Watch: Its Founders Discuss How Mental Wellness Network Frame Got Started

Kelly O'Grady
Kelly O'Grady is dot.LA's chief host & correspondent. Kelly serves as dot.LA's on-air talent, and is responsible for designing and executing all video efforts. A former management consultant for McKinsey, and TV reporter for NESN, she also served on Disney's Corporate Strategy team, focusing on M&A and the company's direct-to-consumer streaming efforts. Kelly holds a bachelor's degree from Harvard College and an MBA from Harvard Business School. A Boston native, Kelly spent a year as Miss Massachusetts USA, and can be found supporting her beloved Patriots every Sunday come football season.
Watch: Its Founders Discuss How Mental Wellness Network Frame Got Started

The focus on mental health and wellness has become increasingly more prevalent in recent years. But not only can it be extremely difficult to find the right resources as a patient and a provider, there still exists stigma around the act of seeking help. Mental wellness network Frame seeks to fix that, and not a moment too soon during the pandemic.


In this installment ofdot.LA Dives In, we talk with Kendall Bird and Sage Grazer, the co-founders of Frame, a mental wellness network that seeks to help people find a form of therapy and a therapist.

When Kendall moved to New York City after college, she found herself struggling to adjust to her new life. Identifying a therapist to help her work through those issues was not an easy task, but when she found the right person, she realized how powerful that relationship was.

When she returned to her hometown of Los Angeles, she found herself again struggling to find a therapist. She reached out to her childhood friend Sage Grazer, a therapist herself. Sage was grappling with her own set of challenges trying to run her own practice without any business training.

"I was sharing with Kendall how difficult, as a new therapist, it is to get clients, and she was sharing with me how hard it was for her to find a new therapist. And this was something that me and my colleagues were all experiencing, so Kendall proposed that we build our own platform," says Grazer.

Having started a company before, Bird emphasizes how critical it was to find the right founder fit.

"It was important for me to partner with someone that had a very different perspective, and was also an expert in the field in her own sense," says Bird. "We thought about all the other services that were out there and identified what we felt like was missing. And so we built this unique experience which is now Frame."

What started as an app to connect users with therapists has evolved into a platform to match potential clients with therapists, a "business in a box" to help therapists grow their practices, and as 30-45 minute digital discussions run by licensed therapists that introduce potential patients to the basics of therapy and help dispel the stigma around mental health and wellness.

"What we're trying to do with the discussions is really show you concrete examples of how therapy can be applied in different scenarios," says Bird. "The more we tell those stories, the more people will hear them, and understand how (therapy) is relevant in their specific life and situation."

As remote care becomes more common during the pandemic, Frame has leveraged its toolbox to help clients adapt by making it easier to connect virtually. Not only are they providing training for therapists that have been forced to run their practices remote, but the digital discussions have provided a path for the founders to give back to the community.

"Our digital discussions have been a real gift as a part of Frame to be able to give during this time when people are in lockdown," says Grazer. "Maybe they can't get to a therapist, maybe they can't afford a therapist because they lost their job. So we are able to offer these free workshops and give people actionable tools that they can start putting into play immediately."

While you might think launching a startup during a pandemic would be tough, the co-founders credit Los Angeles as setting them up for success. With how spread out the city is, Frame was already built to be Telehealth-oriented before COVID hit.

"Starting in L.A. really set us up for success when this whole pandemic happened, because we were already built to sustain Telehealth and people being able to work remote," says Bird.

Watch the full interview to learn more - in this conversation, we dive deep into Frame's history, talk about their experiences during the pandemic, and discuss what companies can do to create a more inclusive environment when it comes to mental wellness.

dot.LA Dives In: Frame Co-Founders Discuss How They Built the Mental Wellness Networkwww.youtube.com

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Kelly O'Grady runs video and serves as the chief host & correspondent for dot.LA. Find her on Instagram @kfogrady and email her at kelly@dot.LA.

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LA’s Data Center Supply Crunch

🔦 Spotlight

Happy Friday Los Angeles!

The Los Angeles data center market is experiencing a significant supply crunch, ranking 12th in growth among top markets since 2020 with only 265 megawatts of colocation inventory (data centers where businesses rent space to store their computing hardware and servers). Despite this, demand is surging, driven by AI, cloud, and hyperscaler needs, with AI accounting for 20% of new data center demand nationally. This scarcity is creating a highly competitive environment, with vacancy rates at a record low 3% and asking rents rising 13-37% year-over-year. For Los Angeles, this presents both challenges and opportunities in the big picture. The city's strategic position as a global entertainment hub and its connectivity to international markets through subsea cables make it an attractive location for data centers. However, the limited inventory and rising costs could potentially hinder growth and innovation in the tech sector. To maintain its competitive edge, Los Angeles will need to address these constraints through new developments, such as GI Partners' 16 MW addition at One Wilshire, and by focusing on high-connectivity, high-power capacity submarkets. The city's tech community should prepare for a landscape of increased competition for quality data center space, higher costs, and the need for innovative solutions to meet growing demand, particularly in AI and cloud services. While Los Angeles faces a challenging data center supply crunch, its strategic advantages and ongoing developments offer a promising path forward.


🤝 Venture Deals

LA Companies

  • Daisy, a one-year-old startup that designs and installs smart home and office technology systems, raised a $7M Series B co-led by Goldcrest and Bungalow, with previous investors Bullish and Burst Capital also stepping up. The company has raised a total of $13.3 million. - learn more

LA Venture Funds


    ✨ Featured Event ✨

    LA TECH CEO SUMMIT

    LA’s tech leadership is set to reunite after a long break! This two day summit will focus on building strong connections, sharing insights, and fortifying the local tech community.

