Ep 29: Leading with relationship - Latinx/e in Social Work - with Erica Sandoval
What brings you joy in your work? How do you find purpose and meaning in your career? This week, we invited award-winning mental health practitioner, speaker, spiritual healer, podcaster, advocate, and author Erica Sandoval to talk meaning, purpose, leadership, and storytelling in social work practice. Erica shares about her experience as President of NASW New York, her career journey in starting Sandoval CoLab, and her book Latinx/e in Social Work. We also talk a lot about the importance of relationships in social work leadership - and not being afraid to take a new courageous step in your career. Keeping with the New York theme, we talk Beastie Boys and A Tribe Called Quest. At the top we listen to U2’s “Angel of Harlem” and close out the episode with “It’s Tricky” by DMC.
So that we can play the music of the 80s/90s right in the episode, we are releasing our podcast on Spotify. Get Spotify Premium to listen along with the music mid-episode.
Key Takeaways
Social work needs diverse leaders. During the episode, Erica reflected on the lack of diversity she saw represented in social work leadership and how this became a motivator for seeking a leadership position in NASW. She shared, “I can’t be angry at that if I’m not doing something about it…if I want to see the change I want to see, I have to be in the door and at the table… so we can create the change together.”
Leadership in social work requires organizing and building relationships. “Don’t be the superhero,” Erica shared on this episode, encouraging others to approach leadership from a position of collaboration and relationship building. Social work leaders who want to create change should make sure to have the people around them needed to help make the change possible. Leadership occurs best in the context of community, keeping inn mind that we don’t always have the answers, or agree on everything.
Social workers can “create [their] own seat the table.” Erica reflected on her decision to start her own company, take ownership of her own career, and create a purpose-driven approach to her career. Though starting a business can be challenging, it can be a way that social workers can create alignment and purpose in their work, ensuring that they are able to do what they are working to do.
Erica discussed the use of ketamine-assisted therapy as a modality that may be appropriate for some clients dealing with mental health challenges and trauma. She discusses the training she received, how it works in collaboration with (and prescribed by) medical professionals, and the experiences her clients have had in finding health and wellness.
Personal narratives and storytelling can be a compelling way to build empathy and connection, communicate inclusion and belonging, and share stories of success in the face of challenges. Erica’s book, Latinx in Social Work: Stories that heal, inspire, and connect communities, amplifies and highlights the voices of Latinx social workers healing leading and inspiring while sharing their challenges and successes of navigating their careers.
Resources and Links
Sandoval, E. (2022). Latinx in Social Work: Stories that heal, inspire, and connect communities. Volume II.
The Latinx/e In Social Work Podcast, hosted by Erica Sandoval.
Van der Kolk, B. A. (2014). The body keeps the score: Brain, mind, and body in the healing of trauma. New York: Penguin Books.
Our Guest
Erica Sandoval, LCSW is an award-winning mental health practitioner, speaker, spiritual healer, podcaster, advocate, and four-time published author of Latinx/e in Social Work, available in both English and Spanish. She is the founder and CEO of Sandoval Psychotherapy Consultation – known as Sandoval CoLab – where she oversees a team of social workers with love and compassion as they support individuals in therapy and lead diversity, equity, and inclusion work for nonprofit organizations, universities, health care facilities, and corporations. Erica is also trained in ketamine-assisted therapy, which is a holistic breakthrough approach to an awakened mind and healing trauma and depression. Erica founded Latinx/e in Social Work to cultivate community among Latinx/e social workers and build a more diverse pipeline of future social workers. Latinx/e in Social Work received honorable mention at the 24th annual International Latino Book and Film Awards. Latinx/e in Social Work, Volume II released on October 5, 2022, went number one in Amazon’s Psychology and Social Work New Release categories. Recently, the official Journal of the best seller Latinx/e in Social Work was launched this guided journal is for healing, inspiration, and connection in communities. LinkedIn | Instagram
