Deliberate Practice in Career Counseling

Deliberate practice exercises help trainees achieve competence in essential career counseling skills and apply them in a variety of contexts while honing their own personal style. These exercises present role-playing scenarios in which two trainees act as a client and a counselor, switching back and forth under the guidance of a supervisor. The counselor improvises appropriate and authentic responses to client statements organized into three difficulty levels—beginner, intermediate, and advanced. Each of the first 10 exercises focuses on a single skill, which include exploring your client's skills, values, decision-making styles, and cultural and family influences; setting goals; and providing feedback on career assessments and analyzing their underlying themes. Two comprehensive exercises follow in which trainees integrate these essential skills into a single session. Step-by-step instructions guide participants through the exercises, identify criteria for mastering the skills, and explain how to monitor and adjust difficulty. Guidelines to help trainers and trainees get the most out of training are also provided.