I went to see my counselor again. This time I was much more open-ended in my perspective and expectations. I had a small discussion of what I wanted to talk to him about, slightly prepared conversation about me overreacting at times. That was a good conversation and a portion of what we had to talk about.

The majority of our conversation revolved around asking questions. Asking many questions. Good questions. The best questions really. Questions about where you are at. Right now. Not asking about where you are going or the future or what comes next. Asking questions about where you are at right now and allowing you to work through the implications of where you are at. That then will dictate where you go. Usually, this ends up being somewhat similar to where I think people should go. However, it is not for me to decide where people should go. What I must do is listen intently and ask questions about people and where they are at based on what they are telling me. I do love listening.

Based on what I understand about the conversation, I get to listen, analyze, and ask. The hard part for me is going to be not asking and leading. Simply crafting masterful questions about where people are at in the moment and allowing them to lead the conversation to the next step to where we are going. Ultimately, I am listening to them as they are brought to a place where healing and wholeness is possible.

When was the last time someone asked you about how you’re doing?

When will be the next time you talk to someone about how you’re doing?

How well do you do at asking someone about where they are at, not where you think they should go?

Listening,

–JT