For this edition of our LIT Interview Series, we’re excited to introduce Agustín Hayes, a multicultural and multilingual therapist currently based in Buenos Aires.
In this interview, Agustín shares how he got started as a location independent therapist, what the journey has been like so far, how he manages work-life balance, and more!
Meet Agustín Hayes: A Multilingual Therapist with a Global Perspective
Welcome, Agustín – can you tell us a bit about yourself?
I’m Agustín, I grew up between Argentina and the United States but have also lived in Spain and the Netherlands which is where I finished my studies and registered as a counseling psychologist!
I spent some time in Italy doing the paperwork to be recognized as an Italian citizenship because of my grandma being from there, so I speak Italian. And I have always had a fascination with Brazil, so I learned Portuguese and spent four months in Rio, perfecting the language and engulfing myself in the culture.
As a multilingual therapist, who do you work with and what do you support them with?
I mainly work with globally minded people in general, like expats and third culture kids, because I can really relate to a lot of their experiences, and I think that’s essential for the therapeutic space that they feel understood by someone who’s lived a similar unique lifestyle. While I find myself working with quite a wide variety of topics, a major theme in my practice is burnout and everything that involves. I also find myself doing quite a bit of grief therapy which has been pretty powerful.
I’m also really thankful to have found an approach that I love since the beginning of my practical experience in the field, called Schema Therapy. It has provided me with a great theoretical backing and an amazing trauma reprocessing tool called imagery re-scripting.
How the Pandemic Opened the Door to a Location Independent Practice
Tell us a bit about your journey. What inspired you to become a location independent therapist, and how did you make it happen?
While I was finishing my master’s degree, I realized that the majority of the people who graduated before me went right into fully remote positions, and the norm was to only see clients through video calls. This came as a shock at first because it wasn’t how I’d imagined myself living honestly, but I think the pandemic really revolutionized so many careers. Once I got over the initial shock, I realized that this gave me the freedom to be pretty much wherever I wanted to be as long as I kept the same hours for my clients and abided by data protection rules. The sky was the limit!
Since I’ve always had the travel bug and have great friends and family members all over the world, it really worked out well. Now I’m in the process of starting to be able to work in person because I’ve realized the best case scenario for me is to have a home base and be able to supplement with some location independent time!
What strategies have you found most effective for marketing your services and attracting new clients?
A major thing I learned from the LIT Community was to identify who my ideal client was and target my marketing to that person, which I think is essential also for the therapeutic relationship as we can’t be the jack of all trades. We have a moral obligation to only work with people with whom we think we can build a proper therapeutic relationship.
The Ups and Downs of Being a Location Independent Therapist
What do you like most about your work? What are the most rewarding aspects of working as an online, multilingual therapist?
I am so passionate about this work, as it’s been extremely rewarding to know that I was instrumental in the positive change I’ve been able to see in my clients. A therapeutic relationship with total vulnerability is such a beautiful and unique thing that I’ve enjoyed cultivating greatly with people from all different parts of the world, often with very different perspectives and cultures than my own.
And what do you like least about your work?
Probably having to charge people, I hate the book-keeping aspect and having to keep track of things for tax purposes, but every rose has its thorn!
What has been your biggest achievement so far as a location independent therapist?
I think probably getting my Portuguese to the point where I can use it in sessions was a pretty big deal for me as I am quite a fan of linguistics and therapy both!
What are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced as a location independent therapist?
I think it’s a bit isolating to work in private practice already and even more so if you’re location independent and don’t have the support network in person while traveling around. I’m so grateful for the LIT Community because I think it’s mitigated so much of that isolation I’ve felt by providing such a cool community of therapists with global mindsets.
Finding Support as a Location Independent Therapist
What was your main reason for joining the LIT Community, and how has it helped you?
Honestly, I found the community while I was finishing up my master’s and was really inspired by Sonia and everyone else’s stories to really follow through with this lifestyle. I figured I had so much to learn from everyone in the community that I had to join, and I am so happy with my decision!
When I was getting my practice off the ground, I watched so many videos from the archives of past talks, which really gave me so much direction with the business side of my practice.
If someone was thinking about joining the LIT Community, what would you tell them?
That as humans we’re designed to need community, and this one is full of passionate people that really care about what they do and being a part of this change in the globalized world.
What advice would you give to someone aspiring to become a location independent therapist?
Do what you can to find community both in person and online, and don’t travel within the work week or you may regret it and have to reschedule people!
Travel, Self-Care, and Creating a Home Base
How do you manage your work-life balance while running your online practice?
A game changer for me was when I decided to no longer do normal sessions on Fridays because I found often times people didn’t come since it’s the end of the week anyway and that I needed this day to catch up on paperwork, side projects, and do something fun like go to a museum!
Let’s chat about travel! What does travel look like for you? What countries have you lived in, and where would you like to travel to next?
Since starting this little journey, I’ve “nomaded” in Brazil, Argentina, Mauritius, USA, the Netherlands, and Italy! My next trip is to Colombia for a friend’s wedding where I’ll spend a good chunk of time traveling with friends and working, which I’m excited about.
What does self-care look like for you as a location independent therapist?
Treating myself to some good coffees to spend time doing administrative work in cool cafés and get out of the house!
What do you wish you had known before starting your journey as an online therapist?
That having a routine is important to keep up my own mental health maintenance activities like getting exercise and plenty of sleep!
What are your future goals for your business and life?
While I’ll always be a traveller, I’m really leaning into setting into life now in Buenos Aires. I’ve restored an apartment from 1928 which has been extremely fun, even a therapeutic journey in and of itself. And now I’m getting back into acting as I’ve begun taking acting classes at a theater school near my apartment where some big names (in Argentina) have gotten their start! I’m taking baby steps to start seeing clients in person and be a part of the expat mental health community in Argentina which I’m excited about.
Learn more and connect with Agustín Hayes, multicultural and multilingual therapist:
You can find out more about Agustín’s work as an online, multilingual therapist here:
- Via his website: https://www.open-mind-therapy.com
- On LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/agustin-hayes
- Via his LIT Directory profile: https://locationindependenttherapists.com/therapists/agustin-hayes/
Are you thinking about starting your own location independent therapy practice? Let us know in the comments!
Want to meet more inspiring therapists like Agustín Hayes? Browse our LIT Interview Series here! And if you’re looking for more support, check out the LIT Community!
