From Overbooked to Overflow: How I Created My First Scalable Offer
When I first started my therapy practice, I was hustling hard. My calendar was packed with back-to-back sessions, and I felt like I was constantly playing catch-up. The idea of creating an offer outside of the therapy room—something that wasn’t just another hour-long session with a client—felt impossible. I was overwhelmed, underpaid, and burnt out. But I knew deep down that I wanted something different. I didn’t want to keep living session-to-session, and I realized that if I wanted more freedom, I needed to do things differently.
This is when I started rethinking how I could structure my practice and make a larger impact. I had valuable knowledge and expertise, but I was too caught up in the traditional one-on-one model to see that I could offer my insights in other ways. The idea of creating my first scalable offer was born from the realization that I needed to work smarter, not harder.
The Turning Point: From Overworked to Reimagining My Offerings
The first thing I had to do was shift my thinking. I had always believed that therapy had to be a one-on-one service. I equated success with having a full calendar of back-to-back clients. But I soon realized that working harder didn’t equal working smarter. It was time to expand beyond individual therapy and offer something that allowed me to serve more people while preserving my energy.
As I began to think about this new direction, it became clear: I had to let go of the belief that more hours worked meant more success. I needed a system that allowed me to serve more people while freeing up my time. And that’s when the idea of creating my first non-clinical offer took shape.
Step 1: Identifying My Expertise and Crafting a New Offer
The first step in creating my scalable offer was identifying the specific expertise I wanted to share with others. I asked myself: What are the key insights and strategies I often share with my clients that could be helpful to a broader audience? After some reflection, I realized that my passion was helping therapists avoid burnout and create sustainable practices.
I decided to create an online course specifically for therapists. This course would offer tools and strategies for preventing burnout, setting boundaries, and maintaining a healthy work-life balance. It wasn’t a replacement for therapy, but rather a supplemental guide for those in the helping professions who needed guidance on how to avoid burnout and maintain a sustainable practice.
Step 2: Letting Go of Perfectionism and Embracing Imperfection
As I began to build my course, I had to confront my perfectionism. I was used to creating content for therapy clients, but creating something scalable felt different. I realized that I didn’t need to have everything perfect before I launched the course. The most important thing was that it was valuable and helpful.
I had to let go of the idea that success only comes from perfection. I learned that it was more important to create something that was useful and practical rather than waiting for everything to be flawless. By focusing on creating a course that addressed the core issues of burnout and boundary-setting, I was able to make progress without getting stuck in perfectionism.
Step 3: Creating the Offer
Once I had a clear understanding of what I wanted to offer, it was time to build the course. I kept things simple, focusing on the core principles that I knew would provide the most value to my audience. The course included practical strategies for therapists to set healthy boundaries, overcome burnout, and create a sustainable practice.
I didn’t overcomplicate the process by investing in complex technology or expensive platforms. Instead, I used a simple online course platform that allowed me to upload videos, share worksheets, and communicate with my audience. My goal was to make the course accessible, practical, and actionable without overwhelming my audience.
Step 4: Pricing and Positioning
One of the biggest challenges I faced was determining how to price my course. I had always thought about therapy in terms of hourly rates, but pricing a course was a different challenge altogether. I had to shift from thinking about time-based pricing to value-based pricing. The course wasn’t just about the time I spent creating the content—it was about the value it would bring to therapists who enrolled.
I also needed to position the course effectively. Rather than focusing solely on the concept of burnout relief, I framed the course as a way to create a thriving, sustainable practice. This shift in messaging helped me attract the right people who were looking for solutions that went beyond just fixing burnout—they wanted to create lasting, positive change in their practices.
Step 5: Launching and Growing
Once the course was ready, it was time to launch. I used my existing email list and social media platforms to announce the launch. To avoid overwhelming myself, I kept the marketing simple. I set up an email sequence to nurture my audience and shared sneak peeks of the course content.
The response was overwhelming. Therapists were excited to enroll, and the feedback was positive. It confirmed that there was a demand for what I had to offer. The course quickly gained traction, and I was able to help more people than I could have ever imagined through individual sessions.
The Beliefs I Had to Outgrow
Creating my first scalable offer wasn’t just about building a product—it was about confronting and outgrowing limiting beliefs. I had to let go of several false beliefs that had been holding me back:
More work = more success: I had to learn that working harder didn’t necessarily lead to greater success. It was about building systems that allowed me to reach more people without burning out.
I can only help clients one-on-one: I had to let go of the belief that therapy could only happen in one-on-one sessions. By offering a scalable product, I was able to help more people in a way that didn’t require one-on-one time.
I have to be perfect: Perfectionism wasn’t necessary for creating something valuable. In fact, embracing imperfection made my offer more authentic and relatable.
I can’t charge for something that’s not therapy: I had to shift from thinking about hourly rates to understanding the value of my expertise and the transformation it could create for my audience.
Conclusion: From Overbooked to Overflow
Creating my first scalable offer was a transformative experience. It allowed me to step away from the grind of back-to-back sessions and build a sustainable practice that aligned with my values. If you’re a therapist feeling overwhelmed by a packed schedule, I encourage you to consider creating your own scalable offer. By doing so, you can serve more people, reclaim your time, and build a practice that allows you to thrive.
Scaling your business doesn’t mean working harder—it means working smarter. And the best part? You get to help more people while maintaining the boundaries that keep you thriving.
