You will never convince me that God lacks a sense of humor.
Week 5 – the week of no opinions – the week of ‘Being the Observer” – the week of NO OPINIONS [did I already say that?]
Of course, if someone ASKS our opinion, and if we are EXPERTS, then you may offer your opinion. Even then, the questions I have learned to ask to step back from being Opinionated serve me well. AND, simply being an expert does not remove me from being ‘The Opinionator’ when I surrender my perspective as “The Observer”!
This week our clinic has been a Hurricane Patricia in the world of the psyche! We had Sophie’s Choice going on in one family where an unfortunate foster parent [that is a professional opinion] had two Reactive Attachment Disordered children placed with her by a foster care agency whose reputation is more about warehousing children than helping them. Let’s just say the situation there became untenable and one of the children [our client] is being removed from the home. This is a major setback for this kid. I was given the opportunity to step back and ask (1) What ELSE could this mean [other than my irrational and emotionally charged opinion regarding the situation]?, and (2) How can we take what is happening [acceptance] and transform it into a win-win? [Part 5 of the Blue Print Builder]
Another opportunity arose when a psych hospital made a surprise call to a parent informing them of the imminent discharge of their son. This decision on their part mobilized no less than 10 people at 6 agencies to immediately go on RED ZONE ALERT as the carefully constructed treatment plan for him had not been finalized. Today, on day 3, we claim a victory as the strategy for the client is in the implementation phase. I did much better on this one. Actually, no SMACK DOWN of The Opinionator was needed! YEAH!!!!! [Probably as a result of the intensity of the work more so than my enlightened condition……..]
Then, yesterday, a client walked in an asked if we could complete a brand new Comprehensive Clinical Assessment on her and fax it to her disability insurance company today. Well, let’s see…… 90 minutes with the client gathering information followed by 20 hours of writing the report. Sure….. No problem…. Who needs sleep?
My first instinct was to tell her ‘Not my circus. Not my monkeys’. We are delivering the product before 2pm today.
The Master Key Experience is a game changer in my world. The last three days would have been a very different experience 3 years ago when I first worked through the course. For the most part, I lived this week in the eye of Patricia’s Category 5 winds and waves. Three years ago, it would have been more like an air craft carrier sinking straight to deepest depths of the Mariana Trench!
Would love to hear about your experiences regarding opinions, and/or refraining from giving them! Stepping back from the edge is quite an adventure and knowing when to step back and when to jump in makes all the difference in the world!