“We’re all different. That’s not a bad thing. It’s a good thing” – Caitlyn Jenner
I want you to tell me what makes you different, and what makes you stand out? Can you list at least 5 items, maybe 10? You need to be able to. As therapists, we all have certain overlapping traits most of us are engaging, people find us easy to talk with, we show empathy, kindness, and caring. But what makes you stand out in a crowd? Maybe you are from the South, have a ton of experiences with small children, or you never give up on people. Or maybe your courageous, patient, a lifelong learner, or introverted. Use the traits that are you and speak to clients using these skills.
I would argue that passion, commitment, and being consistent are foundational traits to our uniqueness. When my business partner and I set out to create our practice, we knew one of our core values was helping children, but more specifically, foster/adoptive children and their families. Ten years later, we are still serving this population. Our clients know that when they come in, our staff will “get them,” they know the language, the court system, the grief and loss that the system creates. They show an understanding and kindness that only people that have worked with this population know. Our clients feel heard.
As therapists, we hold heavy burdens for our clients, and if we can’t express our true selves, it hampers the healing of our clients. Clients are attracted to us because of who we are. Think about just how many clients you could see in a week or month. At most therapists that work full time tell me that they see between 20 to 30 clients weekly. When we market, we only need a few new clients at a time. The number of actual clients we need is not in the 100’s it’s only a small handful. That is why it is so important to be your true self to let clients know about you. Showing off your uniqueness helps clients decide if we are the right fit, and being ourselves allows us to see clients that we can really serve well.
Look at your why for you becoming a therapist, what is your passion, who do you want to help? What does your mission and values for your business, and how are you communicating those to your clients? Take a look at your web copy do you let your potential clients know what you are about? What about your blogs or newsletters? Write this copy as if you are speaking to your client right then. If you are more formal write that way, I tend to be less formal and more conversational. The bottom line is, just be you!
Here are a few questions to help get you thinking about your uniqueness.
What are your passionate about?
What activity do you do that you can lose track of time?
Name three values you have (quickly)
Name 10 things you love doing; then list the last time you did them.
After brainstorming for a while, take time to communicate that information to your clients, do not worry what others will think of you, or that “some” clients won’t like you; that is sort of the point. There are plenty of clients out there trust me on this; you just have to find a few that you get. Let me know who those clients are and how you serve them.
Check out also my video on You Are Unique; Embrace It