Her Story
About Leslie
I've been in the mental health field for around 2 to 3 years, and I currently work as a registered behavior technician, helping kids with autism. I'm accruing my supervised hours so I can eventually get my license as a BCBA, a behavior analyst. My primary focus is on the goals of what each child is struggling with, and I use play therapy to help them. For example, my current client has difficulty with speech, like elective mutism, so I work on getting him to say more words and also assist him with things he's having difficulty with, like counting and some daily skills, and getting him to say please and thank you. Before this, I worked as a functional family therapist for 2 years. I'm also finishing my internship at the UN, which is about global mental health for the refugees, and it's a great project. I'm passionate about helping others and doing what I'm passionate about, even if it's for the short term, because as we continue growing skills, we get to learn more things in healthcare that we may never know about. My goal is to someday open my own clinic where I could provide global mental health and telehealth for people who don't have access to programs.
Her Interview
Ten minutes with Leslie
01What do you attribute your success to?
I attribute my success to working where I like helping others and doing what I'm passionate about. That's what success looks like to me, even if it's for the short term. As we continue growing skills, we get to learn more things in healthcare that we may never know about, and then we have different interests. For me, it's about following my passion and making a difference in people's lives.
02What advice would you give to young women entering your industry?
I would say follow your passion, even if it's a short-term project, do it. Try it and see what you like, even if you are uncertain on what direction you want to go. Try it without fear, because you'll discover what you like doing along the process, and there is always something new to learn every day.
03What are the biggest challenges or opportunities in your field right now?
Some of the challenges I've encountered include having very long clinical notes that I had to type and submit by certain deadlines, which was difficult because it overlapped with my field visits. Also, at one point in my last semester, I was doing two or three research projects at the same time, which was really stressful because I was overcommitted. I was juggling between school and work, trying to figure out what to do first, whether it was school or work, and I needed extensions. It was a lot of juggling between different responsibilities.
04What values are most important to you in your work and personal life?
I would say a big one is diversity and inclusion. I get to know people from different places, and I learn from their stories every day. Learning about different cultures is what has shaped my workplace so far. It's really important to me to connect with people from diverse backgrounds and understand their experiences.
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