The Rationale for Pursuit of Counseling Degree - Essay Example

RUNNING HEAD: Self-Analysis Paper Self-Analysis Paper: Rationale for the Pursuit of Counseling Degree and Practical Applications BY YOU YOUR ACADEMICORGANIZATION HERE YOUR TUTOR HERE DATE HERE Self-Analysis Paper Rationale for Pursuit of Counseling Degree One of the most common responses from individuals pursuing a counseling degree likely involves the desire to help people and make a difference. These goals are highly important as the very nature of counseling is to help others to adjust to difficult life situations or to simply achieve the maximum potential possible in personal living. However, from a personal perspective, counseling is far more than simply making a difference, it is about taking an individual who is unable to adjust to various social or lifestyle situations and offering them the mental capacity to succeed in a multitude of living situations. It is a relatively common understanding that adjustment to society is different for each individual and, based on each person’s unique life experiences, people have created different coping mechanisms to deal with complicated life events or situations. With the aforementioned in mind, the pursuit of a counseling degree seeks to satisfy a personal need to take an individual who is confused, frustrated, concerned or otherwise unable to cope and help them to rationalize the specific reasons as to why others in society behave the way they do or why the individual requiring counseling should learn self-reflection to achieve their maximum capabilities. The end result of both casual and intensive counseling will only serve to provide society with a well-adjusted individual who is able to contribute successfully in areas of business, marriage, academics or in general society as a whole. Being able to take an individual who is experiencing life difficulties and assist them to become a well-rounded and thoughtful person is the very nature of counseling and is the largest rationale for the pursuit of this degree. From many viewpoints, this is the very nature of counseling: To create positive relationships and establish, within the individual, a sense of self-understanding which helps them to achieve in a variety of situations. This is what making a difference is truly all about. Comparison of personal vs “ideal” characteristics According to McCarthy and Leierer (2001), an ideal counselor consists of an individual who is dedicated to serving the public welfare and is willing to create deep, meaningful relationships with people who require a helping hand. Additionally, an ideal counselor maintains nurturing traits which involves a wide variety of listening skills, mature and thoughtful discussion, and remains focused on dedicating time and resources to a single individual in the pursuit of assisting in their own self-development. The very nature of seeking this counseling degree indicates that many of my personality characteristics are fitting for this role, based on what is considered ideal counselor attributes. Serving the public welfare is all part of making a large-scale difference in society and none of this can be accomplished without having the social skills necessary to create positive relationships with those pursuing counseling and similar treatment. I view myself as an individual who can easily shed personal stereotypes and focus less on visual observation of the person’s social status or race and recognize that the individual, deep down, is a human being with a wide variety of psychological needs and values. In order to be a professional counselor, and create the necessary relationships called for in the role of counselor, this represents a mature attitude and a more contemporary viewpoint regarding the overall value of human beings. Robert Cormany, the executive director for the Pennsylvania School Counselor Association, suggests that an ideal counselor characteristic is to “understand why others do what they do and think the way they do (which) takes precedence over all other characteristics” (Education World, 2005, para.15). It is further suggested that without this understanding, all other skills, knowledge and techniques are rendered absolutely useless (Education World). This represents that an ideal counselor must have a considerable volume of knowledge related to aspects of human behavior, including human needs related to security, belonging, love and devotion, safety and the mutual receipt of quality human interaction on a broad scale. These fundamental aspects of human behaviors are essentially what link all members of society together and each counseling session, it appears, should be approached with this knowledge and understanding on the forefront of the counselor’s consciousness. I believe that my current skill-set and knowledge related to human behavior and psychology is appropriate for fulfilling the theoretical role of counselor in a wide variety of potential environments, either academic, clinical or rehabilitative, and in a professional mental health environment. For example, under Abraham Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs Model, involving the transition from most basic needs to becoming a person’s ideal self (Morris and Maisto, 2005), I recognize that most individuals are primarily concerned with the fulfillment of physiological needs and cannot develop further as a capable human being until these needs are met. Therefore, in a counseling setting, an individual who, based on poor life circumstances, should be handled with this methodology in mind prior to seeking an active counseling technique. It would be ineffective to approach this individual based on the pursuit of building self-esteem if their physiological needs are standing in the way of self-development; as one example. Therefore, a