Bootstrapping Your Functional Medicine Practice

Hello, my friends, and welcome to Perfect Practice. Today, Aaron and I are going to be talking about bootstrapping your practice. You know, we speak with a lot of practitioners who are at various stages of their business. Sometimes they might be in the stage of just starting out. Sometimes they might be in the stage of, you know, getting started. They might be experiencing about, you know, somewhere in the 10 to $100,000 in revenue. And then you have people that are doing more than that today. What I'd like to do with you, Aaron, is focus on the people who are just getting started, who are excited to learn functional medicine and wellness and integrative practices and how to put these practices and modalities that they've learned and turn it into a business. There's a lot of mindset that we need to talk about shifting gears in that regard. There's certain tools and skills that we want to focus on building at this stage in our practice. And of course, there are certain things that we want to try to avoid doing at this stage in our practice. And, you know, if you've never done this before, if you've never started a business before, then you may not have a recipe of what skills are required. And if building a wellness practice, whether it's in person or virtual, is a new thing to you, then sometimes it can feel like you're spinning your wheels. So there's definitely, I would say hindsight is 20 20, and if I had to do it all over again, I'd probably do it way different. I mean, some things I would continue to do at that stage that I did the Men, but other things I would. I would definitely re. Remap. So that's what we're going to be talking about today. Aaron, how have you been? I'm curious how you've been. It feels like haven't seen you in a while because we met. We skipped a few days from our usual recording. So what's new in your world?

You know, doing some training. I'm. I'm embracing fall. Putting on long sleeves and jackets. It's a. It's a season for reflection and seeing like, like you we mentioned and talked about on our office hours.

What.

What can we let go? What can we. How can we reinvent ourselves in the season? And I know having spoken to a lot of people, I'm excited to cover this because there's a lot of stuff in our heads that, that we can let go of so we can actually make more progress in from that 0 to 100k mark. It's. It's Sometimes the hardest part to get going. But just like that plane analogy, you use most of your fuel getting off the ground. So hopefully we can. We can shortcut some of that, release some of that unnecessary weight to get off the ground.

Yeah, absolutely. I think it's super important for people to recognize that at different stages, there's going to be different requirements, and you might see someone who's at a further point in their development of their business, and you may not want to be doing the things that they're doing at that stage of their business. So I would. When I coach people, I always tell them, don't do what I'm doing right now because my business is over a decade old. We need to do what's right for you in this stage of your growth. So why don't we get right into it? I mean, I'd love to have a conversation here because you've started a practice as well, so, you know, there's. There's lots that you could add to this dialogue, and you speak to people on pretty much a daily basis who are, you know, at varying stages of their business. But we're finding more and more as more people graduate from coaching programs and wellness programs and functional medicine programs, that we definitely need some tools to support them and. And get them over that first hump of just getting started. So I like for you to think back to when you started in practice and what that was like for you, and I'll go backwards in time over 12 years and think about what it was like for me, because we really have to be empathetic towards the headspace that that person is in and be empathetic to some of the challenges that they might be facing. And times are different right now as well. You know, there's a lot of uncertainty in the world, but I'm here to tell you with, with certainty that what we do is important and needed. You know, in fact, now probably more than ever. So, Aaron, what were some of the thoughts that were going through your mind when you were first getting started? I'd love to hear what you have to say.

I'm remembering how I had the stubbornness in my mind to have control over my destiny, you know, over my practice. I didn't want to be told from the outside what I. How I would want to work with patients, what I was required to do or not do in certain ways. And that's why I felt the insurance model was not what I wanted. It was very popular to say, you know, go contract. Go, go contract with every insurance company because you want to reach as many people as possible. And I, I just kept cringing at that idea. And so in my mind I, I realized that I wanted to start a practice and that was the seed of it. If I think back to it, that, that was, that was like a non negotiable. And sometimes when we finish our training, it's easy to think or not actually be clear why it's so important to start our own practice. It's actually hard. It's not, it's not easy. So that's the first thing I would go back and maybe reflect on a little bit more is realizing even though it's going to be hard, the reason why was so important to me that I was going to figure it out no matter what. So when I sometimes when I speak to people, maybe it's a little bit too rainbows and unicorns thinking, oh, it's going to be great from the beginning. And it's that stubbornness in myself that kept me going even when it got difficult or even when it seemed like things weren't working. So I think like the mindset piece, that that's what comes to me right away.

