Episode Details

A lot of your clinical training taught you how to be a good clinician.

But often it doesn’t teach you how to "work the system" and get your kids what they need. The truth is, you can't make an impact without autonomy over your time, without adequate tools, without the right people, support, and financial resources. In the system you're working in, these things are limited. You may not have enough of these things right NOW to make the impact you want. But you can change that by putting yourself in a more influential position.

We can do that using a concept that I called “asset stacking”. In episode 83, I share how that strategy works. Using the concepts of "asset stacking", I was able to do things like:
✅Complete my doctorate while working full time as a school SLP, without taking out any student loans.

✅Do a pilot study on a speech therapy flex-schedule model, so I could do more classroom observation, consults, and make up sessions.

✅Conduct a program evaluation to help develop my districts' RtI protocol (even though I wasn't in an official administrative position).

✅Create new extended school-year criteria so an entire cohort of students could access summer services for the duration of their elementary years.

✅Start an online education business (focused on serving clinicians) while I was working a full-time job.

Most productivity strategies don't work because they don't show you how to "stack" assets and create real leverage. But when I learned to apply this "stacking" concept to my work, I was able to create some amazing partnerships which led to much more comprehensive and effective services for my caseload. The “asset stack” method is something I teach in a new online training for pediatric clinicians (SLPs, psychs, social workers, and other service providers). It’s called “How to provide top-notch support for your caseload using the “asset stack” method (even in a system loaded with constraints)”. You can sign up for this free training at drkarendudekbrannan.com/assetstack The De Facto Leaders podcast was formerly the “Are they 18 yet?®” podcast. As of November 2022, the name of the show has changed, and we’ve shifted from a focus on parenting to a focus on supporting clinicians and educators to design effective services for kids (but parents are still welcome to listen). Episodes published before November 24, 2022 will still contain some of our old branding. 

Learn more about today's sponsors, Playworks, IXL and Renaissance:

Learn more about Renaissance:

As a global leader in education technology operating in more than 110 countries, Renaissance is committed to providing educators with insights and resources to accelerate growth and help all students build a strong foundation for success. We believe that technology can unlock a more effective learning experience, ensure that students get the personalized teaching they need to thrive, and help educators and administrators to truly, fully, See Every Student. Learn more at renaissance.com.

We’re proud to be sponsored by Playworks, a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization with evidence-based practices that help schools improve the health and well-being of children by increasing opportunities for physical activity and safe, meaningful play.

If you’re a school or district leader struggling with the challenge of chronic absenteeism, as so many are across the U.S., you may not realize that structured recess is a research-backed approach to keep kids in school. In fact, a UC Berkeley study of Title I schools found that those partnering with Playworks had significantly lower chronic absenteeism rates. Further, Mathematica research demonstra