how do I want my business to continue? What's sustainable, sustainability is a different pace than building. But many people stay stuck on that building track that they must always be growing. If it's not one clinic, it's two clinics. If it's not 10 employees, it's 20 employees. And that just because you can keep growing doesn't mean you have to. And maybe you want to, maybe that's the vision, but you have to pause to reflect on that and make that intentional.
It's a trap. It's a complete trap. I, I cannot agree with you more that there is such a mentality of, you know, just working yourself almost to death. There will always be things to do and we have to enjoy life as we go about it.
You're listening to the Brave OT Podcast with me, Carlyn Neek. This podcast is all about empowering occupational therapists to step up, level up, blaze some trails, and maybe engage in a little conscious rebellion. In service of our profession, our clients, our work, our businesses, and living our mission wholeheartedly. We are all about keeping it real, doing hard things.
Things unhustling, being curious, exploring, growing through our challenges, and finding joy, fulfillment, and vitality as we do so. Really, we're OT ing ourselves, and each other. I hope you love this episode! Today we're exploring the transformative path from overwhelmed to calm, featuring Jarrett Dottin, better known as JD the OT. I first met JD in 2021 and the shift in his energy and presence is enormous. He has masterfully navigated his way to thriving in both business and in life.
Let's get curious as we delve into Jarrett's remarkable evolution, From running a bustling, bricks and mortar and mobile practice to discovering the power of intentional living and business management. It's a story that will inspire you and offers insights and strategies for more balance, purpose, and joy in your professional and personal endeavors. Hey, Jarrett. Thank you so much for coming and being on the podcast today. Hey, thanks for having me. My pleasure. Tell us a little bit about you.
You are JD the OT.
Yep, that's me. I'm an occupational therapist. Graduated Quinnipiac University back in 2011. After that I took a couple travel assignments. Ended up landing in Florida and worked in a couple of skilled nursing facilities. After that, jumped to home health, and then due to the nature of insurance, got a little bit frustrated with myself and started my own practice because I wanted to make sure I could efficiently meet the needs of the patients that I was seeing. That's the
best way to do it. There's a, that tipping point. There, there are benefits to being in a job where somebody else finds the clients and provides them to you. But often there's that tipping point where we as therapists just kind of can't fit into that model anymore.
Absolutely. And I feel that having my own practice, has definitely allowed for myself to have some flexibility in the way that I do see these clients and, allow me to see them on my own time as well. Which takes a lot of practice.
We were talking before about how when you have that option, you can kind of get overwhelmed and see too many people or the needs are just, there are a lot of needs and there's a lot of people out there and you really have to niche down and take it slow so that way you can live your own life too, because otherwise you can easily, easily, get caught up in it and overwhelmed. And overwhelm is a real thing. And we all kind of go through that.
There were so many good nuggets in what you just said. Let's dive right into it, that, that overwhelm bit, right? A lot of times we're like, okay, it's really overwhelming working in this system. I'm in Canada, you're in the U.S. So very different systems and it's still very overwhelming. And so we go, okay, well, I'm going to go start a private practice so I have more flexibility, autonomy, control.
But most therapists we talk to very quickly become very busy There's you sort of trade in a bit, one, one challenge for another challenge. Like you have more control, but you're also everything in your business and you're trying to build a business and keep a business and run a business and meet the demands. And we often fear that we're not going to have enough work. So then we take on too much work and there we are a few years later going, what the heck?
I'm just as exhausted, if not more than when I was working in a job.
Absolutely. My niche or my specialty is with lymphedema management and there just are not enough of us out there. And after I started my business, it picked up very, very quickly. It was right after COVID or right during COVID that I started my practice and it was a little bit different back then. I was able to see clients very quickly, easily because there weren't a lot of cars on the road. So now COVID has now diminished or there's less of an occurrence of it, we'll say.
