Do you feel like you are never doing enough?
I know I do.
There is always so much more I can learn, systems that I could generate to make work faster, or handouts I could create for parents, teachers and others on my kiddos team.
Often all this thought and work goes unrecognised.
It’s invisible work.
You go to a PD, watch a webinar or complete a course and you implement what you have learnt, making your therapy sessions better, and more impactful, you see the gains but no one ‘sees’ the hours and effort that has gone into it.
You create a template or make your progress notes faster or easier, or a template for reports or a system to ensure that you have done x, y z. You spend time and energy researching how to do this, you create it and spend hours refining it. Yes, you have the ease and everyone; your client, their parents, and the therapy team benefit but no one sees how much you have done to make it happen.
The same with a handout, a therapy resource, you name it. There is so much ‘extra’ we do because we are always striving to be better, do better and to make more of an impact.
Part of this is our nature and our deep desire to be of service.
Another part is that we want to be more efficient, create ease, and remove friction.
The question is how do we then stop the effort, energy and time from being invisible?
The simplest way I have found is to start talking about it.
I recently started a Gestalt Langauge Processing course. Firstly to increase my knowledge in the area but mostly so that 3 kiddos on my caseload can get targeted, effective intervention. So instead of keeping silent, I talked about the course with their parents. I talk about what I have learnt, what I am implementing, why I am doing so, what effects we should see and what they can do to help move things forward. It’s a collaboration. It builds more trust and rapport AND it communicates all the ‘invisible’ work that I am doing outside of the sessions.
On the weekend I went and bought some equipment for my clinic room to allow for more gross motor movement and play. The first kiddo I was going to use it with couldn’t come in and the session was by phone. In that call I mentioned the new equipment, how we would use it, how he would benefit, why I bought it and what Mum can do when she comes in next week. Do you know what she said? “Thankyou”. Because the invisible work, thought, effort, energy and money was brought to her attention.
So starting today, I encourage you to talk about the invisible work you are doing. Bring light to it. Get attention on it. It will not only increase the connection with your clients, build more trust and rapport but it will help you feel so much better. You will feel validated. You will feel seen. You will feel appreciated.
& that goes a long way to preventing burnout.
Creating a career you love.
Getting excited about your work.
& feeling that what you do matters, because it does.
