Nic is a master of looking past the barrier and seeing the possibilities. As a seasoned DSP he has developed the skills of really listening to what the people he supports are saying, and working with his team to make dreams and wishes come true.

Nicholas Smith has been at Direct Support Professional for over 25 years. He has worked the past 17 years at SPIN, Inc. in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Nick contributed to Frontline Initiative's issue on DSPs using the NADSP Code of Ethics to Support People.

You can find the issue here:

https://ici.umn.edu/products/-aj88oT2QS6F633fE0LpLQ

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Chet Tschetter

Hi, my name is Chet Tschetter, and I'll be your host for a closer look, where we'll explore the most current and relevant topics covered in frontline initiative, which is a magazine produced by the National Alliance for Direct Support Professionals in partnership with the University of Minnesota's Institute of Community Integration. If you're wondering what Frontline initiative is all about, it's about the work that direct support professionals do on a day to day basis as they support people with intellectual and developmental disabilities.

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Chet Tschetter

I'll be talking to authors and taking a closer look at current practices, tools, and resources. So buckle up and let's hear what the authors have to say.

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Chet Tschetter

Hi, everybody. So glad that you can join us today. I have two very special people with me. First of all, is my coeditor, with Frontline Initiative. Doctor Julie Kramme is joining me chat.

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Julie Kramme

I am so pumped to be here and do this together. We've gotten to do some great things with Frontline Initiative, and this is my first Closer Look podcast.

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Chet Tschetter

And I know you're just going to nail it. I know you are.

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Julie Kramme

We'll definitely laugh.

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Chet Tschetter

No doubt about that.

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Julie Kramme

We also have a really awesome guest with us, Mr. Nick Smith, a DSP from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

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Nicholas Smith

Good morning everybody. I'm so glad to be here. Excited.

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Chet Tschetter

We can't believe you're here. It's so, so amazing. We invited Nick here today because he was a part of he was a contributor for Frontline Initiative in our two thousand twenty three issue on DSPs using the Nadia's Code of Ethics. And he had a video. If you haven't watched that yet, you'll really want to, where he talks about really supporting people on self-determination and seeing the possibilities in their lives.

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Chet Tschetter

So, Nick, so tickled to have you here today. Would you go ahead and tell us a little bit about yourself?

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Nicholas Smith

Thank you, thank you. Well, guys, my name is, Nicholas Smith. I am from Philadelphia, PA. I, I work at a wonderful company, spin Special People in northeast. I've been in the field for over 25 years. Well, I've been with spin for 17 years. Great years. I am, you know, I am happy and honored to be here, you know, to, to talk and to just to go deep into, like, about my journey, which is like, everybody until, you know, well where I'm at now.

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Julie Kramme

Tell us a little bit about you've probably supported a breadth of people, over the 17 years that you've worked at spend. Maybe things have looked differently and the ways that you've provided support over that time. Where have you provided support? And tell us a little bit about what that looks like in terms of your, your day to day activities.

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Nicholas Smith

So, yeah, so over my years, it's been, I'm in the what they call a bar behavioral health arrangement. So, just a little bit more challenging behaviors to, you know, dual diagnosis. So I've been, lucky and privileged to be know I've worked that actually is a traditional home. And so I've been, you know, proven to work in all sorts of different variants.

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Nicholas Smith

You know, ways it's been, what, you know, what it looks like is, you know, we go, you know, you come in and it's a, we have a saying it's been life, a life of possibilities. And what does that look like? That looks like it can look like, you know, a wonderful day at a museum to a day where we're just having a talk about, you know, or just talking about what issues are or just how someone is feeling.

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Nicholas Smith

It's, you know, younger Nick. You know, it's all about training, you know, like we have we have a phenomenal training department. You know, we have, professional learning, development. So, that we, you know, that we we're constantly training. I mean, you get to a certain point that you have, you have to have, you know, guidelines and training to make sure that, you know, we have scenarios.

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Nicholas Smith

We we do serial based, you know, how things might look, how things can go, how things might not go. But the here's the part that we have, you know, I'm not by myself. So we have a system where, you know, if, if I, if I run into something, I have somebody I call, I have protocols. So we have a team based with things, you know.

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Nicholas Smith

So it's not just me making a decision and because I want it to it's a it is, a team effort, you know, so we do we try to build, you know, a day, a week or, you know, of that no matter what, you know, so, so.

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Julie Kramme

Spend invests in you.

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Nicholas Smith

Yes, definitely.

