“The path to our destination is not always a straight one. We go down the wrong road, we get lost, we turn back. Maybe it doesn’t matter which road we embark on. Maybe what matters is that we embark.” — Barbara Hall
Beginnings are never easy. The idea of taking that first step is daunting, and the same can be said when one breaks away from other people's expectations and opts to forge their own path. In business, there will always be unknowns and dilemmas that can potentially slow you down, but what matters most is being able to rebuild, pivot, and incorporate new things.
A business owner is always willing to learn and is open to mentoring, collaboration, and starting over when necessary. These factors are parts of a process that allows you to build strong relationships, sharpen your business acumen, and embody your core values to realize your dreams.
In this episode, I am joined by Gilza Fort-Martinez, a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist (LMFT) and the founder of Resolution Counseling Center in Miami, Florida. Listen to our conversation where she highlights her experience of learning when to break free and start "doing your own thing." She shares inspiring stories of her entrepreneurial journey and the importance of sharing her knowledge as a mentor who has helped many aspiring women clinicians start their own therapy practices.
We also discussed the importance of having a clear business vision, resting as a means of restoring creativity and improving sleeping habits, and why trusting uncertainty is a practice we should all embrace.
Thriving Points:
Get to Know the Guest:
Gilza Fort-Martinez is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist — or LMFT — and founder of Resolution Counseling Center, her private practice in Miami, Florida. With over 25 years of practice, Gilza’s specialty areas include women’s transitions, conflict resolution, life transitions, dating and relationships, infidelity, and coping skills. She gives talks on various mental health subjects, such as stress management, leadership and team building, and goal setting.
Connect with Gilza:
A Team Dklutr Production
“The path to our destination is not always a straight one. We go down the wrong road, we get lost, we turn back. Maybe it doesn’t matter which road we embark on. Maybe what matters is that we embark.” — Barbara Hall
Beginnings are never easy. The idea of taking that first step is daunting, and the same can be said when one breaks away from other people's expectations and opts to forge their own path. In business, there will always be unknowns and dilemmas that can potentially slow you down, but what matters most is being able to rebuild, pivot, and incorporate new things.
A business owner is always willing to learn and is open to mentoring, collaboration, and starting over when necessary. These factors are parts of a process that allows you to build strong relationships, sharpen your business acumen, and embody your core values to realize your dreams.
In this episode, I am joined by Gilza Fort-Martinez, a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist (LMFT) and the founder of Resolution Counseling Center in Miami, Florida. Listen to our conversation where she highlights her experience of learning when to break free and start "doing your own thing." She shares inspiring stories of her entrepreneurial journey and the importance of sharing her knowledge as a mentor who has helped many aspiring women clinicians start their own therapy practices.
We also discussed the importance of having a clear business vision, resting as a means of restoring creativity and improving sleeping habits, and why trusting uncertainty is a practice we should all embrace.
Thriving Points:
Get to Know the Guest:
Gilza Fort-Martinez is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist — or LMFT — and founder of Resolution Counseling Center, her private practice in Miami, Florida. With over 25 years of practice, Gilza’s specialty areas include women’s transitions, conflict resolution, life transitions, dating and relationships, infidelity, and coping skills. She gives talks on various mental health subjects, such as stress management, leadership and team building, and goal setting.
Connect with Gilza:
A Team Dklutr Production
Nikki Rogers: Your business is an asset that can support a thriving life. I believe this, and I'm committed to making this a reality for every entrepreneur and business owner who listens to this podcast. The Women Thriving in Business Podcast was created with you in mind, whether you were thinking about entrepreneurship or you're a business veteran, this podcast has inspiration, information, and advice you can use to thrive in business.
Women Thriving in Business features candid, unscripted conversations with entrepreneurs, business experts, authors, and academics who will contribute to your business success. I seek out and talk with business leaders who have built, grown, and thrive in business. My name is Nikki Rogers, transformation coach, author, and the host of the Women Thriving in Business Podcast. I work with women entrepreneurs to develop the mindset, strategies, and connections necessary to thrive in business. Join me and your fellow Thrivers each week on this journey of discovery and success.
Welcome Thrivers to this week's episode of Women Thriving in Business Podcast. My guest today is Gilza Fort-Martinez, who is the founder of Resolution Counseling Center. Our discussion today was wide-ranging. And one of the things that we talked about was not only mindset but also how important it is to leverage your mindset and over to overcome naysayers or those people who would place limitations on your possibilities as you're getting started as an entrepreneur. Gilza and I talked about the importance of mentors and great mentors, and how they can help shape your career as well as collaborators that you should definitely seek out as you're starting to grow and build and sustain your business.
