Get Paid the Rate You Want

In surfing the list-serves and presenting my Private Practice, Getting that Jump Start workshop in various locations, I notice that discussion of fees and what to charge brings up an enormous amount of anxiety for dietitians.

My yoga teacher defines in anxiety as, the inability to stay present with what is coming up. He further describes this inability to stay present with what is coming up as the the lack of trust in our inner wisdom. Individuals rely on so many externals to define what is right and wrong, that they lose sight of their truths. Managing anxiety, the yoga way, involves letting go of the control involved in needing to know everything--defined by externals--vs. going inside.

How does one experience this? Here is what is taught in my Private Practice, Reconnect with Food - Pillars of Behavior Analysis:

Physical: Checking in physically involves noticing where you hold your tension when anxiety is on the rise. Perhaps it is your neck and shoulders, hips and thighs or maybe your gut--or a tension headache arises.

Emotional: What emotion comes up for you when you find yourself in an anxiety-producting situation. Is it fear? Most often this is the emotion that comes up as the unknown produces doubt.

Spiritual: What spiritual component can you identify when you are feeling anxious? Is it loss of control and the need to let go of this need to control the outcome of every situation?

If you want the mathmatical version of what to charge for your services, it is very simple. Let's take the example of what to charge per person for a workshop:

My first question would be, "What do you want to take home with you at the end of the workshop based on the hours directly involved in conducting the workshop?" The answer may involve going back and re-reading the first part of this article.

Once you have determined what you want to take home with you at the end of the workshop--thus your hourly rate- determine how much time it will take to prepare, including travel time. If this workshop will be given over and over, perhaps you may not want to factor in the preparation time and call this the cost of doing business--developing your workshop. However, if you are conducting a two hour workshop, you may find that it is an additional two hours to account for travel and set-up time. Therefore, factor in two more hours at your hourly rate.

Once you have the total amount that you want to take home that evening from above, add in your expenses. Will there be costs to rent a room, market, produce handouts, purchase other supplies? You now have a new total.

Then, divide this total by the MINIMUM number of participants you need to run the group. Once you have this figure, this is what you would need to charge per person to make a profit.

You can work with this formula to determine any project fee or hourly session. But, you must determine what you are worth first--and that may not be a concrete answer.

Create the silence and space to tune into what is right for you. Only you have these answers.

Private Pratice, Getting that Jump Start Workshops 2009 - 2010
(6 CEUs for full day workshop)

• Natick, MA - November 6th, 2009
• New York City - March 26th, 2010

For more information or to register click here

Yoga-Based Professional Development Program for Eating Disorder Recovery-- Jamaica, February 2010
40 CEUs!--early bird price extended through mid - November. Note new venue with all meals included and more amentities!

Check out the details and register here

About Beverly Price, RD, MA, RYT

Beverly Price is a Registered Dietitian, author, newspaper columnist and public speaker who made a name for herself with her unique approach to nutrition counseling. After 11 years in private practice, she sold Living Better Sensibly -- one of the largest private nutrition practices in the country - to a private nutrition consulting firm, and started Jump Start Consulting specializing in management and marketing strategies for dietitans and other healthcare professionals, along with distance learning products for continuing professional education. Beverly currently operates a private practice, in Royal Oak, Michigan, where she specializes in eating disorder recovery and yoga therapy.

Jump Start Consulting, LLC is a Continuing Professional Education (CPE) Accredited Provider with the Commission on Dietetic Registration (CDR).


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