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Julie Kramme

And invest in you building teams so that you can help support each other as you're providing direct support and helping to handle the situations that come up in the days, that you're working with people. That's remarkable.

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Chet Tschetter

Julie, you, had mentioned kind of thinking about what has changed. I mean, 17 years, not only in the types of services and supports that we're providing for people, but your technique or your ability to kind of go with the flow, because you, you've shared with me in a previous conversation that you're able to kind of work in any of the, the homes or the places that, people need support across your, your company.

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Chet Tschetter

But when you first started, you probably got, you know, trained in one place that you could work, and your skill level was very different than what it is now. Yeah. So we'd love to be able to kind of talk with kind of those newer direct support professionals about how do you get there, because it must be really overwhelming because a, the job of a DSP is so complex, right?

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Chet Tschetter

We're, you know, we're not, just helping people with making a meal or making sure they get their meds. We're making sure that they're able to live their life the way they want to, right. What would you say to a young professional who's just DSP, who's just starting, about kind of giving themselves some grace to, to learn how to be kind of that really skilled DSP as you are.

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Nicholas Smith

Yeah. That's that's awesome question. So you know, if you can if you can pitch it 20 or definitely not 47 your neck right now. So, you know, I think for the new DSP myself training. So you, you, you go to we have like I said, we have a wonderful training, you know, pre we up previous three weeks, three weeks, you know, where you're learning about, you know, the different aspects of your job.

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Nicholas Smith

So come in fresh into a house, you get a new DSP. Who's this? This is what major at this time we're going to do, you know, now where do we build the person into that. You know. So you know, when I'm talking to somebody new, fresh into the field like they you know, I kind of I like that, you know, when you know, a new, you know, bright, you know, maybe they worked at a grocery store before.

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Nicholas Smith

Maybe they, they've never been into, you know, so they they're are open, you know, they're open, ready, eager to listen. And what how it looks sometimes it's like, okay, Nick, what if they don't want to take their meds? No problem. You know, and then.

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Chet Tschetter

Yeah, but the rules say I need to make sure they get their meds. That's what I was taught in orientation.

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Nicholas Smith

So what are we going to do in, you know, we're going to, we have our before we have our after. So we're going to go ahead and let somebody know the on call know or supervisor know that they're they might be trying to refuse the meds though. And we're going to work and see how it goes. So maybe I might not be the one.

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Nicholas Smith

Maybe it might take a phone call from Johnny, you know. Hey, but, you know, like this. So we have to get creative, though. It's about getting creative, Torino. And we have to see what's going on, you know? Does the person have a stomachache?

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Chet Tschetter

Yeah, it could be the person just not not ready for them. Right.

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Nicholas Smith

You know, is having many times like you know okay that's fine. And then it right at two minutes before I think I take my meds. No problem. You know, but if you follow protocol and you make sure that you call that somebody. No, you don't have, you know, you don't for us, you don't have to feel like you're on the island.

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Nicholas Smith

There's no island, basically. No, I don't have to do I've got to do this like that. I'm going, you know, you need to. There's no power. So once you start that power struggle, you're going to lose the battle. Oh, no. I'm definitely not taking them. I'm not taking the day off tomorrow. Where you know what? You have to get there or you have to get there and you have to, it's communication, talking with people.

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Nicholas Smith

And that doesn't mean that that Nick has the answer. It might be my coworker beforehand. Today, you just not feeling it, you know? You know, so I. And I have to be okay. You you I said you don't take anything personal. You know, you don't take it personal. Even though, you know, you may think you're the favorite staff.

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Nicholas Smith

That does not mean that you know you, that you might encounter some pushback. You know, okay.

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Chet Tschetter

One thing, you, one thing you said there, Nick, was about, you know, you're not a you're not an island. And to really think about who are your teams, who are the people that you can call and depend on to to help you? Because it can seem really overwhelming and like, oh, I'm, I'm going to be failing here if I don't, you know, get this person to do something.

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Chet Tschetter

Right? Right. And even in, in saying that, get somebody to do it. It feels like power over versus, supporting somebody to, you know, do what they.

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Nicholas Smith

And it's like, yeah, it's about choice. So, hey, what time do you want to take your meds? You know, I know the parameters. You know, I know the I know the type, but but at the same time, if I call and I'm proactive, like I might be experienced, this might push back, you know, and and, you know, it doesn't have to be a big I got it, you know, because as soon as you start this big scene, we can play it out.