Another topic that we touched on was the importance of rest and how rest is essential to business success so that you don't burn out or become overwhelmed by all the things that you have to do in your business. And we also talked about a really important point is that you should realize that you always have the power to walk away from people or circumstances that are no longer serving you. And that you can walk away and start over again should you need to.
I just can't wait for you to listen to this episode, get some good nuggets of information from our discussion, and leverage them to continue to thrive in business. So here's a bit about Gilza. Gilza Fort-Martinez is a bilingual licensed Marriage and Family Therapist with over 30 years of experience in conflict resolution, improving interpersonal relationships, and navigating life transitions. Gilza specializes in family therapy, women's transitions, and marital and premarital therapy. As the founder of Resolution Counseling Center, Gilza has focused on collaborating and encouraging other women therapists to start and thrive in their own practices. She has experience in public speaking and leading workshops for corporations and organizations about a wide range of topics including stress and conflict management, improving communication effectiveness, and leadership. So I invite you to listen to today's episode to help you start thinking about what's next for you, both in life and in business. Let's go.
Welcome Thrivers to this week's episode of Women Thriving in Business Podcast. My guest today is Gilza Fort-Martinez, who is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist and the founder of Resolution Counseling Center in Miami, Florida. Welcome, Gilza.
Gilza Fort-Martinez: Thank you so much. And I appreciate it.
Nikki Rogers: Great. So tell us about your business, and what got you started on your entrepreneurial journey?
Gilza Fort-Martinez: Well, as you said, Nikki, I'm a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist in Miami, Florida. And I've been practicing for over 25 years. There's a couple of strands to my story. My father was an attorney and was gung ho on me being an attorney, and that's what I was supposed to do. And I promise you that I tried. I changed my major a couple of times in college and all that. But finally, around my junior year of college, I really felt that what was calling me was psychology and being able to help people. What changed my dad's mind was, he helped people in one way, I wanted to help them in this other way, a little bit more from a soul level. And he wanted to do this a little bit more from the legal perspective. So pretty much from the get-go in Florida and like in a lot of states, we have to do internships and we have to do a variety of credentialing in order to get licensed then be able to actually hang a shingle and do our own thing.
But I was told from almost the get-go, you need to go into a hospital, you need to work in a community mental health center, you're not going to be able to make a living in private practice. And I never quite understood that, so I forged and did some of the steps that we have to do at the beginning. And then at a certain point, I was introduced to a woman and to her partner, two psychologists who said to me, of course, you can do this. We've been doing it for a long time. And they mentored me and helped me to not only get licensed but actually, create a business model and get started. And so, here I am after so many naysayers 25-30 years ago. Resolution Counseling is, as they say, women-owned and run in Miami. Still a minority, both as a woman and as Hispanic. My parents are of Cuban descent, and I have been able to give back in the same way that this woman, Stephanie, and her partner, Frank, did for me.
I've mentored many particularly women, help them to get licensed, start their practices, just really launch many of them as if they were my little kids because they were 20, 25, 26 years old coming out of graduate school. my story definitely has been one of, "why can't I do that?" and "let me try it anyway" and "worst-case scenario", "I've got a license so go get a job somewhere," that kind of mindset that really got me here though. That really got me here. That just, well, you know, put one foot in front of the other. Worst case scenario, you go get a job at a hospital or a clinic.
Nikki Rogers: I love that you were rejecting the status quo and really leaning into the possibilities of, you've gotten this specific training. And think what she said in your head is like, I can do this on my own. I don't have to follow the path that's laid out before me.
Gilza Fort-Martinez: Correct. Correct. And I mentioned the mentors that I had there at the beginning, if we pay attention to the people who come across us in our life or that we come across, there are many people that mentor us. But these two particular people, 25 or 30 years older than me at that point in time, I was this Hispanic girl that was saying, like you're saying, really leaning into all of the possibilities. And they were saying to me, yes. And so mentoring to me has always been a really big piece of my business, both formally and in the sense of providing supervision for interns at the master's level, at the Ph.D. level, but also informally.
