{"id":21575,"date":"2026-09-06T03:13:43","date_gmt":"2026-09-06T03:13:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.degreequery.com\/?page_id=21575---ceb7ef8d-2e82-4d80-a494-d6cc4870618d"},"modified":"2026-10-02T06:04:00","modified_gmt":"2026-10-02T06:04:00","slug":"speech-therapist-important-characteristics","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.degreequery.com\/speech-language-hearing-sciences-degrees\/speech-therapist-important-characteristics\/","title":{"rendered":"What are Important Characteristics for a Person to Have to Become a Speech Therapist?"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.degreequery.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/shutterstock_596748269.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-21595 alignright\" src=\"https:\/\/www.degreequery.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/shutterstock_596748269-300x200.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"200\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.degreequery.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/shutterstock_596748269-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.degreequery.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/shutterstock_596748269.jpg 500w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/a>Speech therapists, also known as speech pathologists, work with children and adults to treat speech disorders and other communication issues. They use a wide variety of techniques such as language intervention and oral muscle strengthening exercises to help their patients communicate more effectively. In some cases, they treat swallowing problems as well.<\/p>\n<p><em>Speech therapists can find work in a wide variety of environments, including: <\/em><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Elementary and secondary schools<\/li>\n<li>Colleges<\/li>\n<li>Doctors\u2019 offices<\/li>\n<li>Rehab centers<\/li>\n<li>Hospitals<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Speech therapists deal with many different types of speech issues, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.healthline.com\/health\/speech-therapy#treatment-for\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">including fluency disorders, receptive disorders, and aphasia<\/a>. Whether their clients were born with speech issues or developed them from an accident or other trauma, they must know exactly how to address their specific needs.<\/p>\n<h2><strong>Should I become a speech therapist?<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>Although the speech pathologist job description can be rather broad, with proper training, you\u2019ll be ready to face any challenge that comes your way. And <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bls.gov\/ooh\/healthcare\/speech-language-pathologists.htm\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">with an average salary of $77,510 per year in the United States<\/a>, the career can be quite rewarding financially as well as emotionally!<\/p>\n<p>A career in speech therapy is a great way to make a difference and leave a lasting, positive mark on peoples\u2019 lives. However, before signing up for a degree program, it\u2019s important to make sure that you fit the speech pathologist personality type. Let\u2019s take a look at some traits that make an excellent speech therapist so you\u2019ll know if this exciting career path is right for you!<\/p>\n<h3><strong><em>Compassion for all people.<\/em><\/strong><\/h3>\n<p>Compassion is arguably the most important characteristic that every speech therapist should possess. Many people seeking speech therapy will feel vulnerable and anxious, especially for their first few visits. It\u2019s crucial to show empathy to all your clients and let them know that you understand what they\u2019re going through. For your therapy techniques to be effective, you\u2019ll need to make them feel comfortable at all times.<\/p>\n<p>Compassion is especially important <a href=\"https:\/\/kidshealth.org\/en\/kids\/speech-therapist.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">when working with young children and their families<\/a>. Many children will be afraid to see a therapist for the first time, and their parents will be uncertain as well. In some cases, the parents will be worried and upset that their child will never be able to speak normally. You\u2019ll need to show empathy to both clients and caregivers, every step of the way.<\/p>\n<p>Another situation where compassion is crucial is when someone has experienced an accident or other trauma. They may feel like no one could possibly understand what they\u2019re going through, or that they\u2019ll never be able to communicate properly ever again. Your job as a speech therapist is to give them hope and show them that this simply isn\u2019t the case.<\/p>\n<h3><strong><em>Excellent social skills. <\/em><\/strong><\/h3>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/socialbutterfliesclub.com\/2019\/05\/why-speech-language-pathologists-are-experts-in-social-skills\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Good social skills are a must<\/a> for all aspiring speech pathologists. Since your goal is to help clients speak more effectively, you need to have clear, sharp verbal communication skills yourself. Aside from working with clients all day, you\u2019ll need to coordinate with parents, doctors, and other healthcare workers as well.<\/p>\n<p>The speech therapist career path is ideal for extroverts, as well as those who like working in groups. Being social all day every day is one of the main parts of the job: Therefore, people who find themselves getting tired or irritated after too much social activity may have a difficult time. In order to succeed, you\u2019ll need to be able to get along with people of all ages and backgrounds.<\/p>\n<h3><strong><em>A drive to help others.<\/em><\/strong><\/h3>\n<p>A desire to make a difference and enrich the lives of other people is essential for success as a speech therapist. You\u2019ll face many challenges on a day-to-day basis, and sometimes, your only reward will be your client\u2019s smile after a long therapy session. Therefore, you should be the type of person who gets great satisfaction from helping others and seeing them improve. You should always be of the mindset that your client\u2019s success is your success!