Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Danielle Mendez. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
Danielle, appreciate you joining us today. We’d love to hear about the best boss, mentor, or leader you’ve ever worked with.
One of the best bosses I ever had led me to become a supervisor at a non-profit organization. I think one of the most difficult things about being a supervisor is helping an employee realize their full potential. My previous boss helped me build the confidence I needed to become a lead clinician to a team of clinicians. I did not think I would ever be a supervisor nor did I feel ready. She assured me that I was and that as a counselor I had innate leadership qualities that would help me lead the team. I now enjoy supervising. I look forward to building my practice and supervising new clinicians in the future.
Danielle, 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?
From a very young age, I knew I wanted to have a career in the helping professions. My career path morphed from wanting to be a doctor to wanting to become a counselor. Life is interesting in that way. You are led to what is meant for you and I am grateful that I was. I have always been drawn to helping vulnerable populations heal from trauma after my own experiences with trauma. I enjoy helping clients struggling with trauma or sexual addictions heal the root causes of their distress. I use a combination of a person-centered approach, EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization Reprocessing Therapy ), a trauma-informed lens, and my CSAT (Certified Sex Addiction Therapist) training to meet the needs of each individual client. I also use my trauma specialty to assist clients who may need immigration evaluations for cases. I use my BIPOC background to help others heal from generation trauma. I am a first generation counselor and Latina business owner and I am proud that I was able to accomplish building a business that serves those in need. My brand The Hour Therapy uses the moon phases in the logo to represent the beauty in the phases we also go through in life. Humans, like the moon, are allowed to begin again.
Can you open up about how you managed the initial funding?
Becoming a first generation female business owner that did not come from wealth, took time and quite a bit of hard work. Looking back, there were times when I held 2 or 3 jobs to save enough capital to begin my business. Very early on in my career I knew I did not want to work for someone for the rest of my life. After dong some research and finding the confidence in myself to take the leap of faith, I knew I made the right decision. After saving for about 2 years and doing research for 6 months I decided to form my business. I had some really amazing mentors and experiences that led me exactly to where I needed to be. Nothing really makes sense in the moment but hindsight is 20/20. If there is one thing I would say to anyone doubting themselves it would be to do it scared.
Can you tell us about a time you’ve had to pivot?
Right out of school I thought that I wanted to work at one of the biggest mental health practices in Houston. After reaching out a few times, I was told I was not what the practice needed at the time and to try again later. I tried a few more practices in the area and came to the same conclusion. I needed to start my own practice. Rejection at the time was difficult but looking back I am glad it happened. The stars aligned in such a way that I was motivated to start a business and specialty that felt meaningful to me. I once read that rejection is redirection and I could not agree more.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.thehourtherapy.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thehourtherapy
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61560287621493
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/danielle-mendez-lpc-ncc-ctrp-c-csat-1b2145143
Image Credits
Josh Fernelius