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BRIANNE CLATCH (MBA) is the Managing Director of Courage to Connect Mental Health Center, an outpatient practice dedicated to providing whole-family care. Since opening in 2012, she has grown the practice into five locations around the North Shore with more than 50 providers, while expanding services to offer counseling, psychological testing, medication management, and nutrition support. In addition to running a successful business with her husband, her true passion and greatest gift in life is mothering her four children, ages ranging from 6 to 13.
What excites you most about the future of your industry? There is an incredible amount of attention on the mental health industry that we’ve never seen before—acceptance and demand that happened entirely overnight. Recently, Illinois became the very first state to require annual mental health screenings for all students in grades 3 through 12. This type of legislative awareness is super exciting!
How do you maintain balance between your professional and personal life? My family always comes first. Becoming a wife and mother has been my greatest joy. My other passion is my career, working alongside my husband and contributing to the greater good of our community. I always tell my children how important a strong work ethic is—a trait that will carry them far in life. Owning a family business means work and family go hand in hand; finding the perfect balance is unrealistic. What’s important is allowing myself grace in those uneven moments.
How do you define confidence—and how have you built it? Education has always been a priority for me; I went back to graduate school to earn my MBA—newly married, working full-time, going to business school at night, and studying on the weekends for two years. Now decades later, running a business, I am beyond grateful to have those three letters after my name, and the knowledge and confidence that comes along with it.
What’s one piece of advice you wish you’d received earlier in your career? Take the night to sleep on big decisions; emotions have time to settle, and answers always seem clearer in the morning.
For more information, visit couragetoconnecttherapy.com.
