mental health professionals: taking charge of your practice gary direnfeld, msw, rsw

Mental Health Professionals:

Taking Charge of Your Practice

Gary Direnfeld, MSW, RSWwww.yoursocialworker.com

www.yoursocialworker.com

A Settlement Perspective

◦How do we find a way to co-parent versus figuring out who is wrong or who started what?

Determine the needs Determine who/what may influence those needs


Parental Needs:

◦ To be heard/validated;◦ To be assured children are safe when with the other

parent;◦ To be assured of a meaningful relationship with

their children;◦ To be assured that children’s needs are met be it

social, familial, developmental, academic; extra-curricular, spiritual, etc;

◦ To be assured of a reasonable service/process with which to achieve a plan to address the above.


Influence: Sway: synonyms:clout, influence, power, weight, authority, control

◦ The Obeah Man Tribal Elder (Who)

◦ Helping services/processes How/What

◦ Use the above to determine your strategies/services

Professor Delroy Louden President Anguilla Community College(My Obeah Man)


6 Potential Services1)

Pre-Separation Counselling or “Separation Prep” (You’ve heard of marriage prep, well…)

How to facilitate resilience; How/what to tell kids – joint narrative; Boundaries, Process options: counselling, mediation;

collaborative law; litigation, etc.



Single-Session Consultation 1-3 hour meeting to get parents in the

door as unobtrusively as possible. Like the child who is asked only to taste the broccoli… Maybe a single issue is addressed or maybe the client has an opportunity to get to know you….



Day-long mediation – with or without an outside Obeah man.

There are those clients who have either languished in their separation and need a way through or seek to rush headlong towards a resolution. A day-long opportunity may provide the sense of ample time to address and resolve all issues. The process can include meeting children and can include lawyers or other influencers as need be.


6 Potential Services 4)

Clinical Evaluative Consultation Some parents have a need to get to the bottom

of things, so this service answers the question, “Just what would an evaluator say?” This service looks like a standard custody/access evaluation, but the product is a verbal report with all parties at a 5-way meeting.



Separation Coach – even if not a collaborative file.

There are lawyers who recognize their client as an obstacle to the outcome sought just as they may recognize that the other parent may be a challenge for co-parenting. This service is to educate and support a parent in managing their own issues, setting realistic expectations and/or learning to cope and manage with the foibles of the other parent.



Consultation to the Family Lawyer. When the family lawyer is feeling stuck with a challenging

situation or client, the lawyer may benefit from a brief informal consultation.

You can also consult to other mental health professionals.


Marketing Strategies:Important concepts…

◦Positioning: Before getting the word out about yourself,

think about how you want to be perceived or what may differentiate you from other service providers:

expert; knowledgeable; compassionate; responsive;

◦ Influencers: Who/What influences your potential customers to use

you? Advertisements; past clients; other referral sources;

media appearances…


Marketing Strategies:Important concepts…

◦Shotgun versus Laser: How do you reach your influencers with as little

spill as possible? Mass marketing versus more targeted

marketing...

◦Fish where the fish are: Where do your customers or influencers

congregate? How can you reach them as directly as possible?


3 Potent Marketing Strategies

◦Direct Contact; MEET/MAIL your influences be they doctors,

media personalities, media producers, etc. Find address lists – look online. NO BROCHURES – Send (find or write) an article) You can include your business card(s)

(Tip: Know what referrals you are after. I seek referrals for marriages on the cusp; I am available for commentary on social family issues; I write one-page articles; other colleagues may send an article or news clipping)



◦Reach out to traditional media: (radio, TV, print) be available for comment;

Have an opinion; Be responsive; You only have to know a few key points to

present as knowledgeable Stick to your key points Letters to the Editor count! (You can mail them

to your influencers) Use your blog to announce, promote and

disseminate media appearances.



◦Online exposure (website, blog; social media).

If you do not have an online presence, you do not exist!

Quality beats quantity Remain current


Final Words

◦Have something of value to say. Simply stating who you are or what you do is never

enough. It is not what you say about yourself, but what you say about a given issue that can set you apart.

◦Work your marketing plan regularly Remain top of mind!

◦Be a referral source to others Turn the referral model with collaborative lawyers on its

head – become of value to your potential referral sources!

You can now determine where your clients go next without depending on other lawyers to support your settlement/peacemaking practice!

Mental Health Professionals:

Taking Charge of Your Practice

Gary Direnfeld, MSW, RSWwww.yoursocialworker.com

mental health professionals: taking charge of your practice gary direnfeld, msw, rsw

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