In this post, I continue my series of Q & A from students.
Question: What was your most embarrassing moment as a counselor?
Answer: This isn’t my most embarrassing moment, but I think it might be more helpful to give you an example of what is more likely to happen to you. Just recently, I went out into the waiting room to greet my next client, whom (I believed) I had never met before. I handed him paperwork, calling him by his first name. He looked at me a bit strangely but didn’t say anything. I went back into my office to wait, took another peek at my calendar and realized I had mixed up my clients! No wonder he had looked at me strangely. So I immediately went back out to the waiting area to apologize and gave him an extra five or ten minutes in his session to help compensate for the inconvenience.
Another common mistake is double-booking people. Although I am very organized, I have done this once or twice, particularly when I used to do this manually. The last time it happened was about four years ago. I had to tell the second client that showed up to go home, which was about a half-hour away. Of course I apologized profusely, offered to stay later that day to try to accommodate her schedule, and gave her the next session free. At that point, I can’t split myself in two so there really isn’t anything else I can do.
So, what I have learned is to take responsibility, apologize sincerely, and do something that helps to make it right.
Question: What do you do when a client sends you a friend request on social media?
Answer: It depends on which platform we are talking about.
Facebook: I explain to them (preferably in person, but if I’m no longer seeing them I will type a private message) that my Facebook profile is for my family and friends, but they are welcome to connect with me on my Facebook business page. I then make sure to keep the two very separate; I NEVER post personal information on my business page, and I avoid posting business stuff on my personal page. I even make sure the profile pictures are different. I also have some verbiage included in my intake paperwork that explains my social media policy. Since I have included it, I have not had an issue with clients attempting to friend me.
Twitter: The public nature of the platform makes this question moot. However, my Twitter is business-only. I never post personal things on a public platform.
LinkedIn: My policy here is sort of a cross between Facebook and Twitter. Because the nature of LinkedIn is business-oriented, and the nature of the connection is very superficial, I would not prohibit clients from adding me as a connection. (But I would NEVER initiate such a connection as it could be considered exploitative.) However, a few years ago after taking a LinkedIn training class I decided my strategy for this platform would be to connect with as many professionals who serve the same population. So, this would include doctors, other therapists, coaches, pastoral counselors, and other health-oriented professions. With this strategy, clients are only accepted into my network if they fall under one of these categories.
Yours in the Joy of Knowledge,
Dr. Barbara LoFrisco
