Episode 192: Consistency, Criticism, and Courage in Private Practice Consulting [featuring Rachel Bentley]

Show Notes

In this episode, Rachel Bentley shares her journey of building a thriving group practice and launching the Next Level Private Practice Summit, emphasizing the power of community, collaboration, and taking risks despite self-doubt or fear of imperfection. She and Patrick Casale discuss the importance of consistency, authentic connection, and embracing vulnerability to grow personally and professionally in private practice.

Here are 3 key takeaways:

1. Embrace Imperfection and Take Action: Rachel shares how perfectionism and self-doubt almost stopped her from launching her summit. The key isn't to wait until everything is perfect, but to take the leap and iterate as you go. Progress beats perfection!
2. Build Community Through Collaboration (Not Competition): Both Patrick and Rachel emphasize the importance of collaboration over competition in our industry. There’s plenty of space for everyone to succeed, and true growth happens when we support each other.
3. Consistency is Critical: Whether you’re launching an event, offering a course, or opening up your practice to new clients, showing up consistently matters more than doing everything flawlessly. People usually need to see your message multiple times before they take action.

More about Rachel:

Rachel Bentley, MA LPC, is a trained IFS Level (2)+ therapist, trained IFIO therapist, and clinical supervisor. Rachel is a Private Practice Consultant, and she hosts retreats and summits to assist private practice owners in starting and growing their private practices. Rachel is the Founder and CEO of COR Counseling and Next Level Private Practice.

COR Counseling is a private practice that centers around trauma-informed and LGBTQIA+ affirming care. COR is a 40-therapist group with physical locations in E Lansing and Ann Arbor, MI. COR also serves clients across Michigan (via Telehealth).

Next Level Private Practice assists therapists in all levels of Private Practice to include 1) Therapists that are starting out in developing their own practices 2) Solo practice owners that wish to develop additional revenue streams and/or grow into group practices 3) Group practice owners that are seeking ways to make their practices sustainable.

Rachel will host the Next Level Private Practice Summit in the Fall of 2025. This summit will be a (safe) place and space for therapists and practice owners to connect, learn, and build their private practices. Learn more about the summit and Next Level's offerings (here): nextlevelprivatepractice.com

• Register here for the Next Level Private Practice Summit, and use code Nextlevel50 for $50 off registration: nextlevelprivatepractice.com/summit
• Learn more about COR Counseling: corcounselingmi.com
• NEXT LEVEL Facebook Group: facebook.com/share/g/15oQgGm7PV
• NEXT LEVEL Facebook Page: facebook.com/nextlevelprivatepractice
• NEXT LEVEL Instagram: instagram.com/nextlevelprivatepractice

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A Thanks to Our Sponsors: The Receptionist for iPad, Alma, & All Things Private Practice — 2025 & 2026 Retreats!

✨The Receptionist for iPad

I want to thank The Receptionist for iPad for sponsoring this episode.

This podcast is sponsored by The Receptionist for iPad, a digital check-in system that eliminates the need to walk back and forth from your office to the waiting room to see if your next appointment has arrived. Clients can securely check-in for their appointments and you'll be immediately notified by text, email, or your preferred channel. Break free from interruptions and make the most of your time. I've been using them for almost three years now and it saves me hours in my week.

Start a 14-day free trial of The Receptionist for iPad by going to thereceptionist.com/privatepractice. Make sure to start your trial with that link. And you'll also get your first month free if you decide to sign up.

✨Alma

I want to thank Alma for sponsoring this episode.

Building and managing the practice you want can be challenging. That’s why Alma offers tools and resources to help you build not just any practice, but your private practice. They’ll help you navigate insurance, access referrals who are the right fit for you, and efficiently manage administrative tasks — so you can spend less time on the details and more time delivering great care. You support your clients. Alma supports you.

Visit helloalma.com/ATPP to learn more.

✨ All Things Private Practice — 2025 & 2026 Retreats

All Things Private Practice has some amazing retreat experiences coming up in 2025 and 2026.