People who later became more of my friends that I would say to them, why can't you? If I did it, why can't you? And the competition is great. There's nothing wrong with you opening your office two blocks down. You're going to do a different type of work than I do. You're going to bring a different kind of energy to your clients. We could collaborate. So those two people really helped me to really take a look at the idea of mentoring, of collaborating, being creative even within a world of psychotherapy that there are certain principles and ethics, and so forth that we have to do. So it's been an interesting journey.
Nikki Rogers: So you touched on two things that I think are very important for entrepreneurs. One is the aspect of mentoring and also the fact that competition is good. So I think the lesson in that is that if there's something that you want to do, one, go out and find someone who's already doing that. Because it sounds like, if they're anything like you, they're going to be willing to provide that mentorship and guidance and really help you. Not necessarily not make mistakes, but not make old mistakes. So you get to make new mistakes.
Gilza Fort-Martinez: Your own mistakes. Your own unique mistakes.
Nikki Rogers: And this idea of helping others, goes along with the mentoring. But I think a lot of us look around at our peers and think, one, there's a lot of people already doing what I want to do. Or someone new coming in is going to be competition. But you talked about folks being collaborators and really bringing something new to the party. So can you talk a bit about how you have collaborated throughout the years? And then we talked before and you've talked about having different associates in your practice and really, each of you all bringing your own unique skill sets to the table. Can you talk a bit about how you've been able to cultivate those types of relationships and how you suggest entrepreneurs go about doing that as they build their businesses?
Gilza Fort-Martinez: I really do think it's a crucial mindset in all of this. Nikki, I really think it's important that as an entrepreneur, you think in broad terms regardless of your industry, but that you really think about how, sometimes it's not just that more is better, but it's, what kind of more? So I wanted from the get-go to create a bit of a comprehensive practice, the kind of office that could offer a variety of services and not all done by me, obviously. So put together in the early years. Mostly women-run group, but definitely, we've had our male contemporaries and colleagues that have come in. But really wanted to put together people who worked and thought similarly to me. As a Marriage and Family Therapists, my focus was always working with parents, working with the couples, what I consider the apex of the triangle, so to speak.
But of course, there's the rest of the family, whether it's extended family or children. So I brought in associates, partners who had different levels and interests of expertise. And so we were able to have and work with whether it was the court system or the juvenile system. Whichever piece we were needing to do, we were able to have, okay so my partner saw the kids in the office next door. While I was working with the parents, we were able to then do a comprehensive report to whoever the outside party was. I encourage entrepreneurs to bring in people who, not think the same as you, but at least similarly. Somewhere along your path. I don't want the same, I want people who when I have had people have said to me, no, no, no, no, that's not going to work. And then a good productive debate ensues, and we're able to really come up with something, whether it was a program or an intervention for one particular family that was really much more effective than the wrong one.
So I encourage entrepreneurs. Yes, bring people in, that are a little bit different than you. Diversity is really a good thing. Ask for information, and then be willing to share information. My interns, many are now licensed clinicians themselves. One of the things that they will tell you about me is that I was always willing to share whatever my little tricks of the trade either in keeping a family, in managing a case, in doing the business part of therapy. So sharing information. And then I'm always willing to learn, Nikki. I want to have people who come in here who are, let's say now, starting clinicians. So women in their thirties who come in and say, well, Gilza, have you thought about this? And I'm like, well, I don't even know what that is. So enlightened me. And so I find that to be part of my stimulation.
And then after almost 30 years, I still like not only what I do, working with therapy with families who are in crisis, who are in transition, but also, I still like this whole idea of, okay, these little four walls are mine and I have all of the space that's there. So it's still something that is stimulating and brings me interest and passion.
Nikki Rogers: I really loved that you said that last part, because I think, for me, one of the things about thriving in business or the definition of thriving is that you're working in your purpose. You're working with people that you love. That's just a great reminder because I think one of the things as an entrepreneur is you're always going to be asking yourself. There are going to be days when you're like, why am I doing this?
Gilza Fort-Martinez: Exactly.
Nikki Rogers: And you have to remember your tangible reasons why or even the intangibles. But you have to have that as what is pulling you forward and what's making you get out of bed every day because every day is not going to be easy.
