OLGA GONITHELLIS YOUNG PROFESSIONAL OF THE MONTH … · Olga has an MA and EdM in Counseling and...

OLGAGONITHELLISYOUNGPROFESSIONALOFTHEMONTH

JANUARY2015

ThePhilo4ThoughtHellenicProfessionalMentoring Initiativepresentsour January2015 “YoungProfessionaloftheMonth”FeatureArticle!Thegoalofourpublications is toprovidepositive, successful rolemodelswhowillinspire the next generation of young professionals. A preliminary criterion for #YPM candidates is their activeengagementinanentrepreneurialinitiativeorcareerpath.CandidatesaretypicallyofHellenicoriginandpartofaphilanthropic, humanitarian or environmentally conscious field. The most essential qualification they have incommon, however, is the spirit and compassion to persevere, and the heart to share their knowledge andexperiencewithothers.Weinterviewedthismonth’sfeaturedyoungprofessional,OlgaGonithellis,atGrandCaféinAstoriaNYonesunnyafternoonandweresopleasedtofindoutaboutherprogressinthefieldofPsychology!Wearehonoredtostarttheyearbysharingherprofessionaljourneywithyou,dearreaders.THEJOURNEY&“AHA”MOMENT:OlgahasanMAandEdMinCounselingandClinicalPsychologyfromTeachersCollageatColumbiaUniversityandspecializesinmentalhealthforartists,performersandcreativeindividuals.Olga’sgoalistofocusonthementalhealthofthispopulationbasedonhertrainingandherkeeninterestinmusicandart.Whenaskedtodescribethe"AHA"momentwhensheidentifiedherdesiredcareerpathsheexplainsthatitwasnotalinearjourney.”Afterworkinginanumberofsettings(school,outpatientclinics,substanceabuseandcommunitycenters),Ifeltmoreandmoreinclinedtowanttointegratemybackgroundintheperformingartsandmyinterestincreativityintomyworkasamentalhealthprofessional.Afteradiscussionwithacolleagueonthistopic, I remembergoinghomeandthinking‘Whyhadn'tIthoughtaboutthisallthistime?’Now,IworkoutofmyprivatepracticeinManhattanwhere Iseeadults,childrenandadolescentsonawiderangeofmentalhealthconcerns,and luckilyamabletoworkwithmusicians, photographers and performers, and to focus on the psychological well‐being of creativeindividuals.Itfreesupmycreativityasanartistaswell.”

