1 00:00:00,040 --> 00:00:03,480 Welcome to Dear Social Worker. Let's talk the podcast that 2 00:00:03,480 --> 00:00:06,440 prioritizes you the person behind the title. 3 00:00:07,000 --> 00:00:10,520 I'm your host, Lisa Ran, and I'm here to inspire and encourage 4 00:00:10,520 --> 00:00:13,960 your personal development, promote your wellbeing and 5 00:00:13,960 --> 00:00:17,420 leadership development. Welcome to another episode 6 00:00:17,420 --> 00:00:22,100 celebrating Black History Month here in the UK and the theme is 7 00:00:22,100 --> 00:00:26,780 Saluting our sisters. We have 4 ladies from the US and 8 00:00:26,780 --> 00:00:32,460 the UK and today's podcast is titled A Career Beyond Social 9 00:00:32,460 --> 00:00:34,620 Work. So let's talk. 10 00:00:34,660 --> 00:00:38,460 I'm going to start with my UK sister, right Nadine. 11 00:00:38,460 --> 00:00:40,780 Please introduce yourself to our listeners. 12 00:00:41,300 --> 00:00:43,900 Nice to meet you, everyone. I'm Nadine Thorpe. 13 00:00:44,700 --> 00:00:48,580 I'm a qualified social worker and I specialize in working in 14 00:00:48,860 --> 00:00:51,700 children and families. So I've been working as a social 15 00:00:51,700 --> 00:00:56,060 worker for about 8 years now. And at the moment I work as a 16 00:00:56,060 --> 00:00:59,620 social worker for the court as I transition to become a 17 00:00:59,620 --> 00:01:02,060 solicitor. Thank you. 18 00:01:02,660 --> 00:01:08,340 Let's go straight to Atlanta. Start with Sean, North Atlanta, 19 00:01:08,340 --> 00:01:10,530 then South Atlanta. Sure. 20 00:01:10,530 --> 00:01:13,370 My name is Sean Austin. I'm a licensed Clinical Social 21 00:01:13,370 --> 00:01:16,810 worker here in Atlanta. I've been a social worker for 15 22 00:01:16,810 --> 00:01:21,410 years and I think I've worked in every setting possible with 23 00:01:21,410 --> 00:01:24,450 every population. Currently working with our 24 00:01:24,450 --> 00:01:27,010 veterans and I'm glad to be here today. 25 00:01:28,050 --> 00:01:30,730 Thank you, Sean. South Atlanta. 26 00:01:32,410 --> 00:01:34,730 Hi, I'm Joy. Thank you for having me here. 27 00:01:34,730 --> 00:01:38,530 I'm a clinical social worker. Also, I'm from the Bronx, NY, 28 00:01:38,530 --> 00:01:42,650 but I live in Atlanta now. I've been a social worker for 11 29 00:01:42,650 --> 00:01:47,650 years, 12 years and I have worked in schools and child 30 00:01:47,650 --> 00:01:49,650 welfare and now I'm in private practice. 31 00:01:50,370 --> 00:01:53,890 Thank you, Joy Monika. Everybody. 32 00:01:53,890 --> 00:01:56,450 My name is Monika Thomas. I'm also a clinical social 33 00:01:56,450 --> 00:01:58,210 worker. I'm independently licensed. 34 00:01:58,880 --> 00:02:01,280 I operate a private practice in Ohio. 35 00:02:01,560 --> 00:02:05,720 I've also been a social worker for a little over 1213 fourteen 36 00:02:05,720 --> 00:02:09,720 years and I also have a YouTube channel where I provide 37 00:02:09,720 --> 00:02:12,440 education and training for other social workers. 38 00:02:13,360 --> 00:02:16,200 Thank you all for being here. It's wonderful to have us all in 39 00:02:16,200 --> 00:02:20,280 the same room at the same time and to be able to share with our 40 00:02:20,520 --> 00:02:24,130 listeners all the different facets of social work. 41 00:02:24,130 --> 00:02:26,570 And that's why we're all here, because we all do something 42 00:02:26,570 --> 00:02:29,290 slightly different that is beyond the government 43 00:02:29,290 --> 00:02:31,850 organization, beyond local authority. 44 00:02:31,890 --> 00:02:35,970 I know there's people thinking, well, how have you moved into or 45 00:02:35,970 --> 00:02:39,650 what made you go, Nadine, into being a lawyer? 46 00:02:39,650 --> 00:02:42,210 What inspired you to do that? What inspired you, Monika, to 47 00:02:42,210 --> 00:02:45,530 have a private practice? So I think just understanding 48 00:02:45,530 --> 00:02:49,450 your stories is a good place to start, Nadine. 49 00:02:50,750 --> 00:02:54,150 And yes, so as I mentioned earlier, I worked in the child 50 00:02:54,150 --> 00:02:58,070 protection team for about 5 years and I particularly enjoyed 51 00:02:58,070 --> 00:03:03,190 working on court cases simply because I enjoyed making sure 52 00:03:03,190 --> 00:03:06,350 that children got their voice heard in the court proceedings. 53 00:03:07,270 --> 00:03:10,910 So that kind of inspired me to work for as a family court 54 00:03:10,910 --> 00:03:14,230 advisor, where my role now is solely working for the court to 55 00:03:14,230 --> 00:03:18,190 represent children in care proceedings that are in relation 56 00:03:18,190 --> 00:03:21,150 to them. So I specifically work in public 57 00:03:21,150 --> 00:03:25,110 law, and that's where the local authority would make an 58 00:03:25,110 --> 00:03:27,950 application to the court to place the child in foster care 59 00:03:27,950 --> 00:03:32,150 or with a family member. One of the reasons why I wanted 60 00:03:32,150 --> 00:03:36,030 to transition to become a lawyer is because I noticed that the 61 00:03:36,030 --> 00:03:39,670 majority of my caseloads are people from black backgrounds, 62 00:03:39,790 --> 00:03:42,150 but the majority of the lawyers that would represent these 63 00:03:42,150 --> 00:03:44,790 children were white middleclass men. 64 00:03:45,270 --> 00:03:48,550 And that kind of stood out to me because it was like. 65 00:03:49,070 --> 00:03:51,510 Although they're representing these children, they don't 66 00:03:51,510 --> 00:03:54,150 really understand what it means to grow up in, let's say, South 67 00:03:54,190 --> 00:03:58,910 London or East London and what kind of decisions they should be 68 00:03:59,150 --> 00:04:01,870 advocating on behalf of their client, because they're because 69 00:04:01,870 --> 00:04:03,870 they've basically grown up in a different world to them. 70 00:04:04,350 --> 00:04:07,070 And so that's one of the reasons why I want, I wanted to be the 71 00:04:07,070 --> 00:04:11,030 change that I wanted to see. Thank you for sharing Nadine 72 00:04:11,350 --> 00:04:16,050 Monika. Yes, my path is also similar to 73 00:04:16,050 --> 00:04:17,170 that. So I worked in a lot of 74 00:04:17,170 --> 00:04:20,010 different professions within the social work field. 