SHULAMIT BER LEVTOV: BUILDING A SUSTAINABLE PRACTICE WITHOUT LOSING YOURSELF | EP 198
Building a business while caring for others can be deeply meaningful work, but it can also come at a cost if your own well-being is left behind. It can be easy to get absorbed in caring for others and accidentally lose focus on your own personal needs in the process.
Shulamit experienced this firsthand. In this episode, Shulamit Ber Levtov shares her unconventional path into therapy, from activism, graduating with a Master’s degree at 48, and building a thriving group practice in a rural community.
She opens up about the realities of entrepreneurship, the mental health challenges that led her to step away from group practice ownership, and why sustainable success starts with taking care of yourself first. Join us for an insightful discussion!
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MEET SHULAMIT
Shulamit is known as The Entrepreneurs’ Therapist. She’s the mental health professional you hire when you’re a woman business owner, and you want to build the internal steadiness–for your emotions and your money psychology– to lead effectively through the uncertainty, weight, and complexity of running a business. Shulamit has been an entrepreneur for over 27 years and has more than 22 years of professional experience supporting women’s mental health and personal growth. As a trauma survivor and Master’s-level trauma therapist, with certifications in Dare To Lead™, Trauma of Money®, and Financial Social Work as well as somatic parts therapy, Shula brings a unique perspective and approach to supporting women in business.
Learn more about Shulamit on her website, LinkedIn, and Instagram profiles.
In This Episode
- Graduating with a Master’s at 48!
- Evergreen marketing strategies
- Going from group private practice to solo
- Shula’s plans for the future
- Final takeaways for listeners
Graduating with a Master’s at 48!
Shulamit’s story is an adventurous and inspiring one.
Shula explains how her mother was an activist, and that this type of work was prominent in her family lineage throughout her life. That, she explains, impacted how she wanted to contribute to the community around her, leading her to study Social Work.
However, after arguing with a professor about socialism and fighting on behalf of people who need to be paid a living wage, she was dropped from the programme because her grades (from this professor’s class) pulled her average too low.
‘I was so mad. I was like, “F- that, I’m not going to do that anymore.” I got involved in radio, TV, and did a whole bunch of things, and then I got injured at work, and I had to do my own rehab … And I had always done personal growth work as a “side hustle”, and it just made sense at that time in my life, to bring everything together.’ – Shulamit Ber Levtov
While Shula had attempted to complete her Master’s degree twice before, this was the moment in her life, decades after that Social Work course, that she decided to bring everything together and really go for it.
‘It was time to bring it all together. So I went back to school, I got a Master’s in Counseling and Spirituality … and my goal was to graduate before I was 50, and I did it!’ – Shulamit Ber Levtov
Evergreen marketing strategies
Back in 2012, after Shula graduated with her Master’s and began her path to private practice, she decided on a location that (at the time) had relatively few therapists and counsellors.
‘My practice was full in five minutes … Because I was in a rural area, there were no other resources, and I hated having to say to people, “No, sorry, I not have room for you, sorry” … I cared deeply about rural economic development, and I cared deeply about rural access to the same quality of services that people in cities have access to. So, the solution was to start a group practice.’ – Shulamit Ber Levtov
Therefore, pre-COVID, Shula was marketing her brick-and-mortar group private practice in a small town that had a strong need for therapy services. What worked for her and her business then did not always continue to work post-COVID and into the online world.
‘I networked the heck out of things! I showed up in the community … We contributed to the community … All those things, we were really present in person.’ – Shulamit Ber Levtov
So, Shulamit’s main advice for consistently successful marketing is to be present and create deep connections with the community, whether that’s in-person, online in videos on social media, or both.
Going from group private practice to solo
Shulamit explains that this is the reason why she’s the entrepreneur’s therapist: she went on a personal journey from group private practice to a solo business owner for her own well-being.
‘Picture this: August, 2020. The business is doing great, but completely unrelated to COVID, I’m a wreck. This is showing up in my relationship with my associates in the practice, and I feel deep regret to this day about my behavior and the harm I caused relationally … because my mental health was suffering, and it was showing up in my relational behavior.’ – Shulamit Ber Levtov
Shula came to realize that either she leaves her business or continues to suffer with poor mental health, and she chose her mental health.
‘It was really the stress of running a business. This is something that people, when you’re going from solo to group, is one of the gaps that’s hardest to cross: moving away from clinical practice and into managing the business.’ – Shulamit Ber Levtov
Shula recognized that her associates were depending on her to bring in clients for the business to prosper, and for them to have an income as well.
But, when she understood the depth of her struggle, she had to remove herself from the practice and allow someone else to take her place to stop her entire team from suffering as well.
Shula’s plans for the future
‘For my future, I would like sustainability for my business! I would like to participate in the profession, and the growth of the profession, in healthcare for entrepreneurs, and extending and expanding the research.’ – Shulamit Ber Levtov
In two words, here are Shulamit’s goals for the future of her practice: sustainability and growth. Sustainability for her solo practice, to continue to see her clients and sustain herself in the process, growth for the profession, and expansion in the research of caring for entrepreneurs.
As she continues to experiment and as the digital work continues to change, she’s committed to finding strategies that will be evergreen.
Final takeaways for listeners
Shulamit wants you to take care of yourself. Don’t let your mental, physical, and emotional well-being be an afterthought. So, take a regular temperature check on yourself once a week, or every now and then at least, to figure out what you are feeling, why, and how to help yourself move forward with less stress.
Secondly, don’t let the nature of the work make you feel like you are failing. The work is hard because it is inherently hard, and not because you can’t do it. You can.
‘I invite you to remember that there’s nothing wrong with you, that it makes sense you would be feeling the way you’re feeling, because as I said, therapy and entrepreneurship are both hard work, and there’s nothing wrong with you for feeling the impact of that work. The kindest thing you can do yourself is … to take a deep breath.’ – Shulamit Ber Levtov
Connect With Me
Resources Mentioned and Useful Links:
Paula Gonzalez: From Purpose to Practice and Scaling with Intention | EP 197
Learn more about the tools and deals that I love and use for my Canadian private practice
Sign up for my free e-course on How to Start an Online Canadian Private Practice
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Get started with Hushmail here and get one month for free!
Learn more about Shulamit on her website, LinkedIn, and Instagram profiles
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About Jules Smith
Jules Smith, MEd, RCT, CCC is a registered Counselling Therapist who owns a group private practice in Halifax, Nova Scotia. They are also the owner of Fearless Practice Consulting and hosts the Fearless Practice podcast. Through the Fearless Practice podcast, they provide invaluable insights and practical advice on starting and growing a successful Canadian private practice.
Jules also has written articles for the Canadian Counselling and Psychotherapy association. You can learn more at www.ccpa-accp.ca/blog/.
