Guest Author — Jack N. Soll, MA, MFT, JD

THE Single Most Important Component of Attaining, Sustaining and Maintaining a Successful, Fulfilling and Thriving Private Practice

Modern technology and social media notwithstanding, I still believe and my experience over the past 30 years bears out that THE single most important component of attaining, sustaining and maintaining a successful, fulfilling and thriving private practice revolves around all of the various nuances and extensions of: The Art of Networking! In addition to the above, of course, is maintaining professional competence, relevant experience, 'technical' expertise and a very strong ethical commitment!

We are in the relationship business: encouraging them, guiding them, helping improve them, etc. It will ultimately depend on OUR ability and willingness to do the necessary 'footwork' in our professional (and personal!) lives that may (/will?) actually determine our professional fate.

Quick story. Many years ago, I attended a social event with a friend. I knew no one else there. I was seated next to a lovely woman, who also knew no one else there except her cardiologist husband sitting next to her on her other side. We soon discovered we were in the same field, though we had very different areas of specialization. We exchanged business cards and I was briefly introduced to her husband. One year later, I received a referral from him. 1 year after that, I received one from her. In year three, I received another from him. And, indeed, in year 4, another from her. This is a true story. 4 referrals from a chance meeting, a bit of 'schmoozing,' an exchange of business cards and a short but sincere follow-up email from me. This is and can be how it works!

Not everyone is comfortable 'marketing' and/or networking. It may conjure up negative beliefs or stereotypes about that entire process. Self-esteem might be at issue. Or fear or other roadblocks, real or imagined.

Ultimately, comfy or not, adept or not, the hope of not needing to do it or not, Susan Jeffers' 'Feel the fear . . . and do it anyway!' seems most applicable here.

My goal is to reiterate the importance of networking and marketing AND also to suggest the importance of keeping the process as simple and painless as possible. That would mean low cost and not overly uncomfortable, though it surely may behoove us to occasionally stretch beyond our initial organic comfort zone.

Easy or not, it can be and ought to be kept simple: 1. Create a plan. 2. Stick to it. 3. Consider having a colleague or friend with whom to go through the process, be witnessed by, held hands by, exchange commitments with, etc. 4. Be willing to reassess and recalibrate, if necessary.

For me, THE single best resource for referrals over the years has been my colleagues. They ought to be viewed not as competitors but as potential referral sources! Their clients have family and friends who may need their own therapists and your colleague may not desire, be willing or be able to see them. Colleagues are sought out by potential clients for issues not within the clinician's 'wheelhouse,' comfort zone and/or areas of expertise. There may be conflict of interests or potential dual relationships that make it so that these colleagues cannot serve the requester's needs. All or any of these colleagues will need to refer out in the above cases. Voila!!! That's where you come in!

Attend networking, marketing and professional events, meet colleagues and allied professionals, always carry and diplomatically and appropriately give out your business card, collect business cards, take notes on the back of those cards about any relevant facts you learn about your new potential referral sources that may behoove you to 'remember,' follow up with these potential referral sources and make a plan to meet for (or TAKE THEM to) coffee IN THEIR 'HOOD,' if possible. A small price (literally and figuratively) to pay to begin creating a connection that could become a mutually beneficial professional relationship.

Of course, doing excellent work will, in and of itself, generate a fair number of referrals, though it generally takes time. Clients will or may as a matter of course tell friends, colleagues and/or family about you and your services. That and other more passive things notwithstanding, the previous paragraphs are, again, keys to the art of networking.

Remember:

1. There really is abundance. All connections are potential referral sources. Networking with colleagues is NOT zero sum. There can be a win-win. There OUGHT to be a win-win. Colleagues' clients have friends, relatives, co-workers and, most of all, potential referrals . . . why not for you!
2. Foster all of the above relationships and let these people know who you are, what you do and why YOU are uniquely capable of providing your services to these people or their referrals!
3. Aim high. Be courageous. Put in the time and effort. Visualize success. Ask for help, support, ideas and/or suggestions re practice building or, actually, everything and/ or anything. You really needn't/oughtn't go through this alone.

Suggested Action Plan:

1. Come up with 3 action items that you are ready, able and willing to commit to, and come up with a specific time frame in which to implement them.
2. Work on your (approximately) 90-second “elevator speech.” (For tall buildings and/or slow elevators!) Edit, re-assess and/or fine tune often! The goal: to clearly and succinctly describe who you are, what you do, why you are uniquely capable of providing the noted services and why people should refer to you!! Work under the assumption that 'if you tell them, they WILL refer!'
3. As for coffee: set a goal of, say, 2 networking “coffees” per week with new connections and 1 refresher/reconnect with a previously known potential referral source. “Repeat as necessary.” Try to look at it like it is ALWAYS necessary.

Finally: in absolutely no particular order, except for the preservation of the COFFEE acronym:

C hallenge yourself: set ambitious goals, i.e. setting up X number of such "coffees" per week; 

O ffer/suggest valuable resources: potentially useful or interesting books in their "wheelhouse" (or not!), potentially relevant or illuminating classes and/or possibly useful community resources and/or connections of yours that may assist them;

F ind out exactly what they do and who would be their ideal referral/client. Ask probing questions to that end; 

F ollow up with, i.e., a thank you note, some reconnection in, say, 6 months, either in person, by phone or via email, and, depending on your interest or sense of their potential value to the building or maintaining of your practice, do so (appropriately) often; 

E ducate them about you, relevant personal information, your professional experience: why you are u r uniquely qualified for them to refer to; and

E xperience in the world can be woven in, as relevant: i.e., went to law school (I did!) and now do mediation (I don't!), coached your 3 kids' soccer teams (my business partner, Scott Harris, did!) and now work with kids (Scott does!), had been morbidly obese (I had!) and now work with the obese, binge eaters and compulsive overeaters (I do!). Again, let them know how your education, your training, your experience, your life has brought you to this point in both your life and your career, and, therefore really do make you uniquely optimum for their referrals. You are THE and best example, agent, advocate, PR person and marketer for you and your business! Go for it!

Jack Nelson Soll, MA, MFT., is a Los Angeles Therapist known for his empathetic support and focused treatment for adults working on a wide variety of issues and life challenges. Jack can be reached via email at jnsoll@aol.com and by phone at 888.476.0128. Jack is co-founder of GRO Your Practice (https://www.groyourpractice.com/), a membership, practice management, networking and referral company in West Los Angeles.