The Side Hustle Struggle: How to Make Time for Your Private Practice

Many therapists dream of owning their private practice, but often find themselves occupied with a busy schedule. Here are some common objections therapists may have when it comes to building their private practice:

• “I don’t have enough time in the day”
• “I’m too busy with my current job”
• “I have too many family responsibilities”

While these concerns are valid, it’s important to remember that building your dream private practice is achievable with the right mindset and strategies. In fact, finding time in your day to work towards your goal can be easier than you think. In this blog post I will be discussing 5 ways to carve out pockets of time so you can start building your dream job today as opposed for waiting for “someday.”

How to Make Time for Your Private Practice Tip 1: Assess Your Current Schedule

Like many things, awareness is the first step to change. If you are feeling as if you have no time in your day to get anything done, I would encourage you to take a few days (a week if you can) to track what you are doing this way you get a clear picture of exactly what is occupying your time.

This can be a daunting task I know so try your best to find a way that makes it easy to do. For example: would it be best for you to set a notification to go off in your phone every 2 hours so you can log what you did during that time? Maybe you keep a blank grid available and fill it in during your meal times?

You might already be tracking your hours for work so for some this might be a natural extension. The key to this however is being honest with yourself so you can properly identify any time leaks. For example, when you get home from work and you watch ” a bit of TV,” is it 30 minutes or 3 hours?

Once you have an idea of what your days look like you, can see if there are any non-value activities that you can either delegate to someone else, do in a more efficient way, or best yet cut from your schedule entirely. Going back to our TV example: 30 minutes is a reasonable decompression break from a long day. 3 hours sounds a bit like numbing or avoidance and can probably be shaved down to allow time for a valued task such filling out your EIN paperwork or reading Alma reviews as a way to bill insurance.

Some other ideas would be, consolidating your errands/grocery trips into one big box store that has it all or using Instacart so you do not have to go to the store in person. Maybe you can carve out an hour of TV time to work on your marketing strategy. All these small moments add up and can be a valuable asset to getting your business off the ground.

How to Make Time for Your Private Practice Tip 2: Prioritize Your Goals

If you have been a follower of mine for any amount of time, you may have noticed that I use the word “values” a lot when I speak. This is coming from my ACT therapy background where I am a firm believer in curating our life in a way that best serves what we prioritize (or value) most.

Sometimes it’s a conscious choice like working towards building a dream job, other times it is unconscious like seeking comfort by binge watching Gilmore Girls with a pint of Haagen Dazs caramel cone ice cream.

At some point, it is going to be an asset to you to sit down with yourself (and maybe a journal) and reflect on what YOUR personal values are. This sounds easy at first, but when I first was asked this question, I noticed that a lot of the things I thought I valued were actually values of my parents, friends and society…not necessarily my own.

In order to determine which values were mine, I had to ask a series of “why” questions until I got to the root. I also was able to feel in by body what was a “yes” and what was a “no” based off of how expansive or contractive my muscles and heart got when talking about the value and its underlying why.

Once you have your values listed out, take a look at your daily activities (from your activity log earlier) and map out which activities align with your values and which do not. There are many opportunities on how to sort this. As an ACT girl, I enjoy using a Choice Point inspired worksheet and the Stephen Covey’s Time Management Matrix to determine which activities are urgent and important, and which can be delegated, eliminated, or postponed.

If you have dreams of building a private practice, it will be worth your time and energy to make any practice building activities a top priority. Know that there is a lot of set up work in the beginning, however once things get started there are ways to make task routine (and possibly even automated) so you do not have to have as much hands on time. I you have no idea where to start, scheduling a coaching session can help you develop an action plan to help get you started by mapping out the top priority activities so you are maximizing your limited time. Click here for more information on working with me via 1:1 business coaching.

If you are struggling to make building your practice a priority, it might be worth it to go back to your journaling and do some soul searching as to your “why” behind the practice as a way to build/find motivation. [Book Recommendation: Start with Why: How Great Leaders Inspire Everyone to Take Action]

How to Make Time for Your Private Practice Tip 3: Maximize Your Mornings

I personally have a love-hate relationship with this strategy.

As a mom, I often struggle with the everlasting debate of: do I sleep in (when Princess allows me to) or do I get up to get things done before everyone else wakes. Some days (like today as I am writing this post) I wake up early and get a head start on work this way I know something gets done for the day. Other days, rest and sleep take priority, or maybe even some self care TLC by reading a book uninterrupted.