Neurologicalresearchisn’tquiteclearontheperceptualdistinctionsofcreativepeopleandtheirthinkingprocess.Issueswithdivergentthinking,manicandADHDthinkingstyles….That’sthesweetspotItrytoworkon.Iliketoturnadisadvantageous‘peopledon’tgetme’perspectivetotheindividual’sadvantage.Thecauseandtreatmentofmentalillnesshasitsowncreativeedge,whichishugelyunder‐researchedatthistime.”When asked about any alternative paths shemay have considered, Olga says, “I always wanted to be in thementalhealthfield.Fora longtime, Iexpectedtoremain in itwithoutfocusingtoomuchonaddingsomethingnew or leavingmy personalmark. However, deciding to open a practice, to get on asmany health insurancepanelsasIcouldandbecomeanexpertoncertainmentalhealthtopics…itwasmywayofachievingarewardingcareerthatwoulddirectlybenefitalargenumberofpeopleincreativefields.”“Myprivatepractice, inwhich Iprovidepsychotherapy toadults, children,adolescents, couplesand families, iscontinuously growing and I hope to continue to acceptmost health insurances in order to be able to provideservicestoasmanyaspossible.”PHILOSOPHY:Olga’soverallphilosophyaboutworkandlifeis“Think.Do.Connect.Appreciate.Accept.Iliketoviewsuccessfulworkandacontent lifeas the resultof thoughtful reflection, forward‐lookingaction,meaningfulconnection toothers,amindfulpausetoappreciate,andaconsciousacceptanceofwhat'sbeyondourcontrol.”A great deal of this outlook is inspired by her Hellenic upbringing. “Having been raised in Greece, it's almostimpossibletoimaginewhatmyphilosophywouldbewithoutthatexperience.Initiativessuchasthisone,whichaim to create a larger supportive community, are a source of inspiration to become active andmake positivechanges.”MENTORS:Whenaskedaboutthementorswhoguidedhertohercurrentsuccess,Olgasaysthatshehasbeenveryfortunatethroughouthercareer.“Ihavehadtheluckofhavingmanyinspirationalinstructorsandclinicalsupervisors.Mostwereconscientious,hard‐workingandintellectuallystimulating.ThereisnooneIcouldconsideramentorinthetraditionalsense,buttherearecountlesssourcesofinspiration–peoplewholentfoodforthought–butnooneholdingmyhandalong theway, so to speak.Ultimately, theprofession requiresa lotof trial anderror till youreachasuccessfulpoint.”CHALLENGES:Owningabusinessofanysizerequiresagreatdealofdedicationand“behindthescenes”work,sothestandard9‐5schedulecannotreallyapply.Assuch, itcanbeveryeasyto losetrackoftheseparationbetweenworkandpersonaltime.“Butiftheworkismeaningfulandasourcesatisfaction,this isnotnecessarilyabadthing.”Olgaexplains.“I’dsaythatIspendmostoftheweekdayandpartoftheweekendoncareer‐relatedtasks;however,Imake a point of taking conscious breaks to focus on other things.” Olga’s calm and cheerful demeanor andorganized professional approach to herwork is something that several of her clients have remarked on. It’s aqualitythattheyappreciateandoftenattempttocreateintheirownlives.Whileachievingbalanceandapositivedisposition are some life’s greatest challenges, Olgamanages to do this with visible grace and ease, inspiringotherstodothesame.As far as achievingwork‐lifebalance, “the lines canbecomeveryblurredwhen, forexample, youget anemailinvitationtowriteanarticleonaSaturdaynight,oryouhavetotakecareofhealthinsurancebillingattheendoftheworkday.It'seasytocarryyourbusinesswithyouallthetime,especiallywhenit's“yourbaby”andabigpartofwhoyouare. Inordertobalanceit, Itrytomanagemytimewell,tofillupmyschedulewithotheractivities(social,hobbies,athletic)andtotakeconscioustimeoff.”ThemainstrategicchallengeforOlgaistoconstantlymaintainanaccurateandbalancedassessmentofthe“bigpicture”andthe“littlepicture.”“It'simportanttohavealargervisionandsenseofdirectionwhile,atthesame

