Episode 32: 3 Keys to My Success as a Private Practice Nurse Practitioner

Mindset is the first step to growing your practice. Marketing your practice for growth. Customizing your programs and packages. Knowing your money. Engaging and maintaining your A-team.  Do not miss these highlights: 01:11 How having the right mindset can keep you going for the long game.  06:58 Letting people know who you are, what you do, why you do what you do, and having them connect with you before you get in the office is a tremendous benefit for you.   07:55 You’ll be getting more patients from the internet itself. If you want to build your practice quickly, if you want to move your practice along that growth path quickly, you need to market it. 09:17 Why you need both an Ala Carte service and a package service.  10:15 Why understanding how to structure your payment options and understanding how you talk to clients about payment are important. 11:11 It's our responsibility to talk about the benefits and the risks. Offer your clients three options - a low, middle, and a high. 12:46 Your team all has to be willing and able to go after the same goal that you are. Resources MentionedJoin Us in the FMBI Mastermind Group on Facebook.  You can find the Group at https://www.facebook.com/groups/5461914567153276/

What is a sales funnel? How do you build a sales funnel? Why is this important for medical practices to have one? We'll be answering all those questions and more in today's video. Watch now for a rundown of sales funnels for beginners and how to develop a sales funnel strategy. Do not miss these highlights: 01:02 What is a sales funnel? How it can help grow your business, get you noticed,  and make you an authority in the functional or integrative medicine space 2:39 How to put in place the first step which is awareness, which is sharing your information/content with consumers using writing, short videos, podcasts 06:18 Using the internet as the next piece of your sales funnel 07:06 Whenever you deliver the content, you need to capture something 10:08 Consideration in sales funnel will have you thinking about what are you going to provide them once you have captured their contact information 10:51 3 free informational emails and then 1 ask 13:36 Constantly tweaking that sales funnel so that you can get it so that it's producing without you 14:46 Sales funnel - Intent and Content marketing funnel - what are the difference 16:59 Importance of walking your client through their journey, and what that look through their eyes is huge in how you actually get clients and keep them in your ecosystem so that you don't lose them Resources Mentioned Join Us in the FMBI Mastermind Group on Facebook.  You can find the Group at https://www.facebook.com/groups/5461914567153276/

Setting boundaries is the key to a successful business. It is necessary to maintain your sanity, personal life, and growing your business. Don't get caught up in shiny object syndrome. Do not miss these highlights: 01:02 Why we struggle in setting boundaries and why we should set those boundaries 03:28 Sometimes God derails us because we're going in the wrong path 04:22 It's very easy to get pulled away by every little opportunity that comes your way, and if you don't have good boundaries, it's very easy to get pulled everywhere 05:38 Part of being not in the right direction is our own doing and our own fault, because we're not staying true to what we had set up originally 07:23 Make sure you set enough boundaries - Know what your boundaries are - Stick to those boundaries 08:18 If you struggle with boundaries, start with something small 10:11 Your business will surely grow 10 times faster if you stick to that boundary Resources Mentioned Join Us in the FMBI Mastermind Group on Facebook.  You can find the Group at https://www.facebook.com/groups/5461914567153276/

Have you created a pricing strategy for your business? Spending time planning for pricing structure is key to the success of your business. Don't give up your business if you are changing your strategy think about selling it.  Do not miss these highlights: 02:00 It's important for you to identify what bucket (ticket) you're going to be in because this is how you attract your ideal client.  03:56 Nailing your pricing strategy is important - Product pricing strategy determines many different things. 06:25 In our practices we're charging for time.  08:03 Package prices ideas. 10:19 If you have a team, especially when you start doing higher ticket items, it's best for you to have a ‘Closer’ - somebody else in your team who can talk money and can explain programs to the patients. 13:30 Start thinking about pricing, you need to make sure that you're looking at the pricing structure of what you're selling. 15:45 Just because there are hard times doesn't mean that your practice still can't grow. 16:39 The red flags in pricing that will create problems for you.  Resources Mentioned Join Us in the FMBI Mastermind Group on Facebook.  You can find the Group at https://www.facebook.com/groups/5461914567153276/

