Introduction to Counseling

Counseling Overview

Counseling Versus Applying Counseling Skills
Counseling Process • specialized • requires expertise & experience Applying Counseling Skills • help associates perform their function role • assists in day to day work

A Manager can’t engage in a true counseling process due to… • role conflict • lack of training

What is Counseling
 A dynamic process that involves a professionally trained counselor assisting a client with a particular concern. (Nystul, Michael, 1999)  A supportive process by a helper to help an employee define and work through personal problems or organizational changes that affect job performance.

COUNSELING emphasizes resourcing own strengths, rather than finding solutions, fixing the problem, changing someone else.

What is Counseling
 Explore, express and come to terms with his/her feelings;  Gain a clearer understanding of his/her motives, values and aspirations;  Draw on his/her own resources to cope more effectively.  In sum, the purpose of counseling is to help someone to help himself/herself.

Counseling as an Art
 It is flexible and creative process whereby the counselor adjusts the approach to the unique and emerging needs of the client.  Giving of oneself (counselor): concern and support as they empathize with their client.  Communicating intense emotion is an art that must be developed over time.

Counseling as a Science
 Provides a balance to the art of counseling by creating an objective dimension to the counseling process.  Differentiate professional counselors from nonprofessional helpers.  Requires the counselor to have the skills to formulate objective observations and inferences, test hypotheses and build theories.

Counseling as Storytelling
 People organize information in terms of stories about themselves  Howard (1991) and Sexton and Whitson (1994) noted that narrative (or storytelling) methods for understanding human behavior have become increasingly popular in psychology.  Client’s own language as opposed to psychological jargon

Comparison of Counseling and Psychotherapy
Area Counseling Psychotherapy

Focus
Client’s Problems Goals Treatment Approaches Setting

Developmental
“Problems of living”

Remediative
Complex and may involve diagnostic procedures Short and long term goals
Psychotherapeutic Private practice, mental health centers & hospitals

Short term
Preventive approaches & counseling strategies Schools, churches and mental health clinics

Formal vs. Informal Helping
Formal Helping
Can maintain a degree of objectivity.

Informal Helping
Tend to be subjective,

Guided by code of ethics
May confront the client with painful issues. Utilizes counseling strategies and techniques requiring formal training and special education

Guided by personal judgement.
Avoids confrontation. Unfamiliar with counseling strategies and techniques. Does not require formal training and special education

Distinction of Counseling
Advice – give direct advice/suggest alternatives for solutions on what is supposed to be done Guidance – not directly stating what has to be done, but looking at where one can guide the employee to open his mind to other ways of looking at things. Therapy – overlaps with counseling. However, time period is longer and the distant past is explores in greater depth.

Counseling in Organizations
Interface among the needs of the:  INDIVIDUAL CLIENT - work through stresses within the work environment & personal issues brought into the  THE COUNSELOR – be able to carry out his role balancing client & organizational needs.  ORGANIZATION – know & minimize barriers to optimum organizational performance through its people.

Benefits to the Manager
 Greater understanding of the individual’s viewpoint  Increased respect from their staff  Enhanced empowerment of staff  Reduction of problems brought to them by their staff  Development and building positive work relationships

Benefits to the Employee
      Feeling valued and listened to. Solutions which will work for them. Learning how to resolve their own issues Enhanced self-awareness. Improved work relationships Enhanced empowerment