How do you help clients achieve their goals with solution-focused brief therapy?

1 What are the benefits of SFBT?

SFBT has several advantages for both clients and social workers, especially in settings where time and resources are limited. It enables clients to take ownership of their lives and use their existing skills and abilities to solve their problems, reducing the risk of dependency or resistance from them. Furthermore, SFBT enhances the client-therapist relationship as they work together in a respectful and supportive dialogue, where the therapist follows the client's pace and preferences. Additionally, it is cost-effective as it requires fewer sessions and less paperwork than other approaches, and can be adapted to different contexts and populations.

2 How do you set goals with SFBT?

In SFBT, one of the key elements is helping clients clarify and specify their goals, as well as to measure their progress and achievements. To do this, the therapist can use techniques such as the miracle question, which is a hypothetical question that asks the client to imagine their problem has been solved overnight. Scaling questions ask the client to rate their situation on a scale from 0 to 10 and help them assess their current position and set realistic goals. Exception questions ask the client to recall times when their problem was less severe or absent, so they can discover their strengths, resources, and strategies and apply them to their current situation.

3 How do you facilitate change with SFBT?

In SFBT, it's important to help clients notice and amplify the positive changes that are already happening in their lives, as well as to encourage them to take action and experiment with new behaviors. To do this, therapists can use compliments, which are positive feedbacks that boost self-esteem and confidence. They can also ask the client coping questions to recognize their resilience, coping skills, and support network. Additionally, they may suggest or negotiate homework tasks with the client that they can do between sessions. These tasks can be simple actions, experiments, or observations that the client can use to test and practice their solutions and monitor their outcomes.

4 How do you end sessions and terminate therapy with SFBT?

The final element of SFBT is to help clients consolidate and sustain their solutions, as well as to prepare them for the termination of therapy. To do this, the therapist can use techniques such as summary, feedback, and termination. Summary is a brief recap of the main points and themes that emerged during the session, highlighting the client's goals, strengths, changes, and achievements. Feedback is a written or verbal message that the therapist gives to the client at the end of each session, summarizing their impressions, observations, and suggestions. Lastly, termination is the process of ending the therapeutic relationship, usually after the client has reached their goals or has shown significant improvement. This involves reviewing the client's journey, celebrating their success, addressing any remaining issues or concerns, and planning for the future.

5 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?