Welcome to Self Space. How are you? Milk and sugar?
If you’ve ever heard about, followed or been to Self Space, you’ll know that our model is unlike any other. We were the first in the world to put therapy spaces on the high-street and the first to offer on demand in-person therapy with no waiting lists. Our spaces are special. Soft and warm like a loved one’s living room. Far from clinical and miles away from mundane, we are on a mission to make a difference – one safe space at a time. It only makes sense that our Front of House model would be equally unique.
Front of House is, by definition, a hospitality role. Restaurants, hotels, cafes and receptions may come to mind. You’d think something as important as therapy would warrant being fronted by a friendly face as much, if not more than a coffee and croissant. But it’s rare to see someone manning the desk of mental health spaces, at least not the way we do it. Our objective is to cultivate community with the compassion and knowledge that such valuable and vulnerable spaces deserve. With a dash of humour thrown in for good measure. As someone whose life resembles that of a cat with ADHD, I’ve lived a lot of lives and had a lot of jobs. I’ve plated pastries, moved mascara and curated classrooms – Self Space takes the cake every time. I feel that you should know that I believe in what we do. For me and for you too.
I hate to sound like a grandad freaking out at a restaurant with a QR code menu but let’s face the facts people – the time of automation everything is upon us. Moments of quality connection are far and few between. In-person intelligence is overlooked and most people expect disconnection from customer service teams – hold music and robot replies. Our team consists of Chilli B, the incomparable Customer Success Manager, Hayley and Myself – the front of house gals. Here, your calls will be answered by us and if they’re not picked up straight away, we’ll call you back as soon as we can. Your emails are replied to ‘by hand’, if you will – with thought, compassion and probably too many friendly exclamation marks.
Admittedly, with us being real people, to say we always get it right would be a lie. (Whilst we’re here, I’ve been meaning to apologise to whoever received a voicemail from me in which I signed off with ‘best wishes’- a phrase that should never be said out loud). We’re not perfect – that’s part of being human and part of being Self Space… But we know how to say sorry, say thank you and stay growing. As the company expands, we are learning how we can best keep the basics in place. We’ll never
underestimate the feeling of being seen. A big smile is a big deal. Being real is the real deal.
Because our model is unlike other companies that offer therapy, we understand that there will be questions. The most common asks are often – how do I choose a therapist? Who offers what? What’s the difference between counselling and psychotherapy? How much does it cost? Does it have to be in person and every week? We’re lucky as the FOH team, to have many fingers in many pies within the Self Space sphere. We’re part of the back office team of course but we also get a lot of face time with the therapists. We get to understand their energy, their schedule and quiz them on how they practice. I’d be lying if I said I haven’t asked for the odd piece of advice when they’re on their break (they love me I promise). We can be more intuitive because of this, when we recommend therapists to clients.
Whether it’s admin support, therapist inquiries or any of the bits in between, around and under you are always welcome to ask. There are no silly questions here. We’re actually in the process of setting up a regular surgery day where people can call or pop by and ask as many questions as they want, get matched and get booked in. Let us know what you think. I recently booked someone in to have a face-to face chat about what we offer. I knew they felt anxious about coming into the space and a bit overwhelmed with the choice of therapists. They sat down on the Soho sofa- a sofa straight from our founder’s home, well loved, and worn with stories – and felt comfortable enough to tell me their own. We sat and nattered for about half an hour and they left with a session booked in. It was special because I knew the therapist I’d booked them in with would be a brilliant personality match. But also because the client left feeling held and heard. What an honour to be trusted and what a joy to meet people as they are.
As someone that’s had therapy (a lot of therapy) I know how invaluable it is. I also know how big it feels. We have to remember that ‘keepin’ it real’ is a new concept – that stiff upper lip is systemic and ingrained. It can feel really scary to open yourself up like a jam jar and spill to a stranger, (there’s a jarring joke in there somewhere). So it’s important to break the mould but with softness kept in mind.
Come and see us, as you are, with whatever you’re carrying. Take a seat, take a minute, take ten. We have biscuits in abundance, answers in excess and word on the street is we’re a hoot and a half.