Yeah, yeah. You know, in, in the very beginning, I think a lot of it is will this work? Right. And will people value what I have to offer? So it's really selling ourselves on ourselves and knowing that we can positively impact people's lives. That's, you know, probably the first thing that we need. We need proof of concept that what we do actually works. And once we have that certainty, then it gives us that inspiration and motivation to get out there and really try to help as many people as we can. So I think that's one of the first things that we need is just this being sold on ourselves and that confidence and certainty so that we can lean into our business and then confidently put our message out there. A big thing that I would say when I was starting out, mentality wise, is shifting from the employee mindset to an entrepreneur mindset. And so many of us, you know, may have had jobs, right? We have jobs as teenagers or even as, as adults. And then once we go into our own business, it's rare that somebody kind of starts, has never worked anywhere and starts their own business. Right. A lot of times we've worked somewhere and been managed and been told what to do and have had structure. But when you start your own business, you don't have that structure. So you're kind of, kind of left to your own devices, right? You can start whenever you want. You can End whenever you want. You can take as much time off as you want, you can work as much overtime as you want. You're kind of doing it all. But it does require a shift in mindset. So there's a specific mindset shift that we talk about, and that is going from the employee mindset to the entrepreneur mindset. So here's a difference that we want to distinguish, is that the employee is guaranteed to get paid, right? So they're guaranteed to get paid for the hours that they put in. They're also guaranteed not to ever get paid for those hours again. So no matter how good the work is that somebody does as an employee, for those 40 hours they got paid or whatever it is that they worked, they were guaranteed. And if they worked harder, better, smarter, faster, it usually doesn't result in more payment. And they're also guaranteed never to get paid for that time again. Whereas an entrepreneur is totally different. An entrepreneur, the mindset of an entrepreneur is, hey, I'm going to do this work, because I feel like it serves an underserviced population of people that need this type of help. So we've got a product that we believe in or a service that we believe in, and I'm going to do whatever it takes to put this message out there and promote this and build this. However, there's no guarantee that the entrepreneur is going to get paid. In fact, statistically, odds are they're not going to get paid for the work that they do. However, if they do work that's meaningful and supportive and is in demand and is priced right and the value is perceived by the marketplace, then they can get paid for that work over and over and over again. So you could build a tool or a widget or a program or a process or a supplement. And if you do it right, if you hit the ball or the nail on the head or hit the ball out of the park, then you can get paid for that work you did over and over and over again as many times that I can think of that, right? There are certain things that we've done, decisions that we've made, we made those decisions five, six years ago, and they're still paying dividends in either time by freeing up more of my time or in financial dividends as well. And of course, that gives us peace of mind. So I think that there's an important consideration. There is the mindset shift that needs to take place. The employee is guaranteed to get paid, guaranteed never to get paid again. The entrepreneur is not guaranteed to get paid, but has the potential to get paid over and over and over again if they create something again that's needed by the marketplace. And if you're in the health space, what you do is more than needed right now. I learned an interesting fact, actually, listening to Peter Schiff. I don't know if you listened to him or his podcast, but I always find his commentary kind of interesting. And so he actually reported that healthcare, the inflation rate of healthcare is 24%. So could you imagine that to deliver healthcare has become 24% more expensive in the last year?

Right.

So we hear about inflation being at 8, 9, 10, maybe 11%, but that's just a little basket of goods when you start factoring things that people actually use and need, and sometimes it could be life or death, those things gone up up to 24%, at least for healthcare, and some things even more than that. So what's cool about what we do is that it's in demand and we can actually do it in a more affordable way, in a more accessible way for people, and in a way that actually produces an outcome that they that they want. So we're more in demand than ever before. And now it's on us as entrepreneurs to come up with a solution to the challenge that our ideal customer is facing.

