What’s the relationship between holding clients accountable and Motivational Interviewing?

Last week, I wrote about how MI can be useful in talking with clients about ‘accountability’ to program rules (here’s the link!).

Today, my focus is on client accountability to the goals clients set!

I gotta break down the work accountable first. 

What does it mean to “hold accountable?” 

Accountability is about responsibility.

So can we really hold someone responsible for their own goals? Aren’t they their goals anyhow?

No, we can’t “hold people accountable” in the literal sense of the word. 

Using Motivational Interviewing isn’t about forcing people to do things. It’s about supporting them in cultivating their own motivation for change. And if we start pressuring someone to change, it backfires almost ALL of the time.

But we CAN apply the spirit and skills of Motivational Interviewing to support client autonomy, cultivate goals that clients own, & reflect and inquire about the discrepancies that come up between what they say they want and what they are doing. 

We CAN support them by offering empathy, partnership, and curiosity throughout the process. 

We don’t want to protect our clients from the discomfort they experience from the decisions they are making. That discomfort can be motivation for change!

Here are 4 tips to keep clients responsible for their own change!

1. Remember that clients have ultimate autonomy over their decisions. Plus, if they own their goals, they are more likely to follow through. We can remember this, or even say it out loud to a client as a reminder. “Whatever you decide to do is up to you!” Taking too much responsibility for client goals or progress is a common pitfall!
2. Cultivate goals that clients own! Have you perhaps gotten too involved with setting goals for clients? Made assumptions? Underestimated their ambivalence? Setting bite-sized attainable goals is essential!
3. Get curious! When clients fall short of meeting their own goals, get curious with them about what is going on there! We can utilize open-ended questions about their goals, values, and motivations for change as well as what is getting in the way!  Do the goals need to be broken down into more attainable action steps? We can also utilize reflective listening to help a client hear what they are saying and wanting.
4. Develop discrepancy! Is what you are doing getting you what you want? It is essential we develop discrepancies with clients in the context of an empathetic, compassionate relationship. Elicit (ask) about their take on their progress toward their goals. Listen for the differences between what it is they say they want, and what they are doing. Reflect this to clients, and inquire their thoughts on it. We can invite in their own critical thinking skills about their goals and progress!

Motivational Interviewing Tip of the Week: Taking too much responsibility for client goals or progress is a common pitfall of helping professionals. How exhausting! Another pitfall is buffering clients from the discomfort that may arise when they aren’t doing what they need to move toward the change they want! As Motivational Interviewers, our role is to harness that discomfort to channel it into motivation for change!

Watch my full video here!