SLP Three-Piece Thursday 2: on founding and starting up a great private practice, and connecting with clients

1. On founding a great practice. Design your private practice to increase your freedom and autonomy. Hire talented staff to shore up your weak spots, especially good all-rounders. Before you launch, build you ‘social capital’: your social and professional network. Back yourself, but if you lack confidence to launch solo look for a co-founder. Be stingy on giving others part ownership of your practice. Clearly define everyone’s roles – as founder you are the CEO. Be careful about hiring friends. (See: Noah Wasserman.)
2. On starting up your private practice: Starting a business has never been easier. Make a stand for something you care about. Get the core of your business right, then launch. Make your service inimitable by sharing what is unique about you. Then share all you know. Start small and make mistakes while you are obscure. Remember you are in business. Start saying no, and keep your services lean. Be honest, personal and nimble in communications. Communicate with others in your practice honestly. Treat employees like adults – foster independence. Stay agile. Stay focused. (Check out Chris Guillebeau.)
3. On connecting with clients. Connect with people honestly. Be authentic. Say “no” and skip events where you can’t be authentic. Be consistent and confident in your communications. Remember communication is about the “3 V’s”: verbal, vocal, visual. Be curious. Listen. Use similarities with your clients to build trust (people are comforted by what they know). (Read Michelle Tillis Lederman.)

So what to do you think? Do any of these ideas inspire you to change the way you plan or run your private practice? Let us know! Send a tweet to @speechiesinbusiness or leave a comment.