We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Vana Ashdjian a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Vana, thrilled to have you on the platform as I think our readers can really benefit from your insights and experiences. In particular, we’d love to hear about how you think about burnout, avoiding or overcoming burnout, etc.
I believe in having balance in life is the basis of avoiding burnout. I like to categorize things in my head as “must do’s” and “save for later” tasks. We all have a list of things that need to be completed and when we look at this large list of things to do each day, week, month, it can feel very overwhelming and discouraging. I try to look at my tasks daily and not overwhelm myself by the laundry list of tasks I have for the week. Within my daily tasks, I tackle them by priority and complete the “must do’s” for the day. I function this way within my person and professional life. Because of this, I am able give myself self-care time which I believe is the next most important thing to avoid burnout. In order to do this, you must let go of the “guilt” that may nag you to “finish your work” or “don’t rest until it’s done” attitude. We aren’t robots and are humans with emotions and feelings and we must fill our cup with the things we love to do. I enjoy working out, watching movies, and reading books and I allow myself to indulge in these activities daily as a part of my routine.
Great, so let’s take a few minutes and cover your story. What should folks know about you and what you do?
I am Speech Language Pathologist and private practice owner of Nest Speech and Language Therapy. My practice specializes in serving the pediatric population and with early intervention services. I stumbled upon this career midway in my undergraduate coursework when I was at a crossroads in picking a major. I found out about speech therapy, did some research and was intrigued by the field. I immediately went into the field of behavior therapy to test the waters first. I thought if I can work as a behavior therapist then I can be a speech therapist. I was thriving as a behavior therapist and I just loved how my work was so influential in the lives of the children I was working with. Soon after, I began my Master’s program in Speech Pathology and upon graduating I worked in the school districts. My experiences were vast as I also worked as a perm diem Speech therapist in the hospital setting with adults who experienced strokes or TBI. Ultimately, I found that my passion was working with children. When COVID happened, I found myself working from home as a school based SLP with a lot of down time I didn’t have otherwise. I began to make connections with families who needed services during this time and promoted my private practice. What started off as just me providing services in clients homes, turned into a team of 9 therapists with a clinic location in the heart of Glendale. I look back at how much we have grown in the last few years and feel proud and excited about the opportunities the future will bring. It took risks, challenges and change to get to where I am today and this is only the beginning!
If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?
Persistence, authenticity and faith
Do not give up no matter what. If you can control the outcome of something, then don’t stop until you get to where you strive to be. Be genuine to who you are. If people see that you do something with your heart, whether or not if it’s perfect or the best is secondary. I believe people connect with people they can relate to and therefore if you are authentically yourself, raw and open then it stands for more long lasting genuine relationships. Lastly, have faith that things always happen for a reason as cliche as that sounds. When something doesn’t happen that you really wanted, there is a reason that it wasn’t yours. Another door will open with opportunities that are meant to be yours.
Okay, so before we go, is there anyone you’d like to shoutout for the role they’ve played in helping you develop the essential skills or overcome challenges along the way?
Undoubtedly my husband. He always believed in me before I believed in myself. As much as I’d like to think that I am a confident person, there are still things that I think I can’t do, or I sell my self short. He saw the person I could be before I did and I am forever grateful for that. He’s taught me to be strong and resilient and to speak up. These skills and qualities always existed within me but he ignited them and still continues to do so when I find myself at roadblock. I continue to seek his guidance and support and could not have been this successful without him cheering me on!
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.nestspeech.com
- Instagram: @nestspeech
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/nestspeechtherapy/
- Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/nest-speech-and-language-therapy-glendale?osq=nest+speech
Image Credits
N/A
so if you or someone you know deserves recognition please let us know here.
