Meet The Instructor of Employee or Contract Worker: The Basics You Need (and Deserve) to Know

It’s no secret that I consider myself an Accidental Business Owner™ who never dreamed of having a private practice. I’m not from a long line of small business owners pursuing the so-called American dream, but am instead the first person in my line to graduate college. After completing a Bachelor’s of Music in Music Therapy (SHSU ‘08) and an internship in a general hospital, it’s safe to say that becoming a home-health therapist owning a business was NOT on my 5-year plan. 

Straight out of internship I landed an absolutely dream job working at an inclusive preschool with therapeutic programming and outpatient therapy. I would have stayed there forever – had they not cut my health insurance when school let out for the summer. Many of my coworkers were seemingly unbothered to trade in their benefits for summers off because they were covered by their spouses’ health insurance. I, however, had been supporting my late husband through his unpaid internship (he had just supported me through mine), and he had a pre-existing condition. Mind you, this was pre-ACA. 

Long story short, I was pissed and quit my beloved job. My husband and I applied for jobs all across the country … and both of us landed jobs … in my hometown. That was not in the plan! Then, shortly after arriving back in Texas, both of our jobs fell through (thanks, recession) and we were forced to piece together contract jobs. 

Working in home-health therapy has been my joy; the authentic relationships that are birthed from sharing vulnerable space with clients and their families and seeing them again and again, session after session, for years on end? It’s the best. I am exactly where I’m supposed to be, and I’m fortunate enough to have found a team of amazing music therapists that share this particular passion. 

Health insurance. I cried happy tears when we were able to finally offer health insurance as a benefit to our employees. Earlier I mentioned that my late husband had a pre-existing condition. David’s pre-existing condition eventually led to the development of cancer – and he got that diagnosis when we did NOT have health insurance. 0 stars, would not recommend. Not only was that a financial nightmare, it was a logistical nightmare (for instance, the hospital wouldn’t discharge him to start treatment without securing an oncologist, but no oncologist would accept him without health insurance). 

If I’m allowed to pick a second favorite achievement, I’d say founding Music Therapy Access Fund. MTAF is a nonprofit that has given away over $55,000 in music therapy grants and music therapy intern scholarships to date! I still serve as a board member and am so excited about what’s in store for MTAF in 2026. 

Witnessing my colleagues struggle with burnout and confusion around positions and wages has weighted on me for years. I was fortunate enough to have read through and gotten a bad feeling about a contract I was offered in 2009, and I know that dodging that bullet saved my professional career. I was lucky, but so many others get in over their heads and end up overworked, underpaid, and unsupported. Over the years I’ve had worker and wage conversations with countless students and professionals, but it can be an overwhelming topic! I’m a visual learner myself, so I’m hopeful that seeing bullet points and graphics within an organized outline will be more helpful to others than my typical rants.

Confusion around worker classifications and wages undermines the entire field of music therapy. Hear me out: Professionals misunderstand their positions and worst-case they get taken advantage of, best-case they overwork themselves to make ends meet. Either way, this leads to burnout which leads to therapist turnover which not only makes us come across as unprofessional but actually causes harm to our clients – especially those receiving long-term care. This cycle occurs in adjacent fields but it is rampant in music therapy. The rising cost of living is only going to make this worse. It’s my hope that by educating others, they can avoid being pulled into this cycle.

I’ve been there. First I was a contractor, then I hired other contractors, then I made myself an employee of my own company (sure wish someone had told me to do that sooner!), then we changed our team of therapists from contractors to employees. I accidentally founded a private practice that was a sole prop, then a partnership, and now an LLC, and I (intentionally!) founded a nonprofit that supports music therapy clients, interns, and music therapists. My Master’s in Nonprofit Leadership and Management (ASU 2021!) has supported me not only as someone who founded a nonprofit, but as a business owner at large.

To protect their career sustainability, in short. While not limited to contractors, I do think folx considering contract work would particularly benefit from learning all the ways in which their position will differ from an employed position. There’s also beneficial information in here for solo practitioners who have no intention of building a practice, solo practitioners who may want to expand and own a practice one day, and therapists working for group practices. 

I love being in nature and feeling the sun on my skin! Part of the reason I love home-health so much is the scenic drives out to visit our rural clients. I love to hike and observe wildlife, whether it’s a majestic roseate spoonbill or a silly little opossum. I’m fortunate to have a lovely group of colleagues that share love of the outdoors. Our supervision team actually has a camping/hiking retreat every year! We have a lot of fun around here, and I am so fortunate to have these folks in my life!