People ask me why I run a training program in narrative therapy. It takes an enormous amount of work, doesn’t earn much money and the administration of it can be a bit of a headache. So why do I continue? The first word that comes to mind is passion. I have this myself, but what I am referring to here is the passion and excitement that I receive from the participants in the course. It can be a bit hard to get started with Narrative. It was created by highly in

The narrative principle of being centered on the person and not the therapist beyond the immediate interaction. It changes how the therapis

On the other side of any problem is the preferred. The preferred means hope. This is such a simple concept with amazing ramifications. Think of a coin, classic, right? Just flip it over and you have its opposite. And it is in such close proximity, a question or two away. As a therapist, I ask a person to describe a problem. And then I ask, “what is this problem getting in the way of that you prefer?” Simple, right? Their response generally leads to a description of their

I take issue with therapists positioning themselves as the expert in the room. To maintain the position of expert, the therapist must know more than the person. This creates a distance between the therapist and person from the start that I don’t find helpful. Most depictions of therapists on TV are standoffish at best, if not downright opinionated regarding the person. Therapists are shown as having a look of superiority as they listen to the person talk. The distance creat

I love my job. It is a real privilege when people confide the intimate details of their lives and I experience a strong connection as we face these challenges together. Yes, it can be challenging at times being faced with serious problems that people are confronting in their lives. People frequently ask me, “How do you do it? Listening to people’s problems all day?” But I don’t experience it this way. I actually get energized by these meetings and leave the day mostly ho

Have you have ever walked into a room and felt that people weren’t listening, that they already had their minds made up and you were there to fit into their way of doing things. Wouldn’t you rather walk into that same room and greet people who show an interest in getting to know you? I mean, they really listen and pay attention to the words you say and what they mean to you and not what they mean to them? This is what the narrative experience is like. Imagine, instead, meeti