Aristotelian.

You believe it's okay to feel angry, but I shouldn't have acted out of anger. And both of those during the pandemic, when everyone was smushed on top of each other, went out the window. And so I thought, "What if we re-educate ourselves on anger coming from contemporary theorists?" Of color. And so in the chapter, I talk about Bell Hooks, her theory of anger, Maria Lugonis, her theory of anger, and Audrey Lord. And if Seneca, the ancient Stoic, is saying, "Angers poison, anger is demonic," Audrey Lord is like, "Hey, what, you know what? Angers information.

Anger is useful to us. Anger is a tool with which we can excavate honesty. But if like you're the kids you work with, what they say is, "I'm angry, therefore I'm bad. They are never going to listen to their anger." But Lord wanted us to listen to it. So if we're knee jerk reacting against it by default, saying, "That's bad, I shouldn't be like that like I did for most of my life, I'm angry person, I'm bad." And it's like, "No, no, hold on. Maybe it's justified." Yeah. I'm angry about something.

And so I started to use them as help for me to retrain my brain to think about anger as information, give it a chance. You might not be right. You might be, you know, in the wrong, like I often am with my kids, but sometimes I'm right. And sometimes I'm trying to make a space for myself to exist in a tradition in which the mother is supposed to not exist, right? The mother is supposed to disappear, be all self-sacrificing, etc. So some of my anger was justified, right? So the whole point is just not to deny it or reject it out of hands, but to actually give it a chance. And that means we have to sit in it.

We can't will it away. We put, I don't think we should be counting to 10 and getting over in and forget about it because as soon as I calm down, all the advice, calm down, calm down. As soon as I calm down, I'm like, "Oh, no big deal. Oh, it was a, I don't know what I was so upset about. No big deal." And I just think, "Oh, you've lost your fury. You've lost the fire, the heat. You've lost the thing that actually could help you make change or at least articulate

the thing." And, you know, into philosophers and a lot of us today believe, "Well, when you're angry, you're not articulate. You're not, you're never speaking rationally. You're not saying what you actually believe." Audrey Lorde and Maria Malone specifically says, "I have seen women with an outrageously clear head when they're angry because what happens when you're so angry is you stop caring what people think of how you look. You stop self-monitoring and you actually say the truth." And so sometimes, like, I've changed my opinion on that.

It's, you know, sometimes I'm inarticulate when I'm angry. And sometimes I'm very articulate. Sometimes I might be getting at the exact thing that has been bothering me. And so it's important to stay with it. It's important not to just be scared of it or get rid of it out of hand. I would say especially for women like who have been trained to kind of swallow it and internalize it and, you know, all this kind of thing. And so anyone who's been socialized that way is the point to kind of realize that this can be a tool. This can be helpful. This doesn't have to be scary.

This can be something that you sit with and really try to learn from rather than just call it unladylike and try to get rid of it. Yeah. I try my best with the kids to teach them that every emotion has a function and a purpose and a reason. There's a reason why we're feeling it. We might not understand the reason like, "Why am I feeling this way? You don't need to know why, but how can you use it? How can how can you listen and see what it has to tell you?

What is it telling you in this moment?" Usually, anchors, it's about we've been threatened in some way, whether that is psychologically, socially, physically, or somebody we love and care about or something that we love and care about, something that's important to us has been threatened by somebody else.

And we're responding with anger because it is a motivating emotion. It gives us a lot of energy. I always tell people, "If you're feeling depressed and now you're feeling angry, they that's good." You have more energy to do something now because if we're feeling depressed, we're in that like apathetic state and we don't have a lot of energy to do much. So when it shifts, let's take advantage of it. It can be quite energizing.

Yeah. So the other one that I think has... So the bookends are anger and then anxieties at the other end of the book and the advice for both from these philosophers who are existentialists who I sort of...I turn to now instead of the ancient philosophers who sort of I feel like led me to feeling like I was bad, right? Shame. I'm feeling bad about feeling bad. And so with anxiety, Soren Kierkeger says, "Also listen to it. Listen to it."

And I think that if we have a major reaction against anxiety to say, "Anxiety is clinical. Anxiety is a bad thing. Anxiety is a deviation from what's human." Then we have Kierkeger in my ear at least, right? Saying, "Anxiety makes us higher than the animals and the angels." He says, "The more anxious a society, the more profound that society." I just think, "Oh my goodness, this is crazy, right? This is like nothing we hear. Everything we hear is about how anxiety is irrational or it's a brain disease or it's a chemical imbalance or it's a set of limiting beliefs, etc." And Kierkeger comes in and he says, "Well, maybe it's a sign of emotional intelligence." Maybe what if we try on for a while for 20, 50 years? The idea that anxiety is emotional intelligence, that the anxious person's right.

And we don't think so much about what, right? Because they might be wrong about the exact thing. It might not be, you know, the person going for a car ride and they're anxious that they're going to die or something, right? It might not be that acute thing that they're right about. But anxious people are super attuned to the world in a way that I wouldn't necessarily want to dull out the world. I don't want, I think of it like, so I'm following like Rolomey and

Irving Yalome in thinking that it's like a fire alarm, right?

It's telling us something. And so it's worth our while to listen to it rather than have this kind of, it's just like a cloud. Imagine it

floating away. Like, there's so much advice about how to get out of it or in the book, I talk about this book for kids about your anxious spot and you have to calm your anxious spot and make the circle on your hand until the anxiety goes away and I just think, okay, what if we do the opposite, right? What if we, not totally the opposite, right? But what if we think of anxiety differently?

What if we think of anxiety not all as clinical anxiety? Right? Because for me, there seems to be something, if 30% of Americans are clinically anxious, I just think like everything has gone off the rails. Like, either that's not possible or it's not true or our definition of clinical anxiety has

gotten so bloated or something. And so, or we have zero tolerance, right?

If the standard is zero anxiety, right? Keep calm and carry on. Those messages freak me out. Because then I think, oh, what am I supposed to be worried about? Why? Why is there a sign telling me to keep calm? It's because something terrible is happening and just open your phone and like 60,000 terrible things are happening.

So we're not wrong to be anxious. We're right to be anxious. And so trying to turn it off or doing everything we can to turn it off or just assuming that it's the enemy, that that's the thing that makes us broken. It's like, no, that's the thing that makes us human. That let's investigate it, right? I'm not broken because I'm anxious. I am attuned. I like the way Glenn and Doyle puts it. She says anxiety means that you're paying attention. Yeah. So what if we just like turn our ideas about it a bit, you know, however much you feel comfortable with to sort of say, what if this isn't the big bad thing that that that it's been made out to be? And what if we can up our tolerance of

in terms of society?

Not the individual. Again, I'm not prescribing much to the individual because I think we've been hurt enough by different industries trying to make us feel broken. But it's like as a society, if we could just have more tolerance, like I'd love to see shirts that are like, yeah, a bunch of bad days or like like like mediocrity, like life is okay, you know, like some good days,

some bad days, like just lower the bar for our emotional existence.

And then I think ironically, I think we'd actually see less anxiety and less of all this because the more you're trying to tell people like, "Fong out, you're right!" Then the more we're like, "Oh, something's very wrong." And so like instead of listening to ourselves, we begin to sort of listen to a world that tells us we shouldn't feel so much.

We shouldn't wear a hood on our sleeve. We shouldn't be so emotional, et cetera. And so I'm just trying to like defend the individual against a society that sort of pressures us to conform and to have a kind of a negative viewpoint of our own moods that may in certain cases be trying to tell us something. Yeah, absolutely. There's a reason that we experience emotions that were that way by design. So the idea that we're not supposed to, we're only supposed to feel some of them and not the others just doesn't make sense. Yeah. So how does this relate to some of, I would say that the theories out there pertaining to the way we practice mental health, psychology, counseling, social work, et cetera?

So I think it is on two levels. Like one, one, it relates to the theories and that I'd like to maybe get into. But the second one is as y'all who are listening are probably therapists. I think that a lot of what the relationship with a client looks like will depend on how you think about these moods, right? What are your assumptions or what's your education on grief? What are your inherent beliefs, right? Learned, of course, learned beliefs about anxiety because that's certainly going to affect the person you're working with.

And likewise, like, you know, I'm writing in the book that who you choose. So, so, I'm not anti-secretary at all in any way. And I'm certainly not anti-therapy, right? Like I think these things can be helpful. Using the case of anxiety, the whole point is to get it to a manageable volume. Like when the, when I experience anxiety, it is such a powerful noise in my head that I can't think, right? I cannot access anything else. So, I would think that meds or therapy is there to help me lower it, not get rid of it, right? Because if I get rid of it, I've just thrown away the thing that might help me figure out what's my next move in life, why I'm deeply upset, like like the deeper things, the existential issues about love and fear and death and all the thing that I think are worth thinking about.

And so, I think that these any kind of interventions are for the purpose of lowering the volume, not turning it off. But what I write about in the chapter on anxiety is if you're looking for a therapist, if you're going to find the therapist who says that all anxiety is bad and we should get rid of it, which may just be a made up person, right?

Like maybe nobody believes that anymore. Then you're going to get a very different type of therapy, right? You're going to get a different experience and you're going to think differently about your own anxiety versus if you get someone like existential psychotherapists, I think who are out of fashion now, but who would have a more holistic view or like a kind of like, let's be willing to go there.

Like we can hit these very, very difficult things. It's not a five week thing where you're going to

get rid of that anxiety in six weeks or whatever. So that's the overall kind of like the relationship I think between the practitioner and the person who's, you know, dealing with their anxiety. But in terms of the theories, I was just so, I guess, disturbed by the popularity of

positive psychology for one. And I understood it.

Like I was definitely like sort of on the train of

like, we don't want everything to be a pathology. We want to notice all the strengths and we want to like focus on gratitude. And I think Seligman is the king of positive psychology and I just find him extremely problematic because as a US American, I think he tends to conflate optimism with positive thinking. And I think those are very different. And I think that like he talks about being grumpy. And I'm like grumpiness is not what you're trying to get at in positive psychology. So he slips and slides through the mood to like the effect of like you should be smiling or you should be happy. And it's like, wait a second, t hat's not what positive psychology is supposed to be like.

But the whole point is again, like, what do you think about this mood? So I talk about positive

psychology and the chapter on pain, just emotional pain sadness. Right. So if you believe that like he does, that you have like these limiting beliefs, right, that these are the things that are getting in your way. He's talking about a woman who was out of the workforce for 10 years, tries to get back in or like wants to get back in, talks to her husband about it.

And she's a negative warrior and he's

like the positive champion. And he's like, you can get a job, you just have to have the right attitude. And you don't know how great you are. And let me tell you all your you know skills and whatever. And let's brainstorm and she's like, nah, I just don't think they're going to want me who would want me after 10 years. I'm old. Well, but so she looks like the one who's broken and he looks like the one

who's great. And that's precisely the way that Seligman interprets it.

He's like, hmm, champion this guy. He's like, he's got a better explanatory style. And he's on victimist, right? And he's really trying to convince her to believe in herself. And that is like super common today.

That kind of thing where the champion is the one who's the good one and the kind of negative one is the one who's painted is like, oh, you know, no one can make you happy. You just want to be negative,

right? With that attitude, you're never going to get that job. This kind of like blame the person

who is already suffering. And so what it just bothered me so much when I read that story years and years ago that I was like, what if she's right?

Like what about being out of the workforce for 10 years, taking care of your kids makes you like a prime candidate for going back into the workforce? Why do we believe that it's just a matter of the will? Like if you just have the positive attitude,

then you're going to get that job. I actually think that this woman, Jodie, had a better explanatory style. He called her a brooding pessimist. I'm like, I don't think she's a brooding pessimist. I think she's right. I think she's absolutely rational, which is one of the things you say against people.

You say you're being irrational. I think she was actually more rational. I think the guy was wishful thinking. I think he was full of these ideas of like, oh, if you just, you know,

mind over matter or like bring it into being too is happy. You can make your dreams come true.

Like all the way, you know, kind of down into manifestation talk. So I just feel like I want to defend her and say, hold on a second. Let's like forget her affect. Her affect may be like you or I'm like, but like the point is she's right. Look, could the husband treat her like maybe she was being rational?

Maybe she's the right one. And he needs to start learning how to listen because what she's saying is actually quite informative. And she's trying to communicate with him. And so the whole idea of active sort of your, your actual question is like, if we believe that being pessimistic or that sort of having a negative affect or worrying or being sad, if we, if we believe that those are inherently kind of counterproductive or limiting, then we are limited. We are limited in our ability to actually talk to that person because as long as we think, well, I'm going to cheer you up. I'm

going to make you feel better. I'm going to make you feel like you can go out there and conquer the world.

Then we are the ones who are poor. We are like poor on emotion. We're emotionally enneemment because we're unable to like step into that space and say, wait a second, here she is in this spying. Can I get there? What can I do? And this is what I want to talk more about at the summit is how to step into sadness, to meet other people there instead of trying to bring them out. So my metaphor

is like the dark and we bring in flashlights. We like, they're in the cave. Jody's in this dark cave

and we're like, oh, let me make you feel better. What can I get you?

You know, let's go out for ice cream

and he brings her flashlights. And I'm like, he doesn't need to bring her flashlights. He just

needs to know how to get to her. And she's trying to help him get to her by giving him this little string with words to say, this is what I'm worried about. And he's like, oh, his hands are full of flashlights.

So he can't find her in the dark because he's so busy thinking it's his job to take her out of the

dark and put her into the light. So that's the one thing. So positive psychology has like for me, like it's dangerous in the way that it's not wrong. It's not bad. It's not awful. It's like

dangerous to play with. Like we have to be super careful in what we mean when we're just trying to focus on on all these, you know, the gratitude and whatever the positive thinking. So and I know it's not a synonym for positive thinking, but there's a lot of overlap in terms of how we think about negativity, how we think of it as kind of limiting and bad, whereas it actually could be quite informative for us.

And the other one is CBT, which sometimes overlaps with positive psychology, but I find CBT to be very problematic and not just because some practitioners take it off the

rails. That's not it. It's like in the very literature, at least like CBT one, the very literature

talks about limiting beliefs, negative thinking, ineffective behavior patterns. And I think it also.

it takes on the stoic tone of like it's not your current situation that you're upset about. It's

your beliefs about your situation. And I want to say, no, often it's just our situation. Like I don't

want to put it on the individual to say, okay, you may be, I mean stoicism was really like it works best in a jail. It works best when you actually have no options when you are like stuck and you cannot change your situation and you can't change your situation like from the outside, from the inside, there's nothing you can do. Then yes, there's ways to make peace and to like accept fate and kind of

live with what you have. But I don't want to give up. I find it a very defeatest kind of thing.

want to change the world. I want to make the world more just for people who are oppressed. I don't want to just be like, well, how can I make my beliefs more palatable or more accepting of the situation I have going on? I don't want to I don't want to default to thinking that I'm upset because my beliefs upset me.

I want to more consider that I'm upset because the world is unjust. I'm more okay with that. And so at least to to explore that, right? So that's an interesting. It's just an interesting kind of things that I'm like wary of from both from ancient philosophy, but also a

very, very contemporary ways of looking at these documents. I think that they have something in

common and something to be sort of questioned and maybe reconsider. Yeah. I hear a lot of what you're

saying in terms of, you know, beliefs. It can be very difficult to change a belief when there's so

much evidence supporting why it exists in the first place. And particularly when we're talking

about people that have multiple barriers to kind of get to the same playing field as myself and my

white counterparts. It's very difficult. That's a very difficult ask. And, you know, to your point,

how much harm is that causing for that individual to say like, yeah, right? Change your belief and

you change your life, but their life is very, very different from my life because of all of the

advantages that come with having white skin in a world in the United States, especially

where there's so much, there's so the prevalence of racism and oppressive systems that

have been put in place for hundreds of years that are still in place. Even our schools have

oppressive practices for our kids. It's not a fair ask to ask set of someone.

Yeah. And like the irony is that I think it works a lot of the time. So here's the thing. Here's the

setup that I have. Like an individual can go into therapy and come out feeling better about their

situation that is still unjust, right? That has not changed one bit. And so, but what I don't want

is to see every individual who is oppressed go into therapy to learn how to accept their situation.

Right. Like the world will actually never change. If we're just like, well, I have a personal problem.

This is an individual personal thing that I have to learn how to deal with. It's like, no, wait a

second. Why can't we turn it around? It's almost like we're all saying, well, the world's not going to

change. You know how it is, you know, it is like I have this odd optimism about the world that like,

I'm like, no, let's take it on because I actually think we can change it as long as we stop saying,

it's your problem. You have a problem. I'm like, no, no, I'm reflecting a problem that is prevalent

in society. So I don't necessarily want to become more like accepting of my situation. Like that

just sounds sad to me. Even though it might make me feel better, then like the things aren't going

to change. And I'm not saying that it's up to the people who are in that situation to change it. I'm

saying like it's up to all of us to change it. But the whole point, if it's just to make me feel

better, then the systems will remain whatever they were before as long as we're seeing it as an

individual problem with your limiting beliefs. Like, wait a second. Aren't these all of our, like,

isn't this, isn't this a shared experience for many of us? So what would happen if we can empower

people to say, you know what you're right? Like just on a lot of these things, what if we just try

it on the idea that we're not wrong, that we might be right? Like what would change? I think that

I think that in time our society can change. If we begin by opening ourselves up to the very fact

that these moods don't make us broken. Yeah, I appreciate that expression and intention for

empowerment. If we can empower somebody to make change. And if we're all working to that effect,

then we can change the systems. We need to change the systems because the systems are not working.

They're not working well as somebody who's been practicing therapy for 20 years. Our systems

are really messed up. They're not working well. They're not as effective as they need to be. And part

of it is relates to exactly what you're talking about as to why. And of course, just other

oppressive practices that exist in the world that have nothing to do necessarily with therapy

and psychology, but it's the business. It's the business of it that is really broken. And that

impacts people too. Because then they go, well, I'm reached out for help because I've been told,

there's something wrong with me. I have to change so that I can fit in and be okay in the world.

And now I'm trying to access care. And I can't get it anywhere.

It's messed up in so many directions. Yeah. Yeah. So what do you propose for like how do we,

what can we do? All of us, what's like one little thing we can all do to make these changes?

To start to shift the systems. It's kind of an outward and an inward. Like the outward thing I

would like everyone to do is be a little more critical of the signs of, you know, what we're seeing in

our world. Kind of read the walls of our society and see what it's trying to get us to do or feel

or whatever. So just to like see things. And then on an inner inner inner worlds to try this

night vision, right, to try to see in the dark, to try not to put a light on as soon as we feel

uncomfortable, to try to sit a little bit more with it. And there's caveats for depression.

And, and, you know, people have limits and all this, right? It's not an all or nothing. This is the

hard thing about my book is that it can easily get misunderstood as like, oh, your depression is

your superpower. The five, the gifts of your dark moods. I'm not saying any of that. I'm saying like

we have them. They're already here. They've already landed on our doorstep. I don't care whether

you call it a gift or not. I don't need that. Like nobody, you don't need to call it a gift to try

to say like, maybe there's something here that I need to be listening to. Maybe this is a form of

self, I mean, Audre Lord calls Andy herself care. Not Audre Lord, Maria Lugones. But like, oh my god,

how can Andy be self-care? Like if we could just open our mind a little bit to, you know, be kinder

to ourselves knowing that it's not us who created these poisonous stories or these like, kind of

ugly stories about our moods. It's not us. We didn't, we're not to blame. It's like the world has

tried to, the world tells us to feel bad about ourselves. And then when we do, they're like, why are you

feeling so bad? Right? And it's like, I just want to get more critical and be like, yeah, look at

that. Look at that. Look at all these forces in our world that sort of thrive on us feeling bad.

And then feeling bad about feeling bad, right? That that that juncture of shame of just like, oh,

here, here we've got you in a great place because then you will never advance. You'll never turn

against the world. You'll just think you're messed up, right? So in the book, I try to say it like

succinctly and say like, instead of thinking, there's something wrong with me. I want, I would like

everyone to say, okay, there's something wrong and stop there, right? And not it immediately

default to like, I must be messed up. I must be ill. I must be broken. Like, maybe there's just

something wrong in the world. And it doesn't mean we're going to fix everything, but it certainly means

we can stay on our own side. That's what I want for us is to stay on our own side, take our own side,

not become our own enemy as I am so, so want to do, right? Just to say, well, it's me, you know,

Taylor Swift says it best, right? I'm the problem. It's me. And I just think she's a philosopher and

she doesn't even know it, but it's like, that's our temptation. It must be me. If something's wrong,

I must have done something wrong. I didn't choose happy. That's why I'm in the dumps. So yeah.

And we all know that there are real and true and valid reasons for feeling sad, for feeling anger,

for feeling bereft. And I think for grief itself, you know, so many people attribute it to, well,

I lost a person or I lost a pet, you know, I lost a friend, but there are so many other ways that we

grieve. We grieve a loss of our hopes. We leave grieve loss of dreams that were unfulfilled.

All kinds of losses that warrant that feeling of grief. And we need to make space to feel it. I think

the only way out is through. We have to feel our way through them. The more we avoid the feeling,

the bigger that feeling is going to get. And the stinkier it's going to be when it finally does come out.

So yeah, the world is particularly harsh on griebers. Like it's twice. Like the grief is probably just

fine if the world would change and allow it. But because the world tries to push us out of grief,

then we have to grieve secretly when no one's looking. And we can't talk about it. Like it's

incredible how griebers suffer doubly just because of our world. Like it's hard enough to lose a person

or even what you're saying, right? For things that you can't even point to, that's even harder to

explain to someone. And they just want you to be happy. We just want everyone to be happy. And I think

we need to radically rethink that because it's too, it's too one sided, it's too lopsided,

it's unrealistic, right? Like we need to just, you know, take it down a notch and just create some

better language for what we want for each other and ourselves because they're happily over after,

they're like, okay, now I'm good. Like that doesn't exist. So, right. Yeah. There's so much here to

this topic. I feel that's valuable for not only other therapists, but for all of us to make space to

allow for and to be okay with having emotions, whatever they are. I think just to be able to cry,

to cry when that feeling comes, you know, some people are like, I can't cry. I don't want to cry if I

cry, then I'm weak or, you know, there's no room for tears. We have so many things about, you know,

I'll give you kids hearing from their parents. I'll give you something to cry for, right? It's like a big one.

And crying is an essential function. I want to live to see the day where nobody says, I'm sorry,

I'm getting emotional. Because that's purely stoic, right? I can stop it. I am sorry. This thing is

inappropriate. I am sorry. I'm putting, we know, but he says, I'm sorry, I'm laughing. But I'm sorry,

I'm getting emotional. I'm sorry, I'm crying. What? We are crazy. Like that the world is just really

lopsided, right? Like it is super messed up and we need to just, especially in raising

boys, I think like the crying thing is particularly terrible, but also for girls, like just everybody

is discouraged and you just shouldn't cry. That's what we help people. Like, wow, you're just

turning off the thing that is actually going to help me. Right? Yeah, I totally agree. I'm a cryer,

I cry wherever it strikes, it happens. And I prefer to just let it happen. Because if I don't,

then I know I'm going to be feeling, I'm going to be feeling way worse than if I just allow myself to

move through the process, whatever it is. And however long it takes. And sometimes it takes a long

time, depending upon the situation, the life scenario. I'm jealous of cries.

So it's hard when you can't, like it's like I'll strain for every tear. I mean, I'm going to think

God, I got one because it does help. But the thing that I've heard that I also would love to

never hear again is if I start crying, I'll never stop. I just think, have you analyzed that?

Like is that a critical point of view or did you just like hear that somewhere? I don't think

that has ever happened. I don't think that's actually a phenomenon. I know what you mean when

you say that, but that's not what happens when you cry. And so the point is I think to, you know,

not just be 100% against it. Like my point is so modest, right? I'm not saying like go in the

caves, stay there forever, only feel dark moods. I'm like, can we just not default to thinking that

all the dark moods are terrible? Can we try to think that maybe they have, they're part of us,

they have something, you know. They have a lot to offer, really. If we're willing to

explore them and to be with them and spend time with them, they have a lot to offer.

The real point of my book is in fact not even about defending the moods themselves because I don't

care as much about moods as I care about people. The point of my book is to defend the people who

experience those moods. I don't want to hear people being talked about as broken. So it's the person.

