Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Chara Bowie. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Hi Chara, thanks for joining us today. If you had a defining moment that you feel really changed the trajectory of your career, we’d love to hear the story and details.

Upon moving to Houston, I was based at a local homeless shelter. My job was to create a program for single teenage moms to help them move from the shelter into the community and regain stability for themselves and their children. I was charged with developing this program’s structure, goals, and objectives and providing some of the services. I was there to be a support, mentor, coach, confidante, trusted adult, phsycho-therapist, teacher, and cheerleader for my young mothers. I developed a personalized plan of action for each mother, meeting them where they were and outlining the steps it takes to get where they wanted to be. The was an amazing experience for me because I was not a mother myself, but felt compassion, motivation, and drive to be a positive integral force in each of these young ladies’ lives, realizing that everyone is not blessed with the same opportunities, environment or support. Then, one day, I was forced to experience a situation that helped me realize how broken our criminal justice system was and its disastrous effects on multiple minority and low-income individuals. A simple act of intimidation could lead to a charge that could cause one of my young mothers to face at least 15 years in prison. I learned the value of having proper and compassionate representation and that you are almost guaranteed to experience a life-altering situation without it. Thank God, after many phone calls and office visits, we found a good samaritan that took our cost pro-bono, and my client completed the parenting classes that she was already enrolled in, and then her case was dismissed. If this support and compassion were not there, my client would have ended up like many others, in prison, with a charge that few could really explain nor understand, and beautiful children growing up in the foster care system. We must understand that everyone in prison does not deserve to be there. The United States locks up more people than any other country, and most of these inmates are minorities from low-income, underserved communities. Realisticly, a transformational system change is highly unlikely during our lifetime. However, we must see human beings as human beings and create more opportunities for the homeless, the underserved, and those trying to re-enter society. Yes, some of these individuals made poor decisions, some never had the tennis shoes to run the race, and some never had the chance to start on the starting line!

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

Amongst many other roles, I have been a licensed professional counselor-supervisor for over 20 years. Early in my career, I was often the youngest and only minority in the room. However, I quickly understood some of the barriers that minorities face when considering the mental health field. I realized that often we had not been taught the basics about feelings, coping skills, and our thought processes. Often, times we are taught to be strong by holding in our emotions, not verbalizing them, and “sucking it up” because it could be worse! Many of us had to learn and employ these tools to survive, especially our ancestors. However, these tools in the present day stifle our growth, development, and overall mental health. This is why I decided to create a personalized children’s coping skills book that facilitates communication, teaches the connection between feelings and thoughts, empowers youth to create their own toolbox, giving them a fighting chance to become emotionally healthy. Check it out at Survivorbook08.com.

How about pivoting – can you share the story of a time you’ve had to pivot?

Being a therapist for multiple years, I concluded that many societal systems were the root causes of individual and family distress. I learned that psychoeducational opportunities could provide helpful tools that are tremendously valuable for low-income and underserved communities. Then, just at the right moment in time, I was approached with a new opportunity to create programs and initiatives for the community that would provide numerous prevention opportunities. I was excited about this opportunity because it was proactive rather than reactive work. Over the years, I have had the complete pleasure of leading multiple staff, groups, committees, programs, and initiatives that truly impacted our community.

Any advice for managing a team?

Managing a team is like creating a masterpiece. First, you must figure out the vibrance of every color and how where it can shine the brightest within your masterpiece. Then, you must figure out what all the pieces need to thrive individually and in a group. You must provide structure and consistent feedback, good or bad, but realize every moment can be a touching moment. I believe to be a good director; your team must want to follow your lead. People are generally willing to follow your lead when you are honest but firm, feel supported and appreciated, have space to grow and develop, and have room to make mistakes. The most effective teams are those cultivated to learn to think for themselves in developing impactful ideas and creatively solving problems. Micro-managing creates limitations, induces fear and breads robots not leaders. Moreover, micro-managing is an unfortunate pitfall that new leaders fall into because of their lack of confidence, vision, and understanding.

Contact Info:

• Website: Survivorbook08.com
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chara-bowie-ma-lpc-s-b6532b3a/

Image Credits
Ferrell Phelps Photography Domonique Bowie Graphic Design