Episode Transcript
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(00:07):
(Transcribed by TurboScribe.ai. Go Unlimited to remove this message.) Welcome to Ask Allison.
Y'all ask the questions about having a
fun and thriving practice and I answer them.
We have a worksheet for you today so
you can bring this answer into your life.
You can access that at abundancepracticebuilding.com slash
links where you'll also be able to ask
any questions you have for Ask Allison.
If you want more support, we've got some
free trainings in there too.
(00:28):
If you can't get enough Ask Allison, check
out our YouTube channel for our entire Ask
Allison library.
Welcome back to Ask Allison.
Here's today's question.
I'm bad with money.
I spend too much.
It makes me feel like a bad business
owner and a bad adult.
I've heard you talk some about spending on
Instagram.
Can you say more?
(00:49):
I love talking about money and appropriate management
of it, which appropriate we'll get into.
That sounds like a judgy word, but I
don't mean it like that.
Before we get into it, I want to
thank TherapyNotes for sponsoring Ask Allison.
I've talked about them for years.
You probably know their features by heart just
like I do, but here's what really sets
them apart.
First, they genuinely care about your experience.
(01:11):
It is not just about troubleshooting a problem.
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Everyone at TherapyNotes believes in the product and
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Plus, they're independently owned, which means no venture
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(01:34):
customers.
This independence allows them to keep prices fair,
to focus on innovation, and to prioritize customer
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With over 100,000 therapists already on board,
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If you're ready to see for yourself, try
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ABUNDANT at TherapyNotes.com.
(01:57):
Okay, is your spending aligned with your values
and your business goals?
That's my question for you.
If you're not sure, don't worry.
We're going to break it down together, but
by the end of this, you'll have a
clearer idea of how to make sure that
your spending is more intentional so that it
helps you build the life and the practice
that you want.
So let's start with mindset.
Spending can come from a place of scarcity
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or a place of abundance.
Scarcity-based thriftiness might feel really like noble
and responsible, maybe even very adult, but it's
often fear-driven.
And there's a rebound effect where as soon
as you get some money, it's immediately gone
because you haven't spent on anything you wanted
to.
It makes me think about my work as
an eating disorder therapist and how for most
(02:40):
of us, if we restrict all day long,
we are likely to binge in the evening.
On the flip side, abundance-based thriftiness is
intentional, it's thoughtful, it's about choosing to spend
or not spend in a way that aligns
with your priorities.
And I always think about my friend Allison
with abundant thriftiness.
I'm not talking about myself, but she has
(03:01):
used the same travel mug for 20 years.
She doesn't get sucked into consumerism.
She has peace about it with spending that
I really admire and I've tried to model
more of.
The same is true for generosity.
There is scarcity-based generosity, which often leads
to poor boundaries or martyrdom, whereas abundance-based
generosity is responsible, it's intentional, it comes with
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a lot of healthy boundaries.
So the key to moving from scarcity to
abundance is values and intentionality.
So I want you to take a moment
to reflect.
What are your priorities in life and business?
Maybe even write them down, not if you're
driving, but come back to this.
What are your priorities in life and business?
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And ask yourself if your spending reflects those
priorities.
So for example, if your goal is to
grow your practice, does your money show that?
Or does it show a pattern of avoidance
spending, like retail therapy or ordering takeout when
you're feeling stuck?
There's nothing wrong with treating yourself occasionally, but
if it's not moving you closer to your
goals and that is making you more stressed
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out, which keeps you in this cycle of
spending, then it might be time to renegotiate
your habits.
Investing in your business is one of the
best ways to grow it.
That doesn't mean you need to spend wildly.
Sometimes there's no extra money to invest and
that's okay, but when you do have resources,
think about where they're going to make the
biggest impact.
So for instance, could a consulting program or
(04:28):
a marketing course help you attract more clients?
Are there tools or systems that would make
your practice more efficient?
I know it's really tempting to say I
can't afford it, but I want you to
be honest with yourself.
Is it truly about affordability or is it
about priorities?
If you could make it work and it
filled your practice, would you be turning an
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investment of like $400 into hundreds of thousands
of dollars over the years?
I want us to think short-term versus
long-term spending.
Sometimes we hold on to money or we
spend it on things that feel good in
the short term, but we don't serve our
long-term goals.
So if you take some time to pause
before clicking buy, by thinking about your business
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and your life goals, you probably wouldn't buy
that sweater just because it's on sale.
You'd put that money towards the things that
you've already decided are your priority.
That pause is invaluable and I have probably
saved so many thousands of dollars with that
alone.
I will put things in my cart and
I will leave them there for at least
24 hours.
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And if I'm still thinking about it the
next day, I come back to, is this
a priority?
But I have so many abandoned carts in
so many places because I just completely forgot
about it by the next day.
It was not an actual priority and I
was this close to having spent money on
it.
Here's your challenge.
If you choose to accept it, first I
want you to look at your bank account
and I want you to compare it to
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your list of priorities.
So really take a look at it and
figure out, okay, I'm feeding my family, I'm
paying for rent.
Categorize what priority is each of those communicating?
I want you to ask yourself, where can
I adjust my spending to better align my
goals?
And I want you to make just one
intentional change because if you do a bunch
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of changes, you're going to be in that
restrict binge cycle, right?
So just one intentional change, whether it's setting
aside money to invest in your practice or
cutting out an unnecessary expense.
Your money is a tool and how you
use it can either propel you forward or
it can keep you stuck.
By aligning your spending with your values and
with your goals, you are not only going
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to grow your practice, but also feel a
lot more at peace and empowered by your
decisions.
If you want to dig deeper into this,
I've got a free resource with a list
of my favorite therapist financial resources.
You can DM me the word sheets to
get that and all of our other previous
free worksheets.
If you want some help building your practice,
we do talk about money a fair amount
(06:53):
in the abundance party.
I want you to DM me the word
party, and I will send you the link
to the abundance party and a coupon, which
you won't actually need because you can't afford
it.
It's very affordable, but it takes you through
step-by-step how to build a sustainable
practice.
And I want you to think about whether
that's something that you need or not to
get where you want to go in your
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practice.
All right.
I hope you'll have a really great day
and I will talk with you soon.
If you're ready for a much easier practice,
therapy notes is the way to go.
Go to therapynotes.com and use the promo
code abundant for two months free.
I hope that helped.
(07:34):
If you have questions for ask Alison, or
you want to get your hands on the
worksheet for this episode, go to abundancepracticebuilding.com
slash links.
If you're listening, you probably need some support
building your practice.
If you're a super newbie, grab our free
checklist using the link in the show notes.
I'd love for you to follow rate and
(07:54):
review, but I really want you to share
this episode with a therapist friend.
Let's help all our colleagues build what they
want.