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And now

Now that I have accomplished my wedding (what an accomplishment that process was, too — I spent a whole lot of energy worrying over that lovely day), I have come up with some new goals for my work and my small private practice. Some of these I had incorporated into my daily routine months before my wedding, but some I have just recently decided I’d like to do. Here are a few:

  1. Record the new songs I create, even if they are written in session and I’m not sure they’d be applicable elsewhere.
  2. Attend a bi-monthly instrumental workshop (one I’m planning to attend is a ukelele picking class).
  3. Incorporate one new, as in current, song at some point throughout each working week.
  4. Professionally interact in some way each day on the social media platforms Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn.
  5. Create fact sheets for every condition, illness, syndrome, or disability I encounter for current and future reference.

Most of these particular things I have done to some degree or another, but I feel the need to be more diligent about them. And of course, there are many more needs to fulfill, but those I’ll leave for another list, perhaps.

I’ve taken to use monthly, weekly, and daily checklists, but then let each and every un-checked task haunt me if and when it’s ignored. Any good ideas to help let go of those things that simply did not happen?

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Subway flash mob

I feel rather distant from a number of things lately, but this is because we are so busy getting together the rest of our wedding planning. Obviously I haven’t been writing daily; but I’ve been working daily.

Last week’s UPS included:

  1. Acquiring new clients
  2. Seeing my once-a-month clients
  3. Setting up a high school student observation
  4. Acquiring new instruments and materials for the little ones I see each morning
  5. Getting a $15.00 discount at a children’s store, just by using foursquare

Last week’s NOT-SO-UPS included:

  1. Learning that I won’t be seeing a really special client after the Spring session
  2. Becoming frustrated with my (in)ability to continuously engage my little ones
  3. Becoming frustrated that I’m finding it more and more difficult to separate my wedding planning from my every thought
  4. Realizing I can’t keep up with everything I’d like to be doing right this minute
  5. Succumbing to feeling overwhelmed

Have a good week, everyone.

 

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The bells will be ringing

I have missed blogging with my regularity this past week, however I am in need of any extra time I can find; I’m getting married next month and I have ohsomuch planning yet to do. So, with this upcoming, life-changing event (a wonderful one), I am going to post to this site only once a week in this month of May. I’ll see how life treats me in June…

This being said, I have to say I was heartbroken when I heard this news story, and I want to share it. (Not because I want you to be heartbroken, too, but because I find it a notable story.)

Oops! Stradivarius cello broken in accident…

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Vitamin M

I am having trouble with my site at the moment, so I’m hoping that this post at least shows up… Oh, how technology can (and does) make and break my day.
I want to say that on Saturday, a smallish group of music therapists in the Minneapolis and St. Paul area met for our monthly meeting to take the opportunity to support one another and to share resources. We’ve created a group on Facebook that we call Vitamin M. Feel free to ask to join if you are a Minnesotan!

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GoodReader and its helpfulness

I have a tendency to acquire tools, materials, apps, and even instruments that I enjoy knowing I own, but do not actively use for as long as months after I buy or receive them.

Enter: GoodReader. My fiancé happens to be a computer and technology genius and seems to have daily tips and advice, and showed me GoodReader probably months ago. Not until this morning did I use it.

Essentially, GoodReader opens PDFs on an iPad or iPhone, but what’s great about it is that it allows the user to highlight text and save edited copy. I’d been reading my music therapy articles from the real live paper journals and had been highlighting passages with a real live highlighter. Though I love handwritten notes and paper planners, I find that GoodReader’s capability is really useful since I will likely be finding more material online now than in the older research I have in printed form.

Ah yes, my handwritten planner

Tell me: Do you use GoodReader? How else do you use it?

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Planning practices and problems

I have never considered myself a songwriter. I have always considered myself a planner.

Recent realizations are such that I am a songwriter (almost on a daily basis), and my feelings toward planning are that they are hopeful and sometimes restricting.

I believe all of this relates.

I’ve been afraid of writing songs and music because I’ve felt that there are a certain set of rules a composer must follow in order for the song to be valid. I’ve also always held that a songwriter must be very versed in music theory. I loathe music theory. I know it’s useful and important, but I still loathe it.

I’ve been set on rigid planning practices, in regard to music therapy and everything else there is to plan, but I have frequently been so pleasantly surprised by results of therapy sessions when I truly accommodate for the moment. This is not to say that goals and objectives are abandoned. This is to say that I am really good at improvising when I need to be. I am so happy with that.

As far as songwriting and planning go, I’ve found that I can create a legitimate song in a session that is not only applicable to that particular client and his or her needs but teachable and adaptable.

I like these kinds of surprises.

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Newfound podcast: WSJ on Small Business

One way in which I have been trying to branch out as a young professional is to develop my business skills. My fiancé offers endless assistance, for which I am grateful. I am also trying to seek out any resources I can utilize on my own.

Podcasts are huge for me right now. I am in the car a lot, driving from client to client to contract to client, etc. Perhaps it’s my Suzuki upbringing, but I absorb a lot from listening to interesting content; I love to read, of course, but I think I gain more from the act of listening.

One podcast I’ve liked this week is Wall Street Journal on Small Business, which can be found here. The podcast is short and provides synopses of several pieces that are applicable to small business owners and entrepreneurs.

 

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Monthly meetings

On Saturday, the Minneapolis Area Music Therapists will get together again for our monthly meeting. I’ve invited a couple of music therapists I know to attend via Skype, as they live in two other states. One of them had done her internship here in the cities before taking a full-time music therapy position in Indiana. I’m excited to see how we can connect on screen. 

We will be looking at another set of articles (I believe), and sharing songs we are using on a regular basis in our work. I plan to bring an original song that I “wrote” while in a session, and have been using more and more now.

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My Epic contract

I began another contract today. This one will last for eight weeks. I work with groups of adults with developmental disabilities throughout the day, and end the day with a debriefing session that includes staff members. Today was the first time I’d met most of the clients and many of the staff members. I loved the experience and am fortunate to feel very comfortable with and welcomed by the staff.

One of my biggest challenges with this particular contract is that I am charged, if you will, with the task of designing music experiences that non-musicians can facilitate  with the clients in my absence. The facility owns a collection of instruments that I used today and will be using in the future, but the facility’s biggest hope is that when I leave, the music won’t. The staff provides music sessions on a daily basis, and I understand my job to be to provide new resources for them and new techniques with which they feel comfortable. Apparently, some of the staff chose not to be a member of my particular project because music was too intimidating. Based on the responses I observed in the clients today, I definitely believe music is a powerful force at this facility (and most places). My big question is, How can I lead and teach in a way that is musically stimulating and pleasing, but not impossible for non-musicians to perform? 

I do love challenges.

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Co-facilitation

Tomorrow I present to a group of speech-language pathologists and occupational therapists on the application of music therapy in a setting that serves children with developmental disabilities. I have not seen, in person, a music therapist co-facilitate a session with a therapist or specialist of another profession, but have had a chance to see video of co-facilitation with physical therapy. I don’t necessarily expect that I will be doing anything of the sort with the children at tomorrow’s site (should I even meet these children), though I think co-facilitating with another specialty would be fantastic. Not only would I hopefully see progress in a client, but I’d also have a better perspective of the processes of the other facilitator. 

I just listened to this month’s episode of Music Therapy Round Table in which the subject addressed was the “bucket list” of music therapists. I’ve always wanted to write and publish, but perhaps a more timely goal to have is to work in some co-facilitation.