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Private Practice Startup Podcast
Episode 192: Up Close and Personal with Amanda Patterson
00:39:24
Amanda Patterson-Landry
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- [00:02]
Podcast Host
Welcome to the Private Practice Startup podcast where we help ambitious private practitioners across the globe to brand themselves and grow their dream practices. We chat with successful private practitioners, business coaches and marketing experts, bringing you tons of practice building Ninja tips. Visit privatepracticestartup.com for awesome resources, attorney approved private practice paperwork and our signature marketing E course. Here are your co hosts, Dr. Kate Campbell and Katie Lemieux.
- [00:31]
Katie Lemieux
Hey there. Welcome back. Welcome to another episode of the Private Practice Startup podcast and we are right in the middle moving towards the tail end of our second up close and personal miniseries. This is where we put aside the business talk and get up close and personal with the practice builders and coaches that you most wanted us to interview. Today we invite on the podcast Amanda Patterson, also known as Amanda Landry. If you guys see her on Facebook, that is her married name. Patterson is her maiden and professional name. So have we. We just want to make sure that you know we're talking about the same person and you guys know who you're talking to. So Amanda's actually a local South Florida therapist. So we actually have the pleasure to know her for numerous years now and actually get to see her sometimes face to face outside of COVID So a little bit about Amanda. Amanda is a private practice consultant who helps therapists create business and marketing plans. She's the owner of a group practice, Caring Therapists of Broward and now Palm beach in South Florida. She's the founder of my private practice collective and online community for therapists in private practice. You can always find out more about amanda@amandapattersonlmhc.com so we actually have a really cool privilege today in interviewing Amanda. And I say that because interestingly enough, so you guys vote for us for who you want us to interview and you guys actually voted for Samor Stone as well. Well, with everything going on with the continued, you know, systemic racism and things like that is we just really wanted to acknowledge, you know, the difficulty that many black therapists feel face carrying their own traumas and difficulties as well as the weight of the world and their clients. So Samra just asked if she could take a rain check, which absolutely. So we are either going to go ahead and interview her one on one, up close and personal, or we're going to wait to our next podcast series. And the cool thing is is we were going to do six interviews anyways, one including us. So it opened another door for you guys to hear from one of your favorites. So you guys, Amanda was the next in line. So we get to hear from Amanda today. So that's really cool if you are joining us for the first time. Welcome to the Startup Nation family. We've been giving virtual hugs for a long time. This is a podcast, but it's so perfect during COVID So we're welcoming you to the family and we have a special gift for you. Like it or not, we all are required to have paperwork and definitely that consent. So we actually have a paperwork course, a free paperwork course for you guys that you can take that also includes a free copy of our customizable attorney approved HIPAA form. Head on over to private practice startup.startup.com over to the resources page and there you will find and of course you're a loyal listener. Welcome back. Hello Amanda.
- [03:10]
Amanda Patterson
Well, hello. I'm excited to be here. I know I've been here before and I'm here again and it's so fun.
- [03:16]
Katie Lemieux
To be with you.
- [03:17]
Dr. Kate Campbell
Welcome back.
- [03:20]
Katie Lemieux
So before we dive in and our first question is going to be the story of you. But before we do that, we just wanted to take a quick moment from our sponsor.
- [03:28]
Sponsor Voice
Tired of never quite feeling comfortable with your private practice financials? I'd like you to meet Green Oak Accounting. Their goal is to empower private practice owners with the financial information they need to make good business decisions. They specialize in working with solo and group private practices in the mental health industry. So they are uniquely positioned to help with figuring out what's normal in your business finances and what's not. So if you've ever had a conversation with your accountant or bookkeeper that left you wishing that they understood private practice or had some best practices to share, head over to greenoakaccounting.com and Schedule A free consultation to see if they might.
- [04:03]
Katie Lemieux
Be a good fit for you.
- [04:05]
Sponsor Voice
They can help you with all your accounting needs, from bookkeeping to payroll to profit first in budgeting and forecasting. Head over to greenoakaccounting.com now.
