13 Jul HERSTORY: Joyce Bracey, Ed.D., LPC, NCC
When I was a kid and adults would ask me what I wanted to be when I grew up, I would say, “I just want to help people.” I had no idea what shape that might take, but I pursued a master’s degree in counseling which took forever to complete because I took detours to have children, moved back and forth across the country, coped with rebuilding my city after Hurricane Katrina, and wholeheartedly tackled all sorts of seemingly unrelated ventures to make ends meet. Just by being open to opportunity and following my gut, I accidentally developed a specialty for opening restaurants, which accidentally led to running a non-profit food and wine festival. By the grace of God and thanks to a board of directors who took a leap of faith, my mismatched set of leadership skills and counseling background accidentally led me to the most incredibly fulfilling career as a non-profit CEO in the addiction field.
I have always had a strong intuition and a little inner voice that whispered, “You can do it.” Of course, it is easy to confuse intuition with fear or hope when life gets overwhelming, and there were many times I answered my inner voice with, “No, I can’t.”
I had secret, giant dreams for myself that seemed to be way too much to ask of the universe. I had always wanted to get a Doctorate-but there’s no way I could write a dissertation. I always wanted to be a painter-but I couldn’t even draw. I always wanted to travel the world-but I can’t afford flights that last more than four hours! I always wanted to write a book-but what do I have to say that people will want to read?
So, I set those big dreams aside, and I continued enjoying my life of “helping people” with my career that “accidentally” appeared on my path, largely ignoring my little, “You can do it” voice.
Until one Thursday afternoon in 2019, someone told me about a Doctor of Education in Executive Leadership program at a university near my house. My intuition was overwhelmingly clear, and my inner voice would not stop… “YOU CAN DO IT.” Five days later, I was sitting in a classroom. And as time passed… I finished the courses and wrote the dissertation chapters one by one… until it was done. I became Dr. Bracey a year ago.
And at first, nothing changed.
But then my little inner voice started whispering again… and the whisper became a shout. Now it was saying, “SEE? YOU DID IT. YOU CAN DO ANYTHING. GO FOR IT.”
So, now I’ve finished two semesters of oil painting classes at art school. Dare I say, “I am a painter?” I paint. I love painting, and I think my world is a little more interesting because my art is around me. So yeah, I’m a painter.
I haven’t left the country in 12 years, but I’ve learned over 500 words of French in the past two months, and I have been brushing up on my Spanish. My intuition tells me that I’m going places.
With my new-found commitment to believing in myself, I have been extraordinarily open to my own creative ideas, and to exchanging ideas with all of the smart, creative, supportive people around me. I have followed every intuition, even tracked down strange clues from nightly dreams. I have openly awaited God’s nudges and pursued every opportunity without hesitation.
In spite of quiet fears, I have followed all of the breadcrumbs from the universe, and it has led me to found an organizational culture consulting business, Bracey Solutions, where I help leaders assess and improve their workplace cultures. Through that company, on July 30, I am hosting a therapeutic women’s day retreat called, “The Magic of Connection” that can only be described as divinely inspired. I saw a universal need for connection after years of pandemic isolation, and I felt a calling, so, on a leap of faith, I started taking steps to plan a retreat. Collaboration and creativity fell into place. The nudges have been forceful-the inner voice loud. Plans for future retreats are in motion-and I am even thinking of traveling to other cities to host them.
The retreat is going to be a good experience for the participants. My role will be to teach, to use my gift for connecting, and to facilitate while women share and teach one another. But I already know that I will learn so much from all of the women who show up and allow me to be part of their personal growth. My hunch is that I will learn so much by spending time facilitating women’s connection, creativity, and growth, that maybe one day, it’ll be worth writing a whole book about.
My inner intuitive voice is saying, “Yep. You can do this, too. It is good. It will work. Keep going. You belong here and you have a purpose.”
My fearful inner critic is saying, “You are admitting that you have big dreams… PUBLICLY!? Who do you think you are? You are going to humiliate yourself into oblivion because you are not worthy.”
I think I know which voice I should give credence to. Which inner voice of yours do you hear the loudest?
On July 30th, a unique, brave, and beautiful group of women will work together to learn which inner voice to ignore and which to trust. They will make way for connection to their true selves and to others, and it’s going to be pure magic.
For more information about the retreat or consulting click here.
Joyce Bracey, Ed.D., LPC, NCC is the President & CEO of CADA Prevention & Recovery Center, and the Founder and Lead Consultant at Bracey Solutions. She graduated with her Bachelor of Integrated Studies from the University of New Orleans in 1997. There, she also earned her Master of Education in Counselor Education in 2008. She attained her Doctor of Education in Executive Leadership at the University of Holy Cross in New Orleans, LA, in 2021, where she conducted her dissertation research on the use of employee voice to bring about equitable organizational culture change.
Dr. Bracey is a Licensed Professional Counselor, a National Certified Counselor, and has used her education and experience in service to her community for over 20 years. She is the mother of four amazing humans and two lovable doggies. She lives in New Orleans where she has recently become a painter, even though her inner critic forbade it.
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