The Neurodiagnostic Niche
Encouraging a community in the world of Neurodiagnostics
Thankful
So purely coincidental but super fitting that it is Thanksgiving…exactly 1 year ago today The Neurodiagnostic Niche published it’s first post.
I’d like to start out by saying Thank You.
I always consider it a tiny miracle that anyone spends their precious time reading what I write.
And to my corporate supporters:
- Natus Neuro Training Academy for entrusting me with one of their eSeminars (click here to Register for the free December 10th edition – includes 1 CEU credit) and
- to MVAP – my go-to for all our clinic’s supply needs.
The mission for starting the blog was to encourage a community in the world of Neurodiagnostics and with your help it has done just that.
Referencing back to one of my favorite quotes:
Learning is an Experience. Everything else is just information. – Albert Einstein
I hope this experience is both beneficial and inspiring and that our dialogue of learning together continues to motivate us both as we continue to navigate through this field.
Looking forward to this next year together!
Let’s Stay Curious and Grow What We Know
Pen To Paper
“It’s not enough to be Busy. The question is What are We Busy About?” – Henry David Thoreau
We’re in the home stretch of 2020. It’s a year that’s felt like no other. The impact of everything we’re going through — personally and collectively — is real.
But these challenges can help us grow stronger, wiser, and more resilient as long as we keep taking care of ourselves along the way.
Here’s a gentle November PSA to support your health and well-being, and a few ways I’m taking my own advice for my own personal goals.
Write it Down – Make it Happen
Lists:
- Create a Sense of Order
- Help us Prioritize
- Make us Accountable
- Relieve Stress
- and Helps us feel Productive in a year where things seem to be standing still…
Maybe you completed the 8 Week Challenge and you are in the final stretch of Your Year to Getting Registered….or maybe you are just getting started.
Wherever you are on this journey – make this the week you put Pen to Paper to plan out how to finish this year strong.
Also, I would love it if you would join me on Thursday, December 10th for the Natus Neuro Training Academy eSeminar where I will be speaking about the Evolving Role of the Neurodiagnostic Technologist.
Just click here to register to view the eSeminar Live or Recorded.
Let’s Stay Curious and Grow What We Know
Stretching Time
“Novelty in all things is charming.” – Ovid
Try Something New – easier said than done, right?!
While the pandemic seems never-ending, it also feels like the past few months have passed by in a blur. Trying to have as many new experiences as we can — even small ones — is one way we can wrestle back some control and stop time feeling like it is whizzing by so fast.
As we all know our experiences create new neural connections in our brain…..(click here for data proof). It’s kind of like when we learn new ways to drive to work – when we stumble upon that inevitable traffic jam we then have an alternate route to get to where we are going.
These connections are not only useful but essential.
How can you enhance these connections as you prep for your boards?
Try something new:
- Always reading your material on your computer? Switch to a hard-copy or a text book.
- Have a Dialogue – Review the material out loud – Try to explain it to someone.
- Write it Down – Copy the material after you read it to hand written notes. The act of writing will significantly enhance these new connections.
We might want this year and its events to be over as soon as possible, but it would also be nice to look back on 2020 and remember it for something awesome that we have accomplished.
Embracing things in a new way is one way to make that happen!
(Click below to read back on earlier posts):
Your Year to Getting Registered
Spoiler Alert: There is No ‘Right Time’
8 Week Challenge (and scroll through the weeks)
Let’s Stay Curious and Grow What We Know
Marketplace
Need any help with your board prep?
Visit the Neurodiagnostic Niche Marketplace for Study Guides, Notecards, and Tutoring options – don’t forget to check out the Neuro-Scholar Bundle to take advantage of built-in discounts & savings!
Just click here to visit today!
Week 8 – You.Got.This
“Confidence is preparation. Everything else is beyond your control.” – Richard Kline
We’ve made it to the last week of the 8 Week Challenge – the finish line is in sight!
This week is all about enhancing your confidence.
But first, a quick look back: we’ve got a date on our calendar, taken a practice exam, worked on accumulating CEU’s, tamed our Social Media time, hired a tutor or purchased resources, invited a friend or co-worker to join in, we have gone through the Content Outline of the exam to double check what we know, and we have organized our study resources and created visual aids to help prepare – we are almost there!
