Getting to Know David

Therapist. Educator. Musician. Guide.

I'm David Robert Jones, a Licensed Professional Counselor, Adjunct Professor at Boise State University, certified mindfulness teacher, retreat leader, handpan musician, and host of the Awaken Engage Podcast.

Through counseling, education, mindfulness, music, and meaningful conversation, I help people reconnect with what matters and engage more fully with life.

Awaken Engage emerged from a simple belief: when we become more awake to ourselves, our relationships, and the world around us, we can live with greater intention, purpose, and connection.

Whether I'm sitting with a counseling client, teaching university students, leading a retreat, facilitating a mindfulness practice, recording handpan music, or hosting a podcast conversation, the goal is the same—to create opportunities for growth, healing, presence, and authentic engagement.

Professional Background

I am a Licensed Professional Counselor and maintain a therapy practice focused on helping individuals and couples navigate life's challenges, strengthen relationships, and cultivate greater well-being.

In addition to my counseling work, I serve as an Adjunct Professor at Boise State University, where I have the privilege of teaching and engaging students in meaningful conversations about personal growth, relationships, ethics, and the human experience.

My work is also informed by training in mindfulness-based approaches, including certifications in iRest Yoga Nidra and Amrit Yoga Nidra, practices that support deep rest, self-awareness, and healing.

Personal Journey

While much of my professional life has been devoted to helping others navigate growth, healing, and change, some of my deepest learning has come through my own experiences.

Following a traumatic brain injury, I found myself navigating a season that required patience, resilience, and a different relationship with healing than I had previously known.

During that journey, mindfulness practices, creativity, music, and the handpan became important companions. What began as personal exploration gradually became part of a larger understanding of recovery, presence, and the ways healing can occur both within and beyond traditional conversations.

While every person's path is unique, these experiences deepened my appreciation for the resilience of the human spirit and the many ways healing can unfold. They continue to inform how I accompany others in counseling, teaching, retreats, music, and conversation—with curiosity, compassion, and a belief that growth remains possible even in life's most difficult seasons.

And perhaps most importantly, those experiences offered first-hand knowledge of the truth that there is a place of ease and well-being within each of us, regardless of our circumstances. Learning how to reconnect with that deep-seated peace and equanimity may be among the great works of our lives.

Listen to the full story on The Handpan Podcast → Link

Beyond the Counseling Office

Healing and growth don't happen only in therapy.

Some of life's most meaningful insights emerge through creativity, stillness, nature, community, and reflection.

As shared in the podcast episode above, the handpan has become an important part of my own journey and the work I share with others. Through handpan music, mindfulness practices, retreats, and the Awaken Engage Podcast, I explore the many ways people can reconnect with themselves and discover what matters most.

These experiences aren't separate from counseling—they are complementary pathways toward greater awareness, connection, and wholeness.

The Awaken Engage Philosophy: Fully Present. Fully Alive.

Awaken Engage is built around a simple invitation: 

Awaken: Notice what matters.

Engage: Live what matters.

Flourish: Become fully alive.

For me, that means living with curiosity, presence, compassion, and courage.

It means paying attention to the relationships, values, and experiences that shape our lives.

It means embracing both challenge and possibility.

And it means recognizing that healing and growth are not destinations, but ongoing practices.

Through therapy, education, mindfulness, retreats, music, and conversation, my hope is to help create spaces where people can slow down, reflect, reconnect, and move forward with greater clarity and purpose.