75 00:04:20,890 --> 00:04:23,970 But one of the things that I noticed is when I was doing 76 00:04:23,970 --> 00:04:26,970 therapy or when I was working at children's services, there 77 00:04:26,970 --> 00:04:30,330 weren't a lot of African Americans who were who they were 78 00:04:30,330 --> 00:04:33,170 referring to for therapy services if a child needed that. 79 00:04:33,450 --> 00:04:36,530 So that was one of the reasons why I entered therapy and then I 80 00:04:36,530 --> 00:04:39,730 enter private practice because I didn't want to be stifled by. 81 00:04:40,470 --> 00:04:43,550 Providing care for the things that I knew the African American 82 00:04:43,550 --> 00:04:45,030 children, youth and families needed. 83 00:04:45,350 --> 00:04:47,670 So when I started my practice, that's who I targeted my 84 00:04:47,670 --> 00:04:50,870 practice toward was healing trauma for African American 85 00:04:50,870 --> 00:04:53,270 children, youth and families. So it dealt with the things that 86 00:04:53,270 --> 00:04:57,110 we specifically encounter as a community and it was a safe 87 00:04:57,110 --> 00:04:59,390 space for us to be able to talk about some of the things that we 88 00:04:59,390 --> 00:05:01,190 felt like we couldn't talk about in public. 89 00:05:01,510 --> 00:05:04,830 So that's kind of the the reason why I went that route. 90 00:05:06,270 --> 00:05:09,070 Thank you Manika. Thanks for sharing joy. 91 00:05:10,190 --> 00:05:13,790 Yeah. So I started off and in child 92 00:05:13,790 --> 00:05:17,470 welfare as a case planner, and I knew that I wanted to work with 93 00:05:17,470 --> 00:05:20,190 children in a larger setting. So then I transitioned to 94 00:05:20,230 --> 00:05:26,070 education. And then I started to see a lot 95 00:05:26,070 --> 00:05:28,270 of the things that were happening with the children be 96 00:05:28,270 --> 00:05:30,510 reflected on their parents. And so when I started private 97 00:05:30,510 --> 00:05:34,310 practice, I started most working with mostly black women, because 98 00:05:34,310 --> 00:05:38,510 some of the issues that we face are very. 99 00:05:39,040 --> 00:05:41,920 Kind of like how Nadine and and Monique has said are very things 100 00:05:41,920 --> 00:05:44,440 that are things that we talk about amongst ourselves, the 101 00:05:44,440 --> 00:05:48,080 things that we experience. And I just want it to be that 102 00:05:48,080 --> 00:05:51,760 person that could give black women a place where they could 103 00:05:51,760 --> 00:05:53,880 feel seen and heard and understood about their 104 00:05:53,880 --> 00:05:56,760 experiences and safe to even talk about some of the things 105 00:05:56,760 --> 00:06:00,520 that we don't say out loud. Thank you, Joy. 106 00:06:02,120 --> 00:06:03,990 Sure. Sure. 107 00:06:03,990 --> 00:06:08,030 So I have a passion for the vulnerable population. 108 00:06:08,310 --> 00:06:12,430 And it honestly started high school where I was a certified 109 00:06:12,430 --> 00:06:16,270 nurse's assistant at a geriatric nursing home in a psychiatric 110 00:06:16,270 --> 00:06:17,950 nursing home. And then I went to college and 111 00:06:17,950 --> 00:06:21,910 continued being a certified nurse's assistant at a geriatric 112 00:06:21,910 --> 00:06:25,430 facility and then started working in Child Protective 113 00:06:25,430 --> 00:06:29,940 Services at. 6 1/2 years. Then worked in a Children's 114 00:06:29,940 --> 00:06:33,460 Hospital, in a primary care clinic for six years and now 115 00:06:33,460 --> 00:06:37,140 working with our veterans who deserve our service, right. 116 00:06:37,140 --> 00:06:41,140 And so I realized that I have a passion to help the vulnerable 117 00:06:41,140 --> 00:06:44,940 population and realizing that one day I'm going to be that 118 00:06:44,940 --> 00:06:48,060 vulnerable population, whether it be by incident or accident or 119 00:06:48,060 --> 00:06:50,100 age, right. So it's inevitable. 120 00:06:50,100 --> 00:06:53,660 It's going to happen And so the I want someone to be able to 121 00:06:53,660 --> 00:06:56,300 take care of me is just as well as I take care of them. 122 00:06:56,300 --> 00:07:00,500 And so I think that that's. Just me giving back, but I also, 123 00:07:00,740 --> 00:07:05,820 I think for me realized that as a clinical supervisor, right. 124 00:07:05,820 --> 00:07:08,460 They're not a lot of African American clinical supervisors. 125 00:07:08,760 --> 00:07:12,720 And so I can't teach passion, but I can teach the importance 126 00:07:12,720 --> 00:07:16,840 of our role as an advocate and are the importance of our role 127 00:07:16,840 --> 00:07:18,680 to serve these vulnerable populations. 128 00:07:18,680 --> 00:07:21,800 And so that's why I take pride and being a clinical supervisor 129 00:07:21,800 --> 00:07:24,800 to highlight those things. And not just going over, you 130 00:07:24,800 --> 00:07:28,800 know, ethics and preparing for the exam, but how can I show the 131 00:07:28,800 --> 00:07:32,040 next generation of social workers that what we do is more 132 00:07:32,040 --> 00:07:35,640 important than what we are maybe taught in school, right. 133 00:07:35,640 --> 00:07:38,680 And so hopefully as time goes on, they find their passion. 134 00:07:39,760 --> 00:07:42,360 Through the clinical supervision that's being provided. 135 00:07:44,000 --> 00:07:46,480 Thank you, everyone. I mean, it's very clear that the 136 00:07:46,480 --> 00:07:50,120 theme is representation. There's a lack of representation 137 00:07:50,360 --> 00:07:54,240 in the area of social work that you've decided to move towards 138 00:07:54,280 --> 00:07:56,440 and particularly in your private practice. 139 00:07:56,640 --> 00:08:00,160 And it just shows that having that foresight, having a vision, 140 00:08:00,160 --> 00:08:03,460 having a plan, having that passion, you're able to actually 141 00:08:03,460 --> 00:08:07,140 move beyond that government organization and still 142 00:08:07,140 --> 00:08:10,100 contribute greatly to social work. 143 00:08:10,100 --> 00:08:11,700 You're never leaving social work. 144 00:08:11,900 --> 00:08:14,540 Once a social worker, always a social worker. 