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Private Practice 101: An Introduction to Creating Your Own Private Practice

Mar 9th, 2010
by Kimberly.
3 comments

One of the joys of starting something new is not knowing where it will take you. Inevitably the direction you initially thought it would take ends up morphing into something a little different.

It’s happening with this blog. I initially thought this blog would be more sharing about music and music therapy. But I’ve started to receive more and more questions about the private practice side of music therapy. It seems people are hungry are that information.

Time for the first-ever Music Therapy Maven series.

Today’s post starts an eight-week series where I will walk you through the steps of what needs to happen to get your private practice up and running. I won’t do the work for you, but I will help you get you started in the right direction. Starting a private practice requires you to roll up your sleeves and get a little dirty. But it doesn’t have to be scary.

You’ve already seen several different articles on this blog related to starting and running your own private practice:

But this series is different. I will systematically walk you through the steps and thought processes you need to do to get your practice up and running. Not only that, but each week you’ll have a list of action steps you can incorporate immediately.

The topics you’ll learn about include:

  • Finding professional support–Accountants, Lawyers, Administrative support
  • Getting paid–Invoices and grants
  • Creating your Paperwork–Documentation, Policies, Assessments
  • How to Market–Nurturing Your Business Relationships with the Right Tools
  • And more!

So let’s get started…

Part 1: What Do You Want?

I won’t lie to you. Starting a private practice takes work and it takes time. You won’t be a success overnight. You will get frustrated and you will have to do things you don’t feel like doing.

That said, going into private practice can also be tremendously rewarding. For example, you have enormous flexibility. You have the ultimate control over your professional life, what you want to do and what you don’t want to do.

It’s also rather amazing to go through the process of creating something out of nothing. Of  starting with an idea and developing it into something tangible and worthwhile.

Deciding to go into private practice is your first step. But it’s also THE most important one and should take some careful thought and consideration.

You need to sit down and think about why you want to start a private practice. As with any job, there are pros and cons. Your list of pros and cons will be different than my list of pros and cons–you just need to make sure that, for you, the pros side of starting a practice outweighs the cons side.

I cannot emphasis the importance of this step enough. This is what will carry you through the challenging times (and there will be challenging times). But if you have a clear vision for what you want and a clear understanding of why you want it, those challenging times will be easier to maneuver.

Action Steps

This week’s action steps are easy. Sit down with a pen and paper. Draw a line down the middle of the paper. On the left side, write “PROS” and on the top of the right-hand column write “CONS.”

Now spend 30 minutes (or more) thinking of and writing down a list of pros and a list of cons for starting your own private practice:

  • Try to imagine how this will impact your finances, your time, your home life.
  • Think of the tasks involved: bookkeeping, invoicing, marketing, taxes, documentation, scheduling, equipment. What parts will you love doing? What will you hate doing? What might you not mind doing, even if it’s not your favorite thing?
  • Visualize your overall purpose for starting a private practice. How will this enrich your life?
  • Make sure to answer this simple question: Why do you want to start a private practice?

It’s really important for you to go through the step of writing this down. There’s something about writing these things down that takes it out of your head and makes it more concrete and tangible.

BONUS ACTION STEP: As a bonus, share your list (or a summarized version of your list) in the comments section in this post! Sharing with others

NEXT WEEK: Next Tuesday, we’ll cover who you’ll need on your business team. You can’t know it all–nor do you need to. These people will help.

Popularity: 30% [?]

Posted in: Private Practice.
Tagged: · ·

How to Be a Top-Notch Interviewee

Mar 4th, 2010
by Kimberly.
4 comments

One of my readers, Amy, contacted me last week and asked:

I wanted to send you a quick update on my internship application process! I have scheduled two interviews for mid-March, one in Denver and one in Boston. I thought you might be a great resource to ask for some general interview advice. Do you have any blog posts or resource websites that have some tips for interviewing well in the field of music therapy?

The internship application process can be daunting and scary. It generally starts about a year in advance, there are hundreds of clinical sites to choose from, and the top ones can be highly competitive.

But there are some basic tips you can do to help give you an edge. All it takes is a little time and thoughtfulness on your part.