It's not like here's the reason why your, you know, grief is good for you. It's to say, no, no,

you already are dreaming and it probably sucks, but you're not broken. You're not wrong, right? Like

you're not messed up. That's what grief looks like in some people, right? So it's the person I'm

trying to defend not really the mood, although, you know, like you said, all these moods do have a

little something and that's what I'm trying to tease out in the book. But even if you kind of

scrap that, it's to say like, we're not trash, you know, and I've learned from my college students,

a lot of them just think of themselves as trash, right? Because if it weren't for my depression,

if it weren't for my anxiety, then I'd be an okay person. And they want to trash the mood and I'm like,

if you trash the mood, you're trashing the whole human. So like, I don't want you to trash either one.

Like so it's for me, it's just a given that we live with these. And so now what? It's not to say,

let's try to seek them out or that suffering is good for you or any of that kind of mistakes that

people kind of get into philosophically. It's just to say we have these moods. Can we think of

ourselves other than as broken? Yeah, because clearly it's just it's biology. It's part of

the human phenomenon being human comes with.

I think people aren't worse than non-anxious people. That's like a premise that I want to,

you know, really enforce like we're not worse than people who aren't anxious. We're not less human.

Here in verse says we're more human. I don't need to get into a debate about whether we're better

or worse than other people is just the fact that like we're not less human. We're not like ducked

points on humanity because we live with certain moods that are really difficult and painful.

Yeah, that yeah, they are difficult and painful. And and yet I think life is difficult and painful.

There's so many things that like you pointed out every time you look on the look in the news or

read the newspapers. I there's so many difficult, difficult experiences that we go through and

along with that we experience different moods, different feelings and feelings.

Feelings just are just as much a part of the human physiology as our heart beating and our

stomach digesting food. I feel like if we could think about think about that in a different way of

like it's just part of the process. Well, where can people find your book?

Anywhere you get books. So it should be in all the bookstores. You can get it online.

You can order it from a bookstore. This is what people don't know. They like go to a bookstore.

And if it's not there, they're like, oh, it wasn't there. And I'm like, you can order it. Like if you live

in a place, you can ask them to buy it and then they will get it. And then you go get it. It's very

quaint. Like a real, you know, kind of old school bookstore. But a lot of books do already have it.

So I've heard of people sort of saying, oh, I just picked it up, you know, but you can also get it on

the the a word. Oh, the big place. Yes. Yeah. And I have a website, MarianaLessandri.com and an

Instagram, Mariana.allessandri. So you're welcome to follow me. I mean, I don't post, you know, happy,

fun, exciting gratitude things. I post things that I'm feeling and that other people are feeling. And I'm

you know, trying to take the temperature. And I think some people find it a relief. And then for

others, it's not for them. And that's okay. Right. Like if it's for you, you know, join me. And if not,

that's okay too. Like that's sort of the world I live in. And I've talked to enough people that

kind of live in the same world that feel badgered by positivity. That it's like there's enough of us

to merit a little community, whether online or at the summit or whatever to be like, oh, let's

talk about how the world is making us feel worse by trying to make us feel better, by trying to make

us focus on the light, they actually make us feel worse because we just have bad days. Yeah. It highlights

the comparative, right? Like, okay. Yeah. Yeah. That divide. It's the underbelly. Whenever someone's saying

choose happy and you're not, then it's you. You didn't choose it, right? It's the underbelly that

necessarily accompanies every story of I did it. And so can you? Well, I didn't. So I guess I'm not

as motivated as you, you know? No, I, I hear you. I think that I still go back to self-help all the time.

I'm reading a parenting self-help book. I love them. Like, I love the pain. I love the pain of someone

telling me you're doing you wrong. Here's how to do it right. And then I'll try it and then I'll get

discouraged and I'll go to another one. Like, it's also addictive, you know. But there is a sort of

reeducation that can happen knowing that like these people sort of, they're trying to help, but they

also inadvertently make us feel bad. I think too, you know, it expresses itself in the mood,

but it expresses itself in other ways too, along the same line, that very like extremist kind of thinking

that you have to do it this way. It is your responsibility to do it this way. And if you just

took that responsibility, then X in your life would be different. It's very American. Like, the

bootstraps, like you can do this yourself. And I think like, whoa, there's a lot of luck involved in

these self-help authors. There's a lot of luck involved in communities. There's roots. There's all kinds

of things that made that thing possible, not just them white knuckling it into their own happiness.

So I also think there's binaries like, like, I think a big

giga complain I have of the world is just, are you happy or are you sad, right? Are you this or

you that is it black or is it white? Are you good? No, I'm not good. Like, even how are you? I think it's

just a setup. How are you? I don't know. I don't know. What do you mean? I don't know what the question

means today right now. Like, I don't know how to how to answer that. It puts pressure on someone.

So it's almost like I just now say, that's good to see you, right? Like, there's there's all these like

bent bends or biases toward this is what you should answer. This is how you should feel. People

just tell me you're good. Like, please don't make a problem. Just tell me you're fine. Right. If you say,

okay, just okay. You're just okay. What if like in the grocery, I'm like, no, I'm actually not well.

Then they'd be like, oh, I'm so sorry. And they're like, no, it's just every other day. Like,

what it's just the day, it's just Monday. Like, I don't know what you want. What do you expect of me?

Like, why would I be better? Why do we have these great expectations of our roots? You know,

I feel like it's perfectly fine to be just okay. I do too. Yeah. Or to be pissed off.

Right. Or to be deeply sad. And so I would like to live in a world where we could say these things

if we want to and not say them if we don't feel like it, you know, but the where they would be not so scary to people.

Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. It's true. Well, I appreciate you coming on and sharing about your work and your philosophy. And obviously if folks want to hear more from you, they could sign up and attend your workshop, speaking at the summit, which is November 16th from 7 to 8 30 PM. And the title is against toxic positivity, embracing sadness for genuine empathy, which you shared a lot about today. It's like we don't have to change somebody's mood. We can just sit there and be there with them and experience it with them and just say, yeah, you're not alone. I'm here. And that's enough.

So thank you for that. Thank you so much for having me. It's been really fun to talk to you.

Yeah, it's been fun for me as well.

And I'll put all of your contact information, the website,

we're to find the book and a link for the summit in the show notes. So if listeners can't

you can just go to the show notes and get that information and and connect that way. So thank you.

The book is also in like e-book and audiobook. People react differently when they say that. They're like your face. Yeah. People they're like, oh, I didn't know it was an audiobook. Like now maybe I'll get it.

So if that changes anyone's mind, some people are like, I only listen to audiobooks. It is

available. I'm not the reader, by the way. I wasn't invited to and that's okay. But there's a professional reader. She's an actress and she's wonderful. So that's awesome. Maybe audiobook, yes. Yeah, I do both, but I love audiobooks because it helps me to I can get through the material just the way life is. Like I can listen to it on a commute and or if I'm traveling or if I'm going walking and that kind of thing. So just make somebody. Oh, Tisela Tipper is the reader and she's great. So awesome. Yes.

Happy reading. Happy listening. Well, thank you so much, Mariana. And I appreciate the time that you spent today. Thank you so much. Thanks so much for listening to this episode of the Creative Psychotherapist Podcast. We're grateful for your listenership. If you like the conversations that we share with you, please like share, subscribe wherever you listen to helps us reach a greater audience who may also be interested in hearing about these conversations. And make sure to check out the expressive therapy summit full range of training and CEU opportunities that they have for you, whether it is the virtual conference on the East Coast. It's happening in November 2023, where Mariana is going to be talking and teaching or it is one of their other options.

There's a Midwest option that's happening in Chicago. There's usually an option that happens on the West Coast out in California. And as I'm doing this recording, they're actually having one, a small one in Sedona, Arizona. It's the second one. I didn't get a chance to go last year and I got so overwhelmed this year that I didn't even realize it was happening until like literally seeing somebody post about it on Facebook. But that's one I really want to check out. Anyway, you can find more information about all of those offerings at www.expressivetherapysemit.com.

There you'll be able to click on virtual offerings or in-person offerings and you'll find you know all the places that they're offering trainings. I hope you check it out and enjoy.

Thanks for listening to this episode of the Creative Psychotherapist. If you like what you heard, please rate, review and subscribe wherever you listen to your favorite podcasts.

For show notes, downloads and additional resources head over to the website at www.createofcliniciansquinter.com

Season 2 Episode 14 | Zachary Van Den Berg | On Being a Social Change Agent at any Stage of Your Career

Wed, 24 May 2023 14:48:22 GMT

FEATURED GUESTS: Zachary D. Van Den Berg, MA, LPC-A, ATR-P (he/they) is a recent graduate of Adler University, in Chicago, IL with a Master of Arts in Counseling: Art Therapy, and received his BFA at the School of the Art Institute (SAIC) . He is Past-President of the Adler Art Therapy Student Association , founder of the international online forums Art Therapy Students Associated and Coalition for Queer Creative Arts Therapies , the in-coming Chairperson of the American Art Therapy Association ’s Multicultural Committee , and a member on the Membership Committee , and Creative Director of Expressive Media ’s Film Library. He is currently working at Community Arts, LLC and is supervised under Wanda Montemayor, LPC-S ATCS ATR-BC RPT-S (she/her) in Austin, TX. Clinically, he utilizes queer, social justice, anti-oppressive approaches to art therapy, working primarily with adults in kink, queer and trans communities in Central Texas.

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW:

LISTEN & LEARN:

How and why Zack began contributing to the profession while still in graduate training.
The value of coming together as a collective in order to create visibility.
The inspiration and path for Zack to create the Coalition for Queer Creative Arts Therapies and the Expressing Pride Symposia events.
How he is working on decentralizing the Coalition and the Pride event to other members within the community.
The importance of creating opportunities for other ways of knowing to be accessible in the research, literature and media within the professional fields.
Benefits of using our position of privilege to disseminate information that is of value to the community.
The ORCA stance, which stands for Openness, Respect, Curiosity & Accountability, as a framework for dancing with others through humility.
How visibility becomes a model for others to take healthy risks professionally.
How the theme of Emergence is currently central in the shared pursuit of liberation within the Coalition for Queer Creative Arts Therapies and the Expressing Pride Symposium.
"Trans-affirming care is trauma informed care and is life supporting care," Zachary Van Den Berg.
The importance of being attuned to the limits of our own capacity.
There are multiple ways of protest and advocacy.

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW: Check out Zack's site:

https://zacharyvandenberg.com/
Art Therapy Students Associated Facebook Group
Coalition for Queer Arts Therapies Facebook Group head there to learn more about the
Expressing Pride 2023: A Celebration of Emergence Saturday June 17, 2023 (3rd Annual Symposium)
coalitionforqueercats@gmail.com
Zachary.vandenberg@gmail.com

VFTS 2023 6 | Dr. Renee Turner | Disenfranchised Grief & Gestalt Therapy

Wed, 17 May 2023 14:38:28 GMT

FEATURED GUESTS: Renee Turner, Ph.D., LPC-S, RPT-S™, is an author and speaker specializing in treating children and adults with grief and childhood trauma. Her advanced training includes EMDR, SE, Integral Breath Therapy, and various expressive therapy modalities. She is passionate about helping others navigate through grief and soul pain associated with disenfranchised grief and loss, complex trauma, and identity and spiritual issues. In her clinical work, Renee integrates existential, gestalt, embodiment, and expressive therapies to create a dynamic and experiential form of therapy. She is the co-editor of the book Disenfranchised Grief: Examining Social, Cultural, and Relational Impacts (2023).

LISTEN & LEARN:

How Dr. Turner defines disenfranchised grief.
The power of connecting what is happening within the body to that which is not spoken or expressed.
Framing therapy as a co-creative space.
The role of shadow in parts work with gestalt therapy.

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW:

Dr. Turner's Website: www.drreneeturner.com
Dr Turner's Email: drreneeturner@gmail.com
Her new book Disenfranchised Grief: Examining Social, Cultural, and Relational Impacts (2023)

SESSIONS AT THE SUMMIT:

Friday June 2nd, 2023 8:30AM-9:30AM KEYNOTE The Magic of Curiosity: Facilitating Relational Embodiment With Gestalt Play Therapy
Friday June 2nd, 2023 10:00AM - 5:15PM Claiming Lost Parts: Using Gestalt Play Therapy to Address Disenfranchised Grief

Encore Episode 13 22 | Colin Carr | Five Things You Need to Know BEFORE You Lease or Buy An Office Space

Wed, 10 May 2023 14:24:11 GMT

Today's episode is all about what you need to know before leasing or buying an office for your practice. My guest is Colin Carr, founder of CARR Healthcare Realty. He and his nationwide team of realtors specialize in working with commercial real estate services for healthcare tenants and buyers. They are the leaders in this niche nationwide! Colin is a wealth of knowledge and shared fantastic tips that will be of benefit to anyone looking to buy or lease commercial property. I wish I would have known some of these things before I got into my last lease!

Resources: Carr Healthcare Realty https://carr.us/

Free Lease or Purchase Evaluation https://carr.us/lease-or-purchase-evaluation/

Season 2 Episode 13 | Becca Rich | Reclaim Your Time, Work Less & Live Aligned

Wed, 03 May 2023 15:39:43 GMT

FEATURED GUESTS: Becca Rich is a visionary, cutting through the BS of the billion-dollar productivity industry creating a ripple effect with Holistic Time Management. She helps business owners and professionals heal from time scarcity and shows them how to team up with time to work less and live more. As a trauma-sensitive, certified holistic coach with a background in engineering and mindfulness, she knows traditional time management is outdated and harmful. If you’ve been searching for a different way forward, Holistic Time Management™ is here to help you create a life of peace–at work, at home, and within. Learn more about working with Becca at theholistictimecoa ch.com.

LISTEN & LEARN:

Key questions to ask yourself in order to manage your time more effectively.
How to motivate yourself with compassion.
The power of finding enoughness in your work.
The problem with placing an emphasis on productivity as a marker of success.
The myth of time scarcity as it pertains to work.

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW:

Becca's website: https://www.theholistictimecoach.com
Becca's Giveaway: https://www.theholistictimecoach.com/work-less
Becca's Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/theholistictimecoach/

VFTS 2023 5 | Kate Merkle | Psychodramatic Methods In the Treatment of Eating Disorders

Wed, 26 Apr 2023 14:47:18 GMT

FEATURED GUESTS: Kate Merkle, LCSW, MPH, RDN, PAT, CDWF is a clinical social worker, registered dietitian, and certified psychodramatist. She's also a certified Daring Way™ facilitator, an experiential methodology based on the research of Dr. Brené Brown. Kate has over 18 years of experience helping people struggling with disordered eating and body image issues heal their relationship with food. She is the founder and director of Nourishment Works PC, a group therapy and nutrition practice specializing in the treatment of eating disorders. She is a co-director of the Chicago Center for Psychodrama, a training center offering trainings and workshops to hospitals, schools, and mental health practices throughout the Chicagoland area. Kate has been incorporating psychodrama into her group and individual work for the last 10 years.

LISTEN & LEARN:

The benefits of being both a registered dietician and therapist as an eating disorder provider.
How action methods can help breakthrough ambivalence in treatment.
How action methods can empower the client to tap into their inner wisdom.
The myth of perfect eating.
The benefits of exploring nutrition, hydration and sleep as it pertains to mental health.
Reframing questions for food as fuel. What have you fueled your body with today? How consistently have you fueled your body today?
How the Health at Every Size and Intuitive Eating Paradigms provide a compassionate approach to eating.
When to refer a client to a dietician.
People don't fail diets. Diets fail people.
Connecting with body wisdom through action methods.

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW:

Kate's practice www.nourishmentworks.com
https://www.facebook.com/NourishmentWorksPC/
Email Kate at kate@nourishmentworks.com for your FREE GUIDE to Nourished Eating
Email Kate at kate@nourishmentworks.com for a CHANCE to attend an Intro to Psychodrama Workshop with the www.chicagopsychodrama.com
https://www.instagram.com/ @chicagocenterpsychodrama
Body candles (Small Goddess Sculptures that were on Kate's Shelf)

SESSIONS AT THE EXPRESSIVE THERAPIES SUMMIT:

Season 2 Episode 12 | Amanda Shaw | Starting Over: Preparations for Moving Your Practice to a New City

Wed, 19 Apr 2023 14:52:35 GMT

FEATURED GUESTS: Amanda Shaw, MA, LMHC, ATR, is a licensed mental health counselor in Florida (MH 20223) and certified art therapist (ATR), who is the sole owner of her private practice Create Flow Heal Art Therapy & Counseling LLC located in sunny Saint Petersburg, Florida. Using a holistic, client centered approach, she provides mental health counseling and art psychotherapy to adolescents, adults and families - as well as hosts wellness retreats throughout the year. In addition to working with individual clients, Amanda also works with local non-profits in the St. Pete area. Currently in partnership with Selah Freedom, she provides art therapy groups for sex trafficking survivors. Selah Freedom is a faith-based nonprofit anti-human trafficking organization, based in Florida and the Midwest, with the mission to end sex trafficking and bring freedom to the exploited. Prior to the start of her career, Amanda competed her master’s degree (MA) at George Washington University in Washington, D.C. with an emphasis on trauma-informed care and art psychotherapy. Her undergraduate studies is in psychology from the University of Central Florida (BS). Amanda’s professional background includes working in a variety of settings such as acute psychiatric facilities, assisted living (memory care), substance abuse recovery, eating disorder treatment centers, school based programs and sex trafficking residential treatment centers. She has been featured in the Sarasota Magazine, presented at conferences held by the National Alliance on Mental Illness and was the former Membership Chair of the Florida Art Therapy Association in 2019-20.

LISTEN & LEARN:

The benefits of working with a business coach when planning a business relocation.
How starting her social media for her business before she had a business helped build awareness
How to factor for attrition as a result for the move.
The importance of networking in the community you plan to build your business in prior to your move.
Why it is important to calculate the financial costs of relocating one's practice, in order to identify how much to save to cover the losses and expenses of the move.
How completing an evaluation of the health of your business is vital to determine if your business can sustain the move.
The importance of completing market research in the potential location to determine if the area has the clientele and collaborative organizations to partner with in the community.
The benefits of collaborations and networking to create momentum in the business.
How joining entrepreneurship groups within your local community can raise awareness for your practice.
How a single educational focused speaking engagement can create a snowball effect of referrals for the business.
The benefits of partnering with another practitioner when you are planning a retreat.
The average retreat takes approximately 100 hours to plan and host.
Why you want to have accommodation information on your retreat website even if you aren't including that in the cost of the attending.
Why a retreat needs to be experiential, immersive and offers diversity in location for the different experiences.
Creating value for retreat attendees and hosts by offering post-retreat products and services.
The importance of follow-up calls and post-retreat surveys when hosting events and using the data learned from those to enhance future offerings.

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW:

Amanda's website: www.createflowheal.com
For a free 20 min. phone consultation or to Get first session at 15% off, email Amanda at createflowheal@gmail.com and use promo code TPC23
Amanda's Retreats https://www.createflowheal.com/expressivearttherapyretreat
Selah Freedom antihuman trafficking NPO https://selahfreedom.com/
Amanda's Coach, Katie Close, that helped her plan for the business relocation https://katieclose.com

Season 2 Episode 11 | Julie Herres | Profit First For Therapists

Wed, 12 Apr 2023 16:12:08 GMT

FEATURED GUESTS: Julie Herres is an expert in Profit First who has helped hundreds of private practice owners gain financial freedom. Founder of GreenOak Accounting, the country’s largest firm serving the mental health industry, Julie is an accountant, consultant, speaker, author of Profit First for Therapists and host of the Therapy for Your Money podcast.

LISTEN & LEARN:

What is the Profit First Accounting Model.
The benefits of using multiple bank accounts.
The 6 foundational accounts are: Income, profit, operating expenses, owners pay, taxes, payroll
How the Profit First Model protects business owners from Parkinson's Law.
How to calculate profit in a business.
Profit is the benefit and reward for the risks that you take as the business owner.
The profit first method of calculating profit distributions.
The 4 core principles of Profit First: use a small plate, serve sequentially, remove temptation,
Benefit of setting up a weekly transfer schedule to move money to your foundational accounts.
Julie's recommendations for calculating profit percentages based on your practice size.

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW:

Julie's Podcast Therapy For Your Money https://www.therapyforyourmoney.com/
Julie's Firm Green Oak Accounting https://www.greenoakaccounting.com/
Preorder Julie's New Book Profit First for Therapists https://www.profitfirstfortherapists.com/
Julie's Reverse Engineer Your Practice FREE CALCULATOR https://www.profitfirstfortherapists.com/ creative
Profit First by Mike Michalowicz

VFTS 2023 4 | Mindy Jacobson-Levy | SoulCollage® for the self of the therapist

Wed, 05 Apr 2023 14:45:15 GMT

FEATURED GUESTS: Mindy Jacobson-Levy, MCAT, ATR-BC, LPC, LPAT, PAATA HLM is a board certified, registered art therapist, a licensed professional art therapist (NJ), a licensed professional counselor (PA & NJ), and a trained SoulCollage® Facilitator. She is the President of the Pennsylvania Art Therapy Association (2023-2025), and previously received the Honorary Life Member Award (1996) and Innovative Applications of Art Therapy Award (2015); both given by the Delaware Art Therapy Association (now the Pennsylvania Art Therapy Association). Mindy’s art therapy work has included serving individuals impacted by trauma and eating disorders, as well as the gamut of psychological issues from childhood to adulthood. She provides professional supervision and is a national speaker and author. Her most recent publication is Creative Destruction and Transformation in Art and Therapy: Reframing, Reforming, Reclaiming (Jacobson-Levy & Miller, 2022, Art Therapy Journal). In addition to other publications, she co-authored Finding Your Voice Through Creativity: The Art & Journaling Workbook for Disordered Eating (Jacobson-Levy & Foy-Tornay, 2010, Gürze Books) and assisted in authoring the Guidelines for Treating Dissociative Identity Disorder in Adults (ISST-D, 2005 & 2011). Mindy is also a mixed media artist.

LISTEN & LEARN:

Mindy's path to working with Soul CollageⓇ and becoming a facilitator.
How to use Soul CollageⓇ as an introduction in the therapy session and reflective art-making in supervision.
The origins of the Soul CollageⓇ and a bit about Seena Frost who developed the method.
The similarity between Internal Family Systems and Soul CollageⓇ .
Narrative approaches used with Soul CollageⓇ
Using altered books and Soul CollageⓇ as a path to Illumination.
How to continue to use cards after they are created.
How Mindy honed her niche and developed her practice working with individuals with Dissociative Identity Disorder.

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW:
Mindy's website http://artb4words.com
Finding Your Voice Through Creativity: The Art & Journaling Workbook for Disordered Eating (Jacobson-Levy & Foy-Tornay, 2010, Gürze Books)
SoulCollage Evolving: An Intuitive Collage Process for Self-Discovery and Community by Seena Frost
Gretchen Miller's Creative offerings , Mindy shared about a Board Book Workshop she participated in with Gretchen.
The Official Soul CollageⓇ website https://soulcollage.com/

TRAIN WITH MINDY AT THE EXPRESSIVE THERAPIES SUMMIT:

April 22nd, 2023 10AM - 5:00PM SoulCollage® as a Pathway Towards Illumination & Balance for Professionals

VFTS 2023 3 | Charlotte Reznick | Imagination to Transformation

Wed, 05 Apr 2023 14:42:53 GMT

FEATURED GUESTS: Charlotte Reznick, PhD has dedicated her life to helping children, adolescents, parents, and professionals. She is a foremost authority on how to engage with and develop mindfulness, meditation, and imagination in children and teens. Dr. Reznick is author of the Los Angeles Times bestselling book, The Power of Your Child's Imagination: How to Transform Stress and Anxiety into Joy and Success (TarcherPerigee) and contributing author of the chapter "Imagery As a Therapeutic Tool with Children" in Transformative Imagery: Cultivating Imagination for Healing, Change and Growth (Jessica Kingsley).

Dr. Reznick is a child educational psychologist (LEP 1475), received her PhD from USC, is a former UCLA Associate Clinical Professor of Psychology, and was named Imagery International's Person of the Year in 2012 for the global impact of her work with children. Known as a pioneer in therapeutic interventions with children, Dr. Reznick is the creator of Imagery For Kids: Breakthrough for Learning, Creativity, and Empowerment, a mindful, positive coping skills program. In addition to her private practice in Los Angeles, California, she creates therapeutic mediations (CDs/MP3s) for children, teens, and parents, blogs for Psychology Today and Huffington Post, is a frequent media consultant, and teaches workshops internationally on the healing power of children's imagination.

