The Freedom Therapist

Mia Poklepovich
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  • Marketing
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Each week we’ll go deep on all things business, self, energy and freedom. There's growth, giggles AND tears, as we lean into the best version of our business - and selves too. We’ll also get to chat with some incredibly inspiring women who will generously share their stories on finding that magic. If you’re looking for deep conversations, no gatekeeping, practical advice all with a little bit of chaos, you’re in the right place. I'm your host Mia Poklepovich, a previously burnt out mental health occupational therapist and business owner, who found her way to fall back in love with business and life all over again. This podcast was created to be your safe space to learn AND unlearn all the things about scaling your business, without losing yourself in the process. Each week will be talking about ALL the things. And feeling ALL the feels. Because business is a wild ride, at all stages. So if you need an extra dose of inspo, a soft landing or just a moment to unwind you are SO welcome here.  Give yourself permission to take some space for you, and let’s be besties. I can’t wait! 

  1. 17h ago

    How to Finally Find the Confidence to Launch Your Online Program as a Therapist (When You Already Have the Skills)

    This is a conversation I have so often in this space, so I wanted to speak to it really honestly today: how do you finally find the confidence to start that online program, that scalable offer, that digital resource — the thing you keep almost-doing? Because here's what I see. So many of the best therapists are sitting on genuinely amazing ideas that need to be out in the world. You have the skills. You have the expertise. And yet we look for every reason not to do the thing — am I ready, am I not ready, do I need to learn one more thing first. It's rarely the tech or the platform that holds us back. It's the confidence in ourselves. So let's talk about what actually shifts that. IN THIS EPISODE: Why it's almost never the platform, the pricing or the tech holding you back — and what it actually isThe self-trust practice I bang on about with my clients (and why micro promises matter more than big ones)The one question that makes all the fear around launching feel a little bit insignificantWhy your community has to be a two-way street — and the confidence boost hiding in feedback you don't want to hearThe difference between upskilling and going it alone (and why I still pay for support years in)The big one: how to tell a momentum task from a procrastination task — because they can look identicalKEY TAKEAWAYS: Confidence follows evidence, not the other way around. Every micro-promise you keep to yourself builds the proof that you can do the thing you set your mind to. Done messy, done imperfect — kept.Come back to the why and the fear shrinks. When you anchor into the impact — the people this offer actually serves — the confidence piece stops feeling so big. It's bigger than you.Rewriting the course outline for the 18th time is not progress. Talking about it, running a pilot, doing the market research — that's momentum. You'll never know if it lands until your community sees it.Get The Complete Brand Kit for Therapists & Allied Health Practitioners for just $47 here: https://thefreedomtherapist.com.au/brand Connect with Mia: Instagram: https://instagram.com/miapoko and https://www.instagram.com/ot_inspire_therapy/ Get the Complete Personal Brand Kit for Therapists for just $47! https://thefreedomtherapist.com.au/kit Join the Waitlist for The Freedom Therapist Club: https://www.thefreedomtherapist.com.au/club

  2. Sep 23

    How to Not Hate Social Media as a Therapist - and Make It Actually Work for You Today

