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Part of learning to become a good therapist is learning how to self-evaluate. What worked during a session? What didn’t work? Why didn’t it work? What would you do differently next time?

These same skills are important for business owners. We need to evaluate our programs, services, and marketing plans. Did that brochure work and attract new leads? How was the title of that sales page–did it attract more clicks? Are people re-registering for this new program? So I didn’t meet my goals of getting 5 people to sign up at the end of my talk–why not?

I’ve had a lot of time this year to think through what went well with my clinical business in Colorado, what didn’t go so well…and why.

One of my major frustrations at the time was that I wasn’t getting enough new clients. I felt I was working SO hard booking speaking engagements, setting up workshops, and creating brochures. But my business wasn’t growing like I felt it should.

In hindsight, I realize my mistake: I was thinking like a general practitioner and not like a specialist.

What’s the difference? As a “general practitioner MT,” I was taking any client who came my way. I booked speaking engagements with any group I could. The wording on my brochures and website was broad, so that almost any clinical population was covered. I figured that, since music therapy could work “from cradle-to-grave,” why not offer all that myself? One of my big fears was that if I focused on a particular population, I’d be turning people away.

In contrast, as a “specialist MT,” I would have specialized working with a particular clinical population (or, better yet, a particular problem. But that’s for another post). This is a mindset shift more than anything. But if I had made this shift in thinking a couple years ago, I could have brought more focus and more business to my practice.

I could have been clearer in how I talked about the services I offered. People reading my marketing materials would have an easier time understanding how I could help them. Instead of talking to a rehab groups, parent support groups, and medical teams…I would just have one area and do that workshop really, really well. No need to tailor a bazillion talks for a bazillion different types of groups!

At this point in my career, there’s not much for me to do about this. Except share it with you, of course! But rest assured, when I’m ready to re-open my clinical practice, I’ll be doing it with my specialist hat on.

P.S. I admit that I didn’t reach this “ah-ha” moment on my own. I heard it from Dr. Laura Dessauer, an art therapist in Florida who last summer started the International Association for Therapists in Private Practice. I haven’t talked about this group a whole lot, but there’s a wealth of knowledge provided through the calls and forums. If you’re a therapist in private practice…it’s worth checking out!

Related posts:

1. Private Practice 101 (Week 6): 6 Reasons Why Marketing a Business is Like Finding a Spouse
2. Do You Make This Common (and Easy-To-Fix) Mistake?
3. Private Practice 101 (Week 7): Your Top 6 Marketing Tools

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So I mentioned last week that I would be taking a couple weeks off for the holidays…Ha! Just kidding!

Earlier this year, I added a feature to my WordPress blog that allows me to track statistics for all my blog articles. I know which articles you’ve read the most, what you’ve commented on the most, what’s been retweeted and shared on Facebook the most.

So, just for fun, here are the top Music Therapy Maven posts from 2010 based on what you read, your comments, retweets, and Facebook shares (in chronological order):

• Music Therapy Bloggers to Watch in 2010 (January 2010) One of my early posts in 2010 turned out to be one of my most popular as well!
• Watch and Learn: The Mirror Neuron Song (January 2010)
• Developing a New Program? Keep These 4 Things in Mind (February 2010)
• Private Practice 101: An Introduction to Creating Your Own Private Practice (March 2010). The Private Practice 101 series wins for most popular! Believe it or not, 5 of the top 10 posts read this year are from this series (and this popularity is also what prompted me to launch the Therapy Business Blueprint earlier this fall).
• Top 12 Reasons Why Music as Therapy Works (April 2010)
• (VIDEO) The “Right-Left” Song: An Intervention for Children (June 2010).
• The Funny Side of the Mozart Effect (July 2010) This one wins for most shared on Facebook! Too bad I can’t take credit for the content…
• (VIDEO) Music as a Core Function in our Brain (September 2010)
• The Top 10 Holiday Songs…That Don’t Mention Christmas (December 2010)

A final note…This blog would not be possible without your shares, comments, and conversations. I am genuinely blown away by what’s happened with the Maven over the past couple years. Thank you SO much for all the positive support and for your readership. Here’s to more in 2011!

