We were lucky to catch up with Allison Mills recently and have shared our conversation below.

Allison, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Before we get into specifics, let’s talk about success more generally. What do you think it takes to be successful?

In my business, to be successful, I think you have to always put the needs of your clients and families first, even over making more of a profit. It is so easy in this business to qualify a child for therapy and to find little things to target in therapy, but that does not always mean it is in the best interest of the child. Putting the clients and families first creates a trust between business and family, turns our clients into advocates for our business knowing that their child’s needs will always come first, and allows for an undoubtedly ethical work environment for our therapists to thrive in. It gives the therapists the freedom to always do what is best for the child and not worry about what the administrative side will do or think. There is no question. The needs of the clients will always come first.

I attribute a lot of my success, reputation, and drive in my business to my relationship with the Lord. It is the principles God lays out and provides that help me form the foundation for my business.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

I earned my Master’s degree from the University of North Texas in 2015, and have worked as a Certified Speech-Language Pathologist in the school system and private practice setting. In August 2018, I felt the Lord’s prompting to begin my own practice. After months of prayer and discussion with my husband, Caleb, we felt the Lord’s peace, confirmation, and direction to quit my job in February 2019. At that point, I dove in with the support of my entrepreneurial husband to begin my own practice. In February 2019, Allison’s Therapy Corner began in my very own home, originally as Allison’s Speech Corner. God blessed the business immensely and it began to grow quickly. In September 2019, the business was blessed with the opportunity to expand out of Allison’s home to a commercial location right here in Keller, TX. With this move, came not only a name change to Allison’s Therapy Corner, but is also provided the ability to expand our services to offer both Speech Therapy along with Occupational Therapy.

Fast forward to today, we are now about to move locations to a brand new clinic this summer, June 2022. With this move will come a therapy space specifically tailored to fit the needs of our clients and therapists and also an expansion of the business to open a center specifically for therapy for children with Autism (ABA therapy). The intent behind our expansion is to offer an opportunity for our parents to enjoy ease of access to the therapies their child needs, more efficient scheduling for our ABA clients, and an environment that encourages collaboration between ST/OT and ABA to help generalize skills targeted by each discipline. What started out as one Speech Pathologist working out of her home has grown to 5 Speech Pathologists and 2 Occupational Therapists. We will soon be adding some incredible Board Certified Behavior Analysts (BCBA) to our team to provide exceptional client/family centered ABA services in a homier environment.

The goal of Allison’s Therapy Corner is to provide excellent, client-directed services in a comfortable, homey environment, providing families with more services in one great location! I have a true passion for what I do and love serving kids and their families. I am particularly proud of the therapists I have handpicked to be a part of this great team. Each therapists brings something unique to the team and was selected because of their desire to create treatment plans specifically tailored to each child, rather than therapists going through a checklist. Our team is collaborative, supportive, and has created one of the best/positive work environments you can find.

For future clients, I want them to know that their child will receive some of the best therapy out there with our clinic. That their child’s therapist, as well as the business, will ALWAYS have their child’s best interest at heart. Our clients make progress and are successful at meeting their goals.

Any stories or insights that might help us understand how you’ve built such a strong reputation?

Personally, I think word of mouth and testimonials have greatly built and supported the reputation of Allison’s Therapy Corner. Our clients make progress! ATC’s goal it not to keep a client forever, but to help them reach their goals and use what they learn in therapy across their daily life. Graduation from therapy is the goal! Our reputation is based on an intimate knowledge of our client and their needs, quality therapy, trusted therapists with intensive training, knowledge and skills, and a collaborative environment which truly make a difference in the lives of the children and families we serve. The quality of therapy at ATC is different in comparison to other therapy places. Our focus is how can we help this child to the very best of our ability. We don’t provide “cookie cutter” therapy. Just take a look at our testimonials.

Any advice for managing a team?

My biggest advice is being selective with who you hire, offer competitive salary and benefits, provide the support in training and onboarding, set your team up for success with collaboration on difficult cases, and take the time to cultivate your culture and provide opportunities for your employees to bond. Take genuine interest and care in your employees by being available for questions/conversations regarding professional and even personal situations. When hiring people make sure that they aren’t just a good clinician, but be mindful that they have good character, has the right “WHY”, and will fit in well with your team culture. The team at ATC collaborates well with one another and encourages one another in their professional and personal lives. As the main manager, it is my job to not only care for my business, but to show care and concern for the needs of my employees.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://allisonstherapycorner.com/
• Instagram: allison_therapy_corner
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AllisonsTherapyCorner/

Image Credits
EE Photography by Erin Woosley