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1.3: Motivations for Joining the Human Services Profession

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    208818
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    Motivations for Joining the Human Services Profession

    KNOW YOUR WHY

    As you begin your journey to a career in human services, it is a good idea to take a moment to reflect on why you have chosen this field. Before reading more of this textbook, watch the video below and answer the reflection questions.

    Video Reflection Questions:

    1. Why are you motivated to become a human services professional?

    2. What are some of experiences, attitudes, wisdom, etc. that you bring to this field?

    3. How can you use your "WHY" to make the most of what you read/hear/learn in your classes?

    MINDSET MATTERS

    Mont St Michel France

    This is a picture of Mont Saint Michel, a mountainous island on the northern coast of France. The abbey that sits atop Mont Saint Michel is a massive structure that was essentially carved (by hand) out of the stone mountain. Construction of the abbey started in 708 AD and took over 1300 years to complete. Yes, generations upon generations of builders spent their entire lives toiling on this massive project that spanned over a thousand years! Can you imagine doing this job, chipping away at stones, day after day, for your whole life? Can you imagine devoting your entire career to the same project, knowing that you will NEVER see the end result? What kind of mindset would support this work?

    THE PARABLE of the STONECUTTERS

    Stonecutters Clip Art

    There is a famous parable that recounts a man who came across two stone cutters doing the same task. The man asked the first stone cutter, "What are you doing?" The first stone cutter looked up with irritation and frowned: "What does it look like I'm doing? I'm chipping a stone." The man moved on and asked the second stone cutter, "What are you doing?" The second stone cutter looked up with excitement and smiled: "I'm building a cathedral!" Both stone cutters were doing the exact same job, so what would account for such different responses? It comes down to the WHY. The first stone cutter viewed his task as nothing more than a job, seeing each stone as something he was required to chip at for no reason other than to move on to the next stone. However, the second stone cutter viewed his task with a sense of purpose and passion. He saw each stone as an important and necessary component of building a cathedral. He saw himself as part of a grand vision, which gave his work meaning and joy!

    ARE YOU CHIPPING A STONE OR BUILDING A CATHEDRAL? KNOW YOUR WHY!

    What can we learn from the parable of the stone cutters? First, as a human services professional, it will be important to keep your sense of purpose and passion in mind. At times, you are likely to work with clients with which you have no "visible" impact. You may feel as though you are chipping a stone or that what you are doing does not matter. You may never see the end result of your work. Experiences like this can lead to burn out. However, by keeping this parable in mind you can view your role as supporting your clients as they build themselves into cathedrals...and every tiny "stone" you contribute is a step towards completion. So, even if you never see the final product, you can maintain your joy in supporting the process, just as the second stone-cutter reminds us.

    In addition, over the next few years you will take courses designed to help you build your own cathedral--YOU! As you complete your assignments in this class, and in each course moving forward, keep your WHY in focus!

    Questions to ask yourself with every reading/writing/learning task:

    • What is the purpose of this assignment?
    • How does this connect to MY purpose/reason for going into this field?
    • Am I “chipping a stone” or “building a cathedral” as I complete my reading and writing assignments?

    If you are merely "going through the motions" or rushing through assignments to "git'r done," then you are essentially just "chipping a stone." You are not likely to learn much and even less likely to retain what you do learn. To be blunt, you will be shortchanging yourself and your future clients. Instead, keep your WHY at the center of everything you do. Try to view every aspect of this program (from class lectures and activities--to reading assignments--to videos--to projects and papers--to field experience) as an opportunity to build your cathedral--YOU! As you continue reading this textbook (and participating in all aspects of the program) try to remember your bigger purpose. Use everything in this program to build YOURSELF into the best helping professional you can be!

    Created by: Keri Grokowsky, Western Technical College


    1.3: Motivations for Joining the Human Services Profession is shared under a not declared license and was authored, remixed, and/or curated by LibreTexts.

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