  • Read Up On The Site. This may be common sense, but research the site shows you’ve done your homework, you’re serious about the internship, and you care about the process. Google is a great resource. Look at the site’s website, blog, or Facebook fan page. Come to the interview knowing the basics of that site: where they work, who they serve, the services they offer.
  • Come Prepared With Questions. The interview is not just a time for the clinical director to choose the right candidate–it’s also an opportunity for you decide if the site will be a good fit for YOU. Come prepared with questions to ask the clinical director. The type of question will depend on what you’re looking for. Examples include: What’s your treatment philosophy? What do you like about being a music therapist? Why did you start this internship program?  Bonus Tip: The questions you ask should go beyond what you can find out on your own ahead of time. Don’t ask questions like “What type of population do you work with?” You should already know that from doing your research before the interview.
  • Practice with Others. As musicians, we practice before a performance. Your interview is a big “performance” day, so shouldn’t you do the same? Enlist the help of family and/or friends to be “mock” interviewers for you. Google “sample interview questions”, hand the list to your “interviewer,” and go! Bonus Tip: Record the mock interview. Listen to it. Analyze it. Take note of the things you did well and be willing to change the things that don’t sound good. I was reminded recently (when listening to myself on the first Music Therapy Round Table podcast) of how powerful it can be to listen to yourself speak and work to make it better.
  • Eye Contact and Body Language. Use appropriate eye contact with your future clinical director. Eye contact can be very powerful. It shows someone you’re listening and it shows them you care. Same with body language. Aim for a relaxed, professional, open body position. Don’t cross your arms, sit up straight, and let your body convey confidence and relaxation (even if your head is going a million miles a minute. Musicians are performers, right?)
  • Find Ways to Relate. Do you know one of the easiest ways to get someone to remember you? Tap into their emotions. It’s true. Emotions (and remember this when you’re a clinician), emotions send our memory network into hyperdrive. Emotions “tag” memories, making them easier to encode and easier to recall. (Which is one of the reasons why music is such a powerful memory trigger–it connects closely with our emotions). Find ways to relate and connect with your interviewer. This is mostly done through the “small talk” (an often-overlooked aspect, but very important), but can also be done by asking the interviewer questions, and through sharing stories.
  • Be Yourself. This is the most important. Go into the interview and act naturally. Let your most professional self shine through. Laugh, smile, be funny–be yourself.

If you have any other interview tips, please share them with others by leaving a comment in the fields below.

Good luck, Amy!

Popularity: 17% [?]

Posted in: Music Therapy, Private Practice.
Tagged: · ·

We’re 1! Happy Anniversary Music Therapy Maven!

Mar 2nd, 2010
by Kimberly.
1 comment

Let’s hope I’m better at remembering my wedding anniversary than I am my professional ones!

February 13th was the 1-year anniversary of the very first blog post I wrote on this blog. I’ve been reflecting over the past couple of weeks on the journey I’ve had this year. There have been some surprising twists and unexpected wonderfuls that have happened thanks to this blog:

  • I first started this blog because I love to teach, and I figured this would be a way for me to do that–to help you grow into the best professional you can be. What I didn’t expect was the amazing community of people I’d connect and interact with. That’s has made this whole crazy journey worthwhile.
  • I’ve delved into the world of social media, which has introduced me to some amazing people. They are too numerous to list individually, but to all my fans on Facebook, all my followers on Twitter, all my newsletter subscribers, and all of YOU–thank you for sharing yourself with me and for enriching my life. I am very grateful.
  • I’ve had the opportunity to guest post, my first last May and my second last fall. Plus, I’ve been fortunate enough to be interviewed both on a podcast and on Twitter.
  • This blog has seen some amazing guest writers share their expertise: Rachel Rambach, Anita Louise Steele, and Amanda Bryant. I think so many of us have so much to share–if you feel the same way, I’d love to help you share your wisdom! Please contact me if you’d like to guest post on the Music Therapy Maven.
  • Last fall, Rachel Rambach at Listen and Learn Music and Michelle Erfurt of Erfurt Music Resource finally met in person. And it gave birth to a new project–together, we are collaborating on a podcast by music therapists and for music therapists. It’s called the Music Therapy Round Table. We published our first episode a couple weeks ago; stayed tuned for our second, coming soon!
  • I hosted the first ever music therapy tweet-up at our national conference last November. Hopefully the first of many!
  • I’ll be giving a 5-hour CMTE (a continuing education course for music therapists) on free and easy ways to use the internet to build your business at our regional music therapy conference next month. I can’t wait!

But, ultimately, the biggest reason I come back week after week is because of you. The comments, the emails, the tweets, the FB messages–thank you for making this such a wonderful and inspiring year.

Here’s to many more!

Popularity: 29% [?]

Posted in: Kimberly Personal.
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Developing a New Program? Keep These 4 Things in Mind

Feb 25th, 2010
by Kimberly.
5 comments

Developing a new program is not easy. No matter how many times you start new programs, no matter how much you plan, no matter how prepared you feel…there will always be bumps in the road.

