The topic of having a side hustle as a therapist is a big one! There are lots of different ideas and opinions on this topic.
Today I’m going to answer some questions that were submitted on my instagram page.
If you’d rather watch than read, check out the video version of the article below:
What is a side hustle?
My understanding of a side hustle, historically, has been when you create a context that generates extra income. It could include freelancing. But, in my opinion it didn’t include picking up an extra shift per week for an employer. However, I stand corrected.
Because, Merriam Webster’s definition of side hustle is “Work performed for income supplementary to one’s primary job.”
Anything you do outside of your typical work that generates income, according to the dictionary, is a side hustle.
Q: What could be possible side hustles for therapists? What options are there other than therapy for another company?
A: These are great questions! This was by far the most frequently asked category of question. And the answer is so expansive. There are lots of people who have compiled lists of some of the most common types of side hustles for therapists.
Here’s an article from Heard called, “The Complete List of Income Streams for Therapists”. It is quite comprehensive and covers all the side hustles that I’m aware of. You can scroll through the list they provide and see if anything feels like a good fit for you.
And, believe it or not, that long list doesn’t even scratch the surface of options. There are so many niche things you could do!
Q: Can I survive without side hustles? I only want to be a therapist.
A: I love this question. Absolutely! YES! Even though I am answering questions about side hustles, I don’t want to give the impression that the only way to make a living, as a therapist, is by having some extra income on the side.
If your goal is to generate a reasonable living exclusively by seeing therapy clients you can do that! You can do it without working at burnout levels.
And, I get that this is a genuine question for many folks because therapists are on average so underpaid. If your goal is to pay your bills exclusively through seeing therapy clients and you feel like you’re not making enough, there are ways you can troubleshoot and problem solve. You don’t have to take on a side hustle if that doesn’t align with what your goals are.
Q: How do you balance running a business and starting a whole new side hustle at the same time? How much time per week to spend on a side hustle?
A: Personally, I would suggest tailoring it to your needs. Manage your expectations accordingly.
If you have an extra hour or two a week to give to a side hustle, great! But, if you only have a couple hours it wouldn’t be reasonable to expect that whatever you’re trying to dedicate that time to is going to generate the same amount of income as if you had 10 or 15 hours a week to give to your side hustle.
I think a much more reasonable question to ask is “How much time do I have to give per week to a side hustle?” Then, to follow up that question by asking “What sorts of things align with my goals that reasonably fit within that amount of time?”
Q: How lucrative can providing clinical supervision be?
A: Pretty much across the board what I hear from folks is offering clinical supervision is generally not very lucrative.
I’d like to add on that given that most of the time when you’re taking on supervisees you’re taking on folks who are prelicensed. Or somewhere quite early in their career. Therefore these trainees are likely underpaid themselves.
If you’re thinking about taking on supervisees it has to be motivated by something other than finances. So, if you like to supervise people from the kindness of your heart because you love training people and would like to be reasonably compensated, I fully support you!
But, if your goal is to make a bunch of money, please, consider other paths for the sake of our early career therapists.
Is it different if you have some highly specialized training and you are supervising folks who are already licensed? Perhaps. I haven’t dabbled in that. I know that’s a whole world as well.
Q: Is it better to seek a project that is a passion or what can be profitable?
A: I think, generally, if you can find something that aligns with a passion it is most likely going to be more sustainable than if you’re only doing something for the profits.
Now, with that said, I think it can be wise to be strategic. If your goal in having a side hustle as a therapist is to generate some income, then you can ask yourself “Where do my passions and what’s profitable overlap nicely?”
Then brainstorm what your options are for monetizing your passion. Ask “Can I get creative about this in any way?”
I think that’s going to be a much more rewarding and sustainable route. And, potentially, it might be a more lucrative route.
Q: How do you balance running a business and starting a whole new side hustle at the same time?
A: For me, I just worked an extra 20+ hours a week on top of my full-time job seeing therapy clients. Personally, I saw my extra work the same way someone might see taking classes in the evening in addition to their full-time job.
Maybe you have the capacity to lean into your side hustle for a season because it will help you get to where you hope to be.
But, however, it may not be possible to do that right now. Which I totally understand! If that’s the case, be kind to yourself and see what time you do have available. Work with the capacity you currently have.
Looking for a place to start?
If you’re thinking about starting a side hustle, I think my most basic starting point tip is: start with a low bar for yourself. Dabble and try things out slowly.
For example, if you are interested in adjunct teaching, try to have coffee with a couple adjunct professors and pick their brain about their experiences.
Or, if you’re interested in creating ecourses or selling a product, create a profile on one social media platform. Then, post or make a video and see what happens.
And if you hate it, you can take that data and do with it what you will. But if you like it, and you get really into it, that’s also really helpful to know! From there you can decide where to go next.
More tips on side hustles
One of my videos offers a few tools to help you determine if starting a side business is worth it for YOU in your current life situation.
And it may be helpful to read my article where I get detailed about how much work it takes to have a “passive income” as a therapist.
Until next time, from one therapist to another: I wish you well.
-Marie
Photo by Patrick Tomasso on Unsplash
Photograph by Valeria Ushakova on Pexels
Photo by Nataliya Vaitkevich on Pexels
Leave A Reply