Today we’d like to introduce you to Sarah Suzuki.
Thanks for sharing your story with us Sarah. So, let’s start at the beginning and we can move on from there.
My business had EXTREMELY humble beginnings. I had this vision of working with people who wanted to change their drinking, who also felt like AA wasn’t for them. My “office” was a basement space I rented by the hour in Lincoln Park.
I didn’t mind the space – I was used to doing agency work in community settings where all we had was a room with two chairs. I was thrilled to work with people who wanted to change. That’s my driving purpose. In contrast, my full-time job at a hospital left me doing exclusively administrative tasks removed from behavior change counseling.
One morning, I was riding my bike to work and got clobbered by an SUV running a red light. Since I got hit at an intersection near work, the ambulance brought me to MY hospital. I was a mess. I was bruised up, bleeding. I had a concussion.
The game-changing moment happened when one of my co-workers standing by my hospital bed said, “Do you want me to bring your stuff upstairs for when you’re done?”
This shocked me for two reasons: one, because the idea of working that day was ridiculous, and two because I actually thought about working. I was totally addicted to the non-stop chaos of the hospital, even though it didn’t make me feel happy.
I went on medical leave and thought a lot about what I was doing. I loved my humble counseling business. I didn’t love working for a hospital. So I quit my full-time job and decided to create a business I believed in.
Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
Find me an entrepreneur who claims it’s a smooth road and I will show you a liar! There are so many joys and struggles owning a business. My struggles have been really specific, though.
I had to get honest with myself about how my perspective created major problems: I kept underestimating what I could do. I didn’t realize my “hobby” would become a full-time business in less than one year, but then it did. I figured I would lease my own office after 5 years, but I did that after 18 months.
Then I expanded the practice into a group, figuring we would get a larger space in 3 years. We ended up needing a larger space almost immediately. Underestimating the growth potential of my business created a lot of problems, even though it seemed safer to be cautiously optimistic. Being overly cautious is just as risky as being recklessly optimistic.
Alright – so let’s talk business. Tell us about Chicago Compass Counseling – what should we know?
We are most known for our work with people who are challenged with problem drinking. Almost all of our clients who struggle with problem drinking are new to counseling. Our clients are typically high-achieving professionals who are successful in all areas in their life – except when it comes to drinking. They want focused strategies to create meaningful change.
Our group is highly specialized in helping people who want to change a range of problem behaviors in addition to problem drinking. We work with people who are in recovery and abstaining perfectly well, yet feel unhappy and unfulfilled. We work with young adults who struggle with anxiety, who want a set of strategies and “how” skills to manage stress. We also help people who struggle with behaviors like emotional eating, out of control sexual behavior, drug use, and addictions.
What sets our group apart is that we also serve the family system affected by problem behaviors. There is a lot of suffering the significant other experiences when they love someone who is stuck in a shame cycle of bad behavior. We offer the significant other strategies to be supportive of their loved one while also taking care of themselves and their family.
Our commitment to the family system goes beyond our brick and mortar office and into the community. We are fiercely committed to helping people in the larger Chicago community beyond the Loop. To this end, we do volunteer work and low-bono trainings and partnerships with organizations that serve people in Chicago neighborhoods.
Any shoutouts? Who else deserves credit in this story – who has played a meaningful role?
The biggest shoutout has to go to my brother, LJ Suzuki, who is the founder of CFO share (https://www.cfoshare.org/). He helped me shift from treating my business as a hobby to embracing my potential to grow a serious business. He illuminated how my tendency to underestimate my potential comes from self-limiting beliefs and emotions from our childhood.
We grew up in an environment where the words “risk” and “growth” were scary concepts. LJ gave me a consultant’s perspective with the love of a brother on the objective growth of my business – including missed opportunities.
It’s pretty humbling to have a finance guy confront a therapist on how they are blocking themselves with self-limiting beliefs! LJ has been my rock and voice of reason from day one. I couldn’t be here without him.
Pricing:
- Complimentary Phone Consultation – Free!
- 80-Minute Initial Consultation – $160
- Counseling Session – $160
- Organizational Training – $350+/hr
Contact Info:
- Address: 333 N. Michigan Ave Suite 704 Chicago, IL 60601
- Website: www.chicagocompasscounseling.com
- Phone: (312) 715-8234
- Email: hello@chicagocompasscounseling.com
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/chicagocompass/
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/chicagocompass
- Other: https://www.linkedin.com/company/chicago-compass-counseling-llc
Getting in touch: VoyageChicago is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you know someone who deserves recognition please let us know here.