I'm really glad you've mentioned that owner, that entrepreneur mindset, because I'm going back now and I was reminded of the uncertainty and the lack of perceived security because I only had jobs leading up to medical school. And then in school, you know exactly where you're going to be, how you're going to be spending your time. When your exams are, it was like you just hop on the treadmill and just don't fall off. That's the feeling. And then once you get off the treadmill, it's like, where do you go? What should I do with my time? So a lot of that first couple years was really just figuring out how do I manage myself, where should I actually put my focus and my time. It's such a different flip of that. Like you put on a hat, you have to put on a different hat. I like to say to people, you have your practitioner hat, but you got to put on your business owner hat and start thinking and identifying as a different role.

Yeah, I hear you there. So the other thing too is, like, especially at the beginning stages is you need creativity, right. And there's a quote that I just shared recently, and that is that worry and anxiety are essentially praying for the things that you don't want. And a lot of People are really good at knowing what they don't want, especially at that stage in their business. Right. However, what's important for us to do is really focus on and have a clear intention of what it is that we do want. And you know, our mind is so powerful. I know we've talked about this so many times, but we almost don't give it enough credit. And so our mindset in the very early and beginning stages of our business is going to set us off on the right trajectory. You know, another thing that I wish I had done earlier is connect with community. So, you know, when you're a solopreneur, it doesn't mean you have to do everything by yourself. You might be the only person in your business, but there's other people that might be trying to build a business just like yours, or there might be other people who have similar struggles and challenges as you do. So I encourage people to join local business groups. It could be bni, it could be a local SCORE chapter that you have, which is often provided by your Chamber of commerce so you can connect with your Chamber of commerce and other local businesses and learn more about the organizations in your community. Even if you have a virtual practice, it doesn't harm and doesn't hurt to have people that are in your community promoting what you do. People can still work with you virtually, but that doesn't mean you can't be a rock star in your local community as well and be of value to people and refer others as well. You could be a great resource to your clients and patients as well. So I think that's important too is finding other entrepreneurs and business owners so you get a pulse on what's happening in your community. And you also get to surround yourself with people who are in problem solving mode who might have, you know, a different perspective or insight than you do. So I joined my Chamber of Commerce probably a couple years into practice. I wish I'd done that sooner. I joined BNI a couple years into practice as well, did that for quite a few years and that was really enjoyable for me. And I held myself accountable to attend by actually hosting the meetings in our office. So that's one way to hold yourself accountable. And then, you know, the other thing was I didn't really get into virtual and online communities because Facebook really wasn't a thing at that time. But definitely if I had to start all over again, I would find the right communities online. And certainly we have an amazing community of practitioners who are very heart centered and there's free Facebook groups Like the ones we have. There's obviously mentorship groups and private groups that you can join as well. But, you know, immerse yourself in people who are solving a similar challenge. Because what I found historically is people are happy to help. Not everyone. Right. That's not the promise here. But the majority of people are happy to help and support you because they remember what it was like to be in that stage of your business. And sometimes we might think a question is silly or not warranted, but trust me, everyone's probably had the same questions that are going through your mind if you're starting out as you have at one point.

Yeah. To add on to that, I remember some of the best connections I made was even just organizing and hosting event during school. That's how I met Ben lynch, like a student panel. Like, I was like, I want to do the student panel. And I invited, you know, practitioners who, in my view, I wanted to learn from and were successful. And that's an easy way to connect with people. And once you demonstrate, like, you have a little bit of ambition, a little bit of proactiveness, people who have been there can see that. And that's how I met some of my, my best kind of mentors. And. And I go into conferences, like finding, let's say, an author or someone you want to learn from. And oftentimes they'll be at conferences and you'll meet people who resonate with the same thing. And I've made a lot of connections in the past just by showing up to a conference, even alone. I was nervous to go to, like, get gatherings and conferences, but you end up meeting people, putting yourself in the path of luck.

