We recently connected with Alicia Brown and have shared our conversation below.

Alicia , thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. We’d love to hear about how you went about setting up your own practice and if you have any advice for professionals who might be considering starting their own?

I have been a therapist now for the last 9 years. I am originally from New York City and have been in South Florida for the last 4.5 years. I have been in private practice for the last 3 years.

I started my private practice, Therapy with Alicia B., for these main reasons; flexibility, freedom, financial wealth and more importantly to show my daughter that she could do whatever she wants in this world!

I realized I was a great therapist very early in my career. Not to sound cocky or to toot my own horn, but I knew right away what my purpose was. I started graduate school as a young and new mom, and while I had a lot of support, I also knew I had to figure it out, so that I did not exhaust my supports either.

For those who do not know, my career started in NYC, where the atmosphere bleeds competition. I discovered my career path fast, so I was not searching what my next move would have been. When I moved to FL, I was unsure of who I was as a therapist and what my career path would be. I had nothing established, because the career path, I had planned out did not have a plan B. The social work field in Florida seemed to be geared towards a case management trajectory, where most of my work was clinical based. I knew that I possessed a unique skillset that many social workers in Florida did not possess. This was also solidified by old clients from NYC finding me on LinkedIn and other social media platforms asking me to continue seeing them.

When the pandemic hit, I decided to invest and take the steps to start my journey in the world of private practice and entrepreneurship. I had shared my goals with my boyfriend, who decided to gift me a LLC, an insurance policy, a new laptop and a check, for Valentine’s Day. I built a website with my best friend, took some headshots with my boyfriend’s iPhone, and paid for ads on therapy directory websites. I got my first client in May 2020 and from there I got two more. I worked with those three for about 3 months and then had an influx of clients come in at once. And it has yet to stop.

This journey has allowed me to build a practice that helps me to break down mental health stigmas in the Black Community. Majority of my clients are Black, where I am helping them to unlearn a lot of things that we were raised to believe. My private practice has also allowed me to have a flexible schedule, to spend more time with my family and myself. I have also had the pleasure of tapping into my different skillset, which has helped to expand my business.

Since then, I opened up different avenues of my private practice, now offering supervision to post-MSW graduates until they are licensed, consulting to other therapist who want to open a private practice and consulting courses to help maintain and scale private practices and I also sell mentally stimulating self-help products.

As any business owner, there are challenges with running a private practice. One challenge that
I have faced is trying to have everything in place from the start. We tend to want everything in place from the very beginning, which scares us off from ever starting. We want to have a color scheme, decked out website, a high social media presence, and for money to be flowing in as soon as we start. As your business grows, the needs of your business will be different, so instead of investing in so many things at once versus figuring out if you will need it in the future. My advice to professionals wanting to run a private practice is just start. Build a functional website, get on some directories and expand your business as it grows.

Alicia , before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

My name is Alicia B.

THE SHORT VERSION…
I am a Black, female psychotherapist who specializes in Black mental health. I continue to break down the stigmas of mental health in the Black and Brown communities through the populations that I serve. I started my practice in 2020 and was very successful in a short period of time. I had taken what I have learned in the field and built a six-figure private practice.

BUT MORE THAN THAT…
I am a mom, the youngest of six siblings, and the only therapist in my family. I am so passionate about mental health. I take pride in not only sharing the knowledge that I have to help others but also building other therapists to become competent in mental health, through clinical supervision and private practice coaching

Therapy with Alicia B., offers psychotherapy to individuals, intimate relationships and families. I work with clients who want to manage anxiety, depression, process trauma and build better relationships with themselves. I work with both monogamous and polygamous relationships to help them repair their relationships, better their communication and discover ways to meet each other’s needs without compromising their own.

From Pencil to Practice is a coaching program that I offer through my private practice. From Pencil to Practice™ is high-accountability group coaching and VIP 1-on-1 program designed to help solo therapists hit their first $100K. Break out of the cycle of feeling burned out, attracting the wrong clients, and being capped financially. In the program, you will learn how to find your niche, how to legally structure your business, how to build your website, the ins and outs of private practice, and how to diversify your income.

Mentally Stimulated is my retail store. I sell products that stimulate conversations around mental health. From games for couples, to self-help journals, affirmation cards, affirmation planners, and so much more.

My brand provides each person with trust, balance and growth. Trust that someone is going to understand what is happening for you. Trust that you will be able to get the help that you need. Finding balance between life stressors and personal goals. Discovering what is a balance for you. Growth will also happen, where you will get out of your comfort zone to make changes that will have a huge impact on your life.

What’s been the most effective strategy for growing your clientele?

The most effective strategy for growing my clientele in my practice has been to be direct about what I offer and my role in what I am offering. I think often we try to make our practice fit every client. I am very honest about what I can help with and what I cannot help with. I am also honest about what outcome a client will get when they are doing their part along with the work we are doing together.

Putting training and knowledge aside, what else do you think really matters in terms of succeeding in your field?

This might sound insane, but sharing the training and knowledge that I have obtained. I know that every graduate program study curriculum is different. We are not all trained the same or have the same experience. I am huge in sharing the wealth of knowledge and training that I possess with others. Reason is because I am only one person and cannot do this alone, so I rather share what I do know so that we can all conquer the Black Mental Health community.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.withaliciab.com
• Instagram: www.instagram.com/therapywithaliciab
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/withaliciab
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/WithAliciaB
• Other: https://www.tiktok.com/@withaliciab

Image Credits
Telemaque Creative