Want to Be a Guidance Counsellor

Why am I interested in an Adult Guidance Course

Perhaps, to gain an insight on why? I should look at what has led me to this career path in the first place. Having worked in a Pharmacy setting for 18yrs, my latter role in a methadone community day treatment pharmacy programme, I returned to Adult Education in 2002 and studied Addiction, enjoyed the experience in its entirety and enjoyed working with people. It challenged my value system and beliefs, and gave me knowledge of myself as a person, which was insightful in working with others. My return to education has been a positive experience, has opened up new ways of working with people, and is a “work in progress”. I have worked in a variety of addiction settings in the greater Dublin area (including male day and residential treatment programmes) and the premise of “where a client is at” and “where they want to be” is similar in different work remits including Addiction, Counsellors, and Adult Guidance.

Presently, I work in an Adult Guidance capacity in my role as Training & Employment Officer in the Midlands Complex. The clients that are referred to the service, for advice and support on pre-post release options. Some of the initial contact is in a Prison setting, and a goal setting contract is undertaken by both parties on this co-journey. The guidance process of “where one is at” and “where they want to be” is an immense personal journey for the client, and a privledged one for the practitioner. There are a variety of issues both personal and professional that need to be addressed and overcome, and a strong commitment to continue the process. My core belief in working with people has remained the same in my own learning journey, that in working with individuals that if a good working , trusting relationship is established , the person will “buy into” whatever service you have to offer, e.g. Teacher, Training & Employment Officer , or Key Worker, however, I have learned how to develop a practice structure, awareness of myself and the individual in the relationship, and continue to grow and learn more about myself in the process and “WHO AM I”.
My three day “inititiation”on the Adult Guidance & Counselling course has reinforced that I am where I should be at this stage in my educational development and voyage of self discovery. The Group Work session in particular, and how our group” formed” in the early stages , was interesting to study and to be part of . So many questions and “self talk” on the first introduction. Where? Who will I fit in with? Will I make it easier for myself and fit in where I am most comfortable? I had a sense of belonging, shared identity, and a common goal. I am a part of this unique group for 8 months, what am I going to do to make our group feel , and operate like a functioning group, embrace the tasks that are set, and fulfil our sense of identity. Oh! I am going to love this, and intend to participate in all tasks as positively as possible. Will my tutor assess how I participate? E.G. what roles have I adopted in the group? Problems that occurred and were resolved, and how did I contribute to this. Another advantage I believe in group work is that it offers social support (I have already identified possible friendships and exchanged contact numbers) that can sometimes be isolating when working on one’s own.
My personality lends itself to taking on a leadership role, I am an extrovert, and can ( if my awareness levels are lowered) drive the group dynamic. I consciously (and for my own learning) adopted a quieter role, disclosing little in the first few days, and allowing others to lead. How was this for me? What have I learned about myself from adopting this stance? What did it tell me about hoe I should approach group work in general? Was I happy in this role? There are a lot of questions to reflect on, however I learned I can be SILENT, and I did not find it uncomfortable , and it fine tuned my listening skills , I perhaps would not have learned as much about my fellow students. Perhaps, I need to experiment more with different roles, that will develop different aspects of my personality, this is a good learning. I am sure that this is going to be a positive, supportive, and interactive learning experience, especially if I am open to that learning

My hope is that with participating on this course , will give me an increased confidence in my professional ability, and I look forward to getting to know “Babs” and who she is on a deeper level, and therefore a deeper understanding of people and their own unique “stories”, what that means for them from a career guidance perspective. If I am successful in attaining this qualification, I hope it provides me with better insight, awareness, and structure in my client work. I have enjoyed the “ Group Work “ module particularly , and am I hope it will allow me to appreciate “Group Dynamics “and be more sensitive and open to others ! I loved the first session, and growing in excitement for October and the next one. My passion for learning has not waned after my initiation to the course in October (although it was a daunting few days), indeed it has grown. This will be an interesting year, and the challenge of a new venture, to gain insight as a worker, forging new friendships with the other students, and the experience and knowledge of the facilitators! BRING IT ON!

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