My blog about the

workshop and a copy

of the slides.
www.iamdrshort.com

Dan Short, Ph.D.

Scottsdale, Arizona
 Neuroscience Research

• Neuroplasticity: The brain's ability to

reorganize itself by forming new neural
connections throughout life.
• Michael Merzenich: studies of
neuroplasticity show that the brain not only
needs to be engaged in continual problem
solving but that it is most likely to release
neuromodulators when it can set up the
conditions under which it solves problems
 Flow: a state of consciousness characterized by complete
immersion in a specific problem solving task, without the effort
of typical conscious problem solving
 Beeper study: Csikszentmihalyi found that when teen’s
energies were focused on a challenging task, they tended to be
more upbeat, less unhappy
 Happiness: “The best moments in our lives are not the passive,
receptive, relaxing times… The best moments usually occur if a
person’s body or mind is stretched to its limits in a voluntary
effort to accomplish something difficult and
worthwhile.” Csíkszentmihályi (1990, p. 3)
 Learning: "Flow also happens when a person's skills are fully
involved in overcoming a challenge that is just about
manageable, so it acts as a magnet for learning new skills and
increasing challenges."
 During flow there is a perceived balance
between challenge & ability
 Flow is a dynamic state, stretching forward
between anxiety & boredom
Engineered to solve a lifetime of problems
 Core Assumptions

• Perpetuity: Happiness and wellbeing are bi-products of

an ongoing process of successful problem-solving.
“Problem-solving is like breathing, you do not want it to
stop”
• Efficacy: The better the problem-solving skills, the
healthier the individual--more likely to thrive & seek
opportunity
• Transformation: Therapy is transformational only if new
ability is acquired that has relevance for the future. The
presenting problem is used as a vehicle for conveying
greater problem-solving skill
(Restorative care is not bad, it just ignores opportunity)
 Problem solving is a process that
involves the intentional activation of
various mental resources, which in turn
leads to mental & physical growth

The more you engage in creative problem solving,

the more capable you become at problem solving.

Group Discussion: What is the difference between

creative vs. stereotypic problem solving?
 Michael Merzenich
• “One of the lessons of brain research is that
stereotypy is the enemy. You really want to
exercise the brain with a variety of movements, a variety
of actions, a variety of challenges.”
• What the brain really wants: to be able to set up the
conditions by which it can solve the task in almost any
circumstance (i.e., creative problem solving)
• “The more richer, the more varied the possibilities of
your movement landscapes, the more powerful you
are, and the more imaginative you are, and the more
fun you are having.”
 Rules of Engagement

Therapists should
engage and work with
any mental phenomena
associated with the
process of problem
solving:
• Thoughts/Beliefs/Goals
• Emotions/Attitudes
• Motivation/Instinct
• Memory
• Attention
• Experience of Time
"I don't have to know what your
problem is for you to correct it."
― Milton Erickson, 1979
The burden of responsibility for all personal problem solving
remains with the client.

Group Discussion:
Client: Personal problem solving
vs.
Therapist: Clinical problem solving
 Therapeutic Problem-Solving

• The patient has a personal

problem that requires greater
problem-solving ability
• The therapist has clinical
problems: the idiosyncrasy of
the client’s circumstance,
formation of the collaborative
alliance, resistance, lying,
transference, etc.
• The problem solving skills modeled by the therapist
simultaneously serve the needs of the patient & practitioner
• We do not do something “to” the patient (intervention),
we work “with” the patient (collaborative process)
 • Problem Solving Model:
• Disease Model: Patient is
promotion of a person’s ability
dependent on a doctor to
identify pathology and to address problems of daily
perform the appropriate living and personal welfare
intervention • Collaborative Process:
• Medical Intervention: stimulate the mental
therapist action is resources needed to better
treatment, an “exogenous accomplish an action, task, or
agent,” something done to function
remove symptoms
• Transformation: the
• Cure: aim at restorative
presenting problem is used an
care, a return to a state of
pre-incident or “normal” opportunity to increase
functioning problem solving ability for a
lifetime of solving problems
 “Keep in mind, the client is
listening with a conscious mind,
an unconscious mind, and an
emotional mind."
Do not direct a task to a part of the mind that is not suited for
that task. And, do not ignore parts of the mind that are
essential to daily problem solving.

Group Discussion:
How do you engage the emotional mind, vs. a
conscious mind, vs. an unconscious mind?
 Emotional Reason

Conscious Unconscious
Reasoning Reasoning

Emergent insight and intuition

(Subconscious)

All innate mental resources are valuable for problem solving and should be used
 Emotional Reason: Use emotional process work or
reframing to shift the emotional perspective, down-
regulate overly intense emotions, or express
suppressed emotions.
 Conscious Reason: Counseling or “sounding board”
is used to assist planning, goal setting, evaluation of
outcomes, decisions based on probability.
 Unconscious Reason: Hypnosis or experiential
activities are used to access greater depth of
knowledge, increased perception, speed and ease of
implementation.
 Working with the emotional mind
 Working with the conscious mind
 Working with the unconscious mind