LISTEN & LEARN:

Guided Imagery as a doorway to a child's heart.
Dr. Reznick's visualization using climbing to the top of a mountain as a metaphor for reaching goals.
The value of helpers in the visualizations with children as a tool to develop inner resourcing.
The value & benefits of honoring a child's inner wisdom and imagery.
Creative tools for teaching deep breathing with children who think breathing "doesn't work."
The benefits of Future Focused Visualizations to develop mastery in different situations.
Dr. Reznick's Heart Message Cards as a transitional object between appointments.
The value of teaching children to connect with their body wisdom.
The value of working with individuals.

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW:

Dr. Reznick's practice www.ImageryForKids.com
Join her mailing list https://www.imageryforkids.com/contact/newsletter-mailing-list/
The Power of Your Child's Imagination: How to Transform Stress and Anxiety into Joy and Success
Discovering Your Special Place

TRAIN WITH DR. REZNICK AT THE EXPRESSIVE THERAPIES SUMMIT :

April 22nd, 2023 10:00AM - 1:00PM Imagination and Healing in Children & Teens: Visualizing Transformation from Contemporary Trauma

Season 2 Episode 10 | Laura Reagan | How our "Parts" Show Up and Impact our Growth as Therapist Entrepreneurs

Wed, 29 Mar 2023 15:33:58 GMT

FEATURED GUESTS: Laura Reagan, LCSW-C is an integrative trauma therapist who owns a group psychotherapy practice in the greater Baltimore area. Laura also hosts Therapy Chat and Trauma Chat Podcasts, and she founded Trauma Therapist Network in 2021. Laura trains trauma therapists around the world in using bottom-up therapy methods and accessing their highest selves while doing meaningful psychotherapy work for sustainable careers.

LISTEN & LEARN:

How our unresolved attachment wounds show up and replay in our professional lives.
How being a therapist entrepreneur pushes us to expand and grow.
How the unconscious work is like a deep tissue massage; if you go too deep too fast it can feel painful in a way that is unhelpful, but if it just painful enough it promotes healing and release.
Normalization of the therapist in therapy.
Why we reenact our Family of Origin patterns in our personal lives, we do so in our professional lives.
What those patterns might look like as business owners and the importance of becoming aware of them.
The role of paring down as a preparatory action for growth.
The impact of needing income while making large scale shifts or changes within our businesses and adaptive cognitions for managing them.
The essential value of Trust in the Process.
The importance of being intentional with our time in order to refuel our energy so that we have what we need to care for ourselves and others.
The importance of unearthing and recognizing historic patterns so that we don't recreate them in our business/practice.
Benefits of being part of the Trauma Therapist Network.

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW:
Trauma Therapist Network (Consider Joining): www.traumatherapistnetwork.com
Therapy Chat Podcast: https://www.bahealing.com/podcast
Trauma Chat Podcast: https://traumatherapistnetwork.com/podcast-category/trauma-chat-podcast/
Laura's Freebie: https://go.traumatherapistnetwork.com/5mistakes

Season 2 Episode 9 | Ihor Bauman | Simplifying Your Online Business with Workee

Wed, 22 Mar 2023 13:46:42 GMT

FEATURED GUESTS: Ihor Bauman, Founder and CEO at Workee. Forbes Business Council member. He has about 10 years of experience in building and growing products worldwide.

LISTEN & LEARN:

The suite of applications available in Workee to operate your practice online.
How using video, social proof and contributing make an impact in marketing oneself.

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW:
Ihor's Forbes Page
Workee https://workee.net/ perfect-for/therapists

Niches.

Wed, 15 Mar 2023 18:03:06 GMT

The phrase, The Riches Are in the Niches, is a common one for good reason.

Niches.

The phrase, The Riches Are in the Niches , is a common one for good reason.

Here are 5 reasons to develop your niche now , if you haven't already.

1.) A niche allows you to better communicate to a singular individual how you are best able to help them with their life challenge or pain.

When it comes to marketing and business, a niche simply means you have strategically honed down what is you offer . This ensures you stand out from others offering a similar service.

It is the process of deeply understanding the unique needs of the population you serve. This will allow you to design a suite of services to address those needs in a way that others in the marketplace are not. In VFTS 2023.1 , Patricia Jauchler , shares exactly how she has done this by creating a specialized suite of services for individuals at the end stages of life and their families.

2.) A niche allows you to invest and refine skills in a singular area which helps you to be more effective and competent in your services. Competence helps boosts confidence .

3.) Specializing can help reduce fatigue and burnout.

We will never be able to know everything about serving every population or treatment issue .

But, we CAN INVEST in learning as much as a possible about a particular condition , leading edge research and treatment approaches that when implemented produce consistent results for our clients . This can significantly reduce provider stress .

It also empowers us to say NO to clients that fall outside of this specialization so we can focus our energy where it is best aligned.

4.) When you niche, you convert competition into collaboration.

If you have a general practice that serves everyone, you set yourself up to be in competition with EVERYONE. Viewing all other practices as competition can be an energetic drain and isn't productive, but that is a topic for another blog altogether.

When you have a unique offer and approach to how you help a specific population, you position yourself to receive referrals from others in your community who don't do what you do or offer the services in the way you do.

I don't know about you, but Collaboration is a better feeling place to be in than Competition .

5.) A niche can create a more consistent path to sustainability of client base within your practice.

When you know your niche, you can create messaging that speaks directly to their needs.

It also helps you to become "KNOWN" in your market as the expert in that area. That can translate to YOUR PRACTICE being the ONLY PRACTICE that is top of mind to your referral base.

Think about who stands out in your community and why. What is it that keeps their practice in high states of awareness?

An example that comes to my mind is about pediatric dentistry. There are multiple pediatric dental practices in my area, bu t only one that I refer my special needs clients and their families. Why? Because they understand their unique needs AND provide dental services in ways that reduce anxiety which provides a more successful experience for everyone.

When I first began, I thought being an art therapist was enough of a niche. In a way our experiential approach may serve as a place to begin, but without more dialed in messaging people might have a hard time knowing ours is the right service for their unique needs. The art therapy is only one layer of the niche.

It becomes really hard to connect with clients that will be a good fit without a clear understanding of who we serve and how we serve them.

Here are some examples of really strong niches - take note how many unique defining characteristics are used.

I provide art therapy for twenty-something year old single women with a history of failed romantic relationships so that they can heal and find loving lasting relationships.
Our practice offers a suite of expressive and interactive therapy services for children on the autism spectrum and their families. In addition to offering individual therapy , we offer parent training and support groups to manage challenging behavi ors, Individualized Education Plan Support services to accompany parents during the meetings and translate the jargon, arts based sibling support group to process feelings of having a sibling with special needs, applied behavior analysis services to reduce challenging behaviors, and art, music and drama therapy groups to increase social communication . In this example, the niche is the ability to provide wrap-around services that meet the complex and varied needs of this particular population.
I offer narrative expressive therapy for couples on the verge of divorce due to fear of intimacy and communication avoidance so that they can reconnect and reignite the sparks that brought them together.
I offer EMDR and art therapies for adult children who grew up in the foster-care system and institutions struggling with feelings of self-loathing, self-harming behaviors and self-sabotage so that they can eviscerate them and step into their most full and empowered selves.

Have I convinced you to start a niche yet? I am confident that doing so will level up your practice, your personal energy, and financial stability in your practice.

Happy Creative Practice Building!

VFTS 2023 2 | Laury Rappaport | Focusing Oriented Expressive Arts

Wed, 15 Mar 2023 14:25:58 GMT

FEATURED GUESTS: Laury Rappaport, PhD, MFT, REAT, ATR-BC, teaches expressive arts therapies and art therapy, and has served on the faculties at Lesley University, Notre Dame de Namur University, CA , Sonoma State University, California Institute of Integral Studies, and Meridian University. She is the author of Focusing-Oriented Art Therapy: Accessing the Body’s Wisdom and Creative Intelligence and editor/author of Mindfulness and the Arts Therapies. Laury is a Focusing Coordinator with The International Focusing Institute and the Founder/Director of the Focusing and Expressive Arts Institute.

LISTEN & LEARN:

The origins of Focusing Oriented Psychotherapy which developed from research done by Eugene Gendlin and Carl Rogers and what causes change in therapy.
The process by which Laury Rappaport developed Focusing Oriented Art Therapy.
What is meant by the terms the "felt sense" and the "felt shift".
Why Focusing is considered to be a human process.
What "Clearing the Space" is in focusing oriented and focusing oriented expressive arts therapies and why it is an effective tool for stress and pain reduction.
The role of clinical sensitivity as it pertains to maintaining a safety first approach in treatment.

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW:

Laury's Session at the Expressive Therapies Summit { Virtual Session } March 23, 2023 Focusing-Oriented Expressive Arts (FOAT®) as a Trauma-Informed Approach
The Focusing and Expressive Arts Institute
Mindfulness & The Arts Therapies: Theory & Practice edited by Laury Rappaport
Focusing-Oriented Art Therapy: Accessing the Body's Wisdom and Creative Intelligence by Laury Rappaport
Trauma and Recovery: The Aftermath of Violence--From Domestic Abuse to Political Terror by Judith Herman https://amzn.to/3kY5Wgz
Focusing-Oriented Psychotherapy: A Manual of the Experiential Method (The Practicing Professional) by Eugene Gendlin

VFTS 2023 1 | Patricia Jauchler | Artful Dying

Wed, 15 Mar 2023 14:19:08 GMT

FEATURED GUESTS: Patricia Jauchler, MA, MS, RDT-BCT, CT, CDP is a Registered Drama Therapist and Board-Certified Trainer. She is the founder and director of On Bright Wings End-of-Life Services where she works with the aging, dying and bereaved. She is a Certified Thanatologist, End-of-Life Doula, Certified Dementia Practitioner, Grief Support Specialist and Advanced Planning Facilitator. In addition to using Drama Therapy and other creative arts in her practice with the aging, dying and their families, she created Theatre on the Threshold to educate the community about aging, dying and grieving issues through short play performances followed by discussions and workshops. Her aim is to encourage conversations and reduce the stigma about these most feared topics in order to live more meaningful lives and die more peaceful deaths.

LISTEN & LEARN:

Why death is considered a community event.
How to create value based community events aligned with your niche to market your services.
The value of understanding your clients needs as a means of crafting services that support the whole person and family system.
What is a death cafe?
Examples of creative arts and drama experientials that can be used throughout the arch of dying - from learning it is near, through the process itself and during the bereavement period.

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW:

Patricia's practice On Bright Wings End-of-Life Services
Patricia's Session at the Expressive Therapies Summit { Virtual Offering } March 26, 2023 Artful Dying: Alleviating Death Anxiety and Finding Closure Through Art, Music & Drama
Ira Byock's book The Four Things that Matter Most: A Book About Living

Season 2 Episode 8 | Melissa Wesner | Systemic Considerations when Setting Up a Group Practice

Wed, 08 Mar 2023 15:39:08 GMT

FEATURED GUESTS: Melissa Wesner, LCPC is the Founder of LifeSpring Counseling Services, a Maryland-based group practice where she and her therapists strive to provide hope, healing, and empowerment through the collaborative process of counseling. As a Certified Brainspotter and Brainspotting Consultant, she is an avid believer in the power of Brainspotting. She's a dreamer, a doer, and a co-host on the Protecting Your Practice podcast.

LISTEN & LEARN:

Questions for consideration regarding logistics when setting up a group practice.
The importance of defining and reflecting upon who you want to bring into your practice.
Understanding what model you would like to use for the therapists within your practice.
Benefits of clearly communicating your values and culture that are important in your practice when bringing on therapists.
How to build in tasks within your screening process to identify particular skills that will be important within your practice.
Several ways to build in office culture to create connection and community within a group practice.
How an internal website, or intrasite can be used to connect your practice team.
The impact of addressing employee/contractor complaints and dynamics quickly within your business.
The role of pruning within a group practice.
Considerations for having an Human Resources (HR) process or contracting with an HR company to assist with those systems.
The importance of having an actual contract when you have an Independent Contractor when it comes to dissolving the relationship.
The benefits of having a dedicated receptionist answering your practice phone.
Understanding the tax benefits of spending money on resources to enhance your business.
Before launching into a group check in with your WHY to really understand if this is what you really want to undertake.

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW:
The Protecting Your Practice Podcast protectingyourpractice.com
Melissa's Group Practice https://lifespringcounseling.net/
Free Download: How to Start Your Group Practice from the Start https://www.protectingyourpractice.com/free-downloads
Good to Great by Jim Collins

Season 2 Episode 7 | Christie Pearl | Improving the Health of the Relationship We Have with Our Business

Wed, 01 Mar 2023 14:35:04 GMT

FEATURED GUESTS: Christie Pearl is a Certified EMDR Therapist and EMDR Consultant in private practice in Massachusetts and Virginia. She specializes in EMDR Intensives for Adult Children of Alcoholics/Dysfunctional Families who are struggling with work stress and performance anxiety to create a healthier relationship with work so that they can be who they want to be today, instead of who they had to be as children.

LISTEN & LEARN:

How intensive models of service can be beneficial for both clients and clinicians.
Roles of Explicit Thinking Brain and Implicit Emotional Brain.
The importance of developing the ability to ask others for clients.
Why Selling is actually Service.
Why the administration of your business should be boring.
Ways to build in self-care into your policies and systems in your business.
Why it is beneficial to complete a systems evaluation.

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW:
www.christiepearl.com
Head over to her website to Download your Business Relationship Check-In

Season 2 Episode 6 | Salicia Mazero | Art Therapy for Treating Eating Disorders

Mon, 20 Feb 2023 16:02:26 GMT

FEATURED GUESTS: Salicia Mazero MA LPC ATR CEDS-S is a licensed professional counselor, registered art therapist and a certified eating disorder specialist and supervisor practicing in St Louis, MO. Salicia is trained in Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) and Internal Family Systems (IFS). Over the past 10 years, Salicia has worked in two treatment centers focusing on treating eating disorders before transitioning to private practice. Salicia serves as the president of the International Association of Eating Disorder Professionals St. Louis chapter. She is also on the board of directors of the Missouri Eating Disorder Association and a presenter for their Feed the Facts program educating students and teachers about eating disorders and prevention in the school system. She presents nationwide annually on art therapy, IFS, and eating disorder treatment. Salicia recently co-authored a chapter on Art Therapy, IFS and EMDR in the book EMDR and Creative Arts Therapies.

LISTEN & LEARN:

Three concerning statistics about eating disorders.
The five types of eating disorders.
Common myths about eating disorders.
How Salicia engages clients in art therapy for addressing this condition.
The importance of grass roots advocacy work with youth in order to raise awareness about and link them with resources.
What the Feed the Facts Program is doing in Missouri.

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW:

Salicia's practice www.creatingyourjourneyllc.com
Email Salicia at creatingyourjourneyllc@gmail.com
Missouri Eating Disorders Association https://moeatingdisorders.org/
Feed the Facts Program https://moeatingdisorders.org/feed-the-facts-program
National Eating Disorders Association https://www.nationaleatingdisorders.org/
The Alliance for Eating Disorder Awareness https://www.nationaleatingdisorders.org/
The National Alliance for Eating Disorders https://www.allianceforeatingdisorders.com/
International Association of Eating Disorders Professionals http://www.iaedp.com

The Creative Act - The Book Every Entrepreneur Needs to Read

Mon, 20 Feb 2023 00:12:57 GMT

Rubin's framework for making art mirrors the process of creating a business.

I have an incredible book recommendation for you .

Saturday morning I stumbled across a quote that came from a book called "The Creative Act: A Way of Being." I had never heard of it, but I was immediately intrigued both by the book's title and the quote I had read.

I looked it up and discovered it was written by legendary Music Producer, Rick Rubin. I don't know why, but it kind of took me by surprise. I bought the audiobook on Audible and began listening. I was hooked at the quote in the epigraph .

Within 24 hours of purchasing the book, and listening to a few powerful chapters twice, I am almost done with my first listen through. There will definitely be a third and forth full listen, as this book is jam packed with powerful �� AH-HAS and is beautifully resonant . Each read or listen offering new themes and impactful connections.

At it's core, he is really speaking about the creative process as spiritual practice . There is no separation between being human and being a creator. To be human is to be a creator. The real question is "Do I respond to the calling?"

The ideas he presents are not new. There are plenty of other authors that espouse similar concepts. The difference is he expresses it from his unique point of view. And he encourages this in others.

There are parallels to ideas Elizabeth Gilbert wrote about in her book Big Magic , in Shakti Gawain's book Creative Visualization , Julia Cameron's book the Artists Way , Pat Allen's books Art is a Spiritual Path and Art is a Way of Knowing .

What I really love about this book as how he makes reference to the habits, worldviews and perspectives essential to all creative processes including entrepreneurship. He provides a frame from which to view the process - not the product - as the most essential and valuable ingredient to living creatively.

Rubin celebrates and encourages :

playfulness ;
cultivating and maintaining a beginners mind;
not attaching to the outcome , but rather committing to experimentation;
cultivating a practice of deepening one's awareness;
developing structures and routines conducive to maximize the flow state;
checking and reframing cognitive distortions ;
embracing distraction - not avoidance- as part and parcel to the creative process;
listening to one's intuition and inner guidance over the "rational ideas" offered by others;
acquainting oneself with examples of creative excellence to calibrate oneself to it ;
cultivating a growth mindset;
not letting the vision of your creation take over or impede the actual manifestation of it;
not allowing perfectionistic ideals impede our creative expression;
and other ideas which hold obvious resonance with the work we do as expressive arts therapists.

The take-aways offered in Rubin's work are pure GOLD!

One of my favorite passages in the book comes from the chapter on Habits: "Create an environment where you are free to express, what you are a afraid to express."

This is absolutely essential to creating a successful private practice because in the creation of it we will be forced to confront a great many fears.

No matter your modality, I think you, too, will appreciate The Creative Act: A Way of Being by Rick Rubin.

Season 2 Episode 5 | Erica Hornthal | The Relationship Between Advocacy Work and Marketing

Sat, 18 Feb 2023 01:04:56 GMT

FEATURED GUESTS : Erica Hornthal is a licensed clinical professional counselor, board-certified dance/movement therapist, and the CEO and founder of Chicago Dance Therapy. Since graduating with her MA in Dance/Movement Therapy and Counseling from Columbia College Chicago, Erica has worked with thousands of patients aged 3-107. Known as “The Therapist Who Moves You,” Hornthal is changing the way people see movement with regard to mental health.

LISTEN & LEARN:

Why raising awareness for the body in psychotherapy is important.
How Erica transformed frustration about the lack of awareness of the field into a passionate advocacy platform.
The importance of reinvesting in your marketing strategies as a business owner.
Tips on how to pitch yourself to various media outlets.
The importance of nailing down your elevator pitch so that it is clear and passionate.
It's possible to let go of specific outcomes or measurables when we have a purpose driven strategy.

RESOU RCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW:
Erica's website www.ericahornthal.com
Erica's Body Awareness Mental Health Journal Free Download https://payhip.com/b/YgTl
Body Aware with Bonus of 2 free audiobooks through Audiobooks.com
Body Aware paperback

MINDSET MATTERS.

Wed, 08 Feb 2023 16:16:47 GMT

One of the myths I hear is that mindset is simply having a consistently "positive attitude." I would like to challenge that perspective.

If you have been a long-time reader and follower, than you likely know I write about mindset frequently. I come back to it over and over again because I believe it makes a profound difference on what we are able to achieve and accomplish in our lives.

One of the myths I hear is that mindset is simply having a consistently "positive attitude."

I would like to challenge that perspective.

I could have a positive attitude about selling out a training, but when it is supposed to happen in 2 weeks and only 3 people have signed up, I will likely experience some feelings of disappointment and fear.

Those feelings might lead to thoughts about cancelling the event, giving up on offering trainings altogether or taking it personally. All of which leave me STUCK in the same place.

It is here where the MINDSET becomes pivotal.

Do I give power over to the voice of the imposter and fear?

Or, do I find a way to clear that energy and emotion so that I can cultivate a creative solutions to get butts in those seats?

How can I allow this adversity to my advantage? How can this be better for me than I my original conception? How can I turn this into an opportunity to try something new?

If you know me, than you know I am going to attempt the latter.

In 2018, I began offering a 12 hour Qualified Supervisor Training through my practice.

I didn't know what I was going to do to get people to sign up! I was taking the old toss a bunch of things at the wall and see what sticks method.

I tried flyers posted online and paid for Facebook & Instagram ads.

I made (very pretty artsy) postcards and mailed those out to as many therapists as I could within a 50 mile radius.

I sent out newsletters to folks in my contact list.

That first training had four paying customers and a therapist interning in my practice at the time.

It was a lot of work for a minimal return, but I knew I could figure it out and grow it.

I tracked how every person learned about the offering and used that information to hone my marketing strategy. AND PUT IT ON REPEAT!

Each time we offered it, the registrations grew until we were hosting in-person trainings at space capacity by the end of 2019. It felt AMAZING to reach that goal!

Then COVID hit. And my old friends Imposter and Fear started talking again.

I had to move to offering the training online. This was something I had not considered previously!

It actually allowed me to cast a net out to a larger spread. Now, instead of focusing solely on local colleagues, I could focus on everyone licensed in the State of Florida.

This shift allowed me to double the amount of seats for each offering, and thus go far beyond my original goals for the in-office trainings. Instead of 15-18 people, we have 25-30 each offering.

I am sharing this with you as a transparent example of the impact of our Mindset. Had I listened to the voice of the imposter and given up, I would have missed out on what has turned into another stable and substantial income stream within my business.

I hope it inspires you to find creative approaches to move through blocks and leverage adversity, so you too can grow beyond what you originally thought possible for yourself.

If you need support to break through mindset blocks in your practice, I'd welcome the opportunity to coach you blast through your blocks!

Season 2 Episode 4 | Dan L Edmunds | Radical Compassion

Wed, 08 Feb 2023 12:22:38 GMT

FEATURED GUESTS: Dr. Dan L. Edmunds was born in Tampa, Florida initially living in the Baycrest Park area of Tampa. He began elementary school at North Shore Elementary in St. Petersburg. In 2nd grade he was tested and determined to be in the gifted range. At the age of 8 he relocated with his family to Fort Collins, Colorado where his grandmother, an entrepreneur, and her husband, a bank President resided. While attending Barton Elementary School he was found to have a speech impediment and motor skills concerns requiring speech and occupational therapy. He developed an interest in religions and cultures from the age of 14 and began visiting various communities, a special interest he still maintains and from which he can now recite scriptures and verses in Latin, Greek, Slavonic, Punjabi, Hindi, Arabic, and Hebrew.

At the age of 16 he became the youngest legislative intern in the State of Colorado and later served on staff of various political campaigns. He graduated in 1993 from Fort Collins High School. He completed undergraduate studies at the University of Florida in 1997 with a major in Religion, minor in Sociology. He completed a Master of Arts in Theology in 1999 from the University of Scranton and while there published in the Diakonia Journal for Eastern Christian Studies. He served as an intern for a trauma center in 1999 and in 2000 entered the field as a mental health professional. In 2000 he completed post graduate work in Dispute Resolution at Nova Southeastern University.

He developed a radio program from 2000 to 2001 to advocate for drug free approaches for children with behavioral and emotional disturbances. In 2003 he began collaborating with Dr. Robert Millburne in regards to relational approaches to autism. Dr. Millburne once told Dr. Edmunds he was an Aspie with peaks and valleys. Dr. Edmunds received a Doctorate of Education in Pastoral Community Counseling from Argosy University of Sarasota in 2006. He later began work with those labeled as schizophrenic forming a supportive community free from force or coercion to work from breakdown to breakthrough. One of his late mentors was psychiatrist and Psychoanalyst, Dr Clancy McKenzie. Dr. Edmunds has lectured at various colleges and universities and at professional conferences including National Association of Social Workers, Society for Humanistic Psychology, Alternative Education Resources Organization, and Center for the Study of Psychology and Psychiatry.

Dr. Edmunds has contributed to Psychology Today, Chronogram, Autism File Magazine, Autism World, Autism Parenting, Catholic Stand, Mad in America, Psychology Tomorrow. Dr. Edmunds has presented on Philadelphia CNN Affiliate, Shrink Rap Radio, Autism Radio, Relevant Radio, and various local radio programs across the US. Dr. Edmunds is the author of Meeting of Two Persons, Comprehensive Drug Free Approach to ADHD, Metanoia, Mystical Metaphors, Being Autistic, Cosmic Dance, Sacred Space and Voices in the Wilderness, Sutra on Despair and Overcoming, Absurdity and the Courage to Be, Bhakti, and Voices Within. Dr. Edmunds is a member of the Psychoanalytic Center of Philadelphia, Honorary Member of the Dominica Psychological Society, Associate Member of the New York Institute for Gestalt Therapy, and a member of the International Society for the Science of Existential Psychology. Dr. Edmunds is Board Certified in Sexual Abuse Trauma Issues and Forensic Traumatology. He is an adjunct faculty member for an Interfaith seminary and an advisor to KOSHISH Nepal, a mental health advocacy organization.

