Advertise on podcast: Scaling Therapist Podcast: More Income, More Independence, More Impact (Not More Hours)

The Foundations of Ethical Marketing for Therapists, Part 2: Build an Offer, Find Your People, and Share Your Work | STP 183 You want people to find your work. But you do not want to push them into buying. I get it. In Part 2, Tad Hargrave and I talk about how to explain what you do, build an offer people need, and meet people through groups they already trust. We also talk about sharing your work in a way that feels like you. Missed Part 1? Listen to STP 182. We cover trust, making time for marketing, and getting clear about who you help. Three Reasons to Listen Learn how to explain your approach so people can decide if you are a good fit. Find people who already know and serve the clients you want to help. Choose a way to market that you enjoy and can keep doing. Episode Highlights 00:00 Explain how you help before asking people to buy. 03:00 Why a clear approach makes it easier to share your offer. 04:00 Help people see a way forward when they feel stuck. 06:00 Choose how you will help, through sessions, workshops, groups, or other offers. 07:00 Build your offer around who you help and what they need. 08:00 Why an offer that tries to serve everyone can be hard to sell. 10:00 Find your “hubs,” the people and places where your future clients gather. 12:00 How someone people trust can introduce your work. 13:00 What you can offer a group, even when you are just starting. 15:00 Make a partnership helpful for you, the host, and their people. 16:00 How this changed the way I reach out to people. 17:00 Share what you offer and let people decide. 18:00 Pick a way to market that you can keep doing. 19:00 Why more ads or posts will not fix an unclear message. 22:00 Make room for people to say yes or no. 23:00 How trying too hard to help can get in the way. 24:00 Where to find Tad’s starter kit and hear about his open office hours. 25:00 Why good marketing helps people find the help they need. Links From the Show Marketing for Hippies, Tad’s website, newsletter, and Ethical Marketing Starter Kit Part 1 blog: The Foundations of Ethical Marketing for Therapists One step this week: Think of one person or group your future clients already trust. What could you share that would help their people?

The Foundations of Ethical Marketing for Therapists, Part 1: Ethics, Space, and Finding Your Niche Marketing can feel like the icky side of running a therapy practice. Hype. Pressure. Self-promotion. Trying to convince someone to work with you. But what if good marketing did the opposite? In this episode, I talk with Tad Hargrave, founder of Marketing for Hippies, about a different foundation for marketing. Instead of trying to get the sale, Tad believes marketing should help you and the other person discover the truth: Are we actually a good fit? In Part 1 of our conversation, we work through the first three foundations of Tad’s ethical marketing approach: ethics, space, and niche. Three Things You’ll Discover Why ethics comes before marketing tactics. Tad explains how trust, reputation, and word of mouth grow when helping the right person matters more than getting the sale. Why you may not have a marketing problem. You may have a space problem. If your calendar, inbox, and commitments are already full, another marketing strategy will not help much. You need room to actually do the work. Why finding your niche is about fit, not excluding people. Tad shares two questions that can help you get clearer about who you want to serve and why your own story may point toward the people you are best equipped to help. Highlights 00:00 – Ethical marketing starts with a different question: Is this actually a good fit? 01:15 – Why marketing feels so icky to therapists and helpers 02:20 – Why self-promotion feels uncomfortable for most of us 05:00 – Tad’s alternative to self-promotion: make it easier for other people to spread the word about your work 07:00 – Why hype, pressure, and urgency often show up when the marketing foundations are missing 08:30 – Foundation #1: Ethics and why it belongs at the bottom of the pyramid 11:00 – The honest mechanic story and why trust creates word of mouth 13:30 – Foundation #2: Space. You cannot implement good ideas when your life is already full 16:00 – Every yes also means saying no to something else 17:20 – Foundation #3: Niche and accepting that you cannot be everything to everybody 18:45 – Two questions to ask when deciding who you really want to help 19:45 – Stop going for the sale and start looking for the truth about whether you are a fit 20:15 – Why Tad believes your deepest wound can sometimes point toward your truest niche Connect With Tad Hargrave and Marketing for Hippies Marketing for Hippies Website: marketingforhippies.com Instagram: @marketingforhippies YouTube: Marketing for Hippies YouTube Channel In Part 2, Tad and I continue through the foundations and talk about point of view, your business model, hubs, and how to share your work without hype or pressure.

