The Bad Therapist Show

Felicia Keller Boyle | Business Coach for Therapists

Ever felt like being a great therapist, having a successful practice, and living a life you love are somehow mutually exclusive? If so, you're in the right place. The Bad Therapist Show is the go-to resource for established solo therapists and group practice owners who want to grow profitable businesses, lead with confidence, and create more freedom, flexibility, and fulfillment in their lives. Hosted by Felicia Keller Boyle, aka The Bad Therapist®, LMFT, former six-figure private practice owner, therapist business coach, and creator of the Liberated Business™ method, this show challenges the belief that therapists have to choose between helping people, making money, and enjoying their lives. Through her coaching, courses, and innovative private practice fee calculator, The Magic Sheets™, Felicia has helped hundreds of therapists build more profitable practices, create additional income streams, and step into true business ownership—without sacrificing the work they love or the life they’re building. Each week, you'll hear honest conversations about private practice growth, marketing, leadership, money, boundaries, identity, and the realities of running a therapy business. Whether you're growing a solo practice, leading a group practice, or building revenue streams beyond the therapy room, you'll learn how to think like a CEO, scale sustainably, and build a business that supports your life—not the other way around. Tune in for answers to questions such as: 👉🏽How do I grow my private practice without sacrificing my personal life? 👉🏽What are the best marketing strategies for established therapists? 👉🏽How do I raise my rates with confidence? 👉🏽How do I grow my income beyond one-to-one therapy? 👉🏽What does it take to transition from therapist to CEO? 👉🏽How do I build a business that supports the life I actually want? You don't have to choose between being an exceptional therapist, a successful business owner, and a whole human. Follow the show wherever you listen to podcasts and start building a business that gives you more income, more freedom, and more of what matters most. Because bad therapists make the best therapists. --- Learn more about Business Coaching for Private Practice Therapists at www.thebadtherapist.coach.

  1. 5d ago

    How to Grow Your Private Practice Without Shrinking the Dream That Started It [Ep 188]

    At some point you stopped saying the big goal out loud. The results were slower than you needed, the gap between here and there started to hurt, and the dream became heavy to hold, so you traded it for smaller goals that felt safer. The relief was real, and so was the cost. In today's episode, I'm talking about why the size of your goals is a business decision, what happens to your growth when you stop feeding the dream, and how to grow your private practice around a vision you actually keep. The therapists I've watched move fastest were unapologetic about wanting wealth, freedom, and travel before the results showed up. What they never did was let the dream go quiet. I'll show you why it happens, the good therapist conditioning you're up against, and the habits that keep a big vision alive while the results are still coming. Your dream isn't a nice-to-have. It's the fuel that gets you through the hard parts, and picking it back up is this week's work. Topics covered on Growing Your Private Practice: What happens when the dream goes quiet and playing it safe becomes the planGood therapist conditioning and the myth that wanting money, freedom, and travel is selfishWhy saying your dream out loud keeps you honest without locking you inHow to look for evidence that it's already working without pretending everything is fineHow to pair a crystallized vision with real action steps, so you stop wishing or grinding your way thereWhat an unapologetic dream does to your charisma, your marketing, and your sales Connect with Felicia: Get my freebie & join the email list: The Magic SheetsInstagram: @the_bad_therapistWebsite: www.thebadtherapist.coach Related episodes: How to Make More Money as a Therapist: One Therapist's $35K Month [Ep 187] Quote: “If you don't have something that's really, really inspiring, you will not have the energy that you need to go through the really hard bits.” - Felicia

  2. Oct 12

    How to Make More Money as a Therapist: One Therapist's $35K Month [Ep 187]

    Think there’s a cap on your income as a solo therapist? Think again. If you're wondering how to make more money as a therapist without giving up the life you're building the practice for, I want you to meet Sandra Killebrew, my one-on-one coaching client who hit her first $35,000 while working together. In today's episode, Sandra shares how she reshaped her solo private practice serving high-conflict couples. She raised her fees, changed her cancellation policy, and created half-hour gaps between sessions. She also stopped offering free consult calls, a decision that made sense for the demand she'd already built. But Sandra's story starts before we ever worked together. After listening to this podcast, she made changes that meant fewer hours with clients and less scheduling chaos. We talk about why investing in your clinical skills can only take your business so far, and what happens when you start taking marketing and sales just as seriously. If your practice is already established and you want more room to earn, rest, and travel, this conversation will help you think through what your solo practice actually needs. More about Sandra Killebrew:Sandra Killebrew, LMFT, is a couples therapist who specializes in high-conflict couples. She owns the Center for Excellence in Marriage and Family Therapy. Topics covered on How to Make More Money as a Therapist:Why clinical skill alone wasn't enough for Sandra's next income goalHow getting too clinical keeps you from being bold enough in your marketingHigher fees, longer sessions, and the half-hour gaps that changed her workdayThe website messaging and client demand behind her decision to stop free consult callsGetting paid while you and a new client work out whether you're a fitHow Sandra assessed the financial risk of extended time off rather than relying on confidence aloneSix weeks off in India and a $35K month right after: the foundation that made the leap safe Resources from this episode:The Entrepreneurial Podcast EP 153: Your Cancellation Policy is Losing You Money with The Bad Therapist, Felicia Keller- Boyle Connect with Sandra Killebrew:Website: centerforexcellencemft.comInstagram: @sandra.killebrew.lmft Connect with Felicia:Get my freebie & join the email list: The Magic SheetsInstagram: @the_bad_therapistWebsite: www.thebadtherapist.coach Related episodes:The Anatomy of a $20K Month for Solo Therapists (It's Simpler Than You Think) [Ep 149]SEO Blogging for Therapists: How Long It Really Takes to Get More Traffic and Inquiries [Ep 153] Quote:“Be an above-average therapist, and then move on. Develop your business skills. Develop your marketing skills. Be able to talk about what you do in a way that people understand.” - Sandra Killebrew

