EP43: You’re One Relationship Away From a Million Dollar Practice

Back in 2016–2017, one relationship changed the entire trajectory of our practice.

Not an ad campaign.
 Not a new service.
 Not a viral moment.

A relationship.

In this episode, I break down why every single one of us is one relationship away from completely transforming our life and business. I share the story of how a partnership with a country club quietly opened doors we never could have forced, how one patient has referred over six figures of business year after year, and why relationships compound in ways no marketing strategy ever will.

We’re also talking honestly about what’s happening in chiropractic right now. Spending is tighter. Many clinics made less last year than the year before. In seasons like this, average gets exposed and differentiation matters more than ever.

This episode is a reminder that there’s no such thing as a bad event, only missed opportunities, and that growth rarely comes from doing more. It comes from showing up better.

If you’re wondering what to do differently in a more competitive, cautious world, this conversation will shift how you look at people, events, and opportunities moving forward.

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Transcript

0:00

This is the Austin Cohen Podcast where we talk real strategies for chiropractors ready to grow beyond the adjustment. If you're building a business, developing your leadership, and trying to build wealth without burning out, you are in the right place. Let's get to work What's up everybody? Welcome back. Austin Cohen podcast. We are in week two of 2026. Hope you guys are man, really hitting some of your strides. You guys are staying on track with some of your goals, your resolutions, you're beginning with the end in mind. We're only in week two guys. Like it's all good. Really excited to see some of you guys in the next three and a half weeks. We'll be together at Serenbe and Growth Summit, which will be really exciting. And man, just, I can't believe that is already here. Which is extremely wild to think about. What's been going on with me is many of you know I took on some coaching clients for 2026. There's seven coaching clients that I have that is my capacity for that program and. I am learning so much that I can bring to a lot of these podcasts and these are the top one percenters, by the way. This is the creme de la creme, the top of the top and they're doing amazing things. But it's always fascinating when you get a third party person in there to discover some of the blind spots and to be able to see from a different lens. Without any emotion, what is going on within the practice. And I highly, now that I'm doing this, for those of you guys that have coaches or consultants, find somebody who does an onsite visit with you. For me to go into a clinic for just one day into expose and see every single thing going on inside of there and to put together a one year plan for these clinics. And these are people I'll be working with, going forward. This is not like a one time thing, like going to their clinic, seeing it, putting a plan together, and then letting them execute the plan with our weekly strategic calls. Wow. Gosh. It just, everyone should have a coach. It is one of the best things. And I know for those of you guys, some of you guys are in my freedom program, which is that's teaching you how to build recurring revenue within your practice and automation with programs. So Cohort one is sold out, which starts January 20th. Cohort two though will start at the end of February, and I'll share more details about that at Growth Summit and then later in February. But, man, today there's a topic I've really been thinking about and I share with my team of chiropractors. This is that you are all one relationship away from changing your life. Some of you chiropractors, maybe you make$60,000 a year, you're one relationship away from making one 50. And for those of you guys that make one 50, you're one relationship away from making 300 and life is different when you make one 50 versus 300 a year. And but every single person who's listening to this is one relationship away. Back in 20 16, 17 timeframe, we partnered up with a local country club, and at that time it did not feel like some massive strategic move that I was putting together. There was no big marketing plan. There was no spreadsheet forecasting the upside on what this would do from an ROI. For us, it was just showing up to this place building trust and truly being genuinely helpful to this country club. That one relationship changed everything and we were able to develop this relationship because of a client that was coming into our office who was doing tennis there, and her husband was playing golf there. And that relationship introduced us to families, to business owners, to community leaders. And it completely positioned our clinic differently than it ever has been before. Our growth accelerated in a way that no ad campaign ever could have done. And what I didn't realize, but clearly see now, is that it wasn't about the country club, it was about proximity, and it was about the relationships that we were compounding over time. And something I truly believe in is. You know that every single one of you are your one relationship away from transforming your life. Not 10, not some viral moment, not some perfect strategy, one relationship. And I've seen it in our clinics too, like that country club example earlier. And we've had patients in our office, like we've had now two separate influencers who come to our office, who have each referred in at least over six figures of business into our office in a single year. Not because we asked them, not because we incentivized them, but because they believed in what we were doing and they felt connected to the mission. Relationships are purely leverage, but they're only leverage if they are real. And let me share with you some of the tension that I'm seeing in this profession right now. And this is not just our profession, but there's other healthcare professions too as well, and different businesses out there, people are tightening up, people are spending less. And they're pulling back. And to be honest, a lot of clinics that I've talked to, whether that's some of our clinics, some of the ones I've consulted with, some of the people that are coming to Growth Summit, the Adventure Summit people, K 80 clients, they've said to me the same thing. A lot of client, a lot of clinics made less last year than the year before. That is not a judgment and that is a purely an observation. And so the question becomes this, if the environment got harder. Then what actually sets you apart? Because when people are cautious, they're not gonna stick to average people. They're