Motivational Interviewing as a Path to Personal Change. The Essential Workbook for Creating the Life You Want

Almost everyone wants to change a lot in their life. For example: start eating properly, buy a gym membership, sign up for language courses, become more open and confident. These ideals of a well-rounded and successful person are shaped largely by media.

That’s why attempts to start a new life “from Monday,” “from the New Year,” and “on the first day” often end in failure. The problem is that people try to match standards that don’t align with their internal values and ideals—so those standards don’t inspire or motivate them to keep moving forward.

Michel L. Drapkin’s book is devoted to the right way to set goals and carry them out step by step. You’ll try various psychological methods and exercises that will help you understand yourself better and reflect: what does your dream life actually look like? What truly matters to you?

Only after you separate your own ideals from the standards accepted in society will real work begin—changing your life and achieving your goals.

The book is written with the understanding that improving your life isn’t easy. The author writes about complex things concisely and clearly, sharing her experience honestly and with humor. As Michel L. Drapkin says, “The point of motivational counseling is to help us move toward change, build connections with values, and create the life of our dreams.”

What this book is about

The book consists of four parts.

The first, “Engagement,” is designed to help you reconnect with yourself. After reading, you’ll understand why you want change and what benefit it will bring.

After reading the second part, titled “Focusing,” you’ll understand which area of your life needs changes, define specific goals and tasks you must complete to achieve them.

The third part, “Eliciting,” focuses on communication skills. You’ll see how you can use your connections (with friends, colleagues, classmates, and so on) to move toward your own goals.

The fourth part is “Planning.” After reading, you’ll evaluate potential paths for change, choose a starting point, and create a route. These are the final steps that will allow you to begin your journey toward your goals and not lose your way. You’ll learn how to preserve the results you’ve achieved and prepare for what to do when old unwanted behavior patterns resurface again.

Why you should read this book

After reading this book, you will:

— learn more about the scientific method of motivational counseling;

— understand which values are truly important to you, and which ones are imposed by media and society;

— set a goal for yourself and develop a step-by-step plan to achieve it;

— change your attitudes and realize that the life of your dreams is achievable;

— learn methods for maintaining motivation and staying disciplined;

— become more caring and understanding toward yourself.

Who this book is for

This book will be useful for everyone who:

— wants to set and achieve important goals;

— is tired of imposed standards and ideals and wants to live in line with their own values;

— is interested in modern psychological practices and methods.

Why this book was chosen for publication

The highlight of this edition is that it’s devoted to the method of motivational counseling. The essence is that at first there is extensive work with a person’s attitudes. During this process you’ll realize what is truly important for you and which stereotypes and standards are imposed by society and media. And only after this deep, psychotherapeutic work does the development of a step-by-step plan for creating the life of your dreams begin.

“In our joint work, we will deeply analyze your personality and figure out what helps you move forward. What feeds your desire to change? That is exactly what will help you not to stray from this long and difficult path to change.”

Michel L. Drapkin

Author information

Michel L. Drapkin is a PhD candidate, a certified psychologist, and the founder and director of the Center for Cognitive Behavioral Therapy. For more than twenty years she has worked in the field of behavioral sciences. Michel worked in different areas as a behavioral researcher, including managing the development and implementation of behavior-change programs in Johnson & Johnson. She held the position of a motivational counseling (MC) trainer and taught at the University of Pennsylvania. She defended her doctoral dissertation in clinical psychology at Rutgers University in New Jersey. In 2008 she joined the Motivational Interviewing Network of Trainers (MINT) community. She has trained thousands of healthcare professionals and market leaders in the MC methodology.

Key concepts

Motivational counseling, goal setting, achievement, psychotherapy, self-work, self-discovery, mental health, personal change