I am delighted to present the next installment of my Summer Series interview featuring the fabulous Dr. Gracie McLaven.
Dr. Gracie is a Clinical Psychologist and the founder of Brain Body Wealth.
It was through the introduction of my client Bryony from The Glass Female that I met Dr. Gracie. As part of her brand mentoring journey, I had the honor of providing her with guidance and expertise, as well as capturing her brand photos.
Dr. Gracie’s work and her commitment to empowering people to prioritize their mental health have truly resonated with me. In this interview, you will have the opportunity to gain valuable insights from Dr. Gracie’s responses, which I totally agree with, especially when it comes to guiding and inspiring women who are contemplating their own entrepreneurial journeys.
What career did you have before you set up your own business, and what made you start? How your previous career influences the work you are doing in your business now?
Prior to starting Brain Body Wealth I was training to become a clinical psychologist working in lots of different clinical settings from A&E helping adults in mental health crises to working in child & adolescent mental health services specifically with foster or adoptive families.
If you could go back and do it all again, would you do anything differently?
Truly believe in myself and my idea, I spent a lot of years hiding my idea from people fearing that they would judge me for not working solely in the NHS.
What was your aha moment during our brand mentoring sessions?
As a clinical psychologist we are skilled in working with the whole lifespan and a range of mental health challenges, for example I’ve worked with mothers and their newborns babies, adults with psychosis to older adults with dementia nearing their end of life. My aha moment with Petra was realising that I had to hone in and focus on a more specific client group to really help someone! Trying to help everyone meant I was not actually helping many people.
What would be one word to describe how you feel after you completed our brand mentoring journey?
Empowered.
Do you have any pearls of wisdom for other women who have just set up their own business or are thinking about it? What’s been most useful to you along the way?
My pearl of wisdom to other women who are setting up a business or thinking about it is to really lean into building your social network. It can be a really lonely place being an entrepreneur and I know for myself became really isolated. It’s been so incredible to build my network of amazing entrepreneurs such as Petra and all the women in her Summer Series. I found it inspiring and uplifting; the opportunities that arose from it have been incredible.
Who would be your 5 ideal dinner party guests?
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My Grandad Roy – who I never got to meet but have been told he was a fabulous dinner party guest!
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My grandma who is still with us and sparkles so brightly. I’d love to have dinner with her and Grandad Roy to see them together. My grandma has remarried and Carl has been a wonderful grandfather, however there is still a part of me that would love to see my mums, mum and dad together.
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Esther Parel is a Belgian-American psychotherapist, known for her work on human relationships. I love Esther’s energy and her work is another source of influence for me. Esther Parel is therapist goals!
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Dr Irvin Yalom is an American existential psychiatrist whose work and writing have been hugely influential to me over the years and I often seek solace in his writing when I’m feeling a bit stuck.
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Ruth Bader Ginsberg an American lawyer and jurist who served as an associate justice of the Supreme Court of the United States from 1993 until her death in 2020. Her life story is incredible, she raised children whilst supporting her husband become a lawyer as well as training herself to become one. Super inspirational.
If you were going to write a book, what would it be about?
The themes around the conversations that I have in the therapy space. I’ve found over the years of therapy that similar themes come up. For example speaking cruelly to ourselves, or the narratives we hold about ourselves and how this can hold us back. I’d like to share these conversations and my expertise to help people nurture their own wellbeing and mental health.
Insta link: https://www.instagram.com/brain.body.wealth/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dr-gracie-mclaven/
Web: https://brainbodywealth.co.uk/
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