How can you help someone find purpose and meaning in their life?

2 Why is it helpful for finding purpose and meaning?

Motivational interviewing can help someone find purpose and meaning in their life by helping them identify and clarify their values, interests, strengths, and aspirations. By expressing empathy, you can create a safe and supportive space for the person to share their thoughts and feelings without judgment. By developing discrepancy, you can help them see the gap between their current situation and their desired future. By rolling with resistance, you can avoid arguing or imposing your own views, and instead acknowledge and explore the person's ambivalence or doubts. By supporting self-efficacy, you can encourage and empower the person to believe in their own ability and readiness to change.

3 How to start the conversation?

To start the conversation, you can ask the person some open-ended questions that invite them to reflect on their life and what matters to them. For example, you could inquire about what makes them happy or fulfilled, what their goals and dreams are, what values or principles guide their decisions and actions, how they cope with stress or challenges, and what skills or talents they enjoy using or developing. Asking such questions will help you gain a better understanding of the person's life and what is important to them.

4 How to explore the discrepancy?

To explore the discrepancy, you can ask the person some open-ended questions that help them compare their current situation with their ideal situation. For instance, you could inquire about how their lifestyle or behavior aligns with their values or goals, the potential benefits or costs of staying the same or changing, any barriers or opportunities they face in pursuing purpose or meaning, their level of satisfaction with their current purpose or meaning in life, and any steps they can take to move closer to their purpose or meaning.

5 How to handle the resistance?

To handle the resistance, you can use reflections and affirmations to acknowledge and validate the person's feelings and perspectives, without agreeing or disagreeing with them. For instance, you could express that it sounds like they are feeling frustrated or confused about their situation, that they have some valid concerns or doubts about making a change, and that they have tried some things in the past that did not work out as they hoped. Additionally, you can remind them of their strengths and resources that they can draw on to overcome the challenges, and emphasize that ultimately, they are the expert of their own life and know what is best for them.

6 How to support the self-efficacy?

To support self-efficacy, you can use questions and affirmations to elicit and reinforce the person's confidence and commitment to change. For instance, you can ask the person to rate their importance and confidence on a scale of 1 to 10 when it comes to finding purpose or meaning in their life. Additionally, you can inquire about reasons or motivations that make them want to find purpose or meaning, as well as strategies or skills that they can use. Furthermore, you can ask them about the supports or resources they can access to find purpose or meaning in their life.

7 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?