LISTEN & LEARN:

Spirituality as one worldview for making meaning in one's life and how to engage clients around this topic in therapy.
How Dr. Edmunds has transformed his interest and passion for learning about various cultural and spiritual practices has become an asset to his practice.
Dr. Edmunds three principles he abides by when working with individuals with autism.
Treatment isn't about what we do, it is about how we interact with our clients.
How Dr. Edmunds defines the phrase "extreme states of mind".
The role of radical compassion as a means of joining with our clients and how it can lead to greater understanding.
Dr. Edmunds offers an etymological definition of schizophrenia: to be broken hearted.
Dr. Edmunds concept of the two-trauma mechanism and presentation of psychoses.

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW:
https://selfgrowth.com/experts/dan-l-edmunds-edd
https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/extreme-states-mind
https://the-art-of-autism.com/the-road-to-autistic-empowerment/
https://psychologytomorrowmagazine.com/dan-l-edmunds-ed-d-journey-madness/

Season 2 Episode 3 | Krystal Demaine | On Being a Heart Centered Therapist

Wed, 01 Feb 2023 15:05:31 GMT

FEATURED GUESTS: Dr. Krystal Demaine, Ph.D. grew up in the small coastal community of Rockport, Massachusetts with her mother, father, and two sisters. As a young girl she was inspired by her creative surroundings; with her parents as owners of the iconic Bearskin Neck Country Store and her father an accomplished bass player; she was drawn to creative pursuits with music and art which became her life’s passion. Her roots of training in music therapy, neuroscience, creative writing, photography, expressive arts, and yoga led her to 20 years of private practice working across the lifespan with neurodiverse populations, mental health, and grief support.

She earned a B.M. in Music Therapy from Berklee College of Music, an M.Ed. in Counseling Psychology from Cambridge College, and a Ph.D. in Expressive Therapies from Lesley University. She is a Board-Certified Music Therapist (MT-BC), Registered Expressive Arts Therapist (REAT), and Registered Yoga Teacher (RYT-200) with advanced training in Neurologic Music Therapy, Performance Wellness, Integrative Medicine for Mental Health, Trauma Sensitive HeartMath, and is a Listening Hour Practitioner. She has written numerous peer-reviewed articles and book chapters and presented her work across the globe.

She is currently a full Professor of Expressive Therapies at Endicott College in Beverly, MA overseeing the Art Therapy and Expressive Arts Therapy undergraduate degree programs and coordinating the biennial Endicott College Expressive Therapies Symposium. She also teaches part-time at both Lesley University in the Psychology & Applied Therapies Department and at Salem State University in the Music & Dance Department. Dr. Demaine lives in Beverly, MA, USA with her bright young son. Her most recent book, “The Roots and Rhythm of the Heart” shares her philosophy of working with the heart, in healing, grief, and the arts.

LISTEN & LEARN:

Specific tasks and processes one must complete when self-publishing a book.
The origin story and inspiration for Krystal's book.
How listening to her heart allowed her to easily pivot to self-publishing.
The process of engaging in a Musical Life Review.
The heart sensory breathing technique for inward connection and grounding.

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW:
Krystal's website: www.krystaldemaine.com
"The Roots & Rhythm of the Heart: Our Musical Identity, Spirit & Lineage "
Ingram Spark Self-publishing distribution

Season 2 Episode 2 | Maira Holzmann | Nurturing Resilience through Somatic Therapy

Wed, 25 Jan 2023 12:47:07 GMT

FEATURED GUESTS: Maira Holzmann, LCSW , is a body-based, somatically trained trauma therapist specializing in helping adults heal from childhood trauma. Committed to the vision of ending the consequences of trauma from being passed onto future generations, she understands the importance of including the body as an ally in the healing process. Maira is passionate about a therapeutic touch modality called Coregulating Touch that deeply supports healing the nervous system and healing relational trauma. Maira runs a group psychotherapy practice called Somatic Therapy Partners (STP) whose focus is on healing the nervous system, nurturing resilience, and increasing a client’s healthy connection with their body. She believes that the mind and body are one and that when mind and body are integrated and regulated, capacity for service and spiritual growth expands. When she’s not ‘therapizing,’ Maira is out playing in the mountains with her amazing family. As a huge nature lover with a passion for adventure, the mountains are where she goes to wander, play, recharge, unplug and wind down.

LISTEN & LEARN:

The value of levity within the work of therapy.
Various somatic approaches to therapy.
What is Co-Regulating Touch and what does it entail?
How Co-Regulating touch assists the nervous system in re-learning to regulate itself for those who have experienced early trauma.
How attunement can be a Superpower.
The impact of a scarcity mindset on our business.
How we can live large by doing good.
Maira's money mindset mantra of "money comes and money flows."

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW:
Maira's website: https://somatictherapypartners.com
Nurturing Resilience by Kathy Kain & Steve Terrell
Somatic Experiencing International
Co-Regulating Touch

Season 2 Episode 1 | Rachel Moore | Artists as a Niche in Practice

Wed, 18 Jan 2023 15:56:58 GMT

FEATURED GUESTS: Rachel Moore, LMFT , is a certified EMDR therapist based in San Diego, California. She is licensed in both California and Montana, and her private practice focuses on helping the creative community — writers, artists, and musicians. She also facilitates an annual, online Artist's Way Workshop, based on the popular book by Julia Cameron. Rachel is excited to be launching a new podcast called Beyond Artist Block, which will highlight other practitioners like her who work with creative clients. She is a creative person herself and has a bachelor's degree in Creative Writing, along with years of experience playing and singing music.

LISTEN & LEARN:

The basic tools recommended in the Artist's Way.
The value of taking your inner artist child on a date.
How reading other people's websites and listings can help you plan for your own.
The importance of continuous marketing, even if you are full.
How always having a couple of spots to speak with prospective clients helps you to stay relevant within your community.
The personal benefits of marketing in ways that align with your energy.
The benefits of outsourcing.
Give yourself permission to honor the needs of your inner artist child.

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW:
The Artist's Way by Julia Cameron
Beyond Artist Block Podcast
Rachel's Artist Way Online Group
Rachel's website: https://www.rachelmoorecounseling.com/
Rachel's Email: rachel@rachelmoorecounseling.com

Episode 87 | Erin Gibb | Revolutionizing Therapy Practice

Wed, 14 Dec 2022 16:50:29 GMT

Featured Guest: Erin Gibb is a therapist, supervisor, group practice owner, Fulfillment Coach for therapist, and early adopter of the weird and wonderful. She's the host of the Therapist Expanded Podcast where through interviews with relatable guests, controversial outside-the-box thinkers, and solo episodes, she illuminates how therapists are uniquely conditioned for fear, responsibility and unfulfillment, and points the way to reaching past industry constraints to the source of our creative power. Because when we therapists dare to live our deepest dreams, we start a mental health revolution.

LISTEN & LEARN:

The importance of having a vision for your practice culture.
What can happen in a practice when therapists are thriving.
What can happen when you Reframe Have To's in your business.
Why we need to stop apologizing for taking up space and going after our dreams and desires.

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW:
Erin's Website: https://therapistexpanded.com/
Erin's Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/therapist-expanded/id1648578255
Profit First
Clockwork, Revised & Expanded
Fix This Next for Healthcare Providers

Episode 86 | Kristen Boice | Group Practice Essentials

Wed, 07 Dec 2022 16:01:03 GMT

FEATURED GUESTS: Kristen Boice is a licensed marriage and family therapist, owner of Pathways to Healing Counseling and the Close the Chapter Podcast host. As a Certified Daring Way facilitator, she was trained by Dr. Brene Brown on her research with shame, courage and vulnerability. She is a EMDR trained, which one of the most effective, researched-based trauma treatment modalities along with Brainspotting - another trauma modality. She specializes in improving self-worth, helping couples and families resolve conflicts and develop powerful communication skills, effective parenting strategies, making life transitions, grief and loss, reducing anxiety and working through trauma. Most importantly, she instills hope, helps people create possibilities and develop a sense of inner peace. Prior to entering the counseling field, Kristen was an executive at a Fortune 500 company. She is passionate about helping her clients reach their goals along with speaking and presenting workshops on a variety of topics.

LISTEN & LEARN:

The importance of values and culture when creating your Brand.
The role of systems in your administrative processes when running a group practice.
The benefits of using training videos in the onboarding process for new therapists to a group practice.
How community collaboration can be an effective tool for building your referral network.
How niching your practice can help your group standout.

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW:
https://kristendboice.com/
https://kristendboice.com/freeresources/
Kristen's Close the Chapter Podcast

Episode 85 | Jennifer Lawrence | Developing Your Entrepreneurial Mindset

Wed, 30 Nov 2022 16:15:45 GMT

FEATURED GUESTS: Jennifer Lawrence is a Licensed Professional Art Therapist and Counselor. She also holds general and special education teacher credentials, and has worked with children and adults of every age. Jennifer is the creator of Mindful Messes , an art-based Social Emotional Learning curriculum that helps kids and their grown-ups connect through mindfulness, playful movement, and invitations to create. Her latest offering, Break Free from Power Struggles, is an online program for parents who want to ditch the “perfect parent” fantasy, understand their child’s behaviors, and nurture more joyful connections. Jennifer lives in New Jersey where she not only has an in-person art therapy practice, but also spends as much time as possible enjoying the parks and beaches with her kiddo and husband.

LISTEN & LEARN:

The benefits of connecting with other people committed to the process of business building when starting out.
Understanding that there is no single way to build a business - your process is your own.
The benefits of employing systems for how you begin and end your work each day as an entrepreneur.
The importance of reflecting on what didn't work in your processes.

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW:

Email Jen at Jennifer@mandalasformamas.com
Her website (with lots of Freebies!) https://www.jenniferlawrencearttherapy.com
Freebie: Three Steps to Support Your Struggling Kid
Break Free From Power Struggles Coaching Program for Parents (aka Mindful Messes)

Episode 84 | Carolyn Boldt | The Importance of Design & Your Practice

Wed, 23 Nov 2022 16:30:31 GMT

FEATURED GUESTS: Carolyn Boldt, IIDA, LEED AP , Carolyn is personally passionate about holistic health and wellness, and an outspoken advocate that the environment of your space impacts your success. With over 40 years of experience in the commercial interior industry, she holds a BS in Interior Architectural Design from University of Texas at Austin, is NCIDQ Certified, a Registered Designer, a LEED AP, and Professional Member of IIDA/International Interior Design Association. In 2004, she and her husband, Scott, co-founded CrossFields as a design-build firm in Atlanta. In 2011 they changed their focus to expand the impact of holistic health by elevating the public’s image of alternative medicine through virtually creating outstanding healing environments nationwide. Carolyn loves to spend her time with her 8 wonderful grandchildren, involvement in church and community activities, traveling, and boating on the lake with her husband.

LISTEN & LEARN:

How your office design attracts your ideal clients and the importance of designing for your niche.
Why we need to prioritize functioning when creating design in the office.
Why form follows function in design.
How often furnishings need to be updated or changed out.
The benefits of surveying your clients about how they feel when they are in your space.
Considerations for furniture selection within a practice to meet the needs of a variety of sized bodies.
The "culture" of your space conveys the mood or feeling one experiences being in your space.
How the design of your environment influences your success.

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW:

Intentional Communication for the Virtual Office

Wed, 16 Nov 2022 14:40:31 GMT

Effective Communication Within the Business

One of the most popular recommendations as your business and practice grows is to outsource. The most effective way to do this is typically through hiring a virtual assistant or consultant to complete tasks you no longer have the ability to do.

Some common challenges when working remotely is lack of immediate access, lack of consistent or frequent communication, and challenges of miscommunication when using email and text.

One of the things that I have found to be most helpful is to ensure regularly scheduled Zoom meetings to discuss projects, check in with the individual and any challenges they might be having or frustrations with the workflows, a time for them to ask questions or make suggestions for changes.

Having meetings scheduled at regular intervals helps ensure that healthy communication continues to flow.

Since you don't have time for more personal check-ins that would naturally unfold in the office, it is important to build that time to connect within your meetings.

Have clear expectations for what is needed and when to complete job tasks in a timely manner. Sometimes, it is leadership that is not passing along the information needed for the assistant to do their job in a timely fashion. I am totally guilty of this and that is why I am sharing this information with you.

When we don't produce deliverables on time for our team to complete their part, is lead to feelings of frustration and resentment. Establishing Clear deadlines for each task, with some checks and balances to ensure they are being completed in a timely manner, will help everyone feel their time and abilities are being respected.

Employing clarifying questions to ensure that we understand one anotheris essential. It is also helpful to send a short follow up email documenting the key points of the conversation.

I hope you find these tips helpful and effective. If you are in need of support in developing your practice we are here to help. Send an email to me with your inquiry.

Episode 83 | Adina Silvestri | Writing Bravely

Wed, 16 Nov 2022 14:18:15 GMT

FEATURED GUESTS: Adina Silvestri EdD, LPC is a licensed Professional Counselor, Certified Clinical Hypnotherapist, and Certified Brainspotter in Richmond, Virginia who works with children and families. She specializes in treating women with substance abuse issues and in helping children who have experienced trauma lead full and productive lives. Dr. Silvestri helps women with Binge Eating issues recover from shame and find hope and healing.

Dr. Silvestri’s clinical work includes providing supervision to counselors-in-training. Dr. Silvestri is an innovative counselor educator; she teaches aspiring counselors the skills needed to become empathetic and creative. In addition to her clinical work, Dr. Silvestri started an online expressive writing group, Writing Bravely, which works to improve people's physical and psychological health by writing your way through to your future self. She writes for publications such as the Dr. Oz show, American Counseling Association, Richmond Family Magazine, and other recovery and wellness publications.

In her spare time, she mentors students through Blue Sky Fund and her hobbies include sailing, running and learning Japanese.

LISTEN & LEARN:

How engaging in an expressive writing group helped Dr. Silvestri to access her own vulnerability.
Several expressive writing prompts, including "Right now, I am..."
Therapeutic benefits Dr. Silvestri has witnessed using expressive writing within her Men's therapy groups.
The importance of sharing in expressive therapy groups.
How writing can help unlock secrets. (Secrets keep us sick)
How creating a sensory rich ritual can help reinforce sticking with an expressive writing practice.

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW:
www.adinasilvestri.com
Atheists in Recovery Podcast
www.facebook.com/lifecyclesc

Delegation

Thu, 10 Nov 2022 21:55:56 GMT

What feelings come up for you when you think about delegating tasks within your practice? None are right or wrong. They are simply information for you to better understand.

If there is resistance or fear around the process of delegating, that might be something to explore and attend to more deeply. Why am I afraid to let someone else answer the phones to my practice? Why do I feel worried about letting another person represent my practice at an event in the community? Why am I resisting paying someone to do something I don't need to do for my business, such as, cleaning the office?

I used those questions as examples, as early on I had to explore them myself. Delegation can be challenging when we have been the one doing everything and we have invested so much of ourselves into building our business. And yet, in order to grow without succumbing to burn-out ourselves it is likely a necessary skill we must learn.

If you have not begun to delegate within your business, I encourage you to think about why. What would be needed for you to delegate tasks that are outside of your Zone of Genius?

Start by creating a list of tasks that you complete every day and week that could be performed by another person. Below are a list of examples of tasks which may fall outside of your Zone of Genius, are annoying for you to do, or are taking time away from you seeing clients. Answering Calls & Scheduling Clients
Clearing your Email inbox
Cleaning the Office
Billing and Reconciliation (you would still need to review their work, but it is an exponentially more efficient use of your time)
Managing your Social Media
Formatting your Newsletters (like this one)
Updating your website(s)

What can you think of for your practice? When we free up hours within our week spent doing tasks that do not command our hourly fees for services, we open up time within our schedule to see another client, for more self-care time or family time, or time to engage in our own personal creative process. All without financial ruin, as those other tasks can be accomplished at significantly less than your hourly rate.

For example, I have a professional cleaning company that comes once per week to clean the office for $240 per month. Prior to that, I had been going in every weekend for an hour or two to clean the space myself. Not a great use of my time!

Delegation is your friend!

Episode 82 | David Frank | Financial Planning for Therapists

Wed, 09 Nov 2022 14:48:31 GMT

FEATURED GUESTS: David Frank is the financial planner for therapists. Through the firm he founded, Turning Point Financial Life Planning, he helps therapists navigate every element of their financial lives: from understanding your practice P&L and building a personal budget to managing student loan debt and investing for retirement... and everything in between. But don't let his love of the tax code and spreadsheets scare you off! You're just as likely to find him with his nose buried in one of Pema Chodron's books as reading up on the latest financial planning techniques.

LISTEN & LEARN:

Why it is important for private practice therapists to engage in financial planning.
Why the hardest part of financial planning is getting started.
How being present with your finances can change the relationship you have with money.
How asking the question, why is money important to you, can provide clarity about how you want your money to work for you.
The connection between emotions and money and how that might impact the financial health of your business.
The value of understanding how much of your fees actually go towards your personal salary.
The benefits of investing in learning from other entrepreneurs.
The benefits of compound interest as applied to investing.

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW:
https://turningpointhq.com
Resources David Frank has created for therapists https://turningpointhq.com/resources

Episode 81 | Jane Ferris Richardson | Multiple Languages for Expression: Art, Play, & Autism

Wed, 02 Nov 2022 14:41:36 GMT

FEATURED GUESTS: Jane Ferris Richardson EdD, LMHC, ATR-BC, RPT-S , is a Board-Certified Art Therapist and an active, exhibiting artist. She is an associate professor and core faculty member in art therapy at Lesley University in Cambridge, MA. Jane holds an EdD from Boston University School of Education, where she was managing editor of the Journal of Education. H er professional credentials include Registered Play Therapist- Supervisor, and Licensed Mental Health Counselor. Her recent book on art therapy and autism, Art as a Language for Autism: Creating Therapeutic Relationships with Children on the Autism Spectrum was published in July by Routledge.

Jane maintains a private practice with children and families, with specialties in young children and children with special needs. She uses a developmentally based, integrative approach to working with children, merging play and expressive approaches. Her approach is informed by her experience as a preschool educator, early childhood mental health consultant, and early intervention senior clinician.

Lesley University has an ongoing relationship with the Reggio Emilia approach, and Jane has travelled to Reggio for an International Study Group on children with special rights, as well as participating in Reggio events locally. Her work with expressive “languages” for children with autism has led her to collaboration nationally and internationally in Africa, Asia, and Europe. Most recently she taught in a training for therapists, medical professionals, and parents of children with special needs in Delhi, India, and Dhaka, Bangladesh and an Autism and the Arts workshop in Paris.

Jane has published and presented on autism and art therapy, play therapy, and the importance of multiple languages for expression. She has also written about art therapy in Asia, based on collaboration in China.

LISTEN & LEARN:

What is the Reggio Emilia Approach ® to early childhood development.
How Jane considers multiple languages for expression within her work with children.
The importance of choice within the therapy room when working with children.
How Jane has used the creative process with parents to help them buy into play and art therapy.
The importance of recognizing the multiple forms of communication that occur within therapy without use of words.
The role of balance within a child-centered approach to therapy and ways that the therapist can invite opportunities to create balance which the client may not readily recognize.

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW:
Jane's practice website http://www.transformative.info
Book coupon: https://selfesteemshop.com/product/art-as-a-language-for-autism/
Nonspeaking Valedictorian gives Speech to Graduating Class

Episode 80 | Victor Yalom | Developing Yourself as a Therapist

Wed, 26 Oct 2022 13:56:58 GMT

FEATURED GUESTS: Victor Yalom, PhD , is the Founder, Director of Content and Resident Cartoonist of Psychotherapy.net. He maintained a full-time practice psychology practice in San Francisco for over 25 years, and currently continues to see a small handful of clients, as well as leading psychotherapy and consultation groups. He has conducted workshops in existential-humanistic and group therapy in the US, Mexico, and China. He has produced over 100 training videos in the field of psychotherapy and continues to be inspired the many master therapists he has been privileged to work with, including existential-humanistic psychologist James Bugental, and his father Irvin Yalom. In his spare time he paints, creates metal sculptures, and tries to improve his table tennis game. More information on Victor and his artwork is at sfpsychologist.com .

LISTEN & LEARN:

What lead Victor into producing films for psychotherapists.
The importance of witnessing skilled professionals as we develop our clinical skills as therapists.
The role of mindsets and worldviews on the ways in which we practice.
Why it is helpful to question historical ways of doing things within our field.
The importance of the invitation within the therapeutic exchange.

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW:
SFpsychologist.com
Psychotherapy.net
Discount code for a subscription to psychotherapy.net is
reina100 and will apply a $100 discount to either of their annual membership options

I have added some of his artwork, below, which he gave permission for me to share with you all. I personally, love the humor expressed in the mini-library he created.

VFTS 2022 11 | Laryssa M. Creswell | Fearlessness and the Role of Value in Therapy as Parallel Process

Wed, 19 Oct 2022 14:12:30 GMT

FEATURED GUESTS: Laryssa M. Creswell Ed.D., MT-BC, LCPC, LPC, ACS, LPMT , Dr. Creswell earned her master’s degree in music therapy from Loyola University New Orleans and a Doctor of Education in Counseling Psychology from Argosy University/Washington DC. She is a licensed clinical professional counselor in Maryland, a Licensed Professional Counselor in the District of Columbia, a Board-Certified Music Therapist and a Licensed Professional Music Therapist in Maryland. Dr. Creswell is a Maryland Board Approved Supervisor and maintains the Approved Clinical Supervisor credential. She provides supervision for interns, pre-licensed and licensed clinicians. She also serves as an associate adjunct professor at The Chicago School of Professional Psychology at the Washington DC Campus. Dr. Creswell has a wealth of knowledge in trauma, substance use disorders, depression, anxiety, individual and group therapy. Dr. Laryssa M. Creswell believes that women & teen girls thrive on relationships, whether good or not so good. She creates a warm environment for women & teen girls to explore themselves and their relationships to become their best self.

LISTEN & LEARN:

The role of fear in our growth process.
The parallel process of therapists facing their fears as we guide clients to do the same.
Fear as a marker of progress in business development.
The importance of counting your small wins to help maintain your momentum and your why.
How not accepting insurance allows more creativity in how you structure your practice.
How Dr. Creswell used creative solutions through collaboration to serve clients that can't afford her full fee.
Understanding how the way in which we construct meaning around value for being called to do the work we do as therapists impacts how create our practice.
How value becomes a parallel process.

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW:

Laryssa's website https://fearlesslyinspiredsolutions.com
Email Laryssa at Laryssa@fearlesslyinspiredsolutions.com
The Hole in 5 Short Chapters by Portia Nelson

EXPRESSIVE THERAPIES SUMMIT SESSION:
November 17th, 2022 2PM - 5PM via ZOOM with Laryssa Creswell, Deirdre Cogan & Ryan Carrol on Art-Based Treatment for Women with Trauma Histories & Substance Abuse Disorders .

VFTS 2022 10 | Hugh Marr | Archetypes in the Stories that Shape our Live

Wed, 12 Oct 2022 16:33:13 GMT

FEATURED GUESTS: Hugh Marr, PhD , is a clinical psychologist in the private practice of psychotherapy in the Washington, DC area. He consults to other professionals and healthcare agencies in the fields of psychotherapy and substance abuse. He has taught both substance abuse counseling and psychotherapy at area universities; and has worked in all phases of community mental health, culminating in running a partial hospital program for clients with the co-occurring disorders of substance use and major mental illness. He is the author of A Clinician’s Guide to Foundational Story Psychotherapy:Co-changing Narratives, Co-changing Lives (Routledge, 2020); and the coauthor with Carol Pearson, Ph.D. of the Pearson-Marr Archetype Indicator and of the books What Story Are You Living? (CAPT, 2009) and Introduction to Archetypes (CAPT, 2002). His forthcoming workbook for a general audience, scheduled for publication in January of 2023, will be titled Finding Your Story.

LISTEN & LEARN:

What are archetypes?
What are the 12 common archetypes in narratives?
How do these relate to the work of psychotherapy and to creation of your own life?
What shapes us and our lives is directly related to what we take away from what happened.
Our unconscious is organized in patterns.