I love that. That's such a great and powerful point. Right. Is just immersing ourselves into different experiences and different communities. Here's the thing I find with health is that if you're willing to share what you do, there's always value that you can add in people's lives. People are always interested in what we have to say or our opinions about things because what we do is impacting people on a daily basis. Right. And nothing against my fellow accountants that are out there, but if I'm hanging out with an accountant, the last thing I want to do is talk about my taxes. Right. Because that conversation can only go so far. However, if I'm hanging out with a buddy who's into health and wellness, I mean, that conversation can be all about me. If I'm hanging out with them, I can ask them all kinds of questions and they're happy to listen and we should be happy to share. So really get yourself out there, you know, join different interest groups. If you, if you're into health and wellness, but you like woodworking, join a woodworking community, right? Because guess what, everyone there has a body and everyone there is interested in some degree that their health and wellness. And I guarantee that they know people who are unwell that they can refer to you. But that common bond that you have in woodworking helps build trust, right? It helps build a connection beyond just a business transaction, right? You can, you know, the goal here is to have as many allies and friends and people out there promoting what you do to the world as you possibly can. So join your favorite yoga studio, right? Be their best customer, refer others there. You know, join, join other memberships that might be valuable. You know, join, you can, you can join a health club in your local area, right, and make sure everyone there knows what you do. It's so easy for you to do that. And it's such a great place to meet people as well, who are on a, on a similar path and similar journey. I always encourage people to also get to know their local health food store owner because guess what, people who are coming into the health food store, they're coming in with questions, they're coming in with problems with health challenges. And the health food store owner, you know, that's one of the probably the, that, that's somebody who probably refers more people to practices than anyone else because there might be some deeper rooted things that they may not be able to help people with. And they're always looking for trusted resources. So, you know, befriend that person and watch what happens. Amazing things will start happening for you and it'll build your confidence. And, you know, one of the key things that I did was I would, you know, work with local health food stores and host workshops in their stores. So sometimes there's local speaker circuits that you can go and speak to. And the reason I bring that up is because I want to talk about the most important skill to develop when you're starting out. And that in my opinion, the most important skill in your practice is the art of communication and public speaking. So public speaking isn't just speaking in front of an audience. When you're speaking to anybody, that skill is going to come in handy when you're communicating with your clients or even your prospective clients. That skill is very necessary for you to have. So becoming a more effective communicator is probably a really important skill to have early on in your practice because that does the way you communicate does a lot of the heavy lifting for you, as opposed to trying to, you know, over explain or over articulate what it is that you do. Get clear on how you can present yourself to people so that in one sentence it becomes clear to them what you do and what problem you solve. So clear, concise, communication is. Is probably a very important skill to have in the beginning. What are some other skills that you think are important? Aaron?

Copywriting comes to mind. And copywriting, because it's a psychology of how people take action. You know, how do you use words to attract the right people, to help them make a decision, to help them understand what you do in a way that makes sense to them. And I've always been fascinated with the psychology of it, and that's how you can start to understand and be more empathetic. I think that's the thing that it taught me. When you study marketing and advertising, it becomes about the audience, the customer, and not about how much. You know, once you've gone through training, you know so much, and it's just, like, overwhelming to anyone. Like, any normal person. I remember, like, stepping out of the medical school bubble for four years, you for, like, forget that the whole world was moving and progressing in ways that you just kind of forget what it feels like to be a normal human being. Right? And it's that curse of knowledge. So but once you just take a. Once you start studying marketing, you have to be aware of where your audience is, like, what's their state of awareness about what you do. And you're going to approach that, that conversation very differently than jumping into mitochondria, you know, like, even talk about, like, the nervous system. It's like, what is that? And so once you. Once I encountered people's, like, blank stares enough as I try to explain some of these concepts, okay? I'm not. I'm not connecting. And so I knew it was a problem that I couldn't explain things in a way that would resonate. And so copywriting, psychology, I think that along those lines, it fits into communication.