not just gonna go to some average clinic that they can find somewhere else. They're gonna choose different. They're gonna choose trust, and they're gonna choose. Choose connection. And your relationships don't shrink in hard seasons. They matter more now than they've ever mattered before. This is the most important time right now to be building relationships that matter and differentiating yourself and doing things that maybe you don't want to do. I've said this before, everybody nobody wants to go out and do screenings and marketing, but sometimes you need to do the have toss, get to do the want tos. Yeah. Last week I went out for a screening. Haven't done a screening in probably five years, but you know what? I did one for two hours at a networking event, which is amazing. And that's where we're at right now. In this season. We're gonna do things that we know others aren't willing to do. And this is why I've always said something such as, there is no such thing as a bad event. You could do a marketing event. Great example. We did that marketing event that Wednesday night, and we have three other marketing events that we're doing in January at my main at Buckhead. Guess what? That morning, on Wednesday morning, we had five new patients call in for appointments that were internal referrals, online leads, and from other chiropractors. The only thing you can have by not doing event is a missed opportunity and every event is a room full of relationships. That could be the, your future opportunities. That could be that one relationship, every handshake you make with a person in that room. To me, I look at as a seed I'm planting and every conversation I'm having. Could, who knows what that's gonna turn into as well. But you gotta show up different. You're not selling, I don't sell, I don't pitch and I'm not trying to extract any value. I'm literally showing up to these events, just being curious, present and how can I be helpful in this environment? And the clinics that wanna win long term are gotta be the ones that think more intentionally. And the hard question I'll pose to the listeners and all of you listening right now is if someone met you in an event tonight. Would they remember you tomorrow? Not your logo or your brand, not the offer that maybe you pitched to them? Are they gonna remember you? You've heard this before. People don't remember what you say. They remember how you make them feel. Differentiating yourself is not a branding thing, but it's a behavioral thing. How are you listening? How are you following up? How are you adding value to them without any expectation in return? That is what's gonna separate the clinics that grow during contraction phases from those that will stall. Listen, like to go out to dinner right now is extremely expensive. You like, I can afford to go out to dinner right now, but it has to wow me. It has to set a tone and create an experience where I'm gonna be willing to spend that kind of money. Keep doing it at that restaurant. You cannot be average anymore. You gotta stand out, you gotta be different. And when you have that one relationship and they see that and they know that completely changes every single thing for your practice and your life. And that's how I would view as we go into 2026. Say yes more say yes to more opportunities. How hard is it to go to a gym for one hour in the morning before you go to work, by the way, and set up a table and introduce yourself to people that are coming out. Like the catch of the people that finish maybe the 5:00 AM class and the people that start the 6:00 AM class. 40 people you're gonna be able to relationship with. Not hard to do, and I know you don't wanna do it, but right now in this season, you may have to do it. This is the time right now, guys, where people are contracting, what they're spending, what are you gonna do different? How are they gonna remember you tomorrow? What sell, what is different about you than everybody else and you not being average? Lemme finish with this. I want you to look at your calendar and I want you to look at the rooms that you're in and the people that you're around, and you ask yourself this question, what is one relationship I could invest in this year? With zero expectations of return because five years from now, you may not remember it, but you're gonna remember the people who shaped your path and you'll know those people. Like for me, sometimes it's not even about the business, like sometimes it's me about how one relationship of a coach, a consultant, another person maybe who's where I want to be in life is just getting myself around them. And it's putting myself in at their table. I know so many of you guys have reached out about Adventure Summit. Adventure Summit can completely transform your life. That is a room you want to be in. That is a hike you want to be on. That is an all inclusive, paid trip. We cover, all of your meals are covered. It's not it's not some program you're buying. Somebody asked me earlier I don't wanna be in a program. It's not a program. That fee covers everything except for your flights. It covers your ho your stay, that we stay in this massive house. Whitewater rafting fees. A lot of the insurance that I have to buy, I've gotta buy Bear spray forever. There's a lot of things that go into this, by the way. And that is a great place for somebody who's telling me, they're like, oh, I wanna put where? What is a room you wanna put yourself in? Yeah. Obviously the room of growth Sum is a great room. 75 chiropractors sold out room high net worth. There's a great group of people that are all striving for growth. All my Empire Program people will be there. That's the top 1% of the 1%. You've got a lot of Chiron 80 clients who are investing in themselves and delivering technology and tech stacks in order to study their numbers and grow. You've got a few Adventure Summit people in there too as well with others that look like they're gonna be joining too as well. So I'd highly recommend that. So the facts are make sure you're getting yourself and putting yourselves in the room. Who are there gonna be? The people that are gonna take you to the top. All right, so with that, I hope you guys enjoy week two. This is a bonus episode and have a great week as we move forward into January. And hey, send me a message on Instagram what are you looking forward to about the way about coming to Growth Summit? Let me know. And here, by the way, I'll leave you this line. The odds are that your next breakthrough in life and practice is not a tactic. It's gonna be a person sleep on that one. Don't forget to subscribe so you never miss an episode. To learn more about building your business, leadership, and life on purpose, visit chiro one eighty.com or follow Austin on Instagram at Dr. Austin Cohen.