145 00:08:14,540 --> 00:08:17,500 I say no matter where you go and remember what you do. 146 00:08:17,900 --> 00:08:20,820 Even though we have listeners that are across the world, 147 00:08:20,820 --> 00:08:24,220 they're in Germany, they're in Australia, Japan, Hey, how you 148 00:08:24,220 --> 00:08:25,900 doing? I'll just say hello to give you 149 00:08:25,900 --> 00:08:28,500 a shout out. It is important for them to hear 150 00:08:28,500 --> 00:08:33,350 these stories because they are part of the system that we work 151 00:08:33,350 --> 00:08:36,070 within, black or not. If there is a lack of 152 00:08:36,110 --> 00:08:40,110 representation, it still has an impact on them and the way that 153 00:08:40,110 --> 00:08:44,590 they work and raising their awareness of of what's happening 154 00:08:44,590 --> 00:08:48,310 around them. So with that being said, I think 155 00:08:48,310 --> 00:08:53,190 it's key that we highlight some of your your proudest 156 00:08:53,190 --> 00:08:56,870 achievements. Joy, let me start with you one. 157 00:08:58,830 --> 00:09:02,120 Of my. I guess biggest achievements was 158 00:09:02,160 --> 00:09:07,800 my podcast being getting to #3 of the Top 40 social work 159 00:09:07,800 --> 00:09:10,720 podcast to follow. So that to me was really a 160 00:09:10,720 --> 00:09:12,040 problem. Wonderful. 161 00:09:12,320 --> 00:09:14,720 Well done. Thank you, Joy Monika. 162 00:09:17,240 --> 00:09:21,480 I was with no one. One achievement. 163 00:09:22,560 --> 00:09:26,880 I will probably say. My YouTube channel, because it 164 00:09:26,880 --> 00:09:30,080 had, it gave me the opportunity to connect with social workers 165 00:09:30,080 --> 00:09:34,080 across the world. And I had no idea that social 166 00:09:34,080 --> 00:09:37,880 work was such a prominent career, you know, where people 167 00:09:37,920 --> 00:09:41,440 had questions about how to be successful and how to navigate 168 00:09:41,440 --> 00:09:43,560 their career and what was the best route to take. 169 00:09:43,560 --> 00:09:46,440 So starting that Channel really connected me with a lot of 170 00:09:46,440 --> 00:09:49,720 different people who are in various stages of their career. 171 00:09:51,440 --> 00:09:56,080 Thank you, Anika Shaw. I think my greatest achievement 172 00:09:56,520 --> 00:10:01,080 is CEO's of Social Work Networking and Empowerment 173 00:10:01,080 --> 00:10:05,000 Brunch that was just held two weeks ago at the Riverside 174 00:10:05,000 --> 00:10:10,240 Epicenter here in Atlanta. Again, it's a platform where we 175 00:10:10,240 --> 00:10:12,480 no longer have to work in isolation, right? 176 00:10:12,480 --> 00:10:14,960 But we are making connections, we're building community, we're 177 00:10:14,960 --> 00:10:17,480 sharing resources and we're gaining partnerships. 178 00:10:17,680 --> 00:10:21,360 So I'm excited about this community that we're building 179 00:10:21,360 --> 00:10:23,800 and I'm looking forward to our future. 180 00:10:23,880 --> 00:10:27,680 Events to continue to empower us as social workers to build a 181 00:10:27,680 --> 00:10:31,240 solid foundation for our business and provide elite 182 00:10:31,240 --> 00:10:33,400 services to the populations that we serve. 183 00:10:34,680 --> 00:10:36,600 Thank you. Thanks for sharing everyone, 184 00:10:36,840 --> 00:10:40,960 Nadine. I think I would have to say that 185 00:10:41,280 --> 00:10:45,440 my biggest achievement has to be going back to school to study 186 00:10:45,840 --> 00:10:49,920 for a law degree and I've been able to see that whilst working 187 00:10:49,920 --> 00:10:54,970 full time as a social worker. So yeah, I think I had the idea 188 00:10:54,970 --> 00:10:58,010 to do it during the pandemic and I'm almost at the end. 189 00:10:58,010 --> 00:10:59,650 So I'm really, I'm really proud of myself. 190 00:11:03,610 --> 00:11:06,410 We look forward to your graduation pictures, Nadine. 191 00:11:08,530 --> 00:11:12,250 There will be such a joy when you work for something and you 192 00:11:12,250 --> 00:11:15,050 you get to the end and you can celebrate, you know, and you 193 00:11:15,050 --> 00:11:17,130 have a a memory to celebrate with. 194 00:11:17,130 --> 00:11:21,130 So we'll be there liking your pictures when they when they 195 00:11:21,130 --> 00:11:24,580 come out. So if you're in your role right 196 00:11:24,580 --> 00:11:27,220 now, listeners, and you're thinking, what else can I do? 197 00:11:27,220 --> 00:11:31,900 I was at an event on Monday. I had so many people ask me, how 198 00:11:31,900 --> 00:11:34,140 did you set up the social work coaching hub? 199 00:11:34,300 --> 00:11:37,700 How did you move from local authority to this? 200 00:11:37,820 --> 00:11:40,180 What gave you the idea? Or just had all of these 201 00:11:40,180 --> 00:11:44,420 questions and it was clear that social workers are burning to 202 00:11:44,420 --> 00:11:48,260 see what else they can do. They don't want to step out of 203 00:11:48,260 --> 00:11:50,940 the profession. They want to have an extension 204 00:11:50,940 --> 00:11:55,320 of that and but keeping to the Sean, in your opinion, how 205 00:11:55,320 --> 00:11:59,880 important is it for black individuals to diversify their 206 00:11:59,880 --> 00:12:04,360 career paths and contribute to various industries and what 207 00:12:04,360 --> 00:12:09,400 benefits does this bring to the individual and society as a 208 00:12:09,400 --> 00:12:11,400 whole? Yeah. 209 00:12:11,400 --> 00:12:15,760 I think it's important, one, because we are held accountable 210 00:12:15,760 --> 00:12:18,960 to be culturally competent as social workers, right? 211 00:12:18,960 --> 00:12:23,030 And so that means we have to. Know our clients and a lot of us 212 00:12:23,270 --> 00:12:25,670 given our careers have served clients from different 213 00:12:25,670 --> 00:12:29,030 backgrounds, different cultures. And I know from me just personal 214 00:12:29,030 --> 00:12:34,190 experience from moving to Atlanta in 2008, there wasn't 215 00:12:34,270 --> 00:12:37,270 there was not a lot of representation of social workers 216 00:12:37,270 --> 00:12:41,830 or clinical social workers and so working with providers, they 217 00:12:41,830 --> 00:12:44,710 wouldn't be culturally competent on how to work with African 218 00:12:44,710 --> 00:12:46,750 American families. Right. 