The 4 Elements of a Great Virtual Assistant Job Description You know you need help. The harder question is, what exactly should you hand off? In this episode, Alyssa Avant joins me to talk about how to get clear before you hire a virtual assistant. We walk through the four parts of a good VA job description: what you want done, what success looks like, what skills or tools they need, and how you will work together. If you have been putting off hiring help because you are not sure what to delegate, this episode gives you a place to start. The 4 Elements of a Great Virtual Assistant Job Description 1. Define What Success Looks Like Start with the outcome. What do you want to be different because you hired a VA? You do not have to map out every click and every step. In fact, your VA may have a better way to get there. What matters is making sure both of you know what a finished job should look like. 2. List the Tasks and Responsibilities Look at what is eating your time. What do you keep putting off? What do you dread doing? What takes you twice as long as it should? Alyssa puts it simply: just because you can do something does not mean you should keep doing it. Delegating the right work gives you more time for the things only you can do. 3. Name the Skills and Tools They Need Not every VA does the same kind of work. Some are generalists. Others focus on bookkeeping, websites, podcasts, social media, email marketing, or other specific work. If you use WordPress, ActiveCampaign, Kit, or another tool, put that in the job description. You do not want to hire someone and then find out they have never worked in the programs you depend on. 4. Decide How You Will Work Together Good delegation still needs good communication. Pick one main place where work and questions live. That might be email, Trello, Slack, or another system. Then decide how often you will check in. Alyssa recommends regular updates so you know what was finished, what is still waiting, and what your VA needs from you. Also decide whether you need help with one project or ongoing support. Timestamped Highlights 02:00 – You know you need help, but what should you actually delegate? 03:00 – A simple question to help you find tasks to hand off 03:45 – The 80/20 principle and where your time is really going 04:45 – Why a VA job description can save you frustration later 05:00 – What belongs in a virtual assistant job description 06:40 – General VA or specialist? How to know which one you need 08:00 – Why the outcome matters more than documenting every step 10:45 – Start with the work that takes too long or that you dread doing 11:45 – Communication preferences can make or break the relationship 13:00 – Why one main communication channel makes life easier 14:00 – The weekly update Alyssa’s team sends to clients 17:00 – One-time project or ongoing support? 18:20 – Alyssa’s free training on writing a VA job description Resources Mentioned Virtual Assistant Job Description Training from Alyssa Avant: https://alyssaavant.ac-page.com/job  Alyssa Avant and Company: https://alyssaavantandcompany.com/  Christian Business Advantage Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-christian-business-advantage/id1525088804  STP 38: 5 Questions to Ask Yourself Before Hiring a Virtual Assistant, with Alyssa Avant: Listen to STP 38 on Apple Podcasts STP 109: How to Improve Your Virtual Assistant Results with Effective Communication: Listen to STP 109 on Apple Podcasts One More Thing You Do Not Have to Figure Out Alone Delegation is really about knowing when someone else can help carry the load. That includes HIPAA. If HIPAA compliance is one of those things sitting on your list because you are not sure what to do next, the HIPAA Compliance Workshop can help you work through it. HIPAA Compliance Workshop: https://www.coursecreationstudio.com/hipaatoolkitworkshop

How to Sell What You Know When AI Knows It Too AI can already answer a lot of the questions people used to pay for in online courses. So what does that mean if you are a therapist trying to sell a course or teach online? In this episode, I talk with Brent Stutzman, founder of TheraSaaS CRM, about the hard truth of building courses in the age of AI. We talk about why information alone is getting harder to sell, what people still need from you that AI cannot give them, and how tools, support, community, and real experience can help your students actually get the result they came for. 3 Things You Will Discover in This Episode Why AI does not have to be better than your course. It only has to be good enough to change what people are willing to pay for. How Brent and Dr. Deb Legge changed the Private Pay Practice Program from a $3,000 coaching offer to a $300 course with custom ChatGPT tools. Why your course may need to do more than give people information. It needs to help them do the work, get a result faster, or stop wondering if they are doing it right. Highlights 03:00 – Why AI is changing marketing, content creation, and the way therapists run their businesses. 04:15 – How practice owners are already using AI for hiring, interviews, operations, and decision-making. 06:30 – The hard question for course creators: Why should someone pay for information when AI can give them a good-enough answer in minutes? 07:20 – Why AI is making frameworks and information easier to copy, and what that means if you sell what you know. 08:20 – Why the future may belong to courses that help people do the work instead of just collecting more information. 09:00 – Brent explains the Alex Hormozi value equation and how to help people get what they want faster, with less work and less guessing. 11:30 – The Private Pay Practice Program case study and why Brent and Dr. Deb Legge changed the way they sell the program. 12:30 – How they built separate custom ChatGPT tools for brand messaging, websites, SEO, and referral letters. 14:00 – Using AI to help students get the work done faster instead of simply giving them more information. 15:45 – Why James and Brent both separate custom GPTs by task instead of trying to make one GPT do everything. 16:30 – Where community still matters and why learning alongside other people can help you stop wondering if you are doing it right. 19:30 – Why some students want community while others just want the answer as fast as possible. 20:30 – How Brent’s wife used Claude to help think through a new Director of Operations role. 23:15 – The Play Therapy Toolbox case study: 21 courses, more than 1,700 students, and over $35,000 in revenue across eight years. 24:30 – How AI may answer the question before people ever click on your website. 26:00 – Why watching someone actually do the work, hearing good questions, and seeing how they respond is harder for AI to replace. 28:00 – How TheraSaaS helps therapy practices keep leads from getting lost and helps teams know what happened next. 29:15 – Using a course platform for internal staff training, onboarding, case notes, and practice procedures. HIPAA Toolkit Workshop https://www.coursecreationstudio.com/hipaatoolkitworkshop A live workshop built around The Guesswork Ends Here™ Toolkit: A 30-Day HIPAA Compliance Foundation Workbook. It is designed to help practice owners work through the foundation of HIPAA compliance with a practical toolkit and guided training. The workshop is Friday, September 18, 2026, from 11:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. Eastern. Resources From Brent TheraSaaS CRM for Therapists and Practice Ownershttps://therasaas.com/?utm_source=scaling_therapist_podcast&utm_medium=scaling_therapist_podcast&utm_campaign=scaling_therapist_podcast TheraSaaS helps therapy practices keep leads organized, follow up with people, and give the intake team a clearer picture of what is happening. TheraSaaS on YouTubehttps://www.youtube.com/@therasaas/videos Find videos and marketing tips for therapists and practice owners. Connect with Brent on LinkedInhttps://www.linkedin.com/in/brentstutzman/ Group Practice Scaling Summit Waitlisthttps://practicescalingsummit.com/waitlist AI is going to keep changing how people learn. That is the trap if your course is only information. A simple question to ask is this: What can I give my students that AI cannot? Maybe it is support. Maybe it is a tool. Maybe it is someone helping them take the next step.