Join us in Edinburgh, Scotland for the second Doubt Yourself, Do It Anyway Summit from July 14th to 17th, 2025! We have an incredible lineup of 12 speakers and offer 12 MBCCEs. If you're a leader or aspiring to start a group practice, join our Leadership Retreat in Chania, Crete, from September 6th to 11th. In 2026, we have two retreats in Queenstown, New Zealand. The first is for Neurodivergent Entrepreneurs from March 1st to 8th, and the second retreat, Beyond Private Practice, focuses on moving beyond one-on-one therapy and creating alternative income streams from March 15th to 22nd.

Spaces are limited, so check the links to sign up today. Doubt yourself, do it anyway!

• Doubt Yourself, Do It Anyway Summit in Scotland: empoweredescapes.com/scotland-july-2025-summit
• Leadership Retreat in Chania, Crete: empoweredescapes.com/greece-retreat-2025
• Neurodivergent Entrepreneurs in Queenstown, New Zealand: allthingspractice.com/new-zealand-neurodivergent
• Beyond Private Practice in Queenstown, New Zealand: allthingspractice.com/new-zealand-income-streams

Transcript

PATRICK CASALE: Hey, everyone. Welcome back to All Things Private Practice. I'm joined today by a good friend and colleague, Rachel Bentley, who is an LPC, trained IFS Level 2 therapist, and clinical supervisor. Rachel is a private practice consultant. And she hosts retreats and summits to assist private practice owners in starting and growing their private practices.

Rachel is the founder and CEO of Core Counseling and Next Level Private Practice. And Rachel will be hosting the Next Level Private Practice summit in the fall of 2025. And this summit will be a safe place and space for therapists and practice owners to connect, learn, and build their practices. 

Fun fact, all will be one of the keynotes at that summit in September in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Really looking forward to it, because I've never been there. So, win-win for me. Thanks for the invite. And I appreciate you being on today to talk a little bit about your journey.

RACHEL BENTLEY: Thank you, Patrick, so much. And thank you for that wonderful intro that. That was amazing. And we are so excited to have you come and keynote at the summit. Thank you for agreeing to do that.

PATRICK CASALE: Yeah, you're welcome. And still, you know, it's an interesting business arc for me, because I'm like, still not used to people asking me to do things like that, where people ask and I'm like, "Okay, I guess I can do that."

So, very exciting stuff. And I know, as someone who has hosted summits, and conferences, and retreats, how much energy and anxiety goes into the process. And I know a lot of people listening right now are like, either excited to be traveling for events because they're just like, "I need distraction, I need connection and community." Or they want to do similar things.

So, tell us a little bit about like, let's start more so with the evolution of Next Level Private Practice, because it definitely didn't start with just you wanting to host a summit.

RACHEL BENTLEY: No, I didn't. It really didn't. So, I would say it started with me beginning or creating my group practice, Core Counseling. And I started the group in 2019. And at that time, it was just me and a couple of colleagues that I worked with in state government. And we just thought, “You know, what if we could just do this part-time gig, make some extra money, and I don't know, maybe someday we can get out of this horrific system we're working in.”

So, it started there. And of course, several months later, COVID hit. And of course, we know the world, mental health became such an enormous need. And like, I felt this tremendous sense of responsibility. Like, "Well, we're mental health professionals. We have to help. We have to help." And so that sort of part of me that wanted to help the world decided to grow my practice. 

And fast forward, now we're a group of around 40 clinicians. And so, the fast forward, there was a lot a lot that happened in growing a group sort of quickly, but not having the infrastructure in place. And so, all of a sudden, we were this large group. It wasn't all of a sudden, it felt all of a sudden. And we didn't have the infrastructure, and I didn't have like a team around me to help me run the group. I was working all the time, burning out. I knew it wasn't sustainable. And so, it was just, in short, a very, very messy way to turn into a larger group practice.

And as I started stabilizing, building the infrastructure, the systems, building this great team that I have around me now in the practice, and things started to sort of even out, and we became, I guess, what we'll call "successful" people started asking me in my local area like, "Well, how'd you do this?" And Patrick, you probably had a similar sort of experience. "How do you sustain a group of this size? How do you manage all of the pieces in your practice? Are you profitable? How does all of that work?"

And so, I was doing a lot of the, “Let me meet your brain, let me meet your brain. Let me meet you for coffee." I did want to meet my brain.

