Nicole Dobranski

When Nicole joined Sian’s program, she had just hired her first therapist to work in her private practice, but she was exhausted. Her practice was home-based, with clients geographically dispersed all around New York. She felt she had to take any client (for cashflow), but then found that there were times she would dread going there. Juggling a high clinical caseload and the administrative and marketing roles left her feeling like she was burning the candle at both ends. 

Nicole’s work with Sian helped her to identify her ‘ideal client’ and focus her energies on attracting that clientele. She also began recruiting therapists geographically, which has significantly cut her commuting time. Nicole now has 5 therapists working for her and has also developed a healthy referral network so she can refer business that is not her ideal client. This referral network has helped her to develop a ‘specialist’ reputation for her practice amongst other professionals. 

Nicole says an important part of her learning was rethinking her marketing approach. Before the Program she thought she was doing ok, but she learned that the way she was approaching people wasn’t doing the practice justice. Rethinking how she communicated her business to others was an important part of growing referrals to her business. Sian’s templates helped Nicole to follow a process that worked, building client confidence in her ability to help them. 

Nicole feels that working with Sian has helped her to grow confidence both as a clinician, and as a business owner. She has learnt new business skills, such as how to set her business rates, as well as skills around hiring and leading a team of therapists. She has also found the support offered through the group of like-minded clinicians working with Sian has been great to bounce ideas off. 

Having revenue from the other therapists has allowed Nicole to find her ‘sweet spot’ in terms of clinical hours and administrative hours. She is helping her therapists and finds this leadership role rewarding. 

Nicole has gone from around $100,000 per year to around $200,000 per year in the eight or nine months she has been working with Sian. She is proud of the practice she is building and learning every day. Nicole says that the program took less time than she thought it would, but it made her really focus on what she wanted her practice to be. Now, Nicole feels she has such clear vision. Her goals are clear and she has the tools to achieve these goals. 

Her advice to others thinking about the program: “I think if someone’s looking for structure, looking for ways to connect with other professionals, looking for ways to obtain referrals, and learn about how to really market their practice, I definitely would say don’t hold back, go for it!”