Meet Lisa Illingworth | CEO and Licensed Clinical Therapist

We had the good fortune of connecting with Lisa Illingworth and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Lisa, what do you attribute your success to?
The most important factor behind my success are relationships. I would not have created this business if it was not for my supportive husband Andrew. He believed in me, and encouraged me to create my own practice. With his prior knowledge in managing a family business and experience in accounting he runs the Administrative and business end of the practice while I run and oversee the Clinical Department. It is truly a team effort. In addition, when we had first set up the practice, I started with therapists that I have previously supervised and worked with, some since 2018 and 2019. They are more than just staff to me; I truly care about them and view the relationship more as a mentor/mentee. I have complete trust in them to provide great quality work and I have loved to see them grow over the years. We have started taking on new therapists, but I always ensure they have a core value of passion for helping others and I address the importance of developing and fostering a relationship with them. With those relationships they have developed trust in me where they feel supported and know that they can always reach out to me if they have questions or need to consult. Working in the mental health field can be emotionally taxing and difficult. As such, I truly believe that if therapists feel encouraged and supported, that they are happier and are more motivated, which translates to providing great quality mental health services to help our clients overcome their emotional challenges.

Can you give our readers an introduction to your business? Maybe you can share a bit about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
My business is a Therapy Private Practice. We provide mental health services such as individual, couples and family psychotherapy. We have multiple therapists working under the practice and each have their unique skill set and experience which helps us reach a wide variety of clients with varying needs. What sets us apart is our selection process for Therapists. We strive to select therapists that have had prior experience with more intense populations from Community Mental Health or Residential Treatment Facilities. That intensive experience helps Therapists adapt to the varying needs of their clients in a way you just can’t get from private practice alone. Ultimately, it is the client who benefits from this dedication to quality mental health care.

Patience has been the biggest challenge. When you are eager to get started, you want to push through as fast as you can, but working in collaboration with Therapists, clients, and insurance providers requires an immense amount of patience. It took over a year to research, coordinate, and credential our practice. Patience was the key element. This is also where quality relationships become essential. Being able to collaborate efficiently, and work with understanding people, has helped tremendously. What I learned is if you set your mind to something, stay persistent, and maintain good relationships, you can accomplish your goals.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
I am a person who loves being in nature. It is my form of meditation and relaxation and luckily my friends are very similar in enjoying the outdoors. I would like to take them to Will Rogers Park. It’s a beautiful park that is great for picnics, and has a great hike where you can view the ocean. Another spot I would want to take them to is the Franklin Canyon Reservoir. It’s a reservoir, but it looks like a lake nestled away in the woods. There is one easy hike around the reservoir, but there are side trails you can take if you want more physical activity. I personally love to take my time there and just listen to the birds, smell the pine and enjoy the view.

As for food I think I would take them to Wirtshaus German Restaurant & Beer Garden in Los Angeles. You don’t see German restaurants too often and the ones you do find may not be as authentic. My husband’s family is from Germany and they gave it the seal of approval. Other go to restaurants for me to introduce would be Flavor of India in Burbank and Kai Ramen in Sherman Oaks. I love their bold flavors and the food is fabulous.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
I would want to give a shout out to my mentor, Patricia Alba. She was my Supervisor and Director when I was working in Community Mental Health. She was so supportive and guided me to becoming a better a person both on a personal level and as a professional. Patricia believed in me and encouraged me to take risks in promoting to be a Clinical Supervisor and helped blossom my love for educating and supporting other therapists. Eventually she left Community Mental Health to start her own therapy group practice, and encouraged me to try the different program. I can have a hard time with uncertainty and change, but I decided to take the leap of faith. That decision then sparked my aspiration to have a better work life balance, and to expand to create my own practice. Her guidance, faith and encouragement has set the wheels in motion of where I am today.

Website: https://www.guidingstrengththerapy.com/

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/guiding-strength-therapy/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100074412384608