How To Start A Holistic Health Private Practice

Written by Lori Kennedy

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January 11, 2016

What they taught you in school will help you be an awesome health practitioner, but a business owner? Not so much! Here is what I wish I'd known when I was first starting out.

by | Jan 11, 2016 | Wellness

When I first started my nutrition private practice I remember feeling on top of the world.  At the ripe age of 26 I finally felt like a grown up because I had my very own business with a website, brochure and business cards.

I had just graduated from my holistic nutrition program and the letters after my name – R.H.N. helped me to feel more confident and prepared. I was excited to help people overcome the same digestion hell that I’d gone through. Except their healing protocol wouldn’t have to include invasive tests and blanks stares from the Doctors who all told me there was nothing wrong with me except for a little acid reflux.

I wish I could find my first free seminar poster… it would give me a big laugh now.

No one showed up to my first 2 free seminars. The third time I held my free seminar my mom brought some friends. That wasn’t embarrassing at all!

Fast forward 8 years later… my webinars are always full and 300 people attend my 3-day annual live event. The best part of knowing HOW-TO start a holistic health practice that actually makes money is that I was actually making money.

In this article I’m going to share 5 steps that you can take right now to start your holistic health private practice so that you CAN coach as many people as you want AND make really good money without burning yourself out or going into massive debt.

Step 1: Pick A Niche & Dive In Deep

Birds of a feather flock together.

Who told you that you HAD TO BE everything to everyone? Who told you that in order to make money and serve you HAD TO SAY YES to everyone who wants your help? Who told you that you your business had to be a “general store” where you sold everything?

What do you want to be known for? How do you want people to talk about you?

Picking a niche market and diving in deep is not limiting your options or your ability to get clients.

How many women go through menopause, have anxiety and pack on the pounds?

How many men are diagnosed with high blood pressure and high cholesterol and are afraid of having a heart attack?

How many children have behavioral problems because they eat too much processed “health” foods?

How many couples suffer from infertility?

Unfortunately there are enough niche clients to keep you busy for decades. The fact that you don’t know how to get clients or make lots of money doesn’t mean they aren’t out there or that you can’t make money… all it means is that you don’t know how to do it yet.

Pick a niche. Enter the conversation they are already having in their heads. Create solutions for their problems. Put yourself in front of your ideal client constantly. It’s our responsibility to make sure they know about us… not the other way around.

Here are some ways to dive into the psychology of your ideal client so you can use their language to reach them.

  • Interview them and ask them what they struggle with, if there was a magic solution or pill what would it do for them, what challenges do they face now and in the past, how can you help them, what value would they put on that solution etc.
  • Read the magazines, blogs and newspapers written for your ideal client – note down any repetitive language, phrasing and themes used. Model them in your own writing and marketing
  • Participate in events with your ideal client – volunteer at charity events, attend seminars, go to networking groups, sit in the audience at lectures.

Step 2: Start Right Now.

Don’t wait for anything to be ready before you start your holistic health private practice.

You have a name – use that as your business name until you find the right business name (or better yet always use your real name – just brand different programs).

You have an email list – how long have you used email? How many contacts do you have on your personal email list that you could send a “hey, here’s what I’m up to now letter” too?

Remember to include a call to action in the email or letter – I have 5 openings this week for complimentary discovery sessions. Reply to this email and let me know if you’d like to schedule one.

The faster you start the faster you get to help people, bring in cash flow and grow your business. The cash flow can be re-invested back into your business to build your website.

Believe me, no one is going to say to you “I’m sorry you can’t help me overcome the painful acid reflux I’ve been having for months because you don’t have a business card and your website isn’t ready.”

Your clients won’t care about those things. Only you do and you are putting your focus and energy in the wrong spots. Your focus and energy should be on putting yourself in front of as many people as possible as quickly as possible.

Step 3: Create Program Option A and Program Option B

Would you like to get started with option A or option B?

Decision paralysis is a very real thing. Offering more than two ways to work with you is dangerous and will likely lead to no decision at all.

Start your holistic health private practice with two ways to work with you.

Option A: a short-term low priced option.

A 28-day program with a program fee under $200.

This is program should provide the basics. It’s your β€œjump-start” program that lays the foundation for the deep work you will do with you client when they’ve gotten to know, trust and like you.

Giving your potential clients an option to join a low price, short-term time period program alleviates the pressure of having to make a real commitment that comes along with making real (perceivable hard) changes.