219 00:12:46,750 --> 00:12:49,350 And the complexity of African American families. 220 00:12:49,350 --> 00:12:52,870 And so I felt like. Me being present in that working 221 00:12:52,870 --> 00:12:58,150 environment provided just the strength that that family needed 222 00:12:58,150 --> 00:13:01,070 to navigate the system, whether it be Child Protective Services 223 00:13:01,070 --> 00:13:09,310 or the the medical field. But I think that overall, being 224 00:13:09,310 --> 00:13:13,910 culturally competent allows the client or the patient to have 225 00:13:13,910 --> 00:13:18,270 confidence to know that we have the skill set to meet their 226 00:13:18,270 --> 00:13:22,540 needs. But as a system overall, I think 227 00:13:22,540 --> 00:13:27,180 that it just brings better insight on our commitment to 228 00:13:27,180 --> 00:13:31,340 serving every population and not just doing the work to serve a 229 00:13:31,340 --> 00:13:34,420 specific population or the more dominant population. 230 00:13:34,420 --> 00:13:38,380 So again, I think that. We are held accountable, but it 231 00:13:38,380 --> 00:13:40,580 doesn't always happen. But I think that we are moving 232 00:13:40,740 --> 00:13:44,100 in a space where we are culturally competent and we 233 00:13:44,100 --> 00:13:48,300 there are representation in hospitals and power Protective 234 00:13:48,300 --> 00:13:51,940 Services and even in the rural areas, right, that we are 235 00:13:51,940 --> 00:13:55,380 present and we are there so that our families and our children 236 00:13:55,580 --> 00:13:58,500 know that they have someone working on their behalf. 237 00:13:59,620 --> 00:14:02,180 Thank you, Sean. Same question to you, Nadine. 238 00:14:02,300 --> 00:14:04,020 I think social work is a very hard job. 239 00:14:05,090 --> 00:14:08,050 And I think burnout in social work is a real thing. 240 00:14:08,810 --> 00:14:13,090 And I think in my experience, I've had numerous points of my 241 00:14:13,090 --> 00:14:15,210 career where I've wanted to give up social work. 242 00:14:16,410 --> 00:14:20,850 And I think being able to still be involved in working with 243 00:14:20,850 --> 00:14:23,770 honorable families and and honorable children, but maybe 244 00:14:23,770 --> 00:14:29,330 not be on the the frontline has really helped me to help my own, 245 00:14:29,330 --> 00:14:30,930 like mental health and wellbeing. 246 00:14:31,450 --> 00:14:34,450 But also kind of stick to my kind of my passions and my 247 00:14:34,450 --> 00:14:36,850 goals, which is helping vulnerable families and and 248 00:14:36,850 --> 00:14:41,090 vulnerable children. And I think being able to kind 249 00:14:41,090 --> 00:14:44,490 of recognize that it is okay to change. 250 00:14:44,490 --> 00:14:46,810 So you may be a social record for a period of time and then 251 00:14:46,810 --> 00:14:50,770 change like over years. I think it's it would encourage 252 00:14:50,810 --> 00:14:53,770 a lot more young social workers to come into the field because 253 00:14:53,770 --> 00:14:55,850 they don't feel like they would have to stay in that until 254 00:14:56,450 --> 00:15:01,790 they're able to to retire. And I think that just continues 255 00:15:01,790 --> 00:15:05,470 the process of having young social workers working on the on 256 00:15:05,470 --> 00:15:07,830 the frontline, but also the older social workers that get 257 00:15:07,830 --> 00:15:12,430 into the therapeutic spaces or the legal spaces or owning 258 00:15:12,430 --> 00:15:15,350 residential homes. It kind of allows us to kind of 259 00:15:15,590 --> 00:15:18,790 be present in lots of different areas in social work where our 260 00:15:18,790 --> 00:15:21,150 families are going to have to be in contact with someone. 261 00:15:21,310 --> 00:15:23,670 So it's always nice to have a friendly black face that can 262 00:15:23,670 --> 00:15:26,150 help and support and understand what you're actually going 263 00:15:26,150 --> 00:15:30,480 through. Yeah, I had a podcast with two 264 00:15:30,480 --> 00:15:35,080 care levers last week and we were having a discussion about 265 00:15:35,080 --> 00:15:37,640 the difference between ethnicity and culture. 266 00:15:38,040 --> 00:15:41,840 But culture is is very different to skin color and we have to be 267 00:15:41,840 --> 00:15:45,560 mindful that when we are getting into those spaces, it is 268 00:15:45,560 --> 00:15:49,640 representative of ethnicity and culture simultaneously. 269 00:15:50,600 --> 00:15:53,000 So I'm just going to come to you, Monika, and ask you and 270 00:15:53,560 --> 00:15:56,640 what are some of the unique challenges and opportunities 271 00:15:57,080 --> 00:16:01,410 that Black professionals may encounter when pursuing careers 272 00:16:01,570 --> 00:16:05,050 outside of the traditional social work roles? 273 00:16:06,410 --> 00:16:10,170 So some of the social work roles, I like to have social 274 00:16:10,170 --> 00:16:14,370 workers think outside of that traditional 3 tier system that 275 00:16:14,370 --> 00:16:18,330 we were taught by macro, mezzo and micro. 276 00:16:19,010 --> 00:16:21,850 I think now there's so many other opportunities for us to 277 00:16:21,850 --> 00:16:25,290 explore that don't fit nicely within those boxes. 