"Szifra Birke's coaching program has been one of the best investments I've made in my life as an entrepreneur. In fact, she helped me close a record level of business for me -- over $400,000 -- in just one day! I couldn't believe it!" Read more...

Steve Harrison, co-owner of www.FreePublicity.com, Radio-TV Interview Report (RTIR), and Million Dollar Author Club

Building a Private Therapy Practice

You can do well while you’re doing good!

Most of us practice therapy for the help it can bring to our clients, but we expect and need to make a living. What many therapists fail to realize is that they can build their practices so that they make a good living while helping even those at substantial financial disadvantage. If you’re ready to increase your income, we can help.

A therapy practice is a business

Business has rules of its own. If you don’t know and apply them you can get in big trouble quickly. We can walk you through the steps to structure a business plan that acknowledges the realities of business yet still reflects the integrity of who you are. You wouldn’t expect a client who had business experience to necessarily have your psychological understanding and insight, be aware of your actual level of business experience.

Easy path to a
successful private practice

Ten years ago, while I was daring to dream about having a successful private practice, seasoned therapists recommended that I call Szifra Birke. ''Why?'' I thought. And then I met Szifra and I knew. Private Practice is a business. Make no mistake about this. In addition to having an instinct for business management, you need information. Szifra has a wealth of it. She instills confidence as she presents with a style that is simple and easy to replicate. Just do what she says and you can't go wrong. Using the basics that Szifra provided, I launched a successful Counseling Practice. I have two office locations (Chelmsford and Newburyport), have experience hosting a local cable talk show, and am completing my first book entitled ''You Know What You Know.'' Szifra does it all and you can too.

Pandora Busfield, LICSW
Director Main Street Initiative

There’s an advantage to working with an experienced therapist who has built a number of practices

Szifra has done it and taught it for 30 years. Her current practice is strictly self-pay and thriving. She attracts enough inquiries that she regularly refers to others. And many of those she has coached have built strong practices with significant incomes.

And building a practice often brings up powerful feelings of insecurity and doubt, and reactivates unresolved family of origin issues. Szifra’s experience in financial behavioral counseling is a real asset to identifying the key issues and assisting you to find solutions that can work to free you up—ranging from taking limiting issues to your personal therapy, engaging in a short term, solution focused approach or devising a practical work-around with you. Many options are available and yours to decide on.

Some issues to address

Billing and fee concerns
How to attract clients
Do you need a website?
Phone and message solutions
Work by your self or share space with others?
Specialize with a certain population?

Next step?

The transition from fee for service, student or part-time practice can be anxiety producing. Creating a planning process before the change is important. Szifra can begin to consult with you at the earliest stages, help you prepare for the challenges you will face when you make the move, and assist you with the decision if the shift to practice privately is really right for you.