Podcast Summary: Private Practice Startup Podcast

Episode 80: Let It Go & Feel Less Overwhelmed in Private Practice

Air Date: April 7, 2018

Host: Katie Lemieux (w/ guest co-host Amanda Patterson, LMHC)
Featured Guest: Sarah Lightshoe, LPCC

Episode Overview

In this lively and practical episode, host Katie Lemieux and guest co-host Amanda Patterson are joined by therapist and consultant Sarah Lightshoe to tackle a persistent struggle for private practitioners: feeling overwhelmed. Sarah draws on her own journey and her work supporting clinicians to outline concrete strategies for "letting go" of stressors, learning to outsource, and building a private practice that aligns with your values and lifestyle. The conversation is packed with actionable tips, honest anecdotes, and a frank look at mindset shifts necessary for growth and sustainability.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Origin Story: Why Overwhelm Hits Private Practitioners

• Sarah's Story: After entering private practice while caring for two small children, Sarah quickly realized she was “really stressed out and overwhelmed” (05:49). She shares that many supervisees and coaching clients feel the same way, prompting her to focus on helping therapists thrive without burning out.
• Quote:
  “I started to notice that I was really stressed out... juggling, right? Being the mom of two really little kids... but also trying to figure out how do I get this private practice going, how do I attract clients... how do I do everything right?”
  — Sarah Lightshoe, 05:49

2. Three Things Therapists Need to Stop Doing

a. Stop Saying Yes to Everything

• Alignment with Goals: Sarah urges therapists to stop saying yes to requests that don't align with their vision and values.
• The Importance of Vision:
  “If we have a really strong foundation of where we’re going, why we got into private practice, what types of clients we want to serve, how we want private practice to fit with our life, it helps us say yes and no to the right things.”
  — Sarah Lightshoe, 08:44
• The Perils of Yes:
  “Saying yes can almost, like, give us a bad reputation. If we’re saying yes to too many things... we’re not giving, showing up as our best selves.”
  — Sarah Lightshoe, 10:07
• Amanda on Planning: Amanda organizes her commitments using planners to ensure she’s committing only to what aligns with her yearly and weekly goals (11:26).

b. Stop Trying to Do It All On Your Own

• Focus and Outsourcing: Sarah introduces the concept of “do it all by not doing it all” (16:11), emphasizing that trying to DIY everything leads to stagnation and increased overwhelm.
  • “Draw on others in the field who already have mastered the areas you're trying to work on. If someone already knows how to do an awesome website... just let them share their knowledge.” — Sarah Lightshoe, 16:37
• Outsourcing Experiences: Amanda shares she’s never regretted outsourcing tasks such as phones, billing, and social media — “there’s never been a task that I outsourced that then I took back” (17:38).
• Finding Help: Both Amanda and Sarah recommend leveraging local therapist recommendations and Facebook groups to find reliable support staff or contractors (20:11–21:28).
• Katie’s Mantra:
  “I just ask myself, ‘Is this activity creating me money, or by me doing this activity, am I actually losing money?’” — Katie Lemieux, 21:28

c. Stop Failing to Ask for Help (At Work and Home)

• Holistic Support: Sarah highlights the importance of asking for help not just professionally, but personally (housework, childcare, errand running) to prevent burnout (22:54). She points out that this mindset is well accepted in other cultures.
• Mindset Shift:
  “I think trying to do it all across the board is what burns us out and makes us, like, exhausted.”
  — Sarah Lightshoe, 22:54
• Permission to Receive: Katie relates her own transformative experience around therapist “shame” and learning to reach out for support—“now I’m actually the one to like constantly ask for help... and it feels great." (23:52)
• Celebrating Collaboration: Amanda points out that people who help are often invested and become part of the journey—“it’s an extra person you get to celebrate things with” (27:30).

Notable Quotes & Moments

• On Planners and Staying True to Values:
  "When we go to make a decision… we just go back to our values, right? And say, 'Is this quality? Is this collaboration?'… it gives you a guideline."
  — Katie Lemieux, 14:01

• On Social Comparison in the Therapist Community:
  “Because there is so much online presence with other therapists now, we can see what other people are doing… I see it as kind of like containing dreams too. Right? Because it's like, ‘Oh, Amanda's doing this, so I think I have to do it just that way’.... Focus on themselves and what is it that they really want.”
  — Sarah Lightshoe, 15:13

• On Outsourcing Home Tasks:
  “I would make fun of people who had cleaning people... and then we have cleaning people for the last two years. The mindset shift sometimes needs to happen to be able to let go… but when you do, there's such a sense of freedom and liberation.”
  — Katie Lemieux, 22:15

Actionable Exercises & Resources

• Goal Setting Exercise:
  Sarah encourages clinicians to ask, "If you could dream as big as you could dream, what would you want? And what are the values you'd want to show up in your work?" (12:46)
• Outsourcing Checklist:
  Use referrals (local therapists, small business owners), Facebook groups, and platforms like Upwork or Fiverr for finding help.
• Mindset Tool:
  Regularly check in—Is this activity in my unique zone of genius, or could it be outsourced for greater effectiveness (21:28)?

Giveaway & Further Resources

Sarah’s Overwhelm Assessment for Stressed-Out Therapists

• An inventory tool to help identify overwhelm hotspots in your life and business, and create an actionable plan for relief.
• Find the link to download on the episode’s show notes page.

Memorable Conclusion

“If you’re feeling overwhelmed, you’re not alone, but you do not have to feel as overwhelmed as you might be feeling right now. If you slow down, take some time for a reflection, you can create a plan that’s going to reduce your overwhelm so that you can be more energized by your private practice and feel less depleted at the end of the week.”
— Sarah Lightshoe, 27:48

Key Timestamps

• [05:49] Sarah Lightshoe’s story—juggling motherhood and building her practice
• [08:44] Why saying yes to everything feeds the overwhelm
• [10:07] The hidden costs of being a “yes” person
• [11:26] Amanda’s practical approach: planners and planning out the year
• [16:11] “Do it all by not doing it all”: focus and outsourcing
• [17:38] Amanda on never regretting outsourcing
• [20:11–21:28] How to find trustworthy help (local referrals, Facebook groups)
• [22:54] The need to ask for help at home and in practice
• [27:48] Final takeaway: Real strategies for reducing overwhelm

Final Words

Sarah, Katie, and Amanda deliver a realistic yet hopeful message: Overwhelm is common in private practice, but by identifying what to let go of, aligning your actions with your values, embracing outsourcing, and accepting help, you can create a business (and life) that sustains and energizes you. Their humor, warmth, and candor make the episode not just informative but truly supportive for any therapist on the journey from startup to mastery.

For resources, downloads, and links referenced, visit the episode’s show notes at privatepracticestartup.com.