Is there any worse feeling than that of being stuck?  Maybe it feels like way too much effort to get new clients, or it’s just moving too slow.  It could be you’re working too hard for too little result.  Perhaps your stress level is inordinately high and you’re feeling increasing levels of frustration or worry.

These ten questions will help you clear stagnant energy so you can take your business to the next level.  

1)  Do I have a daily success ritual that keeps my mind in a continual state of relaxed productivity?

Anytime you feel stuck in your practice, always turn your awareness inward and assess the degree to which you’re awake to your thoughts and feelings or allowing them to persist on default mode.  When you own a business, there’s a more urgent need to take care of and purify your mind so that it’s an asset instead of an enemy in the process of realizing your goals.  

I recommend spending at least 10 minutes a day in silence, simply observing your mind, breathing deeply, and surrendering to the reality that life is an infinitely open and spacious situation.  I’ve found that simply reminding myself of the vastness of life itself is a powerful way to instantly clear feelings of stagnation.  

There truly is no limit to what you are capable of creating in your business.  When you feel the most stuck.. and the frustration and confusion is coming to a head.. remember that there’s a higher intelligence within you that is nudging you back to the Truth of your own limitless nature.  It’s always there and the irony is that when we feel the most stuck, we have the most opportunity to drop our resistance and realize how open everything actually is.  

2)  Do I have at least a $3/day Facebook ad budget set up to drive targeted traffic to my website and build my fan base?

Purifying your mind is an integral aspect of growing your business from a state of flow, but there’s also a lot of practical work to be done.  You need front-end marketing systems in place that guarantee a certain amount of visibility for your practice.  Most practitioners are GREAT at what they do, but not nearly enough people know they exist.  Facebook advertising is one of the best ways to get your practice featured in front of a targeted audience 24/7 so there’s a continual momentum of expansion around you and your services.  

That’s what you want– a continual momentum of expansion!  After all, in business you’re either expanding or contracting.  (When you reach a plateau, that’s actually a form of contraction).  I have many clients who are doing multi 6 figures a year in their business from Facebook ads alone.  Yes, this IS a skill that you develop over time… and yes, it would behoove you to invest in developing this skill before pumping a bunch of money into your ads, but nonetheless it’s one of the most powerful and cost-effective ways to get your message out to a TON of people.  Facebook ads basically buy you fame. There’s nothing better than that when you’re trying to build a business.  

3)  Do I have a client reactivation system in place?

The majority of practitioners I have worked with do not have a system in place for reactivating old clients or patients.  This is often one of the bigger weak links in their business development that is causing them to stay stuck.  When was the last time you reached out to old clients and invited them back in to work with you?  

I recommend getting a system in place that keeps your content in front of current, past, and prospective clients on a very regular basis.  The best way to do this?  Facebook and email marketing.  Snail mail certainly works too, but it’s a lot more expensive and time-consuming.  

4)  Have I expanded my clinical skill set recently?

When was the last time you refreshed your clinical skills?  I know firsthand how challenging it can be to keep your modalities fresh and creative when you run a busy practice.  The more people you see, the more tempting it is to narrow down your focus to the most essential techniques that work best for a broad variety of people.  While there’s certainly nothing wrong with this, just make sure that you are feeling a sense of creative joy in what you do.  Your patients sense this and, aside from getting great results for them, it’s one of the greatest factors that leads to more referrals.  

When you’re inspired, your clients are inspired…. and when they are inspired, they will tell others about you.  

5)  Am I allowing myself to deeply receive the positive feedback I get?  Or do I over focus on the negative feedback?

If you’re a highly aware and sensitive person, there’s a good chance that you deflect the positive feedback you get and over-emotionalize any negative feedback that comes your way.  In my coaching experience, this is definitely a major cause of burn out and fatigue.  Your satisfied clients should help you recharge your batteries, ignite your passion, and build your confidence.  If you habitually shy away from positive feedback, you’re clamping off a vital source of energetic and emotional nourishment that sustains the health of your body, mind, and business.  

The next time a client raves about you and your work, take a moment to consciously let it in.  Feel how amazing it is to receive this feedback without any guilt or resistance.  

6)  Am I supported by like-minded colleagues and friends who can will deeply listen and offer targeted suggestions?

Practicing in isolation is a sure-fire way to feel stuck.   In my coaching programs, I always focus on community and relationship-building, as I’ve come to see isolation as an epidemic in many of the holistic professions.  

You are in a position of giving all day– not only to your clients, but also to your business.  It’s imperative that you seek out connections where you feel heard and understood and there’s a reciprocal level of deep support and trust.  Sometimes, you just need to vent!  And other times, you need to share some pretty charged, vulnerable feelings about your practice that you just can’t do with someone ‘on the outside’ who wouldn’t truly get it.  

7)  Do I have a coach who has done what I’m trying to do and can expedite the process of getting where I am now to where I really want to be?

Without question, the practitioners who avoid the pitfalls of stagnation and slow growth are the ones who invest in coaching.  A good coach is like a catalyst for your practice growth.  They can give you a roadmap to get from where you are to where you really want to be in a fraction of the time you could do it on your own.  Rather than it taking 5 years to build a successful business, a skilled coach can often help you get there in a few weeks or months.  In fact, I just got a Facebook message from a client who took one of my programs, then moved to a brand new city where he didn’t know anyone, and within the first month, he is seeing 8 patients per week.  Awesome!  I love hearing these stories… and it shows that the sloooow and painful path that most practices take is certainly not mandatory.

Related post: 3 reasons why you need a business coach for your practice

8)  Am I avoiding bills, taxes, or other financial responsibilities?

Avoidance is like a breeding ground for being stuck in your life.  Let me assure you, whatever you are avoiding is clogging up the energy and potential in your business.  If you avoid money, then don’t expect money to show up in your life in abundance.  The way you relate to money will determine the way your clients relate to you.  If you cut corners and are always looking for discounts, you’ll likely attract clients who negotiate your fees or under value your services.  If you avoid your own bills, you’ll get clients who can’t pay on time or who are a hassle to deal with financially.  

Clean up your money karma!  You can’t serve your clients on the deepest level possible if you’re stuck in avoidance, fear, and lack.  

9)  Do I allow limiting beliefs around my profession to suck the inspiration out of me?

I just read an article about how the acupuncture profession is in a state of ‘crisis’ because so few practitioners are making money.   Here’s a fan page post about this that shares my main thoughts about this matter.

I’ve seen time and again that the acupuncture, chiropractic, naturopathic, massage, and basically all healing professions are inundated with this kind of mindset.  Remember– NONE of this really matters.  Your success is up to you.  I recommend not giving up your power to external forces or trends, no matter how convincing they seem.  After all, does it really help you to hear that your profession is in crisis?  No!  All it does is distract you from owning your own power to create what you want.  

10?  Am I actively involved in the community, meeting new people, building relationships, networking, and speaking?  

There’s certainly a lot you can do to build your practice from behind your computer, but there’s no replacing the reward of getting out there and meeting as many people as possible in your community.  Ideally, you should have a combination of the two — Facebook ads, blogging, social media, SEO… along with networking, speaking, and building relationships.  

Anytime you feel stuck, get out there and make some new connections at a networking group, Chamber of Commerce meeting, or public talk.  Call up a few practitioners that you could set up cross-referral relationships with.  

If you’re feeling stuck, there’s a good chance that your answer to at least one of these ten questions contains the solution you need to move forward.  The main thing is to shake up the energy, do something NEW, and always remember that your life is infinitely open.  The only limits are self-imposed, and they are never as solid as we like to think.