December 8, 2022

This week, a question came up that I hear pretty often: What if there are already lots of herbalists in my area (field/niche/town/etc)? Is the market saturated?

No. Not at all. 

No matter where you are or which field you work in, there will likely be others in the same community who are doing overlapping work. 

You have a choice when it comes to how you think about these folks.

Choice 1: Think of them as competition. You’ll find that this brings up jealousy, comparison, feelings of not-enoughness or superiority (or all of these on an exciting rotating schedule). 

While this is obviously not the ideal choice, it’s the default response in a lot of cases.

Choice 2: Think of these folks as colleagues. You can choose to be happy that your clients have options. You can refer generously when someone is a better fit for their work than for yours. You can support someone else’s endeavors, cheer them on, and learn from their work. 

You may be able to work together to raise the visibility of your profession in the community, to reach more people, and to create things that are bigger than you’d be able to create on your own. 

I promise, there is room for both of you - all of you - in your community.

A fun example of this came up when Erika & Brooke from Sovereignty Herbs reached out to ask if I’d be interested in facilitating a workshop at their Nurtured Herbal Practitioner Retreat in Spring 2023. 

Ostensibly both Bloom & Grow and Sovereignty Herbs are engaged in the work of supporting herbalists as they grow their practices. We have several similar programs. It would be easy to think of us as in direct competition. 

Turns out, that’s not how either of us approach things. 

Instead, it’s much more fun to team up, work together, and learn from/with each other, and I’m super excited for the retreat.  

Life is a lot smoother when you choose this option ❤️

Warmly,

Camille




About Camille Freeman, DCN (she/her)

Hi there! I'm a clinical herbalist and nutritionist specializing in fertility and menstrual health. I run the Monday Mentoring community of practice and also offer continuing education programs for practicing herbalists and nutritionists (Check out this year's Deep Dive!). I'm also a former professor with the Maryland University of Integrative Health, where I taught physiology, pathophysiology, and mindful eating for 17 years. 

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