Texas Counselors Creating Badass Businesses

9. The Ethics of Side Hustles for Therapists and Why You Need One

November 17, 2022 Season 1 Episode 9
Texas Counselors Creating Badass Businesses
9. The Ethics of Side Hustles for Therapists and Why You Need One
Show Notes Transcript

0109 Becoming a successful entrepreneur practice owner is often a matter of bringing a few key skills together. One of them, a side hustle, is as vital as it is scary to some people. So how do you get to the point where your job works for you instead of against you?
Today, I’m breaking it down and making it easy for us to start thinking about making extra cash, scaling for growth, and being ethical in our practice.
So what is the basic structure that side hustles follow? How do you get more information about side hustles therapists are already using? What's the best way to make time for it?
Listen in on this game-changing discussion for answers to all of that. If you want to learn even more, katewalkertraining.com/the-ethics-of-side-hustles-for-therapists-and-why-you-need-one. Check it out!

Get your step by step guide to private practice. Because you are too important to lose to not knowing the rules, going broke, burning out, and giving up. #counselorsdontquit.

[00:00:00]

Kate Walker: Hey, it’s Dr. Kate Walker and this morning  I’m talking about something that is not passive at all – it’s passive income but it’s definitely not passive because entrepreneurs are not passive. And it’s important because not only can not having a passive source of income be a personal disaster, and I’ll tell my story about my friend the pizza owner again, but it can be an ethical disaster as well. 

My goal is that when you leave this little training that we’re doing today, whether you’re here live or watching this on a replay, welcome to you. I’m so glad you’re taking the time to badass up your business and learn some things that will – I mean, I hate it when people say basically or honestly because I’m going to be basic and I’m going to be honest. Starting this business without a plan for passive income is kind of irresponsible. Now, hold that for a second, hold that space for me, don’t fight me yet. Because you’re going to be contributing to a community somewhere, whether you’re a school counselor, or an agency counselor, or you work at a hospital. I know this group is really geared towards folks who are going to go the private practice route. And maybe you will someday, but I always tell folks, don’t break your arm patting yourself on the back. It’s not that you are amazing – I mean, you are, you should have sunshine beams coming out of your head at all times. 

But the main thing you need to remember is that in Texas, we are number 50. We do a terrible job of serving our population that needs our services. So you’re going to do an amazing job because people need you and there are always going to be mental health issues, there are always going to be family issues. You are always going to be needed. So let’s get this idea of scarcity – let’s give it to other professions because it’s not going to happen to us. We don’t need to be like Avon and be like, oh my gosh, who is going to buy our stuff? Throw that out. We don’t need that in this universe; we don’t need that in this space because people will count on you. 

The problem comes when you say things to your clients like, you know, I’m sick, I can’t come in today, and they’re like, oh my gosh, I had a crisis, I needed to talk to her! Or, you know, I need some mental health time, I’ve been working through some stuff with my kids, and your client is like, oh my gosh, I’ve been abandoned. Right? That’s when we start working ourselves too hard to the point of burnout. We forget about all of those things that can make us healthy and happy like hobbies, time with our family, eating right.

So when you leave this training today, I not only want you to leave with some ideas for “passive” income and I’m going to invite you to take a scheduling challenge. I’ll talk more about that in a little bit. First, the dramatic stuff. So, the story is – and it’s a true story because I just got off the phone with my friend this morning who lives in Maine and she owns a pizza joint. This is my buddy who we went to music school together, I’m the bass player and she’s a violinist. Now I’m a counselor and she owns a pizza joint. That goes to show you, music for a living…that’s another video.

So she tells me she’s got COVID. I know this time of year is their busiest time except for July, because up north it’s busy then too. She’s having to close her business for four days because she has COVID during something called the Fryberg Fair. She employs about 10 people. None of those folks are making any money this week because she is the cog in the wheel, the magic that makes the sun shine, she is the thing that makes the business go round. That’s okay because if you’re the only one who can do it, you’re the only one who can do it. But I guess it’s not really okay because she’s questioning feeling guilty because she’s taking these sick days off for COVID and having to close and people aren’t making money. You know what she’s not worried about, though? And this is what I was so proud of her for. She’s not worried about paying her light bill. She’s not worried about paying her taxes or paying for oil – they have to pay for oil up there for heat in the wintertime, crazy. She has an Air BnB in her house. It’s her big old farm house, she’s got a room with a bathroom, a separate entrance, she’s become a superhost on Air BnB. She’s like, no, Kate, I’m fine, I’ve got guests through the end of October. I’ve made my mortgage, I’ve made my light bill, I’ve made my cable bill, I’m good to go. I just feel bad for the employees of the pizza place. 