Yeah. So communication, you know, there's a theme here, right? Like, how we get our message across to people is going to be very important. Another thing I wanted to, I had written down here to talk about was how to be smart with our money, right? And, you know, we've all heard this idea that money is time and time is money. So let's just for a moment, assume that's true. We want to be very conscientious with how we spend Our time and what we spend our time doing, especially when we're solopreneurs. I think that the tendency is for many of us to do things on our own. So just because we can, it doesn't mean we must. So just because you can do this thing, it doesn't mean you must do it, because what you must be doing is the things that nobody else can do. And you know, I encourage people to spend at least 80% of their time in their zone of genius, doing the things that they love doing, developing skills that are worth developing. Let's leave some of the other things up to the experts, right? So I wouldn't encourage you to build a fancy website all on your own. Can you learn how to do that? Probably. Maybe you start with a one page website, but you know, you don't need to go and build this fancy thing out. Somebody else can do that for you when the timing is right. So don't get bogged down with things that other people can do. Focus on the things that only you can do and spend the majority of your time. Now listen, there's going to be times that you're doing things that you may not like to do. And sometimes this 80:20 ratio is off, especially in the beginning, the lines can get a little bit blurry. But you know, don't try to save money by wasting time, right? So when we're working on something that we're not proficient at, you know, I like an exercise that I invite people to do is get an idea of what their time is worth, right? So for me, a few years ago I made a decision that my time is worth, at a minimum $500 an hour. So then I have to ask myself, is what I'm doing, could somebody be doing it for way cheaper than I could be doing it? And the answer is yes, of course. I could pay somebody $50 an hour for 10 hours and it would be equivalent to what my hour is worth to my business, right? Because I could be doing things that that person can't be doing while they're doing the things that I'm not good at or proficient at that create frustration for me. Sometimes a one hour task that you're too reluctant to pay somebody else to do, they could finish in an hour or two. Might take you two days or two weeks or two months, or worse yet, it just never gets done. So learn how to outsource things you know that you're not good at. Focus on the things that you are good at, double down on that, because the experts are going to do it faster. And if you are actually valuing your time and you're putting a timestamp on it, then you'll start realizing that you're bleeding a lot of money. Right. If somebody, if your business had to pay you, right, $500 an hour, is this what it would have you doing? You must have to have like an out of body, third party relationship with your business and speak on behalf of your business and think on behalf of your business. You're actually, you want to position yourself as separate from your business. So imagine my business is here and I'm over here. If I'm working on a task, my business should be paying me, right. As a, as an employee or as a contractor to the business. In the beginning we kind of do all these things for free. And what we end up in with not realizing is that we have to kind of treat ourselves separately. So if somebody was, if my business was actually paying me to do this right now, 250, 500 hundred, a thousand dollars an hour, is this what it would actually have me doing? And is this actually serving the business? Chances are it's probably not. And so if you can, you know, tune into that, then you're going to be much more wise with how you spend your time and money.

The word that comes to mind is like leverage. And you know, I'm like thinking and always evaluating how can I create a little bit more leverage in my, my day to day actions. In the beginning sometimes we have to do those things like you know, clean our own bathroom, you know, whatever it might be, you know, or more specifically, when it comes to medical practice, you're ordering your labs, you're following up on labs, you're checking in with clients and patients. And in the beginning you, you kind of have to do that. But I think you're, what you're saying is after a certain point you have to look at where you are and is it still worth it for you to be doing that? And how can you, how can you free up that cognitive space? That's another cost that many people don't realize is a huge cost. Like trying to, trying to learn HTML. Oh, do people still code in HTML? You don't have to, but like learning how to do all that stuff is a cognitive like cost to it.

Yeah, like we shouldn't, you know, we shouldn't be stumped by technical stuff. We should be stumped by clinical stuff. Right? Like that's, you know, so if you're stumped there, then get the help and support that you need. Don't try to figure it out on your own or hire someone and outsource it to them so they could do it for you. But we should be focused on being stumped clinically so that we get develop that skill. Unless you plan on building websites for other people. Right. It's, it's a disposable skill. Like, it's something that you may only do once. You should know how to edit and modify it and tweak it if you need to. But building it out, that's something that somebody else can potentially do for you as an example. Right.

That's a great point.

Building out some, some sort of fancy technical tool that you, that you need for your business, that some let somebody else do that, that's a better use of, of your time and energy.