  3. Oct 5

    Specialty Pages for Therapists: What to Put on Each One to Book More Consult Calls [Ep 186]

    There's a moment when someone is finally ready to ask for help. They know the problem is bad enough, they've stopped telling themselves to wait, and they start looking for a therapist. That's peak motivation, and it doesn't last. If your therapist website doesn't quickly show that you understand what they're going through, it can fade before they reach your contact page. In today's episode, I'm making the case that every specialty in your practice deserves its own page, and I'm walking you through the beats that make therapy website specialty pages convert. The therapist who books the client isn't the most credentialed one in town. It's the one who becomes the obvious choice on the page. I'll show you how to describe the problem in the language of your client's actual day, why the steps you find obvious aren't obvious to someone in crisis, and where your call to action belongs. You don't have to rebuild your whole site. Start with the one specialty you're most excited to talk about, and turn that page into the one that keeps a motivated visitor from leaving. Topics covered on Therapist Website: Why a specialty that lives only as a bullet on your homepage can cost you a client who was already ready to bookHow to describe your ideal client's problem from the outside in, so they recognize their own life on the pageWhy every specialty page needs its own introduction, even though you already have an About pageWhat has to be spelled out before a client will take the next step, and why it feels obvious to you but not to themWhere your call to action belongs on a service page, and why repeating it helps the client rather than turning you pushyHow to build a specialty page FAQ from Google's People Also Ask to support your SEO and AI search Resources from this episode: Liberated Business, my signature group coaching program for therapists who want to build a multi-six-figure private practice Connect with Felicia: Get my freebie & join the email list: The Magic SheetsInstagram: @the_bad_therapistWebsite: www.thebadtherapist.coach Related episodes: 4 Things Every Therapist Website Homepage Needs to Fill Your Private Practice [Ep 159]: what belongs on your homepage before a visitor clicks through to a specialty pageHow to Find Your Niche as a Therapist [Ep 183]: choosing the specialty you are most excited to build a page for Quote: “Vague language costs you clients. The therapists who are converting aren't the ones who are the most credentialed or the most experienced.” - Felicia

  4. Sep 28

    How to Double Your Practice Revenue Without Adding More Clients (REPLAY) [Ep 185]

    You finally get the marketing to work, then the inbox becomes a full-time job. More inquiries, higher fees, fewer people on your caseload, and your best hours disappearing into emails from people who were never going to book. In this replay episode, I'm walking you through marketing for therapists for when you're done guessing: a defined strategy I understand well enough to turn up or ease off, and a fast way to sort who is genuinely right for your practice. Here's the thing: you can delegate this, and you probably should. Someone else can screen for you, and it really spares your energy so you can focus on the work that only you can do. You don't have to see more clients, work long hours, or cross your boundaries. Tune in! Topics covered on How to Double Your Practice Revenue Without Adding More Clients: Why a good reputation, a long career, and a full caseload stop carrying you at the income ceilingWhat a defined marketing strategy looks like in practice, and how to tell when to turn it up or ease offWhy a flood of inquiries from people who are not a fit is a delegation problem rather than a marketing failureQualifying on your own inquiry form, and the trade-off in every barrier you addWhy delegating the inbox actually good, and how to set it up so you still see what mattersWhat a defined marketing strategy actually looks like, and how you know which part to adjust when it slows down Resources from this episode: Liberated Business, my signature group coaching program for therapists who want to build a multi-six-figure private practice Connect with Felicia: Get my freebie & join the email list: The Magic SheetsInstagram: @the_bad_therapistWebsite: www.thebadtherapist.coach Related episodes: Marketing for Established Therapists: From Getting Found to Getting Known [Ep 173]: building visibility when reputation alone stops being enoughThe Private Practice Marketing Strategy I'd Use to Scale to Multi-6 Figures From Scratch [Ep 162]: the strategy behind consistent income instead of random good months Quote: “You need a marketing system that works when you need it, lets you relax when you want to, and brings you the right kind of clients." - Felicia