Happy New Year! Have fun…and be safe

Related posts:

1. Music Therapy Bloggers to Watch in 2010
2. Celebrating 100 Blog Posts!
3. Top 5 Music Therapy Topics of the Past 3 Weeks

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I am so excited to share this brand-spankin’-new resource with you! Are you starting a private practice? Then this ebook is for YOU!

You can check it out now by visiting www.StartMyTherapyPractice.com…or you can keep reading to learn more.

The idea for this book came to me last fall when I noticed that I was getting more and more comments, emails, and questions about my private practice. That’s why last spring I published the “Private Practice 101″ series you’ve read on this blog. But STILL I got more comments, questions, and emails.

Thus The Therapy Business Blueprint was born.

This blueprint walks you through my 7-step approach for starting a private practice. You’ll get answers to questions like like:

• What questions do I need to ask potential attorneys and accountants I’m interviewing?
• Where do I go to register my business? Who do I need to register it with?
• What goes into marketing my business?
• How do I create a contract and set up policies and procedures for my practice?
• How do I get paid?

Related posts:

1. Private Practice 101 (Week 3): What Type of Business Are You?
2. Now Open for Business: Let’s Work Together!
3. How To Start Your Private Practice: The Bare Necessities

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I readily admit that I was never very good about it. It’s one of those things that I “knew” I should do…but never got around to. I know it’s good for marketing and I know it’s good for professional growth…I just never made it a big priority like I should of.

What is “it”? Recording myself work.

I’m in the process of pulling together application materials for the PhD program I’m applying to. Part of the application process involves submitting video clips of my clinical and musical skills.

Luckily, I had kept video I took in 2006 for a training program. And luckily I had enough foresight to get the appropriate releases and record sessions before I moved last summer and had to let go of all my clients.

But it struck me while editing this footage how valuable recording yourself is. And how I really should have listened to that voice in my head–and the voices of friends and mentors–telling me I should be recording myself more often.

Here’s why:

• A picture is really worth a thousand words. My husband tells me that he never really “got” music therapy until he watched a video of it “working.” He had heard the definitions, had stories and examples described to him…but when he finally watched a video and saw how rhythm dramatically improved the gait of a stroke patient, that’s when he had his “aha” moment. And that’s just one person–think of how video footage can impact and influence a roomful of people!
• Opportunities for professional growth. As therapy students, we receive external feedback from our supervisors and professionals. As interns and young professionals, we learn to self-evaluate what worked and what didn’t work during a session. But watching a video of yourself working, no matter how scary, gives you more of the external type of feedback. You’re able to look at yourself more honestly and, yes, critically. Which is a good way to challenge your professional growth.
• Re-usable content. Once you have that remarkable video footage, you can re-use it over and over and over again. At trainings. At conference presentations. At in-house workshops. At marketing events. On websites. Record and edit once, then re-use multiple times. What a great use of your time!
• New technology makes it easy. These days, the technology needed to put together a video is relatively inexpensive, slick, and easy-to-use. I use a $120 Flip Video Camera (I talk more about it here), a $12 generic tripod, my Mac’s iMovie program, my Mac’s iDVD program to burn a DVD, and YouTube. And for you PC lovers, there are PC-friendly programs (although I cannot personally recommend this, Microsoft has a Movie Maker software program. Check it out here.). So all-in-all, there is no excuse for not having the right equipment to create your own video.

If you–or your employer–are already in the habit of recording your work, great! You’re ahead of most of us!

But if not, my challenge to you is to start recording. Don’t make the same mistake I did.

Start with one session. Make sure you have the appropriate releases and the appropriate equipment. Then record. Watch and evaluate yourself. If you captured something remarkable, edit for potential marketing and training use.

