21. Systems Series Part 1: A Simple System for Tracking CEUs

Feeling overwhelmed with managing your Continuing Education Units (CEUs)? Let's change that! Welcome to the first episode of this five-part series all about systems to simplify your day as a busy speech pathologist. 

Keeping track of your continuing education hours can feel daunting, especially when your workday is packed with back-to-back sessions and little-to-no documentation time. Creating a system to track your hours can reduce stress, anxiety, and overwhelm--and it can help prevent you from scrambling at the last minute to find workshops and webinars to meet your hours! 

In this episode, I discuss different organizations with their unique requirements, such as ASHA's new two-hour cultural competency mandate. I'm sharing tips on how to stay on top of deadlines, manage costs, and plan your hours in a way that suits your personality, learning style, and lifestyle. Start streamlining your work as a speech pathologist today so you can continue to create your own version of work-life harmony!

Are you sick and tired of feeling overwhelmed by all the things? I can help. Schedule a free consult today.

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Learn more about Theresa Harp Coaching here.

Transcript

Speaker 1: 0:01

This is your Speech Path mindful time management for the busy SLP. My name is Teresa Harp and, as a mom and speech pathologist turned productivity coach, I know a thing or two about how hectic life can be. If you're an SLP who's overworked, burnout and feeling like you're constantly falling short as a therapist and a mom, then this is the podcast for you. I cover time management and mindset strategies so you can learn to love your work and your home life at the same time. Let's dive in. Hello podcast listeners, welcome back to another episode.

Speaker 1: 0:38

This is episode 21 and I'm going to be talking about systems. So I've decided to do what I'm calling a system series for busy SLPs, and really this information is specific to speech pathologists or related professionals. So if you're an OT or a PT or a school counselor, social worker, anyone in those types of arenas, this information and this series will be really helpful for you. So what I have decided to do is a five part series, and this is the very first part. What happened was I started to sit down and write out or outline my ideas for different systems that SLPs could benefit from having in their workspace, whether that's in a school setting or in a private practice, regardless of the setting itself, simple systems, that would be really helpful. And then, when I was going to just do one episode on all of the systems, and then I thought that is a lot of information and, rather than going wide, I'd rather sort of hone in on each of these systems so that it really is helpful for you and you can implement this into your practice. Okay, plus, as this podcast episode is being released, it is going to come out the week of the ASHA convention, and so for anyone that is happening to listen to this live, today's topic will be particularly helpful for you, because I'm going to be diving into how to create a system for continuing ed hours. Okay, but before I dive into that system specifically, I think it's really important to give you some context or some information about why I believe systems are so important. Okay, and I want you to. If you're listening to this and you're sort of like I'm not the type of person, teresa, to have a system, it makes me feel, you know, limited or overwhelmed. Okay, I hear you, but I'm going to ask that you just listen and just open up your mind to the possibility of how this might work for you.

Speaker 1: 3:21

Okay, now, when it comes to being a speech pathologist, I think you would all agree with me when I say that we are incredibly busy. We are overworked. Quite frankly, many of us collectively within the field, we are overworked. I'm seeing more and more SLPs wanting to leave the field, talking about leaving the field, actually leaving the field because they are just done, they're just exhausted, they feel that this is not what they signed up for, they have very little control over things, they've got way too much on their plate and they just can't get it all done. And that, of course, is one of the reasons why I focus on time management and productivity coaching for SLPs, because I really do believe that there are ways to work smarter, not harder, and I believe that there are ways to address the mindset, to address the thoughts that we have as SLPs, as most of us women, as people who tend to put a lot on our plates.

Speaker 1: 4:33

To begin with, we tend to be the perfectionists, we tend to be the overachievers, we tend to have this really strong work ethic and sometimes put a lot of pressure on ourselves. We got into this field to help, but sometimes that leads us to needing to leave the field, or wanting to leave the field because we aren't helping ourselves and it feels like no one is helping us. So systems are one way to help take back some of that control of your time and of your schedule and to lighten the load. And I want to be really clear here. I'm not sitting in here and telling you to create systems and now you won't be stressed. That's not at all what I'm saying. I'm not going to say go cry in your car, if you know. You know. I just want you to consider the possibility that by creating systems in your clinical practice, in your business, whatever your work looks like for you, it allows you to think less and to work more quickly and more efficiently and lighten the load on you a little bit. And while I don't think that just creating systems is going to solve all your problems, I do believe that, cumulatively, the compounding effect of having systems that alone can make a big shift in the pressures that you're feeling.

