Solution-focused therapy / SFB-A12-1
Specific Compliments by Consent — Concept brief
Understand the idea behind specific compliments by consent and consider whether it fits your context.
8 minutes · Handout · Adults; supported use as appropriate
Fictional example: Devin kept a boundary during a busy week but does not want to be called strong.
Use an ordinary or fictional example, with a clinician when appropriate. Acknowledgment is most useful when accurate and acceptable to the recipient.
The idea
Acknowledgment is most useful when accurate and acceptable to the recipient.
An ordinary example
Devin kept a boundary during a busy week but does not want to be called strong.
What this can look like
Identify an observable effort and ask whether acknowledging it fits the person's experience.
Check the fit
What kind of acknowledgment feels respectful? You may disagree with the framing, use fiction, or decide that this approach is not useful today.
A useful distinction
A preferred future can include advocacy, accommodations, and external change; optimism is not required.
Prompts for this resource
- What part of this idea makes sense to me?
- What kind of acknowledgment feels respectful?
Conceptual background
What is Solution-Focused Therapy? — Solution-Focused Therapy Institute
Background on the approach only. Original exercises and wording are by More Than Therapy with AI assistance; the source does not validate or endorse these materials.