278 00:16:26,010 --> 00:16:29,330 So for example, how Joy mentioned her podcast or how I 279 00:16:29,330 --> 00:16:32,290 have my YouTube channel, I think there are a lot of different 280 00:16:32,290 --> 00:16:35,690 ways for us to think about helping that doesn't look like 281 00:16:35,730 --> 00:16:38,690 the traditional social work role, and we don't always have 282 00:16:38,690 --> 00:16:41,650 to do direct practice to still have an impact in the lives of 283 00:16:41,650 --> 00:16:43,930 families. So I think that's important for 284 00:16:43,930 --> 00:16:47,490 social workers to know that and to also know just because you do 285 00:16:47,490 --> 00:16:49,930 the work of a social worker doesn't mean that your title is 286 00:16:49,930 --> 00:16:52,610 necessarily always going to have the title social work. 287 00:16:52,820 --> 00:16:57,020 In it so you can explore different types of careers and 288 00:16:57,020 --> 00:17:01,620 things that don't traditionally require a social work degree, 289 00:17:01,620 --> 00:17:03,820 but they require social work skill sets. 290 00:17:04,099 --> 00:17:08,260 So once you're able to learn what those skill sets are and 291 00:17:08,260 --> 00:17:10,900 how they can transfer to different industries, I think 292 00:17:10,900 --> 00:17:13,180 you'll that social workers can see that they have a broader 293 00:17:13,180 --> 00:17:15,260 scope of opportunities that they could pursue. 294 00:17:15,720 --> 00:17:17,880 Thanks Monika. I'm going to ask a followup 295 00:17:17,880 --> 00:17:20,520 question because I know this is part of the air of your 296 00:17:20,520 --> 00:17:24,200 expertise about the different types of social work careers 297 00:17:24,400 --> 00:17:26,160 that people could be thinking about. 298 00:17:26,160 --> 00:17:28,880 So whether you're listening in the US and we do have US 299 00:17:28,880 --> 00:17:31,840 listeners in Carolina, good afternoon or good evening, 300 00:17:31,840 --> 00:17:36,760 depending on where you are and what are the other social work 301 00:17:36,760 --> 00:17:40,240 roles that social workers could be considering. 302 00:17:41,120 --> 00:17:44,640 So one of the roles that I like to define in terms of the space 303 00:17:44,640 --> 00:17:47,840 that I'm in is I define it as a social work content creator. 304 00:17:48,080 --> 00:17:51,000 So that's where you take your knowledge and your expertise. 305 00:17:51,000 --> 00:17:54,040 You learn how to package that up and you learn how to use social 306 00:17:54,040 --> 00:17:56,560 media in order to make more income for yourself. 307 00:17:56,880 --> 00:18:00,120 So it's not again just fitted in the type box of micro level 308 00:18:00,120 --> 00:18:02,520 where you're working directly one-on-one with clients. 309 00:18:02,520 --> 00:18:07,640 You can being a content creator in a coaching capacity, but you 310 00:18:07,640 --> 00:18:10,500 can also do one to many. Where you're doing like a 311 00:18:10,500 --> 00:18:12,540 YouTube channel or podcast, like what Joy does. 312 00:18:12,540 --> 00:18:16,140 So when you're a content creator, you're you're adding in 313 00:18:16,140 --> 00:18:18,580 your social work skills, but then you're also leveraging 314 00:18:18,580 --> 00:18:21,260 social media. So I think that's something to 315 00:18:21,260 --> 00:18:24,460 explore and you can do that at any level of professionalism. 316 00:18:24,460 --> 00:18:27,020 You don't have to have a license to do it if you just want to 317 00:18:27,020 --> 00:18:28,860 have mastery in a certain skill set. 318 00:18:29,180 --> 00:18:31,460 So that's what I really try to encourage social workers to do 319 00:18:31,460 --> 00:18:34,300 is even if you're new to the profession, even if you. 320 00:18:34,950 --> 00:18:36,950 Don't have your license? What's something that you have a 321 00:18:36,950 --> 00:18:39,750 high level of mastery in that other people might want to know 322 00:18:39,750 --> 00:18:42,910 about, and that can be an Ave. for you to pursue as a career. 323 00:18:42,910 --> 00:18:45,950 So I would say content creation is something that we should all 324 00:18:45,950 --> 00:18:49,190 consider for a passive income stream, leveraging our social 325 00:18:49,190 --> 00:18:52,870 media and not solely relying on traditional social work roles. 326 00:18:54,230 --> 00:18:56,750 Thank you Anika. That's really helpful to to hear 327 00:18:56,750 --> 00:19:02,430 because I had someone approach me and on Monday I was asked to 328 00:19:02,430 --> 00:19:05,270 do a seminar and a live podcast recording. 329 00:19:05,270 --> 00:19:09,990 And at that event I had a a stand and a lady came to to 330 00:19:09,990 --> 00:19:11,910 speak to me. She's like, I've been working in 331 00:19:11,910 --> 00:19:16,310 adult social care for like 20 odd years and I feel like I'm in 332 00:19:16,310 --> 00:19:19,190 the place where I don't know whether I want to stay or 333 00:19:19,190 --> 00:19:21,870 whether I want to consider moving forward. 334 00:19:21,870 --> 00:19:25,790 I'm very confused, but I want to remain in social work. 335 00:19:25,790 --> 00:19:29,470 So I said, well, what do you most enjoy about the adult 336 00:19:29,470 --> 00:19:32,130 social work role? And she was like being with 337 00:19:32,130 --> 00:19:34,770 people, just being there and doing the direct work with 338 00:19:34,770 --> 00:19:36,330 people. I was like, there's your 339 00:19:36,330 --> 00:19:38,850 business, you said to your companies. 340 00:19:38,850 --> 00:19:42,050 And he's just doing what you love to do, which is probably 341 00:19:42,050 --> 00:19:45,570 creating programs or something. That way you're just doing 342 00:19:45,570 --> 00:19:49,970 direct work with the adults. So that's really sound advice. 343 00:19:49,970 --> 00:19:53,210 Monika, thank you. And Joy, I'm going to ask you 344 00:19:53,210 --> 00:19:57,250 the same question and if we can focus on some of the unique 345 00:19:57,250 --> 00:20:00,090 challenges that Black professionals may encounter. 346 00:20:00,650 --> 00:20:04,370 When pursuing careers outside of the traditional roles. 347 00:20:04,930 --> 00:20:06,690 I'm sorry, I didn't hear the question. 348 00:20:07,130 --> 00:20:08,770 Sure. I was asking you, what are some 349 00:20:08,770 --> 00:20:11,250 of the unique challenges that black professionals may 350 00:20:11,250 --> 00:20:15,330 encounter when pursuing careers outside the traditional role? 351 00:20:16,050 --> 00:20:18,090 I think sometimes it's just hard to think. 