Instant CE certificate!
BUY MORE, SAVE MORE!
Buy courses for 2
renewal cycles. Complete
some now & some later.
Buy 2 Courses
and Get 25% off
the Total price!
Buy 3 Courses
and Get 30% off
the Total price!
Buy 4 Courses
and Get 35% off
the Total price!

Contact:
info@activityprofessional.com
330.835.5009
(M-F 9:30-9:00 Eastern)
or
Voice Mail: 925-391-0363

 
Questions? 800.667.7745; Voice Mail: 925-391-0363
Email: info@activityprofessional.com
Add To Cart



Section 4
Track #4: How to Get Unstuck from your Problem-Focus


Table of Contents | NCCAP/NCTRC CE Booklet

Get Audio Track: Open a new window with Ctrl N,
Left click audio track to Listen, Right click to "Save..." mp3

Note-Taking Exercise

Write down a different stressor than the one used on the previous tracks.

 

How can asking why be addictive?

 

Question 1. What is my problem/stressor? 

 

How how long have you spent over-analyzing, over dissecting, and over describing your  problem?   How many: Hours?                  Days?                       Weeks?                          Months?

Question 2. Why did this problem happen?

 

Question 3.Whose fault is it?  List everyone you can think of.
How are you at fault?

How are others at fault?

 

Question 4.What other difficulties has or will this problem cause?  List as many as you can think of.

 

 

Transcription of Track 4

Let's review.  You may ask is it ok to be problem focused.  The answer is yes. It's ok to ask yourself the four questions of: what's the problem, why do I have this problem, whose fault is it, and what other difficulties can this problem cause?  However, can you see, after listening to the first three tracks, your continually staying in stress mode and off balance is probably the result of focusing on the problem rather than on the solution

If you listen to these tracks only once you may say to yourself something like, "That was interesting."  However, what I would like you to consider is making a real commitment to play not only tracks one, two, and three of this CD set over and over again, but to pick out the ideas that really feel right for your situation.  Replay those tracks in your car or at home or while you're doing other things in the activity room several times. 

Thus for some by listening to this CD I'm asking you to consider a true core behavior change to truly alleviate stress in your workday at the facility.  In order to do this, as you can see, from what I've just talked about on the first three tracks, you have to reprogram the way you approach your stressors in the facility.  Really knowing the four questions in solution focused thinking will enable you to move more quickly away from problem focused thought patterns to solution focused thought patterns.   Just to review those are:  What do I want more of?   How can I achieve this?  What resources do I have to begin right now?  And what opportunities might this goal generate?

The rest of this track is about getting unstuck and pivoting or turning to the positive, away from awfulizing, away from the ain't it awful problem-focused questions to solution focused positive questions!.

Let's apply the four questions of pivoting away from problem-focused thinking and towards solution-focused thinking to a common stressors for the activity department, that of, getting a CNA to transport residents to activities.   Now if this is not a stressor for you, in you Note-Taking Booklet write down or think of another stressor.  Lets work through the four awfulizing problem-focused questions  and on the next track we will discuss how we can transform them into solution-focused positive actions to reduce stress.

If you recall from tracks one and two the first question in a problem focus is: What is the problem? 

In the case of CNA’s transporting residents, let’s say you are starting to cut the birthday cake for the monthly birthday party and you notice that not one resident from A wing is present. 

Question number two in a problem focused thought pattern, as you know from the first two tracks, is WHY do I have this problem.  However if you recall by asking why, you may erroneously or incorrectly feel that somehow by asking why, you aid yourself in arriving at a how or steps to take to solve your problem.  In this case, “How can I get the CNA's to transport the A wing residents to the Birthday Party?”  So along with your first question of “what is the problem,” you of course follow suit and add your second question of “why is this a problem.”   Why was my e-mail ignored?  Why was my list at the nurses’ station ignored?  However, asking why unfortunately leads to the blame game.

The third question which, as you recall from track two and three, involves the blame game.  In other words when you are problem rather than solution focused you ask, “Who is to blame?”  

Well you may blame yourself.  “If only I had written the residents’ names down on a note at the nurses station large or sent an e-mail earlier or later.”  Or…. if only what? You fill in what you would say in your version of this blame game regarding transportation of residents to a group activity.  How are you at fault?

If you haven't increased your stress enough by blaming yourself, you might blame others.  Who else can you blame for the residents not being transported.?  The CNA’s, of course?  The charge nurse?  The Director of Nursing? 

So after embellishing upon what the problem is, why do you have this problem, who is to blame, the fourth question in your problem focused thinking is,  “What other difficulties can or will this problem cause?”  So now you have a perfect opportunity to generalize.  You might start to think, “No residents on A wing will ever be transported to any group activity!  Nothing I have done to get residents transported has worked!”

Or you might start to think… What makes this a problem in your mind is you know that certain residents on A wing would benefit from the mental stimulation of attending this group activity.  So your self-talk sound something like this, “These residents do not have their quality of life improved for this brief period of time during the birthday party, because they are still sitting back in their rooms!  For Harold and Millie who are mentally alert enough they have actually been waiting in their rooms to go to the Birthday Party!” 

Do you see how your all-or-nothing thinking catastrophic thinking regarding “What other difficulties will this problem cause” increases you stress level?

When you here the musical tone write or think about how you have become stuck in problem focused thinking regarding CNA’s transporting or another stressor.  If self-honesty is a short coming of yours this may be a challenge admitting specifically that at times you are less than perfect.  MUSIC

(smiling) Boy! I feel stressed just narrating this track. However, you will be glad to know the next track will discuss how to “Pivot to the Positive” and apply solution focused thinking to the challenge, many activity department experience, that of resident transportation to activities.


NCCAP/NCTRC CE Booklet
Forward to Track 5
Back to Track 3

Table of Contents
Top