And, of course, leave a comment below to let us know how it goes!

Related posts:

1. 3 Outside-the-Box Ways to Market Music Therapy
2. Private Practice 101 (Week 2): Who’s On Your Team?
3. Closing Shop 101 (Week 4): Keep the Business, Hire a Manager

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A couple months ago, a friend of mine was applying for his first grant and asked me for some tips.

I have applied, either by myself or with a team, for about a dozen different grants, some successfully, some not. I’ve applied for a clinical research grant, I’ve applied for seed money to start a pilot program, I’ve applied for money to continue a program, and I’ve applied for money for instruments and other supplies. I’ve applied for grants that were just a couple hundred dollars and I’ve applied for grants that were tens of thousands of dollars.

Based on my experiences, I was able to offer my friend–and I now offer to you–a couple bits of advice when working on your own grant application:

• Include both quantitative and qualitative data. The people who hold the purse strings need to know that they’re paying for something good. They need numbers, so it will be important to include numbers in your application and report. These can be numbers about money (e.g. was it cost effective?) or numbers about whether what you did worked (e.g. did it lower perceived pain levels?). However, these purse string-holders are also people–and people are driven by emotions. Therefore, in addition to your numbers, it would behoove you to share a story or anecdote of a session that made a difference for a client.
• Start collecting data. This goes with the first tip about sharing numbers. As soon as possible start collecting data on the clients you are working with. When developing a data-collection system, I always try to start with what that facility needs–is there anything I need to keep track of that either already needs to be tracked for them or that may help their needs? Another option is to look at the grant application, which may outline report and documentation requirements. Finally, if those are a bust, I’ve just sat down and brainstormed what type of data I’d like to be able to show. A good starting place? Collect pre-post data whenever possible, as well as basic demographic data.
• Stay involved. This is more for people who work with grant writers and/or a team of people applying for a grant. If you are fortunate enough to work with others when writing and submitting grants, stay involved in the process. Keep in mind that the team may not really understand music therapy and what it’s about. For example, one grant I worked with needed a mid-year and a final evaluation, as well as an annual re-application. There was a grant writer who puts all that together–but I always prepared the music therapy-specific information because I was the expert in that area. So  whether you’re a part of the writing process or part of the editing and review process, make sure your voice is heard and you have a say in the material.

Grant-writing is a huge topic and this article covers some very basic tips. If you have any other tips or advice about applying for grants, please share them with all of us by leaving a comment below!

P.S. I am exciting to announce that, based on your feedback and questions over the years, I am (finally!) working on an ebook about starting your own private practice!!! Titled “The Therapy Business Blueprint: A 7-Step Approach to Starting Your Own Private Practice,” it’s purpose is to provide you with a comprehensive overview of the steps you’ll need to take to get your private practice up and running. More details to come!

Related posts:

1. Private Practice 101 (Week 4): Show Me the Money!
2. 6 Quick Tips for Organizing Your Excel Spreadsheet
3. Essential Tools and Tips for a Successful Marketing Strategy

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It takes 7 contacts before you reach someone.

No matter what action you want that “someone” to take (Buy this! Donate here! Read now!), it takes an average of 7 exposures for that person to take the action. Exposures can include many things: a phone call, an email newsletter, a Twitter update, a brochure.

The idea of “7 contacts” is important information for anyone running a private practice. Why?

Because it directly impacts your marketing strategy!

There are two basic (but vital!) ingredients for a successful “7 contacts” marketing strategy: 1) Use multiple tools and approaches (both offline and online) and 2) Be consistent.

Multiple Tools & Approaches

This is a fairly simple concept to understand–you need to use different types of tools and approaches in order to reach the most people. Depending on your business and your clients, this may include a combination of offline and online strategies.