- [04:15]
Dr. Kate Campbell
When it comes to keeping your practice organized, you want software that's not only simple, but the best. We recommend TherapyNotes. Their platform lets you manage notes, claims, scheduling, and they have a new awesome telehealth platform for your online counseling sessions. They offer amazing unlimited phone support and email support. So when you have a question, they are there to help. To get started with the practice management software trusted by over 60,000 professionals, go to therapynotes.com and start a free trial today. Enter promo code PPS as in private practice Startup and they will give you two months to try for free. Go to therapynotes.com Amanda, let's dive in.
- [04:58]
Katie Lemieux
And talk about the story of you. Where did you grow up? Do you have siblings? What was your family life like?
- [05:05]
Amanda Patterson
So, you know, I grew up in South Florida. I am actually a Florida native, if you can believe it. There are so few of us. And I grew up in Miami, in North Miami beach, went to school there, grew up in that area. And then somewhere along the way we moved up to Broward county and I had had been in Broward county for many years where my one office is at. So I went to school actually. I have three siblings, Elizabeth, Kimberly and Kathleen. It's really interesting to call them that because we call them Liz, Kim and Kathy. We all have little nicknames for each other. I'm very close to my sisters. Those are three women in my life that I cherish very much. They're very near and dear to my heart. And I, you know, I grew up sort of like in a, like middle class, kind of like normal kind of, you know, family life. Nothing, you know, sort of like. I think sometimes people assume like, if you're a therapist that, you know, you maybe come from like a certain kind of family. And my family had its ups and downs, kind of my own, you know, traumas that drove me to, I think, really become a therapist. It definitely informs my work and really, I think why I'm passionate about helping people, you know, work through their own things because, you know, I have my stuff from my, you know, for my childhood, my life, you know, growing up and those kinds of things.
- [06:41]
Dr. Kate Campbell
Where do you fall in line in your sibling order?
- [06:43]
Amanda Patterson
So I am the oldest. I probably wouldn't surprise most people given my sort of like direct personality and like go getter spirit. So yeah, I'm the oldest and we are set all seven years apart. My mom was like, I'm having four children. We're going to have them back to back. It was a pretty, you know, in a quick succession. So we're all, again, we're all very close, like even, you know, through the age differences. It was funny I was talking to them yesterday. We weren't really close when we were growing up because I was, I guess I thought I was like too cool for, you know, young siblings. But probably about the time I turned 16, I was like, okay, like I'm going to love these, you know, little, little kids. Sort of like my own. Right. Like somewhere along that, when I matured, I would say was when I really got close with my siblings.
- [07:35]
Katie Lemieux
And what were you like as a, well, maybe a tween and teen.
- [07:40]
Amanda Patterson
What were you like, so it's. It's interesting. I had a very strong personality. If you ask my mom, she will say, like, I was born with a strong personality. It wasn't really. I don't really know where that came from. There was just. I always, like, describe it. There was a fire inside of me, right? And I didn't really know what to do with that fire. So I was always very opinionated. Always sort of, like, wanted what I wanted. Didn't really like to take no for an answer. Especially at that age when your hormones are racing and you're going through a lot of different changes. But I was also kind of like. And still am sort of like, also this, like, bookworm, straight A student. Like, if anybody. I'm a Harry Potter fanatic. Like a Ravenclaw, right? Like, that's my house is Ravenclaw. Because that's my sort of, like, style of learning. So kind of have, like, two sides to me. This, like, person who is extroverted, wants what she wants, goes after things, is ambitious. And then also this side where I love reading books and I really like learning and kind of have that introverted side to myself too.
- [08:57]
Dr. Kate Campbell
We have a specific question regarding Harry Potter. Would you rather play Quidditch or have the invisibility cloak for a day?
- [09:07]
Amanda Patterson
Definitely play Quidditch because for the invisibility cloak for a day, it's like, I don't know. I'm probably not all that interested in going around invisible. I'm, like, more interested in playing Quidditch. Like, that sounds like a lot of fun.
- [09:20]
Katie Lemieux
Okay, so for people who don't know about Harry Potter, what the heck does that mean?
- [09:24]
Amanda Patterson
So Quidditch is there, the sport they play. It's sort of like a combination between lacrosse and soccer. They play it on flying brooms, and you have to make points and you have to catch the Golden Snitch. It's like this whole. This whole, like, process that, you know, J.K. rowling really developed in her books. And there are people who do play this on the kind of like a field hockey kind of thing. They do have it. I don't think they have it in South Florida, but I've seen it in other places where you can play, but it's designed to play on a broomstick.
