First let me say Metaphors of Movement isn’t a therapy per se. It isn’t outcome driven, by this I mean it doesn’t relieve or fix an emotional or behavioural problem. What it can do is reveal what behaviours, beliefs and values you hold, often at a subconscious level and indicate how these are holding you back in your life, relationships, career or business. Then armed with this new revalatory information you are in a much better position to make informed decisions in your life.
The language we as human beings use is infused with metaphor, idioms and cultural archetypes going back millenia and this amazing body of work developed by Andrew Austin allows us to extract an amazing amount of information from a seemingly simple drawing that the client reveals to the practitioner.
Through conversation the practitioner will pick up on linguistic clues and will ask the client “What’s that like?” Innocuous enough but this is where the fun begins, you see the client has to explain what the situation they are in, in the metaphor, is like. Not what it feels like but what is the metaphor like so I can draw a picture? Note I can’t draw feelings! Then when we have the metaphor, everyday sayings and idioms are applied to it. It is amazing how powerful this work is at shifting thinking patterns, revealing values and why the client is where they are at this moment in their life.
The client is often left with a lot more questions than answers, a lot to think about. Thus the process has begun!
I’ve just finished working my way through levels 4 and 5 which are based around Business and Money metaphors and my poor little brain is on overload but in a good way!
You can find out more about Metaphors of Movement by going to http://www.metaphorsofmovement.com and you are more than welcome to contact me for a MoM session to find out – “What’s That Like?”
Rob Brennan Coaching and Therapy 