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By: Lizzy Davis, MT Intern  Image description: Large white paper that says “Say it with me, I’m proud to be me. I am enough, I can work through all my problems, I will do my best, I’ll be kind to others” When becoming a new professional, it’s easy to get swept up by workday tasks and want to throw in the towel immediately after getting home. I have definitely been caught up in the “wake-up, eat, work, commute home, sit and scroll, then sleep” cycle. While there is no shame in needing to rest once the day is over, this cycle can often lead to burnout and can negatively affect mental health. Studies show that people who regularly engage in hobbies that they love decrease their chances of burnout within their professions. I previously found myself saying “I feel like I have no time to do the things I love,” but I discovered that finding even tiny pockets of time within your day (10-15 minutes) can have a large impact on work-life balance. Here are my best self-care strategies that have helped me find time for things I love and create a healthy work-life balance.
My first self-care strategy that I implemented was creating a morning routine that I love. There is a lot of information on the internet about what a “perfect” morning routine should look like, but I encourage people to analyze what routine makes them feel good and stick to that, rather than following what someone online says is good. That can look like sitting with a cup of tea or coffee in the morning, maybe walking your pet, doing your favorite form of exercise for 15 minutes, journaling, or meditating. Choose 1-2 activities that make you feel good, and try to carve out even 10-15 minutes for those things in the morning. For example, going on walks and journaling always make me feel good, so I try to go on a 15 minute walk in the mornings, and then sit down for 5 minutes and journal. It’s a small commitment that has made the largest difference in my mental health. I found that making time for myself in the morning positively affected my mood for the day, and decreased symptoms of fatigue or anxiety. My next self care strategy is to create a “never been there, never done that” list. I got this idea from the Mel Robbins podcast, where the task is to look at all the places that are nearby that you have never explored, make a list of them, and then set times to go explore them. For instance, maybe there is a walking trail you’ve never been on, or a coffee shop or store that you drive by every day that you have never walked into. The goal is to find those places that are nearby that you have never explored or experienced, and set times to go to those places. The nice thing about this list is that it doesn’t have to be expensive, and I have found that scheduling times to go explore new places gives me something to look forward to in the week, and helps me create a good work-life balance. My last few tips for self-care and creating a healthy work-life balance are to make time for your hobbies and speak positively about yourself. In the weeks where I engage in hobbies that I love (singing, cooking, arts and crafts, etc.), I notice that my general mood is brighter, and I have more energy throughout the week for my tasks. I encourage the people reading this to engage in those hobbies that fill your cup. I can empathize with the feeling of not having enough time for those hobbies, so even finding 5-10 minutes a day to engage in those hobbies can have a positive impact on mental health. My last tip is to speak positively to yourself. In the past, I used to speak negatively about myself for making mistakes or my shortcomings. I never felt good about myself when I spoke negatively. When I started to reframe my mindset and speak positively about myself, I felt more confident and productive throughout the day. For instance, instead of saying “of course I messed up this task, I can never do this right,” I reframed it to say “I am human and it’s normal to make mistakes, I’ll just fix it and do better next time!” With this reframing, I still acknowledged that a mistake was made, but didn’t put myself down for it and instead used it as a learning opportunity. I try to apply this to all facets of my life, and it has made a huge impact on my mental health and helped to decrease burnout. Overall, it’s important to keep engaging in the things you love and carve out even tiny portions of time to do them. It can help to break that “work, eat, sleep” loop that leads to burnout, and keeps your cup full so you can be fully present in all facets of your life.
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Written by:Lizzy Davis, Music Therapy Intern  I distinctly remember the anticipation and anxiety I felt doing my interviews for PMT. The fears of “What if my skills aren’t up to par?” or “What if this doesn’t work out for me” swam in my brain, but I did what I could to ignore those fears and keep pushing towards my goal. I spent so much time in my undergrad practicing repertoire, studying music therapy textbooks, and doing my practicum work all to prepare for an internship: the final step before taking the CBMT exam and becoming board certified.