PATRICK CASALE: For sure.

RACHEL BENTLEY: Not let me pick your brain during coffee. And so, I was doing so much of that, sort of unofficially, that I thought, "Wow, like, I'm spending a lot of time and energy mentoring or consulting with other folks that want to do this. I probably need to, like, develop a separate company and put boundaries around this portion of my time, and also choose, like, how do I really want to spend my time in the consulting space?" Right?

PATRICK CASALE: Yeah, [CROSSTALK 00:05:29].

RACHEL BENTLEY: So, that's how much Level was born and evolved a little bit over time is, you know, what kind of work do I actually want to do in the consulting space? And I knew building community, bringing people together, because I had experienced, I had sought that out on my own, went to like retreats, was with you recently in Ireland for your retreat, experiences like that just felt so connecting, energizing, being with people that were like-minded and actually supportive. Because I also feel like there's this error of like competition sometimes, I guess, in the group owner space and the consulting space, right?

And those weren't necessarily the people I wanted to build community with, because I don't think we're in competition. I think we can build friendship and collaborate. And, you know, like that is my vibe. So, I started finding some of that in my own like travels, and some of the networking that I was doing. And I thought, wow, what if we could build a summit to do just that? Obviously, we want people to be able to learn new things, but just build community with those like-minded folks is sort of why I really wanted to do this event.

PATRICK CASALE: Yeah, that makes total sense. I think that story is very familiar, you know, for a lot of people who have probably gone from either solo practice into group practice or into consulting/coaching. And I think that people can have the mentality of like, "Oh, there's a lot of over-saturation. So, there's going to be more, like, possessiveness, or lack of desire to collaborate." And there is definitely some truth to that in certain circles. I need to turn my light on, because apparently western North Carolina is getting darker.

RACHEL BENTLEY: Might have some clouds in the sky like we do here.

PATRICK CASALE: And I think it's important to, like, lean more into the mentality that you're talking about, which is collaboration, partnership, supporting one another. Because, you know, there's more than enough clientele to go around, whether they be clinical clientele or coaching clients. Like, people want support, guidance, mentorship. I mean, it's just going to happen in abundance. And the more we lean into that, I think the more we align ourselves with the right people.

So, you came to my Retreat Builders event last January in the frigid cold Asheville winter, which was much colder than, I mean, it's always cold, but that was like a very cold weekend, but whatever, we got a lot of shit done. And, you know, I think people leave so inspired after events like that, of like, “Oh, I have these ideas. I'm going to put them into the world.” But you're around all of these people who are doing similar things, so the energy is kind of contagious. Then you leave and you're like, "Oh." You kind of fall flat. You kind of fall into like, where's the accountability piece, where's the motivation piece? And it can feel like almost creating, almost like self-sabotage, shame spirally, stuff of like, "See, I can never do this."

And I see that happen far too often, which is really a bummer, but that's just the reality. But you reached out and you're like, "I'm going to host this summit and I'm going to do this thing. Do you think it's crazy?" And I was like, "No, like, no. I think it's a great idea. I think it's scary." And it should be, right? Like, because it is a risk, ultimately, to create an event, to ask speakers to come to it, to start putting it out into the world. And it is a risk. So, tell me about this process for you, from like idea phase to implementation phase.

RACHEL BENTLEY: So, I've had the idea, I would say, for a couple of years. Like, it was sort of this, like, well, someday, like, maybe I'll start with hosting, like smaller retreats, or like even event… Like, I started with like hosting, like, events for my team, right? Things like that. But it does feel there's like this narrative in my head that's like, "Wow, this is big, Rachel, this is really big. This is really big." And not necessarily in a good way. It's more of that, this is really big, and you might mess this up. Like, it's more of that, like inner critic sort of narrative. Like, “What if this doesn't work? Are you sure you want to put yourself out there in this way?” Right?

And so, there is definitely that running in the background. And I think that may have stopped me from moving forward, sort of before I have like, right now, and actually planning it, and putting a date. And asking for speakers, and starting to promote it, right?

