You Know You Are A Social Worker If...

This was sent to me by a social worker friend of mine. I thought it was humorous so I decided to share it with you. I think my social worker friends out there will truly appreciate it...





1. You think $40,000 a year is 'really making it'.

2. You don't know what it's like to work with men.

3. You know all the latest lingo for drugs, where to get them, and how much they cost.

4. You’ve started a sentence with 'So what I hear you saying is...'

5. You’ve had 2 or more jobs at one time just to pay the bills.

6. You tell people what you do and they say 'that's so noble'

7. You have had to explain to people that not all social workers take away kids.

8. You use the words 'validate,' 'appropriate' and 'intervention' daily.

9. You spend more than half your day documenting and doing paperwork.

10. You think nothing of discussing child abuse over dinner.

11. People have said to you 'I don't know how you do what you do'.

12. You’ve never been on a business trip or had an expense account.

13. You know a lot of other social workers who have left the profession for another.

14. You’re very familiar with the concept of entitlement.

15. Staying at a job for 2 years is 'a long time'.

16. Your phone number is unlisted for good reason.

17. Your professional newsletters always have articles about raising salaries...but you still haven't seen it.

18. You’re very familiar with the term 'budget cut'.

19. You can't imagine working at a bank or crunching numbers all day.

20. You’ve had clients who liked you just a little too much.

21. Having lunch is a luxury many days.

22. You’ve been cursed at or threatened...and it doesn't bother you.

23. Your job orientation has included self defense.

24. You have the best stories at any cocktail party.

25. Your parents don't know half of the stuff that you've dealt with at your job.

26. You know all the excuses clients use for a failed a drug test by heart.