    Okay, I'm going to say the thing nobody wants to hear. You cannot hate social media and expect it to work for you — to monetise for you, to grow the online communities and programs you keep telling me you want to build. And I get it, because I hear this everywhere: in my DMs, in conversations with colleagues, with clients, this little wave of resentment every time we have to show up online. "Ugh, that's just not me." "It doesn't work for me." "It's too hard." So in this one, I'm coming in with my favourite metaphor and a bit of a pep talk (soz not soz), because the energy you're bringing to your socials is the exact energy you're putting out into them. And it's costing you more than you think. IN THIS EPISODE: The client-session metaphor that will completely change how you see your social media (and why grumpy energy makes people opt out — online AND in the room)Why "it's really hard" isn't a fact — it's a narrative, and what it's quietly doing to your growthWhat I actually notice in myself the moment my social media mindset has slippedThe truth about the algorithm that most therapists have backwardsWhy social media "just isn't that deep" — and the harder things you already do every single dayThe mindset flip that lets it start to monetise (without the follower count you think you need)The question to ask yourself if posting has started to feel heavyKEY TAKEAWAYS: The energy you bring is the energy you get back. If you decide it's going to be hard, s****y and slow — I'll pretty much guarantee that's exactly what you'll get.It takes effort, but effort isn't the same as hard. Social media can ask for time and new skills without being "the toughest thing you've ever done." You do genuinely hard things every day — this isn't one of them.You get to decide it gets to be good. The moment you anchor back to why you're doing it, showing up stops being a chore you procrastinate on and starts being the portal to the business you actually want.Get The Complete Brand Kit for Therapists & Allied Health Practitioners for just $47 here: https://thefreedomtherapist.com.au/brand Connect with Mia: Instagram: https://instagram.com/miapoko and https://www.instagram.com/ot_inspire_therapy/ Get the Complete Personal Brand Kit for Therapists for just $47! https://thefreedomtherapist.com.au/kit Join the Waitlist for The Freedom Therapist Club: https://www.thefreedomtherapist.com.au/club

  3. Sep 8

    Nervous System-Led Business: How I'm Showing Up for Myself in a Busy Season (The 5 Things I'm Actually Doing)

    Okay, come behind the scenes with me for this one, because I love hearing other people's lists — what they're doing, how they're showing up in a season — and I find it a little bit inspiring. So I thought I'd take you through mine. We're heading into the last couple of quarters of the year, the last little push, and I've got so much coming up that I'm genuinely so excited about. But more exciting things also means I'm going to have to change how I show up a bit. And honestly? Busy doesn't equate to negative for me anymore. It's been really fun-busy behind the scenes. So this is my little list — the handful of things I'm consciously prioritising to look after myself and my business as it gets busier. They're small. They make a huge difference. IN THIS EPISODE: Why I don't love the word "busy" anymore (and what's shifted)My non-negotiable — and how I can tell the moment I've been skipping itThe one question I keep asking myself to sort a fear-thought from an actual intuition drop-inThe most annoying thing about my own work ethic, and the season of self-trust I'm deliberately building because of itWhy I put gratitude in my calendar (and why "I'm grateful for my business" doesn't cut it)The thing little founders are so good at that I'm finally trying to let go ofKEY TAKEAWAYS: Keeping promises to yourself is a skill you build. Every time you say you'll do a thing and actually do it, you get the little hit — and you're teaching yourself that your word means something. If growing your business, it's one of the best things you can do.Fear is loud. So is intuition. Learning to tell the two apart — is this coming from fear, or from a deeper drop-in? — changes the decisions you make.Gratitude gets specific or it doesn't count. Not "I'm grateful for my life, blah blah." That one conversation. That one moment this week. The more you look for them, the more you create.Get The Complete Brand Kit for Therapists & Allied Health Practitioners for just $47 here: https://thefreedomtherapist.com.au/brand Connect with Mia: Instagram: https://instagram.com/miapoko and https://www.instagram.com/ot_inspire_therapy/ Get the Complete Personal Brand Kit for Therapists for just $47! https://thefreedomtherapist.com.au/kit Join the Waitlist for The Freedom Therapist Club: https://www.thefreedomtherapist.com.au/club

  4. Aug 13

    Soult Physio's Chloe Jamieson on Women's Health, Following the Big Vision Before You're Ready & How She's Changing the Way We Think About the Pelvic Floor