Make Hard Conversations Easier: Games for Grief, Feelings, and Connection What do you do when a child, teen, or client answers every question with “fine” or “okay”? In this episode of the Scaling Therapist Podcast, James talks with Krista Smith-Larson, founder of Winning Communications, about using games to make difficult conversations feel safer. Krista shares how her own family experiences with divorce, blended families, grief, anxiety, depression, and trauma led her to create games that help people talk about feelings without making the conversation feel forced. If you work with kids, families, or clients who have a hard time finding the words for what they are feeling, this episode will give you some new ideas to try. 3 Reasons to Listen Help kids get past “fine.” Learn why games can lower the pressure and help kids start talking without feeling like they are being questioned. Make hard topics easier to approach. Hear how Krista uses games to talk about grief, divorce, anxiety, trauma, relationships, and other big feelings. Add something practical to your sessions. Discover simple game ideas therapists, parents, churches, and family ministries can use to build trust and start better conversations. Timestamps 00:00 Why games can help people open up00:23 HIPAA Compliance Toolkit Workshop with Dr. Natasha Guess01:15 Meet Krista Smith-Larson of Winning Communications02:00 Why Krista and James both love games04:00 How games take some of the pressure out of conversation05:15 Using games with kids, adults, grief groups, and DivorceCare06:00 Krista’s story of divorce, blended family life, and helping her kids communicate08:00 How her first communication game was born09:15 Turning grief and loss into a way to help others10:30 Getting past “fine” and “okay” with kids11:20 The Slippery Slope game and why Grace Cards matter14:00 Adapting games for children, teens, and adults16:00 Why parents do not always need to have the right answer17:00 Who can use these communication games?18:00 Why games can help therapists build trust faster18:45 Krista walks through several of her games20:30 Connect Blocks for divorce, grief, anxiety, trauma, and more22:45 Helping kids connect words with feelings24:00 Krista’s favorite go-to game24:40 Where to find Winning Communications25:40 Scaling Therapist Services sponsors and resources26:30 Final HIPAA workshop reminder HIPAA Compliance Toolkit Workshop If a HIPAA issue happened tomorrow, would your practice know what to do? Join Dr. Natasha Guess for The HIPAA Compliance Toolkit Workshop on Friday, September 18 at 11:00 a.m. Eastern. This is a virtual workshop designed to help you apply the toolkit to your practice, work through your questions, and turn scattered policies into a system you can actually use. Go to CourseCreationStudio.com for workshop information and registration. Resources Winning CommunicationsLearn more about Krista Smith-Larson’s communication and play therapy games at:WinningCommunicationsMN.com Scaling Therapist ServicesLooking for businesses that can help you work through a therapy practice bottleneck?ScalingTherapistServices.com Course Creation StudioCourseCreationStudio.com

The Small-Step Strategy for Achieving Big Dreams Maybe you have been thinking about a workshop, a course, or paid speaking. Then you start trying to figure out the whole thing before you even take the first step. I learned this lesson the hard way. The expensive way. I spent months building an online course before I really knew if people wanted it. The better question would have been much smaller: Can I get 10 people interested in a workshop? That is what this episode is about. Your dream can be big without your first step being big. Small steps give you evidence. You learn something. Then you know what to try next. In This Episode Why being an expert can make it hard to become a beginner again What I learned after spending six months building a course that sold only a few seats Why I needed a faster way to learn, not a bigger course How Leo Debrock and I tested an idea with one live workshop Why evidence builds confidence Small ways therapists can test workshops, speaking, and courses Timestamps 00:00 - Your first step does not need to match the size of your dream00:44 - The Friday afternoon HIPAA breach phone call01:22 - How to prepare before a HIPAA problem happens03:00 - Why becoming a beginner again feels uncomfortable05:08 - Trying to figure out all ten steps07:07 - Why I went all-in on an online course08:17 - Six months of work and about four sales10:20 - What I really needed was a faster way to learn11:03 - Make the experiment smaller, not the dream11:17 - How Leo Debrock and I tested an idea with one workshop12:49 - Why 20 registrations gave us more than sales14:21 - Evidence builds confidence16:16 - You do not need certainty before you begin18:20 - One small step you can take this week HIPAA Compliance Toolkit Workshop Friday at 3:30, you do not need a binder. You need to know what to do next. You bring the toolkit, and Dr. Natasha Guess walks you through putting it to work in your practice. Learn more here:https://www.coursecreationstudio.com/HIPAATOOLKITWORKSHOP Resources Scaling Therapist Services:https://scalingtherapistservices.com Workshop creation and paid public speaking resources:https://www.coursecreationstudio.com/workshops Your Next Step What is one small step you can take this week? Make the step smaller. See what happens. Then take the next right step. Your dream does not need to get smaller. Your next step does. Put your mission in motion.