Speaker 1: 6:10

Okay, so just wanted to put that out there. I am a big fan of systems. I, when I had my old podcast before it was rebranded for speech pathologists, I did a whole I think I did a whole series on my own workflow and how to create a workflow, and so that might be something that I I'm thinking about doing that and kind of rerecording that and making it more specific to SLPs, because I think it goes along very nicely with this topic and hopefully at this point you're at least on board with considering the possibility of creating a system. Okay, now, if you're on board with that, let's talk about how you can create a system for CEUs. Okay, now, let me just share one little story, because I feel like if I don't, it's a little inauthentic.

Speaker 1: 7:10

Up until this year, I really never needed a system for continuing at hours. I was lucky enough to work in a position that paid for me to go to a conference every year where I could get a lot of hours, and I was able to accumulate pretty much all of the hours that I needed for the different organizations that I need continue continuing at hours for in that one stop shop. And I also invested in the ASHA CE registry, which we'll talk about that in a few minutes, and so this for me was very much a set it and forget it. I knew I was going to the early hearing detection and intervention conference every year. I knew I was getting my hours, I knew they were all going to go directly to ASHA and I really didn't have to worry all that much, right? Well, fast forward to this year, which was my first full year of not practicing. I had stepped down from the position that used to pay for me to go to these conferences, so I was in a very different position this year when it comes to training and continuing ed, and I found myself scrambling at the last minute in October for getting my hours, not for ASHA, but for my listening and spoken language.

Speaker 1: 8:40

Certification Comes up every two years. You have to update your hours, meet your continuing ed requirements every two years, and all of a sudden I realized, oh my gosh, I only have like five hours and I need about 10 more hours, and so I was scrambling. Long story short, I got it all done, but I spent a lot of time trying to, number one, calculate the hours that I did have. I had to go back for like two years worth of time to calculate that stuff and find it and find the certificates and, you know, find all the details, and that wasted a lot of time, quite frankly, doing that. And then I had to go and find more hours because I still needed about 10 ish hours to complete, and so I had to go find events to attend. So that was also a time suck, right. And so I think that this is something that happens to all of us. But had I followed my own advice and had a system in place for this particular organization for my continuing ed requirements, I would have had a much well a less stressful couple of weeks in October. It would have just been one less thing to have to worry about.

Speaker 1: 10:02

So I share that, because, number one, I want to illustrate the benefits of having a system, but also I want you to understand that even when you have a system, you have to work the system or it doesn't work for you. And I also just wanted to offer that. We all struggle with different things, we all make mistakes, we all drop the ball from time to time, and so this is not about perfection. This is like the furthest thing from perfection. It is very much just about trying to make our lives simpler and easier. We do the best that we can with the tools and resources that we have, all right. So we want to use CEU systems so you can avoid finding yourself in the situation that I found myself in and you can free up your brain space, you can avoid last minute panic, anxiety, stress, and then, of course, you're keeping up with your skills and with your knowledge throughout the year, not just in like a one day cram of hours, unless that's the way that it works best for you. And then, sure, by all means, okay, I've got four steps for you when it comes to creating a CEU system. Okay, continuing Ed Hour system for yourself Okay.

Speaker 1: 11:29

Step number one is to track which organizations require how many hours and to make sure that you are very clear on any restrictions regarding whether those hours are synchronous or asynchronous, so you know live happening live or they are previously recorded, whether those hours are in person or those hours are virtual, whether those hours have to meet a certain topic or domain. Those types of details, okay. Now I'm talking about this and these different sort of possibilities or these different factors to consider, because chances are, many of you who are listening have other organizations or certifying bodies that you need to complete hours for besides ASHA. I know, for me, I'm a certified listening and spoken language therapist, so that means I need to complete 15 hours of continuing Ed every two years for the AGBEL organization, okay, and it can get very confusing and overwhelming to track all of that or to keep track of that in your head Very difficult. I don't know about you, but the years kind of blur together and I'm like, oh my gosh, it's now time to renew my state license, and I was not even aware, right? So, instead of having all of that in your head, get it down on paper and or on a Google sheet or whatever, electronically, if that's more your thing, okay.

Speaker 1: 13:13

So what I would do is write down okay, asha, 30 hours every three years. And then I would do AGBEL 15 hours every two years. I would do my state license I forget what it is. I think it's 10 hours every two years. No, that can't be right. I don't know. I just did this too, like a few weeks ago, a month ago, anyway. So this is why you write it down, so you don't have to have this information floating in your head. And then again, I would also write down in my brain dump of this information what are the requirements in terms of different types of content, right?