How do you get and stay motivated after being in practice a while? How do you connect with people? How do you learn and grow? Dr. Deb shares key ideas on how to keep yourself motivated.  Do not miss these highlights: 01:28  It's a challenge for all of us to keep learning, keep expanding our knowledge and get fresh ideas into our practice.  04:34 Regardless of the size of the business, regardless of how many people you have…we all suffer from the same concerns and problems in our business. 05:53 Recognize that how something presents on the outside is not exactly what's happening on the inside of that practice.  06:49 If you've been in practice for a while, and you're getting bored, you're getting burnt out, it's time to start finding something that will reignite you, something that will excite you. 09:16 Find a way to connect and learn with other people.  Resources MentionedJoin Us in the FMBI Mastermind Group on Facebook.  You can find the Group at https://www.facebook.com/groups/5461914567153276/

What is accountability? Accountability means being responsible and being able to follow through with what one is supposed to do? In business, accountability is important to grow your practice. But the type of accountability is determined by the leader. What type of leader are you? Ignore and hope, the heavy-handed leader or are you genuine and you share goals and ideas with your team so everyone wins?  Do not miss these highlights: What is accountability in business and how does it make you feel?Heavy-handed approach.How you choose to address your team creates your corporate culture, it’s important to consciously decide what kind of corporate culture you want.Hands-off model, the leaders just pretend they don't see the problems or the issues going around going on around them or they're just too busy and they don't want to see them.How to talk to a team member about a situation that is not going so well.Accountability actually starts with the leader sharing their vision for the company and explaining to the team what winning looks like for the business and everyone.Opening up this dialogue and conversation, your team can help identify who's the best person to do something, what's the best fit for things? How do we process this? How do we accomplish this?You can not do it all, the importance of building a team. Resources Mentioned Join Us in the FMBI Mastermind Group on Facebook.  You can find the Group at https://www.facebook.com/groups/5461914567153276/ Transcript of Episode #36: 0:01You're listening to the Functional Medicine Business podcast featuring Dr. Deb, one of the most creative functional medicine business practitioners in her industry. She shares the wisdom and knowledge that she has gained over 25 years of functional medicine, a pioneer in functional medicine, scheduling, leadership and Practice Management. Dr. Devin has a wealth of knowledge and he's eager to share to help functional medicine become more productive, and for the practitioners and patients to live better lives. Our podcast shares the good and the bad of our industry. Because Dr. Deb knows the pain you live every day building a functional medicine practice with practical tools of how to manage money, taxes and patient care. She will discuss it all with you. 0:54Hello, welcome back to Functional MBI podcast. I'm your host, Dr. Deb, and I'm really excited to be with you here today. I hope everyone has done their halftime homework from last week. And I would love to hear where you're at with planning your second half of 2022. So if you haven't shared this in our social media, please do that. I'm excited to see what everyone's working on and would love to help in any way that you may need it. Today's show is about accountability. Everyone's favorite topic, right? What is accountability? Anyway, I think there's a lack of clarity around what accountability is, and what it looks like in business. You know, the word accountability is thrown around a lot. And it's used in different ways. And there's lots of emotions that come up with that word accountability, you might feel really excited or nervous about this word, because of what it means for you. And if you have had accountability in your business, or your team before, will completely determine how the word accountability makes you feel. You see from a personal experience, I have felt a little conflict around this word at various times in my life. I need to be accountable to my team, my patients, my family and my business partners. And I also want my team members to be responsible for their duties and accountable in business accountability relates to how we express ourselves how we communicate with our team and successfully get things done in practice. 2:40There's several different approaches to how to create accountability with your team. One of the approaches is called a heavy-handed approach. And some people say in order to be a good boss, you have to be kind of a jerk.