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW:

Storywell.com
A Clinician's Guide to Foundational Story Psychotherapy: Co-changing Narratives, Co-changing Lives (Routledge, 2020)
The Pearson-Marr Archetypal Indicator
What Story Are You Living? (CAPT, 2009)
Finding Your Story is scheduled for publication January 2023 and will be found at www.capt.org

EXPRESSIVE THERAPIES SUMMIT SESSION:
November 5, 2022 from 10AM - 1PM An Archetypal & Narrative Approach to Identifying and Changing Life Stories

VFTS 2022 9 | Megan VanMeter | Wallas Model of Creativity in Therapy & in Your Business

Wed, 05 Oct 2022 14:13:45 GMT

FEATURED GUESTS: Megan VanMeter, ATR-BC, LPC, LMHC, LPC-AT/S Megan VanMeter is a board-certified registered art therapist with clinical licenses in Arizona (licensed professional counselor), Indiana (licensed mental health counselor), and Texas (licensed professional counselor with the art therapy specialty designation and board-approved supervisor status). She is especially interested in burnout prevention, intervention, and postvention for helping professionals and has a virtual private practice where she provides art therapy to support these special people. Megan’s experiences in behavioral health, correctional, educational, medical, and social services settings exposed her to the wide world of burnout and led her to question the training process of helpers, which doesn’t address knowledge and skills in the area of burning bright throughout one’s career. She has served the art therapy profession through board and committee work at local, regional, and national levels. A scholar at heart, Megan enjoys doing research, giving presentations, and writing about the Expressive Therapies Continuum, an integrative, pantheoretical model developed by her graduate professors in the ‘70s and embraced by current art therapists for its relevance to contemporary advances in neuroscience. One day her writings will finally be published! In the meantime, she uses this model to ground her practice and guide her efforts to educate others about burnout.

LISTEN & LEARN:

The differences between Compassion Fatigue, Vicarious Traumatization, Secondary Traumatic Stress and Burn-Out.
What the Expressive Therapies Continuum is and how it has influenced her work.
The Role of Wallas Model of Creativity as a way of understanding client change and engagement within therapy.
Techniques for effectively managing time for the administrative tasks of therapy.

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW:

Email Megan at megan@meganvanmeter.com
Megan's practice website https://www.meganvanmeter.com
More information on the Expressive Therapies Continuum and a Free Bibliography on the ETC at https://www.meganvanmeter.com/for-expressive-therapists

SESSIONS at the EXPRESSIVE THERAPIES SUMMIT:
November 19th, 2022 Expressive Therapies Continuum: An Essential Framework for Using the Expressive Arts in Therapy with Nancy Choe, Lisa Hinz, Joshua Nann, Maria Riccardi & Megan VanMeter

VFTS 2022 8 | Maria Riccardi | The Expressive Therapies Continuum as a Way of Life

Wed, 28 Sep 2022 11:37:39 GMT

FEATURED GUESTS: Maria Riccardi M.A., M.Ed., ATR-BC is a registered art therapist, a career counselor, a licensed clinical psychotherapist and board member of the Quebec Art Therapy Association. She is an adjunct professor of art therapy at Concordia University and at l’Université du Québec in Abitibi-Témiscamingue, as well as a faculty member at Winnipeg Holistic Expressive Arts Therapy Institute. She collaborates with local non-profit organizations and mental health institutions, developing community-based art studio programs for adolescents and adults who are marginalized due to mental and physical health issues, immigration issues, and poverty. She has expertise with veterans living with combat-related post-traumatic stress disorder within the context of trauma intervention as well as in the evaluation of art processes and products during treatment. She has founded a clinic in Montreal based on the Expressive Therapies Continuum, providing educational and emotional support to children and families. Her current research interests include media properties and their role in assessment, as well school-based art-therapy with immigrant adolescents.

LISTEN & LEARN:

What is the Expressive Therapies Continuum (ETC)?
Who and when was the ETC developed?
How the ETC as a theory emphasizes the human experience over pathology.
The importance of making a plan to plan for growth.
The role of play in one's life as a therapist.

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW:

Maria's website https://imagesetc.ca/en
Maria's email mriccardi@imagesetc.ca

SESSIONS AT THE EXPRESSIVE THERAPIES SUMMIT:

November 6, 2022 from 2PM - 5PMEST The ETC as a Framework for Developing Cultural Awareness with Maria Riccardi, Lisa Hinz, and Megan Whyte.
November 19, 2022 from 10AM - 6PMEST ETC: An Essential Framework for Using Expressive Arts in Therapy with Maria Riccardi, Nancy Choe, Lisa Hinz, Joshua Nan, & Megan VanMeter.

Reflect and Evaluate Whether Your Business Is Aligned With Your WHY

Wed, 21 Sep 2022 14:21:41 GMT

As you create your business, it is so important to schedule out time to reflect and evaluate whether or not the business is aligned with your Why for doing it in the first place.

The Why is not the mission and vision for your business. Those are important, too, but different. Your WHY is more "I created this business, in this way, in order to experience X,Y, & Z in my life.

My Why is about earning enough to save for retirement, travel often to vast landscapes where I can disconnect from modern life and relish my connection with nature and spirit, to spend more time with family and friends without burning out.

Making time for reflection allows oneself to identify areas within the business in need of pruning. I need to cut back some areas that while they are fruitful, they aren't generating the level of return that I need to align with my Why. I need to eliminate things that are less productive and taking away from my ability to pursue the growth I seek to attain in my businesses. Right now, I don't have a clear picture of what that looks like, rather a general sense.

After this week, I plan to give myself some time to meditate and journal around it. This will help me come up with a game plan. I always try to keep in mind that there are no wrong choices here just more information. This helps ease any anxiety that emerges with making edits in the business.

Our businesses are constantly in a state of "in draft". They are never complete. They are always evolving and growing.

Periodic editing helps us to stay grounded in the reason we decided to go out on our own in the first place. Without it, our business can take on a life of it's own and easily start running (or ruining) the life we are working so hard to create.

As you create and develop your practice, I hope you build in time to reflect that what you are creating truly aligns with your life goals. If it doesn't, make some edits to course correct.

Episode 79 | Katie Lear | Slaying Dragons: Working with Fear & Perfectionism in Your Business

Wed, 21 Sep 2022 13:56:08 GMT

FEATURED GUESTS: Katie Lear, LCMHC, RPT, RDT, is a counselor, play therapist, and drama therapist who loves helping tween-aged kids find creative ways to cope with anxiety. Katie holds a BFA in Drama from NYU's Tisch School of the arts as well as a Masters in Counseling from Brooklyn College. She is passionate about combining the creative arts with evidence-based skills to provide kids with therapy that's both effective and fun. A private practitioner for the past 5 years, Katie works with children and families in her office in Charlotte, North Carolina, as well as online throughout the states of North Carolina, New York, and Florida. When she's not counseling, you can find her running online Dungeons & Dragons social groups for children through her sister business, Young Dragonslayers. Her first book, A Parent's Guide to Managing Childhood Grief , was just published by Simon & Schuster and Adams Media.

LISTEN & LEARN:

The importance of accepting help as an entrepreneur, particularly when taking on a new project with a deadline such as a book.
The power of reorganizing your schedule and clearing an entire day to accomplish creative projects.
How following a passion can open up opportunities within your business.
Why "Your good enough is good enough" in your entrepreneurial endeavors.
Why non-academic writing is an advantage when you are writing to speak directly to clients.
How fear and perfectionism can hold you back or propel you forward.
Why it is a good sign if other therapists are offering the service you want to offer in your business.

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW:

Katie's new book A Parent's Guide to Managing Childhood Grief
If you email proof of purchase of the book to Katie at Katie@katielear.com she will share you an resource bundle for grieving kids that didn't make it into the book.
Young Dragonslayers Dungeons & Dragons Groups for Kids & Teens
Katie's Practice www.katielear.com

VFTS 2022 7 | Peggy Kolodny & Salicia Mazero | Integrating EMDR, IFS & Art Therapy

Wed, 14 Sep 2022 16:18:37 GMT

FEATURED GUESTS:
Peggy Kolodny MA ATR-BC LCPAT, is a Board Certified, Registered and Licensed Art Therapist with level 2 certificates in IFS and in EMDR, specializing in trauma treatment across the life span. She is the founder of the group private practice, Art Therapy Collective of Owings Mills.Currently, Peggy is adjunct faculty with George Washington University’s Art Therapy Graduate Program as well as multiple professional training faculties. (Chesapeake Beach Play Therapy Seminars; The Ferentz Institute; and The Expressive Therapies Summits). She is on the Board of the Maryland Art Therapy Association, is a past president, and is their delegate to the American Art Therapy Association. Peggy is the current Chair of the International Society on the Study of Trauma and Dissociation's (ISSTD) Creative Arts Therapies Special Interest Group. Past faculties include University of Maryland, School of Social Work, Goucher College, and Maryland Institute, College of Art. Recent publications include 2 chapters in Art Therapy in the Treatment of Addictions and Trauma (Quinn, 2021) ; and a co-authored chapter with Salicia Mazero "The Interweave of Internal Family Systems, EMDR and Art Therapy" in “EMDR and Creative Arts Therapies” (Davis, Fitzgerald, Jacobs and Marchand, Routledge release October 2022). Past positions, back in the 1980's to the 1990's, include Chair of the Central Maryland Sexual Abuse Treatment Task Force, Vice Chair of the Maryland Chapter of the American Professional Society on the Abuse of Children, and Director of a nonprofit clinical trauma treatment agency, The Family Connection. She truly has been working as an art therapist with trauma populations for 40 years since her graduation from George Washington University's Art Therapy Program.

Salicia Mazero, MA, LPC, ATR, CEDS-S, is a licensed professional counselor, registered art therapist and a certified eating disorder specialist and supervisor practicing in St Louis, MO. Salicia is trained in Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) and Internal Family Systems (IFS). Over the past 10 years, Salicia has worked in two treatment centers focusing on treating eating disorders before transitioning to private practice. Salicia serves as the president of the International Association of Eating Disorder Professionals St. Louis chapter. She is also on the board of directors of the Missouri Eating Disorder Association and a presenter for their Feed the Facts program educating students and teachers about eating disorders and prevention in the school system. She presents nationwide annually on art therapy, IFS, and eating disorder treatment. Salicia recently co-authored a chapter on Art Therapy, IFS and EMDR in the book EMDR and Creative Arts Therapies.

LISTEN & LEARN:

A general overview of Internal Family Systems Therapy created by Richard Schwartz.
The three main parts and the roles they play.
How EMDR, IFS and art therapy can effectively by integrated.
The 8 C's of self.
Role of Self Energy.
How presenting professionally lead to collaboration and opportunities for publishing.

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW:

Peggy Kolodny's practice Art Therapy Collective of Owings Mills www.arttherapycollective.vpweb.com
Email Peggy at pkolodny@yahoo.com
Art Therapy Collective of Owings Mills Facebook Page
Salicia Mazero's practice Creating Your Journey, LLC creatingyourjourneyllc.com
Email Salicia at creatingyourjourneyllc@gmail.com
Episode 46 of The Creative Psychotherapist with Jennifer Marchand
Episode 78 with The Creative Psychotherapist Jocelyn Fitzgerald

SUMMIT SESSIONS:

EMDR and Creative Arts Therapies Routledge is offering a 20% preorder discount with CODE: FLE22
EMDR and Creative Arts Therapies All Day Symposium November 5th, 2022 10AM - 5PM via Zoom at the Expressive Therapies Summit
Internal Family Systems, Art Therapy & EMDR November 17, 2022 10AM - 5PM via Zoom at the Expressive Therapies Summit

Fear As A Measure To Determine If You Are Headed In The Right Direction

Wed, 07 Sep 2022 17:24:11 GMT

Use FEAR as a measure to determine if you are headed in the right direction in your business.

Wait what?

Yup. You heard me right. FEAR can be a helpful way of assessing if you are advancing your business.

Whenever we do something new or make an offer we have been creating visible to the public, it tends to poke FEAR into action.

FEAR is just there telling us all kinds of lies about not taking action in an attempt to keep us safe. To keep us comfortable. To keep us in the familiar.To keep us playing small.

If you feel scared and are having thoughts of giving up, throwing in the towel, or walking away - IMPLEMENT OPPOSITE ACTION! You are ACTUALLY on the path of GROWTH.

I have felt DEEPLY INTENSELY AFRAID often as a business owner.

When I opened my practice.

When I added a therapist.

When I signed a Lease for a 1500+ sqft unit at a time I didn't have enough clients to fill.

When I stopped taking insurance.

When I started offering Supervision.

When I started offering CE training through my practice.

When I started this consultation business and Podcast.

EVERY SINGLE NEW THING.

I thank FEAR for showing me the way. I feel it and do it anyway.

And, I have never ever regretted doing those things even though fear was telling me all kinds of ridiculous reasons not to do a single one!

Let FEAR be your guide and watch what amazing things you are able to achieve and create in your business

Episode 78 | Jocelyn Fitzgerald | Passive Income: Creative Resource Digital Downloads

Wed, 07 Sep 2022 16:15:17 GMT

FEATURED GUESTS: Jocelyn Fitzgerald LMFT, ATR-BC, EMDR Consultant, Empowering youth is one of Jocelyn’s greatest passions. She ran a variety of healing-centered group art projects and led guided visualizations on creativity with schools and nonprofits. One of her most transformative experiences centered around training paraprofessionals on how to use ar t therapy to help traumatized Eritrean youths in an Ethiopian refugee camp recover. Amid the pandemic, to help kids find calm through mindfulness and art, Jocelyn coauthored and illustrated “Colorful Place: Mindful Story and Art, ” a Kindle bestseller. She co-edited and wrote a chapter for EMDR and Creative Arts Therapies , a pioneering textbook exploring the healing power when creative art therapy and EMDR are integrated; Routledge is releasing the book in the summer of 2022. Jocelyn is a clinical supervisor and creates art tools that teach mental health concepts. Her art tools are distributed through her Etsy shop, Colorful Therapy Tools .

LISTEN & LEARN:

Jocelyn's inspiration to begin selling her resources online via ETSY and her website.
How easy it is to sell digital downloads of your resources as an additional income stream.
How selling bite sized pieces of information at affordable rates (between $1-3) make therapy topics accessible.
The importance of relationship building as the foundation of marketing in your business.
How $2 a day of advertising through ETSY has helped her generate consistent purchases through her shop.

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW:

https://www.jocelynfitzgerald.com
Email Jocelyn jocefitz@gmail.com
Big Magic by Elizabeth Gilbert
Magic Lessons Podcast with Elizabeth Gilbert
“Colorful Place: Mindful Story and Art
EMDR and Creative Arts Therapies - Routledge is offering a 20% off discount with CODE: FLE22
Jocelyn's ETSY shop Colorful Therapy Tools
FREE DOWNLOAD of her #1 Selling Download - The Window of Tolerance Simply enter CREATIVE as the discount code at checkout.

Your Privacy Matters, But Insurance Companies & Tech Platforms For Mental Health May Not Agree.

Wed, 31 Aug 2022 19:45:10 GMT

Your Privacy Matters, But Insurance Companies & Tech Platforms For Mental Health May Not Agree.

In a recent Behavioral Health Business article , they reported on Beacon Health Options plan to record therapy sessions as a way of evaluating successful outcomes in therapy. They also shared that the online mental health service, Talkspace, has already been doing this using AI technology to transcribe the sessions and gather data. The Chief Medical Officer of Beacon asserts that this would be done to determine what skills and interventions facilitated by the therapist in order to drive positive patient outcomes and lower costs. He also suggests that the client identity would be blinded. Prior to being the CMO of Beacon, he was employed at Talkspace. Given that this company is being investigated for practices regarding truth in their privacy practices to consumers, I have a difficult time instilling a lot of confidence in what he says the insurance company will do. Some therapists are reporting that they are being told that they must use the insurance company’s video conferencing platform in order to bill for telehealth services. There appears to be a direct relationship there.

As a therapist, and as a consumer, I have major concerns regarding the ethics of this practice and the potential for possible harm to occur. Though they report that patient-specific data would be protected, what checks and balances are being established to ensure that such protection would be upheld? Who will be the oversight body to determine that they are actually doing that? After all, that data could potentially give them detailed information about you that they could use to raise your rates, possibly deny future coverage or even sell your data to social media technology platforms.

In a recent article in Health IT Security , they discussed how companies like Talkspace and Betterhelp are being questioned by Senators regarding the privacy of data of clients receiving therapy through their platforms. Senator Ron Wyden wrote in the letter to the companies , “Unfortunately, it appears possible that the policies used by your company and similar mental health platforms allow third-party Big Tech firms and data brokers, who have shown remarkably little interest in protecting vulnerable consumers and users, to access and use highly confidential personal and medical information.” In addition, he and colleagues stated, “A February 2020 investigation found that BetterHelp was sharing analytics with Facebook about how often users opened the app and metadata from every message shared on the platform – giving the company a sense of when, for how long, and where users were using mental health services.”

This should give us all cause for concern. In the letters, the Senators also stated, “BetterHelp advertises that your services are ‘100% private’ and operate in accordance with the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA), but several facets of your services are not covered by HIPAA, and your company appears to be taking advantage of the ‘regulatory gray area’ in which mental health applications operate to juice your profits.”

Aside from the insurance company potentially learning more about you, there are other ways our health data could be used in ways that we may not want.

Therapists are required to maintain progress notes. These notes are supposed to be a simple narrative that describes observable information on the client’s functioning during that appointment, what goals we worked on, what interventions were used, and the client’s response. Generally speaking, in order for the client confidentiality to really be upheld, specific details are to be used sparingly if at all. These notes could potentially be subpoenaed and end up in court, which is why they are to be written with minimal specificity. If our sessions are recorded, transcribed and maintained by the insurance company, could those transcriptions or recorded videos then become subpoenaed?

Does this open a Pandora’s Box of precedence for any health services covered by insurance to be videoed in order monitor patient outcomes? I don’t know about you, but that raises giant red flags for me! I don’t want the conversations that I have with my medical professionals listened to, let alone taped and monitored. Spend some time thinking about the vulnerable positions you have been in throughout your life when you were receiving medical treatment. Are there any you would not want the insurance company to have a direct observation window in which to evaluate the efficacy of the outcome? As a woman with a history of reproductive health challenges, I can think of numerous procedures I would not want them to witness. You might be thinking, I thought this was about therapy, why are you mentioning that? Because, once something like this becomes commonplace in one form of the industry it can easily become instituted in another.

There are many reasons privacy and confidentiality are important to our health care practices, whether it be mental or physical. First, in order for therapy to be effective, one must be honest with their provider. Without honesty, we can’t work on changing the stuff that is creating the challenges. That level of honesty is HARD for a lot of people. One reason might be because they carry so much shame about things that have happened to them or that they have done and for which they have been chastised and judged in the past. Trust and safety have to be built in order honest disclosure to occur in those cases. Having the knowledge that the insurance company is snooping in might make that difficult, if not impossible for some clients, and unintentionally increase resistance to participation. For many individuals, this could be the cause not to seek support at all.

If you use insurance to cover your services, they have a right to audit your files. As I said earlier, those progress notes typically do not contain the details of what was discussed in the appointments. Having unrestricted access by the insurance company – a company that does not possess objectivity in this case – is not sound clinical research.

The best way to effectively protect your confidentiality is to pay for your services out of pocket instead of using your insurance benefits and avoid using large scale tech firms that are acting as “ Brokers” for your treatment.

Author: Reina Lombardi , ATR-BC, ATCS, LMHC-QS Owner, Florida Art Therapy Services, LLC

Episode 77 | Stephanie Ladd | SoulCollage®, Goddess Archetypes & Self-Care

Wed, 31 Aug 2022 14:21:05 GMT

FEATURED GUESTS: Stephanie Anderson Ladd, M.A., LMFT, LCMHC, Stephanie Anderson Ladd is a psychotherapist, artist, teacher, SoulCollage® facilitator, and author of a new book, "Goddesses of Self-Care: 30 Divine Feminine Archetypes To Guide You." She lives in Durham, North Carolina, where she facilitates SoulCollage® workshops in person and online creative courses on goddess archetypes, the tarot, myths, and fairy tales. She has been a licensed psychotherapist for almost 30 years and has led many workshops on creative self-discovery over the years as part of and in addition to her private practice.

LISTEN & LEARN:

The origin and practice of Soul Collage®.
Wisdom that can be gleaned from exploring Feminine Archetypes.
How offering creative workshops can provide an access point for potential new clients.

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW:

Episode 76 | Monica Kovach | DIY High Design Website & Copywriting Templates for Therapists

Wed, 24 Aug 2022 15:22:11 GMT

FEATURED GUESTS: Monica Kovach, Monica is a former art therapist and counselor turned web designer for therapists and owner of Hold Space Creative . She's passionate about making therapy more accessible by helping therapists present themselves in a more accessible way. She lives in Michigan with her two kitties, Bubbles and Pearl, and when she's not designing websites, she can usually be found somewhere in nature.

LISTEN & LEARN:

How Monica pivoted from therapy to helping therapists turn their websites into Holding Environments for clients seeking their services.
Why using her Website Copywriting Templates can help your site standout.
Why your website is a foundational building block of your marketing campaign.
How you can build a Gorgeous site that speaks directly to your ideal clients without spending a mint.

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW:

Hold Space Creative

Using Brainspotting to Work Through Business-Related Fears

Sat, 20 Aug 2022 20:33:16 GMT

Fears don't have to hold you back. Brainspotting can help.

Being a small business owner can be scary. It means putting yourself out there, taking risks, facing uncertainty, and dealing with a whole slew of other new challenges. We can let these fears get the best of us, stopping us from pursuing our dreams, or we can get curious about them and do the work to move forward.

Brainspotting is one great way that small business owners can work through the fears and insecurities that show up as they embark on new business ventures. To keep it simple, Brainspotting is a brain and body-based treatment modality that uses a location in one’s visual field to help them process information that is stored deeply in the brain. While Brainspotting, one is invited to notice the thoughts, feelings, and physical sensations that show up. This approach can be incorporated within the context of therapy, and it can also be used in professional coaching.

Brainspotting can be used to help private practice / group practice owners explore:

Imposter syndrome
Business-related stress
Fears and insecurities
Uncomfortable emotions that are creeping in

With Brainspotting, private practice and group practice owners can gain insight about the feelings they’re experiencing. It can make us aware of the connections that exist between our current feelings in our business and our past experiences. For example, wouldn’t it be helpful if you were able to recognize that your current insecurities weren’t really about your abilities but about that experience you had as a child? This is just one example of the type of connections that are made while Brainspotting. After Brainspotting, it’s not uncommon to find that situations that were previously charged, no longer hold the same level of emotion.

As small business owners, there are endless opportunities for us to learn, grow, and level up, and Brainspotting is one of them. While Brainspotting can certainly help us work through the uncomfortable feelings and experiences we may be having as a business owner, it can also be used to help us access and enhance our creativity and ability to dream. In the Brainspotting world, we call this expansion work. If you are looking for an opportunity to really enhance and access your vision, expansion work might be for you!

Brainspotting is a very unique approach, one that doesn’t even require talking. It’s very different than a lot of other approaches we’re used to which can make it a little difficult to understand at first. The good news is that if you decide to work with a trained Brainspotter to help you explore your practice-related fears, they will walk you through this process, and you’ll get to see first-hand how it works.

As an avid Brainspotting fan, I hope you’ll give it a try! Because Brainspotting can be done online, you’ll be able to find Brainspotting services, regardless of your physical location.

Written by: Melissa Wesner, LCPC

Melissa Wesner, LCPC is a Certified Brainspotter and Brainspotting Consultant. She is the Founder of LifeSpring Counseling Services and Intentional Practice , both based in Maryland. She is also the co-host of the Protecting Your Practice podcast.

Encore Episode 12 61 | Nicole Porter Davis | The Creative Process of the Creative Arts Trauma Therapist

Wed, 22 Jun 2022 15:23:39 GMT

F EATURED GUESTS: Nicole Porter Davis, ATR-BC, LCAT is the Former Director of Child therapy following the Sandy Hook School Massacre in Newtown, Ct, now a pandemic parent of a young child she finds herself producing “You and Us” a Virtual band of children’s rock n roll. Integrating the music as a healing arts mechanism for change. Nicole Porter established the Emerald Sketch as the first mental health response program post Newtown tragedy in 2013. Since, she teaches globally and aids communities post horror to build sustainable creative arts trauma therapy services.