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Nicholas Smith

It disappears. The text like real quick, you know, hey, what time they got? They got to take my meds. 745 no problem, you know, no problem. No. You know, not to make it a big deal. Now, obviously, you know, medication is a big deal, but, you know, we're, you know, and we're going to you know, go. But I know the hour before, hour after.

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Nicholas Smith

But I like communicated with the on call. I'm in the evening time so don't call. Who knows just in case. Who's going to contact the nurse. So I have all that like you know we haven't been we kind of see this with behaviors building up. I'm proactive to say, hey, listen, this looks like it could be. And we we might get things approved just in case, you know, or, you know, it might just be, you know what?

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Nicholas Smith

Let's go for that. Right. Just get out, you know, let's talk about it. You know, maybe talking about it in the room or in the living room was not the right setting. It may be it takes sitting at a park or just driving it talking. Sometimes we have our best conversations just tell me about it. I mean, it might be.

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Chet Tschetter

Some, you know, they've got something else on their mind. Really? Yeah. And so I'm feeling a little ornery about doing kind of that formal thing. But I really want to talk about what's going on in my life.

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Nicholas Smith

Yeah. I mean, of my mom, I met my dad or did not come in this weekend, you know, and I was looking forward to doing ABC and, well, we can't we can't do it. And I said, well, why can't we do it? You know, maybe we won't do it exactly how Mom and Dad what they had planned, but we can come close to it.

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Nicholas Smith

You know, we don't have to, you know. Can we? Yeah, yeah, we can, you know, you know, we it's it's it's what you how you want to make it. Okay. That can change the whole, you know, the feel of the day. You know, where I think with a new DSP it's like, oh no, you know, I'm going to get in trouble or not, you know, like that.

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Nicholas Smith

And we we teach, you know, it's been like, you know, take a breath, take a breather, rely on your team call, talk. You know, and if you don't know, somebody or somebody will come over. We have supports like that. There's been many times, hey, can you go over to a certain house to help out support, you know, and we can we can flip flop.

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Nicholas Smith

You got you got to be able to move and I call it move or shake. You know, you have days where you know it's not it's standard call you know recipe. But you have these where you know they give you feed. You have to, you know, because we're dealing with human beings and, you know, like I say, get the best thought out plan, you know, plan from A to Z, like, you know, got to like I say, got to concert tickets, got everything ready to go.

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Nicholas Smith

And I came like I had not feeling that today.

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Chet Tschetter

The best laid plans are going to change, right. You got to be ready for that. Yeah. Then you brought up thinking on your feet. That has to be something that you do every day.

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Nicholas Smith

Yeah. I mean like a it's gotten you know like I said again younger Nic. No I might be kind of hard on myself. I didn't think about that. I forgot about that or I, you know, I call it a zonk myself, you know, I.

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Chet Tschetter

Mean.

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Nicholas Smith

Z look at myself as I do, I do when I'm packing, I do it, I do it, you know, I do it all over time. Like, you know, I in my head, I want to I want to have a plan taken, okay, did I, I can I have everything I gotta go to Walmart because I forgot something. Okay?

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Nicholas Smith

One song and I tell myself to get better. So you know that when I'm doing things and this goes into working, that I make sure I try to as much as possible to be proactive and cross off different. And that does not mean that is going to go how it's going to go. Not at all. You know, planes can be delayed, flights can get missed, you know, like that.

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Nicholas Smith

But I think this is this is something that I've, you know, crafted over time because you know, in the beginning there's nothing like I mean, I forgot abcdefg, you know, but when are you going into a home and support somebody like, you know, we have we, you know, we have plans and we and and we, we communicate.

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Nicholas Smith

So I'm going into a new home. And before I get there, I'm calling the staff, say, hey, listen, tell me a little bit about such and such, you know, how's the day going? What's going on? Anything I need to know, you know, before I go like that? Yeah. He's having a rough day. Okay, so I know I, you know, I mean, how many is roommates with wood?

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Nicholas Smith

Can you fill me up? Information I think sometimes is, you know, important before you, you know, before you going to walk in like that, because it could be a quiet day, like, I don't know, talking. And I don't want no happy talking from you. Welcome, Nikita. You got it. You know, and sometimes being there, the presence of being there and just be a support is what is needed.

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Nicholas Smith

You, no matter what I was. You know.

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Chet Tschetter

I love that piece about connecting with, staff who were already there. Before you go in to, you know, find out what's what's the day like, what's this person feeling like? So you kind of have a heads up and you know how to best support them. Yeah, right. Because we all, you know, every day isn't the same for any of us.