STP 177 | How to Turn What You Know Into Paid Speaking Therapists explain useful ideas every day. You teach clients how to understand anxiety, communicate better, set boundaries, work through conflict, and make sense of hard seasons. After years of doing this work, you may have a talk inside you already. The question is: how do you take what you teach in the therapy room and turn it into paid speaking? In this episode of the Scaling Therapist Podcast, I talk with speaker and coach Dustin Rivenbark from Built Different Speakers Academy about how to choose a message, figure out who needs to hear it, and start finding places that will pay you to speak. Dustin also shares why your reason for speaking matters, how to build a simple follow-up system, and why your first speaking gigs may already be sitting in your phone. Top 3 Reasons to Listen Learn how to turn the ideas you already teach into a clear speaking topic. Get clear on who you want to help and what problem your talk should solve. Hear a simple way to find speaking gigs, follow up, and start getting booked. What You’ll Learn If you want to get paid to speak, Dustin says you need to start by knowing why you are doing it and who you are trying to help. You also need to stop trying to talk to everybody. As Dustin says, “A speaker who speaks to everyone is a speaker who does not have an audience.” From there, you need a simple system for finding people who could hire you and following up with them. That could be HubSpot, or it could be a basic spreadsheet. Nothing fancy. You just need something you will actually use. Dustin also talks about creating a speaker one sheet, getting clearer about what you want to say, and following up instead of giving up after one email. And one of my favorite reminders from the episode is this: Your first few speaking gigs may already be sitting in your phone. Sometimes we think we need a bigger audience. Sometimes we just need to start with the people we already know. Timestamped Highlights 02:30 – Dustin shares why everyone has a story, even if it has not been refined yet. 04:30 – How loss, faith, and a hard season changed the direction of Dustin’s life. 08:07 – Where to start when you know you have something to share but do not know the first step. 08:55 – Why knowing your “why” has to come first. 10:53 – Why trying to speak to everyone can leave you without an audience. 13:00 – How to figure out where your audience already gathers and whether there is a market for your topic. 14:00 – Why copying other speakers makes it harder for people to see what makes you different. 17:24 – Why systems matter when you are tired, busy, or do not feel like doing the work. 17:44 – How to build a simple speaker pipeline. 18:56 – Why you do not need expensive tools or a fancy website to get started. 19:18 – What a speaker one sheet is and how to make one. 23:00 – How to track prospects and follow-up with a simple spreadsheet. 25:05 – Dustin’s three-week follow-up system and breakup email. 28:41 – Why most speaking gigs come from follow-up. 29:03 – Your first speaking gigs may already be in your contacts. 31:00 – How to build a talk that gets attention and keeps people listening. 32:18 – Why getting in the room and building relationships matters. 34:21 – How speakers begin thinking about pricing and getting paid. 34:44 – How to find places to speak and turn contacts into bookings. 35:06 – How Built Different Speakers Academy helps speakers narrow down their message and content. 36:47 – Dustin’s closing reminder: you already have a story and people you can help. 37:28 – Details about the upcoming live paid public speaking workshop. Resources & Mentions Built Different Speakers Academy The Science of Scaling by Benjamin Hardy American Association of Christian Counselors Live Workshop: Turn Your Experience Into Paid Public Speaking Friday, August 28 11:00 AM to 2:00 PM Eastern / 10:00 AM to 1:00 PM Central https://www.coursecreationstudio.com/Paid_Public_Speaking Take One Step If you have explained the same idea to clients dozens of times, pay attention to that. That may be the beginning of your speaking topic. Write down one problem you help people solve over and over again. Then ask yourself who else needs to hear it.

If you are a therapist, you know the feeling of opening an envelope or checking a portal, only to see another claim denied. It’s exhausting, it’s frustrating, and honestly, it’s one of the biggest reasons therapists lose money and burnout in private practice.   I sat down with my friend Jeremy Zug from Practice Solutions to talk through this. We didn't want to just talk about the "what," we wanted to give you some real hope that this doesn't have to be your constant reality. We unpacked why you might be getting underpaid, how to spot the cracks in your billing process, and when it’s actually the right time to stop doing it all yourself.   The "Hidden" Money You Might Be Missing You might be leaving thousands on the table without even realizing it. We talked about one practice that found out they had been underbilled by $30 per session for twelve years straight. Twelve years. We walk through how you can check your own rates against the market so you aren't stuck in that same position.   The Real Cost of Doing It Yourself We tend to think that doing our own billing saves money, but Jeremy breaks down the "opportunity cost." If you are spending your most productive hours fighting with insurance companies, that is time you aren't spending with clients or growing your practice. It is often the most expensive hour in your week.   Fixing the Denials The number one reason for denied claims is usually the most avoidable one: duplicate claims. We go over a simple process fix for this that could save you a mountain of headaches and help you get paid faster.   Key Moments from Our Talk 6:18 – The "rate transparency" rule: Why insurance pricing was kept a secret for so long and what changed in 2020. 7:33 – The story of that practice that lost $30 per session for twelve years. 10:17 – "Noble poverty": Why we think therapists should undercharge, and why it is okay to actually make a profit. 17:23 – The honest conversation about when you should keep billing in-house versus when to outsource it. 19:23 – A simple way to look at opportunity cost that changes how you view your time. 27:31 – Stopping those duplicate claim denials for good. 31:13 – Where to find Jeremy and the tools he recommends. Resources Business Workshops for Therapists: https://www.coursecreationstudio.com/workshops Practice Solutions: https://www.practicesol.com The Claim Game Podcast: https://www.practicesol.com/podcast Scaling Therapist Services: https://www.scalingtherapistservices.com

