PTs leave a lot of money on the table.  It is a mix between not being taught what to do and not knowing exactly how to go about the negotiation process.  We weigh in on how to go about a negotiation so that you can get what you're worth and still build the relationship.

Wondering how your salary compares? Use our free salary calculator

Dear PT Students,

It took me 26 minutes to fill out my March Madness bracket  (Illinois is going to win in case you were wondering).  

It is always hard to predict.  Anything can happen in March and you can look at what a team did during the season, but that doesn’t always translate to success in the tournament.  Over the next few weeks we will see upsets, surprising outcomes, and some expected ones.

Number one seeds can fall in the first round and eight seeds in the final four.  I think this is the perfect analogy for PT school.  Once you graduate, once you prove you know enough everyone has a shot at success.  Some will see it immediately, some will see it down the road, but don’t think how well you did in PT school predicts it at all.

4.0 students may struggle (and that’s okay) and 3.0s may thrive immediately.  Once you graduate, don’t worry about what it took to get there. ...

Dear PT Students,

“I don’t know the sport that well” 

“I don’t know any of the players and they don’t know me”

“I’m a foot shorter than all of them”

“Will I know what to do?”

“What if I can’t help them get better?”

“What if I’m not as good as their last PT?”

These are all thoughts in my first few days as the team PT for a collegiate volleyball team.  I didn’t feel like I was good enough and I worried if I would ever be.

I remember feeling all those things, but the feelings themselves seem like they are from another life.  I may not catch every double hit, but I know the sport now.  I know the players and they know me.  I love being their PT and getting to work with them.  I’m still shorter, but it never mattered.

All these thoughts were insecurities that faded with experience and time.  When you go out...

We talked last week about the comparison between PA and PT, but it was incomplete.  We looked at what it meant on the surface without diving deeper into the true issue.  What things in PT make people want to go to another career like PA?  Why do PTs want to leave the profession they went to school for?

PA is a great field and can be an amazing job, but it isn't physical therapy.  So, why are PTs always talking about switching?  It seems like every other week there is a discussion somewhere about how PA is the better choice. But besides both being in the medical field, are they that similar?  What do you think about this topic?

“You shouldn’t go into PT,” I overheard a physical therapist telling a college student.  

I had been eavesdropping since I heard the student say that she loved observing and was almost certain that she wanted to go into the profession.

The PT went into detail about there not being enough money, that there is no longer job security, that there is no flexibility, and that you don’t have as much freedom as you’d want. It was for over five minutes that he continued trying to convince her not to go into physical therapy.

I took a quick glance in her direction and immediately saw the disappointment on her face.  She told him she’d think about it and I don’t think she spoke again the rest of the day.

I don’t want to argue about whether or not what he said is true.  And I’m not saying that there isn’t any truth to it.

But, if you hate the profession so much that you would destroy the dreams of a college...

I’ve read two different ideas about how to reflect on 2020 - the first I hated... and the second I loved.

The first idea said something like, if you didn’t hustle in 2020, you don’t have what it takes in you.  It said that if you didn’t work harder than you ever have before then somehow you don’t have what it takes.  I couldn’t disagree more.  2020 was a time for survival.  A time where you constantly had to adjust and respond to things you never saw coming.  When you are in survival mode, it is hard to “hustle” and hard to grow.  So, don’t beat yourself up.

The second concept I think is great.  In an email from Jon Acuff, he recommends grading the year on a curve.  When a test was harder than anticipated and when the outcomes were skewed to one end, you often get a curve.  2020 gets a curve.  

Maybe you didn’t start your own practice like you wanted, but you picked a...

I think at one point in time or another we are all looking to have that great career. It starts with a dream or maybe a plan in high school or college “to be something.” For most of us, that “something” was to be a physical therapist. Over the years, the meaning of “being a physical therapist” changes. Frequently it can change from a dream to boredom or worse change into a nightmare.

When we get out of school, many times PT is not what we thought it was going to be. 

At some point we get disenchanted. We find ourselves saying things like:

Is this all there is?

I can’t see myself doing this the rest of my career

There has got to be more

I don’t want to be a PT anymore

We then look for a change. Change jobs, change cities, change careers. Unfortunately, this doesn’t always help. 

In Episode 21 of the Movement Podcast, Jenna Gourlay, Gray Cook and Lee Burton discuss their career paths. It was amazing to me to hear the...