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Chet Tschetter

And, and, just to have that communication and, and sometimes, you know, a DSP might just have kind of a feeling about something, that they think might be going to happen based upon something they saw or that they heard, and they may want to just communicate that to someone and say, you know, I, I think they're doing okay.

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Chet Tschetter

But I was a little concerned when they saw this. It might be nothing, but. Right. And just for the next person coming on to be able to know that well, is super helpful.

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Nicholas Smith

Yeah. No, definitely is helpful. And and like I said, you take that. How I might give it one way I might to read between the lines. There's been many times like, oh, okay, how's the day? Great. You know, so I have to, like, pull it out, like, hey, it might it might turn up. It might take a whole left turn to say, hey, did you watch the game?

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Nicholas Smith

It's like, oh yes, on the Eagles. So tell me. Oh I think yeah. You know we did have a good day. We did go. You have to like craft build like that. But we have we have I have I work with also staff. So we have awesome staff and and the you know it's it's assumed that we're going to talk and we're going to you know had the handoff I call it they make sure that you know when you're supporting that person like they matter and like I can I can get pulled.

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Nicholas Smith

I've been pulled million times to a to a site they need you know, I've pulled up in my head, I have the whole day planned out and phone call, please. Like I need you or we need you to go to ABC and, you know, somebody is coming. So just to make sure everything's going to still happen, it is going as planned.

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Nicholas Smith

I'm not going to be here, but I'm going to be by the phone. You, your other favorite staff is coming in. Oh, I like him, you know. Yeah, he's coming in, is going to, you know, remove me because it's not about me. It's about their day. So be able to pick up and keep flowing. You know, now, in that same process I'm getting ready to support somebody somewhere else though.

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Nicholas Smith

And it's the same thing. What's going on. You know, it could be you know, it might be you know, every day is not a sunny day. It might be a rough day, but still we still have some positivity. You know, if somebody has the behavior or something's going on, that doesn't mean like the whole day excited. That's it.

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Nicholas Smith

You know it does grace though, you know, and maybe four between 4 and 7 didn't look too good. But no eight and nine. Hey, listen, you still want to go grab a coffee? Can I? Sure we can grab a coffee. You know you're not mad. No, I'm not mad. You know, go grab a coffee. I want to coffee.

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Nicholas Smith

Do you want to get call? You know, so we we let go and then we can use that time to talk about, like, hey, listen, you know, what was going on? Or maybe, you know, I'm used to using your words or, you know, saying, hey, what what happened this time? You know, you know, maybe they know. Maybe we don't I don't know what came over and that's fine.

00;18;08;27 - 00;18;28;26

Nicholas Smith

So I think you, you over the years you get to that. It was it's not overnight I didn't like you know as they say, you become enlightened if you like. This is this is to train and this is to, scenarios. This is true situations you bring we have a we have a great leadership team and we have a great professional development team.

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Nicholas Smith

So we, you know, you can bring these situations. Think what do I do in this situation.

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Chet Tschetter

Experience. Yeah.

00;18;35;00 - 00;18;59;26

Julie Kramme

Nick you one of the contributors to our frontline initiative issue on DSPs using the code of ethics in their work. Such a rich video, which we were so pleased to include in this issue. You gave an interview where, we just loved what you what you said, how you talked about your work, and we really thought that the story that you told was a slam dunk about, really describing.

00;18;59;26 - 00;19;27;20

Julie Kramme

So clearly and concisely how you support self-determination in people's life of possibilities. And this is such a critical thing that DSPs learn as they spend time providing direct support. So in the video, you talk about the tension between supporting what people want and then what's good and healthy for that person, or maybe some of your assumptions about what maybe it would be a good and healthy choice, and really living in that tension of what that person wants, as opposed to maybe what your inclination is in providing that support.

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Julie Kramme

So we wanted to ask you, how did you come to understand your role to really support people to live their best life of possibilities? How did you come to develop that and what what were some of the key moments for you in being able to do that really well? For people.

00;19;44;12 - 00;20;08;28

Nicholas Smith

That is over time, over time, like I said, training time scenarios, selling, you know, you know, taking what I, what I thought was best and I know better. And this is what, you know, totally going left, you know, so we have to get there, you know. So for instance, like, somebody wants to go to Chinese and, you know, Chinese are Chinese.

