Book excerpt: In a readily-accessible, easy-to-read format, this book presents useful hints, suggestions, anecdotes and lists that will help you to look within, identify, and ultimately achieve your personal and professional goals. From getting started with the actual physical space that is your office to the incorporation and financial establishment of your practice, to dealing with the most unexpected, unpredictable clients and their expectations and to planning for the unexpected, the answers are here. The straightforward "hands-on" approach makes reading simple, the inclusion of anecdotes adds realism and interest, the quick checks provide instant reminders and cues and the self-disclosure questions aid in self-understanding. All of the suggestions are grounded in practice. Some may be familiar to you already; some may be novel and unexpected. Sometimes, however, simple reminders or hints can be the most powerful and with that in mind, this book was written in an attempt to demystify some of the confusion and/or uncertainty surrounding the successful establishment and functioning of a private practice.