So, there was a little bit more of a delay than I guess there could have been, but sort of alongside of, what if you mess this up? There's also this narrative of, but this could also be a really cool way to bring people together, help people have some of that community that you have, or that you've been able to develop over time. And so, like, there's like, these two competing sort of voices, right? Depends on who wins on what day. Like, I leave and go, "Oh, do I really want to promote it today? What if I promote it today and nothing happens?"

PATRICK CASALE: Sure.

RACHEL BENTLEY: And so, that voice might be taking the lead. And on other days it's like, "No, no, this is going to be really cool. It's going to work out." So, there's definitely some of those internal conflicts happening for me as things go forward, if that makes sense.

PATRICK CASALE: Yeah, it does make sense. And I think that one important lesson for everyone listening and for you too, is like consistency is key. And I think that's where events, and sales, and courses, and programs fall flat, is like, when you have the energy and it feels really exciting, it's easy to market things. It's like, "Oh, I can get behind this. This makes sense, and I feel really passionate about it." It really is about, like, the days, because everybody will have them where it's like, "I don't want to market this. I don't want to post about it. I don't want to share about it." Like, it's taking extra energy. And I'm noticing that resistance.

And I think when people ask me, like, how have I created the success that I've created over the last four or five years, it is because of consistency. And that's played a major factor. Because I don't always think my ideas or content is like better than anybody else's. I just think that it's constantly being posted about or consistently created.

And I think that's a really hard thing for people is that component, because life gets in the way, our own emotions get in the way, our own our own doubts, and like, inner critic gets in the way. Like, our busyness gets in the way. So, like things happen.

So, I would say to you and to everyone else who's listening is like, consistency is key. And a lot of people who I've surrounded myself with, who are marketing experts, would say that consistency is almost better than quality, which sucks to hear. But I think they're right where it's like, we need to know that the Next Level summit is happening like every day, right? We need to know if your course, or your coaching program, or your podcast is being released, or your book. We need to know.

And I think about it in terms of like for practice owners who are listening, who have done networking, right? One thing I used to teach in my coaching programs is like, people need to know you're open for business. And you just making one social media post that your private practice is open, and you're taking clients, and then crickets, and you're like, "See, this never works.:" It's like, no. Businesses have launches, right? Like, even restaurants, when they're opening up, they have a runway. They're posting about it, they're like, "Here's the menu, here's the interior, here's the opening hours, here's what's going to make us different in this place." And we really need to own that as well. And I think that's really hard for a lot of people.

RACHEL BENTLEY: Yeah, I'm so glad that you saw that, because that just normalizes sort of that well, but what if I promote it today? What if I send this, like, beautiful email out to the followers, and no one responds. There's crickets. It's like the crickets make you not want to move forward, even-

PATRICK CASALE: Absolutely.

RACHEL BENTLEY: …if you know that it could be a really cool thing and that people will benefit. And again, it doesn't have to be perfect, but [CROSSTALK 00:13:33].

PATRICK CASALE: It never will be. It never will be.

RACHEL BENTLEY: Yeah.

PATRICK CASALE: And what if you make this beautiful post, and promote it, and it's crickets? Okay, let's sit with that for a second.

RACHEL BENTLEY: Yeah.

PATRICK CASALE: What if you don't promote it, and there's crickets. And what if that beautiful post, someone continues to look at like, three or four times, and then they're interested, but they're not quite ready to take action? But then, here comes another beautiful post a couple of days later. And then they're like, "Okay, I think I need to sign up for this thing." 

Because people, on average take like, 10 to 12 times of seeing something before taking action on it. It's very rare that we know that we want to do it as soon as we see it. So, like, we have to continuously show up. We have to continuously content create, because people will maybe, like, save it to their browser, or, like, have an open tab, or mean to take action. But then, again, life happens, right? On the other end of the spectrum. They get busy. They're working. Life is happening. They're tired. Their favorite show comes on. Their dog throws up while they're doing work, whatever.

RACHEL BENTLEY: Yeah, life happens.

PATRICK CASALE: Then all of a sudden it gets pushed to the back burner. And it's like, "Oh, this nagging thought that… oh, that was that sounded really cool or really interesting." But if I don't see it again, the likelihood of me pressing, like, submit registration is pretty slim.

