July, 2017

Create Your Own Opportunity By Tina Watson

Have you ever wondered what it would be like to

combine your passion for your profession, your

experience and your skills to open your own

Recreational Therapy Business? Have you dreamed

that dream and felt that familiar overwhelming

feeling of not even knowing where to begin. You

know you are a great employee, a self-starter,

creative and energetic. But how do you apply that to

a business plan, a marketing strategy and success?

Now there is some actual help from someone who

has created and operated their own Recreation

Therapy Business. The founder of SMART CEU’s

Hub, Nathan Lamaster, is sharing his expertise in

two new courses, RT Business 101 (Part One) and

RT Business 101 (Part Two). In part one you will

learn about how to start your own Recreational

Therapy Business from the ground up whether it be

brick and mortar or online. Learn about entrepre-

neurship in TR, how Recreational Therapy is

commonly perceived and growing in today’s

business world, and the first steps of starting your

own RT business including your business plan and

how to establish yourself as a legal business. In Part

Two, you will learn about how to establish a product

or service that people will pay for, how to do the

budget, the advantages and disadvantages of hiring

independent contractors vs. employees, how to

market and brand your TR business, the potential

technologies you will need to effectively run your TR

business, and how to grow you’re already

established TR business.

Nathan recently shared with me that one of his

greatest challenges in starting his business was

overcoming his fear of failure and insecurity that no

one would take him seriously. I think a lot of would-

be entrepreneurs share those same feelings. It

required constant encouragement from my wife,

family, and my former business partner Larry

Lancaster to push through the barriers to entry and

start building traction. There have been lots of

hurdles to overcome to get to this point and it helps

to have a team of people pushing the dream

forward. He states he owes it all to them.

One benefit of owning your own business is that you

can create something new, watch it grow and be able

to solve people’s problems. This brings a sense of

satisfaction and pride to your life.

Nathan has many helpful tips for new business

owners:

Don’t be afraid to learn new things. Owning your

own business means you wear many hats.

Invest your money upfront in ways that will save

you time and money in the long run. You can

save yourself a lot of frustration and late nights

if you do your homework and spend wisely.

The key to starting your own TR business is

figuring out what your audience's pain points

are. Once you find that, then you can think of

ways to solve them. The money will come from

the help that you provide.

“I knew that if I failed I wouldn’t regret that, but I

knew the one thing I might regret is not trying.” —

Jeff Bezos, Amazon founder and CEO

S.M.A.R.T CEU’s Hub

Use Coupon Code: Fireworks2017

at Checkout from July 4th-July 9th

SMART CEU’s Hub

A timeless business classic, Who Moved My Cheese? uses a simple

parable to reveal profound truths about dealing with change so that

you can enjoy less stress and more success in your work and in your

life.

Summary: Most people are fearful of change, both personal and professional,

because they don't have any control over how or when it happens to them. Since

change happens either to the individual or by the individual, Dr. Spencer

Johnson, the coauthor of the multimillion bestseller The One Minute

Manager, uses a deceptively simple story to show that when it comes to living

in a rapidly changing world, what matters most is your attitude.

Exploring a simple way to take the fear and anxiety out of managing the future,

Who Moved My Cheese? can help you discover how to anticipate, acknowledge,

and accept change in order to have a positive impact on your job, your

relationships, and every aspect of your life.

Summary: Do you have a hobby you wish you could indulge in all day? An

obsession that keeps you up at night? Now is the perfect time to take that

passion and make a living doing what you love. In Crush It! Why NOW Is the

Time to Cash In on Your Passion, Gary Vaynerchuk shows you how to use the

power of the Internet to turn your real interests into real businesses. Gary spent

years building his family business from a local wine shop into a national industry

leader. Then one day he turned on a video camera, and by using the secrets

revealed here, transformed his entire life and earning potential by building his

personal brand. By the end of this book, readers will have learned how to harness

the power of the Internet to make their entrepreneurial dreams come true. Step

by step, Crush It! is the ultimate driver’s manual for modern business.

Expand Your BusinEss KnowlEdgE with thEsE BooKs….

Program of the Month:

http://smartceushub.com/

courses/

Get a special discount when 4 or more

Recreation Therapists from your

organization sign up for a group deal.

Sign up online for more details at

http://smartceushub.com/group-deal-application/

Barbara Kneher, owner of Therapeutic Recreation

Consultants, has a passion for the profession and a

drive to make therapeutic recreation accessible to

youth in our schools and the community. She has

taken her vast experiences and applied them in a

creative business that blends TR with improved

learning opportunities for youth. Her business

offers a program that combines academic tutoring,

therapeutic recreation, and cognitive behavioral

control feedback. This combination of drug-free

therapies improves focus and attention, reduces

negative behaviors, and strengthens executive func-

tioning. In addition, they offer a sensory room and

a supportive environment for parents.

Due to extreme anxiety along with learning

disabilities, or autism, many youth who utilize her

services have struggled in school and are misunder-

stood by their teachers and peers. Negative

behaviors are often caused by anxiety and fear of

failure, not just because the kids are acting badly.

Therapeutic Recreation Consultants provides a new

avenue for success in a non-threatening environ-

ment. Barbara believes that if you find the child’s

joy, then they can function.

Starting a business always has challenges. It takes

hard work, and determination to get through the

roadblocks. When asked about her advice for start-

ing a business in TR, Barbara suggested:

1. Take some business classes. Educate yourself in

advance.

2. Consider obtaining your master’s degree to

ensure that you are well prepared and able to

tackle whatever comes your way.

3. Look for a problem and ask yourself “How can

recreation therapy help solve this?”

4. Find a niche or a service that is missing in your

community, your schools or your workplace.

5. Expand your thinking of recreation therapy and

how it can be utilized.

6. Adjust your language to the setting or target for

your business. Make your product appealing

and worth the cost.

For more information visit: http://therapeutic-

recreation.com/

ATRA Annual Conference:

Sept. 9-12, 2017 Orlando FL

For More information go to:

https://www.atra-online.com/education/continuing-education/annual-

conference

Conference:

Professionalizing the Passion

Sept. 8th -9th, 2017

Meydenbauer Center, Bellevue, Washington

Professionalizing the Passion will give you the opportunity to enhance

your knowledge, strengthen your skills, and network with your peers.

Become a SMART CEU Hub Instructor.

Visit our website and apply online to begin today.

http://smartceushub.com/become-a-smart-instructor/

In addition to the exhibitors enjoy the artist

market, an Assistive Technology Showcase,

the Roll with the Wind: Ride-Along Race

Experience and many workshops.

Auti Angel’s “Freestyle Dance Workshop

Friday August 4th 2:00- 2:30 pm