# Your first 20 clients: a starter guide

URL: https://tymirahealth.com/resources/blog/your-first-20-clients-a-starter-guide
By Tymira Health Success Team | Published 13 November 2026 | Mental Health | 3 min read

> Seven practical steps to find your first 20 clients as a newly qualified clinician, ethically and without big advertising budgets.

Qualifying is a big achievement. Then comes a new challenge: finding clients. Training rarely covers the business side, and building a caseload from nothing can feel daunting. Your first 20 clients usually come from relationships, not advertising.

## The short answer

Be clear about who you help and create one simple profile. Tell your professional network you're available, build a few referral relationships, make booking easy and respond quickly to every enquiry.

## Seven steps

**1. Decide who you help**

A focus makes you easier to recommend.

**2. Create one clear profile**

Include your qualifications, approach, fees and how to book.

**3. Tell your network**

Let placement supervisors, tutors and fellow graduates know you have space.

**4. Connect with referrers**

Reach out to doctors, schools, employers and community groups.

**5. Consider associate or sessional work**

Established practices often need extra clinicians, and the work builds experience and income while your own caseload grows.

**6. Make booking easy**

Give people a simple way to book, and reply to every enquiry within a day.

**7. Ask for feedback**

Do this within your professional rules.

## Stay ethical

Work within your competence and supervision, and follow advertising rules. Don't take on clients beyond your training.

## How Tymira360 helps

Tymira360 gives new clinicians a professional set-up from day one. Clients can book online by session type and complete digital intake forms before they arrive. Invoicing and payment tracking keep money simple, so you can focus on the people you see.

## Frequently asked questions

**How long does it take to get 20 clients?**

It varies widely, and often takes several months. Associate work can bridge the gap.

**Should I offer low-cost sessions to start?**

A few reduced-fee places can help, but avoid underpricing your whole practice.

Want a simple way to run your new practice from the first client? [See how Tymira360 works for mental health practices](https://tymirahealth.com/mental-health).

## Related reading

- [Starting your own practice: build, grow and scale](https://tymirahealth.com/resources/blog/tymira360-start-grow-scale-private-practice)
- [More than a notes app: first booking to discharge](https://tymirahealth.com/resources/blog/tymira360-beyond-session-notes)
- [Reduce no-shows without overwhelming clients](https://tymirahealth.com/resources/blog/how-mental-health-clinics-can-reduce-no-shows-without-overwhelming-patients)
- [Multi-location clinic operations: what breaks first](https://tymirahealth.com/resources/blog/multi-location-clinic-operations-what-breaks-first-and-how-to-fix-it)

## About the author

**Tymira Health Success Team**, Healthcare Operations and Customer Success

Insights from the Tymira Health Success Team on healthcare practice management, patient experience, healthcare finance, specialty care workflows, and clinic operations.

---

**About Tymira Health:** Tymira Health is a healthcare technology company based in Nairobi, Kenya. It builds Tymira360, a practice management and EHR platform for mental health, physiotherapy and dental providers, clinics, hospitals, NGOs and insurers across Africa.

- Book a demo: https://tymirahealth.com/demo
- Contact: https://tymirahealth.com/contact (info@tymirahealth.com)
- All resources: https://tymirahealth.com/resources/all