Meet Rachel Stein, LPC, LCDC

We were lucky to catch up with Rachel Stein, LPC, LCDC recently and have shared our conversation below.

Rachel , so great to be with you and I think a lot of folks are going to benefit from hearing your story and lessons and wisdom. Imposter Syndrome is something that we know how words to describe, but it’s something that has held people back forever and so we’re really interested to hear about your story and how you overcame imposter syndrome.
It was a grueling process over the last few years! I definitely lived out the Dunning-Kruger effect, which is essentially “the mount of stupidity, valley of despair, and rise of wisdom”. When I started my career I was a well educated therapist but very naive professional. I learned some hard lessons through those “stupid years” – some my own fault and many out of my control. A big factor for me getting stuck on this mountain of stupidity was my HUGE lack of healthy mentorship during this time. To climb a mountain you need a seasoned climbing guide who won’t try to push you off the cliff! Knowing this about my own journey, I am supporting my staff and interns by thoughtfully and compassionately assisting with less obstacles, more support, and more concrete professional skills to concur the stupid mountain.

My Valley of Despair (or as I like to say Ego Death) came from finally letting go of other people’s dreams and aligning myself back with my personal truth. I had a spiritual calling around 18 years old to create a human trafficking recovery center, which has felt VERY daunting over the years. How does one do that?!?! I finally found the right guides and mentors – mostly my husband, a few friends and family who believed in me, and social media people sharing their own journeys.

Once I got the right skills, mentality, and direction – I took the leap of faith and started my first company, Atomic Souls Counseling. This was the start of my rise to wisdom.

Thanks, so before we move on maybe you can share a bit more about yourself?
I have a few brands and endeavors, so I will start at the beginning –

1. Atomic Souls Counseling – my first business baby! She’s growing into a lovely teenager now – taking all my money and spreading her wings to new adventures. Atomic Souls Counseling is a boutique private practice with currently 5 clinicians – all highly trained in co-occurring diagnoses related to mental health and addiction. Laurie Pettis LMSW, LCDC is our trauma specialist who’s EMDR trained and worked with human trafficking victims. April Cooke LMFT, LCDC is our family and couples specialist who’s Gottman trained and kills it supporting families who are needing to seriously figure things out. Linda LCDC is in her masters program and is unbelievable with clients in recovery from addiction, their families, and even their friends! She’s also going to be amazing with people who struggle with personality disorders – we can’t wait for her to start her internship hours and open up her caseload to these people in the new year. Megan is our graduate intern who has 10 years experience working in addiction treatment centers and her niche is forming into struggling men/ dads. And then there’s me – Rachel Stein LPC, LCDC and I am EDMR trained with a specialty in complex trauma (life-long), deeply breaking free from trauma cycles, and life development post breaking free.

2. ASP Branding – my second business child. By the time we started ASP we knew a bit more about how to run a business and things have been much easier to start and maintain. I co-own this with my husband, Mike Stein, and former employee, Jason Amato. Mike was amazing at “business things” (aka running the show) as well as web and graphic design, Jay is amazing at networking and sales, and I am great at internal structures and professional development. Over the years we’ve had two amazing guys partner with us – Joel Keith & Nicolas Kiselewski – who now run our social media, Ads, and graphic design departments.

3. Awkward Recovery – my most recently and youngest business child. Still in the infancy stage, but already a well oiled machine! I patterned up with Scott Smith, who owns a well respected and local high accountability sober living house as well as a treatment center in Mississippi. Awkward Recovery is an expansion of the counseling practice and sober living home, which will be a higher level of care called intensive outpatient programming. We have both found success with our respective programs, so it was a natural fit to join forces and expand our capabilities to help more people in the Austin area.

There is so much advice out there about all the different skills and qualities folks need to develop in order to succeed in today’s highly competitive environment and often it can feel overwhelming. So, if we had to break it down to just the three that matter most, which three skills or qualities would you focus on?
The three most important skills for my journey have been mastering my mindset, following through on my word, and learning the art of “the pivot”.

I have had ups and downs in my life, but throughout my professional career I was almost consistently depressed. I would go through so much trauma at work and my nervous system could not handle it. It wasn’t until I could master my own thoughts and regulate my own emotions that I was finally able to create a bubble around myself. This bubble mindset helped me get past all the “mud” I was trudging through without getting myself stuck in the process. I could hear people’s mean comments and let it bounce off me – I had a mission and no one could stop me.

The second skill is following through with what I said to myself or others. I hated this part. I still do some days! I would much rather be depressed and lay in bed dissociating from life. Working on my follow through has helped me in my personal life and progressional life. This goes hand in hand with the mental shift – if I didn’t have the mindset change – I would not be able to follow through with things. Both are equally important to growing.

Finally, the art of the pivot – I cannot stress enough how important this skill is to learn! It is both and mindset and the follow through combined. When something is not working out, just pivot! It’s probably not working out because it’s not meant for you. I heave learned EVERY TIME I let go of how I think something “should” be and let it just be – I find something BETTER than what was previously in front of me.

What has been your biggest area of growth or improvement in the past 12 months?
This year has been, I dare say, my biggest growing year yet. I got pregnant, I had a baby, I dealt with postpartum, I moved the counseling practice into a bigger office, I started a new business, I parted ways with some key players, and I almost bankrupted my family (a few times). Owning businesses is a lot of hard work and you must be open to personal and professional growth.

The biggest lesson I have taken away from all from all of the change this year has been learning to identify people who genuinely support me and align with the same skills mentioned earlier. I would not have been able to make it through this year without the support of these kind of people supporting, challenging, and growing with me.

Contact Info:

Image Credits
Ricky Clack Photography with ASP Branding

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