So this week – Let’s work on our confidence:
- First, let’s practice Mindfulness – a stress-management technique which involves observing your thoughts, feelings and breath. Does it really matter? It is essential in guiding our mind to be ready for what is ahead and there is lots of data to support….read here….here…..and here.
- Second, if you don’t snooze, you lose – Get your rest or you can’t do your best.
- Third, don’t be too hard on yourself – You most likely know more than you think you do – You.Are.Ready.
- and Finally, review the Exam Statistics – let them reinforce the notion that you’re ready. Pay particular note to the few number of applicants that actually took the exam in 2019 – only 447! Congratulations for deciding to set this goal for yourself. Secondly, note the pass rate is 85% – that is really high for a test! It’s worth repeating:
It’s official – You Are Ready! This is ‘Your Year to Getting Registered‘.
If you need additional help, feel free to contact me @ RTompkins@TompkinsAssociates.com
Congratulations on completing the 8 Week Challenge – it is quite an accomplishment!
You.Got.This!
Home Stretch
For every minute spent in organizing, an hour is earned.” –Benjamin Franklin
Welcome to Week 7 in the 8 Week Challenge to wrap up ‘Your Year to Getting Registered‘!
Over the past six weeks, we’ve got a date on our calendar, taken a practice exam, worked on accumulating CEU’s, tamed our Social Media time, hired a tutor or purchased resources, invited a friend or co-worker to join in, and we have gone through the Content Outline of the exam to double check what we know – we are almost there!
This week is all about organization and visual aids.
- Make sure your study space is Organized – whether most of your materials are digital, hard copies or a combination of both…make sure you are comfortable and organized with your materials so that you are able to focus.
- Use Visual Aids – Flow Charts/Diagrams – Visual aids can be especially helpful when revising study material. At the start of a topic, write down everything you already know about the subject. Closer to the exam, transform your revision notes in a diagram. In that manner the visual remembrance can aid to your readiness considerably when taking the exam.
- Need more Resources? – Be sure to visit the Marketplace on this site for Notecards and Study Guides that can help re-enforce your learning. New addition this week – a Filters Notecard set.
Remember though:
Even though this is a Challenge – it’s not a Sprint.
If you need to Park on some of these Steps for a bit, then do it.
If you haven’t gotten started and you are just now joining us – no worries: Click here to start the 8 Week Challenge.
Have questions? Feel free to reach out to me @ RTompkins@TompkinsAssociates.com – would love to help!
Let’s Stay Curious and Grow What We Know
Ripple (effect)
“You only live once, but if you do it right, once is enough.”
― Mae West
Have you ever had a series of events so related to each other that each one initiates the next? You’ll see this chain reaction occur after you reach your goal of ‘Your Year to Getting Registered’.
Not only will you find a direct benefit to your income – but also to the opportunities available to you.
You can find this ripple effect in your board preparation as well:
The more prepared you are – The more confident you will be.
We’re in the Home Stretch of the 8 Week Challenge – it’s Week 6!
But first, need a quick refresher?
Click here to read back through the earlier posts.
This week we are tackling the Content Outline for the Exam.
You probably have already referenced this but now is the time to really take it apart piece by piece to be sure you have it all covered:
- Section I is 25% of the Exam
- Section II is 75% of the Exam
Don’t leave any stone uncovered – at this point in your preparations, narrow down your studying to these topics and tackle a section a day…..Research.Review.Repeat
Have questions? Feel free to reach out to me (RTompkins@TompkinsAssociates.com) – would love to help!
Let’s Stay Curious and Grow What We Know
Habits are more important than Goals
“How we spend our days is, of course, how we spend our lives.” – Annie Dillard
Our habits are more important than goals.
Why? Because goals don’t happen with out good habits.
We’re half way there in our 8 Week Challenge to wrap up “Your Year to Getting Registered.”
Week 5 starts today
This week we are focusing on Repetition.
But first….
Take stock of how far you have come!
If you have been following the Challenge you have:
- A Test date or a Measurement Assessment date on your calendar (or you have requested a Petition of Eligibility)
- You have at least 20 CEU’s
- You took a Practice Test so you know your areas to focus on.
- You may have hired a tutor or purchased some resources that you were needing.
- You’ve tamed your Social Media time to better utilize your day.
- and You’ve invited a friend or coworker to help you stay accountable and on track.
You probably have seen this multiple times before on my site:
Research.Review.Repeat
This is the part that takes are own initiative:
We can hire whoever and purchase whatever; but, if we don’t put in the time to review the material repeatedly – our momentum will come to a halt.