Option B: a long-term higher priced option.

An 8 to 12 week program not less than $1000.

After clients go through your jump-start program they will want more. They want to continue to work with you and are now ready to dive in deep and create real and lasting change.

So you renew them and enroll them into your β€œsignature” program. This program is what you are known for and creates client transformations. It’s likely that some clients will want to start with this program which is why you offer them option A or option B in your enrollment conversation.

What do you talk about each week in your 12-week program?

Each week in the program you educate on a different challenge that your ideal client faces. Each week you only focus on ONE THING with one co-created goal.

You know what your ideal clients challenges are because you’ve spent time walking in their shoes. You’ve take care to dive into their psychology and build your holistic health practice around serving them.

Step 4: Ask For Referrals

Ohhh, the dreaded request for referrals. Here’s the deal… your mindset is holding you back.

You have a program that actually helps transform your ideal clients lives, why aren’t you proud to share it?

You have an ethical and professional responsibility to inform every single ideal client that is currently suffering that YOU have the solution for them.

Right?!

Keeping your greatness to yourself because you don’t want to bug anyone or feel β€œsalesy” is selfish and egocentric. It’s not about you… it’s about the hundreds or thousands of people you can help who don’t yet know you exist because you are too afraid to introduce yourself to them.

In my experience all happy clients would be thrilled to give you referrals – they just don’t think of it or know how to do it.

Give your clients a referral tool so they can become your unpaid sales force and refer you their friends. Remember birds of a feather flock together.

Go to Vistaprint.com and create a 5 x 7 recipe card or whatever type of card you know your ideal client would derive value from. The recipe cards are acting as a gift card but are less cheesy.

  • Add your business name, logo (if you have one), contact info
  • Recipe or useful content
  • Offer for a 60-minute discovery session
  • Client testimonials on the back
  • Offer for a 60-minute discovery session on the back
  • Contact info on the back

Give 10 of these cards to each one of your clients to keep in their purse, desk or briefcase etc. This way when they start talking about you they can pull out their referral tool and give value to a future client.

Step 5: Have An Irrational Amount Of Belief In Yourself

β€œStrength does not come from physical capacity. It comes from an indomitable will.” – Mahatma Ghandi

It’s scary to do something you’ve never done before. It’s frightening to put yourself out there in a way that opens you up to potential failure. You feel physically uncomfortable and vulnerable at the thought of self-promotion. Your fear is overwhelming and likely holds you back from playing full out.

I get it. I felt like that for a very long time.

I was able to change my mindset because I stopped thinking about my fears and my insecurities and started to think about my ideal clients suffering.

Whether or not I failed became irrelevant. Mixed in with my perception of failure was my intention to serve and be helpful. Why do you do this work? What lights a fire under your ass?

How many people like awake at night in pain because you are allowing your fear to hold you back… sitting behind your computer posting on Facebook, crossing your fingers and hoping for some new clients.

The only way you can fail is if you quit.

The only thing that’s holding you back from financial and personal success is your lack of belief in yourself.

Those of us who have figured it out, are making money and are hustling daily to serve our clients have a high level of irrational belief in ourselves that we must serve… that we must continue to get our message out there… there is no other choice or alternative.

No Plan B as I like to say.

The only way to push past fear is to start doing the very things you are afraid of. Do them a couple of times and they aren’t so scary anymore.

Didn’t find what you’re looking for?

Book a 15-Minute chat so we can assess where you’re at and what your needs are.

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26 Comments

  1. Linda Hoang

    I would like to start Holistic Wellness Clinic in Houston TX. Do you offer consulting service for start up business ?

    Thank you
    Linda

    Reply
    • Lori Kennedy

      Hi Linda,

      I’d encourage you to join our free Facebook Group to connect with thousands of other health practitioners starting their businesses too. Many of whom work in a clinic setting. We have The Wellness Business Academy which teaches health experts how to create a signature program that sells and the Launch it Like a Boss Mastermind which is a higher level coaching program. You can join the Facebook Group here: https://thewbh.com/tyhpo-fb

      Reply
      • XOLISWA NOTSHATI

        Hi Lori

        am planning on opening my Wellness Clinic but am not on facebook , so I can I be in touch with you?

        Reply
        • Lori Kennedy

          You can send an email to support@lorikennedyinc.com and we can answer any questions you may have from there. Tracy, Team LK

          Reply
    • Lansana Jabbie

      I would like to start a holistic business practice in Philadelphia. However, I don’t have fund to start now. What should I do to start. Should I seek yo be employed or start my own private holistic business?

