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

Hi Ranada, 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.

I’ve had several defining moments in my career. The first one that comes to mind is my decision to become a mental health therapist. When I initially went to college, I decided to be a double major of Pre-Med and Psychology. My intent was to become an OBGYN first and later in life become a mental health therapist. I had a biology class that I really struggled in. Biology was a subject I usually did well in, so this perplexed me. Part of being a Pre-Med major met we had to join the Pre-Med Club. While at the first meeting, I spoke with staff about my struggles with this class. I was essentially told that this was not that uncommon to struggle with this professor. I then asked what else he teaches, thinking maybe I could just get through this class and move on. To my disbelief, I was told he also taught Microbiology. Of course, my follow up was why is a professor that is known to be one students struggle with, teaching one of the most difficult biology classes. I was basically told he was brilliant. As I took that walk back to my dorm, I had a conversation with God. At the end of that conversation, I decided to drop the Pre-Med major. I had such a peace about it and knew this was the right thing to do. After that, it seemed like everything fell into place.

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?

I got interested in mental health from volunteering at a mental health organization in high school. While getting my undergraduate degree, I decided I wanted to become a Family Marriage Therapist for a few reasons. I had a mentor who specialized in attraction, which highly influenced me; I wanted to specialize in sexuality; I think families play a major role in decisions we make throughout out lives; and I wanted to work with children. I got a BS in Psychology and MA in Marriage Family Therapy. After obtaining my degrees, I had to have so many hours of therapy and take a licensure exam. I am currently licensed in Indiana and Georgia. I co-own a private practice. Services we offer include therapy, groups, workshops, retreats, speaking engagements, and books. We solve various problems clients bring to therapy. Overall, I would say, we assist in developing/enhancing tools to help you navigate through life’s journey. One of the things I’m proud of is what our company has been able to accomplish. Starting a business is not easy, but we’ve overcome a lot to be where we are now. I also love the fact that we are able to help others and growing in ways to continue doing this. The main thing we want from clients is being willing to do the challenging work of therapy. We often remind clients that they didn’t get like this overnight and can’t expect to change overnight. Our company is big on holistic healing. This is accomplished by our partnerships in the community. We recognize we can’t do, nor do we desire to do, everything. We’d rather partner with a company already do the work.

Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?

The first story that comes to mind is when I was let go of twice in less then 90 days from the same company. This was during a time when I felt like God was telling me he wanted me to focus on working for myself. I’d gone back and forth with what I wanted, or at least thought I wanted, to do. Essentially during this time, the company that I worked for lost two contracts (With the first one, we were hired back) therefore resulting in being laid off. I will admit this was challenging in the sense of going from a consistent position to no. During this time, I questioned several areas of career during this time, but ultimately realized I was being put into position for our private practice to grow. I was able to secure contractual work and start the steps from moving from a passive hobby to a successful private practice.

How do you keep your team’s morale high?

Managing a team can have it’s challenges, but I think not impossible. It’s important to treat people with respect; keep the golden rule in mind; listen; being willing to learn from your staff; and advocate when needed. People want to feel like they are appreciated and not just a number.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.empoweredlivinginc.net
• Instagram: @empoweredlivinginc
• Facebook: @empoweredlivinginc
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/empowered-living-inc-146095aa/
• Twitter: @Empoweredlivin1

Image Credits
Jolen Broad Photography