STUDY Tip 101 – Notecards
While digital resources are very helpful for studying and note cards may seem old-school….they are hands-down the most effective way for students to study and retain the information they are learning.
As tempted as you might be to view digital notecards…don’t. It’s the act of writing them out yourself that enhances the learning.
Notecards encourage recall and repetition…instead of simply staring at a passage or a concept on a page, they can actively improve your retention of the information.
You might start with digital notecards as a resource but copy them onto your own actual cards. I still have mine : )
If it’s true that it takes 21 days to form a habit – let’s start this today!
Research.Review.Repeat
2020 Vision
“In three words I can sum up everything I’ve learned about life: it goes on.”
― Robert Frost
20/20 vision is a term used to express normal visual acuity (the clarity or sharpness of vision) but it is really now so much more than that…it’s resilience…it’s adaptability…it’s awareness (particularly of unintended consequences).
This theme, which cuts across all of our hindsights, underscores the point that we’re not going to get everything right all the time and we have to be prepared for that.
If you don’t make the time to work on creating the life you want, you’re eventually going to be forced to spend a LOT of time dealing with a life you don’t want. – Kevin Ngo
This message introduces Week 4 of our 8 Week Challenge for “Your Year to Getting Registered”:
Perhaps you have struggled to make head way with this goal…Perhaps you have procrastinated a bit. No worries – that is why it’s called a Challenge!
Week 1 Reminder:
- Get the Test Date on your Calendar – Schedule your test or measurement assessment or request a Petition of Eligibility in you don’t quite meet the requirements yet to test.
- Start accumulating your CEU’s – There are a lot of free options for this.
Week 2 Reminder:
- Sign up to take a Practice Test – this will help you narrow your focus on the areas you still need to work on.
- Self study and/or Hire a Trainer/Tutor to help you make headway in those areas.
Week 3 Reminder:
- Tame your Time (limit Social media usage to better utilize your 24 hours in a day – scroll back up and read the Kevin Ngo quote again.)
- Visit the Resource Library on this site and bookmark productive sites to spend your time – Research.Review.Repeat
Week 4’s Focus:
- Get Caught Up
- Complete the complimentary Study Guide’s on this site
- Invite a Friend or Co-worker along on this Challenge – You’ll help hold each other accountable…You’ll help push each other out of your comfort zone….You’ll get feedback on your progress….and Friends don’t let Friends quit.
Let’s Stay Curious and Grow What We Know
Meant For More
“Tell me to what you pay attention and I will tell you who you are.” ~Jose Ortega y Gassett
Most of us fill our minds with information all day long….headlines, tweets, facebook posts, etc…Yes, information is important but collecting information doesn’t necessarily equate to making us any wiser.
Somehow we need to disseminate the noise from the knowledge – the struggle is real.
Narrow your focus…we have got things to do.
Suggestions:
- Limit Your Intake – set aside a specific time for Social media and stick to it. That doesn’t mean that you have to be off your phone or computer when it’s not that time – it just means it’s not time for passive scrolling through tweets and posts.
- Have an on-going list of websites that help get you where you want to be – have them as an open tab on your phone or computer and those are your go-to’s…your time fillers.
If getting registered is your goal, start here:
- Epilepsydiagnosis.org – Because…seriously, this stuff is interesting – it’s why we do what we do.
- Natus Training Academy – Scroll back through their eSeminars not just because you’ll earn a CEU but because…it’s worth repeating: ’Seriously, this stuff is interesting – it’s why we do what we do.’
- NeurodiagnosticNiche.com – link to my site : ) Because…would recommend reading back through older posts – almost going on a year now!
- Motivation Mondays – link to their Instagram – Because…we could all use a little motivation – plus, they post more than just Monday.
This is Week 3 of our 8 Week Challenge to help you wrap up “Your Year to Getting Registered”.
Reeling in how we spend our time is our focus for Week 3.
It’s worth repeating…Narrow your focus – We have got things to do.
Let’s Stay Curious and Grow What We Know
Registered Technologist | Business Owner | Encourager of a community helping others find their way in the world of Neurodiagnostics.
Business website: www.TompkinsAssociates.com
Blog: NeurodiagnosticNiche.com Training Academy: North Texas Neurodiagnostic Academy
The Neurodiagnostic Niche 