Meet Cortland Mathers-suter | Behavioral Health Executive

We had the good fortune of connecting with Cortland Mathers-suter and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Cortland, can you walk us through the thought-process of starting your business?
My thought process behind starting my own business was simple: I believed I could do it better, and more affordably for consumers than other businesses in the space had. I felt strong that my perspective gave me a huge competitive edge, because whereas the leaders in the space were all either MBA’s with no personal experience in the space, or people without educations but ample experience, I had the benefit of years of experience utilizing similar services and held a Master’s Degree in the discipline.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
When I was in my early teens, I became addicted to drugs and alcohol. By 23 I had completely bottomed out, having failed out of college, I had legal problems, significant health problems, lost my closest friendships and most importantly had lost the trust and respect of my family. My parents saved my life, getting me into a two year residential treatment facility on the other side of the country, where despite an ethically dubious and at times abusive staff and program, I achieved lasting sobriety. At 25 I went back to school to finish my bachelors and then an MSW (Master’s in Social Work) while working at more traditional 30 and 90-day treatment centers. I launched my first addiction treatment center at 28, and despite only getting 2/3 of the funding we projected was necessary, it ultimately became a success.

The reason I share this backstory, is that I think it holds the key to why I’ve had some success in the addiction treatment space: it’s a space I understand inside and out and I have the perspective of a consumer, an employee and a leader. Through these lenses, I’ve learned that fostering community, rallying people around a mission, focusing on quality, person centered care rather than profits and fostering an egalitarian culture is a very effective way to run a business in this industry and many adjacent ones (i.e. helping professions).

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
I live in Northwest Denver, so we’d mostly stick to the Highlands, W. Highlands, Lo-Hi, Lo-Do, Sunnyside, Berkley, Sloans Lake neighborhoods. For breakfasts or brunch, we would go to Sassafras, Denver Biscuit Co and Fox and the Hen for incredible breakfasts. Meade Street Provisions, Vital Root and Salt & Grinder, is where we would go for lunch. And for casual dinners, Atomic Cowboy for Pizza, Root Down for a more classic Denver bar environment (followed by Little Man Ice Cream), El Five, and Swing Thai for something different. For a more upscale dinner, we would have to go to Cholon, which I think is the best restaurant in Denver.

For activities and hangouts, we’d walk dogs around the highlands, take a stroll and window show down 32nd Street (between Julian and Newton) stopping for ice cream at Sweet Cow, and Tennyson Street (between 38th to 45th) stopping for ice cream at High Point Creamery. Go to Meow Wolf for some fun immersive entertainment, see a show a Red Rocks (10-15 minutes west of Denver in Morrison, CO), go to a strange concert or exhibit or show at the Oriental Theatre (in Berkley) or see another show at the Paramount theater (downtown) then walk around Larimer square (downtown), and maybe go on the extremely sketchy rides at Lakeside Theme Park (Berkley). But mostly, just walk dogs around the entire west side of Denver, which is my favorite activity (we have 3 golden retrievers).

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
I have other people to thank for every ounce of success I’ve had in life. but it’s my parents who have had by far the biggest impact on my successes. They refused to give up on me when I wanted to give up on myself, long before starting a business. They’ve always given me the guidance I need without telling me what to do. They believed in me when there was no rational reason to. They have modeled hard work, stick-to-itiveness, community, accountability, prioritization, organization and fiscal responsibility my entire life. And everything I just mentioned are, as far as I’m concerned, the critical building blocks to starting a successful company (especially without a business degree, leadership experience or the initial funding to hire people who did).

Website: https://www.Colorado-Recovery.com

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/cortlandmathers/