The Rule of 168: Why Your Best ABA Plan Isn't Enough (Yet).

Meet the Author

Alright, let's get personal. Sean Yocum here, CEO of Hickory Learning Group and, for those who appreciate the raw, unfiltered truth, also co-host of the Rad N Bad Podcast. You see me here talking about empowering families, challenging the status quo, and sometimes, calling out the bad in our field. But this isn't just theory for me. My journey, my expertise, and my burning passion for truly effective ABA are forged in a very personal fire. I grew up with an autistic brother. And let me tell you, what my family went through, the struggles we faced, that’s not just a memory; it’s the very reason for why I do what I do today. We navigated the system. We had professionals come in. My brother went to school, he had in-home therapy. And on paper, maybe things looked okay in those controlled environments. But then he came home from school and then the therapist left. And that’s where the wheels fell off. My parents, my entire family, we were given little to no guidance. Nobody taught us the skills. Nobody showed us how to carry over what was supposedly happening in therapy or school into our daily lives. The jargon was thick. The strategies, if they were explained at all, seemed to only work for the therapist, not for my exhausted mom trying to get dinner on the table or my dad trying to navigate a meltdown in a resturant. We lived the "Rule of 168" every single agonizing week. All those hours outside of therapy, without direct support. And because we weren't equipped, because the knowledge wasn't transferred to us, there was no lasting change. There was no maintenance of skills. The skills my brother learned in therapy often stayed trapped within those school walls. The challenging behaviors we faced at home persisted because we weren't given the tools to understand their function, or to consistently teach and reinforce better alternatives. The frustration, the helplessness, the constant feeling of hitting a brick wall, that was my parents' reality. And that, frankly, was bad. Like, truly bad. That experience burned a question into my soul: There had to be a better way. That "better way" led me directly into the field of Applied Behavior Analysis. I immersed myself in the science, not just to understand what ABA was, but to critically dissect how it was being applied. I became a Board Certified Behavior Analyst, dedicated to mastering the principles. But I brought that lived experience, that memory of my family's struggle, with me. It made me question everything. Why wasn't this knowledge being truly translated to parents? Why were we creating dependency instead of empowering independence? That drive for genuine, real-world impact, that refusal to accept "good enough" when I knew better, is why I founded Hickory Learning Group. We’re not just providing services; we’re fundamentally rethinking how effective, ethical, and accessible behavioral education can be. We're challenging the status quo, pushing past outdated models, and building solutions that actually work for families in their homes, day in and day out. And that's why I'm so excited to share this knowledge with you, with our community. Because I've been on both sides of this. I know the frustration of the disempowered family. And I know the profound difference that clarity, competence, and true collaboration can make. My biggest goals are massive, but simple: 1) To redefine parent and caregiver involvement from being "helpful" to being absolutely "essential." To ensure no family feels as lost as mine did. 2) To build a global community of confident, competent parent advocates and professionals who not only understand ABA principles but can apply them effectively and ethically in any context. 3) To elevate the entire field of ABA by relentlessly pushing for practices that are truly impactful, transparent, dignifying, and prioritize lasting change and independence above all else. We're here to eliminate the "weekend slide" and ensure continuous, meaningful progress. The biggest challenge I've faced, both personally and professionally, has been confronting ingrained practices and a resistance to change within our own field. It's difficult to challenge the way things have "always been done." But my family's story, and the countless others like it, fuels my resolve. I overcome those challenges by staying grounded in the science, by listening to the true needs of families, and by relentlessly focusing on delivering real results. This isn't just a job for me. It's a mission. And I'm excited for you to be a part of it.