Stay ConnectedHealers are often drawn to this work because of their own histories and emotional pain. the only way to thrive and avoid burnout while we help others heal is to do our own healing.
On this podcast, Annie Schuessler-Zam talks to all kinds of healers as they share vulnerable stories about pain, healing and growth.
How do you create a unique, highly valuable program without completely stressing yourself out? This episode is a master class in following your own values and rhythms throughout the creation and marketing processes.
You'll also hear me geek out on something simple my guest did that will both make her program better and help her fill it.
Meet Silvana Espinoza Lau.
She's a psychotherapist, consultant, and embodied liberation educator dedicated to supporting other mental health practitioners in their journeys of decolonization and liberation. Through Decolonize Your Practice, she helps fellow colleagues decolonize their practices in a wholesome and embodied way so that they can serve their clients in a practice centered on anti-oppression, liberation, and decolonization.
Here's some of what we talked about:
Show notes at http://rebeltherapist.me/podcast/173
I recently got this question from a participant:
What should I charge the very first time I offer my program beyond private practice?
Um, actually I get this question pretty much EVERY week. It's one of the most common questions I hear and it's one of my favorites to dig into.
I'm talking about pricing an offer beyond your therapy sessions...something like a workshop, coaching program, retreat or course.
The simple answer is, you should price it somewhere between $0 and 60K.
(Seriously, I have helped actual brilliant humans choose both of those prices recently, and each decision made sense for their particular situation. No joke.)
So that right there tells you that pricing your program is an individual process.
In this week's episode, I dive into how you can decide where on that spectrum you'll price your signature offer the first time you sell it.
Here's some of what I shared in the episode:
Show notes at http://rebeltherapist.me/podcast/172
Get ready to hear what I did wrong the first time I launched my own program beyond private practice. Not one single person signed up for my program, and I'll tell you why...I'll also share what advice my current business coach self would have for the me of that time. Enrollment is closing for Create Your Program. https://rebeltherapist.me/create
Have you ever thought this?: "I know what I'll do! I'll create a course and I'll bring in passive income."
You are not alone. And before you go and try that, please listen to this episode. It's a master class in how to start a course the right way, how to improve a course over time, and how to grow the capacity of your course and business as you continue to iterate that process.
Introducing Miranda Palmer and Kelly Higdon, the founders of ZynnyMe. They are two licensed therapists coming together to empower private practice owners to serve at their highest and best, improve clinical outcomes through business planning, and to break the statistic that mental health clinicians are the worst paid Masters' degree.
In this conversation, they let me get extremely nosy about how things work behind the scenes with their very successful and popular flagship offer.
Here's some of what we talked about:
Show notes at http://rebeltherapist.me/podcast/171
I got this question from a wonderful participant. And I've gotten it many times.
How can I be professional on video? 📹
Before I share a few tips about being professional on video, I first need to go on a VERY important rant: YOU BELONG.
You belong in the online space. Exactly as you look.
We're ALL taught to worry about what we look like and to worry if we are worthy as we look.
This is a liberation issue.I want to share my love of Sonya Renee Taylor's book The Body Is Not An Apology and the movement The Body Is Not An Apology that she started.
This movement is about dismantling the systems of oppression that live inside of us.
A huge part of the ways those systems live inside of ME (and perhaps you as well) is believing that I'm supposed to look a certain way in order to be worthy of being in video in online spaces.
One thing that might mean for some of us is that we're supposed to look thin, and/or our faces are supposed to be spackled with some layers of makeup, and maybe our hair is supposed to look a certain way. This is oppressive, and it is keeping many incredible healers and leaders off of video.
So, let's redefine what looking professional on video means.I personally want to define looking professional as showing up FEELING comfortable, present, and in my own power. 💪
As healers who are micro-business owners in the online world, we get to CHANGE and SHAPE what it means to look professional. We get to make the online space more inclusive and less oppressive. We get to make more room for everyone. THAT is healing.
For example…
➡️ I'm no longer here for the requirement of women to wear makeup when they're on video.
➡️ If my male counterparts are not required to wear makeup, why would I be?
➡️ If my pal Jeff Guenther doesn't have to wear makeup on video, then neither do I.
➡️ If you're a coach, a therapist turned coach, a consultant or a healer, then why would makeup and hairstyling be part of your job description?
If adornment feels good to you and brings you joy, then it belongs.
If makeup or other adornment are part of your personal expression including your gender expression, cultural expression, or spiritual expression, then they are professional. I LOVE sharing that joy with you.
If it's a requirement, it is no longer joyful.
For me: I feel powerful in my glasses. They hold a magic power for me and help me feel smart. 🔮 A jaunty scarf also puts me in my special feelings. 🥰 Sometimes lipstick brings me joy, and at other times it just messes up my coffee cup...😖.
For other folks, makeup is part of of feeling powerful and joyful.
Giovanni Trimble of @yourchosenfamilytherapy just introduced themselves to me on Instagram, and I could see right away that they are feeling powerful in that bright red lip. I am so here for it.
