Ask Tamara . . .

Are you thinking about leaving your current place of employment to venture into private practice on your own?  If so, you may share Barbara Salkewicz‘ concern.  Barbara is a Licensed Professional Counselor in Brick, New Jersey who wrote me earlier this month.  She says . . .

Hi Tamara,

Hope this note finds you enjoying a great summer! Once again thank you for all the generous advice and information you give to all of us. I have been doing preliminary planning to start my own practice for some time now awaiting the alignment of the planets so to speak.

Well, recently I was offered an office to rent in a local psychiatrists office for a very nominal fee. This fee includes not just the office space but her staff for appointments and billing etc. My question is what is the most appropriate way of letting my current clients know that I am starting my own practice.

I am currently on vacation and would like to get things moving as I am sure a good portion of my clients will follow me and I would naturally like to have this base to start with. I have been experimenting with various letters but would value your input tremendously.

Thanks so much for your help!”

How wise of you to leverage the relationships that you currently have with your clients!  It’s the honorable and right thing to do.  According to the American Counseling Association, your employer does not have the relationship with your clients; you do!

Barring any non-compete clause that you may have signed with your employer, you have every right to take your clients with you.  One of the best ways to do this is to send out a celebratory announcement to each one of them with the details of your transition.  What that may look like is this:

Barbara X is please to announce the opening of her new private practice . . .

Location:  4452 South Edgewood Terrace, Fort Worth, TX 76039

Telephone:  817-446-6869

Hours:  Monday – Thursday
9 a.m. – 5 p.m.

New Clients & Referrals Welcome!

And, even better . . . follow up your big announcement by hosting an fabulous open house – inviting your friends, colleagues, and potential referral sources – to meet the psychiatrist you will be sharing an office with and to show off your great new location, too!  (On Thursday, I’ll be talking with you about how to host a flawless open house.)

If you’ve already taken the leap to move into private practice, I hope you’ll take a moment to share your experiences and how you handled letting your clients know that they were welcome to follow you to your new office.