Hiring your first therapist feels like the next obvious step. But this is where a lot of practice owners get tricked. We spend so much time looking for the right person that we forget to ask why we're building a group practice in the first place. In this conversation, James sits down with Brie Chrisman and Allison Dixon from Bosco to talk about hiring, onboarding, and retention. More importantly, they talk about building a practice people actually want to be part of. Because helping more people shouldn't mean creating a business that wears you out. Who This Episode Is For   Solo practice owners getting ready to hire their first therapist. Group practice owners who are tired of hiring the same position over and over. Practice owners who want to build a team that stays. Therapists who want to grow their impact without giving away their whole calendar. Why Listen?   Why your "why" matters before you hire your first clinician. How a healthy culture starts long before someone joins your team. Simple ways to hire well, onboard with confidence, and help great therapists want to stay. In This Episode Why every practice owner should know why they're growing before they hire. How your mission shapes every hiring decision you make. Why the right fit matters just as much as the right resume. A simple three-step hiring process Bosco uses with therapy practices. Why onboarding should feel like a welcome, not a checklist. What your new clinician needs during their first 30 days. How honesty and authenticity build trust from the very first interview. Why retention starts with treating people like people. Common hiring mistakes that cost practice owners time, money, and energy. Episode Highlights 00:00 Why therapist retention matters more than most practice owners realize. 01:43 Meet Brie Chrisman and Allison Dixon from Bosco. 05:02 The first question every practice owner should answer before hiring. 09:33 How your mission shapes culture and helps great therapists stay. 11:49 The policies and systems to have in place before you hire. 15:00 Why hiring one person at a time usually leads to better results. 17:37 Bosco's three-step hiring process. 22:00 Why transparency during interviews builds trust. 26:25 The real reason many therapists leave practices. 28:24 How to create an onboarding experience people remember. 31:42 One thing that makes therapists want to stay. 33:00 Learn more about Bosco and their work with therapy practices. Resources Mentioned Boss co The Science of Scaling by Benjamin Hardy The Scaling Therapist Podcast Connect with boss co Learn more about Bosco and how they help therapy practices improve hiring, onboarding, operations, and retention: https://heybossco.com/

How Better Systems Help You Stop Carrying Everything in Your Head with Brie Chrisman Episode Description Most therapists don't dream about building systems. They dream about helping people. But after a while, the business starts asking for more of your attention. Emails pile up. Paperwork waits. Little decisions follow you home at the end of the day. If you've ever felt like you're carrying your entire practice around in your head, you're not alone. In this episode, James sits down with Brie Chrisman, CEO of Boss Co, to talk about why good systems aren't about making your practice more corporate. They're about helping you stop carrying everything in your head so you have more energy for the people sitting across from you. Every unfinished task is like leaving another browser tab open in your brain. After a while, everything slows down. This conversation is all about closing a few of those tabs so you can get back to the work you were called to do. Why You'll Want to Listen Learn why simple systems can help you stop carrying your entire practice in your head. Discover how the little things behind the scenes shape the care your clients receive. Hear practical ideas that can help your practice feel calmer, simpler, and easier to manage. In This Conversation You'll Discover Your brain wasn't designed to remember every task in your practice. Simple systems free up your attention so you can focus on the person sitting across from you. The way you welcome a client is part of the care you provide. From the first phone call to onboarding and follow-up, every interaction builds trust before therapy even begins. Doing everything yourself isn't a badge of honor. Letting go of the right tasks creates more space for the work only you can do. Inside This Conversation  00:00 – Why therapists often feel like they're carrying everything in their head 01:36 – Why building a practice requires more than clinical skills 03:15 – The hidden weight of all the small decisions you make every day 06:45 – Why systems aren't about being more corporate 09:20 – Every unfinished task is like leaving another browser tab open in your brain 11:45 – How simple processes create a better experience for your clients 14:30 – Why doing everything yourself eventually becomes the bottleneck 17:10 – The role delegation plays in building a healthier practice 20:40 – Small operational changes that make a big difference over time 23:50 – Practical first steps to simplify your practice One Thing to Try This Week  Choose one task you repeat every week, like onboarding a new client or responding to inquiries. Write down each step as a simple checklist. You don't need to build the perfect system this week. You just need one less thing competing for your attention so you can spend more of your energy helping the people who need you most. Check out Brie Cressman at Boss Co James Marland at  Course Creation Studio Scaling Therapist