Gilza Fort-Martinez: Absolutely. The overall purpose, as you said, and intentionally really stepping into it. Really intentionally stepping into it. A lot of them will say to me, especially the newer clinicians, of course, will say, well, but I don't know. What if I can't pay my bills? And why would anybody want to come to see me when they could see you? We've been around longer. Just remember that those are questions. Those are like age-old questions. You're asking them now with me, but I asked them of my peers 25 years ago. So the questions are the same in that sense, and the anxiety and the worry are similar. And what I usually tell my interns who are thinking, do you think I can do this in private practice? I say, yes. You lean into the uncertainty. You lean into the questions that you have. And then what you don't know, my father used to always tell me, Nikki, you're not supposed to know everything in the world. You're not supposed to have all the answers. What you have to know how to do is to know where to go get the information, where to go get the answers, who to go get the answers from.
So again, that's about collaboration and being open to learning and reaching out to the networking concept. I encourage new entrepreneurs to surround themselves with people who fill them up or are going to be frank, encouraging of this. You need one or two naysayers. You need to have one or two of the cup half empty or of the pessimists. You do because they help us to take a look at the potential potholes in the road or the obstacles. We can't have too many of these because, as you said, we won't get out of bed. But a couple of them help us to problem solve, brainstorm, and all of that.
Nikki Rogers: Your father's statement around leaning into the uncertainty, and you adding lean into the questions. I think that's so profound. And sometimes, you don't even know what questions to ask and see who actually started doing the thing. The questions that you're asking most of the time before you get started, they're not the right questions. And it's like, those answers only get you, they give you maybe some sense of safety or security. But once you get started doing the thing and in this case, starting a business, there are so many other questions that come forward.
Gilza Fort-Martinez: Right. And like in any other business, you go into a business doing, like you said, what you love. But then there's the business of running that business. And that's the part that often scares at least in my field because we go to graduate school. And I don't think that's changed much even from when I was in graduate school. Nobody teaches us the business side. There's only one business or marketing course in graduate school for us as clinicians, as psychotherapists. So we come out with good theoretical background, excellent training, internship opportunities where we really get into doing the work that we want to do. But we have no idea that we have to get occupational licenses, business licenses, that it might be about location, but it might not be about location in our case. So we have no idea of those kinds of things. And that's where I really talk a lot with my interns anyway. When I do supervision, I do a part that has to do with their cases. So they bring families that they have questions about or particular populations or whatever.
And then I do a whole other part that has to do with, okay, you're in an agency. Got it. You have your infrastructure created for you. But talk to me about what your business plan is while you are in this agency. And I'm old school on some of those things because, you know, my kids don't even know. My kids are 27 and 21, Nikki, and they don't even know what a business card is. I tell my interns, you still need a good old-fashioned business card. Something that you can hand people. And even though, again, millennials don't always want any kind of paper or anything. That's fine. Let them take a picture of your business card, but they have all your information. So something as simple sometimes as the creation of a business card, the creation of some kind of a pamphlet or brochure, whether it's digital or on paper, those kinds of business things, very often, we're not taught that. So we might know what we're doing and can be a really excellent clinician, but we don't know necessarily how to tell people that we're there.
Nikki Rogers: Right, and I think the business card or the pamphlet has a psychological influence on you in taking the business seriously. Even if you've never handed it out, it's just the fact that you have that tangible thing that says, I'm in business.
Gilza Fort-Martinez: Exactly. I agree with you.
Nikki Rogers: It is old school, but I think it's very powerful having this evidence that says, I'm doing the thing that I say I'm doing.
Gilza Fort-Martinez: Exactly. That's a great point.
Nikki Rogers: Gilza, as you think back over your time in business, what would you say would be the top one or two challenges that you faced after you got started and as you've built your business and evolved over time?
Gilza Fort-Martinez: I'll share with you one kind of interpersonal and then one kind of business. The business challenge, for me, the biggest pieces, as we were talking about, Nikki, is really just learning all of this kind of stuff. The basics of setting up an actual office and what I have to do, and then getting systems in place, kinds of systems that are used now. Digitally, obviously, this is not how I started. I started with a ledger book and a box of receipts that I would dump on my accountant's desk at the end of the year. And he hated watching me come into his office with that little shoebox of mine. So the systems are obviously different. And that has been a big challenge for me over the years, is really trying to stay. That business numbers part is not my forte. So really being able to stay on top of it or know then again, how and to whom to outsource it. And to really learn than the technology, to stay up with. The pandemic forced me fully to go into this virtual world of doing therapy because this was not my practice 18 months ago. I had been gradually dipping my toe into that but had not really done that.
