Help people generate their own solutions

  “People possess the necessary resources to find solutions to their complaints – coaching helps them tap into these resources so they can construct solutions." - Lipchik

While listening can be one of the most helpful things you can do for another person, over time staying stuck in problems can take its toll. Adopting some solutions focused language skills can shift people from talking about problems to creating their own solutions. Instead of launching into generating solutions for them try posing some well structured questions.

Solutions focused techniques lie at the heart of the Worklife Solutions FastTrack coaching process and is an important part of the coach’s toolkit. The roots of Solutions-Focused Coaching stem from counselling and therapy based techniques developed in the 1970s by Steve de Shazer and Insoo Kim Berg at the Brief Family Centre, Milwaukee in North America. Solution-Focused Therapy’s philosophy is that all clients have strengths, skills and resources and that they are the experts on what they want to achieve.  The coach is not the expert, entrusted to “solve” the client's problems, but to act as a facilitator, and guide who empower their clients to create their own solutions and tap into their inner based resources.

Unlike counselling approaches which focus on providing clients with an awareness of the problem’s nature and origins (past based), solutions focused coaching emphasises focusing on possibilities and the clients preferred future. Thus instead of focusing on the problem, exceptions to the problem (ie times when the problem isn’t a problem) are drawn out. Often the solution is not necessarily linked to the problem at all.

 The power of solutions-focused coaching often stems from carefully thought out open questions applied at the appropriate time and designed to encourage clients not only to behave differently but also to view themselves differently.

 "One has not only an ability to perceive the world,but an ability to alter one's perception of it; more simply,one can change things by the manner in which one looks at them." -Tom Robbins, Even Cowgirls Get the Blues

Some useful solutions focused questions include: 

LOOKING FOR EXCEPTIONS

 The purpose of this technique is to help people to notice the absence of the problem and to notice their successes.

• When's the most recent time that the problem happens less/not at all?
  
• What did you try recently that worked? What are you doing now that works? (Get details –“What difference did it make? How did you do it?”
  
• Tell me about the times it happens less.
  
• Tell me about the times that it doesn't happen.
  

COPING QUESTIONS

The purpose of these questions is to help people realise how resourceful and strong they already are. When clients are catastrophising or find it hard to see anything good in their life coping questions can help them to recognise glimmers of hope, courage or resourcefulness they already possess.

• How come it is not worse?
  
• How are you handling it?
  
• In spite of everything that is happening how did you ________ (get up in the morning; get here today, etc).
  
• What’s been a little bit helpful so far? (This can be a good question to ask when people worry they are not making progress.)
  

Labels: Happiness, Health

posted by Cassandra  # 2:53 AM