[LATOYA SMITH] The Grow A Group Practice Podcast is part of the Practice of the Practice Network, a network of podcast seeking to help you market and grow your business and yourself. To hear other podcasts like the Practice of the Practice podcast, go to www.practiceofthepractice.com/network. You are listening to the Grow A Group Practice Podcast, a podcast focused on helping people start, grow, and scale a group practice. Each week you’ll hear topics that are relevant to group practice owners. I’m LaToya Smith, a practice owner, and I love hearing about people’s stories and real-life experiences. So let’s get started. Welcome back to the Grow Group Practice podcast. I’m LaToya Smith, your host. As always, we have a wonderful guest. For those that have been steady listening to the podcast sometimes I find the guest with people I’ve connected on with social media, and that’s exactly what I did for today. Today’s guest is Mr. Warren Wright. He is a private practice owner, and I see him on social media doing big and great things, and I just knew I wanted to bring them on. Today we’re going to be intentional about talking about intentional community, finding our circle of support, finding those people around us that will not only connect with this on a personal and professional level, but also those that can help us grow, that can push us to our next, those people that will support us and see the goodness that we may not even see. Those things are always important and should never be overlooked when it comes to building anything. So I really want to hear from Warren about the importance of his community, the importance of his circle, how he nurtures it, how he’s going to use his circle to help build his group practice and how it’s helped him along the way, right, personally and professionally. So, Warren, welcome to the show. [WARREN WRIGHT] I’m doing well, I’m doing well. Glad to be here. [LATOYA] I’m happy you are here. I know that, and thank you so much for you know coming on the show and being a welcome guest and wanting to be a guest. I appreciate you. [WARREN] Of course, of course. [LATOYA] Yes. So, Warren, tell our audience about you and about your practice. [WARREN] So my name is Warren Brandon Wright. I am a Licensed Professional Counselor and a national certified counselor. I am the proud owner of Transformational Counseling Coaching and Consultant located currently in Bryan College Station, Texas, but like you, I provide counseling services to everyone all residents in Texas. I’m a little bit of my background, I got my master’s from Georgia Southern University in Statesboro, Georgia. I’m from the East Coast. Came out here to Texas for a job, and now I’m still here grinding as a mental health business owner, and also a doctoral student. I’m a third year doctoral student now in a counselor education and supervision program. I provide individual counseling services and also extending my services this year to career coaching as well. Target population of black and brown men who are wanting to just manage stress, manage anxiety, depression that’s showing up in their lives that’s impacting how they are in their relationships and their careers and also working with professional men who have been disrupted or prevented from level up, leveling up, excuse me, in their business or their career because fear has been holding them back. So I’m definitely glad to be here talking with you and sharing just about my experience as a mental health business owner. [LATOYA] You know what, you have a very powerful niche. I was just having that conversation a couple times this week, just the idea of people being intentional, the importance of black male therapists and then being intentional about reaching, like you said, black and brown men. So I’m really happy to hear about that. Is there any specific reason why you that’s like, hey, I really want this to be my niche? [WARREN] Yeah, honestly my background is in college counseling. I’ve always loved to like help people through life transitions whether that be starting college, going to graduate school or starting a career once they graduated, whether it be from undergrad or professional program. I realized that a lot of my work and where I felt a deep connection was really working with my people black people in particular but also understanding what it was like being a black man at a predominantly white institution, working at a predominantly white institution and being in a lot of spaces where it felt isolating from time and time, just like wanting to create that space for other black men. It’s been really rewarding to work with my brothers on a lot of different topics, in a lot of different areas in their life. I think sometimes we can feel isolated in certain spaces or it can be difficult to ask for help. I know that I’ve experienced that too so just having mentors, professors and just older, whether it be older frat brothers or older friends who just helped me through life transitions has been so helpful. That’s what I wanted to do to create a space in my business, per se, my niche area to work with them. [LATOYA] Yeah, I think that’s often, it’s said a lot, like think about what we needed in our most difficult times is usually the way that we can apply the best services to other people. [WARREN] Exactly. [LATOYA] And I think that’s a good way to lead into our topic for today is really about finding your system of support or finding your circle of support as you’re building. What I hear that, it seems to be very passionate area for you. Like I’ve heard you mention that a lot, like people you’re connected to are people that have helped you grow. So let’s talk about that, how that helped you even start a practice or in be a professional career, just the importance of your circle of support. [WARREN] Something that I realize, just in a lot of life difficulties or transitions that I’ve experienced, when I reflect and help other people in my roles as a counselor, as a coach I realize that a lot of times they don’t have the support that they need just for the accountability or it’s limited or they feel like they don’t know how to ask for that help or guidance. That’s something that I’ve learned to do, something that I, when I reflect back on my life, I was like, okay, I had people in my corner, whether it be my parents, my younger brother, frat brothers, it would be friends, mentors, people who were always holding me accountable to my dreams and to my goals and helping me to execute. So that’s something that I really like to just focus on. When I think about my values, personal values, I value relationships and so I do just about any and everything for the people that I care about and the people that I love. Because I care so much about my work as a counselor, I do the same thing for my clients. So really reflecting and examining their social support and people who they can reach out to in case they need to talk to someone, talking about effective communication strategies, how to identify values and live in alignment with those values, how to identify and express emotions, like all of that, I think helps us because we are social beings and we need that connection in order to survive. So that’s something that, that’s the reason why I focus on social support and social connection because that’s in our DNA, that’s who we are as human beings. We need that connection. [THERAPY NOTES] As a therapist, I can tell you from experience that having the right EHR is an absolute lifeline. I recommend using Therapy Notes. 