Laurie Wilson keeps Rize small to preserve therapeutic relationships
Laurie Wilson is a Licensed Marriage & Family Therapist and Clinical Supervisor who runs Rize Individual & Family Counseling Inc. Her practice grows intentionally small so therapists can build deep, high-quality relationships with clients, and she only hires staff she would trust with her son. The story is worth reading because she has limited AI use to practical tasks like refining email wording and training outlines while resisting broader automation that could weaken care.
Use AI for low-risk, administrative support – Laurie uses it for email phrasing and training frameworks – but keep core clinical work and client relationships firmly human. For small practices, reputation and word-of-mouth matter more than scaling with ads or platforms.
What’s the quick origin story of your business, and what makes what you do genuinely different from the other options your customers are looking at?
At its heart, Rize Counseling, began with a some simple beliefs. That people deserve to feel seen and hears and supported in their struggles with mental health. They need this support to be empowering and genuine. I always say that I don’t employ anyone that could not watch my son. I trust my staff and stand by the amazing work they do. We are different because we are a small practice that is intentional about its growth to maintain the higher care quality and deep relational aspects that have to be present in the relationship with your therapist.
Where does most of your new business come from today, and where do you wish it came from?
Word of mouth. I hope that it keeps coming that way. I know there are ways such as social media and paid ads to reach more people, but that is also what sets us apart from the big online platforms that promise things they can’t deliver. We won’t promise a good experience but our reputation and our clients feedback will tell the story that you will get it.
What’s one thing you’ve actually handed over to AI in the last year, and one thing you tried it on and went back to doing the human way?
Forming more intentional emails for better verbiage or using as a way to support training outlines. I am old school and am not fully ready to embrace what AI may have to offer whether good or bad.
Have you noticed a change in how customers find you or what they already know before they reach out? Is anyone arriving through AI assistants like ChatGPT yet?
I don’t believe so.
If you were advising someone in your industry on all of this for the next 12 months, what would you tell them to actually do, and what would you tell them to ignore?
On all of what? AI? I better not be the one advising on that!
For my peers who are becoming therapists:
1.) Have an amazing support system and time to "shut off" (being a workaholic isn’t any different just because you are helping others) 2.) Regularly assess your compassion fatigue and burnout with active assessments and intentional goals setting and resetting when results are not being achieved to reduce your burden.
For My Fellow Practice Owners: 1.) Learn how to lead and mentor well. The next generation of therapists coming in need us to be better for them. 2.) Practice humility. Do this by taking time to understand the feedback you are given from staff and peers. 3.) Find 3 great mentors you trust. One who is wise (like my own therapist). One who is business savvy and one who is honest (but kindly not brutally). 4.) Passion First. Profit After.
Thank you to Laurie Wilson and the team at Rize Individual & Family Counseling Inc. for sharing what actually worked with Leaders Perception readers.
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