Description
Dave Verhaagen and Frank Gaskill and their colleagues at SoutheastPsych in Charlotte have built a creative and successful clinical practice that could be the envy of any private practitioner. Influenced by their core values of FIRE (Fun, Innovation, Relationship, and Excellence) the authors describe their experiences of creating a group practice of more than 30 clinicians, all with full clinical caseloads, working completely outside of managed care. Written in a reader-friendly and personal style, the authors provide a perspective and framework that you can adapt to create your own unique dream practice. Unified and strengthened by a clear mission, values, and culture, SoutheastPsych has flourished much more than Verhaagen and Gaskill had ever dreamed. They hope that How We Built Our Dream Practice: Innovative Ideas for Building Yours will do the same for you.
Verhaagen and Gaskill have written a charming and easy-to-read book, based on their own first-hand experience, on how to create a dream practice and make it a reality. If you are expecting a book on billing, record keeping, scheduling software, and lease agreements, then this isn’t the book for you. However, if you might be interested in considering how one actually builds their dream clinical practice, then this little gem will inspire you! I found the authors’ vision, passion, bold and creative ideas, and audacious style contagious. It’s a must-read book that challenges traditional thinking about designing a clinical practice and creating a professional future infused with your heart and soul and core values. Steven I. Pfeiffer, PhD, ABPP, Professor at Florida State University and Licensed Psychologist
Read the introduction here (click arrow to expand)[expand]
We were in Orlando for the American Psychological Association’s national convention with a bunch of the Southeast Psych staff. One evening, we had booked a reservation for a big table at a restaurant in town called Café Tu Tu Tango. We had no idea what to expect. What we got was something memorable and remarkable. Not only was the food unique and outstanding, but the experience was unlike any other restaurant. Within a few minutes of being seated, an African drummer with a booming voice and two dancers in traditional African dress paraded beside our table, chanting and yelling and singing at the top of their lungs. A belly dancer worked the other side of the restaurant. A fortuneteller sat at a table near the back, delivering good (or bad) news to the patrons. An artist in residence was painting near the center. The entire place pulsed with energy. It was unlike any restaurant experience we had ever had before. It was so good, in fact, that we both took our families back to it on other trips.
When was the last time you were not just impressed by a business, but wowed by it? It happens so rarely that when we experience it, it jolts us. We take notice. Remember the first time you saw an Apple Store? Have you ever been to a Disney theme park? What about the time you stayed at a hotel that was so amazing you didn’t want to leave?
There are lots of very good businesses, but there are only a few that are truly something special. These organizations deliver great services or products, have top-notch customer relationships, and offer a special experience that is incomparable to others in their field. They may spawn competitors who try to duplicate their model, but rarely with the same success. These companies are simply remarkable.
It doesn’t matter what profession we are talking about, nearly every business has the opportunity to be something remarkable. It could be a car dealership or a clothing store or concert venue. All of them have the chance to be extraordinary.
So if there can be awesome businesses in any field, when was the last time you saw a counseling or therapy practice that you would say was amazing? Not just a place with good therapists or nice offices, but something that was truly remarkable? Probably never.
And why not? Why couldn’t there be a practice that blew you away, that far exceeded your expectations? Why couldn’t there be a practice so remarkable that clients became fiercely loyal to it and other clinicians longed to be a part of it?
That’s what this book is about. It’s not about the mechanics of running a traditional private practice. It’s about a framework for building a dream practice. It’s about how to do something truly special. Something remarkable.
Our hope is to inspire you to new ways of thinking so you can build your own dream practice. In this book, we draw from our experiences in starting Southeast Psych in Charlotte, North Carolina. We hope to inspire you, challenge you, and stir you to action. We hope to push you beyond your fear to build something amazing—something that exceeds your wildest dreams.
Dave Verhaagen and Frank Gaskill
Charlotte, NC [/expand]
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