It’s important to try and use the same tools your client uses. If you sell products online, it makes more sense to use primarily online marketing tools. But if you have a local service-oriented business, you’ll want to include more offline strategies in your approach.

Examples of offline strategies include:

• Brochures
• Business Cards
• Face-to-face meetings
• Workshops and inservices
• Press releases
• Articles in local papers
• Networking gatherings

Online strategies you can use include:

• Twitter
• Facebook
• Blogs
• Website
• LinkedIn
• YouTube videos
• Email newsletter

Consistency

You can have the fanciest tools in the world, but if you don’t use them (and use them consistently), they won’t get you any new business.

It’s important to devote time each day, week, or month on marketing your business. Even if you need to schedule time in your calendar, this is a task that needs to happen on a regular basis.

There are many ways in which you can spend your time. You may work on developing new workshops or marketing materials. Maybe you’ll be connecting with your “audience” online via Facebook, Twitter, or LinkedIn. Perhaps you’ll attend a networking event or give an in-service. Or you may think through and plan changes to your overall strategy.

When it comes to your marketing strategy, what tools and tips have been the most helpful for you? Leave a comment below–you never know who’ll find it useful!

Related posts:

1. 7 Marketing Tools for the Private Practitioner
2. Private Practice 101 (Week 7): Your Top 6 Marketing Tools
3. Private Practice 101 (Week 6): 6 Reasons Why Marketing a Business is Like Finding a Spouse

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If you’re in private practice, are you sending email newsletters yet?

I signed up for my first email newsletter account with Aweber last September. Aweber is what’s called “email marketing software” and there are lots out there: Constant Contact, Mail Chimp, et al.

Email marketing software allows you to easily collect email addresses from your website, create email newsletter, and keep track of how many people open your emails and click on your links. Anytime you get an email newsletter in your inbox, it was likely sent using one of these email marketing software programs.

The initial purpose of email marketing is just as it sounds–using your email inbox to sell you a product or a service.

But many people (and businesses) are also trying to provide their readers with valuable information and tips. So the emails you receive (or send) aren’t strictly used for “marketing,” but also to share information with and help your readers.

I think there are benefits to email marketing for therapists in private practice. Benefits that are untapped and that most people DON’T do. Benefits that can save you time and money. For example:

• Sharing important announcements regarding your private practice (e.g. about changes in payment or vacation reminders)
• Letting your clients know about upcoming events and workshops they may be interested in
• Sending them links to interesting articles and information related to your practice (e.g. if you’re a music therapist, a news story about music therapy)

All while increasing the perceived value of your services by sharing this information in a professional, upgraded fashion.

Here’s Why I Like Aweber

I went with Aweber because, quite frankly, that’s what the guys over at Internet Business Mastery (one of my favorite podcasts) recommended. And it turns out that lots and lots of online blog owners use Aweber as their email marketing manager.

I love Aweber (as does fellow music therapist and blogger Rachel Rambach at Listen and Learn Music) because it’s flexible, powerful, and easy-to-use. Aweber manages all your contacts, makes creating “web forms” easy (used to collect emails like you see here), and has templates so you create professional newsletters in a snap.

If you’re interested in checking out email newsletter, I highly recommend you click here to learn more.

Related posts:

1. Private Practice 101 (Week 7): Your Top 6 Marketing Tools
2. 3 Outside-the-Box Ways to Market Music Therapy
3. Closing Shop 101 (Week 4): Keep the Business, Hire a Manager

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I love Excel spreadsheets. I don’t know if it’s because it satisfies my nerdy desire to be organized or because there’s so much you can do with it. Probably a little of both, honestly.

