How to Coach Yourself and Others Empowering Coaching And Crisis Interventions | Page 51

This book is in B&W, not color - Print page in Grayscale for Correct view! Examples of How to Use a Decisional Balance Exercise  “What are some of the good things about your [insert risky/problem behavior]? [Client answers] Okay, on the flipside, what are some of the less good things about your [insert risky/problem behavior].” After the clients discuss the good and less good things about their behavior, the therapist can use a reflective, summary statement with the intent of having clients address their ambivalence about changing. COLUMBO APPROACH Rationale: The Columbo approach can also be characterized as deploying discrepancies. The goal is to have a client help the therapist make sense of the client’s discrepant information The approach takes its name from the behavior demonstrated by Peter Falk who starred in the 1970s television series Columbo. The Columboesque approach is intended as a curious inquiry about discrepant behaviors without being judgmental or blaming and allows for the juxtaposing in a non-confrontational manner of information that is contradictory. In other words, it allows the therapist to address discrepancies between what clients say and their behavior without evoking defensiveness or resistance. When deploying discrepancies, when possible, as shown in the example below try to end the reflection on the side of change as clients are more likely to elaborate on the last part of the statement.  “It sounds like when you started using cocaine there were many positives. Now, however, it sounds like the costs, and your increased use coupled with your girlfriend’s complaints,have you thinking about quitting. What will your life be like if you do stop?” Examples of How to Use the Columbo Approach: While the following responses might sound a bit unsympathetic, the idea is to get clients who present with discrepancies to recognize them rather than being told by their therapists that what they are saying does not make sense.  “On the one hand you’re coughing and are out breath, and on the other hand you are saying cigarettes are not causing you any problems. What do you think is causing your breathing difficulties?”  “So, help me to understand, on the one hand you say you want to live to see your 12-year old daughter grow up and go to college, and yet you won’t take the medication your doctor prescribed for your diabetes. How will that help you live to see your daughter grow up?”  “Help me understand, on the one hand I hear you saying you are worried about keeping the custody of your children. Yet, on the other hand you are telling me that you are using crack occasionally with your boyfriend. Since you also told me you are being drug screened on a random basis, I am wondering how using cocaine might affect your keeping custody of your children.” STATEMENTS SUPPORTING SELF-EFFICACY Rat ionale: Eliciting statements that support self-efficacy (self-confidence) is done by having clients give voice to changes they have made. Because many clients have little self-confidence in their ability to change their risky/problem behaviors, the objective is to increase their selfconfidence that they can change. Self-confidence statements can be sought from clients using scaling techniques (e. g, Readiness to Change Ruler, Importance and Confidence related to goal choice). For example, when using a Readiness Ruler, if clients’ readiness to change goes from a For [email protected] Property of Bookemon, do NOT distribute 51