Slippery Slopes: Economics, College Degrees, and Questionable Credentials

Beginning Balance

Mark and Jesse are back after a short break with a discussion about slippery slopes... real and imagined. Jesse delivers an epic rant on the uselessness of economists, while Mark talks about his hesistance applying for graduate school in order to obtain the Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist credential.

Mark presents his dillema: he wants the credential to "reduce friction" for clients when other service providers refer him (say, a divorce attorney that refers Mark to a couple for marraige counseling before going down the path of divorce). Calling yourself a family and marriage coach, Mark reasons, makes you have to explain yourself, whereas the title of therapist is self-explanatory. On the other hand, he already has a busy coaching practice doing the same thing that therapists do, so the actual value of the degree is questionable (and the cost is high, in both money and time).

Jesse has a different take. In his mind, any friction that not having the official "therapist" label might create goes away with a strong referral. As soon as the attorney refers a client specifically to Mark, trust is created and the work can take place. It's all about the strength of the referral.

This leads to a discussion about credentials as a form of permission seeking, and the pricing power of a provider who offers their services as a non-credentialed coach versus a licensed therapist. In many ways, the people who become therapists have what Mark calls permission seeking traits -- they jump through the hoops in school to get the letters after their name, and when they start their practice they look to the rates of other therapists and set their own somewhere in the middle. On the other hand, coaches often position themselves in a more niche area at a higher price point, and command much higher rates.

At the end of the day, credentials may be another one of those slippery slopes -- something with more perceived value than actual value in the marketplace.

Mark Butler

The Money School: https://moneyschool.works

https://markbutler.com

https://letsdothebooks.com

YNAB

https://www.youneedabudget.com