In Five Years There Will be Two Groups of Social Workers

So I wanted to talk about something that I genuinely believe is happening in our profession right now. For me, it feels like we're at an inflection point. So one of those moments where everything is about to shift. And the people who recognize it early are the ones who are going to be best positioned for what comes next. And I really don't think that enough of us are paying attention to it. So the way that organizations hire expertise is shifting. The traditional model of employment, full-time employment as the only path, that's not what it used to be. So organizations are increasingly hiring independent consultants for specific outcomes rather than full-time staff. And that shift is really moving quickly. And what that means for us specifically is that the work that we do every single day, organizations are paying outside consultants to come in and provide that same work. So we're talking about people with business degrees and general consulting backgrounds. And just think about that for a second, because some of these consultants are being hired to come into organizations to teach staff the same things that we do every day. And we're literally sitting in the room watching someone else get paid to teach us our own expertise. So when I think about where our profession is headed, I really believe that in the next five years, there's going to be two groups of social workers. And it's not because one group made a better choice than the other. It's just because the profession is just going to look so much different. And one group will have started building something outside of their employment now while the market is still open. And then the other group is going to find themselves having to quickly catch up to a field that's kind of moving without them. And I'm saying this now because the window that exists right now is real and it's not going to look the same in five years. So the social workers who move now are actually early. And when you come in early, it means you get to build the credibility, the track record, and the positioning before everybody else catches on. And that head start that you have, it compounds. So if you have been getting the inclination that the time is now for you to get started doing something, please just trust that because the time is now. And it's not because this time is easier than any other time. You know, things are still going to be hard, it's still going to be a challenge. But the time is now because if you get in now, you're actually going to be early. The window is open now and I feel like if anybody needs to be coming through that window, it's us.