Therapist Spotlight: Graduate Student Intern Jen Halligan

Hello-hello - I’m honored and delighted to be joining GT Therapy Group’s incredible and talented team!  While I’ve spent the past twenty-three years in the corporate world — leading culture and brand initiatives while coaching professionals - my path to becoming a therapist has been unfolding for as long as I can remember. Here is “the Jen story” that led me here in a nutshell…

I grew up in Canton, Ohio (just miles from the Pro Football Hall of Fame, in case you’re wondering why that place sounds oh-so-vaguely familiar), and still consider myself a Midwesterner at heart (if based only on how much I miss the changing leaves of a good old- fashioned, pumpkin-spice-infused Fall). From a young age, I gravitated towards all-things-creativity and possibility - anything from writing a story or designing a menu for an imaginary restaurant, to making a mixed tape, crafting a dance routine, or building a fort. But mostly, I loved to dream-dreams and create plans – the more off-the-beaten-path, the better! - for how to someday reach them.

My dream-crafting and wanderlust led me beyond the Midwest, taking me to Stanford University for college (where I muddled through imposter syndrome as I conducted psychology research on interpersonal relationships). I left college grateful to have discovered how core E.Q, authenticity, and meaningful relationships were to my (well)-being. After graduating, I moved to Austin and merged my interest in human behavior with my creative spirit by embarking on a career in tech marketing. Fast forward to my mid-twenties, and as most of my peer group was settling down, starting families, I headed ‘Down Under’ to fulfill a childhood dream of living in Australia (on the beach!) where I lived and worked for nearly a year.

After boomerang-ing back to Austin, I spent a decade leading brand and culture initiatives at an Austin tech start-up (Spiceworks), where I took a holistic, inside-out approach to cultivating meaningful, personal connections across employees, customers, and the community. As part of my work, I led Gallup StrengthsFinder workshops to help worker bees tune into their authentic talents and passions, and orient their career paths accordingly.  Then, in 2016, I took the leap to parlay my professional leadership and coaching experiences into what I felt would be a vocational direction. As part of this new season, I started Prune & Bloom where, as a “life-decluttering coach” I again tapped a holistic inside-out approach – this time to help people create the space (emotional and physical) to discern what matters most to them and intentionally orient their choices (and their closets!) around that. Since then, beyond 1:1 work with individuals, my work has included leading workshops, offsites, and retreats with groups ranging from adolescents and millennials to corporate executives and cancer patients, to empty nesters and retirees.

I’m currently enrolled in the Masters of Counseling program at Seminary of the Southwest - a program I was drawn to because of the emphasis it places on understanding and honoring how and why our varied spiritual belief systems shape our lived experiences. Whether working with an individual in their personal or professional life, I often incorporate expressive arts to facilitate the clarity and wisdom I find is unleashed when we are not forced to rely on “thinking” or words alone. Journaling – a form of reflective, self-discovery writing – is an example of this. Journaling is a personal passion and lifelong practice I have benefitted from firsthand - so much so that I’m pursuing my certification in journal therapy from the Therapeutic Writing Institute. To me, journaling captures the essence of my therapeutic perspective: we all have an inner wisdom that - if we create the space to tune into it - can help guide us to a next step, and towards creating a next chapter that feels truer to our authentic-self.

Some other things that make my heart smile? Having a dance party - or better yet,  going old-school and roller-skating! - with any of my 11 nieces and nephews (ranging in age from 4 to 19); Taking a road trip, or having a picnic or movie night with my hubby; Losing all track of time while on the scavenger-meets-treasure hunt of finding a perfect gift for someone. Still on my latest bucket list? Swimming with dolphins, hiking (at least some of) the Appalachian Trail, seeing Elton John live in concert…oh, and getting my terrier-mix puppy, Henri St. Hobo, to finally ring the bell to go outside when he needs to potty (ha!).