What if the biggest limitation in your practice isn't your schedule... but where your business is allowed to create value? In this final episode of the Three Traps series, James explores what he calls The Couch Trap. It's the belief that your expertise only has value when someone is sitting across from you in the therapy room. This isn't about replacing therapy. It's about asking a better question. What if some of the wisdom you already share every day could help people beyond the therapy couch? If you've ever felt like your knowledge is trapped inside one-on-one sessions, this episode will help you see your work a little differently. In This Episode Why the therapy couch isn't the problem—but believing it's the only place you can create value might be. A story from James's work in a children's day hospital that changed how he thinks about service delivery. Why your knowledge, experience, and education go wherever you go, even if your business doesn't. The moment James realized many therapists already know enough to teach workshops, trainings, and other resources. How one therapist's Facebook post showed that helping people doesn't always require someone sitting on the couch in front of you. One small challenge you can try this week to begin sharing what you already know. Highlights 00:00 — Why the therapy couch can become a hidden business limitation. 01:00 — Why James created the Launch a Workshop in 30 Days workshop. 02:02 — A quick review of the Clock Trap and Calendar Trap before introducing the Couch Trap. 03:00 — Why this isn't about replacing therapy or criticizing the profession. 04:00 — A story from a children's day hospital that exposed the limits of location-based services. 07:03 — What the Couch Trap really is—and what it isn't. 08:26 — Why your business stays where your couch is. 10:00 — Does all of your knowledge have to stay inside the therapy room? 11:46 — The training session that changed how James viewed therapist expertise. 16:55 — The Facebook post that sparked a new way of thinking about sharing knowledge. 19:08 — Why you don't have to build an online course to start helping more people. 21:00 — The bigger lesson behind all three traps. 23:00 — This week's challenge: share one helpful idea with the people who need it. Resources Mentioned Launch a Workshop in 30 Days — Live workshop on July 31 for therapists who want to turn what they're already teaching into a workshop. Scaling Therapist Services — Find business resources and trusted partners at scalingtherapistservices.com. Previous episodes in this series: STP 167 — The Clock Trap STP 170 — The Calendar Trap One Key Takeaway Your value doesn't come from your couch. It comes from your knowledge, your experience, and your willingness to help people. The therapy room is where therapy happens, but it doesn't have to be the only place your wisdom makes a difference. Put Your Mission in Motion This week's challenge is simple. Write one Facebook or LinkedIn post about something you wish everyone understood about trauma, anxiety, relationships, or another topic you care deeply about. Pay attention to what happens. The response you get might point you toward a new way to help people beyond the therapy room.

STP 172 Show Notes Why Waiting on Compliance Could Put Your Practice at Risk No one starts a therapy practice because they're excited about policies and regulations. You start because you want to help people. But here's the trap. The longer you put compliance off, the more you're putting at risk. In this conversation, James sits down with Dr. Natasha Guess, founder of Guess Compliance & Consulting, to talk about why compliance isn't just about checking boxes. It's about protecting your clients, your team, your reputation, and the practice you've worked so hard to build. One line from the conversation sums it up well: "You can't fix what you don't know about." That's why every compliance journey starts with understanding where the gaps are before they become bigger problems. If you've ever thought, "We'll deal with compliance when we get bigger," this episode is for you. Who This Episode Is For If you own a therapy practice, lead a behavioral health team, or hope to grow your practice without creating bigger problems later, you'll find this conversation helpful. What You'll Walk Away With Why compliance protects more than your business. It protects your clients, your staff, and the practice you've worked so hard to build. Why waiting until you're bigger usually makes compliance harder, not easier. The common mistakes that leave small practices exposed to unnecessary risk. How a compliance assessment helps you find problems before they become expensive ones. Why role-based access, clear policies, and regular reviews matter more than most practice owners realize. How good compliance gives you something many practice owners don't have—peace of mind. Why bringing in an expert can save time, reduce stress, and help you stay focused on serving people. Show Highlights 0:00 – Cold open: Natasha on the gap between big healthcare systems and small/mid-size practices drowning in regulations 0:42 – Upcoming workshops: Launch a Paid Workshop in 30 Days (July 31) and Natasha's compliance workshop (September) 2:13 – Welcome back to the Scaling Therapist Podcast; intro to Natasha and today's topic 3:37 – Natasha's origin story: growing up in a country with no healthcare structure or governance 5:22 – Why she started Guess Compliance Consulting 6:48 – Why compliance feels like such a burden for small practices wearing many hats 8:07 – The myth that compliance can wait until you're "big enough" 10:24 – Why regulators don't scale expectations based on headcount — same HIPAA obligations for everyone 11:55 – What's at stake: patients, staff, reputation, and the business itself 13:11 – How following HIPAA protects you even when breaches or lawsuits happen 15:49 – The "three gaps" Natasha finds most often: informal access, role-based access, and informal communication 20:06 – How Natasha helps practices: diagnostic compliance check, gap analysis, and implementation 23:25 – One-time projects vs. ongoing monthly compliance services 24:46 – Where to find Natasha: Guess Compliance Consulting LLC, LinkedIn, free compliance strategy calls 25:28 – Natasha's final words: don't wait until it's too late 27:24 – James's closing thoughts and outro 27:50 – Sponsor thank-yous and workshop reminder Book Recommendation Natasha is a Published Author and wrote the book on compliance. You can find it on Amazon.  The Compliance Trap: How Not to Get Fined, Sued, or Shut Down: The Operational Compliance Guide for Small and Mid-Size Healthcare Organizations Resources Mentioned Guess Compliance & Consulting LLC Scaling Therapist Services Directory Course Creation Studio Launch a Paid Workshop in 30 Days The Growing Practice Compliance Checklist PDF One Thing You Can Do Now If you've been putting compliance on the back burner, don't wait until you receive a complaint, an audit notice, or a security breach. Take one honest look at your practice and ask yourself, "Am I protecting the people who trust me?" Helping people is too important to leave that to chance.

