A young adult friend told me of his anxiety and frustration on a demanding new job at which he earnestly wanted to excel. He said that the level of responsibility to supervise other people overwhelmed him. I asked him what sentence he could think of that would most clearly express his frustration at the moments he felt it. What would capture the overwhelmed feeling in a nutshell? He thought a moment, then answered, "I look at all I'm supposed to do and think, "It's too big for me."

That statement gave me an idea. I knew something about this young man and his interests. I had heard of his expertise in technical rock climbing, which required him to claw his way up sheer cliffs hundreds of feet high. I asked, "When you are out rock climbing, do you ever look up from the base of a cliff and say, "That's too big for me'?" He instantly answered, "Never! I always know I can make any climb I attempt, just by putting out more energy at the tough places."

I next asked, "How can you apply the more-energy principle to the jobs that seem too big for you at work?" My friend paused a thoughtful couple of seconds, then mused, "The more-energy principle-it's really the same thing, isn't it? I mean I already have in me the attitude that I can handle hard rock climbs. Work is just another rock climb. I can use the more-energy principle there, too!"

Weeks later at our next contact, he reported to me that the phrase more-energy principle had repeatedly boosted his confidence when he faced some task he initially felt was too big for him. He said that he also calmed himself before stressful interviews by telling himself, "This is just another tough move on a rock climb."

THE CONCEPT. This example illustrates the basic tenet of any cognitive therapy approach. To put it in biblical terms, we are transformed by the renewing of our minds (Rom. 12:2). Clients often indicate mind renewals by remarking after potent therapeutic interventions, "I never thought of it that way before." These comments inevitably accompany a release of creative energy within clients. They seem a bit more alive, hence the term vitality therapy. This book teaches techniques that arouse and unlock fragments of aliveness in a client. They initiate momentum in positive directions quite opposite to the futile "stuckness" generally dominating the attitudes of a troubled person.

Vitality-therapy techniques can equip even nonprofessional counselors to accomplish small mind-renewals quickly. Many situations that part-time counselors face impose extreme time limitations. An emergency telephone call to a crisis center may allow a counselor only twenty minutes to make a strategic difference in a caller's thinking. Similarly, physicians often hear weighty emotional problems from patients who mention them incidentally in the midst of the doctor's tightly scheduled day. Of course, these techniques can also enhance the effectiveness of a professional counselor's work, which may involve a series of appointments over weeks or months.

 

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