- [10:03]
Dr. Kate Campbell
Flying through the air.
- [10:05]
Katie Lemieux
Do you have one of those in your closet?
- [10:07]
Amanda Patterson
You know, I'll tell you a funny story. We purchased a house actually one year ago today. So this is a very significant day in my life. I have time. Hop. So it tells me everything. Seven years ago, I picked up the keys for my private practice and one year ago I picked up the keys for my house. So who knows what will happen in a year from now.
- [10:28]
Dr. Kate Campbell
How cool.
- [10:29]
Amanda Patterson
In my house, there's stairs and we actually have a cupboard under the stairs. And we have designed it as the Harry Potter room. So all my Harry Potter paraphernalia and all my books and everything, it's in that room. It's literally like his cupboard under the stairs. So if you don't know, if you haven't read the book Harry Potter with his aunt and uncle, he lives in this cupboard under the stairs and we have one under our stairs. And it's designed like that. It's kind of gone to the side as I've done other projects in my home. But I really want to make that into a little play area and have it the official Harry Potter cupboard under the stairs.
- [11:13]
Dr. Kate Campbell
That is so cool. Do you have a little sitting area in there so you can spend time in there and hang out?
- [11:19]
Amanda Patterson
So there is a little sitting area in there? Yes. And there's books in there. I mean, sometimes, I won't lie, we put our, you know, like workout stuff and our shoes and things in there. So. But when we fully have it like the way we want it, it will be like designed as a little sitting area. You could read in there or you know, hang out.
- [11:39]
Katie Lemieux
What were the things that you were interested in as like a teen? Hobbies, interests, things like that.
- [11:46]
Amanda Patterson
So I was a cheerleader for many years. That was my thing for more probably about 10 years. I did that in middle school, high school and college. And so that was like my number one hobby then all my friends were from cheerleading. I did that over the summers, over the school year. Really like threw myself in that. And you know, I consider it to be a sport. You know, we had to be practiced. We, you know, had to run like you had to run a 10 minute mile in order not like to be on the team. But you know, there were things that we had to do. I like remember running the bleachers. That is like, I mean, I know every sports team runs the bleachers. If you, you know, if your high school had bleachers. But we ran the bleachers, we ran, we conditioned and we did our sport sort of in high school and college too. I also coached cheerleading. So that was a big thing that I did as well, which was fun. Like it was really fun to both like be a coach and do cheerleading. I think my favorite age to coach was very young, like 4 and 5 years old. Because at that age, it's just. It's pure fun. Like, they're excited to be there. They're, like, disorganized. So there's not a lot of pressure for everything to be perfect. And it's just. It's really fun at that age when they get to high school. You know, when I was in college coaching high schoolers, that's a little more difficult. Kind of like what I said before, they've got hormones racing through them. And so, yeah, cheerleading was a big thing for me. And really socializing. I'm a big socializer. I've always socialized with friends, like going to lunch with people, hanging out with people. And that was really important to me, especially during those ages.
- [13:39]
Katie Lemieux
What made you decide to. I know that you kind of shared a little bit about that, about your own family upbringing, some difficulties in there. What prompted you to be a therapist?
- [13:49]
Amanda Patterson
So I actually wanted to be a lawyer. That was my goal. That was my dream. And I didn't want to do, like, history. Right. That's like a common story. Major, legal studies. I didn't really want to do that major. And one of the most popular majors for law school, psychology. And so I picked psychology as a major in an effort to go to law school. Well, my first year of college, I actually went to Florida State, my first year of college. A lot of people don't know that because I graduated from Nova Southeastern University. So I went to Florida State. And just like the first year, I was like, I love psychology, and this is what I like. I wanted to do that. I, you know, I loved it. I was passionate about it. I was excited about learning. And I just changed my major or I changed my major. But my course of action, I was like, no, I'm going to do something with this. I really didn't quite know what I was going to do with it, but I'm glad I realized I'm very. My personality, even though I'm very driven and ambitious, there's this really, like, soft, caring and empathetic part of me that I think, while I think I wanted to be like a criminal lawyer. And not that you can't be that, but it's a different skill set, let's call it. And so my skill set has been very well, you know, used very well to build a group practice, for instance, like, right, I can be ambitious and caring. I'm able to do both of those things there.