And traffic started back up and, buses were on the road, this and that. And the client base that I was seeing definitely increased in addition to the traffic and just, it was impossible to see all my clients. The biggest thing of overwhelm that I had was that I actually opened up a outpatient practice that was about an hour and a half or hour 15 from where I was living and it was fine in the very beginning but as things progress, it just became harder and harder to get there.
I was very much paralyzed in trying to build up that clientele base while still seeing clients that were mobile and it just kind of spiraled and it's paralyzing because you don't know necessarily what to do first.
You and I have had some good sessions during paralyzed moments and I get paralyzed too. When you're paralyzed, what does that look like? What might I see if I were to come and visit you on a day where you're completely overwhelmed
For myself? If I'm working, I'm kind of going through the motions. Not that I'm not caring, but I'm actually just not 100 percent or 110 percent because I give too much. So I don't know what percent it would be then, but for me if I'm overwhelmed it's just kind of going through the motions, doing what the patient needs, and if I am not using my adaptive strategies, it kind of hard, it's like a deck of cards. Very much so.
I have started, I've implemented tools to help with that now, such as journaling and having lists and one of my favorite things is my time timer that I have on my desk. And all these little things that are up. Yep. There we go. It's essential. I'm telling you. Let's see what else, the do not disturb on my phone. I started using that like all the time now. So if I'm out and traveling and working, I hit that so that I don't get dinged by notifications all day.
And if there's an emergency, I have told patients and people that, you know call twice because it will go through. Otherwise it most likely will not be an emergency and it's okay life will go on and I can come back to it later. And I think that we have overall just gotten to the point where we automatically have to go into the thing and everything else. Everything is just so important, but it's not really. And it can actually wait. And it's been helpful to have that now
That it's, that most things are not an emergency. I remember talking to you a few years ago and you at that point, I think had only been taking one day a week off. And even then it wasn't really off. And the thought of taking a few days in a row.
Because I remember, I think it was like, sort of there was that overwhelm and backlog of, like most of us reports and billing and all of those things, or documentation and billing, we're making sure that clients are cared for, but then you know, that back end stuff can really back up, especially if you're on the road for hours a day and that sort of thing.
And so I remember we were trying to strategize about how could you get a big chunk, get some relief and get a big chunk out of the way so that then it was more maintenance mode. And I remember sort of saying, okay well can you just block off a couple of days? No client care. And you kind of looked at me like, like how, how, how, how, how does one do that? It was almost inconceivable at that time. So fast forward now, and I'm not saying this was for me, you've done a lot.
You've done tons of things and you've you get support from many different places. But you've come a long way from that conversation.
Sure. No, absolutely. It was almost like you were speaking in tongues back then. No, I, I, the biggest thing for me was that back then I was also trying to force myself to do something that wasn't natural. And I was trying to force myself to work a Monday through Friday gig. And prior I had worked Tuesday through Saturday, and I was just trying to force myself to kind of conform to what the norm is of, you know, Monday through Friday. And I just feel that that's not in my nature.
So going back to what really works for me is really a Tuesday through Saturday and maybe one or two on a Monday and tapering it down so that it, and easing into, is the best way everyone trying to say. Part of that is also being authentic versus being inauthentic where I was doing something that didn't feel authentic to me and just, it didn't mesh well.
so along with that too, I was seeing too many clients and not allowing myself the time to do the documentation between my patients or use adaptive strategies, such as dictation for a note writer for seeing a client. Allowing for more space between clients and shifting my schedule to something that feels more comfortable has allowed things to get better. And that was a huge step. That is awesome.
And I'm hearing this, I'm hearing a maturity in the evolution of your business too, where so often we are saying yes to everything and taking it all on and trying to be everything to everybody when we're building. And there's this fear that well, if I say no, or I'm not available when that client says they need me, then I'm going to lose business, then they're going to move on.
And it sounds like you've gotten to a place where that's not a fear anymore, like certainly there are business cycles and you're not going to have the same clients forever, but it doesn't sound as fear driven. It sounds like there's a security in, okay, there's a lot of work and I need this to be sustainable for me.