    If you’re a therapist who’s ever had a big intuition feeling decision of following a vision in your business? You’re going to love this one. Chloe is a women’s health physio, founder of Soult Physio in Northern Rivers, and someone I’ve had the joy of being an actual patient of. In this chat we get into what pelvic floor work actually is (spoiler: it’s not just Kegels), why stress shows up in the body way more than we realise, and what it’s really like to take the leap on a bigger space two years into being a sole trader. IN THIS EPISODE: Who Chloe Jamieson is and why her work in women’s pelvic health, pregnancy and postnatal care mattersThe gut-feeling decision to leave her old clinic and take on a new three-room space 30 minutes down the roadHer vision for building a women’s health hub — bringing in a pregnancy massage therapist, a naturopath, a womb massage therapistWhat pelvic floor physio actually covers — bladder and bowel function, prolapse, pain with sex, endometriosis, birth prep and postpartum rehabWhy more than half of Chloe’s clients in 2026 are coming in for pelvic floor tightness, not weaknessThe link between nervous system stress and pelvic floor guarding — and how breath work directly relaxes the pelvic floorWhat an internal pelvic floor release actually involves and how consent-based the process isThe imposter syndrome that comes with hiring your first clinical staff member, even when you’re fully booked with a waitlistChloe’s honest take on the 28-day stretch with no break and what “choosing your hard” looked like for her this yearWhy so many women go 10, 15, 20 years without knowing pelvic floor support even existed for them KEY TAKEAWAYS: Imposter syndrome doesn’t go away, it just gets easier to carry. Chloe’s two years into business with a waitlist and a new clinic and she’s still working through it — same as every therapist listening.Your appetite for risk grows through doing the thing, not thinking about the thing. Mia’s line on hiring applies here too — you do it, nothing falls apart, and the next scary decision gets a little less scary.The body holds what we don’t say out loud. Pelvic floor tightness is so often a stress response, not a strength problem — the fix is regulation and breath before it’s ever exercises.Backing yourself looks like moving on a gut feeling and figuring the logistics out after. Chloe left her old clinic, took the new space, and worked it out in real time — and it was still the right call.Choose your hard. Growing fast trades off your time and energy now; growing slow means waiting longer. Neither is wrong — but know which one you’re choosing. RESOURCES + LINKS: Soult Physio Instagram: @soultphysioSoult Physio website: soultphysio.com.auConnect with Mia: Instagram: https://instagram.com/miapoko and https://www.instagram.com/ot_inspire_therapy/ Get the Complete Personal Brand Kit for Therapists for just $47! https://thefreedomtherapist.com.au/kit Join the Waitlist for The Freedom Therapist Club: https://www.thefreedomtherapist.com.au/club

  5. Jul 28

    How We Got 750+ Therapists Into One Workshop — The Honest Marketing Breakdown (Content Strategy for Therapists)

    We just ran our biggest workshop ever — over 750 therapists in the room — and I've had SO many questions about how we actually did it. So today I'm pulling the curtain right back and giving you the honest, behind-the-scenes rundown of the marketing. Not the shiny version. The real one. And I'll be upfront: the thing that made those numbers so big is the thing none of us really want to hear. I prioritised content. I doubled down on it so hard — long before the workshop was ever ready to come out. If you're a therapist trying to build something that works when you're not in the room, and content feels sticky and uncomfortable and never quite good enough, this one's for you. IN THIS EPISODE: The one thing I prioritised that made those numbers so big — and why none of us really want to hear itThe rule I gave myself that finally stopped me ghosting my own contentWhy I let a whole lot of my content flop on purpose this yearThe truth about "selling" that changed where — and how — I actually promote my offersThe funnel breakdown that makes marketing feel a whole lot less icky in the therapy spaceThe pre-launch content you're already sitting on without realising itWhat I did with every single sign-up that quietly did the most for our engagementThe question I came back to before I posted anythingKEY TAKEAWAYS: Consistency isn't motivation — it's a system. The reason there was no panic-launch scramble comes down to what I built long before I needed it. I get into exactly how in the episode.Your content is allowed to be an experiment. The pressure for every post to perform is the thing quietly killing your content — there's a better way to think about the flops.If you talk to everyone, you talk to no one. Knowing who you're for changes everything about what you post. This is the piece most therapists skip.The behind-the-scenes IS the marketing. There's a kind of content you're already living that does more pre-launch work than any "buy now" post — I break down what it is.If your content doesn't make YOU feel something, it won't make anyone else feel something. This became the one rule I filtered everything through, and it's why our engagement is higher than ever.Get The Complete Brand Kit for Therapists & Allied Health Practitioners for just $47 here: https://thefreedomtherapist.com.au/brand Connect with Mia: Instagram: https://instagram.com/miapoko and https://www.instagram.com/ot_inspire_therapy/ Get the Complete Personal Brand Kit for Therapists for just $47! https://thefreedomtherapist.com.au/kit Join the Waitlist for The Freedom Therapist Club: https://www.thefreedomtherapist.com.au/club

