How can you use reflective listening to motivate your clients?
Reflective listening is a key skill in motivational interviewing, a client-centered approach that helps people explore and resolve their ambivalence about behavior change. By using reflective listening, you can show empathy, build rapport, and elicit change talk from your clients. In this article, you will learn what reflective listening is, how to practice it, and how to use it to motivate your clients.
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Elicit vision:Engage clients by first understanding their ideal life goals. Then, use reflective listening to guide them to discover their own solutions, fostering deeper and more personal motivation for change.
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Highlight discrepancies:Observe and gently point out where clients' actions don't align with their values or goals. This can provoke thought and create a healthy sense of ambivalence that spurs the desire for change.