Is it possible to walk a career path without knowing where it will lead? How can one of your personality strengths be used to overcome a personality weakness? What is a good motto for handling fear?
In this episode, Nathan and Aaron interview guest Amanda Patterson.
In This Podcast
Summary
- About our guest, Amanda Patterson
- How Amanda got started in Psychology
- How Amanda became a private practice owner
- How Amanda faces her fears and self-doubt
- Amanda’s success and future goals
About our guest, Amanda Patterson
- Amanda is a Licensed Mental Health Counselor in Florida
- She owns a private group practice, Caring Therapists of Broward & Palm Beach
- She is a private practice consultant for therapists
- Amanda is also the founder of My Private Practice Collective, an online group for therapists with over 15,000 members as of the date of this recording
- In 2017, she was awarded Mental Health Counselor of the Year by the Florida Mental Health Counseling Board
How Amanda Got Started In Psychology
- Amanda initially wanted to be a lawyer but realized it didn’t fit her so she found psychology and fell in love with it
- Her Psych 101 class inspired her… and she still has the purple notebook from it to this day!
- She attended Florida State University for her first year of undergrad, then transferred to Nova Southeastern University
- Majoring in Psychology was her initial goal… and she loved the building the experimental psychology department was in!
- Fun Fact: Amanda went to undergrad and started her Master’s program together but never dated at the time, until 15 years later!
- She got a PsyD (similar to a doctorate) education in a Master’s program because of who the faculty were
How Amanda Became A Private Practice Owner
- Amanda worked in agencies and felt burnt out because it’s hard work with long hours
- At the time, nobody talked about private practice and nobody went directly from graduate school into private practice
- She saw a job posting for office space, interviewed, and realized at that time she wanted to start a private practice!
- She started her LLC in 2013 and began building her business
How Amanda Faces Fear & Self-Doubt
- Amanda admits she is a “catastrophizer” but also a “planner” to manage her anxiety around making changes or big decisions
- She subscribes to “feel the fear and do it anyway”, forcing herself to lean into fears to see what it would really look like if her fears came true
- Knowing what the potential issues could be are, she begins planning to deal with her fears
- The fears have not changed, she has – in terms of how she relates to her fears
- Acceptance of fear moves her from maladaptive coping to more adaptive coping
- Amanda has a fear of the dark but has accepted it and learned to manage it so it does not interfere with her life
- Amanda’s Key: Accept your fears rather than trying to get rid of them, but don’t allow them to control your life
Amanda’s Success and Future Goals
- Amanda’s goal has been to stabilize her group practice as Director, which she learned at Slow Down School with Joe Sanok
- She “stumbled upon” the opportunity to open up a second office in 2019 when she moved an hour away from the first office location
- Hiring the right people and setting the systems of her business has helped her step back and be able to work on coaching and building her online community
- Long-term, Amanda wants to see clients as a therapist while also doing coaching – which are two very different roles!
- Getting married to her Psychologist husband last year and starting their family later in life has been a major shift in her professional career and direction
Useful Links
- Sign up for our free email course, 9 Ways To Overcome Fear & Self-Doubt, that will guide you through our process of facing fears and insecurities so that you can feel more comfortable in your own skin
- Slow Down School with Joe Sanok of Practice of the Practice
- Amanda’s therapy practice in Florida
- Caring Therapists of Broward & Palm Beach, Amanda’s private practice group
- My Private Practice Collective, Amanda’s online group for therapists
- Amanda Patterson LMHC on Facebook
- AmandaPLMHC on Instagram
Thanks for Listening!
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Meet Nathan and Aaron
Nathan Hawkins and Aaron Potratz are both licensed therapists and clinical supervisors in the state of Oregon. They each own their own private group counseling practices and co-own a third group practice together. Nathan and Aaron have been in the field since 2004 and 2007, respectively, and have over 100,000 hours of therapy experience each. On their show, they discuss facing fears and common challenges from a therapist’s point of view, imparting wisdom and humanity to their viewers. Along the way, they hope to not only share their insights but bring some light-hearted entertainment to make the journey easier.
