Deliberate practice in emotionally focused therapy

Intentional practice is an integral component of the standard training for EFT therapists. Purposeful, conscious work on all the skills described in the book helps to always keep them ready and apply them at the first opportunity. Intentional practice contributes to integrating basic EFT skills into the repertoire of habitual therapeutic interventions, allowing therapists to automatically turn to them in response to any, even the most complex challenges. The reactions discussed in this book are designed to expand the perceptual abilities of EFT therapists, used for instant and precise responses to client statements, including empathetic inquiries and assumptions that provide a deeper experience for the client on the path to emotional transformation. The intentional practice exercises presented in this brief therapeutic guide are aimed at improving the core skills of emotionally focused therapy (EFT) and acquiring abilities that enable confident and effective work with a wide range of clients. Each exercise is a separate role-playing game in which problems and tasks that pose the greatest difficulties for EFT therapists are played out. The exercises are designed to meet the needs of learners at any level of qualification. When performed under the guidance of a teacher or supervisor, they help develop one's own therapeutic style and undergo practical training without interacting with real clients. Intentional practice is a strict, scientifically based training method used in various fields, involving skill development and the application of simulation-based learning methods. The goal of intentional preparation is to make learners competent in the core skills of emotionally focused therapy that they have successfully studied but struggle to apply in their own practice.