Therapist Private Practice Survey and Custom Report: Make More & Work Less
Did you know that according to Monster.com five of the top ten worst-paid jobs that require a master’s degree are in counseling and social work? We are required in most instances as part of our training to work for nonprofits and agencies for free or for well below the poverty level in many cases while going to school full-time. We learn what we “should” be doing as therapists and that often includes being overworked and underpaid!
But, what about solo or group private practice? Is it any better?
Private practice is the answer for many therapists and creates an option to work a sustainable, flexible schedule, and make a livable wage. They can consider paying off student loans, having a savings account, and maybe even owning a home. However, private practice is not all rainbows and butterflies, and as private practice business coaches since 2010, we’ve seen some distressing themes. In 2023, we decided to survey private practice therapists to find out what is really happening behind the curtain and put some stats together.
After almost 400 responses, on average, therapists in private practice plan to work 47 weeks a year, see 18 clients a week and charge $155 a session. Of course, there is a range in each of these areas with session fees ranging from $50-$300 in particular.
On average, therapists are working an extra 4.3 clinical weeks every year UNPAID by going over the session length clients paid for and not charging for that additional time. That translates to over $11k per year in lost wages.
When we add in the time spent procrastinating documentation therapists on average are working an extra NINE 32-hour workweeks UNPAID every year!
On average, not charging for no-shows and late cancellations per their own informed consent policy is costing therapists $5,500 a year.
What we’ve seen coaching clients, and what we saw when putting this data together is that small decisions add up over time. Many of us weren’t taught how to run a business or how to run numbers and it impacts our ability to have a sustainable business. Ultimately, this increases the rates of burnout, decreases wages for therapists, and leads to more therapists leaving the profession.
But is it just about the money and time?
While we believe that the lost money and time is reason enough to make some changes, the truth is this has a clinical impact. How many therapists are trying to teach clients how to set and maintain boundaries and communicate and talk about sticky topics while replicating that same pattern in the way we deal with money and boundaries in our private practices? If you can’t set limits or talk about money with your clients- what other conversations are you avoiding?
Would you like to get a little free coaching from us? For a limited time, we are making this survey and a free custom report available to you. Fill out a few questions about your solo or group private practice and let us calculate how small decisions are adding up for you. Sometimes just seeing the numbers can be enough to make it easy to make some changes.
Get Your Free Customized Private Practice Report to See Where You Should Focus
Are you ready to get your free customized report? Fill it out today, and get a custom report delivered right to your email. Be sure to click on the survey that is right for you- solo or group.
Fill out your free private practice report here if you have a solo practice or are an employee!
Fill out your free private practice report here if you own a group practice
Each report has some free resources to help you implement the changes you decide to make. We need more therapists just like you that are taken care of and that can continue to do this work without therapist burnout. You matter, truly. If you can’t keep doing this work while being underpaid and undervalued, you aren’t alone. it does NOT mean you don’t love your work.
Looking for some more support and not sure where to start? Click here to get started with zynnyme.
