Frontiers Newsletter Mar'17: The Right Type of Stuff To Help The Discerning Psychotherapist
Keepin' At It
Hey ,
I don't know about you, but keeping at our growth edge is not the easiest thing to do. Yet, in the sea of demands, from family to work, keeping healthy, and dealing with BS'es that comes with most jobs, I'm in awe by practitioners like you working the hard mile, staying at the edge of your game.
Simply because you value your development. I see it in the people I consult with. You wanna get better at helping those you serve.
My deepest respects goes out to you. Your clients are blessed to have you journey with them.
To make up for lost time in the last month, there's a chalk full of resources for you this round. Enjoy.
Handpicked Resources
Here's some recent blogposts, websites, and podcasts that will pique your interest:
1. The Problem with Rewarding Individual Performers:
- Behavioral economics have really picked up on this. The strange paradox of that rewarding someone the wrong way (i.e. money) can have a counterintuitive effect on performance.
See also, Dan Ariely's book Predictably Irrational and Dan Pink's book on motivation, Drive.
2. Shrink Rap Radio: Interview with Dr Tony Rousmaniere on Deliberate Practice
My colleague Tony Rousmaniere has just published an excellent book on his journey in deliberate practice!!
Here's the interview he has on Shrink Rap Radio. Check out his book. It's personal and earnest. Very useful.
3. Why Facts Don't Change Our Minds
This was shared to me by my colleague and collaborator Dr. Sharon Lu.
A must-read.
From My Desk
1. Signs That Therapists are Barking Up the Wrong Tree in Our Professional Development
In here, based on our current understanding, here's a list of 15 mistakes therapist make in their attempts to getting better at what they do.
(I had some comments that I'm trying to be provocative here. Actually, no. Just trying to state the facts clearly).
2. Mastery Learning for Therapists: Figure Out the “What” Before the “How”
The unresolved problem in our professional development: We fail to identify “What” to work on before the “How”.
3. What Have You Changed Your Mind About?
The idea of this blogpost is based on John Brockman's book, What Have You Changed Your Mind About?
When thinking changes your mind, that’s philosophy. When God changes your mind, that’s faith. When facts changes your mind, that’s science.
Books I'm Reading
I'd admit it. I'm a geek. It's funny how I am this way now, given that I barely touched a book in my earlier years.
Books are precious. Every book has at least one central idea to offer that has the potential for transformation, if we apply them. But if a book doesn't grab me at the early stage, I usually give it up. Other times, some of the best ideas are at the back, so I skip and go there.
Here are samples of stuff I'm reading at the moment. I try to read one book at a time, but my ADD appetite pulls me into different directions.
If any of you have a suggestion on how I can focus on a book at a time, I love to hear from you!
1. The Lies We Tell Ourselves, by Jon Frederickson:
Jon's previous book, Co-Creating Change, and now, this recent release, are by far, the most dog-earred and underlined book in my collection. There are elements of buddhism, poetry, psychodynamic influences in The Lies We Tell Ourselves. More importantly, it's one of those books that helps you to think straight!
Here's a few snippets:
"Life is as it is prior to our opinions."
On Grief: "We are never hurt by out deepest feelings, only by our resistance to them."
"We die once from death, but a thousand times from self-doubt."
2. Run With the Horses, by Eugene Peterson
I recently learned about Eugene Peterson from a podcast interview with him in On Being, with Krista Tippett.
This book offers an earthy reflection of the Old Testament's book of Jeremiah.
Here's a few snippets:
"One of the first things that strikes us about the men and women in Scripture is that they were disappointingly non-heroic. We do not find splendid moral examples. We do not find impeccably virtuous models. That always comes as a shock to new-comers to Scripture: Abraham lied; Jacob cheated; Moses murdered and complained; David committed adultery; Peter blasphemed."
The Greeks call excellence, arete (Greek: ἀρετή):
"The capacity to intensify a passion for excellence combined with an indifference to human achievement... strikes me with particular force in the book of Jeremiah."
3. The Gardener and the Carpenter, by Alison Gopnik
Ok. Raising a child, and another along the way, makes me pause from time to time. So I picked up this book on parenting.
The first half turns out to be a tour de force on evolution and child development. Not what I expected. But it remains intriguing. I'm reading on.
Gopnik's central thesis of this book revolves around the metaphors of parenting, between the Gardener and the Carpenter.
"Unlike a good chair, a good garden is constantly changing, as it adapts to the changing circumstances of the weather and the seasons... Gardening is risky and often heartbreaking... but the only garden that didn't have those risks, that wasn't attended with that pain, would be one made of Astro-turf studded with plastic daisies."
