Proper Mindset/Early Career | nationalpsychologist

Articles: Proper mindset creates success & Early career psychologists'

Proper mindset creates success

Bruce Wilson, Ph.D.

The Set Mind

When we suggest the idea of a set mind, what does that mean? It means someone who prefers to accept the status quo. There is complacency with one’s beliefs, attitudes, thoughts, and actions. What are the potential pitfalls of a set mind? How can complacency lead to a self-limiting lifestyle?

The expression, “it is what it is,” illustrates the problematic style of the set mind. This expression does not foresee an alternative to the current situation. In fact, the person exhibiting a set mind has already acquiesced to the situation they face. Over time, acquiescence leads to, “don’t rock the boat,” and even worse, “why bother?” which reinforces procrastination and settling for less than what may be possible. One’s motivation decreases due to this limited perspective of alternatives. The set mind evolves into an increasingly unadaptable and intolerant attitude, which reinforces the status quo and resists change. All of these factors equate to the loss of one’s individual potential to move forward.

Mindset

Similar to a set mind, a mindset is fixed but with the potential to change based on one’s experiences. Without the limiting factors of a set mind, a mindset can be adaptable and flexible, which permits new perspectives and the ability to change. One’s beliefs, attitudes, thoughts and actions are readily altered to manage situations as needed. Having the ability to shift one’s mindset as required builds confidence through embracing the unknown, rather than avoiding it.

The fear of change is conquered by facing one’s fear, which expands, rather than limits,

one’s experiences. Exploring new things and succeeding builds one’s capacity to face future

problems with more personal agency. Pursuing more solutions than problems is one approach

that promotes a positive mindset to deal with new challenges. Adopting a growth mindset, rather

than a fixed mindset, creates more opportunities for learning from all experiences, whether

successful or not.

Improving Your Mindset

Look to thrive, not just survive. Realize you already possess all you need to be successful. Remember your thinking is the main driver of your outcomes. View all your possibilities, not just your limitations. Strive to be a smarter, stronger worker and learner.

Neuroplasticity has revealed brain messages can be reprogrammed. Most of our old messages are brain tapes, or outdated memories, that no longer applies to the present. We are rehashing out-of-date messages that continue to contaminate our ability to be in the present.

One possible solution is to discard the outdated set mind messages and upgrade to new mindset possibilities. Then we can exponentially begin to improve our capacity to manage new and challenging experiences.

Bruce Wilson, Ph.D., is a psychologist with 25 years of experience. He enjoys sharing his ramblings with friends and colleagues. He is currently in private practice at Mind Health Care in Geelong, Australia. His email is: drwilsonpsychologist@gmail.com.

Early career psychologists'

Digital presence key to growing young practice

By Kevin Hyde, Psy.D.

Newly licensed psychologists planning to hang their shingle and start a private practice often find themselves asking, “How do I get clients in the door?” or, in the COVID age, “How do I get clients on the phone or screen?”

Anyone who has done any research about starting a private practice is likely to feel overwhelmed by a mountain of required tasks. Understanding the various digital marketing strategies available can help newly minted professionals decide which best fits their needs.

The hub of all digital marketing efforts should be one’s website. Prospective clients want to research the person they’ll be working with, and a professional website is often the primary place they will go to learn about a practitioner, as well as his or her specialties and experience treating their concerns. A website doesn’t need to be ultra-modern or fancy, but it does need to be clean, readable and optimized for mobile devices. Having specialty/service pages for each of the areas in which you enjoy working is recommended. For a solo practice, start with just two or three service pages, 500-800 words each, that demonstrate understanding of clients’ pain points and help them overcome their concerns.

Converting prospective clients into actual clients can take place in several ways – organic search engine optimization (SEO), therapist directories, Google Ads and social media platforms, to name a few.

The best predictor of search engine placement is the length of time a website has been active. But it is important to make sure web pages are all optimized with well-placed keywords, image titles, meta descriptions and so forth. Regular site updates, such as consistent blogging, will help move the site up search engine rankings organically.

For early-career professionals, it typically makes sense to join as many therapist

directories as possible. Sites like Psychology Today, GoodTherapy - Find the Right

Therapist, Good-Therapy, and Open Path Collective have already done the hard work

of generating effective SEO, so they always show up near the top of the organic listings.

That means your ideal clients are likely finding and using those directories to search for

a therapist just like you. Unsurprisingly, a Google search is the first thing most prospective

clients do when looking for a therapist. What many of them don’t know is that the first three

or four results after the search bar are pay-per-click advertising. When your organic SEO

doesn’t have you on the first page, this is one method to instantly generate more traffic to

your website as you are able to show up before institutions like Psychology Today.

The biggest downside to Google Ads is that it’s a bit unwieldy to develop a campaign yourself (though not impossible). It often makes sense, in the beginning, to hire a specialist to create and run the account. Once a site is up and running, there is far less knowledge required to keep it relevant. Finding a manager who is familiar with psychotherapy practices, as well as sending traffic directly to your service pages can be effective in helping grow a practice.

In this day and age, it’s almost expected for professionals to have a social media presence. Whether it is on Facebook, Instagram, Linked In, Twitter or TikTok, there is an audience for young professionals’ content. It is possible to leverage these platforms to significantly drive engagement and increase referrals. However, consistently updating and adding new content is the key to creating repeat site visits and it helps to have some experience with all the technology involved.

Kevin Hyde, Psy.D. is a Florida licensed psychologist and the Early Career Psychologist Chair for the Florida Psychological Association. He runs a small group practice in Palm Harbor, that specializes in the treatment of anxiety disorders. His email is: kevin@hydepsychology.com