To help make those early mornings run a bit smoother, I do my best to get as much done the night before as possible. For example, when, I was working the agency job and building my own practice on the side, I would do things like pre pack my bag, pick out clothes, and even prep case files the day before, this way I was ready to get up and work without distraction.

If you are building your practice, I highly recommend dedicating at least 2-3 mornings a week to getting some work done. You will be surprised how much can get done in 30 minutes when motivated and focused. Maybe get a jump start on organizing what phone calls need to be made to banks/government agencies in order to get your business off the ground (you can then make those calls on a lunch break or in between clients). Or you can spend some time going through Canva templates to create some social media posts.

My top pick, once you get the basics like a business structure, EIN, NPI, etc. out of the way…. start networking. No I do not mean have 6am Zoom calls with other therapists. I mean do research as to who would be a good “professional friendship” to cultivate. Send them an email inviting them to a virtual coffee later that week, or like their comments on social media with a smart interactive reply. There are many ways in this digital world to get yourself connecting with others before you ever meet in person. Use this to your advantage as networking is going to be a key ingredient in building your caseload fast.

Side Note: If you are not a morning person, be prepared to carve out some time at night. This might mean sacrificing watching MasterChef with your husband after the baby goes to sleep, or staying up even later after the house is snoring. Whatever time you end up doing it, finding 30 minutes to an hour each day to work on your business is going to be key to getting it off the ground while still maintaining the stability of the 9-5 job.

[Book Recommendation on how to balance the side hustle while working 9-5: Quitter]

How to Make Time for Your Private Practice Tip 4: Utilize Your Lunch Break (With Limits!)

PSA: Be sure if you are doing non work things on your break that you are clocking out and leaving the premises as to respect your jobs time appropriately!

In some situations, if you create something “on the job” even if it is your paid/unpaid lunch break it can be legally claimed as your works intellectual property.

You do not want to get fired for abusing their time. It is also important to show respect to the job that is currently paying the bills and funding your dream, so save your personal work for your personal time.

How to Make Time for Your Private Practice Tip 5: Incorporate Small Habits into Your Day

I know starting your own practice can be daunting, especially when you feel you have no time in your day to get things done. I promise you, it is worth the short term sacrifice in order to gain the long-term benefits of business ownership.

These time management and productivity tips do not need to happen over night (nor should that, that would just be overwhelming). Taking small steps towards your goal will create a strong foundation and build you a path towards a better tomorrow.

If you are unsure of where to start, one small habit to get into is breaking big items on your to-do list down into smaller tasks (remember SMART goals). For example, if you are looking to market your practice, what is something that you can do 15 minutes a day to get the word out that you are open for business? Post something to Facebook, outline a new blog post, send an email to your newsletter subscribers, are just a few ideas.

In addition, identifying and maximizing your most productive time of day and prioritizing tasks accordingly is a small but mighty habit. For instance, if you’re a morning person, tackle your most important tasks in the morning when you have the most energy. Alternatively, if you’re more productive in the afternoon or evening, schedule your most challenging tasks for that time.

Another habit is to maximize your productivity by eliminate distractions. Turn off your phone notifications during work hours, and close unnecessary tabs on your computer. It’s important to create an environment that allows you to focus solely on the task at hand.

Lastly, remember to take breaks throughout the day. Taking a five-minute walk or doing a quick stretch can help you refocus and increase productivity. By incorporating these small habits into your daily routine, you can optimize your time management and productivity.

Conclusion

If you’re feeling overwhelmed or unsure about finding time to build your private practice, remember that every small step counts. Whether it’s dedicating 10 minutes a day to networking or setting aside an hour on the weekends to work on your website, progress is progress.

Remember to track how you are currently spending your time and use that to assess what is top priority based of your values. Once you have that list handy, utilize mornings and any time chunk opportunities to chip away at practice building tasks.

I know there is a lot to do so remember that it’s important to also prioritize self-care during this journey. Taking breaks, practicing mindfulness, and seeking support from loved ones can help alleviate stress and prevent burnout.

Building a successful private practice takes time and effort, but it’s achievable. Don’t be afraid to reach out for help or guidance along the way. If you’re ready to take the next step, consider scheduling booking a session with a business coach, such as myself, who can provide personalized support and guidance to help streamline your practice journey. For more information on my coaching services/packages, click here.

Take it one step at a time. You’ve got this!