Life is good. In fact, life has been good for a long time, now. At 46, I can confidently say that I have been a very lucky woman personally and professionally. The ups and downs of life have all proven to be useful adventures – each with its own important lesson and applicability. And now, here comes another one!

Writing an article about my own personal transition sure is different than the articles I used to write for my college newspaper – The Connecticut College Voice, back in the 1980s. Those articles used to be about everyone and everything else other than myself – e.g. the efficiency of utilizing wind to power the college radio station, the activities of the Student Government Organization, upcoming special events, etc.

To be asked to write a personal narrative challenges my very being; how do I write about my own feelings, especially about starting a business of such an intimate nature? However, my curiosity and cautious optimism about doing so trumps the angst and trepidation I also feel.

I was recently informed that the Jewish Community Day School, where I have worked as the director of student support services for the past three years, is no longer able to financially support my position as well as that of several colleagues at the school. Leaving my very comfortable and satisfying job at Casey Family Services three years ago, in order to work at JCDS in this newly created position was somewhat of a risk.

But, what a rewarding risk it turned out to be. I have met so many wonderful people and am grateful to the parents and teachers of JCDS for entrusting me with the care of their children. But, as my husband would say, it’s time, again, to experience yet another “growth-producing opportunity.”

I am a clinical social worker. I love working with kids, teens and adults in a therapeutic setting. I have done so for the past 23 years – but always in the context of an agency. My return to Rhode Island in 1987 after graduate school found me at the Providence Center for several years. I was so young at the time – only 24. But time, experience and faith expressed by others have led me to where I am now. After more than two decades of working under the auspices of an agency or institution, I am now launching my own private practice.

So, as I pursue all the logistical steps in setting up a practice – i.e. securing office space, obtaining a phone line, becoming a provider for various insurance companies, creating appropriate documentation, ordering business cards (you, know, all that easy concrete stuff for which I can confidently feel successful in completing), I find myself tackling the harder, more ambiguous task of feeling comfortable within myself to promote myself and my “new business.”

It is this last task which serves as the foundation for this most recent “growth-producing opportunity” mentioned above. I know that I enjoy engaging in a therapeutic relationship with clients; I find it incredibly rewarding, and remain in awe of the resilience demonstrated by folks going through turbulent times and their willingness to trust an objective individual with their personal thoughts and feelings.

But how do I go about letting people know that I am available to them? It feels very strange to declare myself publicly as “one who is able to help.”

This is where I’ll take a cue from Kierkegaard, and take a “leap of faith.”

Actually, I’m also asking clients to do the same – to have faith and trust in the process of change. I have faith that I have the skills to assist people. The nice thing about age and maturity is that, unlike during my first job working at the Providence Center, I now feel very comfortable admitting what I don’t know. In fact, it can be a huge relief to admit to others when I don’t have all the answers!

In retrospect, perhaps one of the most sophisticated “clinical skills” I have acquired over the past many years is the ability to ask for help. I am not alone. Yes, I’m in “private practice,” but I have, available to me, the collective knowledge of many wonderful colleagues. Whether through formal or informal supervision, I can turn to these people for their insight and guidance.

OK, so let’s see the list of things I need to do to launch this private practice:

• Office space – done

• Phone line – done

• Professional liability insurance – done

• Third-party reimbursability– done

• Documentation – done

• Cool name sign for my office door – done

• Fax machine – done

• Business cards – done

• Professional licensure – done

• Feeling comfortable with promoting myself (or, in other words, managing my anxiety in doing the same) – in progress

So, I will be try to be patient and kind to my first client (me!) as I ask myself to do the same work that I will ask of my future clients – to trust the process of change, once again.

Betsy Singer Cable can be reached at bcable1@verizon.net.