Where is your business at for 2022? Have you reached your goals? What changes are necessary to hit a grand slam for 2022? Dr. Deb inspires you to look at your goals, reset them or pivot to cross the finish line strong. Do not miss these highlights: 01:02 We are halfway through 2022, this is a great time for you to be evaluating your success in your business.  03:27 Figuring out how to reach your goals.  07:50 Add additional services and have some team members that want to expand into a different market area.  11:12Make sure that you’re implementing what you’re doing, and you’re training your entire team. So they're successful with what we're doing as well.  11:50 Assess your practice, and figure out where you are and what you want to accomplish for 2022. 14:13 Think about creative ways that you can help your clients out during these difficult times. Resources Mentioned Join Us in the FMBI Mastermind Group on Facebook.  You can find the Group at https://www.facebook.com/groups/5461914567153276/ Transcript of Episode #35: 0:01You're listening to the Functional Medicine Business podcast featuring Dr. Deb, one of the most creative functional medicine business practitioners in her industry. She shares the wisdom and knowledge that she has gained over 25 years of functional medicine, a pioneer in functional medicine, scheduling, leadership and Practice Management. Dr. Devin has a wealth of knowledge, and he's eager to share to help functional medicine become more productive. And for the practitioners and patients to live better lives. Our podcast shares the good and the bad of our industry. Because Dr. Deb knows the pain you live every day building a functional medicine practice with practical tools of how to manage money, taxes and patient care. She will discuss it all with you. 0:54Welcome back to the show. I'm Dr. Deb. Hey, everybody, It is halftime. And what do I mean by that? You know, it's been a tremendous year, but we are halfway through 2022. And this is a great time for you to be evaluating your success in your business. Are you at a place in your business that you thought you would be at by the middle of 2022? If not, let's assess what's happened, what's gotten in the way, what's preventing you from moving forward, or maybe you are killing it. And 2022 is your year, like this has been the best year your business is growing, it's busy, you're making connections with people, doors are opening clients are flooding to you. And if that's the case, you rock to you guys, you guys are awesome. But if you're struggling a little bit, and you're halfway through the year, and 2022 just isn't quite what you wanted it to be. This is a great time to reassess your business and say, Okay, this is where I had hoped I would be by the end of June 2022. But I'm not. So what have I done in the first half of 2022? That's been successful? What have I done that's gotten in the way of me not reaching my goals for 2022? 2:29And then we want to sit back and we want to say, Okay, if something has gotten in the way, what is that? And how do I change it? This isn't a time where you just sit back and you say, Okay, I didn't meet the goal that I wanted to, you know, I thought I'd be billing or collecting a half a million dollars a year so far. And I'm only doing 250 or 175. So now I'm gonna adjust and I'm on track for a different figure by the time the end of 2022 comes. No, we're not in that game space anymore. We are looking at that goal and saying if our goal is to make half a million dollars a year, and you're only a quarter of the way there by the end of June, what do we need to put in place, so you're closer to reaching that half million dollar goal or whatever that dollar figure is for you. This isn't a time that we just sit back and we accept what we've got. This is the time that we forge forward, and we make a plan. And we figure out how we're going to reach that goal.

