Meet Sharon Beam | Licensed Professional Counselor

We had the good fortune of connecting with Sharon Beam and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Sharon, what was your thought process behind starting your own business?
Starting my own business. I thought about it many times before actually doing it. The actual business part of owning a business was not a set of skills I possessed, but after many years of working in multiple settings like hospitals, juvenile detention, residential treatment centers, and other large businesses curiosity outweighed the fear that I couldn’t learn those skills. I decided to jump in with both feet and sink or swim. Five years later, I’m still here.

Can you give our readers an introduction to your business? Maybe you can share a bit about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
My practice is called Aubrey Counseling PLLC, so named for the general area where it is located. It was founded in 2018, where I currently am the only counselor. I serve individuals ages 16 and above, helping them with trauma, anxiety, depression, and ADHD management for adults. I enjoy developing collaborative relationships with clients where they are a member of the treatment team and have much input into what their goals are and how they want to reach them.

I do all the business aspects of the practice myself – which is the hard part for me. Sitting in sessions and working with people is what I love doing and find it comes very naturally to me. Accounting, marketing, and filing insurance – not so much. I learned these things with the sink or swim method, and am swimming along pretty well now after 5 years. I learned to swim those waters from friends and colleagues as well as from professionals offering trainings and consultation.

I’ve been a counselor for 29 years now, which sounds like far longer than it feels. I first became interested in becoming a counselor when working through trauma of my own, and later in learning to understand and manage my ADHD, diagnosed in my 40’s. Starting my own practice was quite scary as I knew I was not great at anything to do with numbers, but I made the leap in 2018 and have really enjoyed it over the last 5 years. When I needed to learn something, I reached out to those I knew could help and I learned what I need to know to run my business.

What I’m most proud of is seeing people heal and find their way to having fulfilling and satisfying lives. Many people ask me how I listen to “people’s problems all day”, but I don’t see it that way. I see the possible outcomes and enjoy helping people find their own solutions and/or ways to manage what brings them to counseling. A lot of that involves helping people learn to give themselves grace, to embrace being imperfect human beings, and to let go of things that may be weighing them down.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
Quite frankly, I’ve gotten pretty rusty at getting out and socializing since the pandemic began and a months long battle with health issues. Now that we are all moving past those things, If my best friend wanted me to show them around, I would take them to Denton and visit The Square with all of its great restaurants, its ice cream shop, and interesting stores. I’d take them to Pilot Point to visit the state park and get out into nature. I might take them horseback riding, one of my favorite things that I used to do regularly. We would venture into Dallas to see the famous skyline and take in a play downtown. And then we would just sit down together somewhere and catch up.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
First, I want to give a shoutout to whomever nominated me for to be included in Voyage Dallas! I don’t know who you are, but whoever you are, I am honored by your thinking I deserved to be here.

Throughout my career, I have learned much from the people around me. Mentors include Troy Brooks, Hal Ritter, and Carolyn McAdoo. In my own personal and career development I owe much gratitude to my therapists and colleagues. These people have taught me and supported me as my career has developed. They include Joleta Edinburgh, Beverly Barker, Rebeca Mata, Tiffany Reves, Lesa Ezell, and Stahr Freedle, to name a few. I believe strongly in counseling and utilize it to keep myself grounded and make my mental health a priority, so a special thanks to those who provided their counseling expertise for me.

Website: https://aubreycounseling.com/