Building a great course, coaching program, or service isn't enough by itself. If people don't understand how your work helps them, they'll move on. In this episode, James sits down with returning guest Joshua Brummel, co-founder of TherapyFlow, to talk about what makes a strong brand. They discuss how to stop describing what you do and start showing people how their life gets better because of your work. If you're creating a course, coaching program, consulting offer, or growing a therapy practice, this conversation will help people quickly understand why you're the right fit. Top 3 Reasons to Listen Learn how to describe your offer in a way that connects with what people actually want. Discover the three building blocks of a brand that helps people trust you. Walk away with a practical exercise you can use today to improve your website and marketing. Key Takeaways Talk about the outcome, not the process. People aren't looking for a course or a service. They're looking for a problem to be solved. Show them where you're taking them, not just what you're teaching. People trust you when they understand how you help them, who you are, and why your approach works. Joshua explains how your process, your people, and your proof work together to build that trust. You don't have to be everywhere. Pick a few places, do them well, and keep showing up. A simple, consistent approach beats trying to do everything at once. Highlights 00:00 – Why branding is much more than your logo 02:00 – The biggest AI questions therapists are asking today 05:00 – Why people struggle to market courses and coaching 06:00 – Stop talking about what you do—start talking about what you deliver 09:30 – Why people buy solutions to problems, not your process 10:00 – Joshua's three-part branding framework: Process, People, and Proof 12:00 – A real client example of branding that transformed a practice 13:45 – Is short-form video still worth your time? 16:00 – The bouquet analogy for building a memorable brand 18:20 – The three growth levers: Volume, Consistency, and Quality 19:45 – Why neglected social media can hurt your credibility 21:00 – TherapyFlow's newsletter and marketing support for practice owners 23:00 – Joshua's practical branding exercise you can start today One Simple Action Step Take 20 minutes this week and write down 20–30 "We help..." statements that describe the outcome you create for your clients. Then finish each one with "without..." to identify the frustration or obstacle you help them avoid. This simple exercise can make your website, social posts, and course pages much clearer.

The Calendar Trap: Overbooked, Overwhelmed, and Overrun If your calendar is full but your life is getting the leftovers, this episode is for you. James talks about the calendar trap: the slow drift from overbooked, to overwhelmed, to overrun. He begins with a story about his parents caring for his grandmother, then draws a clear line between sacrifice made for love and sacrifice made for a system that will not love you back. For therapists, coaches, and helping professionals, this is a sober but hopeful look at therapist burnout, private practice schedules, calendar boundaries, and what it takes to build a more sustainable therapy practice. Listen If You feel successful on paper, but tired in your body. You are booked out, but your family, rest, health, and spiritual life keep getting pushed to the edges. You want your calendar to protect your future instead of slowly taking it away. You Will Learn Why a full calendar is not always the same thing as freedom. How one more “yes” can quietly take from your rest, family, health, or creativity. Why your business, agency, or practice is a system, and systems do not love you back. How to ask a better question: “What is my calendar protecting?” Why your clients need the whole you, not the worn-down version of you. Timestamped Highlights 00:05 – When feeling overrun is really about your future. 01:00 – James shares the story of his parents caring for his grandmother. 02:16 – Every plan had to pass through one question: “What about Grandma?” 03:07 – The beauty and cost of giving your calendar to love. 04:39 – Your business is not Grandma. 05:37 – Your appointment book will not stop and ask if you are okay. 06:24 – Your system is perfectly designed to give you the results you are getting. 07:32 – The three stages of the calendar trap: overbooked, overwhelmed, and overrun. 08:05 – How overbooking starts with one small, reasonable-sounding yes. 09:25 – Why pushing now so you can rest later feels responsible. 10:30 – Every yes has to come from somewhere. 11:14 – You do not lose your future all at once. 12:15 – When being booked out stops feeling like success and starts feeling like danger. 13:17 – Overwhelm is when the calendar looks full, but you feel empty. 14:15 – When your body is on vacation, but your mind is still at work. 15:44 – Rest is not rest when it feels like a debt you have to pay later. 16:15 – How the calendar trap uses your care, guilt, skill, and income needs against you. 17:16 – When the future you wanted gets crowded out. 18:34 – Overbooked is about your schedule. Overwhelmed is about your mind and body. Overrun is about your future. 19:32 – Why your future should not be claimed by a system that does not care if you are okay. 20:33 – James shares his own story of giving 18 years to a company. 22:19 – A better question: “What is my calendar protecting?” 23:32 – Sacrifice can be beautiful when love is the reason. 24:38 – Is the system you are serving worth the cost? 25:49 – If you are overwhelmed, you are probably not giving your best. 26:10 – Your clients need the whole you. 27:22 – Your calendar is data. It shows what you are protecting. 28:18 – The three traps: the clock trap, the couch trap, and the calendar trap. 28:41 – Final question: Is your calendar protecting your future, or taking it away? Resources and Mentions Scaling Therapist Services https://scalingtherapistservices.com Episode sponsors mentioned: Humor Speaks, RevKey, The Practice Co-Lab, Arc Integrated, TheraSaaS CRM, Guess Compliance Consulting LLC, Freedom Business Solutions, Bossco LLC, and Profit Comes First. Closing CTA Look at your calendar this week and ask one honest question: Is this protecting my future, or taking it away? Your future should not be the leftovers after everyone else gets a spot. Thanks for listening. Now go put your mission in motion.