Speaker 1: 13:57

So now for ASHA. I think it was in January of this year 2023, asha modified their requirements, so now you need to have at least two hours in. What is it? Cultural competency, dei, cultural humility, creating a culturally responsive practice, and so and I think there's also an hour that needs to be in ethics, and sometimes it can be very difficult to know what counts towards what. So, just making sure that you have all that written down on your piece of paper, and if you are not a part, like if you want to have this system electronically, that is fine. I start out on pen and paper, with pen and paper, and then, once I've sort of created the system in my mind of how it works, then I set it up electronically, and so this might make more sense in a few minutes.

Speaker 1: 15:00

Okay, so that's step number one tracking which organizations require how many CEUs and what these special requirements are in terms of types of content or topic areas. Okay, step number two this shouldn't come as a surprise is tracking the due dates or the deadlines, and I also think it's really helpful to track cost as well, Because why not? If you're creating some sort of system now, you might as well have that information all together. So I would then go in and I would say for each organization for me, that's ASHA, that's state of New Jersey and that's the Alexander Graham Bell organization. So I would be writing down the deadlines for when those hours are due and what is the cost involved. Right, and speaking of cost, on the topic of cost, I mentioned a little while ago the registry, the ASHA registry.

Speaker 1: 16:02

I know people have some strong opinions out there. So I'm talking to you, if you're listening, and you've got a lot of thoughts coming up about this CE Registry. My opinion and you can take this or leave this does not need to be your opinion. This is just me sharing information. My opinion is that that, for me personally, is money well spent.

Speaker 1: 16:26

I think there was one year that I did not do the registry, and I believe that was the year that I got audited, and so I was like never again, I'm not going to make this mistake twice. So I pay for the registry every year and then I just don't even have to really think about it except to go in and make sure that I'm meeting the requirements in terms of the types of professional development hours that are required. So you got to do what works best for you. If you don't want to give any more money to ASHA, I understand, but then I would say to you, then this system becomes even more important. This system will help you, dare I say it, not have to pay ASHA, if you don't want to, for their registry fee. I still have my own system for tracking and I still pay for the ASHA registry fee, but that's just me.

Speaker 1: 17:27

You need to really evaluate what I would say a cost-benefit analysis, and when I'm talking about cost, you want to consider the dollar amount, yes, but you also want to consider the cost in terms of your time, your energy and your stress levels, because it will cost you time, energy and stress to track your continuing ad hours. So you got to really look at that very carefully when you're deciding what you want to do. So that is step number two tracking the due dates and the deadlines and the cost. Now step number three is deciding on when. Okay, now, this is going to look a little bit different for all of you, and I think this piece primarily is where personality and personality traits and processing modalities and learning style all of that comes into play with step number three.

Speaker 1: 18:30

What I mean when I say decide on a plan for when is decide on some sort of rhythm and routine of when you're going to complete these hours. If you are someone who regularly attends a conference, an annual conference or the ASHA convention or something like that, then maybe that's your when and you know, okay, every year I go to ASHA, so that's when I'm getting all my hours, okay, great. If you're not someone that goes and attends something regularly like that, I would encourage you to think about how do you want to schedule this time into your workflow or into your kind of day to day work responsibilities. Are you somebody who wants to get a little bit of hours done every so often and stack those hours up over time? Or are you somebody who's like I just want to think about this once and be done. I can't go to ASHA every year, but I can, you know, take this weekend every year to plan out what conferences I can attend or to complete all of my online hours. Just get them all done at once, knock them out. So you really need to think about what feels best for you, and sometimes this decision is made for you because not of your personality traits or your learning style or your processing style, but because of your lifestyle and just not being able to, you know, commit to getting something done at a certain time or something like that. Right, there's always exceptions, there's always times when things don't go according to plan, as we all know.

Speaker 1: 20:22

But what I would like to offer is that there are different ways that you can do this, and my suggestion would be to consider these options. Do you want to complete your continuing ad or check in on your continuing ad hours monthly? So maybe you do this at the start of every month or the end of every month. You go in, you see how many hours you've completed, you schedule out something to attend in the next, say, 30 days, you get it on the calendar and then you're set. Or maybe you do this quarterly, maybe at the beginning of every quarter or at the end of every quarter, you're planning out what continuing ad opportunities you want to attend in the next three months, and so you do it that way. I think those are probably the two. I think the two simplest ways to go about and do it.