She has co-authored the 1st Edition trauma response "Manual” for The Red Pencil 2018, and is the Playwright & Solo Performer to An American Nightmare, Hudson Guild Theater, NYC Summer Theater Festival 2019. Her favored Emerald Sketch projects this pandemic include “Black Children Matter” and “Art therapy for India” for the most up to date happenings you can always access her instagram @emeraldsketchart or website emeraldsketch.com . She is also the upcoming President of the New York Art therapy Association.

Porter has been here before, in our Special Series on Trauma Response, where we discuss the various sequences applied post trauma for clients enrolled in the Emerald Sketch. Now we will reflect on her latest project "You and Us" taking those phases, writing, and recording an album! Two songs have been launched! One more on the way, an entire album on Valentine’s Day! She is a true Renaissance woman…

LISTEN & LEARN:

How Nicole came up with the idea to translate the trauma treatment sequence into songs. The benefit of creative processing as a creative arts therapist. How the therapist's creative expression has the capacity to create a healing impact outside the therapy room.

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW:

Find Nicole at www.emeraldsketch.com
on Instagram @emeraldsketchart
Listen to "Social Connection" by "You & Us" on Spotify

Encore Episode 11 21 | Carolyn Mehlomakulu | Benefits of Blogging

Wed, 15 Jun 2022 16:12:54 GMT

I had the pleasure of speaking with Art Therapist Carolyn Mehlomakulu, LMFT-S, ATR of Creativity in Therapy. Carolyn shares how she started blogging about art therapy in 2012. The blog has helped her build her brand, fill her private practice, fill online courses and gain a publishing contract. She shares how she structures one day a week in her schedule to dedicate to plugging away at the keyboard and other creative projects. We also talk about her new book The Balanced Mind: A Mental Health Journal: Exploratory Prompts and Effective Practices. This journal has wonderful prompts with plenty of space to write, meaningful quotes, and every page is beautiful.

Resources:

Creativity In Therapy Blog https://creativityintherapy.com/

Carolyn's Practice https://www.therapywithcarolyn.com/

The Balanced Mind: A Mental Health Journal: Exploratory Prompts and Effective Practices by Carolyn Mehlomakulu

Disclaimer: To be transparent, the links to the books mentioned in the show are Amazon affiliate links. We receive a small fee if you purchase an item using the links. We use the fees to help us grow and improve the podcast. We will never use an affiliate link to the product that don't believe in or haven't vetted ourselves. Thank you for your support.

Episode 75 | Reina Lombardi | Honoring Your Need for Time Off

Wed, 08 Jun 2022 16:34:04 GMT

She also owns Creative Clinician’s Corner, LLC where she provides practice building resources and consultation services for creative arts therapists with a desire to build and scale their own private practice. She is the host of The Creative Psychotherapist Podcast where she interviews successful creative therapists about the tools and strategies they used to grow their dream practices, as well as how they have hustled to create additional streams of income using their knowledge and creativity by developing products and services that enhance their therapy practices.

In her spare time, she loves to play on and in the ocean with her husband and their dog, explore vast natural landscapes, and get messy in the kitchen creating complex but healthy recipes.

LISTEN & LEARN:

In this week's episode, Reina shares about the importance of giving yourself space from your work. She shares how she identifies the signs she needs to take a break or a pause.

Encore Episode 10 25 | David Axler| Taking Control of Business Finances

Wed, 01 Jun 2022 13:57:06 GMT

Does the word Accounting, send you running? Not to fear, my next guest shares how easy it is to take control of your business accounting needs using Wave. David Axler, is the VP of Strategy and Business Development at Wave Accounting. He is passionate about helping small business owners take control of their finances with improved efficiency. In today's episode he shares 3 things business owners need to know about accounting as it relates to operating profitably. He also shares what to look for in an accounting platform.

Wave is a free intuitively designed accounting platform. Prior to upgrading to an electronic health record, I used Wave exclusively to operate my practice. I had tried a competitors product, which I spent a lot of money on, and felt defeated every time I used it. Like, to-the-point-of-tears defeated. Thinking-there-was-something-wrong-with-ME defeated! Then another art therapist introduced me to Wave. She raved about it! I immediately signed up and began using their product. It literally SAVED me HOURS and HOURS of time and frustration. I was no longer crying after reconciling my billing each week. Did I mention that it is FREE! Yes, they have some paid for services integrated if you need, but all the basic stuff is absolutely free and designed for small business. You can even add your company branding which makes sending invoices polished and professional.

Resources Mentioned on the Show:

David Axler's Twitter @realax

Wave www.waveapps.com

Twitter @wavehq Intstagram @wavehq

Episode 74 | Reina Lombardi | Boundaries in Business

Wed, 25 May 2022 14:49:20 GMT

LISTEN & LEARN:

The 10 Rights according to Terri Cole's Boundary Boss Bill of Rights.
The importance of having firm yet flexible boundaries in your business.
Potential impacts of not holding boundaries with yourself as it pertains to work or with particular aspects of your business.
Work tasks that require clear boundaries.
The importance of identifying your non-negotiable boundaries.

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW

Encore Episode 9 62 | Karen Anderson-Fignon | EPICS Journey: Image Based Career Assessment

Wed, 18 May 2022 15:48:31 GMT

FEATURED GUESTS : Karen Anderson Fignon is a licensed clinical art therapist and career coach. She created the EPICS assessment tool in 2013, and uses EPICS to help individuals find meaning and purpose in their work and daily lives. The program uses the results of the assessment with brain science to craft a short- and long-term goals, highlight interests and skills, understand why personal and professional values are important in the workplace and more. Karen presents at conferences, and facilitates professional development workshops to schools, vocational rehabilitation services and virtual group workshops. Hands on Career Development workshop for ALL learners and ages. Use Promo Code: TCP&EPICS to get started.

LISTEN & LEARN :

The 6 themes of the Holland Codes as they pertain to personality and career choice.
How Karen designed the EPICS linking the 6 Holland Codes.
How copyright impacted her ability to use her original collage images for the assessment resulting in the creation and testing of new digital imagery.
How the Image Based Assessment can be used to aid in customized employment for individuals with Special Needs.
How the card system can be used to gain clarity on occupational needs and desires over time.

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW

www.EPICScareer.com
www.yourEPICSjourney.com
Listeners get a discounted access using the PROMO code: TCP&Epics

Episode 73 | Reina Lombardi | Ten Books to Uplevel Your Money Mindset

Wed, 11 May 2022 15:32:40 GMT

LISTEN & LEARN:

10 Easy to Read and Impactful books on developing a wealthy mindset so that you can break free from self-limiting beliefs around money.
The benefits of surrounding yourself with other clinicians who are working on or who have worked on their money mindset.
Five mantras that Reina uses to move through fear and old patterns about finances emerge.

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW:

Books by Barbara Huson (formerly Stanny)
Overcoming Underearning
Prince Charming Isn't Coming
Secrets of 6-Figure Women
Rewire for Wealth
Casey Trufo's Be A Wealthy Therapist
Rachel Rodgers' We Should All Become Millionaires
Jen Sincerro's You Are A Bad Ass at Making Money
Napolean Hill's Think and Grow Rich
Lynch & Schwartz's Tapping Into Wealth
Leah Guzman's The Art of Healing & Manifesting
6 CE Hour Supervision in Art Therapy: Theories, Structure & Applications Training on June 3, 2022 9:00AM - 4:00PM Online via Zoom - additional information https://floridaarttherapyservices.com/6-hr-sup-in-art-therapy/

Episode 72 | Myriam Martinez| Empowering Women to Shine Their Light in the World

Wed, 04 May 2022 14:24:23 GMT

FEATURED GUESTS: Myriam Martinez, MA, LMFT, ATR is a Licensed Psychotherapist, Registered Art Therapist, Women's Life Strategist, Successful Entrepreneur, and Founder of the WILD Woman’s Creative Corner Community. Myriam brings over 15 years’ experience working with women around issues of stress, self-inadequacy, and self-identity.

She gently guides women towards a path of learning to embrace their Woman-ity and love themselves fiercely, own their power and strength. Myriam deeply believes that women are creative, intuitive, intelligent beings that are often conditioned to put themselves last and therefore lose touch with themselves and their creative spirit. Myriam’s calling in this life is to teach women the power and importance of putting themselves first, loving themselves as much as their own best friend, and tapping into their creativity for personal and professional happiness, ease, and success. Myriam is based out of Northern California and is the mom of 2 teens and 2 fur babies.

LISTEN & LEARN:

How listening to the pain points you hear frequently from your clients bring can lead to a new offering.
How understanding the social conditioning can help us to recognize irrational beliefs that are holding us in patterns of fear.
Understanding the importance of self-love and prioritizing one's needs and redefining these as acts of selflessness.
The importance of listening to self and taking steps

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW:

www.myriammartinezcoaching.com

Grab Your Free Gift https://www.myriammartinezcoaching.com/gifts

Episode 71 | Leah Guzman | Manifesting an Abundant Life using Creative Exercises

Wed, 27 Apr 2022 14:18:10 GMT

FEATURED GUESTS: Leah Guzman, ATR-BC supports creatives with healing and manifesting their desires utilizing art media through art therapy services and coaching. She's written 3 art therapy books, “ The Art of Healing and Manifesting: Creative Exercises to Living an Abundant Life, “Essential Art Therapy Exercises: Effective Techniques to Manage Anxiety, Depression, and PTSD” , and a children’s book, “RAD is SMAD!!” . Her signature program, Art of Healing and Manifesting, supports creatives by healing any emotional wounds and transforming energy to be your most authentic self. She focuses on the law of attraction, spirituality, and cognitive-behavioral art therapy techniques. She also is the founder of the monthly art making group, Creative Soul Society. It’s an honor for her to have helped thousands of individuals find more joy, wealth, and peace in their lives through her books, and individual & group programs.

LISTEN & LEARN:

How Leah uses the Chakras to organize the creative process of manifesting.
What is manifesting and how it relates to healing.
The importance of intentional design in life and in product creation.
The role of consistent showing up in building your creative offering as a practitioner.

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW:

www.leahguzman.com
hello@leahguzman.com
Free Visualization offering https://leahguzman.com/true-you-visualization-opt-in
Creative Soul Online Retreat Facebook Group
The Art of Healing and Manifesting: Creative Exercises to Living an Abundant Life,
Essential Art Therapy Exercises: Effective Techniques to Manage Anxiety, Depression, and PTSD
RAD is SMAD! !

Episode 70 | Reina Lombardi | Five Things You Need to do to set up Supervision as a Service in Your Practice

Wed, 20 Apr 2022 15:35:28 GMT

LISTEN & LEARN:

Five steps to setting up Supervision as a Service in your practice.
Why seeking out training in Supervision is the first step to offering the service.
Understanding the laws, rules, and guidelines offered by licensing & credentialing bodies before offering the service.
Two considerations for fee setting for offering supervision.
Two must haves when marketing Supervision as a service in your practice.

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW:

6 CE Hour Supervision in Art Therapy: Theories , Structure & Applications Training on June 3, 2022 9:00AM - 4:00PM Online via Zoom - additional information https://floridaarttherapyservices.com/6-hr-sup-in-art-therapy/

Episode 69 | Reina Lombardi | Benefits & Challenges to Offering Supervision as a Service in Your Practice

Wed, 13 Apr 2022 14:21:41 GMT

F EATURED GUESTS: Reina Lombardi, ATR-BC, ATCS, LMHC-QS is a Registered Board Certified Art Therapist, Art Therapy Certified Supervisor, and Licensed Mental Health Counselor Qualified Supervisor practicing in Fort Myers, Florida. She is the owner of Florida Art Therapy Services, LLC where she and a small team of therapists provide in-person and technology facilitated individual and group art therapy and counseling services, contracted art therapy groups at various community agencies, supervision and continuing education programming for counselors and art therapists. She has contributed to several academic texts on the topics of art therapy and clinical supervision, and is a frequent presenter/speaker at local and national professional conferences.

LISTEN & LEARN:

Five challenges of offering supervision as a clinical service within your practice.
Four benefits of offering supervision as a clinical service within your practice.
The importance of having a contract when providing clinical supervision.
The importance of obtaining training in supervision before offering it as a service.

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW:
6 CE Hour Supervision in Art Therapy: Theories, Structure & Applications Training on June 3, 2022 9:00AM - 4:00PM Online via Zoom - additional information https://floridaarttherapyservices.com/6-hr-sup-in-art-therapy/

Episode 68 | Tanya Cole-Lesnick | Building Trust with Your Community Using Video

Wed, 06 Apr 2022 14:27:16 GMT

FEATURED GUESTS: Tanya Cole-Lesnick, LCSW PLLC, has been a psychotherapist (licensed clinical social worker) and coach since 1995. She received her master’s degree in social work from New York University after group therapy changed her life. She has extensive experience in outpatient hospital mental health, private practice, and wellness center settings. From those experiences over the years she has identified her most important focus—helping people to live lives that light them up. She does this by helping clients to access and honor their truth, to change habits that don’t serve them, and to heal faulty narratives so that they are living in alignment inside and out. Her work revolves around intimate groups as the sharing of inner worlds and being human together in a safe space is what she finds to be the most powerful way for lives to transform.

LISTEN & LEARN:

The importance of finding your growing edge when marketing your practice.
How video can accelerate your ability to build and connect with a community of clients.
Offering an ongoing therapy group with a commitment of a month participation can allow you to build a cohesive group over time.
Why offering a complimentary discovery call is beneficial for both you and the potential client when offering group therapy services.

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW:

Follow on Instagram/TikTok for free content + notification of upcoming Instagram and TikTok Lives

https://www.tiktok.com/@tanyathetherapist
https://www.instagram.com/tanyathetherapist
www.tanyacole-lesnick.com free discovery sessions if interested in my Seekers Circle Groups are available there & her upcoming documentary short.
InShot App https://inshot.com/

Episode 67 | Stephen Quinlan | Sustainability & Profitability is Possible Seeing 15 Clients a Week

Wed, 30 Mar 2022 12:38:21 GMT

FEATURED GUESTS: Stephen Quinlan grew up in the mountains of Colorado. After finishing his bachelors degree, he decided to go back to school to become a psychotherapist. In 1999, he moved to New York City to work on his graduate degree. He worked for five years in the housing projects of East Harlem at the James Weldon Johnson Counseling Center, which is well known for its rigorous training of young therapists. His work focused on working with children who had severe emotional needs through play therapy. Additionally, he worked with adults who were dealing with issues related to depression, anxiety, and schizophrenia. He also worked on the front lines of 9/11 and with the Red Cross.

In 2005, he relocated to New Hampshire where he currently runs a private practice. He works with clients he loves, about 15 hours a week, generating a consistent six figure income. This allows him to spend his free time taking care of himself and working on side projects such as coaching other therapists, producing his podcast “Practice Growth”, and writing books.

LISTEN & LEARN:

Imposter Syndrome comes up for all of us as we are stepping into the next phase of growth in our business.
Why investing in yourself through group consulting and coaching services can up-level your growth.
The transformational power of grounding into your value and worth when it comes to fee setting.
It is possible to create a 100K practice seeing only 15 clients per week.

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW:

Claim your 5 Free Tips for Avoiding Therapist Burnout, Listen to his podcast "Practice Growth" and learn more about his Group Course to Grow Your Practice on his website: https://www.growingthepractice.com/

Episode 66 | Reina Lombardi | The TOP FIVE Things I do Every Week to Set Myself Up for Success

Wed, 23 Mar 2022 13:01:50 GMT

FEATURED GUESTS: Reina Lombardi, ATR-BC, ATCS, LMHC-QS is a Registered Board Certified Art Therapist, Art Therapy Certified Supervisor, and Licensed Mental Health Counselor Qualified Supervisor practicing in Fort Myers, Florida. She is the owner of Florida Art Therapy Services, LLC where she and a small team of therapists provide in-person and technology facilitated individual and group art therapy and counseling services, contracted art therapy groups at various community agencies, supervision and continuing education programming for counselors and art therapists. She has contributed to several academic texts on the topics of art therapy and clinical supervision, and is a frequent presenter/speaker at local and national professional conferences.

She also owns Creative Clinician’s Corner, LLC where she provides practice building resources and consultation services for creative arts therapists with a desire to build and scale their own private practice. She is the host of The Creative Psychotherapist Podcast where she interviews successful creative therapists about the tools and strategies they used to grow their dream practices, as well as how they have hustled to create additional streams of income using their knowledge and creativity by developing products and services that enhance their therapy practices.

In her spare time, she loves to play on and in the ocean with her husband and their dog, explore vast natural landscapes, and get messy in the kitchen creating complex but healthy recipes.

LISTEN & LEARN:

Why it is important to create intentional practices that support ease and flow in your work week.
The most important activity that Reina does to set herself up for success each week.
How identifying pain points in your work day can lead to developing a system to better support yourself.
What is a SWOT analysis and why it is important to have administrative tasks in your business.

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW:

CE Courses offered at Florida Art Therapy Services, LLC https://floridaarttherapyservices.com/continuing-education/#

Episode 65 | Barry M. Cohen, Kathryn Johnson, & Anne Mills | The Diagnostic Drawing Series: 4O Years of Research & Application

Wed, 16 Mar 2022 13:21:42 GMT

FEATURED GUESTS: Barry M. Cohen, MA, ATR-BC Retired, authored the Diagnostic Drawing Series (DDS) in 1982; is the author/coauthor of journal articles and chapters; and coauthored/coedited three books, including the workbook Managing Traumatic Stress Through Art. Founder of the Eastern Regional Conference on Trauma & Dissociation in 1989, he cofounded an inpatient dissociative disorders unit in Washington, DC, in 1991. He was recruited to manage the 2006/2007 AATA conferences, then served as Executive Director of Expressive Media from 2008 through 2021. He founded the Expressive Therapies Summit: NYC in 2010, cofounded the Mid-Atlantic Play Therapy Training Institute with Eliana Gil in 2013, and with Ping Ho, the LA Summit in 2017. He is currently the Executive Director of the Expressive Therapies Summits.

Kathryn Johnson, PhD, ATR, is an art therapist and licensed psychologist with over 20 years’ experience working in psychiatric and medical facilities. She is a Senior Psychologist at the Everett Clinic, where she provides therapy, psychological evaluation, and neuropsychological testing. Dr. Johnson is also Medical Director of Psychosocial Services at the Providence Regional Cancer Partnership. A former instructor of research and assessment at Antioch University, Dr. Johnson has been instrumental in conducting many DDS research studies. She is Research Director for the Diagnostic Drawing Series and the primary DDS teaching associate.

Anne Mills, MA, ATR-BC, LPC, LCPAT, is Director of the Diagnostic Drawing Series Archive and owner of Art Therapy Services. In private practice for over 30 years, specializations include the treatment of survivors of severe early trauma who are highly dissociative. Anne provides resiliency-focused treatment for adolescents and adults who have experienced difficult transitions such as illness, bereavement, and loss of culture (refugees, international students). Formerly director of the GWU art therapy graduate training program, she has published on assessment and trauma treatment.

LISTEN & LEARN:

What the DDS is and why it is different from other arts based assessment tools in use.
How the standardization of this assessment tool allowed this art assessment to be taken seriously by professionals outside the niche of art therapy.
The three tasks of the assessment.
How the assessment was empirically validated.
How the DDS is used to identify strengths in addition to a particular mental health diagnosis.
The DDS Network is working on developing an algorithm so mental health professionals administering the assessment can easily compare the scores of the art according to the collected research of other individuals with a specific mental health diagnosis.
The DDS Archive offers an annual Research Award for research in progress or in current publication using the DDS.
What you will learn by attending an 3 day intensive DDS training.

LEARN TO ADMINISTER THE DDS:
May 12, 13, 14, 2022 3 Day Virtual Intensive Training The DDS: 40 Years of Assessment Through Art

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW:

www.expressivetherapiessummit.com
www.diagnosticdrawingseries.net
www.diagnosticdrawingseries.info
To Volunteer, ask questions or seek out support for using the DDS with clients email either Barry at landmarc@cox.net OR Anne at diagnosticdrawingseries@gmail.com

The 1st Step to Being in the 20% of Businesses That Thrive!

Sun, 13 Mar 2022 00:06:46 GMT

The 1st Step to Being in the 20% of Businesses That Thrive!

Systems are the LIFEBLOOD of your business. Michael Gerber, in his book The E-Myth Revisited (I highly recommend reading if you haven't already!) writes about how most small business owners are "technicians". He postulates that their commitment to that role creates many liabilities towards business success and growth. This is because as the "technician" they are masterful at the skill or service they deliver and spend the majority of their work hours delivering that skill to their clients.

This leaves minimal time to focus on the administration of the business. Most technicians have much less experience or training to perform the tasks necessary to keep the gears of their business oiled and moving smoothly and efficiently.

He shares that 80% of businesses fail, not because they aren't highly skilled at the service or skill they deliver, ratherbecause they don't have the systems in place to run the business.

"If your business depends on you, you don't own a business ---- you have a job. And it's the worst job in the world because you're working for a lunatic!." ~ Michael Gerber

Systems allow you to automate processes, document procedures and workflows so that you have the ability to delegate tasks that are below your paygrade to someone else. Systems allow you to automate processes and improve efficiency in your business. Most importantly, they help to create more time in your business so that you can work on the Big Picture stuff. The Creative stuff. The Visionary Stuff.

Need help identifying what can be systematized and how to establish systems within your business to increase your bottom line? Contact me to schedule an individual consultation. I can help you pin point which things to systematize and delegate first to open up TIME to WORK ON YOUR BUSINESS & EXTRA TIME FOR YOU!

Episode 64 | Stephanie Wray | Creating an Online Membership Community

Wed, 09 Mar 2022 14:04:49 GMT

FEATURED GUESTS: Stephanie Wray is an artist, LMHC, ATR-BC, trauma informed expressive arts therapist and yoga teacher. In her work over the last 6 years she has responded to 49 natural and human caused disasters through the arts. Stephanie has been working with clients one on one as well during this time. In addition she has taught at the University of Tampa, started an online community-The Art Flow Lounge. Stephanie is launching her personal private practice in March 2022-Art Flow Therapy where she will serve women who are experiencing effects of past trauma, anxiety, grief and chronic illness.

LISTEN & LEARN:

How investing in a program to learn more about marketing allowed her to execute effective strategy for building brand awareness.
The impact of sharing knowledge as a marketing tool, instead of cold-sales.
Why having clarity on what ongoing problem will be solved is important to building a membership community.
Tips for networking in the online space.
The value of creating an email list and sending out emails regularly.

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW:

https://artflowlounge.com/free-gift/
www.stephaniewrayarts.com
staphanie@stephaniewrayarts.com
https://www.stephaniewrayarts.com/expressive-arts-membership-community

VFTS 2022 6 | Richard Gold | Pongo Poetry

Wed, 02 Mar 2022 14:27:52 GMT

FEATURED GUESTS: Richard Gold, MA, is the retired founder/executive director of the Pongo Poetry Project and creator of the Pongo Method. Pongo establishes writing programs within sites such as detention centers and homeless shelters, and guides teens to process traumatic events while giving them a voice and showing them how to "own" their stories by connecting with others and themselves. His book is titled, Writing with At-Risk Youth: The Pongo Teen Writing Method is available for purchase on Amazon.

LISTEN & LEARN:

The unique method of facilitating Pongo Poetry Therapy.
Benefits of Pongo Poetry with incarcerated youth and individuals in addiction treatment.
The power of Deep Listening.
Listen to Poems written by actual Pongo participants.

SESSION OFFERED AT THE EXPRESSIVE THERAPIES SUMMIT:
March 25, 2022 10:00AM - 1:00PM via Zoom "Pongo Poetry: Taking Dictation to Facilitate Post-Traumatic Growth,"

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW:
The Pongo Poetry Project
Books of Poems available for purchase
Writing with At-Risk Youth: The Pongo Teen Writing Method

VFTS 2022 5 | Wanda Montemayor | Using Large Scale Group Art Therapy Projects to Establish and Build a Private Practice

Wed, 23 Feb 2022 15:09:30 GMT

FEATURED GUESTS: Wanda Montemayor, LPC-S-AT, ATR-BC, ATCS, RPT-S, has been creating public art for more than 23 years. With a bachelor's in art education, a master's in professional counseling, a post-secondary degree in art therapy, and MARI training, Wanda focuses on creating large-scale works of art through group art therapy focusing on hand-made ceramics. Wanda's 10 murals adorn schools and parks across the Austin region: multiple years in the marking, they are created through multiple group art therapy sessions. She has been leading children and adolescent art therapy groups for more than 14 years., servicing a diverse cross-section of teens around Austin, and has more recently developed skills as a virutal art therapy group facilitator.