Emotional
Reason
Conscious Unconscious
Reasoning Reasoning
 emotional reason is biased
 this part of the mind focuses thought and
action on a single function and eliminates
distraction
 must know the emotion that is active and its
function in order to speak in a way that seems
reasonable (to the client)
Group Discussion:
Which emotions are most common in therapy?
What function does each emotion serve?
 Fear: to avoid
 Anger: to conquer
 Sadness: to keep
 Anxiety: to be aware
 Despair: to seek help
 Shame: to conform
 Desire: to consume
 Confusion/Surprise: to learn
 Explore Narratives: “What happened? How did it start?
How did it end? What did you see, feel, smell? Give me a
little more detail.” or share narratives, “Let me tell you
about a client who…”
 Discuss Triggers: “What makes you most emotional?”
“Under what conditions is the emotion more or less
intense?” “Do certain words/sights/sounds trigger
strong emotion?”
 Somatic Focusing: “Where in your body do you
experience that emotion?” “Describe the sensation.”
“What is happening now, in your body?”
 conscious reason is progressive
 this part of the mind organizes change (it is
attracted to novelty)
 must know what beliefs are active and build on
them in ways that are interesting, compelling,
surprising (or in some cases shocking)—
Following your first statement, the client should
instantly respond with “yes!”
Group Discussion:
Which rigid beliefs are most common in therapy?
How can this belief be used therapeutically?
 Example 1: I don’t deserve to be happy.
 “Do you believe you deserve to suffer?”
 “What would make you suffer most? How about buying nice clothes for
yourself or new furniture or going on a date? Which of these would make
you suffer most?”
 Example 2: No one really loves me.
 “You will not trust anyone who claims to love you.”
 “So if someone were to tell you that he loves you but you are incapable of
feeling love, then you would know not to believe anything he just said.”
 Example 3: I can’t handle it. If this happens I will go insane.
 “If this happens you will forever be changed?”
 “Which parts of your personality need to change? What would you have
to be “crazy” to do but that would probably be good for you?”
 Introduction of Novelty: offer new information, new
perspectives, new challenges, new choices, etc.
 Goal Setting: select goals which the subject is on the
verge of being able to accomplish, just need more time
and practice, replace theory driven goals with goals that
have a high subjective value
 Variability: “You get to solve this problem in a way that
is interesting to you. You get to use your unique skills
and abilities.” Examine many different routes for
arriving at the same destination “How can you get from the waiting room
to my office?”
  unconscious reason is conservative
 this part of the mind seeks to protect all other
mental systems or parts of the body (it is
attracted to familiarity & habit)
 must know what the unconscious is seeking to
protect and send a signal that you will assist with
protection of that area
Group Discussion:
Which automatic defenses are most common in therapy?
What types of protection do clients need?
 Protection from emotional pain
 (aortic dissection)
 Protection from negative ideas
 (highly suggestibles)
 Protection from toxic memories
 (decompensation following recall)
 Protection from others
 (has been abused)
 Protection from self
 (suicidal tendencies)
 Protection from reality
 (learns of her affair and stabs the man to death)
 Imaginative Involvement: “See yourself [performing the
action]. See how natural it is for you. No effort, just
enjoyment.” or “Imagine you have all the ability you
need. Pretend you are doing this with ease.”
 Automaticity: “You do not need to make it happen. Just
wait and see what occurs spontaneously.”
 Positive Outcome Expectancy (Suggestion):
 Clt. “I just needed someone to believe in me.”
 Thrp., “Yes! That’s right! You’ve got it! The rest will come
automatically. Your unconscious will figure it out.”
 Ask your unconscious a crucial question, then do other
things, with the strong expectation that the answer will
come to you (incubation)
 Follow automatic association, share stories and
analogies that “spontaneously” come to awareness.
 Speak slowly, do not rush yourself while responding to
the client, follow a non-linear thought pattern
 Replace self-consciousness with intense observation
and focus on the client’s face and mircro-movements
or expressions (external focus)
 Focus your attention on immediate process and the
exercise of skill more so than on future outcomes (do
not worry about therapy “failing”)
 Immediate Moment: Small daily pleasures, recognition of a
job well-done, etc. The actual experience tends to last no
more than 7 seconds, the emotional after-glow lasts 7-10
minutes.
 Reminiscing: the memory of past pleasures, without
negative details, the best moments of one’s life should be
relived at least once.
 Eager Anticipation: a mixture of hope , dreaming, and
seeking out challenges. The outcome does not have to be
realized for the joy to be legitimate.
 “1/3rd of all happiness can be found in the immediate moment,
another 1/3rd in the past, and another 1/3rd in the future.”
 Immediacy: Translate clinical goals into an immediate action
performed during therapy, using role-play, trance, or
interpersonal authenticity (therapist as a surrogate)
 Past: what has been learned? when were impossible odds
overcome? how did you survive that? how else could you feel
about that event?
 Future: what are your dreams, what do you hope to achieve?
envision yourself in the future, happy and successful. deliver
a message from the future you to the you of today.
 Tell the group which mental resource you are
most comfortable working with
 emotional * conscious * unconscious).
 Invite the group to help you create a plan for
how to be more inclusive of the mental
domain you are least familiar working with
 Tell the group which dimension of time you
tend to focus on. Then create a plan for
working in other time domains.
 Being engaged in life means actively searching for
opportunities to exercise conscious & unconscious
problem solving resources.
 Therapy should be collaborative & organic, such
that both the client and therapist learn more about
their own problem solving abilities.
 Transformational Problem Solving is aligned with
the goals and values of the positive psychology
movement, producing joy & greater personal
empowerment.
Dan Short, 2010 Dan Short, Betty Alice Mailing List:
Transformational Erickson, Return
Relationships & Roxanna Erickson
Klein, 2006
Crown House Publishing