Spreadsheets are incredibly powerful, functional, versatile tools you can use to organize almost any sort of information. For example:

• Passwords
• Project lists and notes
• Client information
• Email lists
• Session data
• And more! (sorry…the nerd in me is exciting ;D)

There are a couple tricks you can use that will make your spreadsheet experience more functional and easy-to-use. Here are 6 that help me all the time:

1. Columns should be used for topic areas (e.g. first name, age, project due date). Rows should be used for single subjects, entries, or people. This will make filtering, sorting, and charting your information MUCH easier.
2. If inputting names, have a separate column for first name and last name. It makes sorting your information (see #4) SO much easier.
3. If naming a column (called using a “header”), you can “freeze” your header so that it’s always visible no matter how far you scroll down. Highlight the row BELOW the header (typically row 2 or 3), then click Window –> Freeze Panes.
4. You can organize your information (called “sorting”) any way you want. Want to organize your list by last name? Done. Organize by admit date? Easy. Simply click on Data –> Sort. A screen will appear that asks you to pick how you sort the data and whether to display it “Ascending” (e.g. A –> Z) or “Descending” (e.g. Z –> A). If using a header, be sure to click “Header Row” at the bottom of the screen.
5. Use multiple sheets for different topic areas (e.g. one sheet each for group therapy clients, individual therapy clients, and music lesson clients). You access the sheets by clicking the tabs at the bottom of page (a new Excel spreadsheet comes with 3 tabs: Sheet 1, Sheet 2, and Sheet 3). Rename a sheet by double-clicking (highlighting) the current name, then type a new one. Delete a sheet by clicking Edit –> Delete Sheet. Add a new sheet by clicking Insert –> Worksheet.
6. If you’ll be analyzing any of the information on your spreading (e.g. for charting or reports), use numbers as much as possible. If the data is not numerical, assign a number to represent the data. For example, if recording whether a client is male or female, use “1″ for males and “2″ for females. Again, this helps with analysis, sorting, and organizing your information.

Implement these tips right away to make your Excel experience more functional, powerful, and–yes–even more enjoyable.

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1. Tips, Tricks, and Ideas for Creating Your Website

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If you’ve been reading this blog over the past several months, you know that my family and I recently moved from Colorado to Missouri. Because of this, I had to close down my private practice and figure out my next step in a new state.

I think I’ve done it.

After talking with several attorneys and–I confess–only one accountant, here’s what I’ve decided to do:

• Merge our two companies into one. Until a couple weeks ago, my husband and I ran two Colorado-based business, his music education software company, Beyond the Notes, Inc., and my music therapy practice, Neurosong Music Therapy Services, Inc. The problem is that both businesses are small enough–especially since closing down my private practice–that the double amount of paperwork and fees is unnecessary. And with it being just me running it…well, I am ready to streamline things. Thus, we merged our two companies into one. To be fair, there is a down-side to this. Most attorneys will advise you to keep the two business separate. It makes sense from a liability standpoint–if one company is sued, you only want that company’s assets to be at stake…not both. But I weighed the pros and cons of keeping it two businesses versus merging to one and went with the latter. Besides, I figure, I can always change things later on.
• Dissolve the Colorado companies. If we were to merge our two Colorado-based companies into one Colorado-based company, then we’d fill out and file a Statement of Merger in Colorado. But, because we are merging into a Missouri-based company, we have to dissolve our Colorado companies. It’s not that hard–the Colorado Secretary of State has an Article of Dissolution you can fill out online. Then it’s simply a matter of contacting all the other state and federal agencies (e.g. Department of Revenue, Unemployment, IRS, etc.) to close down those accounts. A pain? Yes. But necessary.
• Start an LLC in Missouri. We were going back and forth between keeping the S-corporations or starting an LLC. The primary benefit of an LLC? It’s flexible and there’s less paperwork and filings to manage (read: no quarterly payroll taxes. Yes!). The primary benefit of an S-corp? No self-employment tax. With an LLC, you have the liability protection of a corporation, but are taxed like a sole proprietorship. This means that anything I pay myself through the LLC (whether salary or otherwise) is subject to a self-employment tax. So why go with the LLC that has higher taxes? Because you can file paperwork to be taxed like an s-corporation. That’s right–when I get tired of having to pay self-employment tax (which will be a good day because it means I’m making money!), I can submit paperwork to the state to be taxed like an s-corporation. At that point, I will have to start paying and filing quarterly taxes again–but by the time I get to that point I can hire an accountant to take care of that for me! Problem solved…LLC started.