Fear, Failure, and First Steps: How Ira Hays Put His Mission in Motion In this episode of The Scaling Therapist, James talks with Ira Hays, LCSW, about what happens when your mission gets bigger than the people you can help one-on-one. Ira started like many therapists do. He had a job, a small practice, and a desire to help the people in front of him. Over time, his work with school phobia, OCD, emetophobia, and school attendance led him into school trainings, new programs, a book, content, and other ways to serve. This conversation is for the therapist or group practice owner who knows they have something useful to share, but still feels nervous to put it out there. Ira’s reminder is simple: start before it is perfect, give away what helps people, and take the next step toward your mission. What You’ll Hear in This Episode You’ll see how a mission can grow one step at a time. Ira did not start with a giant plan. He started by asking, “How do I help more people?” That question led to trainings, new roles, a book, and a bigger way to serve. You’ll hear why fear does not mean stop. Ira talks about feeling scared, sick, and out of place before his first big talk. But he did it anyway. If you are waiting to feel ready, this part will hit home. You’ll be reminded to give away what works. Some therapists feel like they need to protect what they know. Ira says the opposite. If it helps people, share it. Teach it. Post it. Let people see how you think. Show Highlights 00:00 – Give away what works Ira opens with the core message: if you learn something that helps people, don’t hide it. 01:00 – Ira shares what he is building Private practice, Innerspace Counseling, Bia, Launch, teaching, and a book. 02:00 – From getting by to growing a mission Ira shares how his work started small and grew as the need grew. 02:30 – “What’s the mission?” The question that helped Ira decide what to build next. 03:50 – The tree and the branches School attendance was the trunk. OCD, phobia work, trainings, apps, and writing became the branches. 05:10 – Free training as a way to serve Ira started giving trainings to schools because people needed the information. 06:20 – The book as another way to help The book came from people asking, “What can I read to learn more?” 08:00 – Writing was not easy Ira shares how he used walks and voice notes to get ideas out when sitting down to write felt hard. 09:30 – The fire to solve a problem When you solve something others are stuck on, you start wanting to help more people solve it too. 10:10 – Helping people beyond your office Ira talks about families outside New Jersey who needed help he could not provide one-on-one. 11:30 – The real cost of school phobia Kids missing school, meals, family dinners, and normal life. 13:00 – Start with the smallest step Ira’s advice: set the minimum standard needed to begin. Do not build the whole thing first. 14:00 – Failure versus doing nothing Ira says it is easier to sleep as a failure than to do nothing when people need help. 15:00 – The first talk was scary He was nervous, sweating, and unsure. But he did it, survived, and kept improving. 16:00 – Your first version can be small James connects Ira’s story to the idea of a simple first experiment. 17:20 – Sharing online feels vulnerable Ira talks about posting on LinkedIn and wondering if anyone would care. 18:00 – If nobody knows you exist, you help no one A clear reminder for therapists with good ideas hiding in their heads. 19:20 – Just start Post what you think. Share what you believe. Connect with people doing good work. 20:00 – Give your knowledge away Teach the schools. Help the programs. Share the lesson. Let people see behind the scenes. 21:00 – The Go-Giver mindset James and Ira talk about giving as a more honest way for helpers to grow. 23:30 – Learning new skills is awkward Podcasting, editing, writing, and posting are all part of the growth process. 24:00 – Who, not how James shares how he is learning to ask who can help instead of trying to do every task himself. 25:45 – Final encouragement Give away what helps. Share the idea. Post the lesson. Put your mission in motion. Resources Mentioned Connect with Ira Hays on LinkedIn and YouTube: Ira Hays, LCSW Hayes Health and Wellness Innerspace Counseling Books mentioned: The Go-Giver, Who Not How, 10x Is Easier Than 2x, and Time as a Tool Take One Next Step If this episode sounds like you, don’t wait until the idea is perfect. Share the post. Offer the free training. Record the short video. Write the first page. Give away the thing that has helped your clients move forward. You do not have to protect what works. Give it away, and watch it grow.