So I’m talking to you, entrepreneur who won’t take a sick day or does take a sick day but then sees a dip in their income. Here is the ethical piece that you need to know: as small business owners, we take money from our services. Rarely do we have someone at the front desk who is processing that credit card. Rarely do we have a manager or a practice owner or a group CEO somewhere setting our fees for us. So we are the therapist for 50 minutes and then for 5 minutes, we are a banker. That’s a dual relationship. Don’t freak out, it’s not going to get you in trouble, it’s just something to be mindful of. It’s a normal part of how us counselors do business, even you large group practice owners. Know that really, it comes down to you to set the fee for services. I mean, yes, your practitioners may come back to you and say hey, I feel like charging $500 an hour today. That might take a heart-to-heart. So you do have a hand in it. 

Being that person – and I’m going to talk to the single practice owner, the one person, you’re the only person doing the services. What starts to happen is this is a dollar-per-hour profession. You don’t work, you don’t take home any cash. So you start looking at your schedule, and most of us look at a schedule and say it’s full, but then we have to subtract about 10 percent. 10 percent for no shows, our clients getting sick and not showing, people getting better, having intakes, brand new people who don’t show up. So a full schedule is never really a full schedule; it’s a full schedule minus 10 or 15 percent. Then you start calculating each one of those things and if you have different rates for different people based on your insurance reimbursements and you’re like, Tuesday is a pretty good day because Magellan pays well but Wednesdays are full of these Blue Cross Blue Shield people, and they only pay $10. Now the anxiety is bubbling up and it’s not your fault. This is not a bad thing. But you start to look at your clients like dollar signs. It’s the nature of the business. It would happen if you were a plumber. It would happen if you were an electrician. You would look at your calendar and you would see them as dollar signs. 

Back in the day when I used to freelance as a musician, if you had to pay your light bill, you would look at Monday and say alright, I’ll make $100 there, that will cover that, Tuesday, I’m playing at Joe’s Cantina, that’s going to pay my cable bill. So you kind of look at your month and you look at your bills and you see where the gap is. So the ethical dilemma with not having a passive income is living from client to client to client. Not glory to glory to glory, it’s client to client to client, and if somebody doesn’t show up, you’re disappointed instead of thinking, oh wow, maybe they got better. Oh, I hope they got better, and they don’t need me anymore. I mean, I’m sure you think that too, but the initial might be crap, that was 20% no show this week instead of the 15 I was planning on. So that’s the ethical piece.

The piece that I hate for you, especially now that we’re virtual, is fewer of you are taking sick days now. You’re like, well, it’s virtual, I’ll just wrap a blanket over my lower half, I’ve got my coffee, and I can still do these sessions. You’re not taking your sick days. You’re not taking your mental health days. This is now ethically gray because now you’re dancing around burnout. Not to mention the fact that I don’t know if you do your best work when you don’t feel well; I know I don’t. So not feeling well, powering through, all of those things are great if you’re playing for UT football, and you beat West Virginia last week. No so great for counselors. 

But as a professor, I try to teach that to my students and everybody nods their head like oh, yeah, yeah, we’ll do that, we’ll avoid burnout, we promise. Then they go right out into the field, they pack their schedules with 40 people a week, and the next thing you know, they’re like, I’m done with this field. That’s one of the hallmarks of developmental level two LPC Associates is this honeymoon is over. They literally want to quit our field because they’re overworked, they’re underpaid, they’re dancing with burnout, it’s not okay. Remember our goal. Our goal is to keep you in the community. 

So we have ethical issues surrounding your performance, ethical issues surrounding burnout, ethical issues surrounding dollar per hour, dollar per hour, dollar per hour. So it’s hard on you.

