Pushing Boundaries of Comfort Take You To The Next Level
Staying comfortable gets you nowhere
Didn't school just let our earlier this month? It sure seems like it with some schools starting next week. Speaking of schooling and in turn breaking out of your comfort zone, Fotis Georgiadis recently interviewed Carter Barnhart, Newport Academy’s Chief Experience Officer (CXO), a portion of which is below:
Thank you for joining us! Can you tell us a story about what brought you to this specific career path?
In my early teens, I was too unsure of myself to find my place, let alone compete academically and socially. I was bullied, which caused tremendous anxiety. Anxiety turned into depression. Depression turned into acting out. My parents became concerned and contacted a therapist, who connected them with Jamison Monroe Jr., founder of Newport Academy. He had just opened the original location in California. My parents enrolled me in the program and after 45 days there, I felt a new sense of confidence. Newport was like a “life academy” for me. I learned how to love myself, be vulnerable, and connect authentically with others. I learned to study and manage my time. After Newport Academy, I returned to high school and was much more engaged. I was a better student, family member, friend, and community member. In college, I experimented with a few internships — a venture fund, retail, etc., but I spent most of my free time outside of the classroom and the office, playing therapist and life coach to my friends. I was the go-to person for advice when anyone was struggling. I began to realize that my true calling was helping people. In 2011, my sophomore year, I reached out to Jamison and asked him if I could come back to Newport Academy, this time as part of the team. And the rest is history! Read the rest of the interview here.1
In the above section of the interview, we see Fotis Georgiadis pulling the reader in, and in turn increased social media presence. The below excerpt from Fotis Georgiadis' recent interview with Rachel Kazez, LCSW puts everything front and center.
According to Mental Health America’s report, over 44 million Americans have a mental health condition. Yet there’s still a stigma about mental illness. Can you share a few reasons you think this is so?
1. Perhaps most of all, I think there’s a lack of understanding about what mental illness and therapy are actually like. Many conversations and media representations are based on untrue stereotypes. If the stereotypes were all true — for example if movie therapists were what therapy is really like (ew), or everyone with a mental illness were solely seeking attention — then maybe I’d stigmatize it, too!
2. Shame, guilt, and low self esteem are a big part of many presentations of mental illness. Mental illnesses increase vulnerability. So we may associate shame and vulnerability with MI, leading to stigma on societal, interpersonal, and internal levels. “Having strong emotions makes me feel weak and expressing them makes me feel guilty. That person is weak for being upset and they should feel bad.”
3. Stigma toward mental illness is based in fear, similar to how “homophobia” contains the root “phobia” meaning “fear.” “That looks scary and bad. I don’t want it. That person must be bad, otherwise this would be unfair. That makes it fair that they have that. I’m not bad, so I won’t get it.”
4. Mental illness is invisible. Like many invisible illnesses, it’s easy to misunderstand. We see someone with a broken leg in a cast and know they need crutches and time to heal, but sometimes people think that mental health disorders are a choice or something that someone can “just snap out of.” And because it pervasively affects someone’s approach to the world, that can seem like a character flaw rather than an illness. “That person reacts to emotions differently from how I think is normal. There’s something wrong with them. It’s their fault.” - The full interview can be read here.2
In closing, we see Fotis Georgiadis taking the reader 'behind the curtain' and into the full interviews. This is part of the social media strategy that Fotis Georgiadis brings to his clients.
About Fotis Georgiadis
Fotis Georgiadis is the founder of DigitalDayLab. Fotis Georgiadis is a serial entrepreneur with offices in both Malibu and New York City. He has expertise in marketing, branding and mergers & acquisitions. Fotis Georgiadis is also an accomplished VC who has successfully concluded five exits. Fotis Georgiadis is also a contributor to Authority Magazine, Thrive Global & several others.
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1 https://www.fotisgeorgiadis.com/i-believe-in-360-degree-feedback-with-carter-barnhart-and-fotis-georgiadis/
2 https://www.fotisgeorgiadis.com/why-its-important-to-try-new-things-and-get-out-of-your-comfort-zone/