Would you go boating without OARS?
Reading Time: < 1 minutesI guess if you wanted the wind or the current to blow you in whatever direction nature intended! Why am I talking about boating and Motivational Interviewing? In Motivational Interviewing, OARS skills are used to guide conversation. We are...
3 Benefits to Reflective Listening
Reading Time: 2 minutesI was recently providing a Motivational Interviewing Zoom training to a group of peer wellness coaches from Tennessee. Folks were coming back into the main ‘room’ from virtual breakout rooms having completed complex reflections practice...
Baby Steps!
Reading Time: < 1 minutesWhen I think about “Baby Steps,” I can’t help but recall Bill Murray in the movie What About Bob, when he has the goldfish around his neck in a jar and is shuffling down the street muttering to himself, “Baby steps to the market, baby...
What’s Empathy Got to Do With It?
Reading Time: 2 minutesEmpathy is commonly defined as understanding and sharing the feelings of another. So first, we need to understand what is going on with another. This means slowing down to notice, drop our agendas, and truly listen. Listen for what’s beneath...
Motivational Interviewing in COVID Conversations
Reading Time: 4 minutesA friend of mine shared with me a conversation she had with a neighbor about his choices around COVID exposure. Let me set the scene: This friend does some caretaking for her elderly neighbor, walking his dog and other things that require...
Hillary Bolter