The Ways Forward eNewsletter provides you with monthly articles.

Here are previous newsletters with past articles.

	Transformation from Family Violence: Working with Clients' Strengths and Resources By Colleen Gray With the incidence of reported family violence on the rise, crisis centres and therapists must continually assess the services that offer help to these women and families. The question is how we can provide this help in the most effective manner?  >>> read more
	Dignity Consulting the Inner Compass By Colleen Gray March 8th is recognised across the world as International Women’s Day (IWD), a time to celebrate the changes that have brought equality and recognition to women thus far, and to reflect on the many contributions that women make to society. >>> read more
	Being Blissful or Pissful in 2008 You either get the results you seek or the explanations for why you didn’t succeed. Explanations are the booby prize. By Colleen Gray In the moment between the old year ending and the New Year beginning, we raise our glasses and blink our eyes, and the year that we have known disappears. In the days and weeks that follow, there is opportunity to take stock of what has been achieved, to marvel at how much has transpired, and to regret the dreams that didn’t happen. It is a time for validation and recrimination. New Year resolutions abound. This year I will succeed, give up smoking, find a balance between work and home, or fulfil the passions that lurk within. >>> read more
	The Art of Asking Solution Questions “The art of being wise is the art of knowing what to overlook” By Colleen Gray Have you ever had the thought that life should be easier, that there must be more to living than work, death and taxes? If so you aren’t alone. “Life wasn’t meant to be easy” but “does it need to be so hard?” rings true. Despite our best efforts to achieve happy and successful lives, life is often experienced as one damned problem after another. As products of our upbringing and conditioning, we often repeat the ways of being that we have learnt, even perfected over time - even when those ways are no longer working for us. The way we want to be is freer, happier, less stressed, more confident, loved and successful – what is missing is how to experience these emotions. >>> read more
	Stress Management - A Solution Approach by Robert B McNeilly MBBS

Stress as a phenomenon has become increasingly taking our attention. But what is stress?
What differentiates stress from tension, depression, stretched, overwhelmed, bored, uncertain, anxious, sad, adapting to change? Can stress be relieved, or just managed? Can it be prevented? How can we manage stress? Is it more than eating good food, taking good exercise, and thinking good thoughts?  >>> read more

Rethinking Problems into Solutions by Colleen Gray

Have you ever found yourself wishing that you could solve your problems more easily? Einstein said that you can’t solve a problem with the same level of thinking that created it. Nonetheless, most of us stubbornly try. When our efforts don’t achieve the desired result, frustration sets in. We then increase our effort, and in time the solution that we are applying becomes the problem itself. >>> read more

Conversations for Change How not to turn reasonable people into difficult People by Colleen Gray

What makes a reasonable person difficult? Whether you are a manager, parent, partner in a relationship, teacher, coach or member of a team, you will inevitably come across reasonable people who do not respond well to your best efforts and intentions to introduce changes.
 >>> read more

Moods, Emotions & the Body in Counselling by Dr Rob McNeilly

The world renowned authority Maturana says that emotions are domains of action or predispositions to action, inviting us to a whole world of additional observations and actions. By asking "what actions are we predisposed to take in any particular emotion?" we have the opportunity to make observations about the way emotions are "done" so they are less nebulous, and by asking "What actions would generate a more desired emotion?" we can provide a direct connection with the possibility of a client experiencing this emotion.
>>> read more

Mentoring ~ What Really Works by Colleen Gray

There is currently much debate and discussion about the reforms that are occurring within the educational, welfare and industrial landscapes of Australia. Mentoring is increasingly being promoted as a solution which provides a way of helping people to achieve the benchmarks that are being set. >>> read more

How to be the impression we want to make in the world by Colleen Gray

Have you ever found yourself wishing you were able to handle your emotions with control and confidence so that you could present a more confident and professional “you” to the world?
At the most crucial and challenging times in our lives, we find that the emotions we are experiencing can overwhelm us or undermine our efforts. Presenting a good impression under these circumstances is a way of being that doesn’t always come easily. Our traditional way of learning, with its focus on intellectual and practical abilities, doesn’t equip us to understand how to be effective in our emotional lives.
>>> read more

Change Solutions - Resilience Works by Colleen Gray

Change is often introduced because 'the old ways aren't working' or we need to 'to work smarter and harder', 'update our systems' or 'improve things around here'. Though valid, these reasons are easily personalised negatively by jittery staff, who are accustomed to and even comfortable with the way things were. Let's face it; most of us find it easier to keep doing what we know rather than doing something different. When people insist, our natural inclination is to resist.
>>> read more

Doing More of What Works by Colleen Gray

In our quest to apply our skills effectively and make a difference to the clients we want to help, it is necessary to ask ourselves "Is the therapy I am doing helpful to the client?" and "Is the client achieving a change in outcomes?"

