Frontiers Newsletter Aug'17
The Most Perfect Thing to Do...
... Is to accept imperfection.
Ok. I'm sleep deprived, cranky, and short-fused (I think my clients can feel it the last few weeks).
But I'm grateful. Our second daughter was born about a month ago—the very next day after the was sent out. Phew! She is a gift to us.
A friend asked if I'm more experienced the second time around. Those of you who are parents would no this. The answer is no.
I'm reminded of what Salvador Minuchin said that parenting it is an amateur sport. The moment you think you've got it, things change.
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News You Can Use:
I want to share with you some stuff that I've been reading that will benefit you in your practice.
Perfectionism:
The late psychologist Sidney Blatt wrote a seminal paper on this topic. I highly recommend you read it. His work on perfectionism has greatly influenced my thinking on this topic.
I've attached it here for your preview .
The theme of perfectionism is an important amplifying factor to consider in your work with clients, as well as in ourselves. We sometimes conflate the pursuit of excellence with the pursuit of perfection (Read here)
I recall working with clients facing eating related disorders, and oftentimes, the main theme we have to chip away is the theme of high self-standards, expectations, self-criticalness and a pressure to not be a failure.
Even with clients who are facing depression, if things aren't progressing, be on the look out for signs of perfectionism. And work through it.
"Perhaps the most perfect thing to do is to embrace our imperfection," I said to a client.
More on Perfectionism:
1. Read this read BPS blog on perfectionism as a risk factor in suicidality
2. Check out Brene Brown's book on The Gifts of Imperfection.
August Reading List: 1. The Growth Hacker Marketing, by Ryan Holiday
2. The Art of Profitability, by Adrian Slywotsky
I'm totally out of my depths with stuff related to business. I have to now, since I've stepped out on my own. Therefore, I take in some business related books from time to time.
The Art of Profitability presents a conversation between a student and a master. Within the dialogue, various models of business is explained.
I mainly like reading Ryan Holiday's stuff simply because I like to learn more from his control of writing. Growth Hacker Marketing touches on some aspects of Eric Ries' bestseller book, The Lean Start-Up. I like Growth Hacker Marketing. It presents a different paradigm to see marketing, and slays some scared cows at the same time.
3. The Practice of Competency-Based Supervision, by Carol Falender and Edward Shafranske.
This is a thorough book on supervision. That said, I'm not sure if I come out of reading this any wiser. Maybe I need to give it another read.
Maybe this has also got to do with my bias about our business-as-usual type of clinical supervision (Read this material on why I think we need to reignite the way we do supervision, and how we can start to resolve this..)
4. The Coolest Dad on the Block, by Simon Rose and Steve Caplin.
I love this book! Every therapist (and parent) should see this. So many inventive and cool trips. Some of them, like how to make a the face on a dollar frown and smile, was shown to me by my magician turned puppeteer Uncle when I was a kid.
5. The Personal Spirituality, by Thomas Moore (audiobook)
I'm a big fan of Thomas Moore, so I dig in to anything that he's doing. I first hear of him from another audiobook of his "A Life at Work". This latest audible book's ideas aren't entirely new, but it's good.
I love the way he makes a distinct between Spirit and Soul.
His book The Care of the Soul is a perennial seller. A must-read.
I believe therapists need to entertain the idea of faith and spirituality more in our work. When we don't, we lose out on a world that many of our clients live in and are guided by.
An aside, Scott Miller and Mark Hubble wrote an important article in Psychotherapy Networker called, Has Psychotherapy Lost its Magick? Thought provoking. (Together with Scott and Mark, we are on the way with our next book! Stay tuned.)
"What got you here won't get you there."
-book title by Marshall Goldsmith
FROM MY DESK:
From Frontiers...
1. Our Real Work
2. Do Not Seek Out A Supervisor
3. What Are the Perennial Pillars for Psychotherapist?
4. I Get The Goose Bumps...
From my other blog, Full Circles: Reflections on Living:
1. In Praise of the Nurturers of the World
2. Symptoms are Impossible to Ignore…Because They are Terrible Gifts
(Subscribe here if you like to stay up-to-date on Full Circles. This is a different list from Frontiers...)
NEW RELEASE
These books are finally out in print!
Here's 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.
SPECIAL NOTE: IF YOU HAVE BOUGHT EITHER OF THESE BOOKS, drop me an email.
I'd send you a copy of the Taxonomy of Deliberate Practice Activities (TDPA, Chow & Miller, 2015) that we refer to in our chapters.
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Understanding the Professional
From our research and workshops that we've done, it is clear that therapist prize professional development.
What is your single biggest challenge that you face in your professional development?
Please take 1-2mins to complete this short survey.
I really appreciate it. (Btw, you get a free ebook at the end of the survey)
Til then, please stay in touch. Love to hear back from you, if you have any questions or comments.
Reach me at daryl@darylchow.com
p/s: Feeling grateful for this community of individuals who are always striving for professional development (not perfection :)).
Blessings,
Daryl Chow, Ph.D.
Senior Associate & Trainer, International Center for Clinical Excellence (ICCE);
Endorsed Counselling Psychologist & Board Approved Supervisor (Aus),
Henry Street Centre, Fremantle, W Australia.
Senior Psychologist (on locum),
Institute of Mental Health, Singapore.
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