My good Dr Joel,

Maybe this letter is just me gripping but at the moment i feel so lost!  I became a 
chiropractor because of the numbers i saw, there weren't many chiros upon the planet and 
that even fewer were hispanic. So i saw a huge market to service.  After a while  i realized 
that the way to be successfful was to be the kind of person i am naturally, and that people 
would appreciate me for it.  I have gotten alot of flack for the my style i'm very friendly 
and i use alot of slang i was born and raised in NYC spanish harlem. I know i have alot of 
ghetto in me but I like to look at it like a credit to my race and culture that i went back to 
school at 35 to become a chiro tha'ts an accomplishment.  I do become the doctor when i'm 
asked a serious question about health otherwise i'm myself.  I left a construction job doing 
layout and design to become a chiro, I was making 40k/ yr and now i've graduated  
and more than a year and a half ago and I still don't have my license. I can give u many 
excuses for not having one but ultimatly it's my own fault for not being truly prepared. 
now i'm 100k in debt and the bills are piling up and I feel like i'm suffucating.  I've been 
fourtunate to have found work in the chiro field just one month after I graduated, 
unfourtunately I've worked for nothing but PI mills, I've delt with the runners and have 
seen very little subluxation based chiropractic.  I've been treated like little more than a 
glorified CA, getting paid like a receptionist (20k).  Now I need to figure out what to do 
next.  I just took part iv and I feel like I did great, my question should I become an 
IC or shoould I keep associating for some one. I'm caught in  the bad shape that if I can't 
generate an income, my family is at jeopardy, thus making me feel like an inferior provider 
to my family.  Hey i know you have problems of your own but i'd like to thank you for 
your time if you read this and get back to me, maybe all I need is an energy boost.

A: 

Thanks for the e-mail. I am sorry you are having a rough time .. it¼s always best to get all 
your ducks in a row and getting that license once out of school would have been best. Let¼s 
hope that you have part Four and you are able to be licensed .. your main priority is to get 
these loans off your back and still be able to feed the family. It may be rough for awhile 
longer but if you have a goal and set your sights .. you can make it happen .. see the light 
at the end of the tunnel and get ready to start on your own. 

I recommend two or three ideas. First .. if you associate .. be sure it is for 6-12 months 
maximum and save during this time so you can open your own place .. unless you luck out 
and it turns out to be a great financial experince. If you begin as an IC .. the same holds 
true but begin the farming .. as taught in class and what¼s in your Smart Start book .. by 
the way .. now is the perfect time to read it again (or for the first time) and begin to create 
the Farm we discussed in class. If you want to go for it .. open your own place and have 
IC¼s paying rent to you. A creative way is $500 a month for rent .. they use your 
equipment .. and 25% of everything they make over $2500 .. this is usually better than the 
60/40 split for the new DC.

I'm not sure where you are working now but where ever you want to be .. that's where 
you plant your roots. Working with the Hispanic community has two sides. Those that 
have insurance and can pay for services and the large segment that are day laborers and 
may pay cash and be great patients as well. You must market and create a plan for them to 
build a practice. Use your Spanish and marketing skills to meet them. Being creative and 
doing something will keep your spirits up

Don't despair .. I'm always here

Have a Great Day

Dr. M