Have you ever dreamed of completely transforming your life and living your purpose? Retraining as a hypnotherapist offers the potential to make a good living doing something which you love, and which helps other people. But, particularly if you’ve never run a business, it can be difficult to imagine what your life will look like when you’ve completed your course and are working with clients. I remember visiting a hypnotherapist in my early twenties. At the time, I’d just left university and was temping for an energy company. I phoned up to reschedule an appointment and, after a brief chat, my hypnotherapist told me he was off for a swim. It was mid-morning on a baking hot day and I was snowed under a pile of electricity bills. Although it took me many years and a couple of career detours to train as a hypnotherapist, the idea of having the freedom to go for a swim on a Tuesday morning stayed with me!
Being able to make up your own timetable is certainly one of the advantages of running your own business. I’ve never come across anyone to date who could imagine going back to following someone else’s rules or fitting into the nine-to-five routine when they’ve got used to determining their own hours. Many therapists fit their working hours around their children, or make time for other responsibilities, interests and passions and having flexibility is key on most therapists’ lists of plus points when it comes to running their business.
Obviously it’s not all swims and coffees whenever you fancy. You’re running a business and seeing clients. The vast majority of hypnotherapists I know and have trained set a realistic client target based on their needs and desired lifestyle. Sometimes this is driven by financial need. On average, you can expect to charge upwards of £70 per session. For some client issues, and particularly if you specialise in particular areas, you can expect to charge about £150 per session. Based on that, ten clients per week could generate an income of £1500 and it’s up to you to decide whether you want to take on more or less client hours. Each client requires preparation so that you can offer them the very best service and you’ll spend a short period of time writing up their notes after their appointment.
On top of your client hours you’ll need to spend tim
e attracting clients to your practice. This takes more effort at the start of your career journey (which is why we provide so much business start up support). Once you have your social media strategy and website in place you’ll probably spend a few hours a week on posting information.
Business admin probably sounds daunting but these days it’s incredibly easy to set up appointments, take payments and even remind your client that their appointment is due, without having to physically do any of the work yourself. A simple link on your website can do it all for you. If you set up as a sole trader (and I suggest that you do), maintaining business records is incredibly easy and, if you do need further help, you can hire an accountant to assist with book-keeping and tax returns.
One of the beauties about working for yourself is the variety in your days. Are you an early riser who likes to prepare a couple of Facebook posts before everyone else is up? Perhaps you limit your client work to between 9.30 and 2.00 so that you’ve got the rest of the day off. Or perhaps the morning’s your time to spend on other things, as you look forward to seeing your clients in the evening. I’d say that, if you want to turn hypnotherapy into a viable business, you need to spend a few hours a day on it, dividing your day into client work, admin and marketing. How you structure that day is entirely up to you.