LISTEN & LEARN:

Multiple ways to acquire funding for community based art therapy projects, including grass roots fundraising.
The importance of relationship in community based art therapy groups.
Four essential marketing approaches to build groups in your private practice.
The power of collaboration within your community as a way to establish a practice within your community.

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW:

"Mosaic: The Deep Eddy Mural Project" Documentary Film .

Community Art Therapy Practice in Austin, TX

Contact Wanda at wanda@comarts.us

SESSIONS OFFERED AT THE 2022 LA EXPRESSIVE THERAPIES SUMMIT :

April 10, 2022 Trauma-Informed Art Therapy Interventions for Adolescent Groups: Virtual Connections

VFTS 2022 4 |Dr. Mimi Savage | Drama Therapy and Diversity

Wed, 16 Feb 2022 15:47:49 GMT

FEATURED GUESTS: Mimi Savage, PhD, RDT-BCT, is the Education Chair of the North American Drama Therapy Association, core faculty in the MA Counseling Psychology & Expressive Arts department at CIIS, as well as founding faculty of UCLArts and Healing SEA program. Mimi created various drama therapy programs in acute psychiatric in-patient units for children and adults, facilitated programs for developmentally delayed youth, the formerly homeless, and youth in residential rehab. Lecturing and publishing on the intersection of identity in youth experiencing adoption and foster care, she is Director-founder of the SoCal Drama Therapy Center in LA, leads professional development workshops, and trains those who want to become drama therapists.

LISTEN & LEARN:

How social justice work influenced Mimi to become a drama therapist.
The importance of the pause and silence in dialogue, therapy and education.
Action based drama therapy approaches for community work.

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW:

Graduate Program in Counseling Psychology, Expressive Arts Therapy at California Institute of Integral Studies Www.ciis.edu/academics/graduate-programs/expressive-arts-therapy
The Courage to Teach by Parker Palmer
Teaching to Transgress by Bell Hooks
Materials & Media in Art Therapy ; Chapter Groundswell The Nature and Landscape of Art Therapy by Catherine H. Moon
SoCal Drama Therapy Center founded by Mimi Savage
Contact Mimi Savage at msavage@ciis.edu or mimisavage@sfeala.com
UCLA Arts & Healing

SESSIONS OFFERED AT THE 2022 LA EXPRESSIVE THERAPIES SUMMIT:

March 24, 2022 Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Training through Embodied Creativity with Mimi Savage & Danielle Levanas
March 25 & 26, 2022 2 DAY INTENSIVE Social Emotional Arts on a Shoestring for Individual and Groups in Any Setting (Certificate Program) with Ping Ho, Stacie A. Yeldell, Mimi Savage & Kathy Cass
April 10, 2022 Authentic Self-Construction: Creating Safe Holding Spaces Through Intermodal Arts & Assemblage with Mimi Savage

VFTS 2022 3 | Dr. Danielle Drake & Shoshana Simons | Narrative Therapies, Womanism & Community

Wed, 09 Feb 2022 15:36:10 GMT

FEATURED GUESTS: Shoshana Simons, PhD, RDT, an expressive arts-centered drama therapist, voice actor, professor and former Chair of the CIIS Counseling Psychology program, Expressive Arts Therapy concentration. She earned her MA in Human Development and PhD in Human & Organizational Systems from Fielding Graduate Institute, an MA in Sociology & Social Policy from London Metropolitan University, UK. Shoshana completed her drama therapy training at the Omega Theater Transpersonal Drama Therapy Program, MA. Her extensive training and experience in the UK and USA in community-based work with children & families, counseling, education, leadership and systems change informs her work preparing expressive arts therapy students to transform mental health systems into humane, equitable, and culturally responsive communities of practice. Shoshana also offers “NarrARTive” coaching workshops and courses through Key of Life Academy, and the North West Creative & Expressive Arts Institute based on the narrative expressive arts approach to counseling and coaching she has been developing over the last decade at CIIS.

Danielle Drake, PhD, is associate professor and Program Chair of the Counseling Psychology, Expressive Arts Therapy MA program at the California Institute of Integral Studies. She received her PhD in clinical psychology from Fielding Graduate University, and developed and conducted an initial validation of the Black Spiritual Creativity Scale. Danielle uses a liberatory-informed theoretical approach that incorporates Womanist (black feminist), and Black/African-centered psychologies with Narrative Therapy, Emotion Focused Therapy, and contemplative practices. She is co-author of the chapter, “Womanism, Creativity and Resistance,” published in the American Psychological Association’s, Womanist and Mujerista Psychologies: Voice of Fire, Acts of Courage. A spoken word artist, she is a former Oakland Poetry Slam Champion, and author of Cast Iron Life: A Collection of Poems and Recipes.

LISTEN & LEARN:

How Dr. Simons has developed the NarrARTive Expressive Arts Therapy approach over time.
The value and power of using narrative work within community.
Impacts of the Womanist lens and how it informs the expressive therapy interventions that Dr. Drake facilitates with clients.
The power of connection achieved through the creativity to facilitate healing.
How metaphor is used in both the Tree of Life and Laundry of Life approaches to amplify self-understanding.

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW:

Graduate Program in Counseling Psychology, Expressive Arts Therapy at California Institute of Integral Studies Www.ciis.edu/academics/graduate-programs/expressive-arts-therapy
Reach Dr. Drake at dydrake@ciis.edu
Reach Dr. Simons at Keyoflife36@gmail.com
www.KeyoflifeAcademy.com
Cast Iron Life: A Collection of Poems & Recipes by Dr. Drake
Womanism, creativity, and resistance: Making a way out of "no way" Drake-Burnette, D., Garrett-Akinsanya, B., & Bryant-Davis, T. (2016). Womanism, creativity, and resistance: Making a way out of "no way" In T. Bryant-Davis & L. Comas-Díaz (Eds.), Womanist and mujerista psychologies: Voices of fire, acts of courage (pp. 173–193). American Psychological Association. https://doi.org/10.1037/14937-008
Expressive Therapies Summit 2022

SESSIONS OFFERED AT THE 2022 LA EXPRESSIVE THERAPIES SUMMIT:
March 26, 2022 (3hr) Conjuring Connection & Joy in Difficult Times Through Creativity & Spiritual Intention.
March 25. 2022 (3hr) Narrative Intermodal Arts for Problem Solving & Resilience in Turbulent Times.

VFTS 2022 2 | Dr. Amber Elizabeth Gray | Cross Cultural Dance/Movement Therapy

Wed, 02 Feb 2022 15:16:37 GMT

FEATURED GUEST: Dr. Amber Elizabeth Gray is a trailblazer in the use of Dance/Movement Therapy, Somatic Psychology and Continuum in global multi-cultural and trauma contexts. She has provided clinical training on the integration of refugee mental health, torture treatment and creative arts, mindfulness, and body-based therapies with survivors and refugees to programs worldwide. Amber developed Restorative Movement Psychotherapy, a resiliency-based clinical approach for mind-heart-body-spirit infused therapies with survivors of interpersonal, complex, ancestral, collective and multi-generation trauma. Her deep immersion in Polyvagal Theory birthed “Polyvagal-informed Somatic and Dance Movement Therapies”, the focus of her upcoming book.

LISTEN & LEARN:

What Polyvagal-informed Somatic and Dance Movement Therapies are.
What Continuum is within Dance Movement Therapy.
The power of expressive therapy approaches to bridge language when working in cross cultural contexts.

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW:

Website: https://ambergray.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AmberGrayMovementTherapies
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/restorativeresources/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/AELGray
www.expressivetherapiessummit.com
Life on Land: The Story of Continuum, the World-Renowned Self-Discovery and Movement Method

VFTS 2022 1 | Jeni Swerdlow | Drumming for Life

Wed, 26 Jan 2022 15:37:51 GMT

FEATURED GUESTS: Jeni Swerdlow, MA-ATR, Founder & "Chief Rhythm Activator" of DRUMMM Rhythmic Events, is a dynamic and engaging facilitator, presenter and trainer with a passion for drumming and mission to build connections through rhythm. Founded in 2000, DRUMMM's popular facilitated drum circles and interactive rhythm events engage 10,000 participants a year at a variety of setting in the U.S. and abroad.

Jeni is a Certified Village Music Circles Global Trainer, Registered Art Therapist (ATR), REMO-Endorsed Drum Circle Facilitator, and trained HealthRHYTHMS and Rhythm2Recovery Facilitator. She is a faculty member at California Institute of Integral Studies (CHS) and Women Drummers International, and a professional member of the Drum Circle Facilitators Guild.

Jeni is best known for her innovative strategies and playful attitude that invite participants to experience the power of being together in rhythm. Notable clients include Google, Facebook, LinkedIn and Stanford Medicine.

LISTEN & LEARN:

The value of having one's passion being at the core of one's business.
Innovative ideas for facilitating large scale rhythm events via video conference.
Therapeutic benefits of drumming in community.

JENI's WORKSHOPS AT THE 2022 LA EXPRESSIVE THERAPIES SUMMIT:

Rhythm & Wellness: An Introduction to Drum Circle Facilitation for Clinicians on Sunday March 27th, 2022 10:00AM - 5:30PM Virtual Session.
Mandala Collage, Drumming & Journaling: Awakening Awareness, Inviting Intention on March 26th, 2022 10AM - 1PM Virtual Session.

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW:

www.drummm.com
YouTube https://www.youtube.com/user/JeniDrummm
Facebook https://www.facebook.com/drummm
Instagram https://www.instagram.com/drummmrhythmicevents/
Linkedin https://www.linkedin.com/in/drummm

Episode 63 | Dr. Christie Kederian | The Love Doctor Shares Tips to Creating an Online Business

Wed, 19 Jan 2022 14:26:16 GMT

FEATURED GUESTS: Dr. Christie Kederian, is a nationally-renowned psychologist and Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist, specializing in the psychology of relationships. With an extensive career as a professional matchmaker and relationship expert for eHarmony and Match.com , Christie has helped hundreds of people find love and improve their relationships. She is a "Triple Trojan" receiving her Bachelor's, Master's & doctoral degree at the University of Southern California in Psychology and Marriage and Family Therapy. She is also a radio host, of The Lyrical Therapy Hour at KXSC and has been a featured expert in the Wall Street Journal, Los Angeles Times, Cosmopolitan, NBC News and many more.

LISTEN & LEARN:

Creative ideas to create passive and active income streams. How researching the colleagues you are inspired by can be helpful as you create and build your business. The importance of developing a CEO orientation grounded in your core values as a business owner. Why investing money in services and products that create time in your schedule is worthwhile.

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW:

https://therapyfordating.com/
The Thriving Therapist Coaching program

Christie on:
Instagram https://www.instagram.com/thedatedoctorchristie/
Twitter https://twitter.com/LyricTherapist
Youtube https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCtAwjIECCvwbn7_SY6U0WNQ

Power of Visualization

Sun, 09 Jan 2022 17:47:04 GMT

The Power of Visualization

E very year. I make time to sit down and imagine . Not just your run of the mill mind-wandering imagining. The INTENTIONAL, SPECIFIC, WHAT DREAMS ARE MADE OF imagining! Truth be told...I do this throughout the year, too. But, I find this to be a much more appealing process than the old fashioned New Year's Resolution.

I start with a meditation to get grounded, embodied and clear minded. Then I imagine my best day, best week, best year .

I try to fully engage in the visualization by activating all of my sensory awareness as I am imagining. I also try to breathe in and feel into the good feelings of what I am imagining for myself.

I do this in all aspects of my life - what I want to experience in my business, my relationships, my physical and mental health, self-care practices, travel and vacation, financial growth, etc...

Then, I spend some time creating collages about what I envisioned and journaling about them from the future perspective describing what my life is like now that these things are realized.

The visualizations turn into my intentions for creating my life well-lived. A life ON PURPOSE . I find that intentionality gets me to reach those milestones and destinations.

I encourage you to try it, if you don't have such a practice already .

Developing Systems for Your Practice

Sun, 09 Jan 2022 17:34:15 GMT

The Importance of Developing Systems in Your Practice.

W hen we first start, and things are slow, it might seem silly to establish your systems in a way that allows you to scale. Honestly, there is not a better time than when you are slow and getting started to put those practices in place. Once your business picks up and gets busy, it may be much harder to carve out the time for the administrative tasks of your business. Having systems in place from the beginning will help you to be more efficient.

Here are 4 questions to get you thinking about different types of systems you could establish in your practice:

What technology can I use in order to create automation for any task that is completed more than once in my business? Things that can be automated - email templates, a process for onboarding clients, email automation, form submissions, managing finances for tax purposes, calculations for setting aside money for tax payments, an EHR, etc...
How can I create a system to maintain organization of my paper and digital files? I have a huge file drawer of paper resources that I use with clients - everything from communication skills handouts, to local resources - that I have organized by category (Assessments, Assertiveness, ACT, etc...). I write the category on the tab, and on the front of the file folder I write the title of each document within the folder. They live in the file drawer in alphabetical order. The list on the front, helps me to know what is in there at a glance. In my GSuite drive, I have Folders for major categories and sub-folders within for different administrative materials I need to maintain. For example, I have a main Folder for Continuing Education. Within that there is a sub-folder for each CE offering I have done or am working on. Within that sub-folder are all the required pieces of documentation I have to maintain as a provider.
What procedures can I create video trainings for, so when I add an assistant to help me manage the office, it is easy to on-board them? These videos can also be an easy resource for them should they have questions.
What procedures can I write down in an orderly fashion such that anyone that comes on can execute the procedure exactly the way I have been doing it? For questions 3 & 4, it may seem silly when it is you and you only have a few clients, but it will save you so much time later down the road. I promise - your future self will thank you for it!

5 Traits of a Successful Entrepreneurial Mindset

Sun, 09 Jan 2022 17:04:35 GMT

Mindset has a Positive Impact on Everything.

When we focus and work on one thing (Mindset) it has a positive impact on everything.

Here is a list of 5 traits of a Successful Entrepreneurial Mindset

Flexibility - as a business owner, you recognize that your vision may not always be able to be executed to the exact specifications you had in mind. This can actually help make things better. In the eternal words of Bob Ross, "There are no mistakes in art, only happy accidents." They are willing to go in a different direction recognizing that it may produce even greater results.
Fearlessness - okay... some fear is inevitably going to be present, but a successful entrepreneur is going to take action in spite of fear. They feel it and do it anyway. They understand that there is always an inherent risk involved and they employ strategies to regulate their nervous systems to be able to tolerate those risks.
Belief - they believe in themselves to the point of deeply knowing that it is all going to work, even if they don't know how it is going to happen. They believe that the services or products they are offering to the world are life enhancing and of value. This translates into the confidence needed to charge one's worth.
Personally Responsible - they understand that at the end of the day, they are personally responsible for everything that occurs within their business. So, even if they recognize someone on their team made an error, they reflect on their role in the problem. They ask questions such as, "What could I have done to support, train, or systematize differently to prevent this from having occurred?" They don't blame or shame - they devise and implement a solution to repair and prevent that same error from occurring again.
Patience - they understand that Rome wasn't built in a day. Their belief helps them to stay committed to realizing their project. They are also patient with those who are on their team and helping them to build their business. They are invested in themselves and the process of creation. They recognize that like all life, creating a business follows a path of growth and development.

As therapists, I think we are poised to be leaders and business owners, as these are things we are helping our clients to achieve on a daily basis. These are skills we know well, but may not always be implementing ourselves. Every now and then I catch myself getting caught up in black and white thinking traps. When I do, it is usually around fear of bringing something new into the world and I have to do more work around it.

If you need support around business mindset, setting up your practice or figuring out how to raise your fees, email me to schedule a consultation. I would be honored to help you move through blocks around money and mindset.

The Power of Collaboration

Sun, 09 Jan 2022 16:54:41 GMT

The Power of Collaboration

Many of us in private practice are operating alone. This can be peaceful, but it can also leave us feeling isolated if we have not built up a network of peers for support.

Collaboration is a wonderful way of making meaningful connections with colleagues, and a way to establish yourself and your practice in the community. We know that client outcomes improve through collaborative care.

There are so many ways to collaborate.

It could be for mutual support and networking. One example of that is creating a small Facebook group for therapists in private practice in your local area. Schedule quarterly in-person networking meetings and use the online forum as a place to share and seek referrals. I have been running a group like this for the past 3 years and it has been really helpful in establishing great connections with peers in my area.

It could be for case consultations. Create a peer-consultation group once per month open to a handful of colleagues. A group like this specifically for EMDR practitioners emerged as a result of the networking meetings for the group I mentioned above. If you have a niche or specialty, you could create one for that.

It could be for creating a collaborative program or offering. Connecting with a colleague with a complimentary style and approach could give way to a mini-retreat, group or workshop that you co-facilitate.

Collaboration creates opportunities to establish connection, trust and respect for one another's work. It is as important to others to know and trust the therapist they are referring clients to, as it is to us. It is a win-win for all.

Do you have any examples of successful collaborations that have enhanced your practice?

Building Your Policies and Procedures

Sun, 09 Jan 2022 16:38:06 GMT

Tips for Building in your Documentation Process for Policies and Procedures

When we are first starting out, it can be a challenge to identify what our policies and procedures are going to be for each aspect of our business. After all, most of us are figuring that out as we go.

Here are my tips for building in your documentation process for policies and procedures. The goal with any P&P is to provide a consistent way of doing things in your business. You want anyone who works with you or for you to be able to do things exactly as you do.

Remember that these are dynamic and will be evolving as your grow. Approach the task of creating your P&P manual with that openness and flexibility in mind.
Don't overcomplicate things. Remember the KISS acronym (Keep It Simple Silly). The more simplistic the easier it will be to ensure consistency and compliance.
Begin by Zoom recording yourself going through the process while keeping in mind, you will not want to do this in regards to client care and how you manage client protected health information. For the latter, you will need to create an word document and bring back the old "Outline" format using the numeric lists. Again, no need to overcomplicate. Record or Outline every process you repeat in your practice. (Ex. How to answer your phones and schedule a client, how you complete your accounting, how you update your forms, how and when you update your website and social media, how to check to ensure consistency, etc..)
Create and use templates for others to repeat and follow.
Continuously update and create as you go.
Use cloud based service that allows you to create and share all of your P & P videos, templates, spreadsheets, and outlines.

If you need help creating a system to develop and support management of your practice policies and procedures, book a creative consultation with me. I will help you get things set up in a way that caters to your creative mind.

Power of Networking

Sun, 09 Jan 2022 16:27:15 GMT

The Power of Networking as a Clinician

Have you heard that saying that your net worth is directly related to your network?

I recently read this short article on Link edIn about the importance of social capital and networking in your career. It got me thinking about the importance of creating and maintaining relationships throughout your career.

Here are some suggestions on how to build and sustain healthy relationships outside your office. As a private practitioner, it can sometimes feels like we are working in isolation - especially single owner practices. Making a point to build in social interactions with your colleagues is helpful in both staving off feelings of isolation and increasing your referrability. People refer to others they know, like and trust AND happen to be top of mind.

Start with colleagues you already have established relationships with and invite them to connect one-on-one over coffee, zoom, or lunch.
Create a list of colleagues you hear others speak about in your community or stand out to you. Reach out to them via email and share how you have heard positive things about them, their contributions to the profession or your community, and invite them to connect.
Create a hub for professionals in your community to gather and host quarterly networking events. These can be done in person or via Zoom.
When you connect - think of others in your circle who may be a positive or beneficial connection and offer to provide an email introduction.
Find ways to regularly schedule meetings (quarterly, monthly, or bi-annually) with people so that you remain connected.
Participate in mastermind groups with other professionals. These folks may not be therapists, but could be a wonderful referral source.
Remember to stand out with a personal touch. Thank people for their time with a handmade or handwritten card.

There are so many benefits to growing your inner circle. From a business perspective, you can create many more referral sources, options for consultations, potential for collaboration, and make meaningful friendships.

Empowerment. Self-empowerment to be Exact

Sun, 09 Jan 2022 16:18:21 GMT

As an EMPOWERED ENTREPRENEUR you are able to bring your vision for your business or practice to life!

When I teach about private practice, I always begin with the Dream. Get clear on what your dream reality is and it must include personal time. That is really important. I like to engage people in a guided meditation about their dream work-life day.

This does two things. First, it helps clarify the WHAT you want your workday and off time to look like. Second, it helps to clarify WHY you are doing this in the first place. What is your motivation to go out on your own really about? Maybe it is to spend more time with family and work less. Maybe it is to serve a specific niche population in a very unique way.

In addition to gaining clarity, any residual limiting beliefs usually start to pop up in response. They might sound like:

Will I be able to afford healthcare?
Will I be able to save for retirement?
Can I even do this?
I don't know how to run a business. I am just a therapist.
Who is going to pay me $100 an hour? Are my services even worth that?
I don't know how to get started.

And on and on. Some people call it the Imposter voice. It's the belief that despite having all this education, training, and experience and one doesn't believe themselves to be capable.

When it comes up, it is super important for us to name it and call it out for what it is - a LIE! A limiting belief that was more than likely projected upon us by someone else at some point in our life. Once we point it out, it is high time we kick it out. It can't pay enough rent to take up residence within our mind any longer. The faster it is evicted, the faster things will begin to happen. Why? Because that limiting voice creates RESISTANCE around any action we may want or need to take to bring our vision to life. As therapists, we all know the role of resistance -- to keep us safe (and playing small).

After it has been given the boot, that is when we can begin to take back our POWER. Root down into our authentic knowing about what we are setting out to accomplish and become. That power, creates energy to take action and get going on executing our vision.

I have 2 limiting voices in my head - The Judge & The Boss. The judge, well, that one is pretty self-explanatory. It basically critiques everything and holds me back from execution. The Boss on the other hand, tells me to keep going - keep working - instead of holding me back, it has me overdoing. It has taken me years to soften and quiet these voices. Both of them work in harmony to emphasize the fear of not being enough. Had I listened to the Judge, I never would have taken the risks that I have. Had I not learned to silence the Boss, I would be burned out in another profession.

What I have found helpful is naming it. Once it is named, I recognize that it is not my true self speaking. I then reinforce positive aspects of all that I have accomplished in my life. The successes I have achieved in spite of fear. And the belief that those things are repeatable.

The other thing that I do that has major impact - lots of meditations. I try to meditate first thing in the morning (I don't always do it) and I meditate every evening at the hour of sleep. Sometimes I will listen to them while I go walking. I listen to a lot of guided meditations that integrate positive affirmations. It took months of doing this consistently, but now I wake up in the AM and affirming compassionate thoughts are the first ones that I experience. To wake up thinking positively and feeling positive - ready to seize the day. That, to me, is an empowered state.

Mindset Of An Entrepreneur

Fri, 17 Dec 2021 21:58:38 GMT

You Have The Power To Change Your Mindset.

MINDSET .

It truly is THE MOST IMPORTANT part of your work as an entrepreneur.

It can either deter or stunt our efforts and progress or allow us to take flight and soar. I don't know about you, but I want to SOAR ! It is the feeling of EXHILARATION . It is inspired. And it is a sense of Expansive Freedom . The latter, I think, is why most of us are called to go out on our own.

For that past year and a half, I have spent numerous hours consuming content - audio, visual, and literature - on this topic. There seems to be a consensus. We MUST invest in cleaning out any automatic negative thinking traps that may be active and laying dormant in our mind. Those little buggers that are dug in like a deer tick. You know, the ones that need a hot match to pull out. The ones that you didn't even realize were running in your mind.

They need to be served an EVICTION NOTICE and replaced by kinder, compassionate messages of self-love and support.

I have taken to nightly meditation . It is crazy the amount of negative thoughts I began to notice that had gone by unchecked for years as a result of this practice. It allowed me to make a more conscious effort to notice them, thank them for keeping me safe all these years by not taking action on my big dreams and tell them that I didn't need their protection any longer. Then I began the process of reprogramming with positive affirmations during sleep.

Yup. AFFIRMATIONS DURING SLEEP! We are talking about reprogramming your subconscious thinking patterns here. At first, I didn't really notice much happening. But, after months and months of this process I began noticing subtle yet deep shifts within myself. One day I awoke at 5AM and settled into a lucid dreaming state that was filled with positive life affirming self-statements generated completely from m y own mind - I wasn't listening to any recorded meditations or affirmations at that time.

