July 2007 was a good month. I got engaged to my now-husband, and then just a few days later, passed the board certification exam to become an official board-certified music therapist. This photo was taken the following month — the earliest one I have in a work setting with those four letters (MT-BC) behind my name.
These past 10 years have been full of learning, growing, and stretching myself in ways I never though possible. I thought it would be fun to take a little trip down memory lane, highlighting my music therapy journey from the beginning to where I am now.
2007: I completed my internship, became board-certified, and took a full-time job at The Hope Institute for Children & Families. I also started a private practice (not on purpose). My mom helped me come up with the name Music Therapy Connections.
2008: I got married, continued working at Hope, and grew my private practice to the point where I was seeing clients every day after working my full-time job. I also started my new website, Listen & Learn Music, in September.
2009: My husband and I bought a new home, where I opened an in-home studio. My clients began coming to me, which eliminated my travel time and allowed me to grow the practice even more. I attended my first AMTA national conference in San Diego, CA.
2010: I started the Music Therapy Round Table podcast with my music therapist friends Michelle and Kimberly, who I had met via the internet. I also took my very first music therapy intern at Hope.
2011: We remodeled our house so that I could have a studio space separate from my living area. I left my job at Hope to become a full-time business owner.
2012: I took on my first contractor, Katey Kamerad. I released my first CMTE course through Music Therapy Ed. I got pregnant and began planning what my business would look like after baby arrived.
2013: I started teaching Listen & Learn for Little Ones early childhood music classes. I had a baby boy and enjoyed a 3-month maternity leave. I began to learn the fine art of balancing my work with being a mom.
2014: I went through and completed NICU music therapy training. Katey and I became partnered and incorporated MTC. We moved in to a local music studio, so I was no longer working from home. Oh, and I got pregnant again.
2015: I started the Guitars & Granola Bars podcast. My family moved into a new house, and then I had a baby girl. During my 3-month “maternity leave”, Katey and I moved MTC into a new location. We took on our first team member, and then our first intern through MTC.
2016: Our team continued growing to include 10 music therapists and/or instructors. We took on our second intern. We received our first big contract, with The Hope Institute for Children & Families (where I started my career). Katey and I started a new podcast, Creative Business Breakdown.
2017: For the first time ever, MTC employed a full-time music therapist (aside from Katey and myself). Our team grew to 12. I discontinued teaching lessons so that I could focus on my handful of MT clients, teaching classes, and have more time at home with my kids. We interviewed and accepted our third intern.
As I kick off my 10th year as an MT-BC this week, we are getting ready to welcome our new intern — her first day is tomorrow! MTC is a busy place right now, and we have big plans for even more growth before the year is over. Personally, I’m working on a new project and getting ready to launch it in just a little over a month.
It’s hard to believe that I’ve been a part of this amazing field for 10 years. It will be very interesting to see what happens in the next 10 years, since my life looks incredibly different than it did when I first started. Here’s to the next decade as an MT-BC!
