Social Workers often struggle with their visibility, and by nature many don’t like the spotlight and prefer to put others in front of the stage like our clients or our volunteers while we stay rather invisible.
This is a world-wide problem. When we are invisible, we say, “We are not worthy to be seen.” It’s like digging our own grave. And even this is not what we want. This is not how we feel. And in a way, we create our own problem.
Why are we doing this? Are we stupid? No, we are not! Social Workers are smart people. But there’s another phenomenon that’s keeping us imprisoned: we are modest. We are too modest! And many Social Workers are real introverts which may sometimes be to our detriment. Have you ever done the Myers & Briggs test to find out? Go here and you’ll know it in a second >>>
There’s nothing wrong with being modest. There’s a Dutch saying: “bescheidenheid siert de mens,” which translate to “modesty is a virtue.” But when modesty is causing invisibility, a problem arises.
There were times when invisibility was not an issue. Our jobs were respected. There was enough money. And no one discussed the results of our efforts. In times of prosperity, there is less need to be critical. But in times of scarcity, people start to ask critical questions, do we really need this? Do we really need Social Workers?
Times have changed. And with the internet being widely popular, our society is more transparent. The economic crisis caused money to be scarce. And stakeholders suddenly want to know more about us. They ask questions like:
•Why does this cost so much?
•What are the results of your job?
•How about your education and licenses?
These questions can cause social workers to crawl into a shell and don’t share the answers. It can cause them to retract to their offices and hide from the world. This is not the time to do so!!!
Social workers have to show up and advocate for their profession. They must be visible and crystal clear about their values.
The law of attraction says like brings like and focusing on positive energy will attract positive thoughts and reactions. So social workers have to show up and be visible to attract clients, money, success and wealth. But first, you have to plant seeds, water and nurse it. It all starts with showing up in a way that you want others to respond.
I’m aware that this might be a huge shift for you. That this could be something you’ve been struggling with. And let’s be honest, we’re not going to solve this in one blog post. But one beneficial tip that could go a long way, start with your digital attraction. Most social workers are online. They log in to their Facebook, LinkedIn or Pinterest accounts. This is a great chance to boost visibility. Use this as a time to show your friendly faces, share posts about your passion, results of your job and share stories about happy clients.
Too often social workers who have profiles on different platforms, aren’t using them to their full potential. But for modest people like us, it’s the easiest way to start. Look at your profile picture! Is this you? Are you showing a friendly face? Does it look warm and professional? If social workers present themselves online as personal, authentic, warm and loving professionals, they will reap the benefits.
