Javonte Bass is a full-time licensed therapist, loving mother, trauma survivor, and Office Ours tenant since March of 2019 at our Midtown location. With shear dedication, hard work, and determination, her dream of becoming a full-time therapist has become a reality and we are excited to introduce the Office Ours community to her.
On The Road to Success
Uncertainty was at the forefront of her mind as she worked to start a new business while also working a full-time day job. However, this didn’t stop her from pursuing her dreams. Shortly after her decision to become a licensed therapist, she needed to begin looking for an office space that was affordable and close to clients. She chose Office Ours because of how easy it was for her to move-in and the price was reasonable. Since she needed to build her client base from scratch she was also able to split the lease with another therapist to help reduce her expenditures. This decision allowed her to focus on her mission and worry less about staying afloat in the short term.
To win more clients, she began advertising on social media, therapist websites, reaching out to old friends, and listing her practice with Blue Cross Blue Shield. Today, most of her clients reach out to her via social media and advertising, the rest of her referrals come from her personal network and Blue Cross. Building her client base was a challenge; with the key being consistency and offering a fantastic service.
She loves being able to bring her clients to a central location and an office building that promotes privacy and a comfortable atmosphere. Not only this, she said the fact we were able to give her a fully customized therapist set up was a tremendous influence in her decision since it eased of entry into the field. It was all part of the package, including a sofa for her clients and a desk for herself. This made the mountain of cost and effort of starting a business a little less strenuous.
Javonte specializes in a few different methods depending on the goals of the client she is assisting. She is a huge advocate of CBT (Cognitive Behavioral Therapy) and EMDR (Eye Movement and Reprocessing) and is interested in continuously learning new methods. Being a survivor of childhood trauma herself, therapy was able to put her on the path to recovery. She was able to regain her life and her happiness, also giving her a new mission to help others achieve the same result. Her next goal is to start utilizing the onsite conference rooms for group meetings.
As with most businesses, the Covid-19 pandemic has directly affected her… but not as you may think. Her full-time day job was furloughed in March, and she decided it was time to focus solely on her business. She handed in her resignation shortly after being furloughed. Javonte mentioned this was a giant leap of faith, and many around her questioned her decision because she had a family to support and bills to pay. But, she said it wasn’t as big of a risk as it could have been, as the flexibility in her lease agreement gives her the ability to adjust office space and expenses on a short notice.
Around this time following the pandemic, she saw her client base began to increase. The high unemployment rates, working from home, and the general stress of the situation is one of the contributing factors to the rise in the need of therapists. One of the downsides is the reality that some clients prefer to work virtually, but Javonte really finds it difficult to maintain that level of personal touch when working online and she hopes to resume her in-person meetings soon. She was also doing so well, she decided to upgrade offices in the same building. She moved to a more spacious and centralized location, giving her and her clients more room for social distancing and allowing them easier access to her office.
Javonte is an inspiration to therapists and business owners that want to make the leap to start their own practice but are afraid to take the first step.. These are exactly the stories we love to hear about. We have had the opportunity to watch her grow from a hesitant business plan into successful business owner, and we hope to see her continue to grow her practice into her full dream . Eventually, she would love to have a building to herself, where she could provide therapy and child care to those in need.
To learn more about Javonte and her business, please visit her website at: https://www.letscopecounseling.com/.