- [15:18]
Katie Lemieux
And what was one of your first jobs that you ever had?
- [15:22]
Amanda Patterson
So, you know, there's kind of this Came up at my bridal shower and there was kind of some family controversy about my first job. So I technically, my first job, my family's sort of industry is like an auto salvage yard. So like a junkyard. My grandparents owned one, my uncle owned one. And so When I was 12, I worked there on Saturdays answering the phones. And I got paid and I saved up money and I bought a pair of shoes that I really wanted. I remember that. So that was really my first job. Work experience. When I was 15, my first job was at a company called Bears, etc. You all being from South Florida, may know what this is. Other people may not know, but they were bears that you put on couches. It was like ceramic couches. And you would put your family on the couch, and then you would write the family name on the couch and it would like, be like mom and dad and, you know, Amanda, Liz, Kim, Kathy, and then it would be the Patterson family. And then you could put, like, other things. And they had little statues. Like, there were ones like a teacher one that you would give your teacher. Do you all remember that? Do you know what I'm talking about?
- [16:43]
Katie Lemieux
Yeah, they come out around, like, Christmas and stuff right now.
- [16:46]
Amanda Patterson
I think they do. Then they used to be, like, at every single mall, you would purchase this and give it as a gift, and you would put bears on a couch and you had to, like, creatively write. There was like, a way we wrote everybody's name on there. And so I worked there as my first job.
- [17:05]
Katie Lemieux
So I have a question about being in the field. But before we dive into that, let's just take a thirst quick break for our second, our second sponsor break.
- [17:15]
Dr. Kate Campbell
If you're looking for a new source of income or wanting to supplement your current work, betterhelp.com is a great option. BetterHelp allows you the flexibility to choose your caseload size and schedule clients at your convenience. Every day, thousands of people seek the help of licensed therapists at BetterHelp. If you're a licensed therapist or psychologist, BetterHelp is the easiest way to apply your clinical expertise online. With BetterHelp, you can focus 100% of your time on counseling. No need to deal with finding referrals, business operations, managing insurance or billing. They handle it all. Visit betterhelp.com pps, as in private practice startup, to complete a brief application and get started today. That's betterhelp.com pps.
- [17:59]
Katie Lemieux
Amanda, being in the field, what's one of the most difficult things that you had to face or deal with?
- [18:06]
Amanda Patterson
So I think One of the biggest things I think is something that we all talk about is really like how much effort you put into getting your license, but then how little you get paid, sort of like initially when even like pre licensure and like that messaging that you don't make a lot of money. Right. Like that's a big thing. And so I was really programmed from grad school to accept whatever job was given to me and not ask for raises and not think about how be creative around making money and not being limited by that belief system. That was really taught to me in grad school. For sure, that was taught. And so I think that's a big limitation for our field. But I think as we're all working on that, we're trying to shift that and teach people, yes, you can make money in therapy. Yes, you can. It's not just like you have to work for an agency that pays you $40,000 a year. There are all of these different opportunities out there in a variety of different ways for therapists and people in the mental health field to make money.
- [19:17]
Dr. Kate Campbell
Well, since we're on the business topic, one of the questions that someone had sent in was if you had a coach at this particular point in your career, what would you want from that coach?
- [19:29]
Amanda Patterson
So, you know, it's interesting because throughout my whole private practice journey, I would say I've had a coach, either if it was an online course or actual coaching. I'm working with a coach right now and I'm getting ready to like sort of pivot into something else and work with a coach. And so what I'm always looking for when I'm coaching is like up leveling, like what's the next step? Right. Like, I generally don't, like, my personality is I'm usually, whatever I'm doing, it's kind of organized. Right. I'm an organized kind of person. But I struggle with like, how do I go from like step one to step two? How do I go from, you know, so for instance, I'm going to be working with somebody. How do I go from seeing clients as the group practice owner to not seeing clients as the group practice owner owner? And shifting into that, that sometimes is not always clear on how to do it. And so when I have worked with coaches before, I haven't had, knock on wood, a bad experience. Right. I've always been able to get what I needed from that person at the time, whether it was an online course or one on one coaching or mastermind.