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One thing that I teach as a consultant is really one-on-one, like, okay, if anybody’s getting ready to either establish their private practice, getting ready to grow into a group practice, really think about what your values are. Because yeah, you need a mission, you need a vision, but what’s your values? Like you just said a minute ago, you said you value relationships, that’s going to be, that’s very important to you. So even, I’m even thinking, and you tell me more about it, like the importance of having those relationships with whomever you hire. Do they fit into, do they value relationships too, or is it like a one man, one person show? Or how can each person on your team connect? So how do you look at, like, even as you’re launching into group practice, the importance of this support around you? Like, who are you intentional about connecting to that has helped you grow or will help you grow in the future? [WARREN] Oh my goodness, there’s so many people. When I think about my future of my business, because right now, like I shared with you before that I am, just the only one right now, but I definitely would l love to expand my business. But the people that have helped me get to where I’m at today and helped me just to maintain my work, I would say my coach I have a business coach Dr. TK with the Dope Dip, excuse me, Dope Therapist Academy, shout out to them, shout out to her, who’s just really helping me to dive deep into what it means to be a mental health business owner, really focusing on not just doing the work and working in your business, but working on your business and being a CEO a business owner. Like that’s a mindset shift. That really helped me to look bigger than myself about what I want and how I foresee my business growing. Even my colleagues where we formally used to work together on a college campus, working with them and then seeing a lot of them transition into their own private practice creating training programs for people in their business or building workshops and building courses and writing books and just their journey has been so inspiring for me. Then I really just fell suit. Whenever I had a question, I would ask them and then if they didn’t know or couldn’t tell me, they would direct me to the other resources and I’d do the same thing for them or share about just my system or my process with bringing in clients and eventually terminating when clients and just that process. So I would say my colleagues, my coach, my business coach. Also my parents, my parents have always been supportive of my brother and I growing up, whatever we wanted to do, they were supportive of that. Now they do come from a generation where it’s just like you stick to one job, 30 years and you retire and whatnot. So when I did share with them that I was breaking from that mindset, my pops, he was just like, “Okay, now you know you’re going to be able to pay your bills, you know you’re going to have insurance and all this stuff.” I was like, “Look, I feel led to open up a business and this is what I’m going to do.” So I got the support, I got the knowledge, I got the money saved, the funds are saved up and so far it’s been a great transition because it’s helped me to really dive deeper into my studies as a doctoral student and to really get a lot out of that and how I’ve been able to use some of those same skills, the same knowledge that I’m learning in my program and applied in my business has also been helpful too. So I would say I have support just about any and everywhere across the US. [LATOYA] I love that. I love you, you sound, you’ve got an amazing network. [WARREN] Yes, I do. [LATOYA] And again, so not only what you needed did you get, but also what helped boost your appliance, that’s a part of your value system. I can already tell that you’re taking that into the, this is going to be part of the foundation of your group practice. Now what about somebody listening and they’re like, listen, that sounds amazing, Warren, but I have none of that. I don’t even know how to get that. What if they didn’t have supportive parents, they don’t have that coach, they don’t have like supportive friends sometime. I know that sounds really lonely but I mean, what if, but it’s real. Some people just don’t have that level of support around them. Like how can they nurture that in a way that’s authentic and real so they can build community? [WARREN] Something that that comes to mind, and this is something that I do personally, is reflection and really sitting down, whether that is voice memo on your phone, video recording yourself, writing something down in a journal. Ask yourself what is it that you need to transition and to level up in your life. What is it that you need and how can you express that need to someone else? What resources or connects do you have or people that can direct you to other resources, other people, other coaches, other colleagues in this field that can at least get you to point A to point B so that way you, they can connect you to someone else that can get you from point B to point C? Another question I’m going to have to ask to them as well as how much are you willing to invest in yourself? Because I believe that we have to do something different in order to experience something different. In doing something different, we become something different to meet the requirements for that next level and that next chapter in our lives. So if that person has not reached out to anyone before or having a hard time maintaining relationships, what can you do differently in order to get what you need and what you want to move forward in life? [LATOYA] No, I like that. If you don’t have it, sometimes you do have to invest. That means you got to find, like you say, a business coach or like some of, what we do at the Practice of the Practice, a consultant. If you feel like you don’t have the support around you, sometimes you do have to spend some money to find somebody that can be of support or give