So, needing to get through that, like, perfectionistic self-doubt process of, "But what if it just doesn't work out?" Because I would say, like the flip side is, what if it does? And what if you create this thing that people travel to, and attend, and get a really good experience out of, and they build community, and they build connection, and they leave with friendships, and they leave with continuing ed hours, which is also great for tax write off purposes. And what if they get to, like, be around a bunch of like-minded people, and that creates life-changing experience. And for me, experience is everything. And that, for me, has always been like my driving force in terms of everything that I've been doing.

RACHEL BENTLEY: Yes, Patrick, thank you for saying that. Because that for me too, the experience of it, and I think that sometimes there's a like, someone may go, "Oh yeah. Like, we want that experience too." But because it is almost an investment in yourself, right? It's almost an investment in, like, your future, collaboration, and friendship, and like the energy, and just all of the value you get from that kind of connection. And people might go, “Oh, yeah, but I don't know if I should spend money on like me or like my own good, or…” Right? So, there's some, I guess, hesitance there, sometimes with folks too, that I've known.

PATRICK CASALE: 100%. And that's what we would like look at and call objections, right?

RACHEL BENTLEY: Right.

PATRICK CASALE: We're trying to overcome objections for someone to purchase something in our world, in our industry. Okay, if the objections are like, "Do I deserve to go to this? Am I someone who would benefit from this experience? Like, who am I to surround myself with these people doing these cool things?"

And I can think back to, like, 2017 or 18. I can't remember the date, but I remember exactly where I was sitting when I saw, like, the first Not Your Typical Psychotherapy Conference come out from [CROSSTALK 00:19:04] shall not be named on this podcast. But I was like, looking at it, and I was like, "Oh, this is super cool, and this is all the stuff I want to be doing, because I don't foresee myself doing one-on-one therapy for the rest of my life. I don't think my ADHD will allow for me to do one thing for the rest of my life."

But then, I was like, okay, I see that there's payment plan. I can submit two equal payments. But what if, like, then I have to get a plane ticket. What if I go and, like, I have nothing in common with anybody, or, like, everyone realizes I have nothing to offer, or I don't have any cool ideas. I talked myself out of the experience and did not go despite, like, you know, I was very early on in my private practice, so I was making a ton of money on it. My wife was like, "Yeah, you should go, you should go do this." "No, I'm not going to do that. It's not for me. I'm not like, one of those people." Right?

Fast forward to, like, speaking at that conference several years later, and everything that's happened since I started All Things Private Practice, it's like sometimes we really do have to lean into the discomfort and say yes to the opportunity and acknowledge that even if our inner critic shows up and is like, "You don't deserve to be there. You don't deserve to take up space. You don't deserve to create A, B, and C. Someone else is already doing the thing.” Sitting with that and just being like, "I'm going to do it anyway." Right? Like, I am going to move through this, and I'm going to push through that discomfort, and that self-doubt, and that perfectionism, and that imposter syndrome and I'm going to put myself into these situations and in uncomfortable scenarios.

And that's why I love hosting these smaller retreats, because I've always wanted the focus to be like, tap into the experience, tap into the community, but surround yourself with that type of energy. Because if you can see that the majority of people attending are all experiencing like self-doubt, perfectionism, imposter syndrome, fear, and then you start naming it, and putting it into the world together, it's not that scary anymore. It doesn't really hold as much weight. Like, it's still scary, like, I'm not going to say it isn't, but I think it takes up less room.

RACHEL BENTLEY: Yeah, so I totally agree. And that idea of, well, will I belong with this group of people? Because we all want this, like, the sense of belonging, but also, coming into a room and realizing not everyone has all their stuff figured out, not everyone knows exactly how to do. And I'll say this, like consulting a lot, I'll say, here is what I can offer you. I don't know everything about everything, but here is what I can offer you based on my experience. And you know what? It's okay to not know.

PATRICK CASALE: Absolutely.

RACHEL BENTLEY: We'll be learning something together here if you ask me about something I haven't thought about before, but you don't have to be perfect. You can essentially come as you are, show up in the way that you show up. And that's okay.