professional and knowledgeable counselor would seek to explore potential alternatives to assist in creating a better lifestyle for the patient, such as seeking adequate governmental support or tuition-based academic programs, which may actually be what’s at the root of their inability to cope with society’s demands. Referring back to the notion of understanding, foremost as a counselor, what drives people to do what they do, it is also important to recognize that a sound counselor understands human motivations. A person who has been dealing with anti-social behaviors or excessive criminal acts may simply be a product of not having their physiological needs met. In this environment, a counselor builds trust with the counseling patient and attempts to get them to realize that all of their behaviors are based on poor living conditions or, perhaps, the frustrations associated with a non-nurturing caregiver in their past which has caused difficulty in developing a positive view of the self. A mature and thoughtful counselor will recognize these patterns relatively quickly through a series of counseling sessions and will provide the correct balance of treatment with assistance to build a trusting and rewarding relationship between the counselor and the individual seeking guidance. How Personal Personality Traits will Affect Counseling Methods Before a successful counselor can create the necessary relationships to build trust with individuals seeking guidance, they must have a deep understanding of their own personality. By nature, I am a person who deeply cares about the value of human beings and legitimately finds personal enrichment in helping others to succeed. At the same time, I am a very outgoing person (extroverted) who, I have found through experience, is able to capture the attention of others in a variety of social situations by having a unique ability to adjust to different social environments. These personality characteristics will be highly influential in the role of counselor as having a warm and magnetic personality will draw others to listen effectively to what is being said or suggested by the counselor and build instant relationships based on trust and mutual respect. One of the main goals of a counselor is to get patients to be cooperative and communicative, therefore this aspect of personality will be a significant advantage during a multitude of counseling sessions. Having this type of personality also will assist in many different techniques toward counseling including sponsoring, involving the offering positive patient perceptions of protection, support and self-promotion (Lazovsky and Shimoni, 2007). My overall values on the worth of human beings will also provide those seeking guidance with encouragement to affirm their self-value and inspire them to become all that they can be (self-actualization). Having the extroverted personality constructs will also provide a befriending atmosphere in which the patient can relate and view the counselor not as a psychologist but as an equal who legitimately wants to see the patient succeed. I believe that there are many positive benefits to having a magnetic, social personality design which will make the process of gaining patient trust much easier simply through communication, humor, and mutual respect. I also believe, through both education and life experiences, that I am close to reaching my own self-actualization in terms of goal achievement, the ability to develop positive social relationships, and the view of the importance of helping others to succeed. Many of the theoretical defense mechanisms used by individuals without this ability for self-reflection, such as denial, projection, regression, or intellectualization (as a few relevant examples), can be detrimental to positive adjustment in society. For adults who use these tactics, poor business relationships or marital situations can occur which leave the individual more frustrated. Having my own goals of self-actualization and ensuring that I behave according to counseling standards and best practices will help me to assist others in realizing that they are using these defense mechanisms and use my positive personality traits to help them identify the root of why they are being used. For example, an individual who simply cannot form positive peer relationships and consistently intellectualizes the situation rather than realizing that the fault is actually her own, would benefit from a blend of acceptance, self-esteem development, and perhaps even a rather stern admittance (to the individual) that growth and maturity is called for. However, this particular form of guidance would not be effective until the patient has developed trust and respect for the counselor. Hence, with my skills and personality I believe that counseling should be structured uniquely for each person and their own current capabilities to adjust in a variety of social situations. Functional Transferrable Skills It is not only just education and knowledge which makes skills functional and transferrable, in a variety of professional environments, it is also understanding the tangible strengths and weaknesses inside a person to determine how to be the best fit for different professional settings. Though I believe that I am quite functional in many aspects of counseling theory and generic academic learning, such as human psychology, I also realize my own limitations and personal values which may or may not be appropriate for all counseling environments. The notion of functional transferrable skills represents a complete blend of all aspects of experience, including education, skills, inherent abilities, personal values and beliefs, and long-term goals. As one example, I am not necessarily proficient in spatial relationships, therefore it would be unrealistic