      Reply
      • Lori Kennedy

        If you decide to start your own practice, you can still work part-time as you build your clientele. This is what many practitioners do until they can transition into their business full time. Tracy, Team LK

        Reply
  2. Mohammed. Rahim

    I am holistic Pratctioner and i wuld like to open my owne.let me know how to do it.M

    Reply
    • Lori Kennedy

      Great! Are you in my free online community? That’s a great place to start. You can join us here – thewbh.com/tyhpo-fb

      Reply
  3. James Maynor

    How much to start a holistic business

    Reply
  4. AngelikaHartmann

    I would like information about it. I carry a diploma in para psychology, natural health counseling and I am a certified Reiki practioner.
    I am also enrolled at the University of Sedona for my PhD in metaphysics.

    Reply
    • Lori Kennedy

      Great! Are you in our free Facebook Group, that’s a great place to learn a lot. thewbh.com/tyhpo-fb
      Also be sure to check out more on the blog and my podcast The Business of Becoming πŸ™‚

      Reply
  5. joanna

    Thank you for this! This is honestly the first info I can truly relate to upon starting my own health coaching business. Although I still have unanswered questions, this puts things more into perspective for me and a better understanding of beginning what my heart desires.

    Reply
    • Lori Kennedy

      I’m so glad you found it helpful! Thanks so much for taking the time to comment.

      Reply
  6. Lindsay

    Love this!!!! Thank you so much for sharing this. The Niche idea is perfect for me. I’m a Nurse Practitioner in Florida and started a blog about how I healed myself (Psoriasis, IBS, and joint pain). I’m now starting my own practice to do it in person. Thank you again = ) LindsaysHealthyLiving.com

    Reply
    • Lori Kennedy

      Yay! So glad it was helpful. Thanks for taking the time to comment. good luck with your practice!

      Reply
  7. olutola olajumoke mary

    Thanks so much for this writeup madam Lori. I felt as if you are relating to me when you talk about fear. God bless you abundantly

    Reply
    • Lori Kennedy

      Hi Mary! It’s Tracy from Lori’s team πŸ™‚ So glad it made sense to you, and thanks for the message!

      Reply
  8. Darilyn Derco

    Hi there,
    Do you still offer your Weight Loss Coach Training program? That includes the business in a box etc?

    Reply
    • Lori Kennedy

      Hi Darilyn, No that program is no longer offered. The only Done-For-You program we offer now is our Health Expert Newsletter. Thanks for the question πŸ™‚ Tracy, Team LK

      Reply
  9. Adina Verrett-Myles

    I thank you Lori for this information. This finally put in writing with a structure, the thoughts/plan I have been trying to figure out. I am glad wasn’t as off target as I thought. I just need to get out of my own way and put a choke hold on this fear. Thanks for sharing.

    Reply
    • Lori Kennedy

      Hi Adina, I’m so glad it helped! Just keep putting one foot in front of the other! All the best πŸ™‚ Tracy, Team LK

      Reply
  10. Rachel Adkinson

    I think my biggest hurdle getting started is figuring out where to host the event. What do you recommend? I’ve noted that free spaces cannot be charged and must be open to the public, rented spaces have their pitfalls and lock you into specific cost which may not be recuperated. And buying a place specifically for these retreats requires great knowledge of real estate and all the nuances of upkeep for a place I would prefer not to also be living within. I feel stuck

    Reply
    • Lori Kennedy

      Hi Rachel, If you’re looking to host retreats, you’re probably going to have to look at rented spaces. See if you can find one that will work with you on price, and perhaps negotiate a percentage of sales rather than a flat rate if you are worried about not filling your spots. When your events get larger, a flat rate will be ok. I hope that helps! Tracy, Team LK

      Reply
  11. Mz.Pat Busch

    Hello , Lori. just reading a few of your comments people have written to you, ( I really thinking about getting into this profession) ,I enjoyed reading all the women who are thinking about getting into this field and those that are all ready in the field. I’ll keep on reading hopefully ill get the answer I’m looking for,
    ( still not sure. Mz.Pat)

    Reply
    • Lori Kennedy

      Hi Pat, It’s a very rewarding profession! You can always reach out to practitioners to ask more questions, and some of them may be willing to help you with research. Hope that helps! Tracy, WBH Team

      Reply

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