[Audience Question] I only see 20 per week and five hours of supervision are included.

Yeah, 20 hours is kind of my enough is enough button. This is me personally – if I see more than 20, I’m starting to bring these clients with me on date nights. I’m starting to bring these clients with me in the shower while I’m washing my hair. It’s starting to inhabit my meditation and quiet time in the morning. It’s not good for my head. Now, you guys probably have your own enough is enough line, and that’s okay; I don’t want to push you on that. You’ve got to know yourself.

But let’s talk about reasonable passive streams of income. You can go look on your Step It Up profile, click the One: Start Here, and you will see over 30 trainings we have in there. The one I did this summer in June, I interviewed yoga therapists, podcasters, walk-talk therapy people, one person incorporated public speaking as ancillary to their private practice. I interviewed them, I asked them how they did it. Was it scary? Were they able to do the things? Was it too much? So take a second and look at it. I think I called it Next Steps – and I think I made it specific, so one was adding public speaking, one was adding alternate modalities. In your Start Here course profile, it’s there and I will post it in the comments for this video.

I did my own, I interviewed myself, about adding courses. And I talked about everything from what learning management system to use to how to design it on a beginner shoestring budget. Getting into the nitty gritty, if you wanted to add things like online courses, start with those webinars. Here’s the reality check. If you are – and I’m talking to you grad students, LPC Associates, folks working in agencies, schools, or hospitals who are thinking about making the leap. In my book “My Next Steps: Create A Counseling Career You’ll Love,” I talk about a financial bridge. Now, a financial bridge is like Dave Ramsey says, it’s like having three months income and an emergency account at all times except it looks more like your supportive partner or a family member or maybe you go down to the chamber of commerce and they offer small business development loans. It is a chunk of cash that will allow you to breathe when you have a month that did not meet your quota to keep your lights on. 

As you ramp up your practice, don’t think you’re going to be that one magical unicorn – maybe you are, you are because remember you have sun beams. Don’t think, though, that it’s all going to be smooth 20-20-20 (direct hours) weeks. You’re going to have a 20 week – 28 – 20, then you’re going to have a 15 and you’re going to think, oh my gosh, is somebody out there writing bad Google reviews about me? Everybody hates me. Then, say you get COVID, you have a zero week. Now, this month where you were planning on 80 direct hours based on a certain dollar amount, whether it’s reimbursement from insurance or you’re cash pay, and you’re now looking at 45 hours. That is a 50 percent cut in pay. 

With a supportive partner, you’re able to talk to them, and if you have not had an honest conversation with your significant other or the adult who lives in your house and shares your bank account, you need to do that before you go into business. 100 percent before you put on your entrepreneur badge, you have to have a conversation. If you haven’t, it’s time. It’s: significant other, I’m going to need you to float some bills for the next six months to a year. Significant other: why? You: because I need a financial bridge. Kate says I need a financial bridge. I need to make sure I’m able to meet the challenge of not enough hours in the month, of keeping my lights on, of paying my rent, of paying my employees. If you have this honest heart-to-heart conversation with the family member, significant other who shares your bank account, take it. Take the cash. Take the help. Take the money. You’re going to need it. So that financial bridge will allow you to build your own emergency fund and if you’ve listened to me before, I always talk about when you’re thinking about adding this additional stream, earn a profit with your first business first. 

So counseling, you’re getting good at it, you’ve got the practice going, you finally have a month where you’re finally making a profit. You’re feeling good, you’ve got your feet under you, you’ve got your three months’ salary sitting in your bank account. Now, let’s look at adding outside streams of income. So I don’t want to sound like I’m giving you two messages here. The first message is: you must have an additional stream of income and rewind to hear all of the ethical reasons why. The second message is: make sure that you feel comfortable with your practice because nothing is worse than trying to juggle two things at once. I used to get asked all the time, would I please consult/coach/supervise a new practice owner, oh, and by the way, I just started a doctorate program. I’d be like, hell no. You’ve got to go get your doctorate. You’ve got to go finish that and then start your practice; one thing at a time.

