We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Zach Beatty a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Zach , thanks for joining us today. 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.

There is no sugar coating the stress of starting a business, but once it is established, every drop of blood, sweat, and tear that you put into it, feels more than worthwhile. At the beginning, I was waking up every couple of hours, thinking I needed to get this, this, and this done. I was so stressed I barely sat down because I had to constantly get something done.

The main steps that I had to take were in my opinion the ones that every successful business owner takes. The ones that nobody wants to do. The tedious, the challenging, the ones that others say can be done tomorrow.

The challenges of setting up and running my own practice consisted of EVERYTHING. I was the chiropractor, the marketer, the website team, the receptionist, etc. In my opinion though, it has allowed me to understand the challenges of each of those as the team grows and less of those items are on my own personal plate now.

Things I would have done differently…nothing really. I am very thankful for the lessons learned, and I think it has allowed me to be that much better equipped to handle more.

I think it is really important to find mentors, people you trust, but nothing can replace focus and hard work.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

I grew up in a rural town in Pennsylvania with a population of less than 1,000 people and literally only one stop light. The closest ‘city’ had approximately 13,000 people, but multiple stop lights, so with limited options for activities, I played several sports. Even then I knew I would be exiting the small time life to fulfill my dreams. Upon graduation, I landed in Cleveland, Ohio where I continued both my academics and athletics, which was by far the best 4 years of my life. I still stay in touch with many friends and teammates to this day. From there I continued to move west for chiropractic school, and now here I am living in the best city in the US!

My sister was injured through athletics and had to see a chiropractor. She gave me a ride to school, so like any teenage boy, I refused to ride the bus, which meant I would go with her to the appointments. I realized later that became the catalyst for me going to chiropractic school. I have always had a passion for the health field, enjoy helping others, and ideally wanted to run my own business, so I found the perfect fit in chiropractic work.

My work helps people solve all sorts of health issues. Some are pain issues, such as car or motorcycle accidents, sciatica, headaches, low back or neck pain. Other less obvious patients can be pregnant mothers, colicky babies, individuals with digestive issues. I can even help people with discomfort in their extremities, such as plantar fasciitis, bunions, ankle or shoulder pain, etc.

How about pivoting – can you share the story of a time you’ve had to pivot?

This particular story is one of the biggest reasons for where I am today. I started out my career renting space out of an established office and came to a point where I needed to decide whether to stay under that umbrella or go into my own space. It was a very stressful period of time. Would patients come with me? Would I have enough revenue to pay bills on my own? Do I actually know how to run a business on my own? I ultimately said sink or swim and jumped all in. BEST DECISION of my life. It took off rapidly. I’m thankful to have a great supporting cast behind the scenes who believed in my success. Within 2 years of making that decision, a second office was opened, and I’m able to work towards new goals.

Can you talk to us about how your funded your firm or practice?

I think if I told someone what I actually started my business with, they wouldn’t believe me. I saved up from working summers as a kid because I knew one day I would put it to work for me. Looking back, even I think it is impossible to pull off, but with a lot of long hours, hard work, some considerable risks, and a little good fortune, I made it happen. I am really proud of being able to say I started my businesses from scratch.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.gonsteadchiropractic-sd.com www.sandiego-accidentchiropractor.com
• Instagram: @gonsteadsd @sdinjurychiro
• Facebook: @gonsteadsd @sdinjurychiro
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCu9L0R2xTA8DmGdaHiQs1Qw
• Other: tiktok @drzachsgotyourback

Image Credits
Matin Nazari myself