  5. Sep 21

    4 Ways Group Practice Owners Can Make Data-Driven Decision to Increase Profits and Become Better Leaders [Ep 184]

    You've worked hard to build a group practice where clinicians feel supported. So when someone asks for a raise or says they can't take another client, bringing up the numbers can feel like becoming the boss you never wanted to be. Meanwhile, you may be carrying a full caseload yourself just to keep the business afloat. In today's episode, I'm talking with Tory Krone, group practice owner and co-founder of Practice Vital, about data-driven decision making for therapists. We get into how your numbers can help you decide what you can afford to pay, whether it's time to hire, and where clients are dropping out of care. We also talk about how to bring this information to your team without turning every conversation into a performance review. Tory shares what comparing newer and more experienced clinicians revealed about supervision, and why a packed-looking schedule doesn't always mean someone is at capacity. If you've been carrying the financial stress on your own, this conversation will help you see what needs a closer look and which conversations are worth having before resentment builds. Topics covered on Data-Driven Decision Making:How average session reimbursement and client retention can inform what you can afford to pay your cliniciansEarly client churn and missed rebooking, and what those patterns can mean for your marketing spend and client careHow to assess capacity before hiring, including why a new specialty can change the decisionWhy limited availability can make part-time caseload expectations harder to meetWhat comparing newer and more experienced clinicians can reveal about the support your team needsWhich numbers to share with clinicians, and how to make data part of supervision before a performance problem develops Resources from this episode:Book a Practice Vital demo and get $30 off your first month with code badtherapist Connect with Tory:Practice Vital: www.practicevital.com Connect with Felicia:Get my freebie & join the email list: The Magic SheetsInstagram: @the_bad_therapistWebsite: www.thebadtherapist.coach Quote:“Data is not the enemy of good leadership. It's what makes good leadership possible.” - Felicia

  6. Sep 14

    How to Find Your Niche as a Therapist [Ep 183]

    I've had two recent conversations with therapists at opposite stages of business. One had a full caseload and worried their website copy was too narrow. The other hadn't launched a website because they wanted the perfect niche first. Both were treating a niche like a permanent identity decision, caught in the same demand for certainty. To find your niche as a therapist, I want you to treat it like a hypothesis: choose a good-enough direction, put it into the world, gather data, and refine it live. I’ll show you how a niche can support both sides of your marketing: helping relevant people find you and helping the right visitors recognize themselves in your message once they arrive. If your therapist website isn’t bringing in inquiries, how do you know what needs to change? With too few visitors, you may not have enough evidence to judge whether it’s working. This episode explores how to assess demand in the states where you’re licensed, what keyword tools can tell you, and how client language and audience feedback can help you describe your services. You can stop polishing a niche in private and start learning from what happens when you test it. Topics covered on how to find your niche as a therapistWhy a niche can evolve, even when choosing one feels like a permanent identity decisionThe two jobs of a niche: attracting relevant traffic and helping ideal clients take the next stepWhy low website traffic can leave you with too little evidence to diagnose conversionThe difference between total and serviceable addressable markets, and where licensing geography fitsHow dedicated keyword data and real audience language give you two different ways to test a nicheWhy a general chatbot is not enough on its own, while AI tools connected to dedicated datasets can still support research Resources from this episodeKeysearchAhrefsSemrushLiberated Business, my signature group coaching program for therapists who want to build a multi-six-figure private practice Connect with FeliciaGet my freebie and join the email list: The Magic SheetsInstagram: @the_bad_therapistWebsite: www.thebadtherapist.coach Related episodesHow to Pick a Therapy Niche Without Overthinking It for Months [Ep 133]How to Pick a Therapy Niche That Makes You Happy [Ep 4] Quote“You don't need certainty. You just need a hypothesis that is good enough to start testing.” - Felicia

  7. Sep 7

    Three Smart Financial Planning Moves For Private Practice Therapists [182]