352 00:20:18,550 --> 00:20:22,110 For some people to think outside of the box and to be creative 353 00:20:22,110 --> 00:20:25,030 and really like I try to ask some of my clients and and 354 00:20:25,030 --> 00:20:26,550 myself too is like what do you like? 355 00:20:26,550 --> 00:20:29,750 What brings you joy? What do you think would be like 356 00:20:29,790 --> 00:20:32,910 something that's fun, something that might be challenging and 357 00:20:32,910 --> 00:20:37,510 really encouraging folks to like tap into that and tap into which 358 00:20:37,510 --> 00:20:40,870 you would want to maybe learn about that you don't hear often? 359 00:20:41,720 --> 00:20:44,480 So sometimes it's challenging to to think about the what the 360 00:20:44,480 --> 00:20:47,160 thing that they want to do. But also sometimes it's hard for 361 00:20:47,160 --> 00:20:50,480 people to like just make that pivot and make that change in 362 00:20:50,480 --> 00:20:53,000 that shift. Because I think social work 363 00:20:53,000 --> 00:20:56,480 school trains us to be so one way and now I think as 364 00:20:56,960 --> 00:20:59,440 especially black people, we are not. 365 00:21:00,080 --> 00:21:03,560 A lot of us are not what our degrees taught us to be as we do 366 00:21:03,560 --> 00:21:06,320 this work. So really leaning in on that, I 367 00:21:06,320 --> 00:21:09,760 think that social media has been really key in connecting folks 368 00:21:10,120 --> 00:21:13,960 and seeing that there is so much that more that we can do when a 369 00:21:13,960 --> 00:21:16,000 social work degree and as social workers. 370 00:21:17,720 --> 00:21:20,520 So I think it's, it's sometimes it's us getting out of our own 371 00:21:20,520 --> 00:21:22,440 way. Yeah, yeah. 372 00:21:23,680 --> 00:21:29,520 Would would anyone agree that perhaps culture is part of that 373 00:21:29,520 --> 00:21:33,680 black culture mindset is part of getting out of the way? 374 00:21:34,440 --> 00:21:37,320 Yeah, yeah. I think a lot of times we self 375 00:21:37,320 --> 00:21:40,840 sabotage because we aren't represented and so we don't 376 00:21:40,840 --> 00:21:43,440 feel, we don't have the confidence to feel like we can 377 00:21:43,440 --> 00:21:47,120 do it. And so that's why, again, I I 378 00:21:47,160 --> 00:21:50,800 built this community of social workers so that you can surround 379 00:21:50,800 --> 00:21:53,360 yourself with likeminded people right when I. 380 00:21:53,970 --> 00:21:57,970 Started doing therapy. I didn't have the confidence and 381 00:21:57,970 --> 00:22:01,650 I was self sabotaging and I was like OK, well people are doing 382 00:22:01,650 --> 00:22:06,650 it, just not my people. So let me find great that is a 383 00:22:06,690 --> 00:22:09,210 therapist as her own private practice. 384 00:22:09,330 --> 00:22:11,770 My goal may not have been private practice, but I wanted 385 00:22:11,770 --> 00:22:13,250 to be confident in what I was doing. 386 00:22:13,250 --> 00:22:16,770 And so I reached out to a another licensed clinical social 387 00:22:16,770 --> 00:22:20,010 worker and I was like hey, do you mind being my mentor? 388 00:22:20,010 --> 00:22:22,850 So I had to be vulnerable right? To act for help. 389 00:22:23,570 --> 00:22:27,010 And he agreed to do that. And we were able to partner, 390 00:22:27,010 --> 00:22:31,090 share resources. And it helps me build my 391 00:22:31,090 --> 00:22:33,210 confidence. So I will just, you know, 392 00:22:33,210 --> 00:22:35,730 challenge our listeners is to surround yourself with 393 00:22:35,730 --> 00:22:37,730 likeminded people. If someone is doing something 394 00:22:37,730 --> 00:22:40,730 that you desire to do and it's not common, connect with them, 395 00:22:40,730 --> 00:22:44,450 reach out to them on LinkedIn or on social media, be vulnerable, 396 00:22:44,450 --> 00:22:45,610 right. That's the only way that we're 397 00:22:45,610 --> 00:22:47,850 going to make progress is if we're willing to to be 398 00:22:47,850 --> 00:22:49,410 vulnerable and put ourselves out there. 399 00:22:50,650 --> 00:22:52,130 Thank you. Does anyone else have any 400 00:22:52,130 --> 00:22:54,860 thoughts on that? I totally agree. 401 00:22:55,340 --> 00:22:59,460 My therapist at the time when I was trying to figure out, I knew 402 00:22:59,460 --> 00:23:01,060 that I always wanted to have a private practice. 403 00:23:01,140 --> 00:23:04,980 I just felt like I needed so much more something. 404 00:23:05,180 --> 00:23:07,620 And my therapist was like, I'm sure you have over a decade of 405 00:23:07,620 --> 00:23:10,700 experience. I'm confused why you feel like 406 00:23:10,700 --> 00:23:14,260 you're you're stuck in in these roles that you don't 407 00:23:14,260 --> 00:23:16,620 necessarily. And it's not that I didn't want 408 00:23:16,620 --> 00:23:17,980 to be in the role, it was more like. 409 00:23:18,910 --> 00:23:21,190 Wanting to do the work the way that I wanted to do the work 410 00:23:21,190 --> 00:23:23,630 that I felt was more meaningful for clients. 411 00:23:24,550 --> 00:23:26,750 Um and it. And it was her kind of mentoring 412 00:23:26,750 --> 00:23:28,470 me and saying like, this is what you need to do. 413 00:23:28,470 --> 00:23:31,870 This is what you need to know. And it was very key and 414 00:23:31,870 --> 00:23:35,470 important and vital to to my. The advice that I will give is 415 00:23:35,470 --> 00:23:37,350 to just take the UM, take the lead. 416 00:23:37,510 --> 00:23:40,910 I think, as I said, you're always waiting to get something 417 00:23:40,910 --> 00:23:44,150 so then you can do the the next step, but in reality you have 418 00:23:44,150 --> 00:23:46,550 all the skills that you need at this moment in time. 419 00:23:47,140 --> 00:23:50,140 And I think especially with social media, I think one of the 420 00:23:50,140 --> 00:23:55,340 key things is taking your your audience through that journey 421 00:23:55,340 --> 00:23:58,540 with you because some of the questions that you had at the 422 00:23:58,540 --> 00:24:01,500 beginning, you may not have halfway through or towards the 423 00:24:01,500 --> 00:24:04,580 end, but there's people kind of starting out that have those 424 00:24:04,580 --> 00:24:06,980 same questions that you did and at that time. 425 00:24:07,340 --> 00:24:09,220 And I think just kind of documenting that and 426 00:24:09,220 --> 00:24:11,700 highlighting that is very important that it does give. 427 00:24:12,150 --> 