We were lucky to catch up with Kelly Pahman recently and have shared our conversation below.

Kelly, looking forward to hearing all of your stories 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.

The 9-5 grind was never for me.

Working through terrible ideas I had about business (what I like to call “bad Ideas that kept me poor”) were pivotal in my own personal and professional flourishing. (One main one I will delve more into soon).

A love for helping people is both its own strength and weakness- helping others in a sustainable way that not only brings flourishing into ones own life but that of ones family, community and the lives of ones clients is a great privilege.

Enterprise is a powerful tool in poverty alleviation and I have become passionate in supporting others in their journey.
There has been so much pruning since starting my business but here are 3 key points I consult others in often as they are beginning.

1- What is the greatest need you can most easily meet that others are willing to pay for?

Niching down into a need that you can uniquely fill is a powerful place to be. It involves knowing yourself and your client needs- this is the praxis where the magic happens.
What makes what you offer better/ different than anyone else? It can feel intimidating to sit in your own ability and potential but get comfortable with the loneliness of it. When you find your group you will become instantly referable and people will jump through hoops to find what it is you’ve created (but also- make it easy for them to find you).

2- Do not let others exploit your passion in a field you love- charge a sustainable rate that will support your growth and love for the field.

Make sure you factor in all the costs- emotional- opportunity costs- time and growth.

I have a degree in Theology and went on to be a birth doula. These fields are not known for their wealth creation. They thrive on feeling privileged and called to be there- that being said they are highly unsustainable- the burnout time is 3 years in both fields. I was able to be a doula for over 10 years because I was able to charge a sustainable rate (much higher than others in my community.)

I looked at what it cost for not only myself but my family to be on call and support such a demanding field, my skillset was higher than those around me and I was able to enter the field an immediate expert. I saw it as an opportunity to build a sustainable market so other providers could carry on the torch well after I left.

You may feel so lucky to be in a field you love that you cant believe someone would pay you to be in the room- but your excitement about your niche, the fact that you geek out about some obscure thing-be it Orthodox christian social thought, birth, the body in stress and impact of Craniosacral therapy and ones ability to create wealth. Whatever it is- there’s economic and social room for this delight to fill the world with goodness and bring wealth t0 the communities you serve.

Charging a sustainable rate means that you are able to serve your clients longer, create products and services that better meet their needs and uplift the field as a whole just by having added years of experience.

Your passion is an asset to your client- I want to hire someone who nerds out about lawn care as my lawn person and I will gladly pay them for their hours of research, skills and tools to spend some time on my lawn which would be a huge pain for me!

3- Intentionally build the life you want.

What kind of schedule do you want?
Do you want to work with people? a stadium of people? one on one? Who would you love working with?
Do you want to be location specific or independent?

Along with exploring the gifts you have to offer the world- knowing these can be helpful as you grow.
One practice I often recommend to clients and colleagues is that of vision journaling. Pick a day in the future and journal as if it were that day- it could be a year from now or 20 years from now.
What does the day look like? Where are you? Who is in your life and more notably what/who isn’t?

When I did this a service I offered wasn’t even in the mix and I was quickly able to drop it and spend more time on what I loved.)

What choices do you have to make today that enable you and your business to become what’s needed for the vision to happen?

Kelly, 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?

I’m Kelly O’Brien Pahman Owner and lead therapist at the Craniosacral Center of Grand Rapids in Grand Rapids MI. Along with running a thriving practice and whatever other idea that pops in my head- I am a mom of 4 brilliant and ambitious kiddos (10,5,4,2) and married to a brilliant patient and generous man Dylan who is a powerhouse in his own right.

In my practice we offer Craniosacral Therapy and specialize in treating tongue tie. We also work with high level business owners and CEOs helping them regulate their system and tap into their creative wealth. Services are in person but we also offer an array of online courses for our clients.

I love my craft but often say enterprise and its ability to help alleviate poverty is a high passion of mine. It enabled us to 5x our household income and 10x our saving in 3 years (there was a season of my life I lived in hidden homelessness I am eternally grateful for the opportunities I have been given and created).

I received Craniosacral Therapy (CST) after a car jacking that left me with a brain injury, Years later as I was pivoting my doula practice I turned to CST and wanted to build a practice that was replicable and could empower other therapists to do what they love.

I am keenly interested in chronic stress and trauma and the work CST can do to help regulate ones system, untapped their creative wealth and help others step into flourishing with both mind and body and offer a CEO day package focused just on this topic to help others plan their future and work through their own limiting beliefs with Socratic logic, an understanding of economics and a little bit of CST to help clients step into a regulated space and tap into their ability to find creative solutions to problems they face on the day to day and as they step into the vision they have in their own life.

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

The zero sum pie fallacy.

A bit of economics and logic go a long way in enterprise. There was a point where suddenly- year over year I was doubling my income. When I reflected on what propelled this exponential growth I remembered sitting and listening to my husbands boss at the time Dr Samuel Gregg talk about the zero sum pie fallacy (I’ll include the link!)

Its a belief that there is only a limited amount of money in the world and there will always just be that amount so if everyone else gets $10 and I get $20 I feel like I’m eating someone else’s pie.

But that isn’t how it works- we can make more pies and the economy isn’t static- it grows! (Think marshmallow pie- it grows!) and every pie can have its own unique flavor and meet a need few others can meet. there can be a snickers pie and a gluten-free fruit pie. In the right conditions the possibility for flourishing can be endless. And no one is more thankful than the mom of a nut free, dairy free kid who get his pie too.

Recognizing this lesson allowed me to flourish exponentially. It limited my resistance to charging a sustainable rate and empowered my goal of building a medium sized business that could employ others and bring wealth and healing into my local community.

Have any books or other resources had a big impact on you?

With a background in theology I had a lot to work through reconciling my beliefs around finance and how it integrated with my faith. I absolutely love the work of Dr. Samuel Gregg and most notably his book ‘For God and Profit’. He has a knowledge of Economics, finance and theology and can engage all of these areas with responsible care.

I cannot have a conversation with another entrepreneur and not mention the Full Focus Planner. Being able to sink into my zone of genius and spend intentional time on my goals has been a huge help in focusing my ambitions. Along with that learning about the Eisenhower method of decreeing tasks has helped me prioritize- What task will make the most impact towards my goals over what is the most urgent.

Who not How By Dan Sullivan with Dr Benjamin Hardy is a wonderful resource on building a team that helps expand your capacity,

We Should all be Millionaires by Rachel Rodgers – Sums up so much on what is possible when we make money and how it can be used to impact the world.

I cannot leave without mentioning that a solid understanding of socratic logic can go a long way. The ability to recognize logical fallacies and move into what is true can take the weight off of false beliefs that could be weighing us down in our own journey and allow us to more freely step into what we are creating.

There are countless more but this is a good start- My curiosity is insatiable and I am constantly learning from others! The world is full of lessons.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.craniosacralgr.com
• Instagram: @craniosacralgr
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Craniosacralgrandrapids
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/craniosacral-center-of-grand-rapids/
• Other: https://thecraniosacralcenter.vipmembervault.com

Image Credits
Thank you to: Brooke Collier Photography and Randi Armstrong Birth and Creative Services