About us - Welcome!

Hi there, this is Dr. J, the founder of the Motivation Lab.

Many people google "counseling near me" or "therapist" and hope for the best as they wade through many options. A good fit in a counselor is the foundation for success. It's important to offer a peek under the hood. The way we do therapy at the Motivation Lab evolved over time. This process is highlighted below.

I was the Clinical Director of a residential addiction treatment center outside San Antonio. Texas, when the seeds of the Motivation Lab were planted. I noticed many people had multiple residential treatment stays. They trusted the counseling process enough to return, but weren’t getting what they needed for sustained change. Conversely, for some people, once was enough. I knew this couldn’t be by chance, so I explored the differences between the two groups.

People who had been in treatment before were as well versed in their own therapy and psychology as the therapists working with them. They could clearly articulate the action plans, interventions, and techniques for change they had learned in therapy. 

They weren't learning how to put their skills into practice. Many would struggle after leaving rehab because they would go back to the same lives, relationships, and jobs with an understanding of the problem but the same limited skill set that led them to trouble. They couldn't win the tipping point between what they had always done and wanted to do now. The skills required for consistent action in the right direction were missing.

The more successful people had a better foundation and stronger starting skill set than those with multiple treatment attempts. The solution was simple; we needed to help everyone build the right skills to win at the tipping point more often. This process fuels motivation and builds momentum, and they put the skills they learned into action.

I dove head-first into learning how to help people thrive, reading, researching, and exploring anything I could find. I became interested in solutions, building momentum, and instilling a strong skill set into everyone I worked with. As I learned about human motivation, self-determination, and how to inspire sustained change, I infused those elements into the counseling offered in our treatment program with great results.

I realized the information I was exploring was massive and needed guided instruction. This led to a doctoral degree in Sport and Performance Psychology, with an emphasis in Positive Leadership. I added sport psychology to my services and work with athletes from beginners through the pro ranks. Combining the psychology of high performance with my education and experience in traditional counseling has been a game changer and added depth to the level of service for each.

The traditional counseling side of what we do is to help people right the ship (whatever that may be) in their life, then harness the power of mental skills to kick ass at the top of their ability consistently.

The life coaching and corporate coaching side is for non-athletes who want to harness the power of mental skills to kick ass at the top of their ability consistently.