Speechies in Business

Helping Speech Pathologists in private practice focus on what matters most: their clients

David Kinnane

Good mentorship is about more than the occasional chat over coffee

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Good mentors serve as role models, advisers, teachers, guides, sponsors, and protectors. They help junior professionals forge identities and realise dreams.

For senior professionals, mentorship fulfils a deep-seated urge to guide younger generations of professionals.

Authentic relationships lie at the heart of good mentoring. But not all mentoring relationships are created equal: some are superficial and transactional.

According to Professor Herminia Ibarra, senior-junior professional relationships can evolve naturally through five stages:

  1. Mentor: The senior provides advice and support privately.
  2. Strategiser: The senior shares ‘inside knowledge’ about how the junior might advance.
  3. Connector: The senior provides introductions to key stakeholders and includes the junior in meetings/events that give the junior access to people who can be instrumental for career development.
  4. Opportunity giver: The senior seeks out high visibility projects/roles for the junior to take on, e.g. a presentation, strategic project, or membership of an external board.
  5. Sponsor: The senior is committed to the junior’s long-term success, with both professionals giving and receiving value, openly sharing ideas and a mutual sense of competence and confidence, as well as a bias for taking concrete actions.

The ideal mentor relationship includes career-advancement help, public advocacy for growth opportunities, and support and validation. Done well, mentorship bolsters confidence and fosters the development of a caring, mutually satisfying bond.

Source: Ibarra, H. (2022). How To Do Sponsorship Right. Harvard Business Review, Nov-Dec, 111-119.

Related articles:

For more on supervision, check out our book “How to supervise speech pathologists properly in private practice“.

“Do you have any questions for me?” 10 questions you can ask speech pathology employers in job interviews

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10 questions you can ask speech pathology employers in job interviews

  • Can you tell me more about the team I will be working with?
  • What would a typical day for me in this role look like?
  • How will I be supervised, and who will I work with most closely? 
  • What is your performance review process like?
  • What goals and metrics will my performance be measured against?
  • What are the current goals that [the organisation] is focused on, and how does the team work to support hitting those goals?
  • What are [the organisation]’s plans for growth and development?
  • How do you typically onboard and train employees?
  • Is there anything I should read before starting that would help me to get up to speed?
  • What’s your favourite part of working here?

Source: Gallo, A. (2022). 38 Smart Questions to Ask in a Job Interview, Harvard Business Review, May, 2022.

Hot topic: Will all Australian SLP practices have to register with the NDIS Commission? 

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Breaking news:

On 2 August 2024, the NDIS Provider and Worker Registration Taskforce Advice was released, with their views on mandatory registration.

SLP views were heard:

“The Taskforce acknowledges there are a number of allied health practitioners who are not required to register with AHPRA, including…speech pathologists. Some of these practitioners operate in a self-regulated environment (e.g. for National Alliance of Self Regulating Health Professions (NASRHP)). These frameworks may be accompanied by a certification process and Code of Ethics. We have heard that members of these bodies would prefer to not be required to operate under duplicate accreditation and registration requirements, through mandatory registration with the NDIS Commission.”

Existing CPSP self-regulation arrangements may count as NDIS registration:

“The Taskforce recommends consideration be given to the appropriateness of extending a recognition of those registration schemes to self-regulating allied health professionals. Any such assessment would need to consider the requirements of the self-regulated environment and other relevant matters. This recommendation is in relation to registration only and does not apply to worker screening.” (Our emphasis.)

Why it matters:

SLPs are well-regulated in Australia with certification processes, professional standards that mirror AHPRA standards, and a robust Code of Ethics with complaint processes.

Mandatory NDIS registration would increase compliance costs and red tape, duplicate existing rules, and discourage some SLPs from offering NDIS-funded services, reducing participant choice and control.   

Go deeper:

Read the NDIS Provider and Worker Registration Taskforce Advice.

Watch this space:

We now await the Government’s response to the Taskforce advice.

This article also appears in a recent issue of Banter Booster, our weekly round up of the best speech pathology ideas and practice tips for busy speech pathologists, speech pathology students and others.

Sign up to receive Banter Booster in your inbox each week:

10 practical productivity tips for speech pathologists in private practice – “Be productive, not busy”

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Respect your own time so others will, too. 

1. Use ‘timeboxing’/time-blocking.

Schedule each part of your day. Be specific about each activity in each time block, including breaks (e.g. “Session planning”; “Emails”; “Call X”; “Coffee break” etc.).

Stick to your plan for both work AND rest.

2. Do one thing at a time. (Multi-tasking is a myth.)

The more you task-switch, the more time you lose to re-orient yourself. Resist the urge to check your email constantly!

3. Batch similar tasks together.

Minimise multi-tasking.

4. Build in ‘buffer’ time for unexpected things.

Build in extra time for urgent or tricky things within or between each time slot.

5. Say ‘no’ more often (even if it feels awkward at first).

Tim Harford: Every time we say “yes” to a request, we are also saying “no” to anything else we might accomplish with the time.

6. Remove distractions.

Tell co-workers when you cannot be disturbed. Share your timetable with the team. They’ll see when you’re busy. Keep your phone out of easy reach.

7. Examine barriers to productivity.

We all get distracted. Note down distractions and brainstorm how to minimise them.

8. Try not to claw back your schedule back if you go off-track.

Restart at the next planned time block.

9. Build healthy work habits. Start small.

Don’t rely on motivation (too variable). Work on building one healthy habit at a time. Once automatic, begin another.

Small, consistent changes set you on a trajectory to achieve larger goals.

10. Take (scheduled) breaks. Recovery is essential.

Use breaks to recover and reset. If you do not rest enough, your body will force you to rest through illness or burnout.

5 practical ways for SLPs to deal with uncertainty in private practice

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Things can feel out of control. Rising inflation and interest rates. Staff shortages. Long waiting lists. Reporting deadlines. Work-life-family pressures. Life in private practice is messy! 

We’re wired to fear the unknown; and many SLPs love order and control. But uncertainty and possibility are two sides of the same coin.

Most things that matter – relationships, life-changing experiences, achievements – come to us after long periods of uncertainty. 

We can learn to manage uncertainty better:

  1. Reframe: We’re all playing James Carse’s “infinite game” – not to ‘win’ or ‘lose’, but to do something meaningful. We are on an adventure to help people, and we can change the rules if needed. 
  2. Balance: Some things are under our control, including our routines and habits. Fixed morning and night routines, work systems, mediation and fitness habits, and environment tweaks to reduce the number of pointless choices we make each day can help provide balance.
  3. Act! Actions change your mood. Many successes come from a series of small, consistent steps. Feel the fear and get going! 
  4. Prime yourself with regular, small risks: Take small, calculated risks with limited downsides, e.g. by learning something new out of your comfort zone. Not that long ago, I made my first Instagram Reel. I felt foolish and incompetent, but the new trick made this old dog feel braver about dealing with change!
  5. Recast: Failing hurts. Unfair things happen. Chaos can inflict tunnel vision. Widen your perspective with different ‘lenses’:
    • learning (What can I learn from this?);
    • gratitude (What do I still have?);
    • timing (This is temporary, I can try again!); and
    • challenge (heroes overcome obstacles). Spend more time with people you respect and love. Doing things you care about. Stay true to your values and mission.

Key source: Furr, N. & Harmon Furr, S. (2022). How to Overcome Your Fear of the Unknown. Harvard Business Review, July-August, 135-139.

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