Like, I have even had some speakers that are speaking for the first time at the summit, saying, "Well, who am I to show up with this group of folks that are well versed speakers?” Right? And well, while you're here, because you have something valuable to offer, it doesn't matter how many times you've done it before, so that it feels parallel to what you're saying, some of what I've heard so far. Yeah.

PATRICK CASALE: Yeah. And I think we all have a story to tell. You know, I think we all have a story inside of us. And I think we all have creative, cool ideas that we want to pursue and make happen.

And I think a big area of major struggle for people who are listening, and for yourself, and myself at times as well, is the convincing internally of like, who am I to do the thing? Or this idea is better suited for somebody else. Or whatever that narrative is, because I did not start All Things Private Practice for so long, because I was like, "Who am I to help people start and grow their private practices?"

And I was doing something similar, like, lunches, I don't remember what you said, but you want access to my brain, basically, right?

RACHEL BENTLEY: Yeah, like, "Can I pick your brain?"

PATRICK CASALE: And, you know, I was doing it for free, and people would just be, like, "You should do this for a living. You're so good at the strategizing and, like, motivating side of things and normalizing the fear of failure." And I was like, "Yeah, but Allison Puryear runs abundance practice building, and she lives here too. Why would anyone hire me if they could hire her?"

And it took years until my grad school mentor was like, "Because you have completely different personalities and you're going to have completely different audiences." And I was like, "Ah, light bulb moment." And then, like, very quickly, went home, put it out into the world, "I'm going to start this thing. I'm going to do this." And I have no idea how the hell to do it. And that's always been my process is like, build the plane as you fly it. But it always comes with that, like, burst of energy where I'm like, okay, I'm going to do this, put it out into the world, and then figure out how to make it happen.

And that's how I started, like, my first Ireland retreat back in 2022 was just like, "If I did a retreat in Ireland, who would come?" And all these people said, "Yeah, I would show up. I would love that." And I was like, "Oh shit. Now I got to figure it out. Now, I have to figure out a venue, and the dates, and the logistics, and all the things that I don't know how to do." But like that is how this stuff really comes to fruition. Because if we perfect the hell out of it, and we say, I'll launch it once it's ready, and I'm going to perfect everything about it." There's always going to be a new roadblock. There's always going to be something new to perfect. And it will just prevent you from doing the thing. And I think that's one of the saddest things in this industry, in our circles, is like people with the ideas who just cannot put them out into the world.

RACHEL BENTLEY: Yeah, and there's just that sort of, maybe it's the inner critic, are there other sort of narratives that just, “No, I can't.” Because it's risky, it's vulnerable, and, you know, I've also learned, like, in any, and I guess this happened a lot as a group practice owner too, but just being the one that, like, puts the things out there, and makes the decisions, and then being judged, being criticized, having people sort of come at you in different ways, because that's happened to me as a consultant, in terms of having other group practice owners coming at me about, "Why are you teaching other people to do this? You're essentially going to take our therapists from our groups if you give access to information."

And so, it started like that was sort of my first sort of pieces of criticism as a consultant. And I guess, at first, I was shocked by that, because I was like, "Wait, what?" Like, I didn't compute, that. I didn't understand. And as a group owner, like, I'm like, "Well, I don't have that perspective." Right? And so, but I think sometimes people are criticized, and they pull back as well, right? There's always criticism when you put yourself out there in any way.

PATRICK CASALE: Totally and it's so normal. It's such a part of the human experience, right? Is like to shrink back when criticism happens because it's painful and there's vulnerability in putting ourselves out into the world, and our ideas out into the world, and then to have them be criticized, or for someone to reach out and, like, almost threaten you.

RACHEL BENTLEY: Yes.

PATRICK CASALE: And I've been there too many times. And I started to, like, make, like, just joke about it. Anytime someone would email me off my newsletter and say, "You curse too much. It makes you sound lazy and unprofessional." Or whatever. I'm like, this is actually kind of great, because now it's weeding out the people who are not my people, and this is okay. And trying to reframe that, you know, in terms of, I'm not going to be for everybody, and that is okay. And we are going to attract and repel based on how we show up.

