June 28, 2025 • 8 mins
Feel frozen by fear when it comes to your business? You’re not alone.
In today’s Ask Allison, I’m talking about how fear shows up in private practice—whether it’s cold emailing, pricing your services, or putting yourself out there—and how to stop letting it call the shots. I’ll share how I’ve learned to treat fear as a sign of growth, not a stop sign.
If fear has been holding you back, this one’s for you. Let’s talk about building a tolerance to it and using it to move forward—one small step at a time.
Sponsored by TherapyNotes®: Use promo code Abundant for 2 months free
Grab our free tools to grow your practice—weekly worksheets, the Tasky Checklist, and more: www.abundancepracticebuilding.com/links
Ready to fill your practice faster? Join the Abundance Party today and get 75% off your first month with promo code ASK: www.abundancepracticebuilding.com/abundanceparty
Have a question for me about practice building? Submit it via our Ask Allison form, and I'll add it to the queue: Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
(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 keep getting stopped by fear.
I'm not usually a fearful person, maybe anxious,
but starting a private practice terrifies me.
So before I dive into this, I want
to thank Therapy Notes for sponsoring Ask Allison.
(00:50):
I've talked about them for years.
You probably know their features by heart now
too, but here's what really sets them apart.
They genuinely care about your experience.
They take the user suggestions and they make
sure that you get what you want.
It's not just troubleshooting.
They really do implement these suggestions.
So lately that's been their new AI option,
(01:11):
secure messaging, clinical outcome tracking, a smooth super
bill process, these kinds of things.
Everyone at Therapy Notes believes in the product
and they want you to love it too.
Plus they're independently owned, which means no venture
capital, no pressure to prioritize investors over customers.
And this independence allows them to keep their
prices fair, to focus on innovation and to
(01:32):
prioritize their customer experience.
With over 100,000 therapists already on board,
they've proven that you don't have to compromise
success for quality.
If you're ready to see for yourself, go
to therapynotes.com, use the coupon code ABUNDANT
and you'll get two months free.
All right.
So we all know that feeling, right?
That surge of fear that comes up when
you're about to do something new in your
(01:52):
business.
It might pop up when you have to
cold email a potential referral source, or when
you realize you have to have a conversation
with a client about money.
Maybe it's even that overwhelming sense of dread
when you think about public speaking or trying
out a new piece of tech.
Fear has a really funny way of stopping
us in our tracks, but here is the
thing.
That fear is exactly what you need to
(02:13):
lean into if you want to grow your
business.
So today I want to answer this question
that's been kind of floating around of how
do we push through the fear and keep
moving forward?
So let me take you back a little
bit to when I was 19, a little
bit, a lot of it.
I was in a really difficult place.
I'd been hospitalized twice for an eating disorder,
(02:34):
anxiety and depression.
And it really felt like my world was
just a series of overwhelming challenges.
I remember thinking, this is who I am.
This is what my life is going to
look like forever.
And that fear, it led me to avoid
everything that made me uncomfortable, whether it was
stepping out of my comfort zone socially, challenging
myself at work or school, or even just
(02:56):
eating what was on my plate.
It was all really scary.
But here's the breakthrough I had.
I realized that avoiding that fear was keeping
me stuck.
That instinct to avoid and shrink back was
not helping me move forward in my life.
In fact, it was the opposite.
And the same principle applies to your business.
We're in a field where you're helping people
(03:16):
push through their fear, whether that's clients who
have agoraphobia, couples who need help being vulnerable,
anyone else who's just facing big emotional hurdles.
We don't tell our clients to avoid their
fears.
We don't say, just stay home, stay in
bed, don't challenge yourself.
We challenge them to lean into the discomfort
and grow, right?
And yet, when it comes to our businesses
(03:38):
or starting our businesses, we often let fear
stop us in our tracks.
I know I have.
Things like emailing strangers for networking, calling potential
clients, even just pricing your services.
These things can feel like huge roadblocks, right?
But I want to challenge you.
What if you decided to do the opposite
of what feels comfortable?
What if instead of shrinking back in fear,
(04:00):
you leaned into it?
So here's the thing.
Private practice is not for the faint of
heart.
If you are looking for a business that
doesn't challenge you, where everything is smooth sailing,
then private practice isn't the right fit for
you.
There is, I'd say, a misconception that entrepreneurship
is about avoiding risk or discomfort, but I'm
here to tell you that is absolutely not
(04:20):
true.
Building a private practice is about constant growth,
both professionally and personally.
And if you're not willing to be uncomfortable,
you're not going to grow.
You have to embrace the discomfort if you
want to create a thriving business.
I've learned over the years that being comfortable
in your business all the time isn't the
goal.
The goal is growth.
You'll have to face uncomfortable conversations, push yourself
(04:43):
out of your comfort zone repeatedly, and try
new things that make you nervous.
And that's okay.
That's not about being fearless.
It's about growing a tolerance to fear and
pushing forward anyway.
