Hey fabulous health professionals,

It is a really sad day for clinicians. 

Do you ever stop to wonder why you have clients, patients, or customers who come to you saying:

“Can you please do cheap or free services for us?”

….only to follow up that request with a laundry list of their requirements for expertise and experience, while fully expecting us to negotiate on price?

This still happens to me – it happened to me last week. Me and my team have been sought out for our experience and skills, and yet, I am still faced with discussions about whether there is any flexibility in our fees.

My answer was no. This is what it costs to work with us because this is what we are worth. 

Do you feel confident in saying the same to your customers and clients?

It gets worse.

We perpetuate the expectation for discounts, for free, cheap or low costs services, among our own communities. Here in groups in Linked In and Facebook, I see health professionals send requests for clinicians who are expert, skilled and experienced, but, you guessed it, able to provide their services for free, cheap or at low-cost.

Clearly we as therapists and clinicians have a problem here. We expect our peers to be free, cheap, budget-friendly, or discounted. And yet, we have the nerve to get irate when customers come to us and want to negotiate on prices. 

We need to start leading by example.

Nothing is going to change about our value in the marketplace until we take a stand. 

Nothing is going to change until we, the clinicians and health providers, say: No – health is your new wealth. It has been for a long time. I have invested heavily in my education, my ongoing personal development, my expertise, my thought leadership and practice development. I’ve paid for supervision and I’ve given countless hours (and years) to my craft. Why would I negotiate on my value or my worth?

So please, fabulous clinicians, stop devaluing each other because you are devaluing yourself in the process.

No one is going to take us seriously if we don’t take ourselves seriously. 

Take a stand.

Know your worth.

And here’s to your success.

– Jo

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Jo Muirhead is a Rehabilitation Counsellor with over 20 years of experience in vocational rehabilitation. Jo is a mentor to allied health professionals who are ready to make freedom, flexibility and fulfilment happen in 2016. Click here to download the free guide: How to Find Freedom in Your Private Practice. 

Jo is the creator of the Book of Evidence.

Being called to level up in your Private Practice?

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Thank you for joining me. I look forward to being of value to you.