So the business pieces have always been challenging. Learning, staying on top of it. As you said, some days, I just wanted to keep the blanket over my head and say, forget it. I don't want to learn one more thing. I just don't want to learn anyone more thing. And then getting myself up and dusting myself off. So I think that's going to be something that will always follow me and what I have tried to do, honestly, this is my biggest piece of advice business-wise is you get yourself a team. You find somebody that tells you what you don't know, and be okay with not knowing everything. There are some things that I don't want to learn. You just tell me how to do it, but I don't want to know how it works or why it works that way or anything like that. So having a team, whether it's in marketing, whether it's in the accounting, whether it's in the legal, all of the other pieces that I don't do, that's not what I do. So that's been a big learning process.
Interpersonally, I'll tell you that the biggest challenge I had interpersonally was five or six years into starting my practice, probably the mid to late nineties. I had a falling out with one of those original mentors. And it was very impactful for me because she had been extraordinarily kind and giving. And feel like I've tried to model a lot of my things. At the same time, her style was a bit more scattered than mine was. And so, it would create a great deal of anxiety for me at times. So she and I had a falling out where we went our separate ways, and that was really hard for me. I had a lot of emotions surrounding that. Her male partner went with me, so I had some guilt about that. And he and I really are the ones that created Resolution Counseling, because when I worked with them, obviously, I was under their names. So that was hard to be appreciative of everything that she had offered me and taught me, and at the same time feel like, okay, it was time for me to do my own thing. It was a struggle there to really get. And then about three years after we did that and all the dust had settled, the male partner had a sudden heart attack and dies. And it's been about 20 years, and I had to tell you, Nikki, if I think about it a lot, I can still get a little teary because he was that impactful to me. So for me, the challenges, personally, there was that like, in one way and another, losing these two people who had really been instrumental for me at the beginning.
Nikki Rogers: Wow. Thank you for sharing that. As you were telling that story, it just makes you realize, or it makes me realize that as you grow, evolve, develop, sometimes you have to leave behind the folks who really we're a part of that journey. And so, one of my mentors always tells me, at some point, you're going to cross a line. And everybody doesn't cross the line with you. And you're looking back and like, you want to pull people with you but sometimes they just can't. They're not ready or you're just ahead of them. So as you think about that time, what gave you the strength of foresight to say, this is what I have to do right now? A lot of entrepreneurs are dealing with this as their business gets more and more successful. They have to evolve to meet the new level that they're on. So what was it that really gave you the strength to make this change?
Gilza Fort-Martinez: One of the things I did in graduate school was to get a really clear visualization in my mind of what my office looked like. And I knew what color I was going to paint the walls, I knew what was going to be, what kind of furniture. I had that in technicolor, so to speak, in my mind. And so that had been my vision in there about really wanting to. And as you said, knowing that I had learned a lot from them in their space, and now it was time to create my space. And as you said, it's challenging. It's very challenging. Since then, I've been on the other end of that where I've taught people, I've encouraged people, and then they have said, well, Gilza, it's time for me to do my thing. And so I have been since then in that position as well, knowing that yes, you know, wow, I want to hold on to them as you were saying. But it really is time for them to move into their own space, not just physically but emotionally. So that was a piece of it. I had a very clear visualization about where I wanted to end up. I was willing to do everything I had to do, licensure, internships, pay my dues in all of that. We're not coming in to be therapists and make millions of dollars. So I was willing to do all of that.
And then, of course, the other piece to that always is that my parents were political refugees from the Cuban revolution. And so, my parents were always about, if we started over and we've done it with a kid and language differences and start over educationally, there isn't any reason that you can't. Even though I was supposed to be an attorney, I always had both of their support very much in, well, yes, you can. Alright. It doesn't work. Alright, we move. So always that kind of thinking that as a kid of an immigrant, well, right. What's the worst-case scenario? I find a job. So I was like, okay, it's my time now. Let me figure it out. It was very painful to let go of them. But then I painted my walls exactly the color I wanted in graduate school, and it was good.
Nikki Rogers: So I heard two things, one is being very clear about your vision, and always focused on that. And the other thing is, is not being afraid to start over. What I heard you say is like, I can walk away from this and I can rebuild.
