TRANSITIONING MY CANADIAN PRIVATE PRACTICE FROM IN-PERSON TO ONLINE COUNSELLING – YEAR FOUR | EP 05
I was getting really busy in my private practice, this was exciting, but I was starting to burn out. I had some tough decisions to make so that I could free up some time and energy.
However, nothing could have prepared me for a global pandemic and having to transition my Canadian private practice from in-person to online counselling.
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In This Episode
- Making the decision to focus on my private practice
- Getting back into the swing of things
- The change that COVID-19 brought on
- Embracing the world of online counselling
- Taking more risks
Making the decision to focus on my private practice
Going into the fall of 2019 I knew I couldn’t sustain the amount of work I was doing and I needed to cut down on the number of clients I was seeing each week.
In mid-November/December I made the difficult decision to leave my job at Dalhousie at the end of January 2020. I had after all moved to Halifax to start my private practice and that is what I needed to focus on and continue building that. In addition to this, I also needed to get to a point where I wasn’t feeling so burned out all the time.
‘It was a difficult decision to make because working for a university was my dream job, but having a private practice was my dream. And that was the reason I had taken so many risks in the years before, to build a private practice, and I knew I needed to spend time on it.’ – Julia Smith
Getting back into the swing of things
After taking some time off for a vacation, in February 2020, I settled back into work at the clinic for 3 days a week and I raised my rates a second time. I was seeing enough clients consistently and had grown my caseload so I was making enough money to pay my bills.
I also made sure that I had (and I still do) an emergency fund that could last me up to 6 months if I really needed it to. Things were feeling good, I was getting into a routine and the reduced client load made a huge difference. Then March 2020 happened.
The change that COVID-19 brought on
By the 3rd week of March, there was a notice that businesses would be closing down because of COVID. My last day of seeing clients in person, I needed to figure out how I was going to continue to counsel people.
‘Luckily, I had a few instances in my couple of years of counselling where I had been using online video counselling, but it was just a once-off, a couple of times.’ – Julia Smith
In a very short space of time, I had to make some crucial decisions and take some action steps:
- Which video platform was I going to use?
- Contact all my clients to let them know we can continue sessions
Jane App (use code: FEARLESS for one month free) is the long-term plan I settled on for my video platform, and it was at no extra cost! This was a huge weight off my shoulders because then my caseload started to decline. People didn’t want online counselling, they only wanted in-person counselling and others just decided that they were going to wait it out and continue sessions once everything was back to normal.
This was stressful, but luckily, I had that emergency fund. It also helped that for the last few years I had lived on a very frugal budget.
I could scrape by with paying my living expenses but I couldn’t afford the rent at the clinic anymore.
Embracing the world of Canadian online counselling
‘I could counsel people at home, I could potentially not have to pay rent, there is this possibility that maybe online counselling is here to stay, it’s not just something that’s going to happen for a couple of months till we all go back to work.’ – Julia Smith
In May 2020 I decided to try private practice on my own, online, and give up the space at the clinic. It was a really scary decision because I had become comfortable with working at the clinic, I got great referrals from them and my Canadian private practice grew while I was there. I had associated my success with working at the clinic.
It was however the only decision I could make; I couldn’t afford to do anything else. I had big plans, I wanted to have a group private practice and make some passive income, and had I stayed at the clinic, I wouldn’t be able to do that.
‘In a way, COVID pushed me to do something that scared me, but that was necessary.’ – Julia Smith
Embracing the world of Canadian online counselling
‘I could counsel people at home, I could potentially not have to pay rent, there is this possibility that maybe online counselling is here to stay, it’s not just something that’s going to happen for a couple of months till we all go back to work.’ – Julia Smith
In May 2020 I decided to try private practice on my own, online, and give up the space at the clinic. It was a really scary decision because I had become comfortable with working at the clinic, I got great referrals from them and my Canadian private practice grew while I was there. I had associated my success with working at the clinic.
It was however the only decision I could make; I couldn’t afford to do anything else. I had big plans, I wanted to have a group private practice and make some passive income, and had I stayed at the clinic, I wouldn’t be able to do that.
‘In a way, COVID pushed me to do something that scared me, but that was necessary.’ – Julia Smith
Connect With Me
Resources Mentioned and Useful Links:
Ep 04: How I Grew My Canadian my Private Practice – Year Three
Jane App – Book, chart, schedule, invoice, process payments, and run your whole practice online (use code: FEARLESS for one month free)
Sign up for my free e-course on How to Start an Online Canadian Private Practice
Learn about Julia’s Canadian private practice
Rate, review, and subscribe to this podcast on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Stitcher, Spotify, Amazon, and TuneIn.
About Julia
Julia Smith, MEd, RCT, CCC is a registered Counselling Therapist who owns a group private practice in Halifax, Nova Scotia. She is also the owner of Fearless Practice Consulting and hosts the Fearless Practice podcast. Through the Fearless Practice podcast, she provides invaluable insights and practical advice on starting and growing a successful Canadian private practice. Julia’s wealth of knowledge also extends beyond the podcast, as she provides personalized one-on-one consulting to therapists who are feeling burnt out and overwhelmed with their solo or group private practices. With Julia’s expertise, therapists can confidently navigate the complexities of owning a private practice and find work life – balance.
Julia also has written articles for the Canadian Counselling and Psychotherapy association. You can learn more at www.ccpa-accp.ca/blog/.