I’m now in the middle of getting a new music therapy program implemented. It’s not an entirely new program. If you remember from this article last fall, my first client, the Namaqua Center closed it’s residential treatment program. But Namaqua is part of a larger mental health agency. And there’s money still available to fund my services. So…we’re working to develop a new music therapy program within the larger agency.

So for the past 3 months I’ve been helping to get this new program implemented. It’s a lot of work and has it’s challenges. There are new people to work with, new facilities to use, new systems to implement.

The program is still in development. But there are things I try to remember to help with the process. I’d imagine they would generalize to other “program development” situations as well.

These 4 ideas will get you on the right track when developing your new program:

  1. Establish Lines of Communication. Growing up, the idea that “Communication is Key” was pounded into my head. It was one of the phrases mom would say that would make you groan…remember those? But those phrases that made you groan as a kid are some of the most important ones to remember as an adult. Developing a new program involves some major communication for everyone involved. You need to communicate with your boss/supervisor, your co-worker, and, in my case, other therapists and parents. Sometimes it involves meetings, other times phones calls and emails, and sometimes through flyers and memos. It’s like our digestive system. When everything’s flowing smoothly and consistently, your body’s happy. But once that flow is impeded (for any reason), your uncomfortable and in pain. Same with communication. If you keep those lines of communication open, flowing, and consistent, people will be happy.
  2. Create Systems and Processes. Some of the major questions that had to be addressed with our new program included: How are we going to get referrals? How are we going to document progress? How are the other therapist and I going to co-facilitate the sessions? The answers to these questions involved setting up a process, or system, for making sure these tasks get done. What are the steps you need to have lined up for that action to occur? What paperwork to you need to develop to help facilitate the process? The more you can think through and develop these processes BEFORE your new program start, the easier it will be for you.
  3. Expect Mistakes. Adapt Accordingly. Mistakes are going to happen. It’s okay. If you keep that in mind, and are willing to adapt and change as needed, you’ll save yourself a lot of stress. When we set the schedule for these new groups, we thought “Perfect! First group at 3pm. Second group at 4pm. That works with a school schedule, right?” Wrong. Turns out only 1 family could make the 3pm group and the other 6 families could make the 4pm group. Mistake on our part, which we correct in two ways: 1) we consolidated both groups to 4pm and 2) for the next series of groups, we’ll have a 4pm and a 5pm group. No matter how much you plan and think through the implementation, it won’t go perfectly. Expect that. Be flexible. Adapt accordingly.
  4. Give Yourself a Break. Ultimately, no matter how much you plan and prepare, things won’t always go quite right. Give yourself a break. It’s a bit scary to get new projects going. It’s easy to feel down when things don’t go quite right. Starting new programs is difficult. Do the best you can, keep trucking through, and eventually you’ll have a program that practically runs on it’s own.

If you have any other suggestions for kicking off new program, share it with other readers! Leave a comment below describing what’s helped you before.

Popularity: 41% [?]

Posted in: Private Practice.
Tagged: · · ·

5…No! 6 Bits of Mish-Mash and Nuggets

Feb 23rd, 2010
by Kimberly.
No comments yet

Today’s article is a bit of a mish-mash of different topics. I tried to find a common thread between them…but no luck. And I didn’t want to focus on one particular area because I thought you’d be interested in all of them! (You are, aren’t you?)

So here are 5 bits of mish-mash and nuggets, in no particular order:

1) Music Therapy Helps Toddlers with Cochlear Implants

This article appeared awhile ago, but it’s worth sharing again! Last month, Israeli researchers reported that music therapy could help toddlers with cochlear implants learn how to talk. The rehabilitation progress for these children is typically slow, but music helps to teach them nonverbal communication and increase their spontaneous communication. To read more, click here.

2) Readers Comment on the 80-20 Rule

Last Thursday, I asked you if you knew the 80-20 rule..and many did! I had only heard about it from a business and time management perspective, but it turns out this rule is applicable in many situations:

  • Ginny uses it when providing feedback to music therapy students–80% of it’s positive and 20% constructive.
  • Aria learned about it in her food services class–20% of her customers will contribute to 80% of her sales, so her marketing should be geared dtowards that 20%.
  • Brian pointed out that 80-20 is roughly the female-male ratio in the music therapy profession (although Valerie wondered whether it was closer to 99-1!).

3) Neuroscientist: Cutting Music Education Is a Mistake

I love this story. Over the weekend, a neuroscientist from Northwestern University argued that music training has a profound impact on child development and should be a vital component of every K-12 school program.

Dr. Nina Kraus cited her own (and other’s) research supporting that music education can help typically-developing and children with disabilities more accurately encode speech. In other words, music training helps children with and without disabilities to understand and process the words and sounds they hear. To read the entire article, click here.

