{"id":690,"date":"2012-09-24T14:00:01","date_gmt":"2012-09-24T14:00:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/practiceofthepractice.com\/?p=690"},"modified":"2013-05-28T15:06:40","modified_gmt":"2013-05-28T15:06:40","slug":"bartender","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/practiceofthepractice.com\/bartender\/","title":{"rendered":"The Bartender Counselor"},"content":{"rendered":"

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I participate in a few online communities on Facebook and LinkedIn. Doing so has a number of benefits. You can see what types of things clinicians are wondering about, talking about, and discovering. It is a great place to get blog post ideas. Also, it is a way to grow your own expertise, which can lead to more blog traffic.<\/p>\n

I was recently on Private Practice Toolbox w\/ Julie Hanks LCSW<\/a>. A student posted this comment\/question:<\/p>\n

“…my main goal is to start my own private practice after I obtain my LCSW in a few years. I heard that it is very hard to get started, and I know I have quite a few years to go before I am ready to open up my own practice. I was wondering if there is anything I could start planning now, or as soon as I obtain my MSW?”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

I thought I would expand on my answer that I gave to this student. There are so many things a student can do!<\/p>\n

When students are working their way through school, often the focus is on getting through the studies and making enough money to have a life. What this often leads to is working as a server or bartender, because the money is so good. When I first started my degree in 1997, I got a job working with “angry kids” right away. In my head, I wanted to work with angry kids and frustrated parents, maybe i saw too many after-school specials. I thought, “I should probably work with that population before I get a whole degree in counseling.”<\/p>\n

What happened was that from 1997-2004 I gained a wealth of experience in the field of psychology and counseling. This has informed me in job interviews and my private practice. When a family looks at me and says, “What do you know, you look so young?” I can discuss my now 15 years of experience.<\/p>\n

In my initial counseling interviews, the interviewees would often say out loud, “Wow you have a lot of experience for just graduating.” This is just one example of strategic positioning that students and new graduates can do to build their future in counseling and not\u00a0bartending.<\/p>\n

Here are some quick tips that will help position you when you are ready to launch:<\/p>\n