  6. Jul 21

    Life Update: How I Ran My Biggest Season Yet Without Losing the Plot - Nervous System Regulation for Therapists in Busy Seasons

    We've just had the biggest couple of months in business, in life, in all the things — and I wanted to pull the curtain back and take you properly behind the scenes. Because from the outside it probably looked like a stack of shiny wins in a row. The reality had a flooded house, two planes, and half my furniture on the kerb in it too. The wild part isn't the chaos though. It's that on paper this should have been one of the messiest seasons of my life — and instead it was one of the most regulated I've ever had. In this one I'm getting really honest about how, and the un-sexy things I leaned on to hold it all steady. IN THIS EPISODE: The biggest season we've ever had — and the plot twist that hit less than 48 hours after our launchThe duality of selling out and cleaning up a flooded house in the same weekWhy "on paper this should have been chaos" and yet it wasn'tThe regulation trap almost every therapist falls into (yes, even us)The one morning habit I credit more than anything — and the 5:45am story that goes with itThe relationship between joy and creativity that changed how I run my whole businessWhat I lean on every single time the noise gets loudKEY TAKEAWAYS: The calm didn't come from the moment — it came from what I'd built before it. How you prepare in the quiet months decides how you hold the loud ones.We all think we're regulated. Most of us aren't checking honestly. This episode is your nudge to actually look.Joy might be doing more for your business than your to-do list is. There's a reason I keep coming back to it.RESOURCES + LINKS: The Freedom Therapist Club — [link TBC]The upcoming episode on the specific marketing strategy behind this launch (coming soon)Find Mia: @miapoko | @thefreedomtherapistEmail: hello@thefreedomtherapist.com.auCALL TO ACTION: If this one landed for you — and especially if it nudged you to try even one thing differently this week — I would LOVE to hear about it. Slide into my DMs on Instagram @miapoko, tell me what resonated, or drop it on the podcast post. And honestly? When you share this episode on your stories, I could cry every single time. It means the absolute world and it's how this little baby podcast grows. See ya next week! xx Get The Complete Brand Kit for Therapists & Allied Health Practitioners for just $47 here: https://thefreedomtherapist.com.au/brand Connect with Mia: Instagram: https://instagram.com/miapoko and https://www.instagram.com/ot_inspire_therapy/ Get the Complete Personal Brand Kit for Therapists for just $47! https://thefreedomtherapist.com.au/kit Join the Waitlist for The Freedom Therapist Club: https://www.thefreedomtherapist.com.au/club

  7. Jun 29

    Launching a Private Practice That Fits Your Lifestyle and Delivers Quality Service with Natalie from Discover OT

