I’d love to get some feedback from you on this one. After years of calling myself a “Hypnotherapist” I am considering changing the title I use to “Consulting Hypnotist.” I have my concerns of course, but I think that there are enough good reasons to change over to the new title to get me to do it. In fact it may be the best thing I can do for the vast majority of my clients. I am beginning to think that calling myself a hypnotherapist, and suggesting that they need my services suggests that there is something wrong with them, that they are actually ill, when they are not.
First my concern; I wonder how it would affect business if I dropped the title of hypnotherapist? Would potential clients perceive the same value in going to a “Consulting Hypnotist”, as they would in seeing a “Hypnotherapist”? I wonder would students attend my school if I offered certifications in hypnotism, and graduation from my certification courses resulted in becoming a Consulting Hypnotist? It really is about perceptions, isn’t it? And of course, perceptions determine behavior. And, my potential clients’ and students’ behavior, choosing my Center, or not, determines the success of my practice and school (meaning my business). This is a significant concern. I like being successful and living well.
Where did I get this idea of changing the title that I hold out to the public? It was a couple of years ago, maybe three, when I was at the National Guild of Hypnotists convention. During the keynote address by Dr. Dwight Damon, the president of the NGH, where he announced the idea and encouraged everyone to consider the name change. I immediately had mixed feelings. Why would he come up with such an idea? Here’s the problem, there are powers out there that would love to put an end to hypnotists doing their work. And, as a result of their efforts, some states now regulate the terms “therapist” and/or “therapy.” Other states are now considering the same kind of regulation. So, it makes sense that the leadership of National Guild of Hypnotists would want to promote a title for its members that all of its members could use. It would also make it less complicated as they work to keep hypnotists able to practice in all 50 states.
Perhaps selfishly, I thought because of the