you the tips or find a community. Like Practice of the Practice, one thing that we do that I love we have different groups, either for launching a group practice or growing a group practice, and also mastermind groups, which I love. I’m real big on accountability. It sounds like you are too. I need somebody to check me and tell me what’s up. And it’s home accountable, and that’s what community does. So now somebody says, okay, well, I need to invest and things like that. What about partnering with other practice owners? Do you think that’s like somebody who’s where you want to go? Is that something you would also recommend? Like is that something you do or you would recommend to somebody else? [WARREN] Yes, that’s definitely something that I would recommend is something that I’m doing this year. I think the past two years was really helping focusing on establishing myself as a mental health business owner, and the services that I wanted to provide, investing in myself and in my business for that professional and personal development and growth. This year has been just an abundance with partnerships and collaboration. So just thinking about this podcast, other podcasts that I’ve been invited to speak on, either as a guest clinician or as a guest, this year working with another colleague and actually a classmate of mine on a online course now between the two businesses. Because we have a lot of just areas of interest that are overlap and that are similar and that we may see and our clients, may hear from mutual friends. So we’ve been collaborating with that. That’s something that I would definitely be a supporter of just because for me, I realize that I don’t have all of the knowledge, all the skills that other people are looking for and that I can be more effective as a mental health business owner when I’m collaborating with other people. So if I have a consultation where someone is saying, hey, I’m looking for this, or for this particular, a mental health concern or age group, and that’s not in my scope of practice, those partnerships that I’ve been building and those collaborations that I’ve done, I can direct them to someone else where that may be their lane, that may be their scope of practice. So, again, because I value relationships, that’s something that I would suggest and recommend to anyone to build those partnerships and to create something, some type of structure for collaborations, because I think that that helps the visibility and reputation of their business, also the other person that they’re working with. [LATOYA] Absolutely. That just goes back to a phrase, and I know that we’re stronger together, like when it comes to doing this private practice. One thing I remember sitting in grad school thinking, in this field, we’ll always have a job or I’ll always have a job. So there’s no need to think, okay, if I network with the person down the street, they’re going to take my clients because it’s not true. It’s not true. Oftentimes, you have a different niche and even if it’s the same niche, you can still connect on something and you’re stronger. Whether it be referral-based, like you said, working on a course or a project together, there’s so much more that can happen when we try to connect. Intentional connections can build or just fruitful. [WARREN] Definitely. [LATOYA] I think that you got it down. And I saw not only from the post, I saw you post earlier on your social media page, but I heard you doing some coaching too. [WARREN] Yes, yes, I am expanding my services because as a counselor, and I really didn’t really learn about this until I was in my coaching program, and I joined a fellowship program where I’ve learned that I can do way more with my skills than just individual counseling or group counseling. Incorporating coaching as well, that’s something that I’ve always been attracted to. I think I tried to shy away from that because of just, I believe that there’s this like silent beef between like coaches and mental health professionals but I tried to shy away from coaching just because, fear of judgment and I had to just break that wall of fear down and just to say God gave me the idea and the business name of transformational counseling, coaching and consulting. So he gave that to me for a reason, therefore, I would be letting him down and letting my future clients down if I did not include coaching services in my business. So I am stepping into that arena now and got some people that are interested in working with me and scheduling them so we’re going to see how it goes over this next year and see what it evolves to as well. [LATOYA] Awesome, awesome. I know that you’re going to have, and I know for a fact your practice is going to be very fruitful just off the strength of how you build relationships and that’s really in your heart to do. I think, like in, ideally in this world, we’re supposed to be relational beings, not with these guards up or borders or things like that. So I know it’s going to be fruitful and I know you can help a lot of people, not just the therapists that are going to come work for you, but just the community at large, even the partnerships around. But tell people, because I mentioned it Warren, tell people how to get in touch with you online, how can they connect with your social media pages. [WARREN] Yes, sure. So personal page is @_WarrenBrandon. That’s w a r r e n b r a n d o n. Then my business page is at Transformational Counseling on Instagram. Website is www.transformationalservices.org. That’s how they can get in contact with me. [LATOYA] Not only, and you’re in the Bryan Texas area, around Convers Station. [WARREN] Yes. [LATOYA] Okay, so for those listening, that’s not only, I’m sure you’re looking for therapists too soon when you start this. So, put that out there for you all the way around. But Warren, I think what you’re doing is amazing, not just your niche for working with brown and black men, but also being intentional about building relationships. There’s a lot you could teach other people about being authentic and doing that. So I definitely support you. Any last words you want to leave with people about the importance of intentional community or finding a circle of support? [WARREN] What I would share is just sometimes you have to step out of that comfort zone. Again, like I stated earlier, in order to experience something different, you got to do something different than those who are, and if you’re willing to do something different, then your transformation and leveling up in your career has already began. So you got to do something different. [LATOYA] Awesome. Well, Warren, thank you so much for being my guest. Thanks once again to Therapy Notes for sponsoring this episode. 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