We recently connected with Ashley Brooks and have shared our conversation below.
Ashley, first a big thank you for taking the time to share your thoughts and insights with us today. I’m sure many of our readers will benefit from your wisdom, and one of the areas where we think your insight might be most helpful is related to imposter syndrome. Imposter syndrome is holding so many people back from reaching their true and highest potential and so we’d love to hear about your journey and how you overcame imposter syndrome.
When I first graduated from Occupational Therapy school, I jumped straight into hand therapy—a specialty typically considered an advanced career path and not often recommended for new graduates. I began working in a small clinic with just one other therapist. Because of the clinic’s busy pace and our mismatched schedules, I didn’t have many opportunities for one-on-one mentorship.
In those early months, I spent a lot of time studying on my own and trying to emulate my coworker’s treatment style. Many clients came to the clinic specifically to work with her, and I often felt like I was letting them down when they were scheduled with me instead. The imposter syndrome was real.
After several months of studying every night and working hard to build my confidence, something shifted. I stopped trying to replicate someone else’s approach and began to trust my own instincts. I started incorporating more therapeutic activities and creative exercises that felt authentic to my style—and to my surprise, clients responded really well.
This experience taught me an important lesson about trusting myself and my clinical judgment. Growth doesn’t always come from following the traditional path or doing things the “usual” way. Sometimes, the best outcomes happen when you’re willing to shake things up and lean into your own unique approach.
Let’s take a small detour – maybe you can share a bit about yourself before we dive back into some of the other questions we had for you?
I’m an Occupational Therapist (OT), Certified Hand Therapist (CHT), and the owner of Hand in Hand Concierge Occupational Therapy. I provide concierge-style outpatient hand therapy services—meeting clients where they’re most comfortable, whether that’s in their homes, offices, or virtually.
It’s the kind of service you may not have heard of before, but if you ever need it, you’ll be glad it exists! Despite the name, hand therapy goes far beyond the hand itself—I work with the entire upper quadrant, from fingertip to shoulder. My clients come to me with everything from carpal tunnel syndrome and tennis elbow to arthritis, rotator cuff pain, and wrist fractures. I help people recover after surgery, and in some cases, even prevent surgery altogether. Each person’s situation is unique, so every treatment plan looks a little different.
Right now, I’m especially excited to be expanding my services to include handwriting. I’ve worked with both kids and adults on handwriting in the past, but now I’m bringing a fresh perspective to it—one that’s rooted in my deep understanding of hand function and movement. It’s something I’ve already been incorporating into sessions with many of my clients, but now it’s officially becoming its own dedicated service.
Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?
When I think about looking back on my career, I think about the early years when I was first getting started. This December will mark thirteen years as an Occupational Therapist—and during that time, I’ve worked in three states (five if you count my internships!) and many different companies along the way.
Looking back, here are three big takeaways I’d share with anyone just starting their career—whether it’s in OT or any other field:
1. Get as much diverse experience as you can.
In healthcare especially, you never really know where your path will take you in five, ten, or twenty years. The more tools and experiences you collect along the way, the better prepared you’ll be to pivot when opportunities—or challenges—come up. I may have specialized in hand therapy early on, but I also worked in a school system, a skilled nursing facility, and a rehab hospital. Each setting taught me something valuable and helped shape me into a stronger, more well-rounded therapist.
2. Find a job that invests in you as a professional.
When you’re job hunting early in your career, look for places that value growth—ones that offer mentorship, leadership development, and continuing education. Those investments in yourself are like contributing to a 401(k) at 25—they compound over time and pay off big as your career matures.
3. Don’t stay in a job that you hate.
Of course, there will be times when stability, income, and benefits have to come first. But staying in a job that drains you can quickly lead to burnout. That’s why it’s so important to keep your options open and build diverse experience early on—because in healthcare (and in most fields), there’s almost always another opportunity out there if you’re willing to get creative.
One of our goals is to help like-minded folks with similar goals connect and so before we go we want to ask if you are looking to partner or collab with others – and if so, what would make the ideal collaborator or partner?
I really love connecting with and working with people in the community – it’s one of the things I love most about being a mobile practice. I’ve done classes like teaching ergonomic principles to mom groups and doing grip strength testing and education at community events. I also love creating educational digital content for the general public and fellow therapists. I’m always looking for fellow professionals or groups that would be interested in collaborating – whether it’s hosting an event together or inviting me to come to an event to share my knowledge about all things upper extremity therapy. Feel free to reach out and let’s chat!
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.handinhandconciergeot.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/handinhandconciergeot/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61563852256025
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/hand-in-hand-concierge-occupational-therapy/
so if you or someone you know deserves recognition please let us know here.