It's funny because, like, sometimes you don't even remember what is the point of our business. Like, are, are people paying us to figure out our website? Probably not. Like you mentioned, figuring out someone's organic acid test or looking at their case is what they're paying you for. And that's what we have to. That's where our greatest value in the marketplace would be as practitioners.

Yeah. And you know, another thing too is like, how do we simplify? How do we keep things as simple and as lean as we possibly can, especially in the beginning? And then we can start, you know, bolting on systems and creating more systems in the practice once we have like a flow that we, that we've identified. You know, another thing that comes up in the very beginning is, is people, especially if they're in the online world, they feel like they need to have certain elements of their digital presence finished in order for them to be a valid or legitimate business. But I was sharing with you earlier this weekend, I met somebody who we're going to start working together. And one of the things that I realized after that conversation is like, hey, we just exchanged numbers and started texting each other. Right. So if you're meeting people in one on one, face to face, in a relational type of setting, then you're not going to say, hey, go check out my website, let me know what you think. Right. And figure it out. You're like, you'll figure out how to schedule from there. No, you schedule right away, or you exchange a text message right away and you email right away. People actually appreciate that far more than you might think. They're like, wow, like he's actually giving me his cell phone number or she's giving me her cell phone number to get in touch with her, they feel instantly special when you do that. But if you send them to, you know, like, just like any cold traffic to your website, then that's actually not as personal. So in the beginning, you can actually leverage that to your advantage. So if you don't have a website, that's fine. You don't have to say anything. You don't have to say, I don't have a website. Right. Don't, you know, don't put yourself down in that regard. Just say, you know what? I'd love to connect with you. Here's my phone number. Right. Let me shoot you a text right now. Right. There's ways that you can connect with people and go to that personal level very quickly without letting technology get in the way.

In some ways, if you send them to your website in that situation, you're telling them, I don't want to talk to you. It's almost a soft way to say no to someone. Well, yeah, go check out my website. See you later.

Yeah. Without realizing it. Right. And so just connect with people right away. And in the beginning, that's going to be very, very possible for most people. Right. When they're just starting out. Especially if your business is starting off with a lot of, you know, existing connections and contacts that you already have. So make sure you're as much as you can leveraging those as well, and that you don't have to sell yourself to people. But everyone should know what you do. Right. Can your friends and family describe what it is that you actually do? Right. They may not be your patients. You might not be recruiting them as clients. You may not want to, in my opinion, however, do they understand what you do? Because they know people who are unwell that could benefit from what you do. So equip your family and friends with the ability to share what it is that you have to offer. Cool. You know, another thing that comes up in the very beginning is how much do I charge? What do I charge? Right. I know you hear that over and over again. I've heard that over and over again. And, you know, if I had to go back in time, you know, one of the things that I did when I was learning functional medicine is I did, you know, pretty much most of my initial consultations for free. And that was actually, in my opinion, a good move because it allowed me to get as much experience and exposure as I possibly could. So instead of I was more interested in what I would learn from this person that was worth more to me in building my confidence and building my certainty and Keeping my ears to the ground in hearing what they have to say and hearing their objections and hearing their challenges and hearing, you know, what they've tried before, that was valuable reconnaissance for me to help me dial in my message. So in the beginning, I would suggest, don't put up any roadblocks to connect with people. Don't you know, that lesson or the information that you're going to gather from that conversation is far more valuable than what they're going to pay you. So in the beginning, you want to look at it like research, right? It's almost like you're researching your ideal customer avatar and the problem that they have. So that that's benefiting you, but it's also, of course, benefiting them. And then once you get to a point where you know you have abundant leads coming in, or you're very conscientious, like your schedule is packed and you can't afford for someone to schedule and then not show up, and, you know, as your message grows, you're going to encounter more flakiness, Right? That just comes with the territory. People say yes to things and they don't show up, you're going to encounter more of that. And at that point, if you feel like the timing is right, then you can start putting in barriers of entry. Right? So it could be a $27 discovery call, a $50 discovery call, $97 discovery call, whatever feels right. We found that that $49 price point tends to work well. It's reasonable. So, you know, but it's enough to make sure that people fill out the forms and make sure they show up for the appointment. If you make it too little, then, you know, it's unlikely that people will still flake out, but it's more likely. And if you make it too much, it could be too much of a barrier of entry. What are your thoughts, Aaron?

