Community Highlights: Meet Eric Weaver of New Harbor Counseling and Psychological Services

Today we’d like to introduce you to Eric Weaver.

Eric, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
Fresh out of Grad School in 2005, it was difficult to find a private practice that was accepting interns to work under a licensed therapist. My heart’s desire was to build my own practice after gleaning the wisdom and direction of a more seasoned mentor, so this reality was incredibly disappointing. I never let go of this goal while spending years at a community mental health agency as a therapist to foster care youth, a clinical supervisor overseeing clinical cases of my therapeutic team, and ultimately becoming the Program Supervisor of that foster care program. I then transitioned to the role of a Clinical Care/Crisis Manager for Azusa Pacific University’s counseling center, but during all of this time I was growing my private practice in the evenings. I had the forethought to name the business New Harbor Counseling so that I could have some scalability beyond myself, however, what became clear was that I was well trained to be a therapist and sorely underprepared to run a business. Through years of successes and failures I slowly began to acquire the insights and disciplines of what was needed to run a business and engage in the nuanced and delicate tension of negotiating fees and payments from clients. In 2017 the growth of my practice had reached a tipping point and a leap of faith was required to transition to a full time private practice. I quickly began looking to provide the opportunity of working under a seasoned therapist that I deeply desired straight out of Grad School, so I hired a couple of associates to work under my license and develop their own practice. After 6 fulfilliing years of employing and developing the next generation of healers, I realized that I had the resources and understanding to create an Administrative Management Company that offers all of the services needed to run a turn-key private practice for licensed therapists. We provide the support, and handle the stressors of the business side of running a private practice, so that the therapists can do what they were trained to do best…focus on the care of their clients.

We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
The road has been difficult but incredibly rewarding. I didn’t have a guide to help with the intial jitters of negotiating fees for service when talking with a potential client, what to look for when signing a lease, or the important distinctions of how you structure and market your business. There was a steep learning curve when it came to employing associates and the different legal requirements of the state and federal oversights. It has been, and still continues to very much be, the case of “building it while you are flying it” and learning in front of people. Tolerating that vulnerable exposure that I don’t have all of the answers, and I am not able to anticipate all of the problems ahead of time, has been one of the biggest areas of personal growth for me. It’s also very helpful that my team members are all therapists and have been very understanding!

Great, so let’s talk business. Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
We are an Administrative Management Company that provides support and services to therapists allowing them to run their own turn-key private practice without the stress and hassle of the business side of private practice ownership. As a result of that, we are a team of highly trained, focused, and experienced clinicians that provide in-person and video therapy sessions addressing the impacts of trauma, neurodivergence, depression, anxiety, infidelity, addiction, as well as, the needs present in children, couples, and families. We are a company that has the unique ability to serve both the needs of the public with highly skilled care and therapists with the highest level of professional resources. This is what sets us apart. The result is a reduction in stress and anxiety for the clients and the clinicians. The consistent feedback is that coming to New Harbor Counseling and Psychological Services feels warm and inviting from both sides of the aisle.

What do you like best about our city? What do you like least?
The strengths and challenges of our city are two sides to the same coin. Glendora is a unique gem of a city. Small, family oriented, with a strong sense of community. The activities during the holidays like the holiday stroll and wine walk, to the concerts and movies in the park during the summer are so much fun. People here know each other well, often times from grade school, and they look after each other…there is so much strength and beauty in those connections. The challenge with being a therapist in a small city is the tension of navigating the need to avoid dual relationships. Sports teams where you may have a client’s child on the same team as your child, attending a church where clients may also attend, or social connections where your personal friendships will interact with your professional relationships can become a bit sticky, but I wouldn’t change a thing.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.newharborcounseling.com
• Instagram: newharborcounseling
• Facebook: New Harbor Counseling

Image Credits
Jesse Stone