Paulo Coelho used a similar comparative metaphor to describe the spiritual journey.
4. Tools of Titans by Tim Ferriss
This book is a collection of interviews Tim Ferriss has done on his Tim Ferriss Show Podcast. And more!
The three themes of the book are segmented into Healthy, Wealthy and Wise.
I don't think I can finish it anytime soon. Like his previous bestsellers, The Four-Hour Work Week, The Four-Hour Chef, The Four-Hour Body, it's a tome.
But definitely something I will keep revisiting.
5. The E-Myth Revisited by Michael Gerber
This is a classic book on entrepreneurship. I suck at this area - therefore the purchase. I bought it after reading the excellent Derek Siver's book, Anything You Want.
The central thesis is that you can expect being the Technician of the business to be able to run the business well. And that there's a difference between working in the business and working on the business.
Ouch.
EVENTS
1. FIT Two Day Trainings in Singapore:
Hosted by the Eagles Mediation Counselling Centre (EMCC), I'd be running two workshops in Singapore in 24-25th of April 2017, titled, Three Steps to Becoming Your Personal Best in Psychotherapy, and Beyond Measures in Psychotherapy: Taking Your Personal Best to the Next Level. If you are keen, reach out to Joline from EMCC, joline@emcc.org.sg . If you are coming from overseas, I assure you, there's lots to shop, walk, and entertain in the smallest country in the world.
2. Igniting Deliberate Practice: The Practice and The Practical of Taking Your Clinical Effectiveness to the Next Level 1-Day Workshop in Brisbane, QLD.
Dr Aaron Frost from Benchmark Psychology has kindly invited me run a workshop the topic of deliberate practice on the 10th of June, 2016, Brisbane QLD. This is specifically for practitioners who are already using some form of routine outcome measures, and are keen to take their professional development to the next level.
If you are interested, reach out to Aaron's team for more details.
3. Achieving Clinical Excellence Conference'18 in Sweden:
I just got a note from the good folks in Sweden that I've been invited to as one of the keynote speakers in the ACE 2018 Conference.
Since 2010, this is the third ACE conference, and I'm really excited. Big names like K Anders Ericsson, Bruce Wampold, Scott Miller are going to present.
If previous ACE conferences is any indication, it is a awe-inspiring experience. I hope you can join us.
4. Board Approved Masterclass Supervision:
My team and I at SPOT will be running a series of AHPRA board approved masterclass supervision this year. This applies to all registered psychologists in Australia.
Stay tuned to our website for details of dates and venues across WA.
NEW RELEASE
We've got two books coming up, and it's ready for pre-order!
The two chapters we've got in there:
Chow, D. (2017). The practice and the practical: Pushing your clinical effectiveness to the next level. In D. Prescott, C. Maeschalck, & S. D. Miller (Eds.), Reaching for Excellence: Feedback-Informed Treatment in Practice: APA.
Miller, S. D., Hubble, M., & Chow, D. (2017). Professional development: An Oxymoron? In T. Rousmaniere, R. K. Goodyear, S. D. Miller, & B. Wampold (Eds.), The Cycle of Excellence: Using Deliberate Practice in Supervision, Training, and Independent Practice Wiley Press.
You are in for a treat with the rest of the chapters!
~ Another Upcoming Book, The First Kiss: Undoing the Traditional Model of How We Conduct Our First Sessions
For the past two years, I've been working at finishing this book. I'm making the first round of edits currently. I'm making a case why the way we conduct our initial clinical assessments is not helping our clients, and I attempt to offer an alternate view of what it takes to engage our clients from the word go. It's an unabashingly "How-To" book.
~
Understanding the Professional
, I'm seeking your help. Can you contribute 2 mins of your time to fill up this ultra-brief survey? I wish to get a more nuanced idea of the challenges you face as practitioner.
Click here for the BRIEF SURVEY,
Thanks a million.
Til then, please stay in touch. I hate marketing, but I love connecting. Love to hear back from you, if you have any questions or comments.
Reach me at daryl@darylchow.com
Stay in touch.
Blessings,
Daryl Chow, Ph.D.
Senior Associate & Trainer, International Center for Clinical Excellence (ICCE);
Psychologist & Board Approved Supervisor,
Specialist Psychological Outreach Team (SPOT) @ Henry Street Centre, Fremantle, W Australia.
Senior Psychologist (on locum),
Institute of Mental Health, Singapore.
You are receiving this because you attended a workshop/consultancy/ supervision with me in recent times, or you are a subscriber to the Frontiers of Professional Development (FPD) blog. I want to keep you up to date on some developments that you will find useful. You might also be interested to check out the previous FPD Newsletters for useful and practical resources. Join our Facebook group to connect.