- [20:48]
Katie Lemieux
And is that what you're working on now? Shifting from seeing clients to just fully stepping into.
- [20:53]
Amanda Patterson
So yeah, I'm shaking my head. So yes, you know, yeah, it's a podcast. Yes, I know people are like, I can't see you. You know, I interviewed a couple weeks ago on Maureen's podcast on this. You know, I'm in her group, the Exchange, and we talked about like where I'm at with my group practice. And she was like, right. When you sent me over your paperwork, I knew exactly where you're at. I'm at this cusp of all the systems are in place. It's growing. I need to step back, I need to put people in place for it to continue to grow. So I know I need to do that. My own codependency and my own or control, whatever narrative you want to go with comes into play. I know working with coach will help me move through what I'm stuck with. And for those of you who are thinking about hiring a coach, usually if you hire a good coach, or I.
- [21:50]
Katie Lemieux
Don'T want to use the word good.
- [21:51]
Amanda Patterson
But if you hire a coach that really knows how to help you move through whatever you're moving through, you will achieve that goal.
- [21:59]
Dr. Kate Campbell
Where do you see yourself within the next five years professionally? Like what is your vision for yourself and how that growth trajectory will look?
- [22:09]
Amanda Patterson
So definitely having the two locations for my group practice, having the group practice fully functional, having clinicians that are full, having clinicians that are highly trained, highly motivated people know them like a well known brand, both the brand and the clinician. So really this fully functional group practice and doing coaching as well and having I'm really passionate about like my shtick and my thing is really helping people have plans for what they do. I think a lot of the times people have dreams and goals and ideas, but really putting them down on paper is where I'm a very practical person in my life. And so I tend to do more of the practical coaching, more of the practical like nitty gritty around the systems and marketing. But from like that practical standpoint, not really from the, not a fluffy kind of person. There are some coaches that like, I'm not a lifestyle coach, I wouldn't be a lifestyle coach. And I think I like following lifestyle coaches and I work with lifestyle coaches and I think that's a really great market. That's just not my particular market. I'm too practical for that. That's just not. Doesn't work well for me. So that's kind of what I see. Helping therapists really create plans so we can change that narrative around mental health that it's not just, you know, for either you're not just going to make 40,000, 50,000, 60,000. Right. Like, I think the national salary for a licensed, you know, mental health counselors, like $45,000. Like that's not, you know, that's not comparable to what other people make when they have their master's degree. I want that to change.
- [24:00]
Katie Lemieux
Hmm. I know. I kind of feel like I keep going back into like your, your childhood and stuff like that. And I'm just wondering as a teen, like, who. Who did you have a crush on?
- [24:09]
Amanda Patterson
Oh my gosh.
- [24:11]
Katie Lemieux
Or even school crush.
- [24:14]
Amanda Patterson
So, you know, it's so funny how things like re emerged. There was this really funny meme that came out like about two or three weeks ago. It's like your toxic relationship with men started when you picked Court or you picked Hunter over Corey from Boy Meets World. And that. I love Rider Strong. He was a. Was a bad boy. He was huge. He was. I, that was my, like when I was 13. That was my celebrity crush. When I got to high school. My celebrity crush was Josh Hartnett. He's really, you may know who he is. He was in like a couple of like not. He was like a B lister, you know, but he's super handsome. I really like. That was my celebrity crush in high school.
- [25:02]
Katie Lemieux
I think he was in Black Hawk down, right?
- [25:05]
Amanda Patterson
Yes, he was in Black Hawk down, which is a pretty popular movie within Halloween. H2O. He was in the Faculty. If you like scary movies. The Faculty is a great movie. I love that movie. We actually watched it a couple years ago, like from the lens of an adult. I was kind of interesting. But yes, that was my crush. And then, you know, my, my boyfriends in high school tended to be. I had like two sort of like long term boyfriends, like athletic, you know, kind of like. I dated like popular, ish kind of guys who were athletic. One was very smart. And yeah, that was my, you know, I was like kind of like that. I was class president. Right. I was a cheerleader, class president. I was sort of that typical high school kind of student.