We cannot assume that having a counselling qualification and becoming a practitioner will magically make us effective and competent practitioners. Somehow in our practice and engagement we need to find a fit between the kind of therapy we do and what the client needs. >>> read more

Learning to do What Works with Clients by Colleen Gray

Creating Professional Effectiveness doesn't have to be so much hard work? In fact you may notice that the harder you try, the harder it becomes.

Like most people who desire professional success in your life, you may find it difficult to decide how to it right and how much effort to put into it so that you can maintain your work and life balance.

Helping people be more successful in their lives doesn't require complex theories. Solution oriented approaches which focus attention on doing what works provide an elegant and useful roadmap to being more successful in our lives, and a way of ensuring situations and issues aren't more complex than they need to be. >>> read more

Becoming Client Directed and Outcome Informed (CDOI)  by Colleen Gray

Therapists are increasingly facing calls to demonstrate that the therapeutic services which they are funded to provide do indeed help clients to achieve desired changes and improved quality of life. These calls for accountability are a worldwide phenomenon.

Funding bodies and clients are insisting that to be paid, therapists and the systems of care in which they operate must “deliver the goods”. The consumers of our services are demanding results. Accountability is the watchword of the day and “return on investment” the guiding metric. Like it or not, psychotherapy has become a commodity. Those footing the bill want proof of the effectiveness and value of the psychotherapy services they are purchasing. (Miller and Duncan)  >>> read more

Resiliency - The Change Solution by Colleen Gray

Today's organisational environment produces ongoing changes that many people are unprepared for. When change is imminent, people are often taken out of their comfort zones and may experience unpleasant emotional reactions such as uncertainty, fear, trepidation and resentment.

These key stressors are likely when people perceive they are not being well informed, when they are uncertain about the impact of the changes, or when they are not confident they will cope or adapt.  >>> read more

Workplace Relationships - Solutions for Success by Colleen Gray

We live in a world of constant organisational change. These changes challenge us to rethink our ways of developing effective organisational relationships. When people in organisations develop and enjoy effective relationships, they are more likely to perform reliably and competently together. At the organisational level, this often translates into success or failure and may be the difference between making a profit and going broke. >>> read more

Ten Tips for Developing Effective Trust by Colleen Gray

In the real world success requires us to establish and maintain trust in our relationships, and it is worth reflecting on how to achieve this. I continue to be impressed by the work of Julio Olalla (Newfield Network) and have integrated much of his wisdom which I will share with you. Here are ten simple tips to consider... >>> read more

Strategies for doing What Works in Therapy by Colleen Gray

Recently I was discussing the high rates of relationship breakdowns and depression with a therapist colleague. We covered many issues, including the challenge of being an effective therapist and how best to do that.

As a therapist I support clients to negotiate and deal with the plethora of emotional pains, suffering, relationship breakdowns and depression symptoms they come with. At this time the emerging reflection and questions for me are how to engage with clients, facilitate a trusting therapeutic alliance and deliver effective therapy outcomes for the client so that I truly help to make a difference. >>> read more

Solutions for a Toxic Workplace by Colleen Gray

All workplaces have the potential to be satisfying environments where individuals enjoy going to work, apply their skills and knowledge, achieve outcomes, make a difference and continue to learn and develop their professional aspirations.

In a world where the combination of downsizing trends, working smarter and technological change has placed enormous pressure on managements and workers to maintain levels of service and productivity, the term toxic workplace has been coined to describe work environments which are unhealthy to work in. How to negotiate and survive them is becoming an increasing challenge for many ... >>> read more

2006 A Different Solution – The change you need to have by Colleen Gray

Acknowledging, valuing and honouring one's achievements and personal strivings can produce a sense of gratitude and a wiser perspective on how to be in the present and how to plan for the future. So I am pleased to offer you an exercise, as an opportunity for you to review your past year, observe how you are traveling in the present and consider ways to negotiate the coming year with a renewed sense of wisdom and gratitude ... >>> read more

Solutions for Building Effective Relationships by Colleen Gray

All couples go through challenging times: some survive and thrive, and others don’t. The question of what’s missing rather than what’s the problem or what needs fixing, changes the focus from blame to recalling or learning in a delightfully different and more useful direction, as well as generating a mood of lightness and openness to what is yet to unfold. Plus ... 10 ways to rebuild an effective relationship or keep it on track. >>> read more
 

The Emerging Language of Emotions and The Body by Robert B McNeilly MBBS Therapists and other human beings know about emotions and their importance. We all know that we have a body. But what are emotions? What is the relevance of the body? How can we integrate them into therapy? ... >>> read more Strategies for Building Trust - Keys for Personal and Professional Effectiveness Trust requires a cooperative effort. No one can function in isolation. As we live in a relational world, we are required to interact with others in most aspects of our daily lives. How we trust is influenced by ... >>> read more

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