In Praise of Long-Term Work

I have often thought of becoming a Clinical Psychologist.  I have spent a sizeable chunk of my life in therapy and think the work they do is amazing.  But the thought of making a long-term commitment to a relationship with someone else’s psyche has always turned me off the idea.  Far too much responsibility.

Instead, I chose coaching which, in my understanding, should be short-term and powerfully impactful.  Coaching should be as transformational and supportive as therapy but quicker, and for people who are emotionally fit and resourceful.

That was the theory and, for the most part, the practice too.

It is how most of my coaching seems to go. When prospective clients ask me how many sessions they will need to commit to I tell them as many as they want – it is entirely up to them.

Most people come to see me 6 or 8 times.  After a couple of months of weekly sessions, or a bit longer for fortnightly sessions, the clients I work with feel that they are OK on their own.  They have acquired considerable insight into their thoughts and behaviour patterns and are able to apply the tools I have taught them to create healthier patterns of thinking and behaving.

I wave them a cheery farewell as they walk down the path, in the happy knowledge that they have changed some key aspects of how they are in their worlds and are on the road to healthier choices.

I also know that they will come back for top-up sessions as and when they may need them.  Some come back every month for a check-in.  Some come back after years for a tune-up.  I am always delighted to fit them in and catch up with them and their lives.

But (there is always a but, isn’t there?) there are a few people who I have worked with over a much longer period.  A handful of clients have been coming to me every two weeks for many months.  A couple have been coming twice a month for over two years.

It isn’t strictly coaching that we do, those long-term clients and I.  More couching – my word for that thing that I do that combines counseling with coaching (and they do sit on a couch in my consulting room).

It isn’t therapy, which I am most definitely am not qualified to do (let me hasten to assure you that, in addition to my coaching qualification, I have also completed counselling training) but it isn’t pure coaching either.

What it is, though, is extremely powerful.

I am in awe of the work these long-term couching clients have done, and how far they have come.  It has been a privilege and a joy to watch their growth and transformation.  To see them join the dots and create a new picture of how they want their life to look and feel.

I never thought that I would say this, but I would be perfectly happy to carry on working with them for many years to come.

Tags: change how you are | clinical psychologist | coaching | counselling | how many sessions should a coach need | long term coaching clients | love what you do | therapy

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