If you read the Music Therapy Maven, you probably agree with Dr. Kraus already. But isn’t it nice to have that support?

4) Music Therapy Helps Stroke Victims

Many of you have seen this already. If you’re a fan of Neurosong on Facebook, you’ve seen it. If you’re on the music therapy listserv, you’ve seen it. Or if your mother saw it, thought of you, and sent it to you, you’ve seen it (Mine did. Thanks, Mom!)

The article espouses the benefits of a specific intervention called Melodic Intonation Therapy (or MIT) that helps people with expressive aphasia re-learn how to talk again. (Expressive aphasia means a person struggles to express language, or use words and sentences).

The reason MIT works is that singing uses both common and unique neural pathways as speaking. Therefore, if a patient can’t talk, we use singing to teach functional words and phrases. Through singing, we are re-wiring their brain to re-learn how to talk.

The technique was developed by a speech therapist in the 1970s (in an article by Sparks and Decks, I believe) and is also taught if you take the Neurologic Music Therapy (NMT) Training Institute.

You should also know that, even though the only person quoted in the article is a neurology professor, a board-certified music therapist trained in NMT provided the MIT treatments.

To read the article, click here.

5) Watch Music Therapy in Action

I recently heard Janice Harris interview Andrew Knight, a music therapy professor at the University of North Dakota, on her radio program. Since Andrew is a friend of mine, I went to check out the UND music therapy site…and was blown away!

The coolest part, I thought, was the “Multimedia” section on the left-hand sidebar. Not only does Andrew have videos and podcasts about the UND music therapy program, he has compiled 14 different videos that all show music therapy in action. Watch them all here.

(And for a bit of shameless self-promotion–the last video is of one of my clinicians, Aileen Ravalo Voyles, and our current intern, Lindsay Marsh, working with one of our clients:D)

P.S. I did a little work on my blog over the weekend, mostly on the right-hand sidebar. What do you think? Is it easy to navigate and use? If you have any comments, questions, or suggestions about this or any topic related to music therapy, please contact me.

UPDATE:

6) Video Interview with Dr. Barbara Reuer and Dr. Patel

Here’s a wonderful interview with Dr. Reuer, a music therapist in San Diego (and my former internship supervisor!), and Dr. Patel, world-renowned music neuroscientist. They talk about music, it’s effect on the brain, and how it can be applied clinically. It’s long (30 min.) and wonderful. Enjoy!

Popularity: 40% [?]

Posted in: Kimberly Personal, Music Therapy, Music and Neuroscience.
Tagged: · · · · · · · · ·

Do You Know the 80-20 Rule?

Feb 18th, 2010
by Kimberly.
2 comments

Vilfredo Pareto was an Italian economist. His major contributions were related to the study of income distribution and analyzing individuals’ choices. Pareto also played a big part in moving economics from a field of social philosophy to a field science and math.

So, why is an American music therapist writing about an Italian economist? Here’s why:

The story goes that, in 1906, Pareto observed that 80% of the land in Italy was owned by 20% of  Italians. He then went home and noticed that 20% of his pea pods produced 80% of his peas.

Vilfredo Pareto (1848-1923)

Thus was born the Pareto principle, otherwise known as the 80-20 rule or the law of the vital few.

Here’s how this rule affects you:

  • 80% of your income comes from 20% of your clients
  • The top 20% of people earn 80% of the money
  • 20% of what you spend your time doing will account for 80% of your results

This is a general rule of thumb, but think about it. I did–and realized this week that it’s true. 80% of my business income comes from 20% of my clients. 80% of my time is spent on non-productive tasks, while only 20% is spent on tasks where I’m working towards actually growing my business.

(Though keep in mind that some of those “nonproductive” tasks are necessary. But 80% of my time? Really?)

So why do I share the 80-20 rule with you? I guess to challenge you to start thinking about how you choose to use your time and energy. Is 80% of your time spent on productive, forward-motion tasks? Whether it be getting new clients, growing a program, or applying for research grants–each of us has tasks we can do that will move us forward, further our business/program/career.

What are things YOU can do to start incorporating the 80-20 rule in your life?

Are you up to the challenge? If so, please leave a comment below that answers that question: What can YOU start doing today? What changes can you implement in your day?

P.S. I’ve already gotten a great response to the survey I posted on Tuesday. Thank you to everyone who’s participated so far! The survey will be available for only 5 more days, so if you’re a music therapist or therapy student, please take 5 minutes to fill it out! Really–it only takes 5 minutes:

http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/3X66ZJG

Popularity: 45% [?]

Posted in: Kimberly Personal, Private Practice.
Tagged: · ·

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