Gilza Fort-Martinez: And any of us can. It's scary. I don't want to minimize the impact or the effect of that. That all blew up in the summer, and that was a tough summer for me to try to redo and rebuild. But any of us really can. The question to me is always about mindset. If something doesn't work, are you able or willing to pivot? Because sometimes we have very much blinders on things and while that could be important for motivation, for ambition, at the same time, I always remind my clients, my interns, remember that your neck is able to turn to the right and to the left. So use it and see what's over here and see what's on the other side, and incorporate it. Because we really just don't know so much about running a business. It's up here in our little heads in that "Yes I can" mentality.
Nikki Rogers: I love that. So as we think about all that's happened over the last, almost, two years now, there has been this explosion of folks starting their own business and leaving their jobs, because they realized there's another way to be. And along with that comes some real mental health awareness and challenges. So what are some words of advice that you would have, particularly for entrepreneurs, as they move through all that it takes to run a business? What are some tips for really maintaining your mental health?
Gilza Fort-Martinez: I think that, first and foremost, I would say to people that the recognition that rest is a crucial part of the restoration process. So that rest doesn't mean that we are being unproductive or that we're being lazy. Rest is a piece of the process of being able to recharge which allows us to reset. And in that resetting process, creativity can bloom again. So I start always with that one when I talk with clients and even friends about that because, of course, the mentality is go, go, go, go, go. I've got so many things I got to do. I got all these to-do lists. And they're all real, they're all relevant and important tasks when you're opening a business, regardless of what the business is. So that to-do list is absolutely essential. At the same time, if we don't create the time and the space to rest, to reflect, we then do not have the long-term endurance that running a successful business requires.
Okay. And so, again, for me, it's a mindset that work is really a tool for living your life. It's not the only thing in your life, but it's a tool. It's a piece of what creates, you know, gives you some satisfaction, gives you some personal and professional identity. Work is a piece of our puzzle, Nikki, it can't be the primary one. And when people become business owners, that's the only thing. Because sometimes, I'm the one that throws out the garbage here, does the bookkeeping, all the way to sits with the client. The tasks are real, but I think it has to be a very intentional moment that you create, and the space because I really talk to my clients about creating the space. Maybe it's in your office, maybe it's a corner of your backyard.
I usually encourage people to make rest associated with outside somehow. Some part of nature, which is just very restorative in general. But that has to be a piece of it. So if you're working all day, when is your rest time? And it can't be sleep because that's what they'll tell me. Well, I go to sleep around 11, 12, maybe 2:00 AM. I'm not talking about sleep. I'm talking about rest because if you don't rest, you're not going to be able to sleep. And that's a big piece of people's sleeping difficulties oftentimes is that they can't shut down their minds. So I emphasize that a lot because I think that when people want to start a business, they really, I'm generalizing, but many of us will learn what we got to do. And we know the business and we're motivated about that. We forget that we have to recharge.
Nikki Rogers: I love that. You just gave a whole sermon on why rest is really a requirement. And I think, lately, I've been really guilty of that of, I don't sleep a lot. And I also am not resting either. So I think I'm guilty on both sides of that.
Gilza Fort-Martinez: There you go. And your sleep will likely improve, obviously, without knowing you or your specifics, Nikki. But your sleep will likely improve if you incorporate a little bit of rest time. I don't care what that is for you. It could be a walk, it could be flipping through a magazine, it could be listening to some music. People who are very connected to their pets, it's really spending. But we're talking about 10, 15 minutes, 30 minutes. We're not talking about quantities of time, we're talking about purposeful, intentional setting time and space.
Nikki Rogers: Yes, I'd love that. Lately, I'm working on being more intentionally present. And so if my son says, hey, I want to play. I say, okay, let's play. We're going to play a game or we're going to just sit here and talk. It makes a difference for us, and it also makes a difference for me because now I feel like I've taken a bit of a break. I've given him some attention. And we both can go back to doing whatever it is we were doing. But I think so often, especially as a business owner, it's very hard to say yes to doing something that seems like is not related to the business.
Gilza Fort-Martinez: Correct. Correct. A lot of my clients know that that's a big pet peeve for me is to tell me that if I am resting, it means I'm being unproductive. The term "lazy" makes me crazy because many people are not lazy intentionally. Many people are either anything from afraid, so there's fear involved, So that challenges your initiative or your motivation, or you go all the way from fear to really physical exhaustion. And so when people say to me, well, yes, I could do three or four hours of sleep. You think you can but you're really, you're not going to do the marathon. You're going to do these little teeny sprints, but you're not going to get through the whole marathon.
