A lot of the clinicians I work with feel very “boxed in” when it comes to the typical career path for therapists. They’re boxed in by the way they have to provide services within the system, which often dictates how, when, and how often they see students/clients. They may feel boxed in by their schedule, their setting, or even their earning potential. Usually, they enjoy what they do, but have a nagging feeling that they could be doing more for their caseload, their field, and their community. What I’ve observed over the last 5 years of mentoring clinicians is that they often go through “levels” of clinical practice. I like to refer to this as “Clinical Leadership”. Many therapists don’t think of themselves as leaders; especially if they aren’t in an “official” leadership position…but I think that every clinician has an opportunity to be a leader regardless of their official job title. Once therapists get comfortable with the traditional model of therapy, they’re often ready to transcend to the next stage of their career. So many of them are super talented, creative individuals; but they feel limited by what they see in the standard job postings. I’ve designed what I refer to as the “Pillars of Clinical Leadership” to help people get out of this career rut, so they can create a career unique to their own skills, talents, and preferences…and so they can make a bigger impact with the way they serve. In episode 78, I outline the common stages of leadership people go through, as well as the pillars for successful clinical leadership. If you don’t feel fully aligned or excited by the typical career path for clinicians, or if you love your job but want to discover creative ways to be of service, you won’t want to miss this episode. In this episode, I mentioned the Clinical Leadership Roundtable, an ongoing event for pediatric clinicians that take you through a series of exercises designed to help you craft your career path based on your unique skills, talents, and preferences. You can join the Clinical Leadership Roundtable here. The De Facto Leaders podcast was formerly the “Are they 18 yet?®” podcast. As of November 2022, the name of the show has changed, and we’ve shifted from a focus on parenting to a focus on supporting clinicians and educators to design effective services for kids (but parents are still welcome to listen). Episodes published before November 24, 2022 will still contain some of our old branding.
Show Notes
A lot of the clinicians I work with feel very “boxed in” when it comes to the typical career path for therapists. They’re boxed in by the way they have to provide services within the system, which often dictates how, when, and how often they see students/clients. They may feel boxed in by their schedule, their setting, or even their earning potential. Usually, they enjoy what they do, but have a nagging feeling that they could be doing more for their caseload, their field, and their community. What I’ve observed over the last 5 years of mentoring clinicians is that they often go through “levels” of clinical practice. I like to refer to this as “Clinical Leadership”. Many therapists don’t think of themselves as leaders; especially if they aren’t in an “official” leadership position…but I think that every clinician has an opportunity to be a leader regardless of their official job title.
Once therapists get comfortable with the traditional model of therapy, they’re often ready to transcend to the next stage of their career. So many of them are super talented, creative individuals; but they feel limited by what they see in the standard job postings. I’ve designed what I refer to as the “Pillars of Clinical Leadership” to help people get out of this career rut, so they can create a career unique to their own skills, talents, and preferences…and so they can make a bigger impact with the way they serve. In episode 78, I outline the common stages of leadership people go through, as well as the pillars for successful clinical leadership.
If you don’t feel fully aligned or excited by the typical career path for clinicians, or if you love your job but want to discover creative ways to be of service, you won’t want to miss this episode. In this episode, I mentioned the Clinical Leadership Roundtable, an ongoing event for pediatric clinicians that take you through a series of exercises designed to help you craft your career path based on your unique skills, talents, and preferences.
You can join the Clinical Leadership Roundtable here. The De Facto Leaders podcast was formerly the “Are they 18 yet?®” podcast. As of November 2022, the name of the show has changed, and we’ve shifted from a focus on parenting to a focus on supporting clinicians and educators to design effective services for kids (but parents are still welcome to listen). Episodes published before November 24, 2022 will still contain some of our old branding.
Learn more about today's sponsors, Playworks, IXL and Renaissance:
Learn more about Renaissance:
As a global leader in education technology operating in more than 110 countries, Renaissance is committed to providing educators with insights and resources to accelerate growth and help all students build a strong foundation for success. We believe that technology can unlock a more effective learning experience, ensure that students get the personalized teaching they need to thrive, and help educators and administrators to truly, fully, See Every Student. Learn more at
renaissance.com.
We’re proud to be sponsored by Playworks, a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization with evidence-based practices that help schools improve the health and well-being of children by increasing opportunities for physical activity and safe, meaningful play.
If you’re a school or district leader struggling with the challenge of chronic absenteeism, as so many are across the U.S., you may not realize that structured recess is a research-backed approach to keep kids in school. In fact, a UC Berkeley study of Title I schools found that those partnering with Playworks had significantly lower chronic absenteeism rates. Further, Mathematica research demonstrated that Playworks schools spent 27% less time transitioning from recess back to learning, saving teachers valuable instructional time.
IXL’s comprehensive teaching and learning platform for math, language arts, science, and social studies is accelerating achievement in 95 of the top 100 U.S. school districts. Loved by teachers and backed by independent research from Johns Hopkins University, IXL can help you do the following and more:
- Simplify and streamline technology
- Save teachers’ time
- Reliably meet Tier 1 standards
- Improve student performance on state assessments
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Ready to see why leading districts trust IXL for their educational needs? Visit IXL.com/BE today to learn more about how IXL can elevate your school or district.What is De Facto Leaders?
On the De Facto Leaders podcast, host Dr. Karen Dudek-Brannan helps pediatric therapists and educators become better leaders, so they can make a bigger impact with their services. With over 15 years of experience supporting school-age kids with diverse learning needs, Dr. Karen shares up-to-date evidence-based practices, her own experiences and guest interviews designed to help clinicians, teachers, and aspiring school leaders feel more confident in the way they serve their students and clients. She’ll cover a range of topics designed to help you support students' emotional and academic growth and set kids up for success in adulthood, including how to support language, literacy, executive functioning, and how to help IEP teams working together to support kids across the day. Whether you want to learn more effective strategies for your therapy session or classroom, be a more influential leader on your team, or find creative ways to use your skills to advance in your career, Dr. Karen has you covered.