Topic One - engaging people
1. Here is an exercise to get you started.
First impressions count. You are approaching a place from which you are seeking help…
What would make you feel welcome?
What would make you feel you had come to the right place?
What would make you feel that people in this place were concerned about you?
What would make you feel that the help you were seeking was going to be forthcoming?
Reflect on these questions and how you would ‘meet and greet’ in your own agency. Try out your plan and modify it until it feels comfortable and natural ➜
2. When you go to the Effective People page...
Watch the video of Carl Rogers who was at the forefront of the humanist psychotherapies - what have become known as client-centered therapy. In this video he is talking about the importance of empathy, which has been shown in many studies to be a key element of engaging with people and achieving good treatment outcomes.
Watch the video of Martha Sanchez-Craig who talks about the characteristics of practitioners who tend to be effective at achieving good treatment outcomes. Some practitioners are naturally good at engaging people, however, all these qualities can be learned.
3. One more thing…
Read this short extract on dealing with intoxicated behaviour.
Reflect on how you see yourself as an effective practitioner and anything you would like to do to improve your skills ➜