Today we’d like to introduce you to Katie Greenleaf.
Hi Katie, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today.
Sometimes it’s hard to really know where your story starts, you know?
Today, I’m a clinical counselor, practice owner at Anchored Unbound Counseling, Coaching & Consulting, and a mom. I think the most important parts of my story—the parts that give it the most meaning—happened long before I opened my practice in November 2021.
I graduated from college in 2003, having no real idea of what I wanted my career to look like. I chose a pre-law track as my major but came to my senses my senior year when I realized I just had no passion or spark for law. I could’ve changed majors, but I knew I wanted to explore and have time to decide, so I just took my degree and headed somewhere to figure it out.
I remember the moment I realized I wanted to be a therapist. I had been seeing my own therapist in my very early 20s and was just absolutely in awe of this woman whose name was Liz. She was a counseling student and met with clients through her graduate program counseling clinic, which was located on a university campus. There was a camera in the room that recorded our sessions, and Liz explained that her supervisor would also watch our sessions and helped coach Liz as part of her degree program. I felt dread looking at that camera—and at the same time, knew that the $5 sliding scale fee was going to make this option my only one.
I adored Liz, and I absolutely loved counseling. Some time passed, and eventually, Liz told me she would be graduating soon and would not be able to see me anymore. I felt absolutely devastated. I cried and cried. Looking back now, I have NO idea why I didn’t realize that Liz would eventually have to leave grad school someday. That should not have blindsided me…but it did. Before we parted ways, I mustered up the courage to ask her what I had been wondering for a while—whether she thought someone who was in therapy could ever be a therapist like her. I so vividly remember her eyes softening and the look on her face as she told me that, OF COURSE, it was possible. She told me she thought I would make a really good therapist, and because I trusted her, I truly believed her.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way? Looking back, would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
Oh gosh, no.
So, while the road’s been rough at times, when I look over my shoulder, it’s beautiful. I wouldn’t change any of it. Not even one moment.
My kids have really had a heavy influence on where I’m at today and the roads I’ve taken to get here. I had to learn to parent on a whole other plane with both of my kids. My son was diagnosed with ADHD very early, and I struggled to learn and understand factors that influenced his behavior. There was a point where everything seemed to be crumbling at home; every day felt so hard.
During that time, I worked in community mental health with vulnerable populations. Somehow, the most challenging and misunderstood kids always seemed to end up at my door. They still do. And I love them. I realized I couldn’t show up to work with families without a better answer than what I had to offer. It just seemed like the traditional advice given to parents really didn’t cut it for kids who struggle the way my son was struggling. That’s where my path started to become clear. I believe it was not an accident when I stumbled across Dr. Ross Greene and his approach with kids and behavior.
Conventional ‘wisdom’ just doesn’t apply when your child is struggling. Being firm, having more structure, being consistent, behavior charts—they don’t work for kids who have skill deficits that manifest as challenging behavior. And I had to learn that challenging kids require a whole other approach. One that appears on its surface to be soft—‘permissive, coddling, enabling, etc.’ But we need to learn to see kids through their challenges and underdeveloped skills. When we do, it completely changes the way we help them.
The hardest part of my job is so precise in my mind. It’s when I’m sitting with parents, and I know they’re going to have to change the way they see their child. I can see what’s on the other side for them, and it’s beautiful. I see how vivid and rich their relationship with their child could be. But I can see how incredibly difficult and scary it is for them. I have to offer my hand to them and assure them they can trust me to guide them through the dark. I’m asking them to have blind faith in me, and I know how critical my role is in their lives the moment they give me their hand. And when things feel hard, or they have setbacks, I know they’re doubting me. Sometimes that sits very heavy on my shoulders, and I really take that home with me at night. I have to hold onto that faith for them until they can see change and the storm clears for them. I live for the moments when parents sit down in my office and tell me that their lives have changed. Those moments are absolutely worth the risk I take and the heaviness I carry around.
We’ve been impressed with Anchored Unbound Counseling, Coaching & Consulting, but for folks who might not be as familiar, what can you share with them about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
It is so important to me that when clients walk into my practice, they feel comfortable and cared for. Anchored Unbound is a boutique-style practice that is built on a foundation of 15 years of my experience and passion. I’ve created a unique space that was designed to feel like a beautiful and peaceful sanctuary for every client that walks through the door. I wanted my space to communicate to clients that I value and appreciate them. I wanted to choose every detail with thought, especially artwork for the walls. (Clients notice there is a lot of abstract cow artwork, which makes me smile. I always ask, “Have you ever felt sad looking at a cow?” :-))
I offer counseling, coaching, and consulting services for clients of all ages, but what sets me aside from others is my understanding of the place where mental health, child development, parenting, and brain health intersect. When clients come to me for help and are ready to make changes, I get excited for them and try to always make sure I’m working as hard as they are. I’m invested in my clients.
Anchored Unbound Center for Executive Function is unique, designed around brain’s incredible ability to adjust and change. The center offers cutting-edge services to help kids, teens, college students, and adults take charge of daily functioning and build a foundation for success. Interventions offered are current and relevant to the challenges today’s adults and students are facing.
Systemic change is important to me. I’ll always consider myself an advocate for not only challenging kids but all kids. I do trainings and talks for teachers and school administration, mental health counselors, social workers, and business professionals.
What do you think about luck?
I have such a strong sense that wherever I find myself today, it’s where I’m supposed to be. So, all of the twists and turns that came before today have served me well, even if they came out of disappointments, failures, hardships, and setbacks. I truly believe I am living my purpose through my work, and I’m content to accept that even when my path doesn’t seem like the one I had hoped for, it’s still mine. The highs would not feel as joyful without the lows, and the lows would not provide such meaningful reflection without the highs. That’s my peace.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.anchoredunbound.com
- Instagram: anchoredunbound
- Facebook: www.facebook.com/anchoredunbound
- Linkedin: www.linkedin.com/in/KatieGreenleaf
