We have had hundreds of requests by ACA members for a fairly simple form that we have shared with counselors and we think it may be a good idea to share with our blog readers. We recomment the Superbill. “Superbill” is a term for a billing format for the counselor who wants to handle billing [...]

Sometimes we just can’t take “no” for an answer. I’ve been told too many times, “You can’t do that!” Whenever I hear those words my oppositional-defiance surfaces…. in a positive way, of course. There have been times I have been told that a managed care or insurance panel is closed to counseling providers in my [...]

Networking is an excellent addition to a marketing plan. Successful counselors in private practice are very connected and involved with others in business, other helping professionals, clubs, organizations and societies.  This can be accomplished by joining local, state and national organizations like the local chamber of commerce, Kiwanis, toastmasters/toastmistresses, etc.  Start or join a practice [...]

Putting a monetary value on what we do in the counseling profession can be difficult. After all, we are caring professionals who want to help first and worry about money second. But, if you want to survive and even thrive in private practice, you will need to put a price on your work and collect [...]

During my practicum years, I remember my supervisor telling me the way to begin a session was to ask, “What brings you here today?” I thought this was a cool way to get a family started. She said to note who was the first to speak. When the five-year-old little daughter broke the silence with, [...]

Since our first blog in August, discussing what it takes to be successful in private practice, we have written other blogs about the counseling profession and private practice. However, upon further review we left out a discussion of a key component about success in private practice. There is an old business joke, “If you had [...]

The June 2010 edition of Psychology Today featured a series of articles on Serendipity. Although not the premiere professional journal for counselors, PT is always interesting, and each month they send it free to my waiting room at the office, good for waiting clients as well as reading material when there are a few minutes [...]

Every client a counselor sees offers a potential opportunity to expand a private practice.  The obvious way is for a satisfied client to recommend you to others.  Another way to expand your practice is through what we call “cross-pollination.”  Just as it is beneficial for plants to share pollen, it is beneficial for therapists and [...]