- [25:53]
Katie Lemieux
Total like first. First child syndrome.
- [25:55]
Amanda Patterson
Right? Like leadership role first child syndrome. But, you know, kind of like I also went to like this very sort of like diverse high school. I always say, like our high school was like 33% white, 33% black and 33% Hispanic. So it was a very sort of like diverse group. And we were like, we were a football school. One of the, a couple people that I went to High school with. Went on to be NFL players. They were, you know, they went to Division 1 schools, they played in the NFL. And that was like a big part of, like, what brought us all together in high school was sports. Like, that was a big thing. We had pep rallies and we had spirit days and we, you know, I don't know, like, the typical things that you see, I guess on tv, I had that. But from this sort of, like, pretty diverse landscape. It wasn't until I went to Florida State, where I was like, oh, this is like, different than what I went to in high school. That was kind of like culture shock for me, because what I knew, I went to school in Hollywood, Florida, which is sort of next to close to Fort Lauderdale. For those of you who are listening. It's kind of like a. Not even a suburb because it's sort of like a city in and of itself, but pretty. Pretty. I had a pretty typical high school. Like, I don't use the word typical, but, like, tv. Typical high school experience was fun. I have affectionate and warm feelings towards high school. Not that there wasn't a fair share of high school drama, but I enjoyed that part of high school.
- [27:37]
Dr. Kate Campbell
And tell us how you met your husband.
- [27:40]
Amanda Patterson
So, you know, it was funny for me to, like, talk about Rider Strong. So my whole. Through lots of different dating experiences, therapy, journaling, you know, willing into my universe a good guy. My husband is wonderful. He is more Corey than Hunter. He's a dairy. Just a very nice. He's got a very nice energy where I'm a little wiry. He's just really, really stable. So we met in undergrad, actually. I was in a sorority in undergrad, and he was in a fraternity. And so we socialized at those levels. I was a little bit more of a bookworm than he was. He was more. He was a little bit more of a partier. But we were always kind of like, maintained a friendship through many years. We went to grad school together. Kind of like a funny story. I had a crush on him in grad school. And I just. I remember those feelings that I had for him. Nothing really developed then. We were sort of like on two different paths at that time. And he had dated a friend of mine in college, and that was like a cardinal sin. Like, you didn't, you know, you didn't. She was a sorority sister of mine. So like, back then, you didn't date other sorority sisters, boyfriends. Like, that was like, you did. So anybody's like, was not in a sorority. Yes, there are, like, Many unspoken rules. That was one. So I just kind of like had this crush. It never went anywhere. And we always stayed friends because we have the same birthday. So every year I would text him on our birthday and wish him a happy birthday. And he's also in the field, he's a psychologist. So we, you know, kind of like he would send me referrals. His brother and sister in law worked for me at one point in an agency that I worked for. And it was kind of weird because we've always sort of lived in a, in a close proximity together. We always worked in a close proximity together. So I always said it was like always in my orbit and I just never. I realized it, but I didn't. Now it makes sense. And so we reconnected about five years ago actually at a, like a wake for a friend of ours that passed away. And he was like, I'm gonna call you, like, we should go out sometime. And like, true to form to my husband, three months later he called me, we went out, and as they say, the rest is history.
- [30:09]
Katie Lemieux
I'm glad that you shared about the birthday thing. So I was gonna share, have you share that little fun fact about you guys and your birthday's August 21st. No, August. Keith's birthday.
- [30:18]
Amanda Patterson
Close.
- [30:19]
Katie Lemieux
Okay.
- [30:19]
Amanda Patterson
I knew it was in August. Yeah, yeah, August.
- [30:21]
Dr. Kate Campbell
I was gonna say, wow, the 21st. That's mine.
- [30:24]
Katie Lemieux
I was like, wait, no, that's it. It's funny, one of my like, little known facts that most people don't know is like, when it comes to dates.
- [30:31]
Amanda Patterson
I'm like rain man.
- [30:32]
Katie Lemieux
Like, once it's in there, like, boop. It's like in there.
- [30:35]
Amanda Patterson
That's awesome.
- [30:36]
Katie Lemieux
Yeah. So Allison's is the 20th, Kate's is the 21st, yours is the ninth grade. It's all in there.