And if I can anchor into what I believe in and my values, then I am okay, and to let the chips fall where they will. And that's really been my, like, driving force ever since I got over some of my major rejection sensitive dysphoria, being an ADHDer, and having major RSD, and then just being like, "You know what? Fuck this." Because, in reality, people are still signing up for my stuff. And that is okay. Like, I am attracting people who energize me, and I am repelling people who don't. And if I can move into that headspace, acknowledging that not everybody is going to like me, and that sucks, because we're humans, and we want to be liked, but at the end of the day, I'd rather be liked by the right people who are my people, and that, for me, means so much more than, like, the vanity metrics.

RACHEL BENTLEY: Yes, and I'm, I'm right there with you. And even, like, as a clinical supervisor and helping, like, the newbie therapists, you know, I always say, like, if you put yourself out there, and like, you're criticized, that's really a lot more about the person that's criticizing you than it is about you. It doesn't mean anything about you. And, you know, then we get, like, the negative core belief stuff, and right?

Like, so I was thinking like, for the summit, first of all, how do I measure success? Does it have to sell out, right? To be successful? And it doesn't, but let's say that it doesn't sell out, it doesn't mean anything about me. Like, I put myself out there, I tried. I do think that there is value. There will be a lot of cool people there. We will be able to show up authentically, and being authentic, and being who we are. So, there is going to be some cool stuff. I know I keep saying the word cool. It's going to be cool and valuable no matter what. But sometimes I have to remind those like self-doubt, inner critic type narratives, that we are putting ourselves out there and doing something really cool. And it's not going to mean anything about us if we don't sell out, or people don't [CROSSTALK 00:28:56]-

PATRICK CASALE: No, and that's an important message for you, and for everybody listening, is if you try, and you take that risk, and you bet on yourself, and you do it anyway, right? And you kind of like embrace that mentality of, "Even if it doesn't sell out, we're going to give the best experience possible." Because then you can collect testimonials, you can kind of get some good promo material for the next time. You can learn from mistakes of things I would have done differently. Things I would have included more of etc." And you can use that as your marketing for the next event. 

And I think that is so important for not only you, but for everyone listening, who's like, "What if my coaching program doesn't get all 10 spots?" Or like, "What if my mastermind only sells three spots?" Etc. Do the best damn job that you can, collect the testimonials, both on video form and on text form. Share that stuff. Get social media, like, proof, and make sure that you learn from what you could do differently the next time. But don't let that destroy and, like, derail your dreams.

RACHEL BENTLEY: Yes, absolutely. And that openness, right? To being able to learn, and we have to do this entrepreneurs, over and over. It's like-

PATRICK CASALE: All the time.

RACHEL BENTLEY: It's painful, but looking back at some of the things I did in the past and how much I've learned since, yeah, I mean, in that way it seems like sort of, even if it doesn't sell out, it's going to be fun, it's going to be a learning experience. The people that are going to come, we're going to do our best to give them a great experience.

PATRICK CASALE:100%.

RACHEL BENTLEY: That's going to be true.

PATRICK CASALE: For sure.

RACHEL BENTLEY: Thank you for that reminder.

PATRICK CASALE: Of course. Now, as we're getting ready to wrap up, tell everyone why they should come to this summit. Like, why should they be coming to the Next Level Practice summit in Grand Rapids, Michigan in September?

RACHEL BENTLEY: Well, around the theme that we've been talking about, for me, the reason I created it is just to be able to show up authentically, regardless of your identity, regardless of how you show up in this world, everyone is welcome. We actually have on the summit landing page, we have an inclusivity statement that I want everyone to read, to understand that no one is going to be discriminated against or unwelcomed at the summit, and that's very intentional. I'm trying to send a message of if you do believe that people should be discluded, if you are engaging in some discriminatory stuff, please don't come. This isn't what we're trying to create for me.

And so, being able to build friendships and collaborations, and just feeling like we're not alone, reducing the isolation that we often feel in this world is sort of why Rachel's creating it, and why I think people should come.

But of course, we also have 30 speakers. We have social work CES, and we're pending for NBCC counseling CEs. So, I know folks, right, if you're thinking about, "Well, but should I spend the money?" Oh, a business write-off. Oh, CEs, right? So, for some folks, they'll come for those reasons. I'm just hoping that people really develop community and friendship along the way and feel a little less isolated.

