The Professional Psychologist: From dream to reality

Pauline Bouffard, psychologist - private practice and Francine Cyr

The practice of the professional psychologist mirrors the upheavals being faced by all workers in society today. Both long-standing professionals and recent graduates who are embarking on their careers must now confront the issue of job availability and decide how they will fit into the currently unsettling job market. Having dreamed of the ideal job, and in the case of the lucky few having actually

had such a job for a period of time in any number of possible situations, to find ourselves starting over . . . is tantamount to a nightmare for many of us.

And no matter how good we are at our profession or how many resources we can draw upon, it is often inadequate to get us through the crisis intact, and most importantly, to help us put in place the key elements that will ensure a successful outcome.

Skillful as they may be at providing their clients with creative problem-solving tools, psychologists sometimes balk - when they must actually stop to think about it - at the task of having to come up with their own effective strategies for finding their way out of the woods. Could the reason be fear, lack of information or courage, naiveté, or perhaps all these factors combined? Let's take a look!

Case History

And now, for a case in point to illustrate the crossing of the desert by a metamorphic psychologist, like some you may know: the story of the transition from salaried employee to self-employed professional psychologist.

There could no example more classic than my own: graduation from university with a psychology degree in hand, a practitioner at heart, eager to brave the real world and find work.And luck was on my side: all sorts of opportunities came my way. Assessing them as best I could, I made my choice. Before I'd even received my membership certificate from the Corporation professionnelle des psychologues du Québec in the mail, I'd landed a job and found myself working.

And then reality hit: the gap between what I had been trained to do and what I was asked to do. I ran the full gamut of emotions and the honeymoon was short-lived. Within no time at all, it was hard slogging and I found myself unprepared as I was thrown into the deep end, faced with having to explore unknown roads.

The team with whom I was working was faced with the arrival of other professionals, who, highly motivated to carve out a niche for themselves, used an infinite range of intriguing problem-solving strategies, exuded boundless energy, and boasted the added advantage of having a new and fresh approach. Action rather than reflection, and it worked!

But suddenly things changed.

I did my best to understand. For hours at a time, my team and I endured profound feelings of injustice, a sense of loss, but we still could not figure it out. Then someone very close to me hit the nail on the head, using words that were abrasive to my sensitive ear, regardless of how accustomed I was to hearing painful things, "It's simple. You have a marketing problem."

I hope that person has forgotten the scathing glance I cast in her direction when she said that, but if she hasn't, I'm sure she's at least forgiven me. I've more than made amends since then. I had just had my first encounter with applied marketing. After the initial wave of shock had subsided, I decided to look reality straight on and find out more.

I will spare you the details of everything I went through and simply say that my fellow psychologists helped me enormously to clarify my thinking on the matter. I expended great energy in convincing

them of my interpretation of the situation. They were in fact my first "clients", and definitely not the easiest. I had to learn to deal with the critical mind of the psychologist. We ended up feeling that we were on the same track with a common objective: how to keep our jobs as psychologists within an organization in financial difficulty. Our differences, our old battle horses, diminished in comparison with what was really at stake. And today, some of my former colleagues still work in that environment in a creative way that satisfies both themselves and the employer.

However, my way of practising my profession has evolved since then ...

But before that could actually happen, the first change I had to make was at the level of my self-perception.

I got to know myself, and in the process, discovered that I had other interests and needs as well. I at last reached the point of self-knowledge and self-acceptance. I made peace with my salesperson's soul the day I came to the realization that my "product" is health, and that being a psychologist means selling the idea of health to my clients, and that selling an idea, though a difficult undertaking, is also a noble one.

Entirely of my own accord and after ample reflection, I left the golden cage of job security for the inner security and peace of mind that I have since acquired in the business that I established by taking the same route more or less as do all entrepreneurs.

If you also want to ensure that your story ends happily, the question you must deal with is how to persevere through the many troubled hours, weeks of doubt, and months of gestation until you gradually see a plan emerge and can give it concrete form.

Anyone who has been through a crisis knows that there are inherent risks: loss of motivation, self-doubt, heightened aggression owing to the activation of a "survival" state-of-mind, social and personal withdrawal, and temporary loss of enjoyment of life.

Survival strategies soon become vital. First of all, truly accepting that there are few pleasant ways of going through unpleasant experiences, giving yourself permission not to like certain things, recognizing the state that you're in and giving it a name, monitoring your fear and anxiety, envisaging the worst-case scenario and planning strategies for coping with it.

Once you have done all this, then you are able to stand back and assess the situation you have just been through. For example, you might say to yourself that you don't have as many clients as before, but you're healthy and have someone who loves you.

Take stock of your resources and your accomplishments. Keep yourself in good physical shape-take care of your health. And keep yourself in good mental shape by asking for and using the support around you. For example, have someone look after your children and go out with your significant other, or ask your family to give you a hand.

Carry out the steps of an achievable project one at a time. Draw up a list of the factors you have control over and those you do not, so that you can take charge where it is feasible. Introspect, meditate, allow yourself moments of discomfort. Dream a little. You don't have to react immediately. Take whatever time you need - it's the smart thing to do. As for changing, try changing for the better! Leave behind your withdrawal patterns, get involved with new people and strive to develop networks of contacts.

These are the areas in which psychologists have their work cut out for them, in fact, where they must make considerable effort. Often individualistic, solitary, and cautious, they may not be so bold when it comes to creating new ties, establishing contacts and mobilizing resources.