How do I work in a way that feels aligned and that I can keep working and I'm not going to burn out or keep in that perpetual cycle of almost burning out and shutting it all down and, yeah.
Yeah, no. There always will be the fear or the concern of not having work, at least in my mind. But the way that I approach it and handle it is different. I just, I recognize that opportunities will always come and go, but the way that they present themselves may be different, and that's where you have to pivot.
It's not going to be the same every single time, but look for those windows of opportunity and see if you can adapt to something, if it changes and it's not the same way that it was first presented to you. No matter what unfortunately, people will be getting sick. Unfortunately, but that's the nature of human nature.
People are going to need help, and if they choose someone else over you, then so be it, but I also feel that the quality of your work will stand out more and then that will drive people to you. In the very beginning, yes, sure, you're going to have to work harder to get your name out there, but I really think if you put in the groundwork of working hard and then easing back and taking a look to see where you've come, then you can kind of pivot. But especially for myself.
I had to really stop, slow down a lot and look back and see what I did do so that way I could look at other opportunities and advantages that may be out there. So that's, that was really important to me at least.
Now, that stopping piece is really hard when you feel that you've got 10 balls in the air, right? And it's essential, it's essential. We can't be intentional if we don't take a step back and really look at the big picture. But I talked to so many OTs who are in that scramble mode, go, go, go, and like that they just have to do. And they're missing that, that important piece of reflection. It's really, really, it's key.
You can't work in a grounded, intentional way without stopping and looking at what's really going on. And is that workable? And where are things inefficient and where am I, like your clients suffer and you suffer if you're in this scramble mode, trying to be everywhere all the time, doing all the things. And, yeah, that's why. So what, what clicked? Because I know there was a lot of overwhelm. What clicked to, to get you to pause?
And was there a sort of, was there something, was there a trigger?
It just wasn't sustainable. For me, it truly almost every aspect of my life was at a point where I wasn't happy. And I think it's also important to recognize too, that, we go into this with an idea of what we want to do, but that idea can change, too, after we've done it for a little bit. And I think that sometimes we feel like we're boxed in and we're forced to continue to do the thing. But you have to kind of let it flow and let go and just see what comes out of it.
I really went through a big moment of just letting go and recognizing that it will be what it's going to be and just do the best that you can. And I felt such relief as a result of that.
A power in allowing what is to be. That's acceptance, really. And then being able to refocus on what can you control and where what's important to you.
Exactly, because we can't control everything or sometimes anything. Yeah.
Yeah. Totally. Totally. So many of these concepts, are things I teach in Activate Vitality. And I know you're, you joined the program as one of the OG members actually really early on in 2021. But it almost feels like now is the time, like now that you've kind of slowed down and pay attention and now's maybe the time to revisit that content. Because it's a lot, it's reinforcing this stuff and it'll feel not in opposition, but in aligned with the direction you're going.
No, absolutely. I truly feel that authenticity now, truly being authentic. I think I was at a point where I didn't even recognize what that even meant to myself. Like I didn't know what that even was. You didn't. So you know, now being able to see that has helped a lot. Yeah. You know. Recognizing what's important.
So what is really important to you right now? Work life
balance. I had originally really wanted to have the mobile and have the clinic and do all these grand things, but that's not, great things almost from like a vain place, I guess. And I don't know if that's the right way of putting it. But for me, what makes me happy is just treating clients and doing the day to day and providing my knowledge in a way so that people can receive it. So whether it be one on one patient care or I've gotten more comfortable in front of the camera and speaking.
So I even put up a YouTube channel where I put out little things, little bits of information that people can use on a day to day basis for products. So how can people find you on YouTube? On YouTube, so I have a YouTube page, it's JD the OT. Just my name, my tagline.
And you'll find resources on lymphedema management and different tools that can help on a day to day, whether it be a grab bar or shower bench or so forth, and just kind of little tips that might help, things that come easily in the OT world, but not necessarily outside of our little bubble.