Why am I sharing this with you? Because the consequence of this shift has started a ripple effect of up leveling in all areas of my life including my BUSINESSES! It gave me the courage to make some changes and requests within my business that I, otherwise, had been hesitating on due to old outdated fear-based programming. I am sharing this with you, because if I can do - YOU CAN TOO!

And, I BELIEVE with ALL MY BEING that when every being on the planet feels like they are in a daily sate of loving exhilaration- it will create a MASSIVE RIPPLE EFFECT and transform the world as we know it.

Episode 62 | Karen Anderson-Fignon | EPICS Journey: Image Based Career Assessment

Wed, 15 Dec 2021 14:12:42 GMT

The 6 themes of the Holland Codes as they pertain to personality and career choice.
How Karen designed the EPICS linking the 6 Holland Codes.
How copyright impacted her ability to use her original collage images for the assessment resulting in the creation and testing of new digital imagery.
How the Image Based Assessment can be used to aid in customized employment for individuals with Special Needs.
How the card system can be used to gain clarity on occupational needs and desires over time.

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW

www.EPICScareer.com
www.yourEPICSjourney.com
Listeners get a discounted access using the PROMO code: TCP&Epics

Episode 61 | Nicole Porter Davis | The Creative Process of the Creative Arts Trauma Therapist

Wed, 08 Dec 2021 14:15:59 GMT

FEATURED GUESTS: Nicole Porter Davis, ATR-BC, LCAT is the Former Director of Child therapy following the Sandy Hook School Massacre in Newtown, Ct, now a pandemic parent of a young child she finds herself producing “You and Us” a Virtual band of children’s rock n roll. Integrating the music as a healing arts mechanism for change. Nicole Porter established the Emerald Sketch as the first mental health response program post Newtown tragedy in 2013. Since , she teaches globally and aids communities post horror to build sustainable creative arts trauma therapy services.

LISTEN & LEARN:

How Nicole came up with the idea to translate the trauma treatment sequence into songs.
The benefit of creative processing as a creative arts therapist.
How the therapist's creative expression has the capacity to create a healing impact outside the therapy room.

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW:

Find Nicole at www.emeraldsketch.com
on Instagram @emeraldsketchart
Listen to "Social Connection" by "You & Us" on Spotify

Episode 60 | Janet Bayramyan | Growing an Online Practice in Different States

Wed, 01 Dec 2021 14:36:51 GMT

FEATURED GUEST:

Janet Bayramyan, LCSW, is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker in the states of California (LCSW88575) and Florida (SW16210). Working from a trauma focused perspective, she is committed to supporting individuals and couples through their healing of past and current distressing events. She is a certified Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) psychotherapist. She is also trained in Attachment Focused EMDR, Havening Techniques, and other trauma modalities. Using EMDR, she helps clients understand and process the impact of trauma and move through states of protection and connection in their nervous system to establish an embodied sense of safety. She is also certified in Cognitive Behavioral Therapy and Trauma Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy.

Janet has been working in the field of psychological support since 2016 and is a member of the EMDR International Association, California Association of Marriage and Family Therapists, and a member of the California Society of Clinical Social Workers. Janet graduated with her Master's Degree in Social Work from the University of Southern California and completed her Bachelor's level education from California State University Northridge. Her work experience includes working at psychotherapy clinics and centers with a variety of clients of different ages/backgrounds, those struggling with severe psychiatric mental illnesses, substance and process addictions, couples dealing with a wide range of relational problems, and individuals working though past trauma, etc. She believes that therapy should be supportive, trauma-informed, and should be culturally sensitive and consider all the layers of one’s identity, including gender, race and sexuality.

LISTEN & LEARN:

Importance of understanding the laws and rules of all the states in which you practice.
Selecting zip codes as a method for marketing an online practice.
Growing a practice through networking.
Janet's perspective on what it means to be a modern therapist.

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW:

https://www.raod2wellness.co
@TherapywithJanetB for Facebook , Instagram & LinkedIN

Episode 59 | Susan Clark | DBT-Informed Art Therapy

Wed, 24 Nov 2021 13:36:44 GMT

FEATURED GUESTS:

Susan Clark, LPCC-S, ATR-BC is an art therapist and counselor with 25 years of experience in the mental health field. She currently owns a private psychotherapy practice, WiseMind Counseling (Kent, Ohio), where she provides individual and group DBT-informed treatment to adults and teens.

She is the author of DBT-Informed Art Therapy: Mindfulness, Cognitive Behavior Therapy, and the Creative Process and is the author/editor DBT-informed Therapy in Practice: Skillful Means in Action , both published by Hachette UK/ Jessica Kingsley. She is offering listeners the ability to purchase the new book at cost plus shipping. All you need to do is send an email (her contact is listed in the resources section below).

LISTEN & LEARN:

How using art can be of benefit to DBT skill acquisition.
The origins of DBT therapy.
Understand the different types of trainings, including how the Linehan Board of Certification trains clinicians to employ this approach with high fidelity.

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW:

Contact Susan at susan@wisemindohio.com for a copy of her latest book at cost plus shipping.
DBT-Informed Art Therapy: Mindfulness, Cognitive Behavior Therapy, and the Creative Process
DBT-informed Therapy in Practice: Skillful Means in Action
Linehan Board of Certification

Episode 58 | Angel Duncan | Fill Your Practice by Public Speaking About Your Niche

Wed, 17 Nov 2021 14:03:52 GMT

FEATURED GUEST:

Angel C. Duncan has an extensive background in counseling psychology, art therapy and neurosciences clinical research. She is an adjunct professor at the University of Tampa, Executive Arts Director for the Cognitive Dynamics Foundation, and has a private consulting practice in brain health program development.

She works with leading agencies in the US, UK, Europe, and Asia in neurological disease and mental health initiatives. She is a Peer Reviewer for Frontiers in Psychology and resides on the Medical Advisory Board for Lorenzo's House, a nonprofit resource center based in Chicago for those living with young onset Alzheimer's disease.

LISTEN & LEARN:

Why create a single page PR kit and how to use it.
Identify different agencies to collaborate and offer speaking engagements.
Who to contact in health care agencies working with the aging populations in order to sell yourself to provide contracted services.
Resources which to consult if you have a client or a loved one experiencing neurocognitive decline.
Three indicators that a person may benefit from a cognitive screening.

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW
Email Angel at aduncan@ut.edu
https://www.cognitivedynamics.org/
www.alz.org
24hr Alzheimer's Helpline 1-800-272-3900
https://duncanangel.wixsite.com/angelcduncan

Episode 57 | Linda Turner | Permission to Shift & Grow with Your Practice

Wed, 10 Nov 2021 13:29:58 GMT

FEATURED GUEST: Linda Turner, LCAT, ATR-BC has been a NYC based Art Psychotherapist for 20 years. She is also a mixed media artist and painter, who prior to a mid life career change was a home products and textile designer.

Over the past 10 years Linda concurrently ran a half time Private Practice while working as an Adjunct Assistant Professor / Career Counselor at the Fashion Institute of Technology. She recently left to move in to full time art psychotherapy and coaching practice, to work less and to spend more time creating art.

During the first 10 years as an Art Therapist, Linda was hired to introduce art therapy into a collaborative program between the DoE and Catholic Charities, a program that assisted underserved youth in obtaining their GED diplomas. She entered as a part time employee and ultimately became a clinical supervisor. She worked for the Chinatown YMCA after 9/11, also introducing art therapy services to this population, and at the Creative Center doing art with adult cancer patients. Linda served on the board of the NY Coalition of Creative Arts Therapies (NYCCAT) for seven years.

With a commitment to life long learning, Linda has a Certificate from Kint Institute in Trauma and Creative Arts Therapies, is level 3 AEDP (Accelerated Experiential Dynamic Psychotherapy), Level 1 IFS (Internal Family Systems), has a Certificate in ISP (Integral Somatic Psychotherapy) and has trained with CTI (Coaches Training Institute).

Linda lives in Brooklyn with her partner and their 2 cats; while currently working virtually, she cannot wait to get back to her office in the Union Sq area of NYC.

LISTEN & LEARN:

The value of knowing your commitment level when it comes to creating a private practice.
The benefits of creating community when going out on your own.
Giving yourself permission to earn more when you trust in your value.
Letting your practice serve you based on your needs throughout your career.
Permission to reach out to others for support in the process.

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW:

Linda's practice https://www.arttherapyny.com

Expressive Therapies Summit - Linda is teaching on career prep.

VFTS 2021 15 | Jamie Marich | Dancing Mindfulness, EMDR & Transformation

Wed, 03 Nov 2021 13:21:17 GMT

FEATURED GUESTS: Jamie Marich, Ph.D., LPCC-S, LICDC-CS, REAT, RYT-500, RMT (she/they) travels internationally speaking on topics related to EMDR therapy, trauma, addiction, expressive arts and mindfulness while maintaining a private practice and online education operations, the Institute for Creative Mindfulness, in her home base of Warren, OH. She is the developer of the Dancing Mindfulness approach to expressive arts therapy, and the developer of Yoga for Clinicians. Jamie is the author of numerous books, including the popular EMDR Made Simple, Trauma Made Simple, and Process Not Perfection. She is the co-author of EMDR Therapy and Mindfulness for Trauma Focused Care, and Healing Addiction with EMDR Therapy: A Trauma-Focused Guide (out later this year from Springer Publishing Company). North Atlantic Books published a revised and expanded edition of Trauma and the 12 Steps in the Summer of 2020, and they are also publishing The Healing Power of Jiu-Jitsu: A Guide to Transforming Trauma and Facilitating Recovery and Dissociation Made Simple (both due out in 2022). Jamie is a woman living unapologetically with a Dissociative Disorder, and this forms the basis of her award-winning passion for advocacy in the mental health field. For more information on how to connect with her work, go to: www.jamiemarich.com

LISTEN & LEARN:

Historical connection between Mindfulness and EMDR.
Various Expressive Arts Modalities which lend themselves to bi-lateral processing in EMDR.
The origin of Dancing Mindfulness.
How the practice of Jiu-Jitsu has been personally transformative in Dr. Marich's personal healing and it's potentiality to help empower trauma survivors.

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW:

www.jamiemarich.com
https://www.instituteforcreativemindfulness.com/
EMDR Made Simple
Trauma Made Simple
Process Not Perfection
EMDR Therapy and Mindfulness for Trauma Focused Care
Healing Addiction with EMDR Therapy: A Trauma-Focused Guide
Trauma & The 12 steps
The Healing Power of Jiu-Jitsu: A Guide to Transforming Trauma and Facilitating Recovery and Dissociation Made Simple (coming in 2022 by Springer Publishing )

TRAINING AT THE EXPRESSIVE THERAPIES SUMMIT:

Intro to Dancing Mindfulness via ZOOM on 11/20/2021

VFTS 2021 14 | Bonnie Harnden | Awe & Gratitude: Resilience Building for Therapists & their Clients

Wed, 27 Oct 2021 13:21:23 GMT

FEATURED GUESTS:

Bonnie Harnden is a Creative Arts Therapist, Psychoanalyst, Couple and Family therapist, and Associate Professor in Concordia University’s Creative Arts Therapies Department, where she is the Coordinator for the Drama Therapy Program and Graduate Play Therapy Certificate. In 2017 she was awarded the Research Award from the North American Drama Therapy Association (NADTA). Her research focuses on the effects of trauma and the healing possibilities of awe and gratitude. In 2018 she was awarded the NADTA Teaching Excellence Award and was the recipient of the 2019 Concordia President’s Excellence in Teaching award.

LISTEN & LEARN:

How trauma impacts parenting
The relationship between Awe, Gratitude, and Vagal Tone
The basic Nervous System Sandwich, from Peter Levine's work
Role of psychoeducation in treatment with clients to build resilience
Benefits of spending more time focusing on contemplating and feeling positive experiences

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW:

Bonnie's work at Concordia, including her research: https://www.concordia.ca/faculty/bonnie-harden.html
Contact Bonnie at Bonnie.Harnden@concordia.ca

Training at the Expressive Therapies Summit :

Friday 11/19/21 10AM (ZOOM) Expanding the Capacity for Joy: Awe, Gratitude, and the Resilient Nervous System
She will also be teaching at the LA event in 2022 as part of the UCLA Arts & Healing program

Episode 56 | Reji Mathew, Marshall Lyles & Sara Tsutsum | Intersectionality, Disability & The Expressive Arts

Wed, 20 Oct 2021 12:10:11 GMT

FEATURED GUESTS: Dr. Reji Mathew, PhD, LCSW is an integrative, neuroscience-informed, social work psychotherapist; a narrative freelance journalist; a digital artist; and an expressive arts advocate. As a freelance narrative journalist (ASJA member). she works on a wide range of human-interest issues that focus on health recovery, the arts, and resiliency. Understanding place and context are central values in her writing. Her storytelling is informed by her education in academia, mental health, social work and community advocacy. She has written for PBS: Next Avenue, Coping with Cancer Magazine, the United Brain Association, Post-Polio Health International, and ADVANCE for Occupational Therapy Practitioners. In her counseling work, her primary worldview is a bio-psycho-social narratology (narrative therapy) lens, inspired by her background in narrative journalism. It is crucial for her to understand people in the context of their environment in real time (cultural time). Her narrative lens is intersectional with a commitment to understanding the complex identities we hold along, class, culture, location, gender, race, ethnicity, religion, sexual orientation, and accessibility.

Sara Tsutsumi, LMHC, LCAT obtained her BA in psychology from Boston University and her MA in Expressive Therapy from Lesley University. She was born with partial sight, but when she was 8, she became totally blind. She is a seasoned psychotherapist who utilizes Gestalt Therapy techniques and Expressive Arts Therapy approaches working with bilingual (Japanese & English speakers) and the general population for family/personal relationship issues, adjustment, bicultural issues, depression, eating disorder, anxiety and traumas with adults and seniors. She employs guided-imagery, dance/movement, visual arts, music as a way of connecting the person to their own power and insight. Her uniquely empathic listening ability and positive acceptance of individual's wellness is the hallmark of her style. She has a private practice conveniently located in the middle of Greenwich Village, NY.

Marshall Lyles, LMFT-S, LPC-S, RPT-S, EMDRIA Approved Consultant, has 20 years of practice in family and play therapy. Drawing on lessons learned from working with attachment trauma in a variety of mental health settings, Marshall regularly teaches on sandtray therapy, other expressive modalities such as poetry, and attachment-informed family work around the globe. In addition to co-authoring the book Advanced Sandtray Therapy: Digging Deeper into Clinical Practice, he is also a faculty member in Texas State University’s Institute for Play Therapy Sandtray Certification program and teaches in the Interpersonal Neurobiology program at Portland Community College.

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW:

VFTS 2021 13 | Daniel Blausey & Yasmine Awais | Creating Common Ground within Supervision

Wed, 13 Oct 2021 13:11:13 GMT

FEATURED GUESTS: Daniel Blausey, MA, ATR-BC, ATCS, LCAT (he/his), is a NYC based art therapist and the founder of Studio Blue: Creative Arts Therapy PLLC. For over 25 years he has worked with survivors of childhood sexual abuse and adult sexual victimization, people living with HIV/AIDS, sexuality and sex positivity, and within the LGBTQ community. Daniel designed, implemented, and directed several mental health programs in NYC, including The Door and Gay Men’s Health Crisis, and has extensive supervision experience. Daniel has co-authored "Foundations of Art Therapy Supervision: Creating Common Ground for Supervisees and Supervisors".

Yasmine Awais, ATR-BC, ATCS, LCAT, LPC, is a PhD candidate in Social Welfare at the Graduate Center, City University of New York. Her research interests center diversity in the creative arts therapies and in higher education. Yasmine has published and presented nationally and internationally on supervision, cultural humility and competency. Yasmine has co-authored "Foundations of Art Therapy Supervision: Creating Common Ground for Supervisees and Supervisors" with her former supervisor Daniel Blausey.

LISTEN & LEARN:

What it means to manage up within the supervisory relationship
The role of timely effective feedback within the supervisory relationship
The importance of being open as both supervisor and supervisee
Why it is important for clinicians to consider the multidimensional intersections of identity within supervision

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW:

"Foundations of Art Therapy Supervision: Creating Common Ground for Supervisees and Supervisors" USE CODE: FLR40 to obtain 20%off
http://www.yasminejawais.com
E-mail Yasmine at awaisatrbc@gmail.com
www.danielblausey.com
E-mail Daniel at daniel@danielblausey.com
Expressive Therapies Summit

SESSIONS THEY ARE TEACHING AT THE SUMMIT:

Beyond the Good White Therapist, OCT 15 - 16, Singular Session
Sharing our Identities in Clinical Practice & Supervision: What Therapists Need to Know

VFTS 2021 12 | Paulina & Alba | Arte Terapia en Espanol: Bridging the Gap Across Cultures

Wed, 06 Oct 2021 13:27:37 GMT

FEATURED GUESTS: Paulina Céspedes is a psychologist, executive coach, and entrepreneur. For the last 7 years she has focused her career on personal development and emotional growth after she created the FRAE Art Therapy Methodology, a 12-session program for emotional release and redefining life´s purpose.

She is also the Co-host of ArteTerapia en Español el Podcast, a Spanish Language podcasts that promotes Art Therapy and personal growth.

Alba Leal is the one of the founders of ArteTerapiaenespañol.com , a community of Spanish Speaking Art Therapists that promotes public policy, education and general awareness about Art Therapy in Latin America. She is an Art Therapist, and is pursuing her PhD in Organizational Psychology. Her goal is to bring Expressive Therapies into corporations as a means to prevent and mitigate burnout. She is also the Co-host of ArteTerapia enEspañol el Podcast, a Spanish Language podcast that promotes Art Therapy and personal growth.

TRAIN with Latin American Arts Therapists at the 12th Annual Expressive Therapies Summit :

Family Art Therapy Groups for Building Positive Relationships with Anaïs Lugo-Axtmann, MA, LPC, ATR from Puerto Rico
Art Therapy in Mexico & Latin America: Cultural, Clinical & Social Perspectives with Ana Laura Treviño Santos from Mexico
Multidimensional Psyche, Society & Therapy: Discovering Latin American Connections with Eduardo Caravallo, MD from Venezuela/Columbia
Modeling Paper Sculptures: A Process & Metaphor for Self-Improvement with Estela Garber, MA from Argentina
From Political Turmoil to Natural Disasters: Managing Trauma in Venezuela & Puerto Rico with Steven Frazier, DAT, ATR, LCPC, Rosalinda Infante & Urania Domínguez from USA, Venezuela & Puerto Rico
Symbols & Rituals in the Management of Loss: Art Therapy in the Treatment of Grief with Luz Maria Rodriguez Barbosa from Mexico
Mexican Huipil-Making for Connection: Integrating Textiles & Embroidery in Clinical Practice with Gabriela Osorio, MA from Mexico
Bibliotherapy & Artmaking: Combining Stories and Images for Emotional Expression with Matha Nieto de Alba, PsyD, ATR from Mexico
Mandalas, Mind & Body: An Epigenetic and Psychoneuroimmunological Perspective with Gisela Garcia from Venezuela
High Complexity Infertility Treatment, Art Therapy & Mindfulness with Patricia Manubens, MA from Chile
Serious Game Tools, Digital Therapy & Play for Enhancing Self-Knowledge with Mariela Diaz-Pinilla from Colombia
Don't Panic! Integrating Brief Strategic Therapies & Art for Regulating the Nervous System with Mónica Ventura, MA, Psy from Costa Rica
Working with Children Facing Bullying Due to Obesity Using EMDR & Art Therapy with Norma Irene Garcia Reina from Spain
Co-Creating a Resource Guide for Protecting Older Adults & Their Caregivers with Yadyra Yanez, Lizbeth Pérez Palacios Gándara & Cecilia Byrne from Mexico, Panama & Chile
Modeling & Doodling: Simple Techniques for Accessing the Unconscious & Enhancing Relationships with Ruth Guttfreund, MA, RATH from El Salvador

RESOURCES MENTIONED ON THE SHOW:

ARTE TERAPIA EN ESPAÑOL Directory
Contact Alba & Paulina at info@artterapiaenespanol.com
Learn more about the directory on YouTube

The Creative Clinician Blog

VFTS 2026-| Lucy Barbera | Trauma-Informed Creative Arts Therapy

What Therapy Practice Owners Need to Do in 2026 to Improve Their Website SEO

What Therapy Practice Owners Need to Do in 2026 to Improve Their Website SEO

What Therapy Practice Owners Need to Do in 2026 to Improve Their Website SEO

What Is SEO?

Why SEO Matters for Therapy Practice Owners in 2026

Key Elements That Make SEO Work

Keywords and Search Intent

Content That Educates and Reassures

Technical Health and User Experience

Local SEO Signals

Authority and Consistency

Simple SEO Steps You Can Take Now

Clarify Your Core Pages

Publish Consistent Blog Content

Optimize Your Google Business Profile

Improve Readability

Include Gentle Calls to Action

More Advanced SEO Strategies for 2026

Create Service-Specific and Location-Based Pages

Build Topic Authority Over Time

Write for Voice and AI Search

Strengthen Technical Performance

Review Performance Regularly

SEO as a Practice-Building Tool, Not a Sales Tactic

Ready for Support?

VFTS 2026-1 | Sally Brucker | Discovering Goddess Archetypes: Professional Retreat in Riviera Maya, Mexico

S4E4 | Dr. Stephan Meyer zum Alten Borgloh & Stefan Oliva | Frameshare: A Digital Art Telehealth Tool

How to Optimize Your Google Business Profile to Market Your Therapy Practice in 2025

How to Optimize Your Google Business Profile to Market Your Therapy Practice in 2025

How to Optimize Your Google Business Profile to Market Your Therapy Practice in 2025

Why Google Business Profiles Matter for Therapists

How Google Ranks Your Profile

Step-by-Step Guide to Optimizing Your Google Business Profile

How to Use Your Profile Strategically

Common Mistakes to Avoid

Final Thoughts

The Ethics of Running a Private Practice: Considerations for Practice Owners

The Ethics of Running a Private Practice: Considerations for Practice Owners

The Ethics of Running a Private Practice: Considerations for Practice Owners

Key Ethical Questions for Practice Owners

Ethical Action Steps to Implement

1. Develop Clear, Comprehensive Practice Policies ﻿

2. Use Legally and Ethically Sound Paperwork

3. Ensure Compliance with Legal Standards

4. Seek Ongoing Supervision and Consultation

5. Create a Crisis Management Protocol

Ethical Considerations for the Website

Ethical Practice Paperwork: What You Need

A Culture of Ethical Integrity

Final Thoughts

S4E3 | Reina Lombardi | Ethics in Private Practice

VFTS 2025-2 | Mimi Savage | Personal Public Service Announcement (TM): an arts based approach for research

S4E2 | Christine Brooks, Mimi Savage, Shoshana Simons | Building Community through Expressive Arts Coaching

S4E1 | Reina Lombardi |Practice Considerations During Times of Uncertainty

Top 5 Things Small Private Practice Owners Need to Know About SEO

Top 5 Things Small Private Practice Owners Need to Know About SEO

Getting Ahead of the Trends: Running a Successful Self-Pay Mental Health Practice

Getting Ahead of the Trends: Running a Successful Self-Pay Mental Health Practice

When Your Business Feels Overwhelming: Reflect & Reset

VFTS 2025-1 | Richard Sims | Somatic Movement Approaches in Psychotherapy

When Your Business Feels Overwhelming: Reflect & Reset

When Your Business Feels Overwhelming: Reflect & Reset

When Your Business Feels Overwhelming: Reflect & Reset

Insights Learned from "Buy Back Your Time"

Insights Learned From " Buy Back Your Time" by Dan Martell

VFTS 2024-2 | Dr. Ericha Scott | Addressing Trauma & Dissociation through Poetry

When Your Business Feels Overwhelming: Reflect & Reset

When Your Business Feels Overwhelming: Reflect & Reset

S3E16 | Reina Lombardi | Intentional Pause

S3E15 | Jasmine Parker-Rodriguez | Mobile Art Therapy: Community Driven Practice

Shining Light Onto Our Gremlins: Casting out the Imposter

Shining Light Onto Our Gremlins: Casting out the Imposter

S3E14 | Reina Lombardi | Growth in Practice: When to Hire Help

A Month in the Life of an Entrepreneur: Week 4

A Month in the Life of an Entrepreneur: Week 4

A Month in the Life of an Entrepreneur: Week 3

A Month in the Life of an Entrepreneur: Week 3

S3E13 | Sharon Itkoff Nacache | Creative Resilience in Practice

1. Develop Clear, Comprehensive Practice Policies

A Month in the Life of a Therapist Entrepreneur: Week 1