- [30:41]
Amanda Patterson
A lot of Leos.
- [30:43]
Dr. Kate Campbell
Yep. Lots of Leos. Yep. Oldest child Leos. That you and I are on a very similar path professionally. Lots of, lots of connections there. I think it's a good time for us to transition into our fun lightning round. Are you ready?
- [30:58]
Katie Lemieux
Well, before we do that, I want to hear about an embarrassing moment. I know that's going to take a little more than a lightning round.
- [31:04]
Amanda Patterson
Amanda, I do not want to tell this one because it's the first one that came to my head, but it's like, it's a famous story. I went down. I can't remember now, my friend, I have a really good friend, Amanda, from high school. She would. I'm going to have her listen to this because she'll laugh. But we went down to a concert. I can't remember if it was Smashing Pumpkins or Bush. I was into like 90s alternative music as a high schooler. We were in ninth grade and we were leaving a concert and some guy mooned us. And I just thought that was the funniest thing. And we lost our minds. And I peed my pants and her sister's tan dam.
- [31:50]
Katie Lemieux
Because he moon you.
- [31:51]
Amanda Patterson
You peed your pants? Because it was that funny, really funny thing. Like, I did. I think there were, like, some more details to the story, but it was so funny. I just. I peed my pants and I have kind of a weak bladder. I'm a therapist. I go to the restroom between every session. Like, my clients know it, my family knows it. And so I just lost my bowels and literally peed my pants. And her sister who was like, doing us a favor and picking us up in Miami from, you know, this concert or she may have taken us, but, you know, when I was 14 years old, that's just, it's, you know, like, it's the thing that came to mind when you asked me that question. So I knew I had to share that.
- [32:32]
Katie Lemieux
Yeah. And if you only shared that you got mooned one time and didn't share.
- [32:34]
Amanda Patterson
The thing in the pants and be.
- [32:35]
Katie Lemieux
Like, okay, that's why embarrassing. I love it. I love it. So I know that you're a vegan, and probably a lot of people that know you're a vegan, someone had asked, do you miss eating meat? And when did you become a vegan?
- [32:49]
Amanda Patterson
So it's been 10 years now. So I do not miss eating meat at all. It is not anything that I crave, I desire, I want. The only thing that I would say, it's like the convenience. Sometimes though, the world has gotten much better than it was 10 years ago. Now I can go anywhere and find anything. For the most part, the convenience factor just sometimes is annoying. But my husband is a very picky eater, so it's not like he desires these five course meals with lots of intricate ingredients. So we kind of are good on that path. But yes, it's been 10 years. And also, what's considered like, an ethical vegan, like, I don't use leather products. I don't unless I'm forced. Like, people will be like, your steering wheel in your car, but there's really no choice with that one. I mean, I guess there is a choice, but most cars will not unless you have some kind of like, cloth steering wheel. I don't even Know if they do that anymore. It's leather, but, like, the seats in my car are leather. You know, I wouldn't bought a leather couch, these kinds of things. So no Louis Vuitton bags for me.
- [34:03]
Katie Lemieux
Well, it's funny, I know I don't remember what it was, but you and I are texting, I think, over the weekend one time, and you had said you're at a restaurant, and you send me a picture of, like, the meat board. And I was, like, really confused. And you're like, I don't know why I just sent you that, but I just wanted to show you where we were. And I'm like, did something change? Like, what happened? So that's something.
- [34:20]
Amanda Patterson
No. Yep. I will go to meat restaurants. I, you know, I like, eat the baked potato and salad, and I'm okay. I'm fine with that. You know, it's like, it's pretty. It's okay. I've learned to be adaptable in those situations.
- [34:32]
Katie Lemieux
Cool. So let's jump into our lightning round, and thanks. I'm so glad that we paused to ask about the embarrassing moment, because that was good. I needed a good laugh.
- [34:39]
Dr. Kate Campbell
It's funny because I was going to ask that as one of my quick fire questions.
- [34:45]
Katie Lemieux
All right, Kate, you want to start it off?
- [34:48]
Dr. Kate Campbell
What would you want to do if you weren't a therapist?
- [34:51]
Amanda Patterson
Oh, man. I would want to. I would want to own a bed and breakfast.
