Exploring Life & Business with Adam Sholder of Insight Enrichment Group & A Gap In The Forest

Today we’d like to introduce you to Adam Sholder.

Adam, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
My mother was convinced, going all the way back to when I was young, that I would work in the field of mental health. She always felt I was a “people person” and others felt at ease around me, comfortable in opening up and sharing, I had different ideas for myself – I was a musician, an actor, a “creative.” I had no intention of following my mother’s suggestions and the line of work for which she though I was destined. My mother was right. I started my professional career as an educator and quickly realized that I did not belong in the typical classroom but rather in alternative education, working with students who were struggling to overcome unique challenges and obstacles. Those whom without additional and individualized support were likely to fall through the proverbial cracks. These were my people, and I discovered a passion within myself in being of service to those who were marginalized, stigmatized, and otherwise disenfranchised. That “ah-ha!” moment came for me when I realized that I could use my own lived experience to make a meaningful difference in other people’s lives.

My lived experience comes from growing up in a family where mental health conditions seemed to be a birthright. Depression, anxiety, OCD, personality disorders, schizophrenia, addiction… these mental health conditions ran through my immediate family with reckless abandon, and I found myself living with anxiety for as long as I can remember. Add to this two significant events life events: A) the discovery of a long-lost Aunt who had been secreted away since her immigrant youth due to schizophrenia, and, B) seeing the movie One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest for the first time… and my mother’s prediction was now my personal mission. As my career advanced, I segued from working in alternative education to working in alternative mental health, developing programs to help individuals living with mental health conditions live more independent, more fulfilling lives. It became my mission to help others live to their potential by teaching life skills, helping to build meaningful structure, assisting with personal goals, and helping to establish connections with others. I began collaborating with talented and genuinely caring therapists, psychiatrists, and other mental health professionals to create a strong network of support for my clients. I found myself truly driven to help my clients find their purpose, their place, and their people. However, even though I was able to build a successful business, Insight Enrichment Group, around this model of psychosocial rehabilitation, there was still something missing.

While I had established an amazing team of mental health coaches, case managers, and peer mentors who worked one-on-one with our clients, I came to realize that in addition to helping our clients find opportunities, we could help them create opportunities. It is so crucial that individuals living with a mental health condition are not defined by that condition but rather by their character and who they are as people. So many of my clients are not afforded that chance, despite being amazing, intelligent, caring, talented, artistic, inspiring individuals. I decided to connect many of my clients with each other, establishing a non-profit, A Gap In The Forest, as a home for a creative community for young adults living with mental health conditions. While still just a start-up, A Gap In The Forest is well on their way to publishing a mixed media art and poetry book of all original material, scheduled to be released in time for Mental Health Month this May. They are also in production on a documentary about mental health and empathy, as well as developing free workshops run by and for people with lived experience. I am glad I listed to my mother (eventually), as I am truly grateful to be able to be of service to so many amazing individuals and to help establish community and opportunity for those living with a mental health condition. And I’m so proud of the amazing team that I’m privileged to work with every day, including the staff of Insight Enrichment Group and the peer mentors and volunteers that are doing such important work at A Gap In The Forest.

We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
I don’t necessarily believe that is a mutually exclusive journey, meaning I feel I have had extremely good fortune while still facing challenges and struggles along the way. I think my greatest struggles have been my own insecurities and self-doubt. I put a lot of pressure on myself as I feel enormous personal responsibility to be of service to my clients, my staff, and the mental health community. I also tend to “take on” many of my client’s struggles, which can fuel my own anxieties and take is toll on my physical and mental health. Yet, I feel truly blessed and grateful for being able to do what I do and to have been able to provide our services for 17 years in Los Angeles. I feel that we have been able to help so many people build purposeful and meaningful lives that it makes any struggle along the way well worth it!

Thanks – so what else should our readers know about Insight Enrichment Group & A Gap In The Forest?
Technically, or clinically speaking, Insight Enrichment Group provides psychosocial rehabilitation. We assist individuals living with a wide range of mental health conditions by providing support, accountability, practical skills coaching, and case management. Our goal is to help our clients achieve their personal goals by building self-sufficiency, resilience, independence, and a purposeful life. I am very proud of the work our team has done over the years, assisting hundreds of individuals complete their degrees, find employment, live independently, make social connections, pursue creative goals, and live a healthy, balanced, and meaningful life. I am most proud of our new non-profit, A Gap In The Forest, a creative community of mental health advocates with lived experience. This is a peer-led organization providing community and opportunity, empathy and connection, and meaningful creative activism. I am so proud and impressed with all of the work they are doing to foster more awareness about mental health and to promote empathy throughout our community.

Are there any books, apps, podcasts or blogs that help you do your best?
One of the most valuable resources out there for individuals living with a mental health condition is the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI). They offer support groups for individuals with lived experience and for their families. They offer educational classes about mental health and have an abundance of resources and amazing people to help navigate the challenges and frustrations and trauma associated with mental health conditions. I think there are many good tools to help foster good habits, and there are several apps that are great when it comes to two of the most important skills to master – time-management and money-management. When managed effectively, time and money, like any resource, will go a lot further. I have seen so many people suffer through unnecessary stress and anxiety due to the mismanagement of these two valuable resources. I consider using a calendar a “roadmap to your intentions” and I really like Google Calendar as a great tool for this. It’s flexible, user-friendly, and can be customized to be used the way it works best for you, integrating it with to-do tasks and reminders. There are many great budgeting apps out there as well, including Mint which can help track spending and budgets automatically. However, like any tool or resource, it’s more than just having it on hand, we must use these tools wisely, consistently, and efficiently to make a positive difference in our lives.

Contact Info:

• Email: info@insightenrichment.com
• Website: www.insightenrichment.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/insightenrichmentgroup/?hl=en
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/insightenrichment/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/enrichmentgroup?lang=en
• Other: www.agapintheforest.org