00;20;08;28 - 00;20;27;01

Nicholas Smith

You know, I mean, this better, but your typical standard quote and they might have to they might, it might, we might we want you to watch weight or might have, you know, no food restrictions, but just to make sure that they, you know, they're not overeating or, you know, or just generally not healthy. Right. So how do we maneuver through that, though?

00;20;27;01 - 00;20;48;29

Nicholas Smith

So, we yes, you can all Chinese. No problem. And, you know, I said sure. Could we maybe we could make. Have you ever tried to make your Chinese? Not never. You can. We can make this. Yeah, we can make it, you know. So let's go to the store. Let's plan it out. I want to make General Tso's chicken exactly how I order it.

00;20;49;01 - 00;21;08;29

Nicholas Smith

Okay? So let's plan it out. Let's fast recipes together, you know, how about this one? How about this one? How about this? I like the way this one looks. Okay, what do we need? You tell me. We need chicken breast. We need this sauce. We have to go find the sauce. So now I have a whole engagement that I'm doing to get that.

00;21;08;29 - 00;21;30;15

Nicholas Smith

Now, you know. Will it be the same? I don't know, we're going to find out together, you know. Does it happened many times, you know, I didn't like that. I didn't like that recipe. Okay. But I think I want to try the other recipe. So now we, you know, is a less standard quote order. Like I said, again, it's going to happen.

00;21;30;15 - 00;21;46;00

Nicholas Smith

Sometimes you're going to order. We all do it. You know, order some Chinese is easy. You know, Nick, I have a busy day. I worked I worked all day. I want to just order that, and I end up, you know, I end up, you know, we will make it cook together and and try it out like that.

00;21;46;00 - 00;22;08;04

Nicholas Smith

You know, obviously I'm there. So we're in the kitchen, we're crafting, you know, and when involved, like, they helped me rinse off the chicken. Help me, you know, let's do the sauce and let's do the rice. And we. And then you get that smile. You get that this is really good, you know. And and we can maybe do this once a week, or twice a week.

00;22;08;04 - 00;22;32;03

Nicholas Smith

So we save money, we have a little bit more control over the other, healthier vegetable options, you know, and, maybe we can try some different things. Have we tried putting, like, broccoli in the rice? You know, I'll just try it, you know? Now we get to this, so you have to get creative, though. You have to, you know, not not be scared to, like, try something new.

00;22;32;03 - 00;22;45;07

Nicholas Smith

Like, it's so easy to come in and say, sure, whatever, whatever you want, whatever you want. I'm just here. But we, we we tend at spend to, like I said again, life for possibility. So we're going to have a you know we meet people where there yet.

00;22;45;09 - 00;23;06;19

Julie Kramme

You're listening on so many levels. You're listening to the words they say the things that they want. Also to the possibilities that occur to you and the things that you bring to that situation. But you're really listening and engaging with that person. I hear you helping helping them think through choices to, thinking through what they want their day to look like, what's possible.

00;23;06;22 - 00;23;26;09

Julie Kramme

If they want to go to France, maybe we start looking at travel books or we, start, thinking about learning French on Duolingo or something along those lines. But you're you're helping that person to see those possibilities and really experience what it is that they're choosing for their day.

00;23;26;11 - 00;23;43;19

Nicholas Smith

Right. So so yeah, I mean, it's it's just like you said, like, you know, if if a person wants to go on vacation somewhere like that, we can start looking and start crafting. Well, what do you want to go? You know, I, I had a chance to support a gentleman. He's never been to the shore.

00;23;43;21 - 00;24;12;05

Nicholas Smith

He's never been to the beach. Definitely. Sure. He's seen it on YouTube and heard about it, but he's never actually had put his own feet into the sand or into something. So, you know, a silly show. Is this part of benefit? Luffy, you go to the shore, Jersey shore, just an hour away, you know, so that trip to the shore, if you can imagine, we we we we built it from the car, from the rent a car to the color to where we stayed, to what we were going to eat TV like that.

00;24;12;05 - 00;24;31;25

Nicholas Smith

And that moment, that pivotal moment that morning. We're going to the beach and you can see, like out the window looking like there's people on the beach. He's there. And, you know, I don't want to take away the moment. This is his moment. Right. And the moment that we walked on that sand just stood there. Can we run?

00;24;31;28 - 00;24;51;03

Nicholas Smith

Sure we can run. You're going to beat me. But but you know, I have a great. So just all of that first time sand. Then we then we we made our way to the water, you know, in the core ocean water. Just what it what it felt like. That was just an amazing moment, you know, and a touching moment.