PATRICK CASALE: I think we need that now more than ever.

RACHEL BENTLEY: [INDISCERNIBLE 00:32:16].

PATRICK CASALE: And I know a lot of my audience has been asking for domestic events, summits, retreats, conferences, etc, because so much of my stuff is international, and there's a large fear of traveling internationally right now for so many reasons. And it's really sad and unfortunate, but it is the reality. So, having inclusive, affirming spaces within the United States where you can come connect with like-minded people, get CEs, get that tax write-off, spend a couple of days in Grand Rapids, Michigan in September, I'm sure it's beautiful at the end of September, similarly to here in Asheville. And, you know, get to spend time with my award-winning personality for the day. And I think that's a win.

RACHEL BENTLEY: Well, of course. I mean, that's a draw [CROSSTALK 00:32:57]-

PATRICK CASALE: …not award-winning at all.

RACHEL BENTLEY: And I'll add, like, just living in Michigan I always sort of described our state as sort of a wild card state, because we have some inclusive areas, we have some very non-inclusive areas in our state. And so, picking Grand Rapids was really been about just downtown Grand Rapids is so full of like culture and diversity. But during the time the summit will occur, they also have a huge art exhibition called Our Prize, and it's every year. It's once a year. And people from all over the world enter in their exhibits, and then folks vote on them, and the top three winners win a ton of money.

But it's so cool, because the art is spread across downtown. It's like a day or two in itself, just to visit all of it. And last year, when I went, it was just so captivating. There were so many like mental health externalizations on the art. It's so hard to explain without seeing it and how cool it is. But that's one of the reasons I wanted to do it in Grand Rapids during this particular time. And yes, the weather will still be nice as well. Yeah.

PATRICK CASALE: Sure. Well, I love that. So, looking forward to it, looking forward to connecting there in Michigan, and having this experience together. So, congrats on it. I think it's something to be super proud about. And I think you're going to create a very exceptionally affirming, validating, supportive environment. And I think it's going to be fantastic.

So, tell the audience where they can find it. And we'll have this in the show notes for everybody as well, so that you have easy access to everything Rachel is about to say.

RACHEL BENTLEY: Yeah. So, the best way to find the summit is at our website, nextlevelprivatepractice.com, right at the top of our main page, as a link to the summit. And so, you can find the summit there. You can find some of the other offerings of Next Level as well, if you'd like to check that out.

And also, for the listeners, there will be a discount code, which I believe you'll put in the notes too, as well, Patrick, but the discount code will be NEXTLEVEL 50. And we do have options for paying for the summit in full, and we also have a payment plan option as well on the summit landing page, so folks can check out those options and use that discount code for either.

PATRICK CASALE: Perfect. And we'll have all of that in the show notes. And Rachel, thank you again for coming on. I hope this wasn't as much of an anxiety-provoking process as it was before we started recording-

RACHEL BENTLEY: It was beautiful.

PATRICK CASALE: Like you, in every situation, I like to read Disappointing Affirmations by Dave Tranowski to people to help settle them in. So, if you like Disappointing Affirmations, this podcast is probably for you. And if you would be uncomfortable hearing those things, then it's probably not. But yeah, thank you for coming on and making the time. And also, in Scotland in a couple of months.

RACHEL BENTLEY: And I am excited to come to Scotland. And if anyone is considering traveling internationally, Patrick, you actually inspired me to make my first international flight this year when I came to Ireland.

PATRICK CASALE: Hell yeah.

RACHEL BENTLEY: We're very excited to go to Scotland and be a part of that summit as well.

PATRICK CASALE: Yeah, looking forward to that. And if you are interested in attending the second Doubt Yourself, Do it Anyway Summit, which is happening in Edinburgh, Scotland in July the 14th to the 17th, we still have spots available. We have 12 amazing speakers, 12 CEs. Plus, you get to be in Edinburgh for a tax write-off in the middle of the summertime, which is probably the best time to be in Scotland. Plus, you have the highland cows that exist about an hour outside of the city, which is really what I'm going for. You can sign up at my website, allthingspractice.com. Doubt yourself, do it anyway. And we will see you next week.