We recently connected with Raelene Weaver and have shared our conversation below.
Raelene, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Was there a defining moment in your professional career? A moment that changed the trajectory of your career?
When I was working on my TEDx talk, Let Boys Be Kids First, a dear friend and colleague asked when I first became interested in boy’s and men’s issues. I told her it was when I was working on my Masters thesis, titled “How Repressed Emotions in Men Negatively Affect Society. She said it must have been way before that. I thought about it, and realized that when I was eight years old my mom died of breast cancer and my dad’s drinking got worse. I wrote him a letter saying I was worried about him. We never talked about it. It wasn’t really socially acceptable for men to talk about their feelings. I think it was my not being able to comfort my dad, that led me later in life to wanting to become a therapist, so I could provide a safe space for men to have their feelings and talk about loss, depression etc.
As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?
I grew up in a neighborhood of mostly all boys and loved it! We slid down grassy hills on cardboard, We went trick or treating together. When we played baseball, I had to play outfield (because I wasn’t very good.) I even got to go in the boy’s tree fort!
What I observed was that boys were rated on performance, and not so much on character. How fast was he? How smart was he? It was all about academics or athletics.
What I am asking of society is to lift boys up for having strong character. For being kind. For being honest. For being courageous.
In my book, also titled Let Boys Be Kids First, I talk about the importance of raising emotionally healthy boys.
To watch my TEDx talk or to find out where to order my book, you can go to https://letboysbekidsfirst.com/
Putting training and knowledge aside, what else do you think really matters in terms of succeeding in your field?
Therapists have a long road to getting licensed. You need to get a Master’s degree in Psychology, do 3,000 hours of supervised therapy sessions, and then pass two state board exams.
Once all that is completed, then becomes the hard work of setting up a practice.. Many therapists are introverts, so self-promotion and marketing oneself is not all that easy to do.
When I was first licensed, I started a networking group for mental health professionals. This allowed them to talk about their specialties and help make referrals. We had monthly in person meetings, and the e-tree has over 1100 members today.
Training and knowledge matter of course, but beyond that what do you think matters most in terms of succeeding in your field?
It’s important to find a niche or some area that you really enjoy working in within the field of therapy. That way you can distinguish yourself in that area for marketing purposes and within the therapeutic community.
Contact Info:
- Website: Letboysbekidsfirst.com. Siliconvalleymenscenter.com
- Facebook: Silicon Valley Men’’s Center Group https://www.facebook.com/groups/svmenscenter/
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/raelene-s-weaver-11082020/recent-activity/all/
- Youtube: Raelene S. Weaver https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCHXtw0DiFzf2S6Uf8gM-KaQ/videos
