Interested in starting your own entrepreneurial journey in wellness but unsure what to expect? Then read up on our interview with Michael Shahan, Founder of Michael Shahan Therapy, located in Kansas City, MO, USA.
What's your business, and who are your customers?
I’m a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist in the Kansas City area with a special emphasis on using a tool called the Enneagram that helps me guide my clients toward growth and change on a very personal level.
My business has three main components:
- Seeing one-on-one clients in a traditional therapy setting.
- Enneagram coaching for individuals or groups who want to understand themselves and others better. Often, these coaching sessions are workshops in a corporate environment where I spend the day helping a group of co-workers improve their communication, collaboration, and overall work environment because they learn how to work together better.
- Teaching other therapists and coaches how to use the Enneagram in their practices through my course, “Enneagram for Therapists.”
Tell us about yourself
It was super apparent to me from a young age that I was really good at understanding people and empathizing with people on all sides of an argument. I’ve always really hated conflict and wanted to try and help people get along.
In college, those strengths easily translated to working toward a degree in Marriage and Family Therapy. I fell in love with this career at Friends University when I was working on my Master’s, and I never looked back. It continues to blow my mind that the very real systems and modalities I learned in school are so effective in helping individual clients overcome huge HUGE obstacles in their life. I get to see people get “unstuck” from their addictions, grief, pain, unhealthy relationships, and all kinds of things just because I know how to gently lead them and guide them to connect with the beautiful person they already are inside of themselves.
What's your biggest accomplishment as a business owner?
I think what I’m most proud of is discovering and exploring the Enneagram on my own and then being able to apply that to therapy in a way that no one else really was. At least they weren’t doing it on the internet.
When I got ahold of the Enneagram, I saw it as a way that therapists could connect with their clients on a deeply personal level much earlier than most therapists are able to do. It’s a really smart shortcut that helps therapists be able to guide their clients toward success (however that looks for the individual) using methods that they KNOW will work with that specific client.
Making these connections led me to write my course, “Enneagram for Therapists.” Since my methods were SO effective in my own office, I knew they would be helpful for other therapists too. And they have been!
What's one of the hardest things that come with being a business owner?
Balancing “business tasks” with my actual profession. My education is in being a therapist. I’m reeeeeally confident in my abilities as a therapist and a coach, but I had to learn the entrepreneur stuff on the fly! No one taught me business organization, marketing, accounting, etc. When you’re an entrepreneur, you’re forced into dividing your time between your actual profession (like working with clients) and keeping your business afloat. I drastically underestimated how much time and effort the business stuff takes.
What are the top tips you'd give to anyone looking to start, run and grow a business today?
- Write down your main altruistic goal for your business and your core beliefs/values. This isn’t a business goal, like “I want to make $1 million in revenue.” It’s a how-your-business-effects-the-world goal, like “I want my business to help people find more compassion for themselves and others.” Every time you have an idea for a new product or service or you have a business decision to make, ask yourself if it fits within that goal and those core values. If it doesn’t, table it or change it until it does.
- Never stop learning. Read books, listen to podcasts, and take in content from trusted sources that help you stay up to date in your field. Surround yourself with knowledgeable people who you can learn from in real life. These people should believe in you and feel energized by what you’re doing but unafraid to challenge you when they need to!
- Don’t be afraid to be yourself! Your audience will connect with you better if you show up like YOU! Not like who you think you want to be. Not like your competitors. Not like the Instagram influencer you love. Be you.
Is there anything else you'd like to share?
If you don’t know the Enneagram for yourself, it could help you out a lot as an entrepreneur! Go take a free test or read up on the types and decide which one fits you best. If you have staff members, find out their types too. It’ll make a world of difference in how you manage them!
Where can people find you and your business?
Website: https://michaelshahan.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/michaelshahantherapy/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/michaelshahan_therapy/
If you like what you've read here and have your own story as a solo or small business entrepreneur that you'd like to share, then please answer these interview questions. We'd love to feature your journey on these pages.
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