Building a Thriving Trauma-Focused Group Practice with Lauran
So you want to grow a private practice? Maybe even a group practice with therapists you’d actually want as colleagues IRL, not just in theory? Or perhaps you’re staring down the economic headlines, wondering if 2025 will finally be the summer your caseload goes from pleasantly full to crickets. These are the moments that either send us into a tailspin or, with the right mentorship and mindset, spark a whole new stage of our business adventure.
Enter Lauran, owner of Mindful Living Counseling Services in downtown Orlando, Florida. Lauran’s journey is the stuff private practice therapists daydream about. She’s grown from solo startup to full group (with a waitlist!), weathered economic turbulence with grace, and avoided the numbing burnout that so many trauma therapists come to expect as “just part of the job.”
Lauran joined Kelly Higdon for a heart-to-heart on the Private Practice Success Stories podcast, and wow, did she drop some gold for anyone who ever questioned if it’s possible to build a thriving practice that’s both profitable and, well, human.
Wherever you are on your practice-owning adventure, Lauran’s story will give you a roadmap, a reality check, and maybe even that nudge to trust your instincts (and your KPIs!). Ready to glean the lessons, and maybe steal a tip or two? Let’s dive in.
Lesson 1: There’s No Such Thing as a Typical Success Path
If you’re picturing Lauran’s journey as a smooth, upward climb, pause right there. Kelly sums up: “You may remember her as someone who started her practice from scratch, got it full with a wait list, then went and expanded into a group practice, then went beyond the couch.”
Was it all easy? Not even close.
“This is the biggest that it's been...because it's kind of ebbed and flowed here and there,” Lauran shared. “But, like, this is the biggest and the most full that we've been. And that's really exciting because, you know, with the economy and everything, things like how are we going to do what's going to happen? And we have just been steadily growing.”
Takeaway: Business growth isn’t linear. There are peaks, valleys, and zigzags. The key? Stay open to change and let your business evolve, often in ways you couldn’t have planned.
Lesson 2: Specialization Isn’t Just for Niche Marketing. It’s Your Reputation Multiplier
These days, therapists everywhere are worried about shrinking referrals, especially in private pay practices. But Lauran’s group practice has stayed steady, thriving, even amid the economic “doom and gloom.” Her secret? Specialization.
“We are highly specialized and we are known in the community now as being an EMDR specialized practice. And from all of the marketing and networking and everything that I learned from ZynnyMe, I have really made a name. Mindful Living is a name in the Orlando community for trauma informed care,” Lauran explains.
“...when someone's seeing a specialist and they know what they need and they know what they want, they, they are willing to pay the, the private pay cost because you know, we, we get outcomes. We...have amazing outcomes with our clients.”
Takeaway: Trying to stand out as a “generalist” is tough. Build your specialization and reputation until you become the go-to name in your community for what you do best (whether that’s EMDR, couples work, or post-grad existential dread).
Lesson 3: Ground Your Practice in Core Values (and Actually Live Them Out)
Many of us put “collaborative” or “learning-oriented” on our website, but Lauran’s built her group practice with values at the very core, guiding every decision, policy, and hire. Her focus? The “four C’s”: collaboration, communication, community, and continued learning.
“I really allowed these values, these core values, to inform my policies, my practices, and help me pick a therapist. And this was a learning curve... over time, now we have hired some of the best therapists. Lately I'm like, man, they just slid right in and they've taken off.”
She’s intentional about how those values show up: therapists are supported with in-house EMDR certification, ongoing training stipends, paid admin time, and genuine connection.
Takeaway: Define your values. Then, translate those values into concrete processes: hiring, scheduling, team meetings, and professional development. So your team (and your clients) feel the difference.
Lesson 4: Sustainable Growth Means Caring for Your Team’s (and Your Own) Wellbeing
If you’re building a trauma practice, you already know: capacity for heavy lifting comes from a foundation of robust therapist support and balance. Lauran shares that she keeps her own client caseload intentionally light, so she can be available to mentor her team and troubleshoot issues without getting burnt to a crisp.
“My team also, in terms of their own kind of balance, is they... get paid to come to the meeting, so they get their admin fee to come to the meetings... They work 25 clinical hours per week, and then you add on their admin time that I pay, I pay a certain amount of admin time per week too... I don't want to be under fire. Leaders don't make good decisions when they feel super stressed out.”
And it’s not just about the schedule. New hires are walked through policies and procedures with personalized mentorship and support from a clinical lead until they’re ready to fly solo.
