We recently connected with Jill Lewis and have shared our conversation below.

Jill, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. How did you scale up? What were the strategies, tactics, meaningful moments, twists/turns, obstacles, mistakes along the way? The world needs to hear more realistic, actionable stories about this critical part of the business building journey. Tell us your scaling up story – bring us along so we can understand what it was like making the decisions you had, implementing the strategies/tactics etc.

I ventured into a solo private practice in 2009, and full time private practice in 2022. I always knew I wanted to be my own boss, create my own hours, and be independent. I learned early on, that I had to be my own PR person. If I wanted my business to grow and thrive, I had to make others believe in my strength and what I could offer. After many years of marketing, networking, and collaborating with other clinicians I invited my first associate to join me in 2015. When I first launched into Private Practice I tried every marketing tool I could think of. I sent themed cookies to local centers, mailers to everyone I knew, networked with every therapist, dietitian, psychiatrist, doctor, dentist, and lawyer that I could. I made myself into a real person, rather than just an email on a screen. Yes, it was a lot and cost money, but to grow and scale, you have to spend money to make money. As I grew and took on more and more associates, I farmed out the stuff that I didn’t feel suited me. I got an electronic medical record system, I hired social media strategists, I hired an accountant who specialized in small businesses, I hired a web master, and a virtual assistant. This did not happen over night, but I slowly recognized where my strengths lied, and that was in therapy. All of the rest of it took me out of what I do best. So, I agreed to take on 1 extra client a week in order to cover the expenses and that makes it feel much better. I’ve definitely had some set backs and associates that didn’t feel like the best fits, and therefore so much has been a learning curve. The team I have now, is phenomenal. So much so, that I don’t want to bring anyone else on, because I love and value the dynamic we have. We are however, in 2012, my practice started 13 years ago, so it has taken tremendous, time, patience, forgiveness, money and energy to be here now.

Jill, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

I call myself a psychotherapist. This is a talk therapist who really seeks to understand one’s past to understand their present. So much of my work is having clients come into my office (or the virtual zoom room) and speak about their history, family dynamics, past relationships and why they are repeating unhealthy patterns to this day. We call those patterns enactments. It is natural to fall into similar relationships that we have as kids, but often don’t serve us; This is where I come in. I help clients see where they are repeating these behaviors, why they are using unhealthy coping skills such as eating, shopping, drinking, drugs etc and to explore a world in which they helped themselves in healthier ways. I am an eating disorder specialist, more specifically working with those struggling with Binge Eating Disorder and navigating the world in a larger body. I work primarily from 2 approaches, psychodynamic and relationally. I am not a behaviorist. What this means, is I am looking to do long term deep work that could take years and time, but ultimately can heal a person. It takes a very long time to end patterns and cycles we’ve been stuck in our entire lives. Relational work means that I will share my feelings and emotions to you in a session (not that I am tired), but how my clients feelings/behaviors/reactions influence me, because I feel them, I guarantee those closest to them feel the same way. I am an extremely active and engaging therapist. I use a lot of humor and bring my entire self into session, which is different from many therapists.

Have you ever had to pivot?

I started my career in NYC, and I do believe if you can make it there, you can make it anywhere. I grew my business from just me, to multiple associates and leading workshops and multiple groups. I was thriving. I also realized I was missing something in my life, which was being closer to family an having a family of my own. So after a very carefully thought out year, I moved back to my home city of Atlanta, Ga. Here, I had to start all over again. I had to rebuild my name, my brand, and start the entire networking process all over again, I had become comfortable in NYC, not complacent, but comfortable. So here I was, advanced in my career, but feeling like I had to start all the way back to square 1. What I realized is it wasn’t square 1, I already had all of the incredible foundation of knowing how to build a business, so I did it again, Within a year of marketing, networking and great skills, I was full and hired my first associate in Atlanta. It happened much faster than in NYC, because I held all the skills and utilized them the best way I knew how. I have no desire to that again, but it was nice to know that I could reinvent myself a second time when it was needed.

We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.

As I reflect on my journey to where I am now, I cannot recall any specific story, more so that I think being a female business owner, as well as a single mom to two young children, creates resilience. I am constantly navigating and juggling home life and work life. Ensuring that my team, clients and anyone else feels as though I am there for them. Simultaneously it requires a finess and a balance to ensure my children also feel like I am there for them. The dance is constant, the demand is real, the attention is needed, and I constantly feel as though I am showing resilience. I feel I do a pretty incredible job of meeting everyone’s needs, including my own. Obviously things get missed at times, but overall I feel I can spread myself just enough, to ensure everyone is being taken care of.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://jlewistherapy.com/
• Instagram: JLewis Therapy
• Facebook: J Lewis Therapy
• Yelp: J Lewis Therapy