From MPA's President-Elect Steve Girardeau, Psy.D., L.P.: Enjoy Summer and Get Involved!

I hope that this article finds you all having a relaxing and renewing summer. 

Summer is a time of fun and sun.  A time of green plants and blue skies and waters.  We are lucky to live in such a beautiful state and we should all be sure to take the time to relax and enjoy the wonders of nature that abound around us.  This is something that we, the volunteers that run MPA on a day to day basis, need to be sure to remember to do.  Having come off a three week period where I have devoted over 25 hours of volunteer time to address issues important to our profession, I am planning to relax and sail this weekend, anchoring at times to enjoy the peaceful rocking of the boat on the waves. 

There is much going on in the world of our profession that many of you are not aware of.  The financial margins in our industry are getting tighter and tighter and so time seems to be a commodity that we loath to spend unless we get true value for it.  Many do not spend the time needed to stay informed and be involved.

The value of taking time to smell the roses, is the renewal of energy and a sense of purpose.  The value of taking time to become informed and do something about the issues we face in the coming years in psychology is hard to quantify, because it is future based.  You need to make the investment and then credit your professional life with the improvements.  The seeds of effort that were planted must be connected in our thoughts with the sowing of the harvest of that effort.  The absence of the weeds that you plucked or prevented from growing must be remembered as we consider whether or not to continue to be involved.  The seeds being the investments in the growth of psychology, the weeds being the challenges our profession faces in the changing landscape of mental healthcare and healthcare in general.

So spend the time and effort to relax and renew, but also spend time and give your time to staying informed and being involved in the shaping of psychology into a profession worthy of our history.

Steve Girardeau, Psy.D., L.P., is the Director of Clinical Services of Mental Health Systems, member of the MPA Legislative Committee and Governing Council General Member, and a member of APA, MPA, and ABCT.  He provides psychological services in residential, community mental health centers, private practice and intensive outpatient settings with a wide variety of at risk and underserved clients.  He is the current president-elect of MPA and training director of the APPIC internship training site.

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