I love that. Well, That's exciting. That's really exciting. I think about, that's like, I think about ending. So at the end of the day, when somebody says, hey, how was your day? Or at the end of your career or at the end of your life, like when we reflect back on those impactful moments, it's probably not going to be the nice car or the nice holiday or that, well, maybe, maybe the holiday. Or a nice drive, but it's generally like when I think about saying to my husband, oh, I had a great day.
I had this session with this client and we had this giant breakthrough and this stuff happened and it felt impactful and it made a difference. And like those things really are what it's all about, right?
And being able to have that impact and we often can't have those big moments if we're just trying to get the basics done, rush off to the next one, hurry up, get the, you know, put in the notes late in the evening because, we were couldn't get them done in the day and couldn't even have that conversation with a loved one about how awesome our day is because it's not done yet.
Right? No, absolutely. And when we are so busy, we're just not present, you know, whether it be for ourselves, our patients, our loved ones or whatnot. And that, it takes a significant hit those relationships, and it's so important to be present. Even in patient care you can miss something that's really important.
A patient may say something that's pretty small, but it's actually the block that you need to move in order to have them have success, but in order to have that moment happen, you have to be able and willing to be there in that moment,
Yeah, for sure. Something you and I have in common that is a strength and sometimes a challenge, is our ADHD diagnoses and it's, I think it's so interesting because I'm hearing kernels of that in this discussion, right? You're talking about, okay, we get into that overwhelm where we have that emotional dysregulation and everything piles up and then we're paralyzed. That can happen.
And we can also, we're very skilled to put in systems that help us and adaptive things, but then we often have to change them because what worked last year doesn't work anymore this year. But also hearing that courage to kind of go, oh, okay, like I'm working in these systems that don't fit. I'm going to go do my own thing so I can do it in a way that feels more aligned that a lot of neurotypical people might be like that's a terrible idea.
And sometimes we can impulsively be like, but I'm going to do it anyways, and I'll figure it out. And we do. And that's where I think ADHD can be a benefit. And I'm also hearing in your sense of being willing to change and adapt and be flexible and go, okay, what I set out to do has evolved and some things have changed and I'm responding to what those changes are in the climate, in the needs, in myself, in what I'm learning.
Which is also a huge strength of ADHD that we come with this natural flexibility and ability to see things and adapt to things. These were my observations and what you've said, but how do you think your ADHD impacts you in positive and negative ways?
I can definitely say, let's see, do you want positive or negative first? Let's go with the positive. Alright, the positive. I can say with the positive that it definitely allows me to look at things in so many different ways and to, I love my metaphors. I use metaphors all day, every day to help explain different things to clients in ways that other people may not have come up with. Examples are helpful for that.
Also I think of interventions that may not be normal or typical or looking around the client's home to see what may best help them. And they may not have thought about doing something in some way that, I was able to look at. So that's
Divergent thinking is really helpful creativity. Yeah. Um, Let's see what else?
Also the idea to have multiple projects to work on multiple things at one time so that you can pivot. Today I've actually been working on a couple of things that a project that I started about six months ago, and I'm finally putting the pedal to the metal on it because it's time, but, it was a con though, because I started this whole project and then I hit the brakes and didn't do anything with it for months.
I have a few of those too.
All the projects. So I guess, a con would also be getting stuck at times just, we can look at another problem that someone else has and can easily solve it and work with it. But when it comes to ourselves, we just, at least myself, I shut down sometimes and I'll do other things instead of doing the things I need to do.
I can so, so relate to that too. That sense of, yeah, the shutdown. And it, it's a weird kind of shutdown too where it's like, it's not just forgetting to, for instance, like forgetting to respond to the email very often. I'm very aware that I need to respond to the email and I feel awful about it. And it's like this deep shame that, oh no, like it's been so long and now I need to, and that person must be thinking this and this and that.
