Paul Burke Training & Consulting Group

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Motivational Interviewing Training. Hosting Helpful Conversations

Motivational Interviewing training for communication

Over the past 12 years, we’ve had many organizations ask us if we could provide an “MI-type workshop” for non-clinical and various client-support staff.. In exploring the need behind such requests, we discovered that an “effective communication skills” workshop, based on the key principles, processes, and skills associated with MI might be very useful – especially in cases where “full-blown” MI training was not needed.

We responded by developing a very dynamic and highly experiential workshop called “Hosting Helpful Conversations”. We begin with an overview of some of the key MI ideas that influence the way that useful conversations are structured (hosted) in order to support clients who are trying to make various specific changes. We also help staff to understand what they can do to prevent “push back” in a conversation. Participants are given lots of opportunity to practice creating forward momentum in conversation rather than enabling the common problem of “spinning in circles” or “drifting backwards” (away from the intent of the conversation).

The workshop includes opportunity to discuss, explore, and practice with various principles of helpful conversations that can be applied to actual case scenarios (generated by learners). Examples of common “communication traps” are also provided to provide a contrast with the helpful methods highlighted in this workshop.

In this 3-day (21 hour) workshop, participants will learn:

  • How to decide what parts of the conversation to focus on, and what to avoid when hosting a helpful conversations
  • How to show clients that you can listen, and also understand!
  • Two easy ways to host a “strengths focused conversation”

Where Do We Offer Training In Canada?

Alberta, AB, Saskatchewan, SK, Manitoba, MB, Ontario, ON, New Brunswick, NB, Nova Scotia, NS, Newfoundland, NL, Prince Edward Island, PE, British Columbia, BC, Yukon, YK, Northwest Territories, NT, Nunavut, NU.