STOREEZ

Decision making in leadership: 6 Thinking Hats

Yes, starting to blog again

 

Over time I have realised how decision making can be a more complex process than what I initially perceived it to be. The bigger the leadership role we undertake, the more our decisions might have far reaching implications on the organisation, and more importantly the people under our charge. Many times we also grapple with conversations about whether our past decisions were "good" or "bad". Too often we also judge our decisions with the use of hindsight: telling ourselves: if only I did this instead of that, without realising the multitude of possibilities that are present at any given time. Regretting our past decisions may not make sense because they assume that the "alternative" direction would be better, though the truth is we never know. 

Narrative ideas in Supervision - Social Work Supervision Seminar 2019

Here are the resources for my presentation on Narrative ideas in Supervision

My presentation slides:

Download Narrative Social Work Supervision

 

The Hero's journey can be a tool to support the new social worker in understanding what drew her into practice, and the responses she is taking to the challenges that inevitably come in the work we do. 

 

Download Hero's journey_Social Work Supervision

 

The Supervisor life certificate is a tool for us to reflect on our own values and histories that drew us as supervisors

Download Supervisor Life Certificate

 

A yet unpublished paper - do let me know if you want to circulate this

Download Supervisor Life Certificate & Journey Metaphor

 

 

A Narrative Inquiry for “Sparkling Moments”

 

Using Narrative Methods in Working with Patients Experiencing ESRD

 

Here are the resources for presentation on using Narrative methods in working with Patients experiencing ESRD (End Stage Renal Dialysis)

Presentation

Download Narrative Methods of working with Patients With ESRD

Hero's Journey Template

Download Hero's journey_Chronic Illness

 

Bringing Forth the Narratives of Strengths in Interviews (Epston and Ingamells, 2012)

 

The Non-Suicide Contract

 

The practice of getting our clients to fill up a non-suicide contract is common in risk management work. Whenever there is a risk of suicide, we tend to be compelled to get our clients to fill up this form, which states that they would not be attempting suicide as it is illegal in Singapore. Often, there is a generic form that social workers would be able to use. 

My grouse with the non-suicide contract is that it seems to be a practice that is more focused on "covering our backsides" as opposed to ensuring that our clients are safe. We work towards filling up the forms, and then develop a false sense of safety as long as the form is filled up, because we feel that we have done our part. If anything were to happen, at least we can show others that a non-suicide contract had already been done between the social worker and the client. 

Presentation @ Ramallah, Palestine

We had the chance to present the Life Certificate methodology in grief work in Ramallah Palestine, at the Second International/Palestinian Narrative Congress. The Congress, with the theme "Strengthening Stories of Survival and Resistance", was a joint collaboration between the Treatment and Rehabilitation Center for Victims of Torture (TRC), and Dulwich Centre Foundation International.

 

 

The following script is the presentation we did:

Crafting Alternative Stories about Others

 

It is easy for us to start dismissing and disliking people. We do it by ascribing labels on behaviours we find upsetting. The problem with labels is that, once placed, we start to be blind to the range of behaviours or state- of-being that lie outside the label's "sphere of influence" (for want of a better word).

Labels can be infectious. Although we tell ourselves that we are going to know the person first before following the label, we are inevitably affected. The moment we see a behaviour that may fit the label, the person's future in our mental schema is set. Perhaps the first step is to acknowledge that labelling occurs as opposed to telling ourselves that we would not be influenced by it.

I am no stranger to this experience, and still very much struggle to see people beyond their labels. However, in my personal experiences, some of my greatest friendships have been made with people whom I had disliked and labelled, but stumbled into accidental ways of knowing different aspects of the person that connected with me.

 

As I reflected on this accidental turning points in these meaningful and enduring relationships, I thought about possible meaningful relationships I could have made with others who were dismissed by the labels I made of them. How then, can we intentionally make effort towards opening up possibilities for meaningful relationships in life situations where labelling is entrenched?

Mary Heath's Tools for Critical Thinking

In our current state with the profligacy of social media. we are more connected than ever. We find ourselves plugged into this superinformation highway where we may assume that facts are quickly accessible. The ability for any individual blogger, news organisation, or interest group to utilise these platforms is rendered relatively barrier-free with the various affordable ways where ideas can be shared and disseminated. Information and research can be unreliable and one sided, even if published by reputable sources.

I had the opportunity to attend a talk by Mary Heath in Australia many months ago who discussed how we can reflect on various dimensions of critical thinking when considering any claim, in the hope of living our lives ethically. Critical thinking serves the function of allowing us to expand our understandings of any piece of information within the various multiple layers of social and power relationships. 

A Strengths Based Model of Practice

Dennis Saleebey (2006) talks about how  the strength based approach is more of a perspective when working with clients, as opposed to being specific model of working with clients. A perspective he argues, is a position we take when looking or trying to understand any experienced phenomena. In the latest edition of his book, he identifies 5 main principles that guide the standpoint of the strengths perspective: 

1. Every individual, group, family, and community has strengths
2. Difficult and traumatic experiences can cause injury and pain, but they may create new opportunities and challenges
3. Work from the assumption that we can never know the full capacity of the ability to grow and change, and take the aspirations of individuals, groups and communities seriously
4. We should collaborate with clients towards helping them achieve their goals 
5. Every environment has resources that can be tapped upon
6. Understand the context of behaviours and situations to draw strengths; and caring takes precedence over technique when working with people. 

Client Positions

Discussed by Insoo Kim Berg (1994), social workers frequently come across different client positions which would affect how they would go about in terms of engaging their clients towards collaborated goal setting. Especially in settings where clients are referred by a third party, it is easy for the social worker to dismiss a client as unmotivated, or uncooperative. However thinking about the different positions our clients approach us in would assist in developing more empathy as to why clients may be reluctant to see us, and also provides some ideas about the focus of our interventions. 

1st Session Structure

 

The following 5 stage model reflects a general guideline I use when meeting clients for the first session. Like all checklists, they are not meant to be followed strictly but just as a rough guide when trying to engage our clients.