Nikki Rogers: I actually said this, I'm an active procrastinator because I'm doing a lot of things but it's not necessarily the thing, and then you're tired. Because you've been busy and yet I haven't really accomplished the important thing.
Gilza Fort-Martinez: And the beauty of that is that the important thing is a relative term. It's very much a term that has to do with what's important to you. So you and I could debate those. My clients know that that's what, let's get into a nice, juicy, healthy, productive debate, and help me to understand how your perspective is helping you. That becomes creativity also, in a different sense.
Nikki Rogers: Right. I love that you challenge your clients in that way. And you're not forcing your opinions on them, but you're really helping them really challenge these prevailing thoughts that may be on their mind, that are driving behavior really without even being aware of it.
Gilza Fort-Martinez: Correct. Our belief systems really, at the end of the day, as you said, drive behavior, and so much of it is subliminal or subconscious for us. So that's the beautiful process of psychotherapy. It's really not about whether somebody is crazy or not. The beautiful process of psychotherapy is just recognition like taking a look at, clearing the fog, so to speak, in whatever area of your life you're wanting to do that. With business, I encourage all of my clients that counseling is a really good space to explore your mindsets, your fears, your places where you can have obstacles. And it really doesn't matter what your business is, but to use the space of counseling. Because whatever business you're in, your person is in there. Your person, your personality, what you bring into, whatever your product or service is. And the more that you're clear on who you are, the clearer you can create your business, your business plan, your business strategy.
Nikki Rogers: Love that. So Gilza, it's been great chatting with you. There are two questions I'd love to ask every guest. And so, the first one is, what are one or two songs that are on your power playlist and why?
Gilza Fort-Martinez: I love that. Music is very, from stimulating to encouraging, definitely hits all of our memory buttons. For me, I'm going to go probably way old school for you here, Nikki. And I love the Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell song, Ain't No Mountain High Enough. Although I'm much more of a Motown girl than Classic Rock, The Journey song, Don't Stop Believing. That's a great one for me. And I'll give you one more just because who doesn't like the Beatles. Even my kids know the Beatles. So John Lennon's Imagine. I think is a wonderful song. Again, it's about, you could do it. Figure out a way, mate. Every mountain isn't about crossing it over, sometimes we just have to go around it. We don't need to climb it all the way to the top. So Motown, for me, speaks to me often.
Nikki Rogers: Great. And what is one book that has really helped you thrive in business?
Gilza Fort-Martinez: There's a lot of those. Any of Stephen Covey's books have always been very. So the 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, that's always been something that, those habits are practical almost. They're very step-by-step. And then I've always loved the classic, Who Moved My Cheese? Because I really thought that's a book, again, like I've mentioned to you before, things are going to change. The one thing you can be absolutely certain about is that there's going to change. So if I put my cheese here and I think this is where my cheese belongs, but then it doesn't anymore, am I going to be upset or can I go and look for my cheese? So I've always found that to be, you know, it's an old book and yet I think it still rings true regardless.
Nikki Rogers: Great. Thank you for sharing that. Well, Gilza, if people want to know more about you or connect with you, how can they find you?
Gilza Fort-Martinez: As I mentioned to you, Nikki, I'm stepping into this whole technology thing. So I'm on Instagram, @toughlovehealer. That was the handle, and my clients helped me to come up with it. If I ask them, well, how would you describe me? Well, you don't sugarcoat, you tough love me from here to the streets. So tough love healer is my Instagram. And my website, gilzafort.com. You can find some other information about me. I have my little writings here so I've got a blog site there. It's something that might call you or resonate with you. Those would be the best ways to reach out to me.
Nikki Rogers: Great, Gilza. And we will share all of that information in the show notes. Well, Gilza, it's been an absolute pleasure talking with you today. I got some great gems, including a reminder to rest. So thank you for that. And I appreciate your time.
Gilza Fort-Martinez: Wonderful. Thank you so much for having me, Nikki. It's been great to go down my little nostalgia lane here, and how this all started. So thanks a lot.
Nikki Rogers: Thank you. Take care.
Gilza Fort-Martinez: Take care. Bye-bye.
Nikki Rogers: Thank you for listening to this week's episode of Women Thriving in Business Podcasts. If you like this episode, share it with a friend. You can also join us on social media to share your feedback and comments. We'd love to hear from you. Be sure to like, review and subscribe on iTunes so you never miss an episode. Until next week, keep thriving.