- [34:56]
Katie Lemieux
Oh, nice. What's one of your biggest pet peeves?
- [35:02]
Amanda Patterson
Bottles in the car that move, like, if you, like, leave, like, empty water bottles and they move around, like, in the back and like, a thing, like, even thinking about, it's like, creating anxiety.
- [35:13]
Katie Lemieux
It's like nails on a chalkboard for you, I hear.
- [35:17]
Dr. Kate Campbell
What's one of the favorite places that you've ever visited?
- [35:21]
Amanda Patterson
So I would say, like, our honeymoon. We went to Whistler in British Columbia in Canada. It was beautiful, was fun. We were gonna go again for our anniversary, and then Covid happened and it got canceled. So we're planning on going in December.
- [35:36]
Dr. Kate Campbell
What time of year did you go?
- [35:38]
Amanda Patterson
We went in. We went, like, April, which. Still there. It's still very cold. And we skied and it snowed. And we were planning on going, like, in early March or, like, late March. So now we're planning on going in December, which will be very cold.
- [35:53]
Dr. Kate Campbell
I bet it'll be beautiful with all the Christmas lights and everything.
- [35:56]
Amanda Patterson
Very excited.
- [35:57]
Katie Lemieux
What's something that you're afraid of?
- [35:59]
Amanda Patterson
I'm afraid of the dark. I don't sleep in the dark. Now I obviously sleep with my husband, so I'm okay. But if for whatever reason he's not there or if I like going on a conference in a hotel, I won't sleep with the dark. I won't sleep without a light on or the TV on.
- [36:15]
Katie Lemieux
Do you have like a night light.
- [36:16]
Amanda Patterson
Or something like that that you bring or so. No, I'll just leave the TV on or I'll leave the bathroom light on. Yeah, I'm afraid of the dark and it's been. I've always been afraid of the dark.
- [36:26]
Katie Lemieux
Gotcha.
- [36:27]
Dr. Kate Campbell
What's your favorite thing to do to unwind?
- [36:31]
Amanda Patterson
Read, Definitely read. And I've been doing like in this quarantine, I've been reading a lot and so it's been nice.
- [36:40]
Katie Lemieux
So speaking of reading, so what's one of your favorite non business books and one of your favorite business books?
- [36:46]
Amanda Patterson
So one of my favorite. So I talked about Harry Potter. I love that whole genre. I read Hunger Games. I've read all of those. I do. My sort of. My favorite series book is Jane Eyre. I also love that like English, Victorian time period, Pride and Prejudice, anything from that genre. My favorite business book, I would say one thing that really, and I know you all are fans of this too, like Profit first. That was really like a game changer for me. A lot of other business books and are like kind of like give you these ideas, but they don't really give you like the nitty gritty of how to do things. Like, it's not really how to. And that book really just opened my mind to like again, practical ways that I can shift my business.
- [37:42]
Dr. Kate Campbell
Is it my turn?
- [37:43]
Amanda Patterson
Your turn.
- [37:44]
Dr. Kate Campbell
Okay, here's the last one. I was just looking at some different questions. What keeps you motivated?
- [37:50]
Amanda Patterson
So it's kind of like I talked about before. There's a fire inside of me. I don't. It's just there. It's part of my disposition and I think that just like keeps me going. Right? Like, it's like this energy that I feel that just pushes me in the direction of whatever it is I'm working on.
- [38:08]
Katie Lemieux
Well, Amanda, we thank you so much for being such a great sport and allowing us to ask you personal questions and get up close and personal on business stuff, on family stuff, on Married Life, on YouTube. I know that a lot of people who follow you and those who are just getting acquainted with you will really enjoy this podcast. We so appreciate you being here and Startup Nation. Don't forget to join us next time and make sure you check out all of the up close and personal and even the last series that we did as we interviewed a ton of folks per your request. So Startup Nation, stay inspired and thanks for allowing us to inspire you guys from Startup to mastery. Take care everybody.
- [38:44]
Dr. Kate Campbell
See you next time. Thanks for joining us on the Private practice startup. Visit theprivatepracticestartup.com for awesome resources, free trainings, attorney approved private practice paperwork, and so much more.
- [39:11]
Amanda Patterson
SA.