And like it just, I describe it as like it gets covered in yuck. Like it would take two minutes to respond to the email, but it's become this giant thing that's covered in this layer of slimy yuck because, rejection sensitivity, you know, what have you. But then it's not just that email. It's the email and the callback and the report and the project and the, like all of the things there's 1 million of those yucky balls floating around.
That's not a great metaphor, yucky, slimy, But it's, it's that it can and then it's on little pieces of paper and notes and then it's like, oh, that text that I can't even look at because I know I was supposed to do something and I can't even remember what it was. And that can be very paralyzing.
Absolutely. I, I've done a lot of work on reframing. Especially reframing when it comes to conversations and just what other people's perceptions may be, because the perception that you have in that moment isn't actually what they're thinking. Like, they could be thinking that, but you're the one that's coming up with the concept or the idea of what they're thinking of. So if you can, at least for myself, what I've done is I've taken a step back and recognized, oh, this is my thought.
That's not their thought. And then go into it with almost a neutral slate and, just do the thing. That, that was a major point for me, to work on reframing of perceptions because that can be a major, hurdle sometimes.
Totally. Yes, exactly. I'll often even do a little tester. It's not a tester, but a strategy I use is, I'll send an email to the person and say, hey, just, I haven't forgotten about that thing. It's on my radar. And then maybe ask them a question about it or say it's, it's something that I will be looking at by the end of the week or something like that. And then that person gives a response like, oh, I totally forgot about it. No biggie. No hurry or actually that's already been figured out.
We don't need to do anything. Okay. But generally, it's a positive response, which then wipes off a bunch of the yuck and I can just deal with the issue. And it feels value aligned because I'm very motivated for authentic connection and honesty. And so being able to just say, hey, I'm thinking about you. I care about the relationship. And, here's where I'm at with things. And that generally just makes it all feel a lot better, shifts the emotion.
Challenges the belief around what that person may or may not be thinking. And then the task becomes just simply the task. That's generally not a hard thing. Exactly.
Exactly. Yeah. Yeah.
Very cool. Very cool. Is there anything else you wanted to talk about? These are all the questions that came to my mind, but what else is on your mind these
days? Yeah, no, I, I think the reframing is really important. That's really been probably the linchpin that has paralyzed, you know, I was so paralyzed that it took me to sit down and reframe and think, okay, well the end of the world isn't happening today. Probably not going to happen tomorrow or the next day. Just sit down and do the thing.
My whole mantra for this year is just to do it, Just to do the thing and, not get so, I don't want to say worked up, but don't get so paralyzed over it and just work through it. It's better to work through it than not to do anything at all.
And it sounds like you've created enough wiggle room in your schedule that you can actually follow through with that too. Whereas before, when your schedule was so jam packed, you could have those thoughts, but there wasn't time to just do the
thing. Exactly. And everything happens for a reason. Everything happens in certain ways, and the more, I have found, the more that I try to force things in general, the more convoluted and more complicated it gets. Throw your attentions out there and see what comes back. Work on yourself.
Yeah. And these, yeah, like you said, everything happens for a reason. I'm even thinking about seasons, right? That season of business building. And then there's sort of that more of a, okay, how do I want my business to continue? What's sustainable, like sustainability is a different pace than building. But many people stay stuck on that building track that they must always be growing. If it's not one clinic, it's two clinics. If it's not 10 employees, it's 20 employees.
And that just because you can keep growing doesn't mean you have to. And maybe you want to, maybe that's the vision, but you have to pause to kind of reflect on that and make that intentional. And if this sort of, it sounds like there's you've found your groove and found a place where you want to remain intentional. And that's not to say you're not growing. You're working on other projects, you're evolving, you're changing things.
But the idea isn't to be busier and busier and busier, because that's the opposite of what we want from our lives, isn't it?
It's a trap. It's a complete trap. I cannot agree with you more that there is such a mentality of, just working yourself almost to death. There will always be things to do and we have to enjoy life as we go about it.