    Money comes into your practice, the bills come out of one account, and whatever remains becomes your pay. There’s a better system for managing your wealth and putting your money to work. If you've ever felt stressed during tax season, wished you were making faster progress toward your financial goals, and want to give back without decreasing your own financial security, this episode is for you. Today I’m celebrating my 40th birthday! And I’m looking back at ten years with money, from student debt and skipped weddings to giving each dollar a purpose. This is financial planning for therapists through the lens of my own business. I’ll share why I give every dollar that comes into my business a specific job, how an accountant who understands our industry helps me make tax decisions without holding all the information myself, and what changed when I stopped letting a good month inflate the account I used for ordinary expenses. We’ll also talk about S corp filing, giving back, and high-yield cash cash savings. Topics covered on financial planning for therapistsHow a Profit First structure separates money for taxes, expenses, pay, and future opportunitiesHow to never be behind on taxes again and why I think every therapist needs an accountantWhen you should transition to S corp statusHow a prudent reserve helped me fund a $15,000 business investment without draining monthly operations fundA way to give back that does not require therapists to under-earn or overworkWhy I keep some cash in a high-yield account instead of checking or investments Resources from this episodeWealthfront, the high-yield cash account I use to separate earmarked money into categories, with a 0.75% interest boost for both of us when you use my referral linkLiberated Business, my signature group coaching program for therapists who want to build a multi-six-figure private practice Connect with FeliciaGet my freebie and join the email list: The Magic SheetsInstagram: @the_bad_therapistWebsite: www.thebadtherapist.coach Quote“Over the course of your career, over the course of running your private practice, millions of dollars will actually flow through your hands.” - Felicia

  8. Aug 31

    Networking for Therapists: How to Stop Feeling Salesy and Start Building Referrals [Ep 181]

    How do you network without being awkward, salesy, or draining your energy? In today's episode, I'm sharing a version of networking for therapists that feels less transactional and a lot more powerful: hosting your own networking event. When you create the event, everything changes. You have a clear reason to reach out to colleagues, you get to choose the kind of gathering that fits your energy, and you make it easier for other people to remember who you are and what you do. And believe it or not, this can be simple and easy. We'll talk about why local referrals still matter while online marketing and algorithms keep changing, what makes networking feel so uncomfortable in the first place, and why a full practice is not a reason to disappear from your local community. I’ll also give you ideas for making an event fit your actual energy, whether you would rather host six people over dinner or invite a bigger group somewhere casual. If networking has always felt salesy or exhausting, this episode will help you create a version that feels generous and realistic enough to keep doing. Topics covered on Networking for TherapistsWhy therapist networking can feel transactional before the first conversation even startsWhat it feels like to be the person who can make exactly the right referralHow to approach another practitioner when you want to build a referral relationshipWhy hosting your own event can feel easier than asking strangers to meet one on oneHow to choose a gathering that fits your energy, capacity, and appetite for planningWhy local relationships still matter when algorithms and online buyer behavior keep changingWhy a full caseload is not a reason to stop building your referral communityHow group practice owners can help local providers get to know the clinicians in their teamHow to secure wins in your first events, even if they feel small Connect with FeliciaGet my freebie and join the email list: The Magic SheetsInstagram: @the_bad_therapistWebsite: www.thebadtherapist.coach Related episodes5 Ways to Feel Less Lonely in Therapy Practice (Without Joining Another Facebook Group) [Ep 167]: a companion episode on building the professional relationships and support your practice needs Quote"And remember that hosting the room means that you're the first name multiple providers think of rather than one of many that they might not even remember." - Felicia

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About

Ever felt like being a great therapist, having a successful practice, and living a life you love are somehow mutually exclusive? If so, you're in the right place. The Bad Therapist Show is the go-to resource for established solo therapists and group practice owners who want to grow profitable businesses, lead with confidence, and create more freedom, flexibility, and fulfillment in their lives. Hosted by Felicia Keller Boyle, aka The Bad Therapist®, LMFT, former six-figure private practice owner, therapist business coach, and creator of the Liberated Business™ method, this show challenges the belief that therapists have to choose between helping people, making money, and enjoying their lives. Through her coaching, courses, and innovative private practice fee calculator, The Magic Sheets™, Felicia has helped hundreds of therapists build more profitable practices, create additional income streams, and step into true business ownership—without sacrificing the work they love or the life they’re building. Each week, you'll hear honest conversations about private practice growth, marketing, leadership, money, boundaries, identity, and the realities of running a therapy business. Whether you're growing a solo practice, leading a group practice, or building revenue streams beyond the therapy room, you'll learn how to think like a CEO, scale sustainably, and build a business that supports your life—not the other way around. Tune in for answers to questions such as: 👉🏽How do I grow my private practice without sacrificing my personal life? 👉🏽What are the best marketing strategies for established therapists? 👉🏽How do I raise my rates with confidence? 👉🏽How do I grow my income beyond one-to-one therapy? 👉🏽What does it take to transition from therapist to CEO? 👉🏽How do I build a business that supports the life I actually want? You don't have to choose between being an exceptional therapist, a successful business owner, and a whole human. Follow the show wherever you listen to podcasts and start building a business that gives you more income, more freedom, and more of what matters most. Because bad therapists make the best therapists. --- Learn more about Business Coaching for Private Practice Therapists at www.thebadtherapist.coach.

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