00:24:15,350 Other people that want to maybe consider a different path away 428 00:24:15,350 --> 00:24:20,270 from social work, the confidence and to know that they can also 429 00:24:20,270 --> 00:24:22,950 do it too. And so yeah, I think it's just 430 00:24:22,950 --> 00:24:26,150 having confidence and not and self sabotaging yourself, which 431 00:24:26,150 --> 00:24:28,390 is, which is really hard when you're trying to pursue 432 00:24:28,390 --> 00:24:31,390 something and you don't really see a lot of people that look 433 00:24:31,390 --> 00:24:33,510 like you doing what you want to do. 434 00:24:33,910 --> 00:24:37,070 And then you start to doubt yourself that should you really 435 00:24:37,070 --> 00:24:38,430 do it? Should you just kind of stick to 436 00:24:38,430 --> 00:24:41,420 what is? Mediocre, But yeah, I would 437 00:24:41,420 --> 00:24:44,460 encourage everyone to just take the leap and just give it a try. 438 00:24:44,460 --> 00:24:46,580 Social work is is always going to be there. 439 00:24:46,580 --> 00:24:48,620 So you can always hold it back on social work. 440 00:24:49,380 --> 00:24:50,660 That's right. That's right. 441 00:24:50,980 --> 00:24:55,140 And I just want to add to that, whatever you do, do not be 442 00:24:55,140 --> 00:25:00,740 average, do not play small. Do not hold yourself back and 443 00:25:00,740 --> 00:25:03,540 think, oh, I'm not going to do this or don't. 444 00:25:03,540 --> 00:25:06,700 Don't do that. Because there's people out there 445 00:25:06,700 --> 00:25:09,260 depending on the service that you have to offer. 446 00:25:10,230 --> 00:25:13,110 There's people out there looking for exactly what you have to 447 00:25:13,150 --> 00:25:15,110 offer. And you've got the unique 448 00:25:15,110 --> 00:25:17,750 combination to offer that particular service. 449 00:25:17,990 --> 00:25:20,510 And they're looking for you. They're just waiting for you to 450 00:25:20,510 --> 00:25:23,350 show up. And when you show up, they'll 451 00:25:23,350 --> 00:25:26,390 find you. Your tribe will find you. 452 00:25:26,910 --> 00:25:30,230 So never, ever play small. As you said, Nadine, let's not 453 00:25:30,230 --> 00:25:32,670 do average. We don't do average over here. 454 00:25:32,910 --> 00:25:36,810 You know, excellence is the bare minimum, and that's how you need 455 00:25:36,810 --> 00:25:38,170 to approach it. Joy. 456 00:25:38,570 --> 00:25:39,210 I'll be quiet now. Why? 457 00:25:42,330 --> 00:25:44,490 Would. We want to be average and 458 00:25:44,490 --> 00:25:46,890 mediocre. That was the word I did. 459 00:25:50,010 --> 00:25:53,890 So Sean, same question to you. What advice would you give to 460 00:25:53,890 --> 00:25:58,530 aspiring professionals you have? 90% of what you have, right and 461 00:25:58,530 --> 00:26:01,940 the other 10% is. The just doing it and 462 00:26:01,940 --> 00:26:06,700 consistency, but also knowing that the sky isn't the limit, 463 00:26:06,700 --> 00:26:09,740 it's just another level. So don't stop, right? 464 00:26:10,380 --> 00:26:15,180 And if you see a need, or if you see that there's a void and you 465 00:26:15,180 --> 00:26:19,220 have the skill and the passion to do it, just do it and the 466 00:26:19,220 --> 00:26:21,100 people and the resources will come. 467 00:26:22,860 --> 00:26:25,260 Yeah, There's something that you you said there. 468 00:26:25,260 --> 00:26:31,180 If you see the void and it's so true, most of the time you 469 00:26:31,180 --> 00:26:33,860 actually see the void. You're walking around the 470 00:26:33,860 --> 00:26:35,980 offices, you're talking about it with colleagues. 471 00:26:36,220 --> 00:26:38,220 Why don't they do things like this? 472 00:26:38,460 --> 00:26:41,780 If you're saying something like that, there you go, that's the 473 00:26:41,780 --> 00:26:46,660 business right there. Same question to you. 474 00:26:46,820 --> 00:26:50,500 I would say learn how to trust your own voice, because I think 475 00:26:50,500 --> 00:26:53,140 a lot of times I noticed that social workers second guess 476 00:26:53,140 --> 00:26:55,860 themselves. They have a desire, an interest, 477 00:26:55,860 --> 00:26:59,430 a passion that they want to do. But they don't know how to bring 478 00:26:59,430 --> 00:27:01,430 it into fruition. They don't know how to take the 479 00:27:01,430 --> 00:27:03,950 first step. They don't know if it's going to 480 00:27:03,950 --> 00:27:06,270 be successful. So a lot of times they look at 481 00:27:06,270 --> 00:27:09,110 what other people are doing or they talk themselves out of it, 482 00:27:09,110 --> 00:27:12,110 or they do a smaller version of what they want to do because 483 00:27:12,110 --> 00:27:13,710 they don't trust themselves enough. 484 00:27:13,710 --> 00:27:16,870 So I would say, you know, learn how to listen to your intuition. 485 00:27:16,870 --> 00:27:19,310 Everything everyone else has said, connect with the people 486 00:27:19,310 --> 00:27:22,350 who can help you. And I always tell social 487 00:27:22,350 --> 00:27:26,070 workers, make a list of knows, make a list of 100 knows. 488 00:27:26,450 --> 00:27:28,730 So that way when you get that 10th, no, you won't get 489 00:27:28,730 --> 00:27:30,690 discouraged. No, you still got 90. 490 00:27:30,690 --> 00:27:35,170 Some more knows to go because if you let those knows discourage 491 00:27:35,170 --> 00:27:37,930 you, you'll begin to think that that's your destiny. 492 00:27:37,930 --> 00:27:41,050 Like that's what's made for you. And you could begin to get 493 00:27:41,050 --> 00:27:43,770 discouraged like what you want is impossible or it's not meant 494 00:27:43,770 --> 00:27:46,010 to be. So after you make that list of 495 00:27:46,010 --> 00:27:50,010 100, just keep track. You know I reach 5. 496 00:27:50,010 --> 00:27:52,650 Now I'm going to keep going. If I get 6, then I'll, I'll 497 00:27:52,650 --> 00:27:54,050 keep, I'll continue to keep going. 498 00:27:54,570 --> 00:27:56,850 So I would just say. Trust yourself more. 499 00:27:57,890 --> 00:28:02,530 Thank you Manika Joy. I think this was said in a 500 00:28:02,530 --> 00:28:04,890 different way, but something that's really been helpful for 501 00:28:04,890 --> 00:28:08,130 me is that everybody is not going to be for me. 502 00:28:08,130 --> 00:28:09,450 Everybody's not gonna be a client. 