I think it's really important to recognize that
fear doesn't go away.
For me, fear is something I face every
day.
I'm scared of something almost daily, and that's
(05:04):
the reality.
It doesn't matter how much you grow or
how far along you get in your business,
fear will always be there.
So here's the difference.
I've built up a tolerance to fear.
I've gotten better at noticing when the fear
arises, acknowledging it, and then moving forward anyway.
I am not running away from it anymore.
So instead of letting fear stop me, I've
(05:25):
learned to use it as a signal to
take action.
Fear, in my experience, is a marker for
growth.
When I feel that surge, I know that
it means I'm about to level up.
So for example, when I first started podcasting,
I was terrified.
Seriously.
The idea of putting my voice out there
for the world to hear made me want
to crawl into bed and never come out.
(05:46):
But guess what?
I pushed through it.
Within a few months, my podcast hit 20
,000 downloads.
It was a huge milestone.
We have over 2 million listens at this
point.
I still get message from listeners telling me
how much it's helped them grow their business.
So how do you push past fear?
How do you actually move forward when you
feel that uncomfortable pull to avoid it?
(06:08):
Here's the key.
Run towards it.
Embrace it.
Let it be your guide to personal and
professional growth.
For me, webinars were another huge fear.
I don't know why I was terrified of
hosting live webinars, but the idea of presenting
in front of a live audience and answering
questions on the spot at the time sounded
so scary.
I pushed myself to learn everything I could
about webinars, and I did it anyway.
(06:30):
Now, webinars don't phase me at all, and
they've helped me grow my business in ways
I didn't expect.
So when you lean into fear, you're opening
yourself up to new possibilities, and that's the
really cool part.
So fear is not something to avoid.
It is not a sign that you're on
the wrong path.
In fact, it's a sign that you're on
the verge of something big.
It's a signal that you're about to experience
(06:51):
growth, and you can't grow unless you push
through fear.
So here's my challenge to you.
What scary thing are you willing to do
today to move your business forward?
Maybe it's reaching out to potential referral partners,
or it's raising your rates for the first
time.
Maybe it's making that call or finally sending
that email to a potential client who reached
(07:11):
out that you haven't responded to.
Whatever it is, I want you to take
one step today, no matter how small, towards
that fear.
And if you want to get a little
extra support in moving past your fear and
building your practice with more confidence, then the
Abundance Party is a great option for you
because we have this amazing community of people
who really genuinely care about your progress.
(07:32):
We also have a free worksheet today, Common
Fears and My Responses.
This will give you access.
If you DM the word sheets, it will
give you access to that and all of
our other worksheets in that series.
So yeah, thanks for hanging out with me
today.
And remember, fear is a sign that you're
on the right track.
So let's lean in and let's grow together.
I'll see you next time.
(08:25):
I'd love for you to follow, rate, and
review, but I really want you to share
this episode with a therapist friend.
Let's help all our colleagues build what they
want.
(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 keep getting stopped by fear.
I'm not usually a fearful person, maybe anxious,
but starting a private practice terrifies me.
So before I dive into this, I want
to thank Therapy Notes for sponsoring Ask Allison.
(00:50):
I've talked about them for years.
You probably know their features by heart now
too, but here's what really sets them apart.
They genuinely care about your experience.
They take the user suggestions and they make
sure that you get what you want.
It's not just troubleshooting.
They really do implement these suggestions.
So lately that's been their new AI option,
(01:11):
secure messaging, clinical outcome tracking, a smooth super
bill process, these kinds of things.
Everyone at Therapy Notes believes in the product
and they want you to love it too.
Plus they're independently owned, which means no venture
capital, no pressure to prioritize investors over customers.
And this independence allows them to keep their
prices fair, to focus on innovation and to
(01:32):
prioritize their customer experience.
With over 100,000 therapists already on board,
they've proven that you don't have to compromise
success for quality.
If you're ready to see for yourself, go
to therapynotes.com, use the coupon code ABUNDANT
and you'll get two months free.
All right.
So we all know that feeling, right?
That surge of fear that comes up when
you're about to do something new in your
(01:52):
business.
It might pop up when you have to
cold email a potential referral source, or when
you realize you have to have a conversation
with a client about money.
Maybe it's even that overwhelming sense of dread
when you think about public speaking or trying
out a new piece of tech.
Fear has a really funny way of stopping
us in our tracks, but here is the
thing.
That fear is exactly what you need to
(02:13):
lean into if you want to grow your
business.
So today I want to answer this question
that's been kind of floating around of how
do we push through the fear and keep
moving forward?
So let me take you back a little
bit to when I was 19, a little
bit, a lot of it.
I was in a really difficult place.
I'd been hospitalized twice for an eating disorder,
(02:34):
anxiety and depression.
And it really felt like my world was
just a series of overwhelming challenges.
I remember thinking, this is who I am.
This is what my life is going to
look like forever.
