If there’s one woman I look up to in my life, it’s Dr. Kathleen Chabin. She runs at least 10 marathons a year, is so smart she graduated from the University of North Carolina, has a Ph.D. from the University of Denver, is a mom of two, volunteers for her local community, and runs her own business. She was also raised in New York (for extra cool points). It sounds intimidating on paper but she’s so humble that it feels normal to interview her. Though my soul almost left my body when I spoke to her, I managed to ask her a few questions about how it is to be a business owner – an especially hard task when you’re a woman.
Her Campus CU Boulder: “Why did you choose to become a psychologist?”
Kathleen Chabin: “Well, I chose to become a psychologist I think because I’ve always been interested in health and when I was younger I considered becoming a ped, and when I got older I realized I didn’t like being around people who were being physically sick, so I decided to be able to be involved in people’s health without touching them was more comfortable for me.”
HCCU: “What population do you treat?”
KC: “I primarily work with school-aged kids, and number-wise it skews towards older people, like middle schoolers to young college students. I really enjoy that time of life – the transition to adulthood is a fun time of life and it’s a group I really enjoy working with.”
HCCU: “Why did you choose to start your own business?”
KC: “I chose to start my own business because I had young children at home and I wanted to be flexible to set my own schedule and work pretty part-time in the beginning and get to choose the sort of work I want to do.”
KC: “My experience has been that you have to work a little harder for people to take you seriously. You have to be a little tougher around setting boundaries with things like payment and showing up on time. I think that’s generally true that the world can be a little patronizing and tends to see my having a business as having a hobby rather than having a business.”
HCCU: “How do you keep yourself sane?”
KC: “I think exercise is the biggest self-care thing that I do. Also having a strong support network like colleagues I can talk to and other close friends. I have people I can vent to. But definitely having a really robust group of professionals I can turn to when I have questions and suggestions. That’s really important because I’m a solo practitioner and that has the potential to be isolating so I need to keep in touch with people to combat that.”
HCCU: “How do you think having a private practice as a psychologist is different from having a business in other fields?”
KC: “I think there are some unique aspects to a psychology practice around confidentiality and ethics. For example, marketing is an important ethical issue. I can’t ask people for testimonials while if I had a coffee shop or a bakery, I can make a video of someone talking about how great my coffee or donuts are. I can’t do that because of confidentiality. My clients can’t tell people about their experiences – they can’t share that with the outside world. There are guidelines for who I can treat, and for a lot of businesses, word of mouth is how you get recognized. I can’t even acknowledge I know that person if someone asks about me. Then there’s obviously stigma around mental health and treating it. If I’m walking a client out and they know someone in the waiting room, it’s awkward. My neighbor can’t come to me obviously which is complicated.”
HCCU: “Do you have anyone who inspired you to go this path?”
KC: “There was a professor when I was at Chapel Hill. Her name was Dr. Margolis and she was an adjunct professor – she only taught one or two classes a semester. She worked at a hospital setting as well, treating pediatric populations who had severe medical issues. She treated the mental health side of that. On top of that, she had a private practice and had little kids, and I thought to myself, ‘Oh my god! She’s a superwoman! I love her!’ She was smart and energetic – the picture of the woman who could do it all. I really, really admired her. She was very clearly a feminist. A lot of the classes she taught were about psychological issues pertaining to women and the impact of patriarchal culture on women’s health.”
HCCU: “What advice would you give to young women who aspire to run their own business?”
KC: “Do your research ahead of time – figure out what’s a need in the community where you want to work. It’s okay to be bold and to go after it but to also seek information from people around you. Find out from people in the field about what’s an unmet need in the market. Don’t be afraid to ask for help along the way but it’s okay to trust your instincts on things. Take the advice but filter it through with your own experiences. Do what you believe will work.”
So if you ever want to start your own business – reach for the stars!