If you are looking for a counselor or life coach in Orlando, you might find it helpful to know why that professional is in this line of work. I am one of the counselors here at Life Skills Resource Group in Orlando and this is my answer to that question.

I obtained my Master’s Degree in Clinical Social Work in 1990. I don’t completely remember why I chose that particular educational path. I had been through my own counseling during my college years and it helped a lot, so I was a believer. In college, as I took the introductory psychology and sociology courses to fulfill general education requirements, I also noticed that I felt a real attraction to working with peoples’ inner beings. It was exciting to discover this world of psychological stuff and I went where that flow took me.

Now, twenty plus years later, I have a somewhat different perspective. Over my time of working in this field, I have experienced many people coming to me expecting that I will have the answers to solve their problems, or a way to take away their pain. I remember once saying something like that to my own counselor, years ago. He responded, “Do you think I have a magic wand?” I sure wished he did. It has taken me a long time to realize that having this as a therapeutic goal, for myself or for my clients, is really not helpful.

So, if I’m not doing this work to solve peoples’ problems, or take away their pain, what am I doing it for? Einstein’s words have offered me a way of articulating my deepest desires in working with people. He contended that problems cannot be solved with the same kind of thinking, or at the same level of awareness, that contributed to the creation of those problems. My purpose in doing psychotherapeutic work with people is to facilitate changed awareness and perspective. I now see that this actually ends up helping with the pain and the problem-solving. As nice as a magic wand would seem to be (and there are times I still look for one), I am learning that the best benefit comes from grappling with our problems and learning what is there for us to learn.

This is not to minimize the reality that some people are in a lot of psychological distress. I do not believe people should have to live in that kind of life-draining pain, and there are certainly specific interventions to address the various sources of that distress. At the same time, I recognize that relief and joy can come from connecting with each other to share in each other’s struggling, to offer comfort, and to help strengthen and sustain each other as we take on the challenges of life.

I guess the answer to my question, then, is that I do this work because I believe in the value of the ‘struggle to become’, and I want to make myself available to connect with people, and offer my educated wisdom and skills to them, as they engage this struggle and work to shift to new perspectives, to figure out answers, and to find their bliss.

If any of this strikes a chord in you, please feel free to contact me at counselingwoman@earthlink.net or 407.399.6311, or click here tolook at the profiles of Our Team of Counselors and Life Coaches at Life Skills Resource Group of Orlando. We are all dedicated to helping you “develop tools for a better you”.   Thanks for taking the time to read this!   Jean