    Learn More Here

    Register Here


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    🌐Decentralizing Data & Vacations: Sony's Web3 Leap and Sensible Weather's KOA Partnership

    🔦 Spotlight

    Happy Long Weekend Los Angeles!

    Sony Group is making a significant push into the blockchain and Web3 space, leveraging its Sony Pictures and Sony Music divisions along with a new global incubator. The company has developed the Soneium blockchain through Sony Block Solutions Labs, a joint venture aimed at accelerating Web3 innovation. Sony is launching the "Soneium Minato" public testnet and a developer incubation program called "Soneium Spark" to foster ecosystem growth and adoption. The initiative includes strategic partnerships with Web3 companies such as Astar Network, Circle, and Optimism. Sony aims to create a fan community centered on creators and connect diverse values through Soneium, with the ultimate goal of integrating Web3 services into people's daily lives. While the company acknowledges the challenges faced by Web3, including limited user adoption and the need for mainstream use cases, it remains committed to decentralizing the concentrated power of the current internet landscape.

    In completely unrelated and more digestible news Sensible Weather, a leading weather protection provider that we’ve featured many times, has partnered with Kampgrounds of America (KOA) to offer Weather Guarantees at over 450 KOA Campgrounds across the United States. This collaboration allows campers to purchase weather protection for their outdoor experiences, providing peace of mind and potential reimbursements of up to 100% of their nightly rate if weather conditions exceed predefined parameters. The partnership comes at an opportune time, as camping has seen a significant increase in popularity, with active campers growing by 68% over the past decade. If you are looking to do some camping this fall make sure you look into Sensible Weather protections to ensure that unpredictable weather won't dampen (nailed it) your camping experience.


    🤝 Venture Deals

    LA Companies

    • Space and Time, a blockchain data warehouse developer, raised a $20M Series A led by Framework Ventures. - learn more
    • Miris, a provider of spatial content streaming solutions, raised a $26M Seed Round led by IAG Capital Partners. - learn more

    LA Venture Funds

    • Fika Ventures led a $4.55M Seed Round for Revenew, a San Francisco startup that aims to help digital platforms and marketplaces manage their payments and optimize financial operations. - learn more
    • Bonfire Ventures participated in a $25M Series A for Supio, an AI platform for personal injury law firms. - learn more
    • Amplify LA participated in a $2M Seed Round for Pryzm, a startup that provides tools and data to help businesses navigate government contracting more efficiently. - learn more

      ✨ Featured Event ✨

      LA TECH CEO SUMMIT

      LA’s tech leadership is set to reunite after a long break! This two day summit will focus on building strong connections, sharing insights, and fortifying the local tech community.

      Learn More Here

      Register Here


      Download the dot.LA App

      Personality Assessments Improving Workplace Dynamics

      Misunderstandings can have significant and sometimes severe impacts, far beyond the hilarious cake pictured above. Many organizations are increasingly using personality assessments to improve team dynamics and productivity. Tests like the Enneagram, Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI), and DISC assessment are valuable tools for developing existing teams in addition to hiring new employees. These assessments provide insights into team members' motivations, communication styles, and work preferences, helping colleagues understand each other better. By highlighting the different personalities within a team, these tests can enhance communication, resolve conflicts, and optimize task assignments based on individual strengths. As companies aim for greater efficiency and collaboration, the Enneagram, MBTI, and DISC assessments are becoming essential for transforming established teams into more effective and cohesive units.


      Image Source: iEQ9

      Enneagram

      The Enneagram test is a sophisticated personality assessment that categorizes individuals into nine distinct personality types, each defined by unique motivations, fears,and behavioral patterns. This holistic approach enhances team dynamics in a business setting by fostering self-awareness, improving communication, and facilitating conflict resolution among team members. By understanding different personality types, teams can optimize their composition, tailor professional development, and create a more empathetic and collaborative environment. This framework not only helps leaders adapt their styles to better support diverse team members but also promotes inclusivity and effective collaboration, ultimately leading to improved team performance, productivity, and retention.

      Resources:iEQ9. We recommend getting an Enneagram coach to get the most out of the results.

      Key Features: Focus on core motivations. Accounts for personality shifts under stress or growth. Offers practical, actionable guidance for personal growth. Uses a dynamic, adaptive questioning approach. Claims 95% accuracy rate through advanced techniques.


      Image Source: DiSC Profile

      DiSC (Dominance, Influence, Steadiness, and Conscientiousness)

      The DiSC assessment is a widely used behavioral analysis tool that categorizes individuals into four primary personality types: Dominance, Influence, Steadiness, and Conscientiousness. For businesses, DiSC provides valuable insights into employees' communication styles, work preferences, and motivations. By understanding these behavioral tendencies, teams can improve collaboration, reduce conflicts, and enhance overall productivity. Implementing DiSC in a business setting can lead to more effective leadership, tailored communication strategies, and optimized task allocation based on individual strengths.

      Resources:DiSC Profile.

      Key Features: Designed specifically for workplace applications. Focuses on observable behaviors rather than psychological traits. Widely researched and validated over 40+ years. Provides practical strategies for improving interactions.


      Image Source: The Myers-Briggs Company

      The Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI)

      The Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) is a widely used personality assessment tool that categorizes individuals into 16 distinct personality types based on four dichotomies: Extraversion/Introversion, Sensing/Intuition, Thinking/Feeling, and Judging/Perceiving. For businesses, the MBTI provides valuable insights into employees' communication styles, decision-making processes, and work preferences.This helps promote a more productive workplace, and enables employees to become involved in more meaningful ways, all while leveraging everyone’s unique strengths.

      Resources:The Myers-Briggs Company.

      Key Features: Focuses on preferences rather than traits. Focuses on how people perceive and judge information. Widely used in business and career counseling


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