503 00:28:09,650 --> 00:28:12,130 Everyone's not gonna like my podcast. 504 00:28:12,940 --> 00:28:16,500 Or me or whatever. And and that I don't have to try 505 00:28:16,500 --> 00:28:18,500 to please everyone. I have to do the things that 506 00:28:18,500 --> 00:28:21,940 feel like I'm presenting myself as my most authentic and genuine 507 00:28:21,940 --> 00:28:23,700 self. And that's what's important to 508 00:28:23,700 --> 00:28:26,740 me at the end of the day. And and I think Sean said this 509 00:28:26,740 --> 00:28:28,860 like the people that are supposed to be for you will come 510 00:28:29,380 --> 00:28:34,020 and and and it might not be 100% of everybody and that's OK. 511 00:28:34,300 --> 00:28:37,020 It doesn't necessarily take money out of your pocket. 512 00:28:37,020 --> 00:28:38,380 It doesn't make you a bad person. 513 00:28:38,380 --> 00:28:40,780 You don't need to try to fit into every mold, because then 514 00:28:40,780 --> 00:28:42,300 you'll end up making yourself unhappy. 515 00:28:43,140 --> 00:28:46,460 And if your goal is to do this the way that you feel works best 516 00:28:46,460 --> 00:28:51,740 for you, do that, yeah, yeah, beautifully said. 517 00:28:51,740 --> 00:28:53,940 Nothing further for me to add on to that. 518 00:28:53,940 --> 00:28:57,940 It's beautifully said and I really hope whilst listening to 519 00:28:57,940 --> 00:29:00,820 this episode, you've had a notepad, you've had a pen and 520 00:29:00,820 --> 00:29:04,220 you're writing down ideas. And I just want to be clear, 521 00:29:04,220 --> 00:29:06,180 we're not encouraging you to leave. 522 00:29:06,740 --> 00:29:09,420 We're just saying if it's something you're thinking about, 523 00:29:09,660 --> 00:29:12,620 if you're thinking about, you know what, I'm going to start a 524 00:29:12,620 --> 00:29:14,260 family soon. I'm going to need something more 525 00:29:14,260 --> 00:29:16,540 flexible. You can and you can do it with 526 00:29:16,540 --> 00:29:20,780 the skills that you you have. On that note, I'm going to do a 527 00:29:21,140 --> 00:29:24,380 whiz round because someone may be listening and say, well, how 528 00:29:24,380 --> 00:29:26,700 do I get hold of Sean? I want to hear more about this 529 00:29:26,700 --> 00:29:29,140 conference. So Sean, where can people find 530 00:29:29,140 --> 00:29:31,780 you? Yes, you can find me on 531 00:29:31,780 --> 00:29:35,260 Instagram at CEO's of Social Work. 532 00:29:35,980 --> 00:29:39,940 And that, again, that is CEO's of social work on Instagram. 533 00:29:39,940 --> 00:29:44,700 Monika You can find me under my name on a social media platform 534 00:29:44,700 --> 00:29:48,420 such as YouTube, Instagram, Pinterest, LinkedIn. 535 00:29:48,620 --> 00:29:52,540 So it's Monika Tom at Monika Thomas and then my website 536 00:29:52,540 --> 00:29:55,900 ismonikathomas.com. Thank you, Monika. 537 00:29:56,180 --> 00:29:59,420 Nadine. Yeah, so I'm on Instagram. 538 00:29:59,420 --> 00:30:03,480 So it's social under score worker under score to under 539 00:30:03,480 --> 00:30:06,820 score lawyer. And I'm on Tiktok as well, under 540 00:30:06,820 --> 00:30:10,340 the same handle. Thank you, Nadine Joy. 541 00:30:11,660 --> 00:30:15,180 I'm on Instagram at the Joy of Social Work, and joy is filled 542 00:30:15,180 --> 00:30:18,460 with an eye and my podcast is on pause. 543 00:30:18,460 --> 00:30:21,180 But there's five years of episodes, and that's called the 544 00:30:21,180 --> 00:30:24,550 Joy of Social Work, Finance. You've got to let us know when 545 00:30:24,550 --> 00:30:27,310 it comes back out, Joy, because we'll all love to be there and 546 00:30:27,310 --> 00:30:27,950 support you. I. 547 00:30:31,230 --> 00:30:36,550 Will, no pressure. The last thing I'm going to ask 548 00:30:36,550 --> 00:30:41,110 you is to just think of a couple of sentences to inspire the 549 00:30:41,390 --> 00:30:44,670 listeners, particularly our black social workers. 550 00:30:45,270 --> 00:30:48,190 We do this at the end of every episode and it's almost like 551 00:30:48,190 --> 00:30:51,570 you're writing a letter to them. So I want you to start your 552 00:30:51,570 --> 00:30:55,250 sentence with Dear social worker and then just let it. 553 00:30:55,250 --> 00:31:00,690 Flow Dear social worker Do not apologize for prioritizing the 554 00:31:00,690 --> 00:31:02,570 needs of black families and children. 555 00:31:03,930 --> 00:31:08,170 Nadine. Dear social worker and always 556 00:31:08,170 --> 00:31:14,930 strive to do your best joy. Dear social worker, take a break 557 00:31:14,930 --> 00:31:18,170 if you need to. Yeah, sure. 558 00:31:19,630 --> 00:31:23,150 Dear social workers, this work is complex, meaning there are 559 00:31:23,150 --> 00:31:25,870 many levels, but it is not complicated. 560 00:31:25,870 --> 00:31:30,510 You can do this. I feel like saying Amen. 561 00:31:30,510 --> 00:31:33,110 What powerful words. Thank you ladies. 562 00:31:33,820 --> 00:31:36,060 Thank you so much. You have been listening to Dear 563 00:31:36,060 --> 00:31:38,900 Social Worker podcast. Please interact with all of the 564 00:31:38,900 --> 00:31:42,620 questions on Spotify. Please click subscribe. 565 00:31:42,620 --> 00:31:45,500 If you are a regular listener, don't just listen and just skip 566 00:31:45,500 --> 00:31:48,100 off. Please click subscribe and leave 567 00:31:48,100 --> 00:31:50,180 a review. If you're listening to me on 568 00:31:50,260 --> 00:31:54,540 Apple, you can visit my website at socialworkcoachinghub.com. 569 00:31:54,740 --> 00:31:58,980 You know where to find me on IG at Dear Social Worker podcast. 570 00:31:59,390 --> 00:32:02,510 On that note, we will be back next week with an episode 571 00:32:02,510 --> 00:32:05,150 talking about anti racist practice. 572 00:32:05,390 --> 00:32:09,390 So come back to listen to this podcast week after. 573 00:32:09,710 --> 00:32:12,590 So thank you everyone. Lovely to see you all. 574 00:32:12,590 --> 00:32:14,630 Thank you for joining us. Bye.