We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Christina Algeciras a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Christina, appreciate you joining us today. Was there a moment in your career that meaningfully altered your trajectory? If so, we’d love to hear the backstory.

I think one of the most defining moments of my professional life was during the time I was working in a completely different industry. I was working in New York in the field of international transportation and logistics and it was a grind. My job was fast paced, high stress, high level of responsibility – extremely demanding to say the least. My personal life was essentially non-existent and “work-life balance” seemed completely unattainable.

Part of my role was also to entertain colleagues that came to visit and there was one time that a consultant for my client had come to New York to evaluate the work we work doing for the client. I expected I’d have to play tour guide and show him the sights as I did for all the visitors, but one of the nights I had a prior personal commitment and I told him I would not be available. I’ll never forget what he said to me “No worries, you have a life! Enjoy!” I remember thinking to myself that actually I didn’t have much of a life at the time outside of work and how appreciative I was of someone respecting my right to a personal life.

In subsequent days and visits to New York the consultant really became a cheerleader and mentor to me. He encouraged me to begin to explore my interests again, specifically he encouraged me to take more time for myself, I began practicing yoga more consistently, I began exploring more of the city, I bought a camera and started taking pictures – all things that helped me reconnect with myself. His lessons about boundaries and self care were instrumental in helping me leave a toxic job and create a sense of possibility and hope at a time when I was so burned out. I really believe that this person was one of the major catalysts in helping me create a life that I wanted to live.

Christina, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

After I left my job in the airline industry, I decided to train to become a yoga teacher as yoga had helped retain some semblance of sanity during the tough times and really was an avenue that supported my ideas of finding work that was rewarding and fulfilling. I trained to teach adults and children – working in schools, studios, office settings, private homes, nursing homes, and a variety of other places. I continued to develop professionally and trained to be a holistic health coach – eventually integrating cooking, healthy eating, mindfulness, yoga, and creative expression into a wellness business, Benestar Wellness.

After a few years, I decided I wanted to help people on a deeper level and I went back to school to get my masters in mental health counseling. I added psychotherapy to my portfolio of services in the beginning of 2020 and due to the pandemic I decided to pivot to exclusively working as a psychotherapist.

In my work I take a holistic view and incorporate the breadth of my training and experiences to provide my clients with a bespoke service that is tailored to them as an individual and their needs at this time. I work with a broad range of clients from tweenagers to high achieving professionals to soon to be empty nesters. Fundamentally my clients are people that value therapy and developing a deeper understanding of themselves and I am honored to support them in their journeys.

Training and knowledge matter of course, but beyond that what do you think matters most in terms of succeeding in your field?

Go to therapy. I recommend it for anyone who is an entrepreneur, but I feel it is especially essential for therapists. In the work that we do we are often seeing reflections of ourselves in our clients, it is vital that we ensure that our personal issues do not interfere or pollute the relationships we develop with clients. If people are looking for a therapist part of their criteria should be finding a therapist who goes to therapy.

From the entrepreneurial perspective, therapy is beneficial in helping you manage stress, catch some of the blind spots, step out of your comfort zone, have a sounding board, and so much more. A lot of the professionals I work with have a lot of stress that they don’t want to share with their spouses or family members for fear of worrying them. It is vital that people do not sit with the stress and worries on their own – as it can really impact the quality of their personal relationships as well as their physical health in the long run. When we go to therapy, part of what we do is lighten that load and we also learn ways to cope with the challenges of our lives. That, to me, is as important, if not more important, as any investment we make in our businesses.

Any advice for growing your clientele? What’s been most effective for you?

Training, support, networking, and word of mouth. I came out of graduate school with a single minded vision of a solo practice, which is certainly not what they teach you in graduate school. Given my background and the fact I already had an established business, I did not have such a steep learning curve. However, I opened the psychotherapy part of my business in January of 2020 and my plans for growing that business were thrown out the window. After a few months of treading water and not making much headway, I joined a coaching program for therapists. It was a scary leap to take but I wholeheartedly believe that what I learned in that program really helped me accelerate my growth. I invested time, money, and energy into the program and I learned how to market my business more effectively and with time I am finding that the growth aspect has built momentum. Bottom line is you have to be super focused and disciplined. Do good work, get the right support, connect with like minded people, be strategic with your advertising, and clients will come.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.christinaalgeciras.com
• Instagram: www.instagram.com/christinatherapy
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/christina-algeciras/

Image Credits
Zencare