Ending Sessions On Time

Do you struggle to end your sessions on time? In this post, I’ll share some tips that could be helpful.

Why It’s Important

Unless you have a client in crisis, or have started the session late for your own reasons, it’s good practice to end your sessions on time. Ending sessions late is a problem because:

1. You are modeling poor boundaries.
2. It’s unprofessional and can send the message that you are disorganized.
3. Therapy time is valuable and should be respected by both yourself and the client. If you routinely run over, then you may send the message that you don’t value the therapy process. If you don’t value it why should they?
4. You are also training the client that it is OK to disrespect you and your time.
5. You lose money (unless you charge for the extra time.)
6. It isn’t fair to keep the next client waiting. After all, their time is valuable too.

Yet, we still struggle. We’ve been trained to be empathetic listeners, not timekeepers. What we need to do is strike a balance. Here are some suggestions:

• Because the first session sets an implicit contract, begin gently but firmly enforcing time limits right from the start.
• Don’t forget your paraphrasing, summarization and interruption skills. This sends the message to the client that you, not they, are in control of structure.
• Start wrapping up about 10 – 15 minutes before session ending time. This generally includes a broad summary of session content, and can also include questions such as, “What did you get out of today’s session?”
• Warn the client when they have 5 – 10 minutes left in the session. For more talkative clients, or clients who linger, give more notice.
• Try to handle housekeeping tasks, like collecting money and scheduling, outside session time. There are many software products that can assist with automating these tasks.
• If a client drops a bombshell in the last 5 minutes (commonly known as “doorknob counseling”), then unless they are in immediate crisis explain that this is a very important clinical issue that deserves much more time, therefore it will be discussed at the next session.
• If the client is late, kindly explain that you have other clients scheduled directly afterwards and therefore will still need to end on time.

Remember, in order for us to help people, we must keep our practices running smoothly and profitably.

Yours in the Joy of Knowledge,

Dr. Barb LoFrisco