And that fear, it led me to avoid
everything that made me uncomfortable, whether it was
stepping out of my comfort zone socially, challenging
myself at work or school, or even just
(02:56):
eating what was on my plate.
It was all really scary.
But here's the breakthrough I had.
I realized that avoiding that fear was keeping
me stuck.
That instinct to avoid and shrink back was
not helping me move forward in my life.
In fact, it was the opposite.
And the same principle applies to your business.
We're in a field where you're helping people
(03:16):
push through their fear, whether that's clients who
have agoraphobia, couples who need help being vulnerable,
anyone else who's just facing big emotional hurdles.
We don't tell our clients to avoid their
fears.
We don't say, just stay home, stay in
bed, don't challenge yourself.
We challenge them to lean into the discomfort
and grow, right?
And yet, when it comes to our businesses
(03:38):
or starting our businesses, we often let fear
stop us in our tracks.
I know I have.
Things like emailing strangers for networking, calling potential
clients, even just pricing your services.
These things can feel like huge roadblocks, right?
But I want to challenge you.
What if you decided to do the opposite
of what feels comfortable?
What if instead of shrinking back in fear,
(04:00):
you leaned into it?
So here's the thing.
Private practice is not for the faint of
heart.
If you are looking for a business that
doesn't challenge you, where everything is smooth sailing,
then private practice isn't the right fit for
you.
There is, I'd say, a misconception that entrepreneurship
is about avoiding risk or discomfort, but I'm
here to tell you that is absolutely not
(04:20):
true.
Building a private practice is about constant growth,
both professionally and personally.
And if you're not willing to be uncomfortable,
you're not going to grow.
You have to embrace the discomfort if you
want to create a thriving business.
I've learned over the years that being comfortable
in your business all the time isn't the
goal.
The goal is growth.
You'll have to face uncomfortable conversations, push yourself
(04:43):
out of your comfort zone repeatedly, and try
new things that make you nervous.
And that's okay.
That's not about being fearless.
It's about growing a tolerance to fear and
pushing forward anyway.
I think it's really important to recognize that
fear doesn't go away.
For me, fear is something I face every
day.
I'm scared of something almost daily, and that's
(05:04):
the reality.
It doesn't matter how much you grow or
how far along you get in your business,
fear will always be there.
So here's the difference.
I've built up a tolerance to fear.
I've gotten better at noticing when the fear
arises, acknowledging it, and then moving forward anyway.
I am not running away from it anymore.
So instead of letting fear stop me, I've
(05:25):
learned to use it as a signal to
take action.
Fear, in my experience, is a marker for
growth.
When I feel that surge, I know that
it means I'm about to level up.
So for example, when I first started podcasting,
I was terrified.
Seriously.
The idea of putting my voice out there
for the world to hear made me want
to crawl into bed and never come out.
(05:46):
But guess what?
I pushed through it.
Within a few months, my podcast hit 20
,000 downloads.
It was a huge milestone.
We have over 2 million listens at this
point.
I still get message from listeners telling me
how much it's helped them grow their business.
So how do you push past fear?
How do you actually move forward when you
feel that uncomfortable pull to avoid it?
(06:08):
Here's the key.
Run towards it.
Embrace it.
Let it be your guide to personal and
professional growth.
For me, webinars were another huge fear.
I don't know why I was terrified of
hosting live webinars, but the idea of presenting
in front of a live audience and answering
questions on the spot at the time sounded
so scary.
I pushed myself to learn everything I could
about webinars, and I did it anyway.
(06:30):
Now, webinars don't phase me at all, and
they've helped me grow my business in ways
I didn't expect.
So when you lean into fear, you're opening
yourself up to new possibilities, and that's the
really cool part.
So fear is not something to avoid.
It is not a sign that you're on
the wrong path.
In fact, it's a sign that you're on
the verge of something big.
It's a signal that you're about to experience
(06:51):
growth, and you can't grow unless you push
through fear.
So here's my challenge to you.
What scary thing are you willing to do
today to move your business forward?
Maybe it's reaching out to potential referral partners,
or it's raising your rates for the first
time.
Maybe it's making that call or finally sending
that email to a potential client who reached
(07:11):
out that you haven't responded to.
Whatever it is, I want you to take
one step today, no matter how small, towards
that fear.
And if you want to get a little
extra support in moving past your fear and
building your practice with more confidence, then the
Abundance Party is a great option for you
because we have this amazing community of people
who really genuinely care about your progress.
(07:32):
We also have a free worksheet today, Common
Fears and My Responses.
This will give you access.
If you DM the word sheets, it will
give you access to that and all of
our other worksheets in that series.
So yeah, thanks for hanging out with me
today.
And remember, fear is a sign that you're
on the right track.
So let's lean in and let's grow together.
I'll see you next time.
(08:25):
I'd love for you to follow, rate, and
review, but I really want you to share
this episode with a therapist friend.
Let's help all our colleagues build what they
want.
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