I was elated when I found out that I had been accepted to intern here. That was a huge relief for me to finally feel grounded in what my next steps would be. I said my goodbyes to SUNY Fredonia in NY and moved down to the warm and sunny Charlotte, NC. While moving away from my home state was difficult, I became excited to start something new and finally practice music therapy full-time. Everything I studied for in college all came to this, and I was ready for it. Before my first day interning here, I still had many self-doubts about my capabilities as a new intern. The new fears became “What if I don’t meet their expectations” or “What if I mess up profoundly or don’t make any connections?” However, my first day of interning extinguished those fears quickly. I observed many group and individual sessions, met many amazing people, and saw the business side of music therapy. The staff here at PMT are so kind and were willing to answer any question I had, and slowly but surely I have started to feel settled into this new routine. What I observed from the staff here is that the most important skill or quality one can have is the ability to connect with people and listen to their needs or wants. It became clear to me that I wasn’t expected to be “perfect” in any way shape or form, but it was expected of me that I show up with positive intentions and a willingness to be flexible. What I’ve learned from interning here thus far is that ultimately, showing up with kindness, compassion, and a willingness to learn and grow are what matter the most. While I don’t want to discredit the importance of having good music skills, professionalism, and therapeutic knowledge required by the AMTA Competencies, I now know that I probably was more prepared than I thought I was. For those of you reading this who may be starting an internship soon or even just starting something new, my only advice would be to be open to different experiences and be willing to listen and learn. This is the final post in a monthly series (that began September 2023) following Executive Director, Gretchen Benner’s learning in the York County Non-Profit Management Certificate Program - Rock Hill, SC.  Dr. Melissa K. Carsten, Associate Professor of Management at Appalachian State University, led the final workshop on leadership.This session helped participants set leadership goals for their local organization. It was reinvigorating to discuss management and governing concepts. We also explored our organization’s mission and how it is impacted by transformational versus transactional leadership. At PMT, I aspire to lead in the transformational approach as it involves empowerment, supporting individuals and encouraging personal development. Since we are a non-profit organization, my leadership style may impact staff and students, as well as volunteers and board members. A personal takeaway is to support goals that leverage individuals’ strengths in our daily operations. I appreciate board members donating their time and sharing their leadership styles. I’m grateful for this learning program through York County and feel equipped to continue implementing improvements at our non-profit organization!  Image Description: Katie Goodwin, Director of Weekday Ministries at St. John's United Methodist Church in downtown Rock Hill, SC who serves on PMT's Board of Directors stands beside Gretchen Benner, holding framed certificate.
 Image description: Portion of www.piedmontmusictherapy.com/about page that lists quarterly dates for board meetings, and an "Interested in Serving?" form to completing online. This is the eighth post in a series following Executive Director, Gretchen Benner's attendance of the York County Non-Profit Management Certificate Program - Rock Hill, SC.
Joanie Winters, Attorney at Law, led a second informative presentation and last week's was titled “Legal Basics for Non-Profit Organizations.” PMT received many practical suggestions for state rules and regulations. The workshop series continued to share helpful tips, such as Piedmont Music Therapy needing to apply for a Bulk Mailing Rate due to its eligibility as a NPO. PMT does not have an attorney on our board, so we will stay in touch with Attorney Winters. Interested in supporting our mission through sharing your work or personal experiences? Consider joining PMT’s Board of Directors or Committees. If you do not have time to spare, consider supporting PMT’s bulk mail initiatives here! Written by: Gabby Jones, MT-bC, Neurologic Music TherapistAs a person-centered clinician, I interact with so many families, caretakers, and loved ones connected to the people I serve. From parents to spouses to respite workers, I’m constantly delivering reports or updates about my clients’ progress in the music therapy space, and one of my favorite parts about the job is the concept of collaboration. It’s so important to be involved in the care of your loved one to amplify their success, but oftentimes, I find it hard to feel supported in the work that I’m doing with individuals. I think, “Are their parents seeing these differences at home?” or “Are other therapies addressing similar goals with them?”. As a clinician who advocates for continued, practical, meaningful transfer of skills for my clients, here are some ways client’s loved ones can support the music therapy journey:
Overall, collaboration is so important. We see the greatest success for clients whose support systems remain supportive. Music therapy is such a creative and fluid space, and we want to encourage creativity and fluidity outside of the work we do at our clinic. The people we serve deserve to feel as though we’re all in their corner - so let’s work together to achieve that goal!  Image description: six people connect their hand in a fist bump side by side the other closed hand gestures.  Image description: Screen photo of Piedmont Music Therapy's Instagram page with 3 pinned posts, and 3 most recent posts of staff & people playing drums. This is the seventh post in a series following Executive Director, Gretchen Benner's attendance of the York County Non-Profit Management Certificate Program - Rock Hill, SC.