How to retain employees? Setting up a wellness program and encouraging them to learn about health and wellness. Empowering your employees to take care of themselves will improve your business.  Do not miss these highlights: 01:58 The three advantages of giving incentives to your employees. 02:48 The reasons to promote well-being in the workplace - Increase productivity and motivation - Bring teams together and build morale - Decrease work-related stress. 05:53 A great way to start a wellness strategy is by slowly rolling out your ideas so that your employees won't even realize that you're starting to initiate this wellness program. 07:19 Encourage work-life balance- Let them take downtime. 11:31 Encourage your employees to get up from their desks, move around and take breaks - Have them get up, walk around and talk to somebody. 12:45 The ideas of workplace initiatives - You could have an official wellness program, have healthy food be brought in, and allow them to take advantage of any of the things you have in the Office for free. 14:57 How to encourage your employees to exercise. 16:55 Offer them flexible hours - It helps to reduce burnout. 18:46 You could also pay for courses for them. Educate your staff, the more educated your staff is, the less work it actually is for you.  19:16 Look at their nutrition and eating habits.  21:32 Look at their emotional well-being and distress, so your employees can promote health, healthiness and happiness. Resources Mentioned Join Us in the FMBI Mastermind Group on Facebook.  You can find the Group at https://www.facebook.com/groups/5461914567153276/ Transcript of Episode #34: 0:01You're listening to the Functional Medicine Business Podcast featuring Dr. Deb, one of the most creative functional medicine business practitioners in her industry. She shares the wisdom and knowledge that she has gained over 25 years of functional medicine, a pioneer in functional medicine, scheduling, leadership and Practice Management. Dr. Devin has a wealth of knowledge and he's eager to share to help functional medicine become more productive. And for the practitioners and patients to live better lives. Our podcast shares the good and the bad of our industry. Because Dr. Deb knows the pain you live every day building a functional medicine practice with practical tools of how to manage money, taxes and patient care. She will discuss it all with you. 0:54Welcome back to the FMBI podcast. I'm your host, Dr. Deb. And today I want to share with you wellbeing initiatives for your workplace for 2022. You know, I can't believe that we're halfway through the year already. There's so much time left, but yet there's not so much time left, right. I mean, it's it's crazy how quickly the year goes. And before you know it the years off and half the things we wanted to accomplish in the year for our business we haven't done. So what I want to talk about is investing in workplace wellness. You know, if you've been looking for a employee, and you have been hiring, you totally understand the problem that we're in right now with being able to hire quality employees, people that actually show up and want to work. And everybody wants way more money than what most of us can afford for the positions we're hiring these days. So it's getting harder and harder to find those quality people. So I want to talk a little bit today about incentives that we can do to one encourage people to join your practice to invest in your people so that you create an environment that they don't want to leave. And three, it helps to reduce reduce the stress within your office, which just makes it a really great environment for everybody if there's less stress, your research has shown that there are many reasons why workplace wellness pays back. And of course, we can actually put a number to that. But studies are very clear that there is a good ROI on investment into your team once they gain bett...

The experience that your client/patient goes through at your office can make a difference between attracting and maintaining a client. Does your client see a nice clean and polished office, nice staff or crabby staff? Do they hear gossip and rude conversation or is your staff wonderful and engaging about health and wellness? Take a tour of your office through your client's eyes. Really pay attention to the details because we overlook them often. What digital footprint are you leaving behind? Do you have social content in multiple forms; video, blogs, pictures, and social posts? Do you educate your clients or are you always looking to get paid for your knowledge? Let people get to know you before they book an appointment with you by being on video. According to Google if you are trying to sell a high-ticket item people need to spend at least 7 hours with you. Do not miss these highlights: 01:17 It was the outside that gave that first impression, so it’s important to pay attention to the look and the ambiance of the building. 04:27 It’s very important for us to plan the experience that we want our clients to have instead of just leaving it to chance. 07:04 Make sure there's a very clear call to action even on your social media. 10:18 So it's really important to make sure that you have content out there, that's helping you connect to people. You need to consistently be producing content. So people know you love you. And like you. And they trust you. 11:43 Have a dabbling of things on every platform, so if one goes down, the other one can stay active, and you can pivot quickly. 13:05 Make sure that your client's journey is fully on digital assets as well. Resources MentionedJoin Us in the FMBI Mastermind Group on Facebook.  You can find the Group at https://www.facebook.com/groups/5461914567153276/ Transcript of Episode #33: Debra Muth 0:01You're listening to The Functional Medicine Business podcast featuring Dr. Deb, one of the most creative functional medicine business practitioners in her industry. She shares the wisdom and knowledge that she has gained over 25 years of functional medicine, a pioneer in functional medicine, scheduling, leadership and Practice Management. Dr. Devin has a wealth of knowledge and he's eager to share to help functional medicine become more productive, and for the practitioners and patients to live better lives. Our podcast shares the good and the bad of our industry. Because Dr. Deb knows the pain you live every day building a functional medicine practice with practical tools of how to manage money, taxes and patient care. She will discuss it all with you. Debra Muth 0:55Welcome back to the Functional MBI podcast. I'm your host, Dr. Deb. And today I want to talk about what journey does your potential client go through? You know, I think it's important for us to consider the experience that our clients go through when they're spending time and money with us. So from time to time, what we'll actually do in my practice, is walk through the journey of the client, literally from driving into the parking lot. Looking around our parking lot, what do they see? How does our parking lot? Look? Is it inviting? Is it dirty? Is their garbage sitting around? Do we have dead plants in our area around the building? Is there paint coming off of the building? Do we have Miss painted areas? What is our signage look like? Is it visible? Is it faded? Is there a tree branch hanging in front of it? So I think it's always important to look at every little one of these aspects. Now for many of us, we think this doesn't make a big deal for patients or clients. But I will tell you, it makes a huge first impression. So when you have that first impression of your business, and it's shabby and dirty, and there's no place to park, patients notice that. Debra Muth 2:19When I started out, I was in a building that was very old. And when you walked into the lower level,

