Why Is It So Hard for Therapists to Delegate? Letting Go of Control Over Scheduling, Billing, and Bookkeeping - An Interview with Bibi Goldstein

Why Is It So Hard for Therapists to Delegate? Letting Go of Control Over Scheduling, Billing, and Bookkeeping - An Interview with Bibi Goldstein

Bibi Goldstein of Buying Time on why therapists struggle to delegate, and how automation and online scheduling help.

Curt and Katie talk with Bibi Goldstein, founder of Buying Time, LLC, about why so many therapists keep doing their own scheduling, billing, bookkeeping, and social media long after it stops making sense. Bibi has spent nearly 20 years helping business owners delegate and automate, and in her experience, the resistance usually comes down to control.

Bibi shares how to choose practice systems and software you can grow into, why delegating to software counts as delegating, and how online scheduling and automation can bring in new and returning clients while still protecting your calendar. She also walks through her simple happy face/sad face exercise for deciding what to delegate first.

This is a useful conversation for private practice therapists, group practice owners, and anyone who knows they should hand off admin work but hasn't yet.

In this episode, we discuss:

- Why therapists get emotionally attached to scheduling, billing, bookkeeping, and social media

- How to choose practice systems your private practice can grow into

- Why automation and software count as delegation, even if you can't hire staff

- How the happy face/sad face exercise shows you what to delegate first

- How online scheduling brings in new and returning therapy clients

- How booking limits and buffers keep automation within your boundaries

- How delegating frees up time for income like paid speaking

Timestamps:

- 02:57 - What therapists get wrong when setting up practice systems

- 06:20 - Decision paralysis and getting guidance before you choose software

- 09:48 - How AI and automation have changed delegation

- 13:47 - Technology-shy therapists and the superbill story

- 18:27 - The admin tasks therapists are most emotionally attached to

- 22:24 - The happy face/sad face exercise: what to delegate first

- 25:33 - Delegation that helps therapists make more money

- 28:00 - How online scheduling brings in clients

- 30:55 - Keeping control of your calendar with limits and buffers

Guest Bio:

Bibi Goldstein is the founder of Buying Time, LLC, a virtual support company that helps therapists, entrepreneurs, and small businesses streamline operations through systems, automation, and time management strategies. A systems expert and productivity consultant with multiple software certifications, she is co-author of Get Organized Today, Navigating Entrepreneurship, and Business Success with Ease, and serves as Chair of the Board of the Redondo Beach Chamber of Commerce. Learn more at buyingtimellc.com.

Full show notes and transcript: https://mtsgpodcast.com

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Voice Over by DW McCann: https://www.facebook.com/McCannDW/

Music by Crystal Grooms Mangano: https://groomsymusic.com/