“Rip-offs and con-artists...and other well-meaning people –“

Ahh, the first (but not the last) post from The Admin Quadrant of our motley crew...and yet, the theme remains the same.

http://www.theacupreneur.com/public/250.cfm#coach

This article about the need for validation and “professionalism” in the business coaching field has so many parallels to the issues in the acupuncture world we are constantly discussing here on CAN, that I thought I would commiserate with you.

The author has decided that by sharing our business model in an open, honest and transparent (not to mention accessible) format, we are somehow undermining the many hours and dollars of business coaching work that he is trained to do. We are undervaluing his profession and are a menace to society. (This all sounds familiar, right Community Acupuncture folks?)

He compares the sharing of information about a sustainable business model, which is helping thousands of patients a week collectively and does not require martyrdom or selling out, to “practicing medicine without a license”. Obviously I disagree and in my working class background, proof is in the pudding. I don’t care what degrees you have or the number of certificates on your wall, if you have the passion and the gumption to share your reality, your truth and your experience, I’m game. Bring it on and let me decide for myself.

This idea that one needs a kind of individual coddling and attention is classist and extremely isolating. If you want that, I urge you to utilize the author’s services, as it would be a good match. Just as patients who prefer that kind of coddling and one-on-one attention should seek an acupuncturist who does private treatment. I don’t doubt that his “one size does not fit all” approach is valid and full of wonderful, inspiring and even helpful tips. But to discredit a business that makes hundreds of thousands of dollars for sharing its business model with colleagues who seek it, is a disservice to all clients or potential clients…and, more importantly, to all acupuncture patients or potential patients. If you believe in a community of like-minded individuals challenging each other about the morality of inaccessible healthcare, then I urge you to join CAN (not for hundreds of dollars…actually for as little as $15).

And, in all of the need for professional validation (although the amazing breadth of that validation is still unclear…relationship counselor, spiritual guidance, business coach, hypnotherapist….again, is this sounding familiar to you folks who’ve been through Acupuncture School?) he states of his “20 years in the helping profession” that “to be perfectly frank, I am getting tired of cleaning up the mess created by others.” Wow, if he were my coach, I might not feel very good about myself if I heard that.

He is working with his community and we are working with ours, so what’s the beef? The problem is the lack of clarity and transparency when he claims to be accessible and available to anybody seeking business coaching and acupuncturists who want to “fill their practice,” yet touts that he works with everyone from “captains of industry, prominent members of the entertainment biz, to successful authors - already successful people looking to deepen the meaning in their lives.”
(from his website: http://www.drericsrxforlife.com/public/department37.cfm)

And you will find his description of his practice very similar to the way Boutique Acupuncture is described. His website states that he “takes his investment in his clients very seriously and only works with a small handful of people on an individual basis at a time.”

It can’t be both ways…suggesting to all L.Ac.s struggling to fill a practice that “if you are ready to do it the easy, step-by-step way,” but requiring a minimum $4500 commitment for personal coaching services.

As a working class person, I make decisions based on proof, a track-record and reputation – what my community tells me is a good investment. If I have a friend who tells me they have the best mechanic around, I believe it and I try them. If I like someone’s haircut, I ask them where they got it and I go there. If my neighbor fixes the computers of everyone on my street, I ask him to help me. I don’t care if these folks have diplomas, certifications or a business card. They are part of my community and easy, accessible and available for me to do business with.. Sharing a business model or even professional business coaching is not really in the same ballpark as practicing medicine…sorry to burst your bubble.

Actually, decisions in this community supported acupuncture business model are made with the patient’s interests at the center and livelihood of the acupuncturist close on its heels. We are sharing our business model in order to ADVOCATE FOR UNDERSERVED PATIENTS – not for the purpose of “adding to our income streams”.

As was stated in the article, I agree and also highly encourage you to “make sure you are working with someone who is really qualified to work with you!” I’m sure that, like many professional business coaches, he is doing fine work with his community of clients.

We at Working Class Acupuncture are not MDs, or therapists, or coaches and never have claimed to be. Ours IS a “subjective narrative” and as working class people running a successful working class business for working class patients, it seems pretty transparent what our angle is (not to mention the 5-foot red fist on our building). We are a thriving community acupuncture clinic with over 5 years of growth and experience to openly share with those colleagues interested. And, yes, each practitioner (and each patient) are individuals and need the environment and experience that best suites them. Of course, and that is why we are talking versus preaching. That is why the Community Acupuncture Network is full of diverse, sincere, hard-working, smart people figuring out their own way…together, as a community.