Jump Around

Transcript

I am reading for the first time the 11th edition of the Skilled Helper by Gerard Egan. This beautiful book, one of the most practical. Perhaps the most practical guide there is to therapy, coaching or as he refers to it helping counseling.

What I call it is assisting moments of crisis or helping people take advantage of opportunities in their life.

This beautiful book the Skilled helper by Gerard Egan I highly recommend it for someone who is in the position where they might need to support somebody. It lists the introduction that talks about therapists and counselors, if you are a police officer or judge or nurse or even if you might be a stranger on the bus. Unfortunately the price is a little high, but the book is worth it even if you just get a second hand edition. Sometimes, you can find these on eBay for 9 dollars for an earlier edition.

Just as beautiful and just as enlightening.

And here on page 8 of the 11th edition Egan is talking about what clients bring to the table, what they already have when they enter therapy. All of the resources available, all the things in their favor and the things they have against them.

How the greater understanding of these factors is going to influence their success and how they are going to learn how to better take advantage of all these elements transmuting them into opportunities.

He says this list isn’t exhaustive but its quite a list. He says they arrive with their version of humanity in all its simplicity and complexity.

Here are some things clients bring with them in no particular order:

The problems, situations, issues in degrees of varying severity for which they are seeking help.

Successful or failed attempts to help problem situations and/or exploit unused opportunities.

The past to the degree that it is affecting them positively or negatively in the present.

Their general life expectations and aspirations however realistic or distorted.

And associated disappointments.

Their skills, strengths and resources.

Their general emotional state

Their hopes, fears and expectations regarding therapy.

Their degree of openness and readiness for change.

Their willingness to work for change.

Whatever reluctance or resistance they feel, their ability to engage in a collaborative relationship.

Their sense of right and wrong

Their personal ethics and approach to morality.

Their cultural beliefs, values and norms of behavior especially their particular version of dominant culture and its impact on behavior

The entire range of relationship with all the ups and downs, especially the relationships related to their current issues.

Their level of personal communication skills.

Blind spots, external factors that stand in the way of progress. External factors that support constructive change.

This is quite fascinating, I don’t think he intended this to be poetic but as Maslow and Rogers have said many times when a person is self actualized they will more naturally be poetic because they are looking for deeper ways to express themselves.

I love this list because I don’t think its just a list of what clients arrive with, I think this is a list of what it is to be human. You probably have many of these, probably all of them and I assure you whatever level you have of all of these things, it is enough. What you have is enough.