My 7 Guiding Principles
Choosing the right Therapist or Coach is a big deal.
If you choose correctly, you boost your chances of having a positive experience.
A positive experience gets you closer to creating the changes you desire in life!
Although therapy and coaching primarily focuses on you, there’s no doubt that the therapist or coach is an important part of the equation.
In an effort to help you determine if I’m the right person to work with you, I thought I’d share a more in-depth look into my beliefs and guiding principles about therapy and coaching.
Principle 1: I’m primarily concerned with concrete changes in your life.
Concrete, in this context, means changes that we can actually see and measure throughout our work together. This isn’t to say that all changes are big, explosive, or monumental moments (it’s awesome when those do happen).
In fact, some changes are subtle and build slowly over time; this can make these changes in your life somewhat difficult for either of us to see.
Since therapy and coaching are about creating positive changes in your life, it’s important that we’re able to see some measurable changes to ensure that we’re working together correctly. Make sense?
While these changes are specific to each individual, most revolve around actualizing potential, promoting your growth, improving communication with others, improving efficiency and productivity at work, overcoming inhibitions, and resolving unpleasant or distressing symptoms.
Principle 2: While I believe that the past can absolutely be relevant to our current pain, often, it needs to be explored in therapy to relieve our distress.
I don’t believe that it’s the only thing that’s relevant for freeing us from our discomfort.
As much as the past matters, so does the present and the future.
I only delve into your past if it significantly helps you understand and master the habits, feelings, and thoughts holding you back from achieving your most important goals.
Principle 3: Since many of my clients have incredibly demanding schedules, I often work in a time-limited manner.
In addition to seeing clients face-to-face in the office, I often work with clients on the phone, over the Internet, and via email.
I also work with clients outside of the traditional 50-minute appointment session paradigm. It’s not uncommon to have sessions that last several hours.
Principle 4: This one might seem obvious. I work to make healthy people healthier, and to alleviate the suffering of people who are unhealthy.
“Is there any other way of working?” Unfortunately, the answer is yes.
I’ve spoken to many clients that had previous experiences in therapy or coaching where they felt the therapist or coach was trying to create issues the client didn’t feel they had. The therapist or coach had an agenda that was too far outside what the client wanted to get out of therapy or coaching. The client felt lost, confused, and betrayed by the professional that was supposed to help them.
Make no mistake, therapy or coaching is only effective if it’s working on what’s important to YOU.
Principle 5 Therapy or coaching is about working with your conscious experience…
…while at the same time, helping you understand the ways your thoughts, feelings, beliefs, and behaviors may be self-limiting and preventing you from achieving what you desire.
Principle 6: I focus a great deal on your real interactions within your social systems (work, family, friends, spiritual community, local community, etc.).
The more I understand the social and practical realities of your life, the better I can help you in therapy or coaching.
Principle 7: Although I can usually determine, fairly quickly, if the interventions we implement are useful, and if we’re on the right track, I rigorously evaluate and self-correct throughout our work together to ensure that we’re working in the most effective and efficient ways.
I want you to experience positive changes in your life as quickly as possible.
I also know that time and cost invested in therapy and coaching are important factors as well. This is why effectiveness and efficiency are important factors in how we work together.
While this list is in no way meant to be exhaustive, I believe it will provide you the foundation for how I work.
I’d love to answer any questions you have and get the chance to know you.