00;24;51;03 - 00;25;07;04

Nicholas Smith

Just something, you know, just to see that happen. And we talked about it like, you know, how was it? It was like I didn't think it was going to feel like that, you know, he said, you know, I try to imagine what sand and water together that, that, that threshold that makes so just, you know, to be part of that.

00;25;07;04 - 00;25;14;03

Nicholas Smith

I was, you know, happy note. I'm snapping pictures, driving. We even did the playlist. You know, we crafted a playlist like that.

00;25;14;07 - 00;25;16;16

Chet Tschetter

That's what a plastic love it.

00;25;16;19 - 00;25;42;05

Julie Kramme

I wanted to ask you to so that scenario that you just talked about, that helping a person get a rental car, going to the beach, planning this vacation, maybe that was even the thing that drives that. They thought France was. Maybe they, thought France was about going to the beach and putting your feet in the sand and your conversation, your listening abilities, working through all that with them to make a plan, to do this thing.

00;25;42;07 - 00;25;58;15

Julie Kramme

Sometimes DSPs are feel a little limited by the situations around them, and it probably took you multiple planning sessions, multiple working with people, getting permission to get that rental car, all of those pieces. Can you talk a little bit about what that looked like for you?

00;25;58;17 - 00;26;21;03

Nicholas Smith

So it starts with just, you know, simply with an idea, hey, could we possibly or I want to go to, you know, here's the thing. Like I said again, I can't say this enough. I work for Spain, especially people North Face and teamwork is is, one of our core values. Right. And so it starts with a, a it's a team.

00;26;21;03 - 00;26;40;11

Nicholas Smith

We talk about it, and then I talk to the. It's not I because of the ad. And then we'll talk about it like, hey, you know and then that'll turn into a logistic part of, talking to transportation to make sure we, we secure the car. Hey, he wants his color. Okay, we can find we you can find these colors, right?

00;26;40;11 - 00;26;56;02

Nicholas Smith

Blue. We found the blue. You know, the secure in a hotel, you know, help us. So I have it's working. It's been his life, you know, allows me to focus solely on, like, the individual like that. Because I have such behind the scenes hope.

00;26;56;04 - 00;27;17;25

Julie Kramme

A a life of possibility is is really what you emphasized in your interview that we included in the last, two thousand twenty three issue of Frontline initiative on DSPs using the Code of Ethics. And this has been such a great conversation. A deeper dive into your work supporting people's self-determination and even showing your growth in your own self-determination as a DSP.

00;27;17;28 - 00;27;39;04

Julie Kramme

Bringing those skills on the job, and solving problems that are in front of you, making making opportunities and helping that person to achieve the life of possibilities that they really want. So certainly it's been such a pleasure to hear about your work, what you do. And we're so grateful for your, conversation.

00;27;39;07 - 00;27;40;26

Nicholas Smith

Thank you. Thank you. Appreciate it for having me.

00;27;40;28 - 00;28;16;16

Chet Tschetter

Yeah, absolutely. Thank you so much, Nick. And thank you, the listeners, for taking the time to take a closer look at the stories. And, the people who contribute to frontline initiatives such as Nick Smith. You can follow a closer look wherever you find your favorite podcast so you don't have to miss any episodes. And to find all of the issues of frontline initiative, go to aisi dot n.edu/series, dot or slash seven.

00;28;16;18 - 00;28;41;09

Chet Tschetter

You can subscribe and get the next issues as soon as they're published, so we don't want you to miss out on any of that information. If you like today's podcast and you're interested in hearing about other ways to support the health and wellness of direct support, professionals, tune in to another podcast called Wellness Matters for direct support for some great resources and ideas about how to care for yourself as a DSP.

00;28;41;11 - 00;28;49;25

Chet Tschetter

Because we know that your job is very demanding and that it really takes a lot to be a great DSP. So until next time, be well.

00;28;49;27 - 00;28;54;12

Nicholas Smith

Thank you.

00;28;54;14 - 00;29;05;26

Chet Tschetter

Thanks for joining in the conversation. If you would like to reproduce all or part of this podcast, please email frontlinedsp@umd.edu

00;29;05;28 - 00;29;48;24

Pete McCauley

Our show is co-produced at the University of Minnesota's Institute on Community Integration by Frontline Initiative coeditor Chet Cheddar and ISI technical Director Pete McCauley. Skyler Mihajlov is our editor. Graphic designers are Connie Burkhart and Sarah Curtner. For more information on the Institute on Community Integration and all of our products and projects, please visit ici.umn.edu