Did you always know what you wanted to be when you grow up? I had many dreams as a child and believe it or not being a Counsellor wasn’t one of them. Perhaps we appreciate things that we find helpful to us.
In 2014 I was working a good 9-5 job which was comfortable, and I was part of a wonderful team however I knew there was something that I needed to pursue, and it had to do with working with people and being with them in the trenches of life. I knew my time there was done. You know that feeling when you just know and need to muster up the courage to move forward. I handed my resignation letter, and then I was left with all the emotions that come with saying goodbye to a chapter. It was bittersweet!
Fast forward I found a course that seemed like it would equip me to do the very thing I had set out to do, the course was a Diploma in Counselling. What a Diploma! For anyone who knew me back in the day, I was not your studying kind of girl, and here I was on the first day of college having no confidence in my studying ability but I curious to what could be. Despite the sweaty palms, the first day of class was incredible, and I loved the content.
I spent the next year learning about Counselling and myself. For me, the process was like getting pulled apart, then getting put back to getter so I could come alongside others. It’s an experience that I will never forget for it’s like you face yourself for all that you are flaws and all and then learn how to accept yourself and embrace your uniqueness. I will be forever grateful for what I learnt in that first year.
I had completed the Diploma, and I was on a roll. I had built enough confidence to give the Advanced Diploma a go. The discussion came around the possibility of starting up a Private Practice I thought to myself “me a business owner” you know when Doubt starts to whisper and becomes part of the conversation who by the way was never invited. Who can relate here?
Well, I decided to have a go anyway, and in 2017 I opened my private practice, and I have had the honour of sitting with people in the trenches of life, seeing them grow within themselves and their relationships. In moments like these, I think what if I had given up when things got hard. There were times I would sit at my desk to study. Everything in me wanted to pack up and call it quits then the voice of Reason would step in and say “I wonder who is on the other side of your choices” so when I witness a client reach their goals and gain new insights it reminds me that there is a bigger picture that we are all part of.
I was on a mission, and I decided to pursue a Graduate Diploma in Counselling and Integrated Psychotherapy. I felt the stretch again; however, it helped me to grow as a therapist. This year I decided to take on a Master of Counselling to develop my skills and knowledge further. So, the moral of the story is “who is on the other side of your choices”. I wonder what dreams lie within you. C
“I wonder who is on the other side of your choices”.