@thebeautitherapist also known as Jessica Harris who is a money expert, therapist, and beauty expert is totally in her joy and self expression in makeup.
So that being said: how can you look, feel, and be professional on video?Here are a few tips, most of which have nothing to do with your appearance.
Most of all, if you want to be on video, get on video. Ignore the above tips if they slow you down. We need you and your message.
Show notes at http://rebeltherapist.me/podcast/170
Show Notes:
Have you ever found yourself asking the question:
➡ How can I step out of the day-to-day of my business as it is now, and move towards a position focused on thought leadership and creativity?
➡ Or, wondered how to become the CEO of your business? ****🤔
This episode is a deep dive with an entrepreneur who is doing exactly that.
Meet Rae McDaniel: A non-binary gender and sex therapist-turned-coach who works with transgender/non-binary/questioning folks feeling lost while transitioning their gender identity. They are the creator of GenderFck: The Club, a one-of-a-kind, research-based online group coaching community of transgender/non-binary/questioning folks who are on a mission to transition with less suffering and more ease. Rae is the founder of Practical Audacity, a gender and sex therapy practice in Chicago. They also provide training for medical and mental health professionals wishing to uplevel their knowledge in trans-affirming care. Rae holds a Master's of Education in community counseling.
You'll hear how Rae actually spends their time, makes decisions and avoids getting in their own way.
Here's some of what we talked about:
Here are some takeaways that particularly stand out to me about stepping into a CEO role:
Takeaway #1: ⏳
Rae is conscious about how they spend their time. They invested in their team early on so that they could step out of much of the day-to-day running of their group practice. This allows them to focus on thought leadership, including speaking, writing a book, and creating GenderFck: The Club.
Takeaway #2: 📖
Rae is writing a book, and they've been finding a rhythm that works well for them . This includes writing for at least 90 minutes every day, getting help and accountability from a developmental editor, following deadlines, and using an outline.
Takeaway #3: 🌎
GenderFuck the club is an important part of the way Rae makes an impact. Rae does this work as a coach instead of under their therapy license, and they feel very clear about why this is an ethical decision. With this program, Rae is able to serve folks all over the world who need this community.
Show notes at http://rebeltherapist.me/podcast/169
I got this fabulous question from a client of mine recently: Why is my email list growing SO slowly 🐢, and how can I speed it up?!? ⚡️⚡️⚡
✋This really breaks down into two separate questions ✋
In this first email I'm going to cover all of Part I to this question. Follow up next week for Part II, where I will get into some awesome growth strategies that will help get your list going! ⚡
OK! Why is email marketing SO valuable and what is the importance of having a high quality list?
"Your Money Is In Your List" ✏️
Email Marketing As Your Core Tool 🔧
Email Marketing vs. Social Media 🗣
Quality vs. Quantity 🏆
Side note: If you're only growing a traditional private practice, you don't need an email list. If you're creating a business beyond private practice, you probably do.
How to create a HIGH quality emailing list 💎
Side note: One time I sent out an email with a subject heading mentioning that I play the ukulele, and it got more unsubscribes than any of my other emails! 😂
How a HIGH quality emailing list will help sustain your biz 💰
To explain what I mean, let's pretend we've got 2 people, each with a list of 100 people (a very small list). A list of 100 CAN be just barely enough to fill a small-group program (I know because I've done it), but only if you've got a very high quality list.
Person A: When a list of 100 might work (high quality list)
Person B: When a list of 100 won't work (low quality list)
Even a HIGH quality list of 100 will need to GROW in order to sustain your business.
What to choose as your free offer 🎁(aka your lead magnet, freebie, or opt in)
You want to create a freebie that is always available such as:
Your freebie should be a high quality offer that leads logically to your paid offer and is created specifically for your niche.
I encourage participants in CYP who don't already have a freebie to start with just their weekly emails.
As their business develops I encourage people to create a more enticing freebie or set of freebies when they have the time and clarity to create them.
BUT having an enticing freebie is the icing on the cake 🍰. The first and most important steps are providing a way for people to get on your email list and having a healthy, sustainable relationship with writing those weekly emails.
How to have a healthy relationship with your email list 🪴
Your weekly emails are part of your "nurture" system, meaning the way you nurture people in your audience. Establish a rhythm and ritual that helps you generate quality content for your weekly emails.
For example, in my Rebel Therapist Mastermind program (a follow up program for those who have completed CYP) we have a weekly 90 minute co-working sprint. This provides a dedicated block of time to produce a thoughtful email, or at the very least get it started!
Establishing a healthy relationship with your email list while it's tiny will set you up to have a great relationship with it when it grows.
OK! Now that we have the foundation set:
BUT, my email list is still growing really SLOWLY, which brings us to our original question: How can I speed it up?!? ⚡️⚡️⚡️
How to grow your email list:
Ultimately it's about REPETITION and CONSISTENCY: Picking at least one of these things and doing it over and over and over again.
It is NOT about getting "discovered" by someone with a huge audience.