I think in the beginning, if I were to go back and do it again, I would take that advice and optimize for learning. Like, if I'm looking at the first 10, 50 clients, I would optimize for learning whatever. And often in the beginning, it was, how much was I comfortable? Like, what's the number? I would be comfortable saying out of my mouth is probably where I would have just started and start to deliver and learn how to deliver a great experience for clients and start to build up testimonials or case studies. Because in the beginning, the evidence that you're building is going to help you recharge what you're worth and know what you're worth. So develop certainty in the beginning. I don't know if you knew this in the past. I did a little bit of real estate photography, and the very first time I charged, it was like, okay, what do I feel good charging, like, $200. And then you do a few sessions, and then it's like, okay, 250, 300, so you can work your way up. And then, you know, I'd had you tell me, hey, you're charging too little. So that gave me the confidence to charge for, like, a program, a package. Another option is gonna mentor with someone who's going to. Who's already charging what you want. That's what happened when I was in, you know, in my visceral manipulation phase. I just charged what my mentor charged. He's like, you're. This is what you're going to charge. We don't do insurance here. I'm like, okay, that's. That's how we're going to do it in the beginning. So there's a lot of different ways. It's just like, get. Get going. You know, don't overthink it is what I would tell myself.

Okay, good advice. Yeah. I think it's important for us to feel good about what we charge and never undervalue what we have to offer. In the beginning, we might actually be able to charge a little bit less and get away with it because we are bootstrapping, right. We don't have the overhead that, let's say a bigger practice might have. So there's, you know, let's say you do charge $50. If you have no expenses, then most of that goes into profit, right? But if you have expenses such as rent or you got to pay staff, you've got to pay for all the other tools that you need, then you actually could even be losing money charging $47 or $49. So in the beginning, it. There's actually more room and permission for you to do something like that should you choose to. To. To offer that time without any barriers for people. And it's all. It's all about how we leverage it in our heads, right? If. If we think of it as like, oh, I'm. I'm giving away my services, and I'm not charging for them. That's a different psychology than somebody who's like, oh, I'm excited to learn how I can help this person, and I'm excited to learn how to become a better communicator, how to become a better, you know, facilitator of these phone calls, right? That practice is what builds up our certainty and confidence. And it might take like 25 to 50 calls in order for us to get there. Awesome. So there's, there's. We, you know, kind of jokingly said we could talk about, you know, this for hours, like, what are some of the things that we would tell ourselves if we could go back in time. And I'm hoping that, you know, somebody who's listening today who's at that stage in their business picked up a thing or two that they could do differently or better, uh, or, you know, something that they may not have thought of that they could incorporate as part of their bootstrapping strategy. It's worth it, it's fun, it's exciting. And I promise if you keep your head up and you keep going, you'll eventually look back and be like, oh my God, this was the best journey of my life. So keep going, my friends. Keep charging forward. The world needs you now more than ever. And it's important that we continue to shine our light in the world. We'll talk to you soon. Have an amazing, amazing rest of your day. We'll share some key tools and bonuses that you can acquire should you feel called to. We have a copy of my book that we'd love to send you absolutely free. It's called Perfect Practice. And in that book I show you the blueprint on how to start your practice. The things that I wish I had known. There's lots of nuggets in there for you to unpack and I also want to invite you to our upcoming event called Perfect Practice Live. You can check out the link in the comments for all the dates and the details to learn more about that. It's a three day business intensive that we host and we share with you a complete framework on how to start your business and how to take it to the market and help as many people as you possibly can with scalable systems. You can learn more about that there. And yeah, if you enjoyed our conversation, like and subscribe, you know, we could always use the support and it's a great way for us to continue spreading our message. So thank you and have an awesome, awesome day. We'll talk to you soon. Bye, Aaron.

See you, Sajan.