Egan’s Stage I illustrates three ways (tasks) in which counsellors can help clients
understand themselves; their problem situations and their unused opportunities with a
view to managing them more effectively. The aim of this stage in therapy is for
counsellors to help clients spell out the issues, concerns, difficulties or problems they
are facing. The three tasks which counsellors use are activities that help clients spell out
their concerns as clearly as possible with neither too little nor too much detail. This
stage focuses on the client’s current situation and helps in building a pleasant helping
relationship between the counsellor and the client thus enabling the client to identify and
understand the problems and concentrate on the positive aspects of the situation. At
this initial stage client have a confused approach, therefore, the helper utilizes his skills
in enlightening new and positive angles of the situation suppressing the negative and
distorted thinking of the client and supports the client in developing productive
methodologies to handle the situation and overcome problem (Egan,2010).
At the very beginning of a session with a client, it is essential for the helper to establish
a working alliance. This means developing a collaborative working relationship with the
client. When mock therapy session1 starts, the helper tries to establish a working
relationship by asking the client what she does as well as by sharing what he does i.e.
being a lecturer. Once a working alliance has been established, counsellors need toi
help clients tell their stories. Helping clients tell their stories involves using a mixture of
tuning in, listening, showing empathy, probing and summarizing to help clients share
their points of views as well as helping clients discuss their decision. In mock therapy
session 1, the helper uses a variety of probes to get the client to tell her story; The
probes used include questions to get a clearer view of the story. The helper asks
questions like “tell me why you are here” as well as summarizing for the client to go
deeper into what her concerns might be. Initially the client pointed out her concerns as
academically related and that she struggles to manage time. However, through probing
of the helper, she starts opening about underlying family dynamics which are her real
concern/ problem situation.
Once counsellors help clients tell their story, the next task is to help clients reframe their
stories, develop new perspectives and constructive ways of acting. This involves
counsellors/helpers using communication skills to help clients work through their blind
spots. This task is essential to help clients uncover hidden concerns, clarify vague
issues, add important details, explore clients’ hesitancies, see their problems from a
more constructive perspective, add important information and details that are being left
out, find unused strengths and resources, and spot and explore opportunities buried in
or masked by problem situations. Counsellors can also help clients participate in the
helping process fully by challenging them to own their problems and unused potential,
inviting clients to state their problems as solvable. Talk about issues – problems,
opportunities, goals, commitment, strategies, plans, actions – when they are reluctant to
do so, develop new perspectives on themselves, others and the world when they prefer
to cling to distortions; Review possibilities, critique them, develop goals and commit
themselves to reasonable agendas when they would rather continue wallowing in their
problems; Search for ways of getting what they want, instead of just talking about what
they would prefer, spell out specific plans instead of taking a scattered, hit-or-miss
approach to change, persevere in the implementation of plans when they are tempted to
give up, review what is and what is not working in their pursuit of change ‘out there.
On the mock therapy session, the counsellor helped surface new perspectives to the
client, that she as a child she didn’t have much of a choice. Her mother may have
indirectly forced onto her the responsibility of taking care of her little sister by not being
there. The client goes further into detail of the concerns telling the ‘real story’. The client
comes to see her problem situation in a more constructive manner i.e. she starts to
realize that the reason behind her trying to make everyone happy is because might be a
perfectionist and the underlying fear of conflict. While still on ‘the real story’, the client
learns while telling her story to the counsellor that she has been there for others who
needed her but is hardly there for herself and this causes her ethical conflict within.
The third task in which counsellors can help clients understand themselves and their
problem situations includes counsellors helping clients stay focused on the key issues/
concerns that will make a difference in their lives. At one point in mock therapy session
1, the client gives the helper feedback by indicating that she would like to work on
personal coping skills and deal with her matters at hand. She also indicates that a key
issue she seems to have is related to her perfectionism . While helping clients focus on
the key issues or concerns they have, it is essential to begin helping clients with the
issue that seems to bring them most pain. This is includes helping them use their hurt
as an incentive to work on their problems. It is also important that as a helper you begin
with issues clients are see most important and are willing to work on them. The client in
the mock therapy session sees her perfectionism and her need to help others every
time as important issues to work on. At the end of the first session, the helper made the
client summarize what they did in the session to make her see which issues if handled
well would make a difference.
References
Co, T. D. (2018, October 10). Intermediate Counselling Skills “Egan’s Model.” The
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