Keep Talking...

       In Chapter 4, the one thing that stood out most to me was part of a paragraph on page 105 of the textbook: “Awareness of diversity in life experience is critical if we are to recognize uniqueness and specialness in each individual. If you define yourself as White American, Canadian, or Australian and you think of others as the only people who are multicultural, you need to rethink your awareness. All of us are multicultural beings with varying and singular acculturation experiences.” (Ivey et. al., 2023)*. I absolutely simply think of myself as a White American, and I consider no other aspects of my culture. I’ve always felt like, since I don’t know much about my family’s history or where we’re from, I don’t have much culture of which to be aware. I am slowly starting to wrap my head around the many things that culture encapsulates and beginning to recognize my own culture in limited ways. Another reason I think I’ve never considered much about my own culture ...

  For me, the biggest idea in this chapter was the first that was presented. Attending behavior includes so many facets that are vital to the counseling relationship. As the text states, attending is the foundation of listening (Ivey, et. al., p. 65). There are so many subtle ways that a counselor can communicate attention to our clients; one must be very aware of each movement one makes, how one sits, where one’s hands are, and this list goes on. Any observable behavior, whether conscious or unconscious, has the potential to affect a client. Clients know whether or not counselors are invested in knowing them and their stories long before the need for reflective, active listening has arisen. As I was reading this section, I was thinking to myself that I tend to lean back in my chair, and I need to become more aware of this and make an effort to present myself as more actively attending to my client. Honestly, I am still struggling with the whole idea of having a specific style an...