Curt and Katie talk about why to join your professional organization, how to best take advantage of the benefits of your membership, and what associations actually do.    It’s time to reimagine therapy and what it means to be a therapist. To support you as a whole person and a therapist, your hosts, Curt Widhalm and Katie Vernoy talk about how to approach the role of therapist in the modern age. In this episode we talk about: Why to join your professional organization What your membership fees go to Advocacy efforts, legislation Finding the cultural fit for your professional organization Joining based on your license, the focus of the org, education The tools that professional organizations provide to their members The power of numbers in advocacy Networking and getting referrals within your local chapter Community building Learning and growing Relationship building How to assess return on investment on joining Opportunities for leadership, education, networking Creating friendships Differentiating yourself within your local community Decreasing isolation Gaining perspective on your work/business situation Continuing Education Making an impact on how your professional organization operates Communication about the current state of affairs Needed information for both pre-licensed and licensed individuals Magazines, Scholarly Journals How to get involved, show up consistently Committees, projects, volunteering How to approach the situation whether you’re an introvert, ambivert, or extrovert Benefits to your business, network and community, education, advocacy, and fun Vote for Curt Widhalm, LMFT for President-Elect of CAMFT   Our Generous Sponsor: Thanks again to our sponsor, Track Your Hours, LLC! They now bring you Prelicensed.com, where prelicensed individuals can find PAID positions. They also bring your Track Your CEUs, where licensed therapists in California can remain compliant with the BBS's continuing education requirements with reminders, keeping track of progress in various categories (like Law and Ethics), and uploading paper CEU certificates where you can easily retrieve them if you're ever audited by the BBS. Learn more at www.TrackYourHoursLLC.com.   Relevant Episodes: Open to Opportunity In-Person Networking So You Want to Plan a Conference   Resources mentioned: We’ve pulled together resources mentioned in this episode and put together some handy-dandy links. American Psychological Association (APA) American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy (AAMFT) American Counseling Association (ACA) National Association of Social Workers (NASW) California Association of Marriage and Family Therapists (CAMFT) CAMFT’s Legislative Action Alert on Medicare Curt’s Candidate Statement Curt’s Campaign FB Page Curt’s Campaign Website   Our Facebook Group – The Modern Therapists Group Therapy Reimagined 2019: Sign up here to get notified when the details are released. Our consultation services: The Fifty-Minute Hour   Who we are: Curt Widhalm is a Licensed Marriage & Family Therapist in private practice in the Los Angeles area. He is a Board Member at Large for the California Association of Marriage and Family Therapists, a Subject Matter Expert for the California Board of Behavioral Sciences, Adjunct Faculty at Pepperdine University, and a loving husband and father. He is 1/2 great person, 1/2 provocateur, and 1/2 geek, in that order. He dabbles in the dark art of making "dad jokes" and usually has a half-empty cup of coffee somewhere nearby. Learn more at: www.curtwidhalm.com Katie Vernoy is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist, coach, and consultant. As a helping professional for two decades, she’s navigated the ups and downs of our unique line of work. She’s run her own solo therapy practice, designed innovative clinical programs, built and managed large, thriving teams of service providers, and consulted hundreds of helping professionals on how to build meaningful AND sustainable practices. In her spare time, Ka