If you’re going to do your practice, do your practice. Get it going. Give yourself a calendar. Give yourself a date, a time. I’m going to get this going, I’m going to have three months’ salary in a bank account. Now, let’s add the side hustle. So side hustles that I talk about with folks. Online courses, I absolutely love online courses as a side hustle. I absolutely love having an outside job. So if you’re a school counselor and you want to do private practice, maybe keeping both of those jobs at first until you’re able to do one. We’ve talked about the financial bridge with the significant other, I’m looking at my notes. If you’re able to teach, online universities are always looking for folks who can teach. 

Now, you don’t need a lot of cash. So think about my example earlier with the musician. Here’s the musician. I’ve got my calendar, I’ve got my gigs set. With this outside side hustle, if you only want to tell yourself, look, I just need something to pay my rent, your rent is $800 a month, how many courses is that? So you’ve got your online courses and you’re selling them at $100 a pop. You need to sell eight of those courses, right? Eight courses pays your rent. You’re not trying to be a billionaire off your side hustle, you’re just trying to have a passive stream of income so you can pay your rent if you need to take a sick day. At the end of the month, you don’t need the $800, ha ha ha, guess where it goes? Because it’s profit, you have some choices. You can invest it back into your business – hello tax write off. You can keep it as profit and go buy some shoes. You can do whatever you want to with it, but that’s $800 that you didn’t have before. So your side hustle is not only going to give you peace of mind, it’s going to keep the lights on so you can take a sick day. It’s actually eventually going to turn into an investment opportunity.

So investment opportunities, let’s talk big side hustles. Let’s say you wanted to take that $800, put it into an account, and then start buying houses. There is a very Facebook famous therapist who is now taking all of this cash and he’s investing in homes, rental income. He’s hosting retreats. Now, that’s a lot of cash. But if you have a side hustle and you just label it: house money and you just don’t touch it, you put it in a bank account across town or something that you lose the map to, you don’t even know how to get to, that money is going to grow. $800, $800, $800, and then you’ve got the peace of mind, lights on, investment income or really, really excellent shoes, right? Your choice, your money. 

So here’s the challenge. I told you at the beginning I was going to give you a calendar challenge. So when my husband came back from one of the mobilizations, he decided he was going to go into the pest control business. He had never really worked in a setting where he made his own schedule and went to people’s houses, so his boss sat him down – I don’t know why people don’t do this for us – and he taught him how to make a schedule. Okay, so you look at your schedule and you’re like, Monday through Friday, eight to five, I’m wide open. I can take clients Monday at eight, Friday at three, and whatever in between.

No, we’re not going to do that. For you, developing the side hustle, because this is what you’re going to focus on now, I want you to take one day off completely. One day. This is a challenge, not homework – you can make it homework if you’d like. One day off completely to devote to your side hustle. Not side hustle in between your clients. Not side hustle if there’s nothing better to do. Now, this is one of those things that freaks people out because you’re like, but my client on Tuesday, what’s he going to do if I don’t see him on Tuesday? He’ll come on Wednesday, or he’ll get better or he'll go to another therapist. Right? Remember, therapists, we don’t do scarcity. Let the other businesses, let the other entrepreneurs deal with that. I challenge you to take a day and devote it to your side hustle. Now, the way I do my calendar, a lot of people don’t do it like this, I don’t understand why. But for me, I like to have my bills paid at the end of the week. So I work Monday-Tuesday. I work as long and as hard as I have to until I make what I feel like I have to make for the week. Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday are devoted to side hustles, which are I teach adjunct faculty this semester, don’t know if I’m going to do it next semester. My online courses, of course, I’ve got that. I do some business coaching, a little bit. So I’ve got about three side hustles and each one of those gets a day. It’s not fair to my side hustle, to me, to my mental health, to my clients, to just do a good job in between. And my kids tell me I’m secretly ADD and I can’t do that. 

So just wrapping up, you must think ethically about side hustles, not as extra and extra work, but as a way to avoid burnout and keep your lights on. So take the schedule challenge. Take one day a week, no clients, no kids, no partner, no nothing. On that day – don’t make it a Saturday, that doesn’t count because everyone else is off too. Take a day when everyone else is working, take the calendar challenge, and develop your side hustle.