This deliberate shift towards another way of seeing work necessarily implies a number of key concepts. These can be summarized as follows:

• the concept of assuming responsibility for oneself
• the concept of developing an "activity portfolio"
• the concept of social networking.

Assuming Responsibility for Oneself

In his book Le travail après la crise, Bob Aubrey develops this idea, which is applicable to both salaried employees and company directors. Today, we can no longer count on job security and promotion, which used to be assured by loyal service and a willingness to move up through the ranks one step at a time. Nowadays, and increasingly so, it is salaried employees whose positions are on the line, considering how easily companies can get rid of them as soon as their official position has been eliminated.

Salaried employees are beset with numerous handicaps: they are identified solely with the company they work for. They have no input regarding their level of productivity - it is dictated by their boss. Their salaries, far from being tied to the value of the work performed, depend on the number of hours worked. They cannot choose their bosses or co-workers.

Regular jobs equals regular pay for as long as they last, but employees who lose their jobs are suddenly faced with a very perilous situation. Having to run ever faster, harder and further, with no sure gains!

Without necessarily considering giving up their jobs, employees must nonetheless pay careful heed to the changes that are currently taking place regarding work. Holding onto a position and progressing within a structure today means acting as a

true entrepreneur, and this applies even to the diehard employee. In short, according to Aubrey, the new rules of the game can be described as follows:

"Since your careers now depend on your efforts, it is in your own best interests to enhance your worth over the long-term; companies will no longer assume this responsibility for you." (translation). As you have undoubtedly observed, the new social contract makes individual responsibility the focal point of work. It's a matter of managing your work as if you were managing a company. There are a number of advantages to this, particularly with respect to controlling your own destiny. It is you as entrepreneur who makes decisions 'n area s that warrant your attention.

It is entrepreneurs who choose their clients and partners, who use their time most efficiently, and who can decide to take breaks (not vacations) during slow periods. Lastly, but most importantly, they bear the responsibility for their own growth, try to enhance the value of their activities, and are fully cognizant of the additional training they require in order to achieve the desired level of performance and earnings.

By functioning in this way, individuals who set up their own businesses evidently run some risks, but they also have the possibility of acquiring a safety net, for example, in the form of insurance and retirement savings plans, much like salaried employees do.

The process raises a long list of questions, which require time and effort to answer, but which must be answered ... such is the price of autonomy and freedom.

It is not my intent to disparage salaried positions, which will no doubt continue to exist for some time to come and will continue to suit some people. But for seasoned workers,only a small number of the jobs that come up will offer more attractive working environment, more captivating career prospects or a more satisfying lifestyle than working for themselves. And the profession of psychologist allows for positive development in this direction.

An Activity Portfolio

This second key concept is described by Charles Handy, a British author who specializes in the training of management personnel. According to Handy, the question "What do you do for a living?" should no longer elicit the answer that you work for such-and-such a company. We should now be proffering a description of the various activities in which we are engaged, only some of which are remunerated.

In concrete terms, Handy proposes replacing the traditional concept of job by the concept of an "activity portfolio" that each person manages personally. This portfolio includes five categories of work:

1 Paid work, remunerated on a time basis

2 Contract work, remunerated according to the results obtained

3 Household work, carried out as part of managing and maintaining a household

4 Volunteer work, done for charity organizations, one's community, friends, family and neighbours

5 Educational work, carried out for purposes of learning, professional development, reading, increasing our level of culture, etc.

Over the years, an activity portfolio must be modified to suit changing priorities - raising children, travelling, becoming actively involved in a cause that is personally relevant - such activities are burgeoning in the sector referred to by economists as the "informal economy." This is a significant phenomenon affecting a growing number of people, particularly in industrialized countries.

This view constitutes an invitation not to put all your eggs in the basket of salaried employment, for if you do, you run the risk of having to completely reconstruct your activity portfolio sometime around the age of forty.

Thus, instead of having 52 weekends, four weeks of holiday and 12 statutory holidays per year, with the rest of your time being devoted to work, you could, for example, have an activity portfolio that would include 150 days for paid work, 50 days of volunteer work, 75 days for studying and 90 days for household duties and leisure activities.

The inescapable conclusion is that it is better to develop all categories of activity in a portfolio simultaneously. Working in private practice provides you with a certain guarantee of activity owing to the abundance of clients. Pursuing your education on an ongoing basis helps to continually enhance the quality of the services you offer and keeps you at the cutting edge of competence among health-care professionals. Lastly, volunteer work gives you the opportunity to take active part in creating a better world and to share your wisdom with others, but also to cultivate rewarding and stimulating social networks on both the personal and professional levels.

Social Networking

This third and vital stage - social networking - will be the topic of a separate article in the next issue of our newsletter .

We will examine the nature of networks, the ways in which psychologists can choose to make their contributions and how networks can serve for psychologists, once they have drawn up their business plan and clearly defined their target clientele and the services they intend to offer.

Summary

This article shows that the current crisis being faced by a number of psychologists as a result of difficult conditions in the traditional job market can have a fruitful outcome.

The key element in this shift consists of changing your mindset so that you can gain a different perspective of yourself. Whether you are self-employed or a salaried worker, you can set up your own business, develop a portfolio of interesting activities and thus shape your own dynamic, personalized career. Lastly, you will be able to become part of existing networks, and even to form new ones, as we will explore in the next issue of RAPPORT.