We recently connected with Payton Leidlein and have shared our conversation below.

Payton, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Setting up an independent practice is a daunting endeavor. Can you talk to us about what it was like for you – what were some of the main steps, challenges, etc.

While I am still in the early days of establishing my practice, I think my dream of starting my own practice really began about 5 years ago when I became a mom. Becoming a mom shifted my priorities and gave me a new desire for independence and control over my work-life balance. The most difficult part of establishing my practice was timing, and ultimately making the big decision to take the leap into private practice. My biggest stressors in establishing my own practice were (and still are) rooted in fear. Fears of failing to provide my family what they need, fears of failing to provide my clients what they need, and fears of not having the connections and support that are so vital in this field when building an independent practice.
The birth of my second child, and my following maternity leave, gave me the spark, creativity, and time I needed to begin taking the practical steps necessary to build a business and establish an independent practice. I remember completing my PLLC application while feeding my son and building my website during late night wakings. My baby joined me at every business meeting while getting things established, from financial and legal meetings to scouting out office locations. Which brings me to my biggest piece of advice for young professionals considering starting their own practice- knowing your “why”, meaning to confidently know and understand your reasons and priorities for building your independent practice. Things will obviously be challenging and scary at times, but remembering your “why” can motivate you through the hard and inconvenient moments. For me, my “why” was to create a healthy work-life balance that can support my utmost priority- showing up as present and healthy for my family.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

I’m Payton, wife, mom of 2, and a Licensed Professional Counselor. I began establishing my counseling private practice about 6 months ago, while on maternity leave. Before establishing my practice, I had experience working in several different group practice settings, in which I had great experiences and learned a lot of helpful things about building my own practice. During my time working in group practices I was able to build fruitful connections and learn from several passionate and intelligent counselors and business owners.
I primarily counsel women and mothers working through challenges from pregnancy all the way through empty nesting, and everything in between. I am passionate about helping women be the healthiest, most present versions of themselves. As a counselor, I work from a “client-centered” position, meaning I place high value on the safety and empathy experienced in the therapeutic environment. Through a genuine connection, unconditional positive regard, and an empathetic understanding, I believe clients are able to grow and heal in the ways they feel most necessary. There are many amazing therapy modalities and research based techniques, all of which I utilize, but I deeply believe that we all have a need to feel heard, understood, and cared for, and when that happens, the groundwork is laid for true healing, growth, and self-awareness.

What’s a lesson you had to unlearn and what’s the backstory?

In graduate school to become a therapist, we are taught as therapists to always appear as a ‘blank slate’ to your clients. We were trained not to show any emotion and to always appear vacant. The thinking behind this is to hopefully appear as non-judgemental and to not impact clients by our own emotions. Ultimately though, this is something I have been spending a lot of time unlearning. I have learned that it is extremely important to show up emotionally for my clients. I don’t believe it to be helpful to sit across from a “blank slate” as you’re processing through deep pains and fears. Therapists are humans too, with emotions and personalities. I believe it can be extremely healing for clients to see the emotions and “human-ness” of a therapist, as we are walking alongside each other on your healing journey. I am learning how to continue showing up in a non-judgemental manner, while connecting genuinely with my clients by showing up as a very NOT blank slate.

Any advice for growing your clientele? What’s been most effective for you?

There are a lot of impactful strategies for marketing your private practice and gaining the interest of new clients, but I would say one of the most meaningful and deep-rooted ways to gain new clients would be through word of mouth from existing clients. Counseling is such a relational experience, which is why a personal testimony from an existing client can be so much more impactful than an online advertisement or an attractive website. When a current client thinks highly enough of their therapy experience to recommend their therapist to someone they care about, this often leads to connections with clients that are a good fit and are genuinely invested in their counseling journey.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.paytonleidleincounseling.org
• Instagram: @paytonleidleincounseling

Image Credits

Photography done by- Jessica Adaway Photography