for me to pursue a counseling role in an environment which required the significant provision of spatial testing and analysis. However, I believe myself to be highly proficient in the use of the English language related to grammar and syntax, therefore this functional transferrable skill would be highly beneficial in an environment where the production of complex assessment and analysis reports were required. A counseling environment demanding these skills would benefit highly from my functional skills and I would also be maximizing my own talents in the process, leading to personal enrichment in the job role. Fortunately, in the role of counselor, having the ability to identify one’s weaknesses and work to revamp them into more positive behaviors is the very essence of counseling. My inherent beliefs and values regarding human value are also highly transferrable in a wide variety of professional environments and would be an asset to virtually any facility requiring an active counselor who can blend personality with empathy. It would seem to me that an individual who is not necessarily satisfied by routine social interaction, as one example, would not have the functional transferrable skills necessary to achieve long-term success as a counselor. Hypothetical Postgraduate Counseling Environment The postgraduate environment I visualize as a new counselor is one within a mental health facility, catering to a wide variety of both cognitive-based problems, social, marital and relationship counseling. In this environment, I would be exposed to people of widely-varying socio-economic backgrounds, ages, religious backgrounds, educations, and varying degrees of professional experience. In this role, I will be dealing with problems ranging from theft and anti-social behaviors, maladjusted individuals with regressive tendencies, or just the generic housewife having problems with a difficult or abusive spouse. In this role, my first and foremost professional duty is to eliminate personal stereotypes and create a warm and anxiety-free environment for open discussion of what is frustrating or concerning the individual seeking counseling. In this environment, there will likely also be non-cooperative patients who have been sent to the facility by court order (or other legislative demands), making each counseling situation unique and demanding its own structured approach to counseling. In this environment, with such a broad scope of human behavioral and psychological problems, it is likely that one responsibility will be to create detailed patient profiles which clearly illustrate the nature of what is driving the individual to seek counseling for other professionals’ review. This type of counseling role would require a blend of professionalism and a strict eye of detail while, from the patients’ perspectives, requires a flexible and adaptive personality which seeks diligently to get to the root of what is driving maladjusted or socially-unacceptable actions. In this hypothetical mental health facility, I would be required to participate in active listening, paying close attention to patient cues which give thoughtful insight into the scope of their problems. Through verbal interaction, a variety of patients may subconsciously indicate the nature of their individual frustrations and, through the experience offered by working with such a wide variety of personalities and problems, will assist me in identifying these problems and developing an appropriate, systematic treatment methodology. For example, a regressive personality which reverts to childlike behavior in the face of authoritarianism may need the counselor to, initially, approach the patient much like a child by reinforcing certain issues like mutual respect for others or pointing out the importance of the subtleties of positive social interaction. A well-educated professional, on the other hand, with thoughts of suicide or other self-harm might well have long-standing problems with self-esteem, therefore establishing that the person does, indeed, have value would be the actions of a responsible counselor in this setting. It is also likely, as a counselor in this mental health facility, that interactions with other peers in this environment would be routine, offering different counselors the ability to gain insight from the experiences of others and apply these lessons to difficult counseling patients. This will require a very collaborative and professional attitude whereby the pursuit of continued learning about various successes and failures can be discussed and alternative treatment plans outlined to avoid future misdiagnoses or counseling errors. It may even be required to attend various court sessions, when appropriate, as a representative for a troubled individual to offer professional testimony as to the perceived probability of success through counseling as a patient advocate. This, again, will require exceedingly-large volumes of professionalism and the ability to adjust to intimidating or otherwise anxiety-building environments. References Education World. (2005). ‘School Counselors Reflective on What Makes them Effective’. Curriculum Article. http://www.education-world.com/a_curr/curr198.shtml. Retrieved 10 Mar 2008. Lazovsky, R. and Shimoni, A. (2007). ‘The On-Site Mentor of Counseling Interns: Perceptions of Ideal Role and Actual Role Performance’, Journal of Counseling and Development. Alexandria. 85(3): 303-315. McCarthy, H. and Leierer, S. (2001). ‘Consumer concepts of ideal characteristics and minimum qualifications for rehabilitation counselors’, Rehabilitation Counseling Bulletin. Washington, 45(1): 12-24. www.proquest.com. Retrieved 10 Mar 2008. Morris, C. and Maisto, A. (2005). Psychology: An Introduction. 12th ed. Upper Saddle River, NJ, Pearson Prentice Hall: 348-349. Read More