Have you ever felt yourself held back from succeeding, working with as many clients as you hoped for, or generally feeling unsatisfied with your business? As natural health practitioners, we face unique challenges that other fields such as allied health and conventional medicine do not.
One key area I’ve noticed many health practitioners struggle with is what I call the collective shame of practitionerhood. And while this shame has deep roots in self-preservation and protection, it’s damaging our profession.
That’s why I feel called to share more about this phenomenon with you.
What is the collective shame of practitionerhood?
This is an incredibly complex experience, with countless contributing factors. And of course, there may be slight variations on the emotion – guilt, self-doubt, uncertainty also play a role. But this pattern of feeling ashamed of what we do, what we earn and how we present in business all comes back to the same drivers.
Firstly, as natural health practitioners, we are driven by our passion for helping others. This leads many to prioritise their clients over themselves – including underpricing and struggling to hold healthy boundaries. You may have even had a hard time dealing with making a profit off the health issues of others. It’s common for pracs, particularly newer pracs or those who have been around for many decades, to feel as if their good intentions are tainted by charging a certain price.
Then there is the hate and scepticism that is directed at natural health. Everyone from doctors and dietitians to everyday people can direct this anger at us, which can feed into a sense of shame. This can lead to hiding away from marketing and self-promotion, or unconsciously charging less because you feel ‘less’ than other professionals.
And if that wasn’t enough, this can become a contagious mindset. To this day, there are still lecturers and supervisors telling natural health practitioners that only a small percentage will succeed, or profiting in business means selling out.
As a result, we have a massive amount of shame, guilt and self-doubt in our profession – far more than most others.
Why we need to address this problem
So you’re not charging enough or putting yourself out there – so what? This has a ripple effect that extends far beyond you and out into those around you.
When you keep your prices low, you keep the client’s investment low. This means that they may not take it as seriously as you hope. Imagine if you were paying $50 for a workshop and $500 for another. I bet you would pay much more attention at the second one to make sure you got the most out of your investment! It’s the same for our clients.
Undercharging can also lead to poor practice. It’s hard to be 100% present and focused on your client when you’re worried if you can pay the bills that month. Ensuring that your business is set up properly and supporting your lifestyle gives you the freedom to be the best practitioner possible.
The pattern of shame can sabotage you in other ways. For example, you might turn down opportunities that are ideal for you or feel like you can’t approach someone else for a collaboration idea you have in mind. This means that you have less impact overall – because playing small feels safer when you’re experiencing shame.
And if you’re shying away from success, it affects your clients. You may not feel confident to recommend them the best options possible. And your attitude can even lead them to feel like your modality is less effective or not credible. We need our clients to believe we can help them, because the mind is an incredibly powerful healing tool of its own!
I know it can be tough to shift these limiting beliefs around your business!
And I know that you might be conflicted – on the surface, you want to make a great income and help as many people as possible! But your nervous system is reliving that shame and telling you it’s not safe.
It’s time that we recognise the value of our experience, our expertise and what we have to offer as individuals. That way, not only can we become more successful, but we can spread that ripple effect throughout our networks and our lives.
How we can address self-sabotage
Keep in mind – no one is immune to this pattern.
The only difference between you and those who are already succeeding? They are actively working on releasing those blocks!
I’ve been working on my own blocks around business, money and success for years – even when I was still a student. And I still work on them to this day, because stress and emotions are things that we will always be exposed to.
NER is my go-to option because:
- It targets those underlying emotional drivers and stresses that are causing you to have unhealthy and unhelpful beliefs/behaviours around money and business
- By addressing the underlying cause directly, you’ll see ripple effects throughout your life – for example, your relationships or health issues might improve
- Using NER takes as little as 10 minutes – making it one of the fastest ways to clear the blocks!
As a naturopath, I know all too well the beliefs that we experience as healers and practitioners. But if we can clear these blocks, we can not only experience success – but we can transform the lives of hundreds or even thousands of clients each!
Once these beliefs are dealt with, practitioners can experience amazing results such as:
- Tripling their income
- Being fully booked with a waitlist of 2, 4 or even 8 weeks
- Creating passive income options
- Discovering the work-life balance they dreamed of
Want to experience the difference for yourself? My 6 Week NER Mastermind is the best place to get started. Together, we’ll identify and process the stressors and beliefs that are keeping you stuck so you can transform your business (and your life!)