It all looks good on paper

The independent contracting thing is slowly becoming a reality....Slowly because I am not rushing the process. Of course there is fear. As any psychologist knows, most fears are going to make you want to run away. In my case, there is the fear of failure and not being able to support my family. So, part of me wants to stay where I am. However, if I stay where I am, that would be it. No growth or opportunity.

So I am challenging my unjustified fear of failure. As of Tuesday, I start to phase in as an independent contractor.

I am also working with the unjustified fear of failure. I will make this work by looking at the company that I am doing work for, finding what is both needed and missing, and providing (exploiting) it.

2009...change is on the way

A New Year and new opportunities....I am slowly taking on a roll as an independent contractor. This is a fancy way of saying that I moving towards working for myself. I have two companies that I will be working with. My main focus is on an outpatient facility that will provide opportunities to do groups, testing, and in services and workshops.

I am transitioning out of a company that provides the safe perks that keep people (trapped) in (unfulfilled) jobs (benefits/vacation/sick time, retirement, etc)...taking a quote I heard from a non psychologist (he had a TV show about flipping houses)..."the greater the risk, the greater the reward"

non psychologists as role models

Many of the people that I look up to are not in the field of psychology, especially when it comes to marketing and business. One of the people that I follow is Larry Winget. He had a show on A+E called Big Spender and he has authored several books. I was recently on his blog and wrote a comment in which he responded to. Here are my posts and his response:

# 9 Mike Considine Says: December 19th, 2008 at 11:04 am
one more question….Why are you releasing your book after the holiday season….you did that with your last one
thanks….keep releasing the books, no matter when they come out!!!
Mike Considine

# 11 Larry Winget Says: December 19th, 2008 at 12:12 pm
Mike, to answer your question about why release a book after Christmas: The best time of the year to release self-help books is at the New Year. Every bookstore has a New Year - New You section at the front of every store where people go to search for information on how to improve their lives in the coming year. I’ll be there!
My next book is a gift book that will be released next fall. It’s a quote book - a “best of Larry” based on the best lines from all my other books.
Larry

# 15 Mike Considine Says: Your comment is awaiting moderation. December 22nd, 2008 at 7:26 am
Larry
thanks for the answer to my question (why release a book after Christmas). I am a mental health therapist, trying to make it in a business where I have been told that good money cannot be made. I don’t believe it.
Thanks to your answer to my question, I now have a marketing idea for next year!!!!
thanks again….
Mike

You gotta believe....

Once in a while, I'll do a Google search and look for ideas, people, and strategies to maximize income as a psychologist. I see nothing. Any suggestions, tips, names, etc.? I can't be the only person thinking about this. I can't be the only person that doesn't believe that a decent living in psychology is impossible.

Two years ago, I set a goal to make 100K. This is while I was doing an doctoral internship. I didn't reach the goal, but I did make 98K. Under the same circumstances (only this time, I am trying to get my dissertation finished), I will make the same amount by the close of 2008....

Not bad, but I want more (and I want it ethically and without sacrificing my family).....My new goal for this year: The $1,000 day. In other words, I will take one day per week and make $1,000 that day. On this day, I will have to work longer hours but it will be done.

This CAN'T be done by seeing individual clients all day. It can be done by combining services that include groups, testing, in services, and individual clients.

Passive income

Once in a while, I'll read about small business and personal finance. I came across the term "Passive income". I love this term. My understanding is that passive income is a way to make money while not actaully working. I often think about this term when I plan to maximize my income as a psychologist.

So, what are some of my thoughts? Certainly books are a great way to create passive income. I am not talking about vanity press books, either. I mean books with a publisher and royalties. Secondly, becoming good at public speaking and creating a DVD of a presnetation. Once the DVD is created, it can then be offered as a CEU course.

Also (and this is something I continue to struggle with), being responsible with personal finance. I think it was Robert Kiyosaki who said that you should look at your money as "little employees." In other words, invest the money you can and have your "little employees" work for you. If money is working for you, it's hopefully going to to create passive income.

keeping balance

The idea of making a very decent living as a soon to be psychologist is always in the front of my mind. Having said that, I have a wife and daughter. My ulitimate goal is to make the money but not sacrifice time with my family. Graduate school has been such an incredibly long haul. While attending school, I was also working full time. I was really never home and my just born daughter had GERD (she would literally scream every waking moment). My wife needed support and I was not there.

Gotta love Disney!!!

I was in Disney World recently and became the proud participant of the Disney Vacation Club (it’s a time share). As I was signing the papers, I was making casual conversation with the “financial guy.” I said that Disney seemed recession proof. He replied by stating that overall, Disney is doing well. He said that this was due to Disney being diverse. In other words, if attendance is down at the parks, people are ding other Disney related things (going to the movies, buying toys, etc).

Interesting point….to diversify services is to maximize the chances of being recession proof. To put it terms of a psychologist or therapist, how many services can you offer someone? If the number of private evaluations is down, contract with schools, businesses or lawyers. If you have an interest in presenting work shops and trainings, increase the number of topics that you can present. Or adjust the topics that you already have and present to a different audiences (e.g.; a presentation on anger management at a school can become a presentation on stress management at a business).

I’ll give you one of my strengths and one of weaknesses.
My strength: I am a very creative thinker which gives me great ideas
My weakness: I lack the contacts to implement some of my ideas

Hopefully the blog will serve as a way for others to show their strengths and also provide a way to help overcome the weaknesses.