A Q&A with Innovation360’s Austin Parsons
What brought you to Innovation360 Austin?
I’m a professional counselor driven by relationships and adventure. I think that’s why Innovation360 is such an enjoyable place for me to work. Though I am new to the i360 Austin team, I am not new to i360. I began my therapeutic work with i360 Dallas. I engaged many different aspects of the program including: Advocate, Individual and Family Therapy, Life Development, as well as leading IOP & Group Therapy. Afterwards, I went into private practice. It was ultimately my relationships with the i360 Austin team, as well as the adventure of the work i360 engages that brought me to Austin.
What motivates you?
I consider myself to be an adventurer. In my mind, an adventurer engages unknown challenges (often with places, people, and cultures). They are problem solvers that seek to be prepared and expect the unexpected. Adventures rely on their preparation, tools, and experiences to help them navigate through these obstacles and anticipate meaningful joy.
I seek to adventure all over the world, but also that’s the work I do in my therapy. I guess you could call me an adventure therapist, though that might be misleading on the surface as most of my therapy work is done within four walls.
What do you do in your free time?
You can find me with my dog child, Ranger. We are likely exploring the cities’ outdoor amenities, a local coffee shop, or on my couch watching sports and news. There are a few other shows I watch, but you’d probably make fun of me. I have the ego strength for that, but ask me in person.
What are you afraid of?
I have a love/hate relationship with adrenaline. I rarely turn down an opportunity for an exciting (potentially dangerous) experience. What people don’t know though, is that deep inside in INSANELY scared. I just have a personal goal to risk in hopes of experiencing “lightning in a bottle” joy.
What else are you passionate about?
Let’s get this out of the way. I’m an Aggie, unashamedly. However, I do have the wherewithal to know that not everyone around me loves Texas A&M. I can talk about college sports for days, but I’ll usually let you start the conversation. Oh, I love the Texas Rangers MLB team too.
What are your future goals?
To learn to surf. I’m not crazy, Austin has a place called NLand where you can actually learn how to surf. Professionally, I really do love therapy. I’d love to continue in private practice, and I hope to teach someday as well.