<\/p>\n<h3><strong><em>A healthy dose of enthusiasm.<\/em><\/strong><\/h3>\n<p>As a speech therapist, it\u2019s important to always be enthusiastic and motivated\u2014even when your clients aren\u2019t. Many times, you\u2019ll work with patients who are feeling negatively about their situation and may need some extra encouragement. <a href=\"https:\/\/tactustherapy.com\/depression-aphasia-stroke-counselor\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">They may feel intimidated or depressed by the long path ahead of them<\/a>, but it\u2019s your job to encourage them and make them feel enthusiastic again.<\/p>\n<p>If you have a naturally upbeat personality, this shouldn\u2019t be a problem at all. It helps if you\u2019re the type of person who always sees the glass as \u201chalf full.\u201d This job will quickly teach you to enjoy a good challenge, so you can\u2019t ever allow the feelings of defeat to get the best of you!<\/p>\n<h3><strong><em>The ability to learn from your mistakes.<\/em><\/strong><\/h3>\n<p>As a speech therapist, your education doesn\u2019t end on the day you graduate. In fact, you\u2019ll learn something new almost every day on the job. You probably never considered that your clients will be teaching you as much as you teach them, but many experienced speech pathologists say that this is the case.<\/p>\n<p>And when working with clients, you can\u2019t get discouraged if you make a mistake, or if your techniques aren\u2019t as successful as you hope. Most of your clients won\u2019t master new exercises on their first attempt, and sometimes you may even feel like this is your fault: But it\u2019s important to remember every single \u201cfailure\u201d is just a chance to do better next time for both you and your client.<\/p>\n<h3><strong><em>An aptitude for teaching. <\/em><\/strong><\/h3>\n<p><strong><em>\u00a0<\/em><\/strong>Since so much of your job will center around instructing others and demonstrating proper speech techniques, you\u2019ll need to be comfortable with teaching. You\u2019ll be expected to guide clients through exercises on a regular basis, and correct their improper speaking form. It\u2019s very important that you clearly convey what your clients are doing wrong and how they can fix it. If you aren\u2019t confident in your teaching abilities, you need to be willing to put in the extra effort until you feel comfortable instructing others.<\/p>\n<h2><strong>A rewarding career in speech therapy awaits!<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>These are only a few of the most important aspects of the speech pathologist personality type. Some of these characteristics, such as being a good teacher, can be learned with a lot of practice. Others, such as empathy and a drive to help others, are something that comes naturally.<\/p>\n<p>Before committing to a speech pathology program, be sure to reflect on all these traits and make sure your personality is cut out for the job. If you feel like a lot of these characteristics describe you already, then a career in speech therapy could be perfect for you!<\/p>\n<p><em>Erica Ciko Campbell<\/em><\/p>\n<p><em>Bachelor of Science (B.S.), Biology<span class=\"ng-binding\">| Utica College<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n<p><em>Associate of Science (A.S.)<span class=\"ng-binding\">| Herkimer County Community College<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n<p><em>December 2019<\/em><\/p>\n<p><strong>More Articles of Interest:<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.degreequery.com\/degree-need-speech-therapist\/\">What Degree Do You Need to Be a Speech Therapist?<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.degreequery.com\/health-care-degrees\/mph-jobs\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">What Kind of Jobs Do I Look For After Getting My MPH?<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.degreequery.com\/speech-language-hearing-sciences-degrees\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">What Can I Do with a Degree in Speech, Language, and Hearing Sciences?<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.degreequery.com\/speech-language-hearing-sciences-degrees\/issues-speech-therapist-helps-someone-with\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">What Are Some Issues a Speech Therapist Might Help Someone With?<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.degreequery.com\/speech-language-hearing-sciences-degrees\/speech-therapist-masters-degree\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">What Master\u2019s Degree Should a Speech Therapist Have?<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Speech therapists, also known as speech pathologists, work with children and adults to treat speech disorders and other communication issues. They use a wide [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":26,"featured_media":0,"parent":16583,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"mobius_hide_qdf":false,"mobius_hide_el":false,"mobius_limit":"","mobius_degree":"","mobius_category":"","mobius_subject":"","inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-21575","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v22.5 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>What are Important Characteristics for a Person to Have to Become a Speech Therapist? - DegreeQuery.com<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.degreequery.com\/speech-language-hearing-sciences-degrees\/speech-therapist-important-characteristics\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"What are Important Characteristics for a Person to Have to Become a Speech Therapist? - DegreeQuery.com\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Speech therapists, also known as speech pathologists, work with children and adults to treat speech disorders and other communication issues. 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