    Natalie is a paediatric OT in Queensland and the founder of Discover OT. She’s also an auntie to seven little people, and you can feel how much she genuinely loves kids and families in the way she speaks about her work. But what I love most about Nat is this: she didn’t just leave a clinic job and start a business. She rebuilt the whole way she works so it actually fits her life. In this conversation, Nat talks honestly about what her work looked like before Discover OT: full-time clinic life, long days, back-to-back sessions, and that pressure to hit billable targets/ She names what so many therapists feel but don’t always say out loud: When quantity is prioritised, quality suffers. And your nervous system pays for it. Then we get into what changed when she chose to pave her own way. Nat shares the turning point quote that stuck with her: it’s your choice whether you follow someone else’s dream or pave your own. Nat walks us through the practical pieces that made launching her private practice feel steady and what she prioritised to make it the successful business it is today. And the result? Launching her business “skyrocketed beyond what I could have ever imagined.” We talk about: The moment Nat realised she didn’t want to spend her career following someone else’s dreamThe early foundations that made launching her business feel exciting and profitable over franticHow Discover OT filled the books almost INSTANTLY because the systems were set up before she opened the doorsWhat it’s actually like being a mobile therapist and why it increased her connection instead of isolating herBuilding real community with schools, kindies, daycares and educators (and why it changed everything)What shifted in Nat’s energy when she started working school-based hours and designing her own scheduleWhy her income AND energy expanded when she went out on her own in private practiceWhat it’s like to say yes to life during the week (appointments, family events, travel) without the guiltWhat she’d say to the therapist who feels scared but is thinking about stepping into the private practice worldIf you’re a therapist who knows your current model isn’t sustainable, but you’re also scared to change it, this episode will meet you right where you are. Nat’s business is such a clear example of what becomes possible when you do the inner work, the planning, and the foundations together. She’s built a practice that’s connected, respected in the community, and sustainable to run. Find Nat / Discover OT on Instagram: @discover_ot Referral link is in Nat’s bio Connect with Mia: Instagram: https://instagram.com/miapoko and https://www.instagram.com/ot_inspire_therapy/ Get the Complete Personal Brand Kit for Therapists for just $47! https://thefreedomtherapist.com.au/kit Join the Waitlist for The Freedom Therapist Club: https://www.thefreedomtherapist.com.au/club

  8. Jun 24

    Taylor’s Journey to Creating Bloom Together: Finding Freedom & Falling Back in Love with Life

    In this special episode, Mia sits down with Taylor, a paediatric speech pathologist and Freedom Therapist Club member, who recently left her 9-to-5 to build a business that feels fully aligned and fulfilling. Within just two months, Taylor launched Bloom Together, a freedom-based speech therapy practice in remote Western Australia that has given her back her energy, time AND LOVE for life and work. This conversation dives into Taylor’s incredible shift from burnout to fulfillment, her tips for setting boundaries, and her advice for anyone dreaming of a practice that supports them. Listen as Taylor shares the highs and challenges of her journey, the transformational mindset shifts, and the powerful changes she’s made to create a sustainable, joyful, and impactful practice. This episode was originally published in November 2024. What You’ll Learn: How Taylor navigated leaving a supportive 9-to-5 in search of true freedomThe steps she took to launch a profitable, purpose-driven practice in just two months that gives her MORE time, location AND financial freedomPractical tips for setting boundaries, managing burnout, and redefining what success looks likeTaylor’s advice for therapists who want to build a life and practice on their own termsLinks Mentioned: Connect with Taylor at The Rural Speechie (@theruralspeechie) HERE or at Bloom Together HERE (@bloomtogethertherapy)Learn more about The Freedom Therapist Club HERE  Connect with Mia: Instagram: https://instagram.com/miapoko and https://www.instagram.com/ot_inspire_therapy/ Get the Complete Personal Brand Kit for Therapists for just $47! https://thefreedomtherapist.com.au/kit Join the Waitlist for The Freedom Therapist Club: https://www.thefreedomtherapist.com.au/club

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About

Each week we’ll go deep on all things business, self, energy and freedom. There's growth, giggles AND tears, as we lean into the best version of our business - and selves too. We’ll also get to chat with some incredibly inspiring women who will generously share their stories on finding that magic. If you’re looking for deep conversations, no gatekeeping, practical advice all with a little bit of chaos, you’re in the right place. I'm your host Mia Poklepovich, a previously burnt out mental health occupational therapist and business owner, who found her way to fall back in love with business and life all over again. This podcast was created to be your safe space to learn AND unlearn all the things about scaling your business, without losing yourself in the process. Each week will be talking about ALL the things. And feeling ALL the feels. Because business is a wild ride, at all stages. So if you need an extra dose of inspo, a soft landing or just a moment to unwind you are SO welcome here.  Give yourself permission to take some space for you, and let’s be besties. I can’t wait! 

Information

  • Creator
    Mia Poklepovich
  • Years Active
    2024 - 2026
  • Episodes
    80
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © 2026 Mia Poklepovich, OT Inspire Australia
  • Show Website
    The Freedom Therapist

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