We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful PORTIA HINES. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with PORTIA below.

Hi PORTIA, thanks for joining us today. Was there a defining moment in your professional career? A moment that changed the trajectory of your career?

While working on accumulating the supervised hours I needed to become an LPC I worked as a school based therapist. This position was structured so that my office was inside of the school and any student or staff member could access mental health services in the building during school hours for free. The company that I worked for wanted all of their therapist to become a part of the fabric of the school. Becoming a part of the fabric of the school meant that I found myself in numerous situations that I would had never previously imagined myself in, such as morning door duty, hall monitor, lunchroom duty, character ed facilitator and even a team coach. Working so closely with the students and staff members over the years I had a front row view of how emotions & mental health influence every aspect of life. It also became painfully obvious that as a society we do not prepare our youth or our professionals to master emotional intelligence. I can recall countless times during this timeframe where in this building and others across the city, state and country crisis, high intensity conflict and tragedy could have been avoided if the parties involved had 1. been taught and 2. had normalized practices of emotional regulation. While being a school based therapist the importance of relationship first leadership was reaffirmed as a staple pillar in my approach to empowering others.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

My passion for mental and emotional health started at a very young age. I was an anxious introverted preteen and teenager. I was blessed to have a very supportive family who loved me through it even without the tools and language that would have made our journey easier. From that point on, I knew it was my mission to help shorten the learning curve for others, remove the barriers, and normalize placing a priority on the quality of life experience for everyone. I often say that my 10th grade Psychology class opened the door for me to find a career that aligned with my passion. My company My Journey Solutions LLC. offers 1-1 counseling to Alabama residents, group and individual coaching, and consulting for organizations. I specialize in helping others clarify their vision of life, solidify action steps to achieving that life, staying motivated along the journey and build a sustainable environment that will keep them on coarse for a lifetime of fulfillment. Knowing what we want and learning to confidently pursue it alleviates a lot of stress and anxiety and by default makes us a lot more productive too.

Other than training/knowledge, what do you think is most helpful for succeeding in your field?

Having a growth mindset has been most helpful to me. The field of psychology/mental health/wellness used to have a very defined and narrow path, but over the past 10 years the field has changed exponentially. A little over 3 years ago the position I hold at my 9-5 literally didn’t even exist. The work I do in my business paved a way for me to be able to reach more people in and impact more lives. Refusing to approach mental health from strictly an illness based perspective has allowed me to be creative and showcase all of the areas in life that can be improved upon if we invest in creating a good mental health foundation for everyone.

Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?

Sure, in 2019 all of the school based therapist in our program were let go due to another company winner the contract for a lower price. We all were devastated! It was a challenging time to say the least, but since I had been “doing the most’ building relationships, conducting workshops, booking speaking engagements all along I was able to continue that work and become a 1099 contractor for a new private practice. I was able to bounce back because my streams of income were diversified even when they didn’t need to be. I went from unemployed to self-employed and once I caught the self-employed bug I promised myself I would never again be without it.

Contact Info:

• Website: myjourneysolutions.com
• Instagram: instagram.com/portiathines
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MotivationJourney/
• Linkedin: www.linkedin.com/in/portiahineslpc
• Youtube: https://youtu.be/RQm1bpftB3k?si=mO6i6cSnDAfEXpt5
• Other: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/its-a-journey-hosted-by-portia-hines/id1440831944