Speaker 1: 21:23

I don't think doing it more often than monthly is realistic or necessary, quite frankly, and I think if you go less than quarterly, you're gonna run into some trouble where you might find yourself dropping the ball, pushing it off and then getting stuck, especially if it is an annual requirement in terms of getting your hours done, depending upon your organization. So you gotta think about knowing yourself and your personality. What do you think feels best for you? What feels often enough that you've got your finger on the pulse in terms of your requirements and where you're at, but not so often that you're setting yourself up for failure to ignore it or drop off and stop doing it after time. Okay, so you need to decide on a plan for when. Don't overthink this. Take your best guess, make your best educated decision and then try it and then modify it if you need to. After you test it out and go, you can always modify your approach. Right? Sometimes you just won't know what is best until you actually put it into action and try for yourself. All right, then the last and final step of this system is to decide on your personal plan for tracking.

Speaker 1: 22:50

Okay, so this is sort of like what is the platform that you want to document this on? I used to do this on printed paper. I used to write it in with pen and pencil. In fact, I still have. I put it in a binder. I still have the binder, my CEU binder. I was just looking at it this morning, it's sitting upstairs in my bedroom from when I was working up there in COVID. So that was what? 2020, 2021? That goes to show you how long ago it's been since I've done paper and pencil planning or paper and pencil tracking for CEUs.

Speaker 1: 23:30

But now what I do is I do it on Google Sheets, I do it electronically, but you need to look at what is going to be your system, what is going to be your platform, rather, for tracking. Do you want to do this on paper? Do you want to do this in your phone, on your Notes app? Do you want to do this on an Excel spreadsheet or in Google Sheets? Do you want to just have a Word doc and you fill it out in your Word doc? What is going to work best for you? It needs to be something that you're comfortable with and it needs to be something that is accessible, because if you are somebody who likes to, let's say, fill out your hours when you're at a conference or when you're in a webinar or something, are you going to have the information that you need, the place that you go to fill in your hours, and, if not, do you have a holding place? Do you have a place where you can track it.

Speaker 1: 24:27

For now, until you get to the central location where you track all of that information, I think the less steps, or I should say the fewer steps, the better. So really think about that. And again, like step number three, this might just have to be something you try out, okay, but you're going to decide on what is the platform, and my suggestion would be the. I do everything in Google Drive, so what works best for me is a Google sheet and I have a different tab at the bottom for each professional organization so that I can quickly and clearly see where I'm at for the three organizations that I need hours for, and pretty soon it's going to be four organizations once I complete the certification process for coaching. So you know, I think sometimes, the further you get in your career, you might find yourself with more obligations in terms of continuing at and more information to track, which is, in my opinion, all the more reason to create a system. All right, so let me summarize those steps very quickly as we're wrapping up.

Speaker 1: 25:43

Step number one is to track which organizations require how many hours. Step number two is to track the due dates or the deadlines for submission of your continuing at hours and including there the cost as well. Step number three is deciding on your plan for when you're going to go in and complete your hours and when you're going to track those hours. And then step number four is to decide on the platform for tracking your hours, and I like this system for several reasons, but one thing that I want to mention is that I purposely start out with the last step. Should I say this? I purposely saved the last step being the platform choosing your platform because I think, once you start outlining those details, the answer might emerge in terms of where you want to house this information.

Speaker 1: 26:48

You might not know yet. Like at the beginning, you might think okay, an Excel spreadsheet, for sure, is what I want. And then, as you start creating each step that I was just talking about, you might realize ooh, excel, this is a little bit too cumbersome or too clunky, so I need to switch it to a different platform that feels more comfortable for me. Well, that's why I'm saving it to the last step. Get all the bells and whistles in there first, like all of the important information that you're tracking, wrap your head around that first, and then decide on the platform and you can always change it if you need to. Okay, I hope this was helpful, especially for those of you who might be listening live at the time that this episode will be released and on your way out to the Asha Convention. If you're there, be sure to stop by and see Mindy Houdan.

Speaker 1: 27:41

I had her on the podcast last week. She was such a fun guest. She's got some really awesome products for SLPs. She has her Be a Timekeeper clock. She has a book a lot of great stuff on executive functioning and time management and if you didn't catch that episode last week, go ahead and listen to it.

Speaker 1: 28:01

It's episode 20, because she does have some information in there about how you can be entered to win one of her products her Be a Timekeeper clock. It's fun. I have one myself and I love it. My kids love it too. That's really who it's for, but I think it's so pretty and colorful, so it's fun to look at. And, last but not least, if you enjoyed this episode, please share it with someone who you think would benefit. And if you could take it even one step further and give us a rating or a review, you can click the five stars. You can write in a review if you feel inclined. But that helps more SLPs, more people find the podcast and it really doesn't take a ton of time, but it makes a huge difference to me and to the audience. So if you could do that, that would be wonderful. All right, that's all I've got for today's episode and I will see you all next week where I'm going to be continuing the system series and I will be talking about session planning. Cannot wait. See you then.