Takeaway: Don’t just preach self-care and balance for your clients, build it into your business and your policies for your whole team (and yourself). A thriving practice is about outcomes and sustainability.
Lesson 5: Use Data (and Heart) to Prevent Burnout
What’s the secret to keeping a team of trauma therapists inspired? Regular check-ins, clear KPIs, and - surprise! Relationship. Each quarter, Lauran meets with her clinicians to review progress, not as a punitive “performance” thing, but as a chance to nurture their growth and stoke their passion.
“We look at their client list, and we look at everybody who's been with them for a long time, people who've dropped out, people who've dropped down, all these different scenarios. And then we explore, like, who are these clients that you love working with?... So that they stay inspired, they stay engaged, they stay excited...As soon as you fill a caseload full of clients that they don't feel like they're making an impact, they're going to burn out.”
She also asks about the cases that are stretching their skills or confidence, so supervision and support can be tailored, and burnout kept at bay.
Takeaway: Your process for checking client outcomes and supporting clinicians isn’t just a business add-on; it’s the heart of lasting, rewarding therapy work.
Lesson 6: Mutual Terminations and Outcome Conversations Are Gold
Here’s a KPI you’ve probably never tracked: mutual terminations. Lauran’s therapists aim for at least 70% of clients to mutually terminate, with a preference for 85%. Why? Because dropout (vs. mutual graduation or referral) almost always hints at something missing, often, a missed opportunity for honest outcome conversations.
“We measure mutual terminations...it tells us a lot about the therapeutic relationship. And if people are dropping out, they're calling between sessions, they're just, you know, not coming or whatever. There is something missing... One of the ways that we plan for that or problem solve for that is we have outcome questions. We have reg. We regularly ask, How's therapy going? What's working, what's not working? How do you feel like you're doing towards your goals?”
This isn’t just about “checking the box.” It’s about creating a space for real feedback, so clients can say what’s not working, clinicians can pivot, and therapy gets more effective (and less lonely, for both therapist and client!).
Takeaway: Build honest, regular feedback loops into your practice. Ask ‘How’s it going?’ and be ready for the answer.
Lesson 7: Hire for Fit (Not Just for Resume) and Trust Your Gut
As group practice grows, so does the challenge of hiring the right clinicians. Lauran learned the hard way that finding a good fit is more art than science, and it’s as much about feel as credentials.
“There are the questions that you ask and you want the answers to...But it really, I think it boils down to feel honest for me in an interview, it is to me, like, how does this person feel in the room?... Am I able to stay focused? Because I interviewed one person one time, and I was like, Why do I keep dissociating in this interview?”
Lesson learned: if something feels off, trust that. Secure, engaged clinicians make secure, engaged client relationships.
Takeaway: When hiring (or joining!) a group, trust your embodied sense of connection, not just the resume.
Lesson 8: Old-School Collaboration Still Works (and Is Great Marketing, Too)
If you’re fretting about fancy SEO or hacking ChatGPT for more referrals, Lauran’s advice is refreshingly old-school: be part of your clients’ treatment team. Reach out to physicians, referral sources, and other providers to share updates and graduation news. Not only is this good care. It’s the original (and best) relationship-driven marketing!
“Collaborate with these other clients’ providers, reach out, ask how it's going, how you can support them...That outreach in and of itself has yielded so many people referring to my practice, because they know that we care, we're involved....”
And the best part? This approach stands the test of time, no algorithm tweak required.
Takeaway: Nurture your professional community. Clinical best practices double as referral generators.
Ready to Build Something That Lasts?
If there’s one theme to Lauran’s journey, it’s this: the best practices for clinical care are also the best practices for business growth. Focus on specialization, real support for your team and clients, honest outcome conversations, community relationship-building, and living your values out loud, and everything else will fall into place (even ChatGPT referrals!).
Lauran’s practice, Mindful Living Counseling Services, is proof positive that you CAN build a trauma practice that’s noticed in your community, full (even in a tough economy), and genuinely rewarding for your team.
If you want more info, inspiration, or some of that EMDR-specialized fairy dust, check out Mindful Living Counseling Services.
Feeling ready to step into the next chapter of your own practice? Get the roadmap Lauran (and hundreds of others) used: Business School for Therapists. It’s the step-by-step program that takes you from overwhelm to stability, with community, clarity, and a healthy dash of joy.
Here’s to building your own success story: one value, one outcome conversation, one true-fit hire at a time.
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Go out there and make it happen. Your future self and your future team will thank you!
