We recently connected with Johan Tocre and have shared our conversation below.
Johan, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. What was your school or training experience like? Share an anecdote or two that you feel illustrate important aspects or the overall nature of your schooling/training experience.
While being a Combat Medic in the Army, I was assigned to a unit that required training in mental health. So I was sent to train in Occupational Therapy which in a deployment setting it mainly focuses on mental health. I didn’t have an interest in mental health at that time so I just went because I had to go. I really had no other option. Once I started training and got to the clinical part of it it woke up something in me. Maybe I liked mental health after all and didn’t notice. Working with service members in this setting led me to major in Neuroscience & Behavior. Later on during one of my deployments, I would develop two mental health programs that trained service members on how to manage combat & operational stress reactions.
Johan, 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?
My name is Johan Tocre, a 14 year Army veteran, founder of Creative Neuroconcepts, LLC. I started this business after being part of a Combat Stress Control team in the Army. I learned a lot from my own experiences, other people’s experiences, and the struggles and triumphs they go through. Imagine seeing 7 to 8 people a day, 6 days a week for a total of 24 months, each person with different mental health challenges. You become innovative in how you facilitate, educate and apply therapeutic modalities and interventions.
This experience motivated me to go back to school and major in Neuroscience & Behavior with a Minor in Psychology in order to further understand human behavior. My business consists of developing mental health programs, run self-development workshops, professional development, educate on suicide prevention and intervention, coaching services and mentorship in the field of mental health.
Plenty of people with whom I interact with have gone through various traumatic experiences that have developed into other conditions throughout time. Sometimes it’s because we can’t identify how a traumatic experience tends to express itself in the individual through symptoms, unhealthy coping skills and/or behaviors that can bring negative long term effects when enacted for short term pleasure or satisfaction.
I developed a method called Creative Neuroconcepts which has become my brand and business name. This method takes what we know from Neuroscience and makes it practical so that individuals can use and apply what we know about the brain and behavior. What sets me apart from others is that I focus my work on prevention which tends to catch the individual at the right time. I can work with people that have a diagnosis and provide mentorship and coaching through different neuroscience and occupational therapy based solutions that compliment their treatment or plan of care in mental health.
Something i’m most proud of is that as an individual, I developed two holistic mental health program that train service members on how to manage combat & operational stress reactions, The Warrior Fitness Project and The BASICS for Army Leaders. The first one focused on minimizing combat and operational stress reactions by integrating mental health interventions, psycho educational classes and physical fitness into a daily routine. The latter, focused on training senior leaders on how to identify the signs and symptoms of combat & operational stress reactions in their sub-ordinates and give them the necessary tools to successfully manage them. In addition, I started the first Combat & Operational Stress Control Training Center in Camp Buehring, Kuwait. I was awarded two Army commendation Medals for my work in mental health. Both programs are still running in the middle east. I’ve been able to provide the same services for first responders in the civilian side as well. We’ve conducted the Neuroscience of an Active Shooter workshop for parents from the city of Doral, Florida where Vice -Mayor Pineyro was in attendance. We’ve provided life coaching and mentoring to individuals from various backgrounds and stages in life, both at a personal and professional level. Moreover, we run wellness retreats overseas, mainly Cuzco, Peru where individuals practice self-care, attend psycho-educational classes, do physical training and visit the various touristic sites, to include Machu Picchu.
Our ideal clients are individuals, corporate leaders or teams that seek personal growth, professional development and positive change to enhance their mental health and general well-being. These positive changes can include growth in the area of relationships, work/life balance, discipline, health and fitness, accountability, stress management, entrepreneurship and general life coaching which involves all areas of occupation. I offer our future clients a quick and easy, hassle-free, 15-minute consultation over the phone. Usually after that we schedule a 30-minute video call where we get to know each other a bit more and get a clearer picture of their personal/professional goals.
In terms of the organization, we are an organization that is committed to the development and implementation of practical intelligence programs and solutions based on neuroscience and occupational therapy. Our intent is supporting you in your journey of personal growth, professional development, and enhancing your physical, mental, emotional and spiritual fitness.
We are a faith-based business, meaning our organization is built on principles, values, and practices in line with the teachings of the Judeo-Christian scriptures. As an entrepreneur, my faith is the solid foundation for the way I run and conduct business. I am accountable for the decisions I make not only to God, but also to every person I interact with and do business with.
I am committed to applying biblical principles to my everyday business decisions. I have the duty of being a good steward of my time and finances. The nature of the services we provide allows us to take every situation we encounter and decisions we make as an opportunity to lead with our faith. We operate our business with an emphasis on its long term impact, not just the short term.
Our faith plays a key role in how we conduct business. We are clear with our purpose, we are not our business. We happen to be the ones running our business as a steward of God’s resources.
We pray regularly. We pray when facing difficult decisions, and we pray for wisdom. We prioritize self-care. Burning out is a constant threat for entrepreneurs, health care workers, especially in our always-on, never-enough world of endless notifications and messages.
We Protect our mental health by taking days off as a reward for hard work. We Give back with generosity: God blesses our business with abundance: so we can be a blessing to others.
And lastly but most importantly, we are cautious of not presuming that we deserve full credit for everything we have. Instead, we have the humility to recognize the role others play in affording us what we have, especially God.
We invite you to visit our website at www.creativeneuroconcepts.com and follow us on Instagram “warriorfitnessproject” browse through our content and book a consultation call. Looking forward to connecting with you.
What’s been the most effective strategy for growing your clientele?
Sincerity, transparency, integrity, determination and honesty. Never promise what you can’t deliver. Always be open to answering your potential client’s questions or concerns. Their lack of interest on what you offer doesn’t mean your service is not needed nor doest it mean that they “are not ready” to get better or work on themselves. It just means that they have a choice in whether to employ your services or not and at this time they may have other options available. We use comedy in the videos or reels we make. We keep it real. We are respectful, empathetic and understanding.
Do you have any insights you can share related to maintaining high team morale?
Being open to feedback, offer sound leadership and know how to develop your team. Pay attention to the complains, in there lies the answers or solutions to the issues. Leadership is not barking orders. Have a work/rest ratio. If it seems too much it’s probably because it is too much. You are not your work. Take care of yourself, your family, anything that is dear to you. Take care of your faith as well.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.creativeneuroconcepts.com
- Instagram: warriorfitnessproject
- Linkedin: https://linkedin.com/in/johan-elvis
