phil
24-05-2004, 08:51 AM
As well as the prerequistes of working from a clean philosophy, paying exquisite attention, listening (rather than waiting to speak), using the other's words to describe their experience and asking Clean Questions, there are small routines that the facilitator uses.
Some of these are consciously used (like Penny and James' Problem/Solution/Outcome framework and the Necessary Conditions for Change. Others may be operating on the fringes of our awareness or completely unconsciously.
This post is to ask about mini-routines that YOU may be running when using Clean Language that help you to facilitate the client's self-modelling. Hopefully by sharing these routines we may all learn something useful and interesting.
It may help you to discover more about your mini-routines if you consider some of the following:
Is there a routine that I regularly use?
How do I know when it is time to use it?
What's my intention in using it?
What's the first step?
What is the structure?
Does it have a repeating element?
How do I know when it is time to stop it?
How do I stop it?
Then what happens?
Here are a couple of examples from my experience:
Location
I know that if I hear a reference to a feeling without an associated gesture to indicate where the feeling may be, this prompts me to ask a 'where' or 'whereabouts' question.
Having decided to ask a location question, I will tend to ask either W/WB consecutively at least 3 times (I do not differentiate between 'where' and 'whereabouts') Occasionally I will ask up to 5 times consecutively if the client seems to be getting new information.
I will also ask W/WB again if a client has answered a previous W/WB question with 'I don't know' and a gesture that seems to indicate a location. My intention is to help them notice that while they are saying they don't know, at least 'that hand knows'. I realise I have another intention here to bring to the attention of the client that there may be things that they DO know that they didn't know they knew - and so what else might there be?
I stop asking W/WB when the location has been established. I also stop if I think the client is getting irritated at being asked location of things that perhaps they don't believe have locations, e.g. 'Look I don't know where the feeling is I just know I have the feeling!' I may want to ask 'where do you know that you have a feeling?' and I may also take note of the meta-message to back off. I do store a mental or written note about this and may return some other time.
Sequence
I tend to model fairly bland sequences (like undesirable habits) forwards, that is with 'then what happens?' as I think we are used to imagining that life goes 'and then, and then, and then'.
With more emotionally charged loops I may decide to model backwards to avoid re-traumatising. Also I will go backwards when looking for choice-points / triggers.
With sequences and patterns my intention is to model the sequence/current reality then step up a logical level and ask 'and when [all that/that sequence], what would you like to have happen?'.
What are the mini-routines that YOU run that help you when using Clean Language and/or Symbolic Modeling?
Cheers
Phil
Some of these are consciously used (like Penny and James' Problem/Solution/Outcome framework and the Necessary Conditions for Change. Others may be operating on the fringes of our awareness or completely unconsciously.
This post is to ask about mini-routines that YOU may be running when using Clean Language that help you to facilitate the client's self-modelling. Hopefully by sharing these routines we may all learn something useful and interesting.
It may help you to discover more about your mini-routines if you consider some of the following:
Is there a routine that I regularly use?
How do I know when it is time to use it?
What's my intention in using it?
What's the first step?
What is the structure?
Does it have a repeating element?
How do I know when it is time to stop it?
How do I stop it?
Then what happens?
Here are a couple of examples from my experience:
Location
I know that if I hear a reference to a feeling without an associated gesture to indicate where the feeling may be, this prompts me to ask a 'where' or 'whereabouts' question.
Having decided to ask a location question, I will tend to ask either W/WB consecutively at least 3 times (I do not differentiate between 'where' and 'whereabouts') Occasionally I will ask up to 5 times consecutively if the client seems to be getting new information.
I will also ask W/WB again if a client has answered a previous W/WB question with 'I don't know' and a gesture that seems to indicate a location. My intention is to help them notice that while they are saying they don't know, at least 'that hand knows'. I realise I have another intention here to bring to the attention of the client that there may be things that they DO know that they didn't know they knew - and so what else might there be?
I stop asking W/WB when the location has been established. I also stop if I think the client is getting irritated at being asked location of things that perhaps they don't believe have locations, e.g. 'Look I don't know where the feeling is I just know I have the feeling!' I may want to ask 'where do you know that you have a feeling?' and I may also take note of the meta-message to back off. I do store a mental or written note about this and may return some other time.
Sequence
I tend to model fairly bland sequences (like undesirable habits) forwards, that is with 'then what happens?' as I think we are used to imagining that life goes 'and then, and then, and then'.
With more emotionally charged loops I may decide to model backwards to avoid re-traumatising. Also I will go backwards when looking for choice-points / triggers.
With sequences and patterns my intention is to model the sequence/current reality then step up a logical level and ask 'and when [all that/that sequence], what would you like to have happen?'.
What are the mini-routines that YOU run that help you when using Clean Language and/or Symbolic Modeling?
Cheers
Phil