We recently connected with Shondrea Fincher and have shared our conversation below.

Shondrea , appreciate you joining us today. Looking back on your career, have you ever worked with a great leader or boss? We’d love to hear about the experience and what you think made them such a great leader.

Dr. John Beckwith

Owner / CEO Golden Gate Funeral Home
Dallas, Ft. Worth, and Louisiana

“Mr. B.” has been my Mentor for about 5 years. I’ve been an Employee over 10 years, but I didn’t have the mentality to receive what he was trying to pour into my life.

I was packed with potential, but the lack of self discipline prevented me from reaching my full potential. He doesn’t just have us to come into work. He trains us for an hour, 6 days a week, as he pays US to become better. Does your Boss do that? :)

I’m always shocked at all of the barriers that I’ve been able to knock down under his leadership. He continued to tell me that “you don’t have to be a product of your environment. Let people guess where you’re from, instead of you showing them where you’re from.”

I am now positioned to where I pour into others… everywhere.

The goal of a Mentor is to produce another leader, not another you.

With his leadership, combined with his mentoring, I have been able to obtain my Masters, and currently enrolled in the Doctorate program.

Why? Because my Boss is bomb!

As an Undertaker, he always says “tell me how you feel now.. don’t get up at my funeral and tell stories.”

So, today I say, to my Boss, Dr. John Beckwith.. THANK YOU for being an intricate part of who I’m becoming.

Hats off to, The Best Boss Ever!

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

Hello there!

I am Shondrea Fincher, Chief of Staff for Golden Gate Funeral Home, and Founder of Clarifications Therapy Solutions!

Golden Gate Funeral Homes are located in Dallas, TX., Ft. Worth, TX, and Talullah, Louisiana. I’ve been apart of the team for over 10 years, and was recently promoted. I began as the Receptionist, answering the phones. Our Owner/CEO, Dr. John Beckwith, pours into the Staff 6 days a week to help us become better people. His belief is “ When you become a better person, you’ll be better at everything.”

We provide Preneed and At Need services..
Also being family owned and operated. I am honored to work with a portion of the Beckwith Family on a day to day basis.

The training that we receive on a daily basis sets us apart from anyone else on our business. Dr. Beckwith teaches, trains, and tests. It’s impossible to be in his presence and not become better.

The training and mentorship that I’ve received from Dr. Beckwith is what pushed me into my purpose of Mental Health. We have a weekly theme, and this particular week was about our mentality. He was elaborating on how you could change everything about yourself, but if your mentality didn’t change it could be your passport or your prison to the next dimension in your life. DEEP!

This is where Clarifications Therapy Solutions was birthed. Inside of the funeral home, while at the staff meeting. I began to want to get a deeper understanding of the behaviors of others. Dr. Beckwith agreed to become my Mentor, and has helped me continue to knock down barriers.

I provide all services under the umbrella of Mental Health, including being a constant spokesperson for mental health around the DFW metroplex. I believe my concept of “God + Therapy= Clarity” is what sets me apart. As Christian’s, there is a stigma not to go to counseling. My suggestion is that you take your faith in God, combined with a Psychologist, and then gaining clarity on life. You must be able to see CLEAR to make a decision.

Training and knowledge matter of course, but beyond that what do you think matters most in terms of succeeding in your field?

The most helpful tool in succeeding in my field is to remain teachable. Things are always evolving. You always want to ensure that you’re ahead. Someone can always teach you something. You’ll either learn what to do, or what not to do. Either way, it’s a lesson.. right?

We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.

Resilience- to recover quickly from difficult situations

I’ve had a number of health challenges within the last 4 years, and I’m thankful for being able to be resilience.

Dr. Beckwith always lets us know to “deal with what is, and move on. Do what you can, but be ok with not doing what you can’t.” The most difficult health challenge was when I woke up and couldn’t walk. It took 9 months of rehabilitation and a LOT of prayer. But I remembered my teaching, those words of encouragement of how to push through it, not give up, hold your head up, and not focus on the negative. All of these things helped me remember who I was and that this would not be a final condition.
Having a great Mentor and great staff members to support you, made it impossible for me to be overtaken by this temporary setback.
I’m extremely grateful for the the Staff of Golden Gate Funeral Home.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.goldengatefuneralhome.com
• Instagram: @shondreafincher
• Facebook: Shondrea Fincher / Clarifications / Golden Gate Funeral Home & A Crematory
• Twitter: @shondreafincher
• Other: shondreafincher.com

Image Credits
Clarity Media & Photography by Atrion Drake