What do you need to know before starting a private practice? Know your numbers, and talk to experts that understand the business better than you. Does it matter if I am an NP, DO, MD, DC can I start a private functional medicine practice? Anyone with a license can start a private practice. How do I prevent embezzlement in my practice? Manage your money carefully and be on top of where your money is going.  Do not miss these highlights: 01:26 How Dr. Deb started her own private integrative medicine practice 12 years ago. 02:44  It takes a huge leap of faith to be able to go into private practice for yourself. Have faith in yourself and trust that you can learn absolutely anything you put your mind to.  04:49 Private practices are up 6% since COVID, just in the first quarter of 2022 patients want to see per providers in private practice.  05:30 Don't be afraid to ask people that are experts - Ask people around you for their guidance, ask questions so you understand what you're doing and what you're liable for. 09:43 You can get more people in faster and have more money in your practice by not having that long waiting list. 11:04 If you build a good reputation, spend time with your clients and get them results, more people will come because word travels.  11:43 Don't niche down your market so narrowly that your patient population is limited. 12:12 Find your ideal client.  13:40 Know your numbers - You have to know the financial health of your practice, your numbers tell the health of your practice. Resources Mentioned Join Us in the FMBI Mastermind Group on Facebook.  You can find the Group at https://www.facebook.com/groups/5461914567153276/ Transcript of Episode #32: 0:01You're listening to the Functional Medicine Business Podcast featuring Dr. Deb, one of the most creative functional medicine business practitioners in her industry. She shares the wisdom and knowledge that she has gained over 25 years of functional medicine, a pioneer in functional medicine, scheduling, leadership and Practice Management. Dr. Deb has a wealth of knowledge and he's eager to share to help functional medicine become more productive, and for the practitioners and patients to live better lives. Our podcast shares the good and the bad of our industry because Dr. Deb knows the pain you live every day building a functional medicine practice with practical tools of how to manage money, taxes and patient care. She will discuss it all with you. 0:54Welcome to the Functional Medicine Business Podcast, FMBI. I'm your host, Dr. Deb and today's episode is the three keys to my success as a private practice nurse practitioner, we're going to talk about those exact three key steps to building a private integrative medical practitioner. So if you're a nurse practitioner, naturopath, physician, chiropractor, or do who is interested in starting their own medical practice, these tips are for you. Keep watching. I started my own private integrative medicine practice about 12 years ago, after I left another practice, I was an owner in this other practice by wanted to create a practice that shared like minded practitioners under the same roof. The goal was to share knowledge patients and provide a practice that could eventually run without me. When I tell you I was scared, that's an understatement. I remember telling my husband that we may not be able to survive, I didn't know how long it would take for me to collect a salary from this business. And it kept me up at night. I'm just going to throw it out there. Because we're all practitioners, whatever field you're in, we like to have a lot of data at our disposal. For our patients. We like to evaluate numbers, look at the evidence and make guided decisions. When you graduate from school, you don't get any business training, nothing, not how to hire staff, evaluate health insurance, sign up for accounts with vendors, how to set up a QuickBooks file.