time,beingfocusedandattentivetosmalleverydaydemands.Onewayformetohandlethischallenge,istokeepabusinessplan,discusswithtrustedfriendsandcolleaguesmylargervision,whilemaintainingto‐dolistsandawell‐organizeddailyactivitiesplan.”When asked if there was ever an endeavor she had to end before its completion, Olga says that there wereactivitiesthathadtobepostponed.“Therewasatime,whenIwantedtoconductaworkshoponcreativeblocks.However,itwasnottherighttime.Idecidedtoturnmyattentiontogatheringmoreinformationonthetopicandtoacquiremoreexperiencestreatingthemwithmyclients.Sixmonthslater,IwasinvitedtospeakaboutcreativeandentrepreneurialblocksattheStatenIslandArtsIntersectsworkshopseries,soinawaymyvisiondidrealizeitself, justnotat the time that Ihadoriginallyexpected.The timingwas significantlybetter forme in termsofconfidenceandmotivationtopreparemarketpromoteitandintermsofhavingdealtwithitenoughtoformulatesometheoriesonhowtoapproachthem.”Whenaskedwhethershefacedanychallengesadaptingtothecommunityhere–andwhatsupportshehadfromtheGreekandGreekAmericancommunityinNewYork,OlgasaysthatbeingpartoftheHelleniccommunityhasbeen mostly positive with only a few challenges. “As a professional who was raised in another country, andespeciallygiventhatmyworkissubstantiallybasedoneffectivecommunication,therewasatimeofadjustmentinmakingsurethatIfullyunderstandsomepartsoftheAmericanexperienceandwaysofrelating,butbeinginadiversecitysuchasNewYorkmakesmyexperiencethenormratherthantheexception.Privatepractice inthefield of mental health currently has a lot more women, with room for growth and valuable professionalopportunities. In thebeginning, thepersonalconnectionwithclients (language,culture,mannerisms)mayhaveaffectedhowIapproachedthingsandclientswouldpickuponthat.Othersmall things, likemyaccent–whichisn’tnecessarilyanobstacle–canberemarked/noticed.Itdoesn’thappenanymore,nowthatIknowallthelocalexpressionsandsoonandhavealarger,strongernetwork.Mosttimesbeingbilingualcomesinveryhandy.”DOWN‐TIME:Inhersparetime,OlgamakesthemostofavailablecreativeoutletsbysingingandperforminginEuropeandinthe US. “I’ve been performing since 2005 and have a history of dancing ballet and contemporary dance sincechildhood.Icurrentlyspendagoodamountoftimewritingsongs,recordingpoprockinthestudio,whichIwriteandco‐writewithothermusiciansandproducers.Ialsorecentlybegandoingsomeacrylicpaintwork.”Intermsofphilanthropicandvolunteeractivities,OlgaiscurrentlyamemberoftheNewYorkCaresfoundation(https://www.newyorkcares.org)andplanstoplayamoresignificantrole intheirvolunteerworkwithchildren.Shealsowritesarticlesonmentalhealth,creativeblocksandstressassociatedwiththeentertainmentindustry:

http://www.goodtherapy.org/olga‐gonithellis‐therapist.phphttp://psychcentral.com/blog/archives/author/olga‐g/

WORDSOFWISDOM:Olgahasagreatdealofsoundadvicefortoday’sup‐and‐comingyoungprofessionals:1. Lookingat“failures”orshortcomingsasawaytolearnandimprovecangoalongway.2. Specialize!Trytonarrowyourinteresttooneortwothingsyoulovethemost.Bybecominganexpertina

fieldyouthoroughlyenjoywillallowforanorganic,seeminglyeffortlesswayoflife.3. FollowAristotle’sadvice:Movingwithinalargervision,takefrequentbreakstoevaluatethesmallersteps

towardsthelargergoal.4. Bepersistentandworkhard.Don’tgiveup!5. Plantingseedsandwaitingforthemtogrowmaytaketime,butifyouneverplanttheseeds,they’llnever

grow.6. Network.It’spartofbeingyoung.

Whenaskedwhetherthereisanythingshe’ddodifferently,Olgasaysthatshemayhavetakenmoreadvantageofavailableconnectionsandopportunities.“Butthenagain,weactbasedonthethingsweknow(orthinkweknow)inthemoment,soevenifsomeonehadhandedmealltheopportunitiesintheworld,Imayhavenotbeenreadytotakethem.IrememberreadingarticlesbypeopleIlikedandIthoughtmaybeIshouldreachout,butthemIfeltshytodoit,toreachout.Youdowhatyoudowhenyoudoitinthemoment.”MENTORING:Olga ishappy to serveasaPhilo4Thoughtmentor tohelp thenextgenerationofHellenicyoungprofessionals!Thanks!CONTACT:Mentoringinquiriesshouldbesubmittedtophilo4thought@yahoo.com.

TWITTER:@OlgaLMHCFACEBOOK:Creativity.MentalHealthWEBPAGE:www.creativityandperformance.com

READERSHIP:WhiletheprimaryreadershipistheyoungHellenicprofessionalofNewYork,weareverypleasedthatouronlineexposurehascausedourtargetedreadershiptoshiftbeyondthisscope!Youngprofessionalsofallcommunitiesandoriginsarewelcometocontributecommentsandquestions!