Effective Motivational Strategies.

There are eight general motivational strategies.

Giving advice. Well-timed and tempered advice to change can make a difference. Advice should (1) clearly identify the problem or risk area, (2) explain why change is important, and (3) advocate specific change. Removing barriers. Address blocks to change, such as resistance to go to AA meetings. Providing choice. Few people like to be told what to do. Intrinsic motivation is enhanced by the perception that one has freely chosen.

Decreasing desirability. Weigh the benefits and costs of change against the merits of continuing as before. Practicing empathy. This kind of empathy is not an ability to identify with a person's experiences. Rather, it is a specifiable and learnable skill for understanding another's meaning through the use of reflective listening, whether or not you have had a similar experience yourself. Providing feedback. Clarifying goals. Help the client to restate the goal in realistic or attainable terms. Helping active. Express actively and affirmatively your interest in your client's change process. Motivational interviewing is a nondirective approach.