So that’s where I am right now–lots of paperwork and phone calls as I work through the logistics of moving our businesses. As a side note, it was really easy to start an LLC in Missouri. I did it online through the Secretary of State. Some simple paperwork, a $50 filing fee (it’s twice as much to file through the mail), and, voila!, I have a new business.

In closing, I want to thank all of you who left comments, suggestions, and words of encouragement for me as I went through this process. I hope that by blogging about it, it will help you at some point navigate the waters of running a private practice yourself.

So, now that I’m (almost) finished will all my paperwork to transfer my businesses, I can finally concentrate on my presentation at the 1st Annual Creative Arts Therapies Teleconference next week! I’m super-excited to be a part of this event. It features 10 different speakers talking on various aspects of music therapy, art therapy, dance therapy, running a private practice, etc. There’s a lot to learn…and the best part is that it’s super affordable and there’s no travel involved!

To learn more about the conference, click this link:

Hope to “see” you there!

Related posts:

1. Choices, Choices, Choices: What’s My Next Step?
2. How To Start Your Private Practice: The Bare Necessities
3. Now Open for Business: Let’s Work Together!

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If you “like” me on Facebook or follow me on Twitter, you know that I spent this past weekend traveling. But this wasn’t any traveling–this was traveling to spend a weekend with girlfriends. A special, sacred, everyone-should-have-the-opportunity-to-do-this type of weekend with the girls.

So of course we spent much of our time together dishing about ourselves, our kids, our spouses/significant others, our friends. But we also happen to all be music therapists–and all be music therapists with at least a part-time private practice–so we dish about that as well.

One such friend, Peggy, has a thriving practice in southern California working with children with autism. All private clients. Peggy has incorporated a policy for new clients that I am seriously considering for my own practice.

I like this policy because it sets a tone of professionalism and a clear understanding of expectations from the start. Primarily the expectation that music therapy is a serious, research-based profession that works and that the work extends beyond what happens during the session.

So what is it??? (C’mon…I can’t spill the beans right away!!!)

The client doesn’t come to the first session. That’s right–the client is not present at all at the first session.

The first session is a sit-down between Peggy and the child’s parent(s). Not grandparent, not nanny, not friend’s mom. It’s with one or both parents (or primary caregiver). The child stays at home so Peggy and the parents can have a focused, uninterrupted talk.

The first session (and, yes, it’s a paying session) does involve a little of going over the policy’s of her business (e.g. cancellation, financial, etc.). But it’s more talking about music therapy–what it is, why it works, and how it works.

The idea is that, from the get-go, there is the expectation that this is a “serious” therapy that works. Peggy is not there to babysit the child or to “play music” once a week. If Peggy is going to work with and help this child, the parent needs to be on board and involved in treatment.

It also creates a communication channel from the beginning. Both sides get an opportunity to talk and ask question. Rapport is created and a working relationship has started. The parent leaves with a clear understanding of Peggy’s philosophy, treatment approach, and how this treatment will best help the child.

So…thanks, Peggy! I love learning new ways and strategies for improving how I serve my clients. I’m going to keep this in my back pocket for when I open my doors to private clients again.

Don’t Forget!

The 1st Annual Creative Arts Therapies Teleconference starts in two weeks! There’s still plenty of time to sign-up (a perk of running a teleconference, perhaps?). If you’re interested in signing up, or just want to check it out, click the pretty pink banner right here:

Related posts:

1. How To Start Your Private Practice: The Bare Necessities
2. The Traumatized Brain: Discover 3 Ideas that Will Change How You Work With Clients
3. Private Practice 101 (Week 5): The Paperwork