I, when I opened the clinic down, I had the brick and mortar clinic and then my mobile practice, the brick and mortar clinic I was not truly at the end of the day, I felt more passionate about my mobile practice, but yet I was still was trying to further the dream of having the brick and mortar. And I'm actually going to be shutting down the brick and mortar because it doesn't align with what I want to do. It just does not align at all.
And, you know, it was a great thing when it was there, but It's not what I want. And being able to A, acknowledge that, B, actually have the conversation and then C, actually do it, it has allowed for other things to come my way and for more opportunity and just time to just be. Yeah, I cannot agree more that we got to do with what aligns with us and also don't feel like you're forced to go along a path that isn't what you want to do. We feel trapped.
Yeah two words that I have on my wall for 2024 are liberate and inspire. And so my intention is to live and work in a way that liberates and inspires. Period. So that could be me, that could be you, that could be anybody listening, and I'm hearing a liberation in that choice that, that was feeling, you were feeling stuck with that clinic, having that as the thing. And so there's this liberation and fluidity and flexibility that you've created by making that decision.
And it's not a failed practice. It's not a, it's a, it's an intentional choice. You could be very busy there if you wanted to be. That's, but do you want to be.
Right, right. I just have to do what aligns.
Yeah. Oh, I'm so happy for you. I'm so happy. The listener might not know, but we previously recorded an interview in May and you reached out to me in December and said, hey, can we redo it? Can we redo that conversation? I would love to have a new conversation. I'm just feeling really different now and I'm really glad you did. This is a beautiful story of transformation and confidence building and resilience building.
And you just really sound, truly like you're coming from an empowered centered values based place. Not a striving sort of place. And I'm really happy for you. Thank
you. I appreciate that. I'm glad that you had me on
My pleasure. If you had an opportunity to go and speak to yourself a few years ago in a time of struggle, What would you tell
yourself? I would tell myself, it's a good question, to do the thing, but don't feel like it's the only thing out there for you to do. Don't get so hung up on some of the moments, because there are other things that can come along, and don't say yes to everything, make room to say no, say no makes room for other things, other opportunities. That's
great. I have a couple last questions. I ask everybody at the end of the podcast. what does being brave mean to you?
Once again, being brave means doing the thing, even though you feel like you may not be able to do the thing. I feel like you got to start almost before it's ready. And that will really force you to do it well.
Yep. There's never a perfect time to start. What is something brave you've
done recently? Definitely slowing down and taking the time to reflect and to reframe.
Yeah, I hear that loud and clear. And how would you like to see other OTs be a little bit more brave?
I would encourage them to think outside the box and do what makes them happy and don't feel like you're trapped doing whatever you're doing now. Just know that there, OT in the profession, just there are so many windows of opportunity that we can do with it. And it's really hard to lock us into something because there are so many different things that we can do.
Yeah, if any OTs listening would like to connect with you, would you like them to go to your YouTube channel? Anywhere else you'd like them to find you?
Sure. I've got my website, JDtheOT.Com or, YouTube.
Perfect. I'll put those links in the show notes. Thank you so
much. Awesome. Thanks for having me. Thank you for tuning in to The BRAVE OT podcast. I hope that today's episode with Jarrett Dottin has empowered you with valuable insights on transforming business overwhelm into sustainable success and personal fulfillment. I hope you'll hold onto the message about pausing, to reflect on how your business aligns with how you want to be living your life, how you want to be experiencing your days. If it doesn't. You need to create space to shift.
I'm grateful to be one of the supports in Jarrett's corner, and I'd love to help you as well. If you would like some guidance in pausing to reflect on what would make your business feel more aligned, the Thriving OT Reflective Business Workshop is available on demand. I'll put a registration link in the show notes. And be sure to go check out JD the OT on YouTube as well as at his website, jdtheot.com. Being brave means taking action, even when the path ahead seems uncertain.
So, what will your next brave step be? As always be brave OTs.