You can get really creative with your growth strategy. And whenever there is a new opportunity, ask yourself: Does this get me in front of someone else's audience? If the answer is yes, then it likely fits into your growth strategy.
As an introvert, these growth activities are the ones I have to remind myself, and even push myself to do. Before I had my growth and nurturing strategy established, I would send out announcements about webinars to my email list and tiny social media following, and kept talking to the same 10 people over and over.
That was TOO SLOW.
I needed a growth strategy. And now I have one 🎉
Sidebar ✋
I've grown my business without ads, but am considering in 2022 stepping back into some paid ads, in a limited way.
Here's how I grow and nurture my own email list:
My personal nurture strategy 🪴
My own growth strategy 🌱
Email strategies from other fabulous people
Jeff Geunther's strategy 📣 (most recently featured on RT podcast)
This strategy relies heavily on their emails being interesting, controversial, and conversation starters.
Podge Thomas' strategy 🌺 (another recent RT podcast guest)
Podge embraces candid communication with her subscribers, which also strengthens her work as a thought leader.
Katie Nasherson 🧡
This is a great example of experimenting with new ideas and looking at how marketing could be an interesting and joyful practice for you.
Show notes at http://rebeltherapist.me/podcast/168
I invited my pal Jeff Guenther back on Rebel Therapist because I've noticed 2 things he does brilliantly well in his marketing. Not only is he great at marketing, but he's also really honest and willing to give you zero BS as he explains what he does and why.
I expect you to listen to everything he's sharing here and borrow the parts that might work for you in marketing your incredible and unique business.
Just so I don't bury the best part, due to how Jeff has been using TikTok, his company Therapy Den has had a 50% increase in therapy referrals. That's absurdly high.
Before we go there, I'll share more about him.
Jeff Guenther, LPC, is a therapist in Portland, OR. He has been in private practice since 2005 and currently leads workshops on how health and wellness practitioners can build their digital brand and attract more clients online. Jeff is the creator and owner of two highly ranked therapist directory sites, Portland Therapy Center and TherapyDen.
Here's some of what we talked about:
Here are some takeaways that particularly stand out to me:
Takeaway #1:
Your newsletter is a powerful tool. Here's how Jeff increases its reach: In every email he writes, he provides a link to his company's blog. People read the blog and then post on social, which brings more people to the blog. Which leads to more people signing up. If the content were not remarkable, then of course none of that would work.
Takeaway #2:
For his email subject lines and the emails themselves, he taps into what his readers are going through and may not even be ready to talk about.
Takeaway #3:
For TikTok, Jeff has used that same skill of tapping into what his readers are thinking and feeling to grab the TikTok user's attention quickly.
Takeaway #4:
Jeff talks on TikTok in a way that assumes he already has rapport with the viewer. He does not overproduce these videos.
Takeaway #5:
In order to get a big return from TikTok, you'll need to post a lot. Jeff Posts once a day or more. He didn't get a lot of traction at first and doesn't think his first videos were great. It takes time to get good at this.
Show notes at http://rebeltherapist.me/podcast/167
Looking over some of my 2021 Reflections
Making more money and seeing that I can trust myself with it 🌺:I appreciate Kelly Diels and Rachel Rodgers for their influences on my thinking about money this year.
Raising my prices over 2021💰:I was influenced directly by Tiffany McLain and Jacquette Timmons who both specialize in money and pricing.
Not being a therapist for a full year:I have two programs: Create Your Program (CYP) , to help expand beyond private practice, and Rebel Therapist Mastermind, for people who have already completed CYP and want to level up their businesses beyond private practice.
This year I have added several new features to each of these programs. In CYP I have added:
In Mastermind I have added:
I am grateful to Tara McCullin, Thea Monyee, and Podge Thomas for their help and inspiration in my hiring process to find an employee that aligns with Rebel Therapist.
Managing my hours ⏰:All right, so those are my 2021 reflections! I would love to hear about yours and what any of this brings up for you.
Listen to how my guest is zigging when others are zagging. This is a business owner who is growing a unique and profitable business by doing things her way, thoughtfully. She speaks to a particular audience and has no desire to appeal to everyone. She's building her thought leadership, and she's not doing it on social media.
I want you to listen to how she does her marketing and then think about how you could borrow some of her ideas and make them your own.
Podge Thomas is a business coach and management specialist. She works with women business owners to help hire and grow strong teams in order to find financial, systemic and structural sustainability.
Here's some of what we talked about:
Here are some takeaways that particularly stand out to me:
Takeaway #1:
Podge is ONLY interested in working with folks who are willing to commit to the work. Rather than selling them a quick false solution, she's drawing the folks who are interested in investing in their teams.
Takeaway #2:
Podge is in no hurry to move away from 1:1 work. Part of her long game is prioritizing the excellence of her services and learning from the process each client goes through.
Takeaway #3:
Podge builds her audience by networking and borrowing other people's audiences. If you only take ONE thing away from this whole interview, take this. She is leaning into networking and borrowing audiences, and she's barely using social media at all.
Show notes at http://rebeltherapist.me/podcast/165
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