Remembering the Enthusiasm
This is a statement that I can make because it is entirely true. Being an internship director is something that enriches my professional life significantly, and I enjoy being able to share the path of each of the music therapists who spend time with me. They are each unique in how they approach music therapy, but there is something that they bring to the program that is common to all - enthusiasm.
I like to think that I still show my enthusiasm for this profession, but I think it's been tamped down a bit by all the things that I've been through as a therapist over the past decades. I still feel that this is the profession that I was made for and that I do good things in my roles. It is easy to get bogged down in the arguments and differences between us all and the people who just cannot and will not accept that their opinions are not fact, but all of those things are human traits, not music therapy traits, so these things would happen regardless of what I was doing in the world. At least, as a music therapist, I am doing something that I love. I can't imagine what I would feel if I was doing something that I didn't really like and still had to deal with all the negative things that happen anyway.
That is not an issue right now, though. I am finding my enthusiasm as a side benefit from being around people who are all enthusiasm about this profession and what they will do with it!
There are, however, some things that need to be acknowledged about the reality of music therapy.
This job is not easy. No job is easy!
If anyone told you that you would be able to find a high-paying, perfect schedule, wonderful benefited job as a person in a helping profession, you need to slap them! The reality is that you have to do the bad schedules, you have to start at low pay, and there may be times when any job is better than no job.
Now, I'm not saying that you don't ask for these things, but the reality is that you just can't walk into a music therapy business and make demands to be paid more than people with years of experience and advanced education. THE WORLD DOES NOT WORK THAT WAY! You will NOT be getting paid the average salary of a music therapist when you get out of school. You will get paid less than that salary. Look at the ranges of salary rather than the averages. Your expectation is that you will be earning in the bottom side of the range rather than in the center - you are new! As you continue in the profession, your salary will go up with your experience and education. At some point, you may find that you are towards the upper side of the salary range, but it will take YEARS to get there. Again, THAT'S HOW THE WORLD WORKS - this is not something unique to music therapy, this is how capitalism works.
Remember when flashback moment...I'm from the music therapy generation where music therapy businesses were few and far between. Starting your own business was difficult, but folks from my graduating class were starting to do just this. There are now so many music therapy businesses that it staggers my mind. I find it fascinating to see how our education has remained the same, even though the business climate that we enter has changed so significantly. I hope the new AMTA commission realizes that music therapists at this moment right now need business coursework in the initial training. There have to be some classes on what to do as an employee, as a self-employed music therapist, and as a music therapist that employs other music therapists. These types of classes should (hindsight here) have been included 20 years ago, but they are not present in many educational curricula at AMTA approved universities.
The reality of the world seems to be that we are moving away from being music therapists in facilities and we are moving more into being music therapists for music therapy businesses. I may be wrong, but I think that my full-time job for an agency that is not music therapy focused is becoming more unusual. The majority of those enthusiastic music therapy interns who share their training with me are looking towards contracting and consultation work rather than looking for jobs like mine. Our reality as therapists has shifted.
End of flashback moment and restarting the original topic again...in three, two, one!
There is something about the enthusiasm of someone who has finished coursework and is standing on the edge of their culminating educational experience (AKA, internship!!!!) that helps to remind me of all the things that I love about this profession. I love that music can make a difference in the lives of almost everyone. I love that I have a job (not a perfect job, but a great job) where I get to sing about all sorts of things whenever I want! I get to make noise in the hallways, even though we are supposed to be quiet in the halls. I get to listen to new music as a part of my regular job. I get to make music all the time. I get paid to do things I love - play with kids and make music. I know so much about the brain and about how our bodies respond to music in the environment. I get to go deep into philosophical questions about music as a language or music as a social experience. I get to share these things with my interns, my clients, my co-workers, and with you, fellow music therapist!
That, dear reader, is one of the best things of all!!
Thank you, interns from the past, present, and future. I appreciate your enthusiasm and ability to gaze into an uncertain future with optimism and joy. Let's go on this journey together!!
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