Growth vs. Scale: Knowing When Your Practice Is Ready | GP 333

business growth stages, practice management, predictable success, private practice business, private practice leadership, private practice systems, therapy entrepreneur, therapy practice growth

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Is expanding your private practice the next step, or just the most exciting one? What’s the difference between simply growing your practice and building a business that can thrive without you? How do you know if your practice is actually ready to expand?

In this podcast episode, Brandon Shurn introduces the Expand or Not to Expand series | Part 1

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In This Podcast

“Should I expand?”
Am I growing or scaling?
How to know if you are ready to expand
Reflection questions

“Should I expand?”

Brandon shares why he chose to grow his private practice into a group practice.

Expanding allowed him to:

Increase revenue
Serve more people
Pursue a bigger mission

However, growth also created new challenges.

Expanding didn’t necessarily fix a problem; it multiplied [them] … I went from just being me, only having to worry about a set number of output for my practice, for my EHR to my professional Zoom accounts … It multiplied these problems. (Brandon Shurn)

Growth should strengthen your practice, not distract from existing problems. Build the right systems before expanding.

Am I growing or scaling?

Needless to say, many practice owners still dream of expanding, and for many of them it is the right thing to do when they take their goals, vision, and mission into account. However, there is a difference between simply growing your practice versus scaling your practice.

Consider these two terms:

1 – Growth

2 – Scale

They sound the same, but there’s a distinction between the two. When you think about growth, it typically comes with this automatic, “I’m doing more” work. When you scale, your business is doing more work, but it’s doing it without you. (Brandon Shurn)

A growing practice can still leave you overwhelmed. Scaling creates more freedom while allowing the business to continue growing.

How to know if you are ready to expand

Brandon suggests looking for a few practical signs before hiring clinicians.

You may be ready if:

You have a consistent waiting list.
Clients regularly request services you do not yet offer.
You enjoy mentoring and leading other clinicians.

These signs suggest there is enough demand and leadership capacity to support expansion.

Reflection questions

Are you starting the process of getting the systems and the structure out of your brain as the owner, and into an accessible format for your clinicians and staff that does not require them reaching out directly to you? … You want to give an emphatic “yes” to that. (Brandon Shurn)

1 – Why do I want to expand right now?

2 – What problem am I trying to solve?

3 – Is my current practice stable and predictable?

4 – What would happen if I stayed the same size for 12 months?

Strong systems make expansion much easier. If your business depends entirely on you, strengthening your foundation should come before growing further.

Useful Links:

Work with us
BOOK | Les McKeown – Predictable Success: Getting Your Organization on the Growth Track – and Keeping it There

Check out these additional resources:

Meet Prof. Brandon Shurn

Brandon Shurn, Ph.D., LCPC, LMHC, AFC®, NCC, is a licensed clinical professional counselor and the founder of EmPower Me Holistic Counseling, a fully virtual Maryland-based practice. He’s also a full-time professor in Seattle University’s online Clinical Mental Health Counseling program. With extensive experience launching and directing university training clinics, Brandon now focuses on helping therapists design and grow impactful, sustainable practices. Outside of his work, he enjoys fitness, yoga, Wing Chun, golf, reading, and spending time with his family and dogs.

Visit Empower Me Counseling, and connect with Brandon on Instagram and LinkedIn.

Email him at: brandon@practiceofthepractice.com

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