Yesterday’s workshop overflowed with context and contacts pertaining to marketing and public relations. Adam Berstein, Alicia Broughton and Kenny McNett, from Chernoff Newman plus Michael Hollowa, from H Two Design, helped to educate our cohort on the necessity to engage and build a relationship-oriented presence through social media. PMT enjoyed this topic since this is a professional strength of our organization. PMT will reexamine its social media presence, to ensure clear alignment of its mission in greater Charlotte. Many new clients or curious community partnerships learn about our clinical through social media. Click here to fund PMT marketing efforts in social media. Piedmont Music Therapy appreciates the support of the SC Arts Commission for music therapists on staff at Piedmont Music Therapy to attend the Southeastern Region - American Music Therapy Association Conference in Atlanta, Georgia last month! Some of the takeaways included:
 This was a valuable experience and PMT is grateful to the SC Arts Commission for its support!
 This is the sixth post in a series following Executive Director, Gretchen Benner's attendance of the York County Non-Profit Management Certificate Program - Rock Hill, SC. Josh Jacobson from Next Stage CLT led a workshop on Sustainability and Development. Josh’s name and company were familiar due to interactions with Charlotte is Creative and Tosco Music in Charlotte. PMT learned various reasons why donors may feel led to support an organization, and the important relationship that can be built to foster sustaining support. PMT was also introduced to the topic of “Social Impact Strategies” that exist with for-profit markets. PMT will consider ways to restructure our educational events in tandem with local business’ interest in supporting social change, such as sponsorship of community treatment programs. Swag (i.e. PMT branded apparel, pens or magnets) is a popular promotional item to gift to participants at local fairs and events. Click here to fund additional PMT Swag giveaways. We asked our team of board certified music therapists to take the quiz on page #19 to gauge their interest in being in the profession. The average score was 27.  How would you or a friend fair with the questions? Try not to worry, there's no perfect score with fitting the personal qualities! Feel free to share this resource from American Music Therapy Association (page 19) with a high school student or other individual curious about pursuing a career in music therapy!  Image description: "A Career in Music Therapy. An Allied Health Profession." A smiling professional sits beside a person with head phones, both looking downward. Variety of guitars barely visible in background of the room they sit within.
 This is the fifth post in a series following Executive Director, Gretchen Benner's attendance of the York County Non-Profit Management Certificate Program - Rock Hill, SC.
Joanie Winters of Winters Law Firm, LLC led a workshop on “Legal Basics & Operational Accountability.” Attorney Winters recommended contents for Employee Handbooks. PMT found the information helpful when reviewing criteria for task effectiveness at work. When organizations consider how policies and practices support mission work and operations, it can strengthen the mission. An additional take-away was that PMT learned that Employee Appreciation Day is celebrated annually on March 1! PMT will annually recognize this occasion. PMT went an extra step and honored the presence and contributions of employees each Friday in March with treats at the staff entrance. If you would like to support staff acknowledgements, please choose an item from our Amazon Wish List! |
PMTProviding music therapy services for early childhood to older adults, music instruction and enrichment plus continuing music therapy education in Greater Charlotte Area of the Carolinas. 
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