We were lucky to catch up with Dr. Nicole Laird, physical therapist, recently and have shared our conversation below.
Dr. Laird, thanks so much for taking the time to share your insights and lessons with us today. We’re particularly interested in hearing about how you became such a resilient person. Where do you get your resilience from?
Resilience is something that I believe is forged over time. As a little girl, I was a competitive gymnast and had to learn the lesson of perseverance many times over. Practice, practice, practice and continuing to improve little by little is the only way to continue to move forward in a competitive sport. Fast forward to 2020, I started my women’s health physical therapy and fitness practice full time in January of 2020. We all know what happened shortly after that. I could have thrown my hands up and said, “Nope, this is too much. I’m going to go back to working for someone else.” But I made the choice to dig in and continue moving forward. I surrounded myself with other business owners, friends, and family who were looking to support me and my business from all aspects. I knew that if I could just keep doing the work consistently that it would pay off. Here we are, 3 years later, and I have a thriving practice that is growing by leaps and bounds year after year. I do not quit, I do not give up. Pivot, yes, re-evaluate, yes, work to improve by 1% every single day, yes, stop, absolutely not. I think that is the definition of resilience. Refusing to give up and looking for the next opportunity to get just 1% better every single day. Not letting one little no set you back and continuing to look for opportunities where others might just stop. 
Appreciate the insights and wisdom. Before we dig deeper and ask you about the skills that matter and more, maybe you can tell our readers about yourself?
I own Hays County Physical Therapy and Wellness, a facility focused on women. We offer pelvic floor physical therapy, fitness classes, massage, and rehab training. We customize plans so that women can see an end to pelvic pain, bladder issues, and confidently navigate all of life’s changes (pregnancy, postpartum, perimenopause, and menopause) so they feel strong, confident, and capable of anything!
I started Hays County Physical Therapy and Wellness after my oldest son was born. It was then that I realized that the support we give women when it comes to healing our bodies has been seriously lacking. We have been told to accept things like pain or bladder leaking. We feel alone in our dealings with these issues. However, one in three women will suffer with some type of pelvic floor dysfunction in her lifetime, What?! yet we aren’t talking about it or getting women help, so that is when my practice was born. My goal is for women to feel empowered, strong, and in charge of their bodies as they go through all of life’s changes. I want women to feel supported.
We are the only complete women’s health physical therapy and wellness facility in our area that has a fitness facility and massage therapists on site. We are excited to continue to expand our services and create all encompassing plans so women can feel healthy inside and out. In the works is adding to our therapy team and partnering with other local women owned businesses to offer nutrition therapy, life coaching, and other complimentary services. We are so excited to continue to expand our offerings and support women so they can feel strong, healthy, and confident in everything they do!
There is so much advice out there about all the different skills and qualities folks need to develop in order to succeed in today’s highly competitive environment and often it can feel overwhelming. So, if we had to break it down to just the three that matter most, which three skills or qualities would you focus on?
The top three qualities or skills are first and foremost the knowledge of women’s health. As a physical therapist, I understand how the body moves and how to rehab the body to optimize movement in general. In order to truly serve the women, it is a specialized skill set that my team and I had to get specialized training in order to shift our focus and best serve the women in our community. The skill set is important.
Secondly, resilience is crucial when starting your own business. When you step outside of the traditional confines of working for someone else, you have to be able to roll with the ups and downs of business ownership. Being focused on the goal of helping 1 million women over the course of my lifetime is what keeps me going. Knowing that is my life’s mission and not letting day to day hiccups get in the way of that.
Lastly, be willing to ask for help and support. Seek mentorship and guidance, read books in areas that you might need to develop and don’t be afraid to ask questions. Elite athletes don’t get to elite levels of play without coaches along the way, what makes us think that we can grow a business without coaches and mentors? There are so many people who are here cheering you on, let them and don’t be afraid to build your community! We’re stronger when we support each other.
How would you describe your ideal client?
Our ideal client is a woman interested in investing her physical health. Someone who wants to feel strong and confident in her body. Maybe she’s 2 years postpartum or 30 years postpartum and finally ready to feel like she’s got control over her physical body again. She’s tried other things at home, maybe workout programs, worked with other professionals and just can’t seem to get over that hump that’s keeping her in pain, or dealing with embarrassing or uncomfortable bladder and bowel issues. She’s frustrated with her physical relationship with her partner because of pain or bladder issues. She’s had back pain that’s kept her from picking up her kids, going on hikes, working out, or lifting heavy weights like she used to, and she’s tired of feeling like she’s aging beyond her years. She doesn’t want to “end up like her mother” worried about buying pads on a daily basis or avoiding outings for fear of needing a change of clothes. Our ideal client is ready to take charge of her health from the inside out and ready to heal to her very core and willing to invest the time, money, and energy into her healing journey. She’s done putting herself on the back burner and ready to fill her cup up first so she can be the best mom, partner, and friend she knows she’s capable of being.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.hayscountypt.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/hayscountypt/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/hayscountypt
