Burnout, Ethics, and the Evolution of a Values-Driven ABA Business with Liz Matthews
Liz Matthews discusses her journey through burnout, revamping her ABA business, and creating a values-driven approach in behavior analysis. Listen to her story on In the Field: The ABA Podcast.
What happens when you realize the career you once loved doesn’t feel like yours anymore?
In this episode of In the Field: The ABA Podcast, I talk with Liz Matthews, CEO and founder of EMG Consulting, about her journey through burnout, business ownership, and coming back to the field of behavior analysis with a completely different lens.
Liz was one of the first dozen BCBAs® in Virginia. She’s seen the field evolve—from the early days of insurance coverage to the overwhelming boom of growth and regulation. She’s also a mom, a military spouse, a business owner, and someone who found herself stuck in a system that no longer aligned with her values.
This is Part 1 of a two-part conversation that is real, reflective, and incredibly relatable.
From Pioneering BCBA® to Burnout
Liz shares what it felt like to be a “big fish” in a small pond—and how quickly that shifted as the field exploded with new professionals, billing requirements, and system complexity.
“I went from being that big fish to being a smaller fish. And it got very overwhelming... I experienced a lot of burnout. Everyone was just doing the ABA. Are we even behavioral scientists anymore?”
She opens up about her lowest point: managing a business, parenting a newborn alone while her husband was stationed elsewhere, and trying to hold onto a field that no longer felt familiar.
“I enjoyed none of it. So I’m like, okay—this is who I am. I’m a behavior analyst. I can’t change that. But I don’t want to leave. I just can’t do it like this anymore.”
Community, Compassion, and the Push to Evolve
Through community spaces like Do Better and Defy, Liz found something she didn’t expect: validation, perspective, and the realization that other behavior analysts were feeling the same way—and doing something about it.
“Talking with like-minded people saved me. So saved me.”
This shift helped her reconnect with her love for behavior analysis—and led her to question the foundations of how her business operated. That evolution, both personal and professional, became the core of how she now leads.
“I got the word evolve tattooed on my arm because I knew I had to change. I couldn’t keep doing things the same way.”
Reflecting on Harm, Owning Our Past, and Doing Better
In one of the most powerful parts of the episode, Liz shares a moment from presenting at APBA, where she opened up about her past practices—things she once considered successful because the data looked good, but now recognizes could have caused harm.
“Nobody ever asked, how did you get there? How did that make that person feel? What damage did you do along the way?”
“I cried in front of a room full of people. I’m not a public crier. But it was like… we didn’t always get it right. And I want to do better now.”
This moment—and the nods from the crowd—showed her just how many others had been carrying similar feelings, and how important it is to create space for those conversations.
Rethinking Business Through a Behavior Analytic Lens
Liz didn’t just come back to the field—she rebuilt how her organization operates. Using the science of behavior analysis, she designed systems based on assessment, flexibility, and responsiveness.
Positions at EMG are built around individual strengths and needs
Benefits are customized based on what staff actually use
Absences for caregiving and family responsibilities are planned for, not penalized
Feedback loops and staff-driven decision-making are built into everyday operations
“Why am I going to waste my time and money doing things the way they’ve always been done if the people around me are telling me they don’t need that?”
She’s also candid about the tension: supporting staff in systems that don’t fully support them—particularly women and caregivers—without being able to change the systemic inequities overnight.
What’s Next
This episode is just the beginning.
In Part 2, we go deeper into what Liz’s model actually looks like on the ground—from how she supervises, to how she hires, to the systems that earned EMG Consulting a “Best Employer” award in Virginia.
