Once the newness and excitement of private 
practice has worn off, you may very well find yourself twiddling your thumbs with way too much time on your hands. That’s when the real work begins . . . .
Julienne B. Derichs, LCPC from Highland Park, Illinois wrote in asking how to stay motivated long term in your marketing efforts . . . .
I love your blog and I have read a ton of great tips that have sparked some ideas and direction for my private practice. I have a question for the “Ask Tamara” section. I have a fee for service practice and work with couples both together and individually. I run a peer Practice Building Group and we meet once a month. My question is: How do you (others) motivate yourselves to go out and meet new practice partners, to get out in the community and spread the word. I used to be so much better than this…now not so much!”
Julienne, I’m so glad that you are finding Private Practice from the Inside Out to be helpful! The depth and breadth of our online community here continues to grow. Every day, new voices show up to share their journeys and their support. Thanks to everyone who contributes in big and little ways to the curation of both information and inspiration to help us all build strong and vibrant practices.
When Motivation for Marketing Wanes
Staying motivated to connect with your community when you just don’t feel like it is critical . . . and, sometimes it’s really hard to do. In my mind, running out of energy and enthusiasm for marketing- especially if that’s something that I’ve excelled at in the past – is a big red flag that I am not taking care of me. (See if any of this rings true for you.) When I start to change gears and move toward procrastinating or avoiding activities that I’ve been fully engaged with in the past, I consider the possibility that I may just have gotten a little sloppy with me.
I’ve charted my energy level and patterns long enough to know that I work best when I am surrounded by new ideas and new information. I require brain food. It’s stimulating to me and it’s energizing. And, when I fail to feed my brain, I start to stall in my clinical work and in my marketing, too. New information and new ideas are lifelines for me.
I also require adequate rest and food and exercise . . . and regular visits to my doctor and dentist and . . . . You get the picture, don’t you? If I’m not taking care of my 51 year old body, my clinical work and my marketing both pay the price. And, my bank account does, too.
My spirit also requires feeding. For me, that’s about a way of being that allows me to feel connected to friends, to my home, to my dogs, to my family,and nature. It’s more than that though . . . . It’s about being aware of the meanings that underscore the things and experiences and people in my life.
What Works for Me
How those mind-body-spirit needs get met for each of us can be very different. My brain gets fed through reading and professional development opportunities and my amazing peer consultation group. My body gets fed by going to sleep early in the evening and then getting up early to walk, walk, walk. And, my spirit gets fed by engaging in my spiritual practices, reading, writing, and meditating.
What Works for You
Your mind-body-spirit may get fed very differently and I hope you will drop in here to let us know how you are taking care of you. (And, if you’ve forgotten to take care of you, then you may want to check out The ABC”s of Self-Care for Psychotherapists or The Balancing Act – Self-Care for Mental Health Professionals.)
What I know is this . . . . If I’m losing steam and no longer motivate to do the things that have historically worked for me, I’m probably not getting my own needs met. At that point, I need to go back to basics. And, Julienne, I’m betting you do, too. Take some time today to reflect on your own routines of self-care and note what needs of yours could be better met. While it’s true that we do change over time, it’s not likely that our basic needs will change – at least not significantly – and not without a lot of work.
Make sure that your needs are being met fully, one hundred percent of the time. You deserve – and your clients deserve – to have you fully operational. And, then, I hope you will drop in here to let us all know how you take care of your mind-body-spirit and what the implications of doing that are for you.
Thanks for your response. It has gotten me thinking about the energy that I put out in the world. I really do like people and I feel very fulfilled and honored to be doing the work I do, but I realize sometimes to protect myself I put out the “STAY AWAY” energy when I don’t kneed to. I have to remember that I can set boundaries all the time to take care of myself. They can change. Oddly enough reminding myself that I do like people and that I can let them in is a fantastic way of taking care of myself and the energy I put out into the world.
Thanks again,
Julienne
Julienne, YES YOU CAN! Thank you for taking time out of your busy day to share your thoughts here. After I posted this response, I started thinking that perhaps I should be talking about this topic from a different angle. I’m so glad it resonates with you as it is. Most of us in private practice have to grapple with that lack of motivation at times. It might be about a lack of self-care or isolation. But, of course, it could also be about other things like . . . being in over your head or not knowing what to do, or being in a toxic environment, or . . . , or . . . , or . . . . The truth is that there can be lots of reasons that motivation becomes an issue for us. But, for me, the first place to look is in the mirror.
I hope you’ll be dropping in often to chat, Julienne. I appreciate your thoughtful question and your response. Have a great day (and don’t forget to put self-care on the calendar!